Daily Briefing: 'The Art of Spending Time in Crawford'
•White House, worried about surprises, delays release of tens of thousands of documents related toRoberts. [ WP ]
•9/11 commission members seek answers after revelation that some hijackers were under surveillance.Lehman: "I think this is a big deal. The issue is whether there was in fact surveillance before 9/11 ofAttaand, if so, why weren't we told about it? Who made the decision not to brief the commission's staff or the commissioners?" [ NYT ]
• Bushuses dead of August to gain ground. Strategist: "They've really perfected the art of spending time in Crawford. They do a good job of driving the agenda every day they're down there. They push the story and keep the people in the other party out of the news." [ WSJ ]
•Recent speech byRobertsoffers indication of his political orientation. [ LAT ]
• Robertsis quizzed byWydenabout end-of-life care.Wyden: "His answer was, 'I am concerned with judicial independence. Congress can prescribe standards, but when Congress starts to act like a court and prescribe particular remedies in particular cases, Congress has overstepped its bounds.'" [ NYT ]
•Democrats intend to play offense with congressional seats; DCCC will support opponents to 50 Republican-held seats. [ LAT ]
•Cultural issues provide advantage for the GOP, reports Democracy Corps study. [ WP ]
•Majority of Americans surveyed by Gallup believebin Ladenis orchestrating a domestic attack. [ USAT ]
• Bushsays Iran's offer to negotiate is a "positive sign." [ WP , USAT ]
• Chertoffdefends DHS on privacy issues. [ USAT ]
•Medicare premiums will be about $5 less than expected. [ NYT ]
•Advocacy groups petition for election reform in Ohio. [ NYT ]