Daily Briefing: When 'Lunch is Just a Lunch'

•53% disapprove ofBushin WP-ABC poll. Two-thirds complain about gas prices and a majority think the administration can reduce them, painting "a portrait of national frustration with the direction and leadership of the country, which, if not reversed in coming months, is likely to color the environment for next year's midterm elections, putting incumbents in both parties on the defensive." 52% thinkBushshould meet withSheehan; Democrats and independents are disappointed by their leaders. [ WP ]

• Reaganlibrary finds thousands ofRoberts-related documents; officials rush to sort them out before next week's confirmation hearings. [ NYT , LAT ]

• Bushdecides to tap oil reserves; returns to Washington to orchestrate response to Hurricane Katrina. [ WP , WP ]

•Oil prices likely to pass $3 a gallon this weekend. [ WP ]

•Incomes have not grown in five years and the poverty rate has increased to 12.7%, the Census Bureau reports. [ NYT ]

• Bushcompares Iraq war to WWII: "They will fail, because the terrorists of our century are making the same mistake that the followers of totalitarian ideology made in the last century. They believe that democracies are inherently weak and corrupt and can be brought to their knees." [ WP ]

•Administration has drafted rules that weaken environmental oversight for power plants, allowing for the release of more pollution. [ WP ]

•Religious gap widens: 29% in Pew survey say Democrats are "generally friendly" toward religion, down from 42% in 2003; 64% open to idea of teaching intelligent design. [ NYT , WP ]

•White House advisors are debating whether to cap major tax deductions and exclusions. [ WSJ ]

•GOP strategists say California can be won --as early as '08-- by the right presidential candidate. [ LAT ]

•71 liberal advocacy groups join to denounceRoberts. [ WP ]

•China'sPresident Huis irked that his meeting withBushwill not be an official state affair; White House flack says "the lunch is just a lunch." [ WSJ ]

• Richard Clarkedisturbed by rising number of terrorist attacks related to Iraq. [ WP ]

•Administration launches justthinktwice.com to curb meth use. [ WP ]

• Jesse Helmssays he's "not the least bit racist." [ NYT ]

•Club for Growth and the Free Enterprise Fund squabbling and imploding. [ WP ]