Barack Obama repudiating a comment made by retired General Wesley Clark has not been enough to repel attacks from the John McCain campaign, bloggers find. Obama finally getting a phone call from former President Bill Clinton and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee hiring a President Bush impersonator to attack House Republicans also has bloggers talking Monday.

Clark saying that McCain getting shot down over North Vietnam is not a “qualification to become president” plays to McCain’s strength because it brings the former POW’s resume back into the spotlight, writes Chris Cillizza. Matt Stoeller at Open Left blasts Obama for repudiating Clark’s comment, pointing out that it didn’t stop the GOP attacks and shunned one of the best Democratic surrogates on national security and defense issues.

Obama talking to Clinton about his role in the Democratic Party helps dispel rumors that the former president was reluctant to endorse Obama, Swampland’s Jay Newton-Small writes. The Caucus points out that the purpose of the phone call was to pave the way for the two to eventually campaign together come the fall.

And the DCCC is using a Bush impersonator in a 13-district ad buy to go after incumbent House Republicans, Swing State Projects reports. The blog goes over the list of those targeted and finds the strategy behind the buy is unclear.

FROM THE BLOGS:
Clark's Comments Play to McCain's Strength - The Fix
Obama Throws Clark and MoveOn Under the Bus - Open Left
Military Services Is Patriotism Too - Byron York, The Corner
Clark, Then and Now - Jon Henke, The Next Right
Clark Walks in McCain's Wood Chipper - Firedoglake
DLC Leader Embraces Obama - The Swamp
The Slow Death of the DLC - Taegan Goddard
DCCC Targets 13 House Republicans - Swing State Project
Romney for Veep? Smart Move - race42008
Trouble Ahead for Coleman - Capitol Briefing

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
DCCC Picks Powers - The Hill
McCain Rebuffs Critics - New York Times
Hillaryland at War - Vanity Fair

About one in four Americans can be considered "swing voters," yet undecided or open to changing their minds in the presidential race, a new poll from Gallup/USA Today finds.

Of the 1,310 citizens surveyed June 15-19, the poll found that 23 percent either do not have a preference between Barack Obama and John McCain or may change their support.

According to the poll, six percent say they are undecided, eight percent say they support Obama but could change their minds, and nine percent say they support McCain but could switch before election day in November.

The poll also shows that Obama, who leads McCain in national polling, holds a greater advantage among voters who say they are certain of whom they will vote for. Obama holds a seven percentage point advantage–42 percent to 35 percent–among voters who say they are certain, while he held a two-point advantage–46 percent to 44 percent–in Gallup's daily tracking poll conducted at the same time (June 16, 17, and 19).

U.S. athletes involved in shooting competitions will be able to bring their guns to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, President Bush decreed today.

Bush temporarily lifted part of a ban on weapons exports to China, allowing the athletes to obtain temporary munitions export licenses and legally bring their guns to the games.

The order also applies to television networks, who will now be able to bring mobile high-definition cameras that contain military gyroscopes.

Bush announced his order in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the president of the Senate, Vice President Dick Cheney. See the letter here.

Barack Obama had a "terrific conversation" with former President Bill Clinton Monday, according to his campaign.

"Senator Obama had a terrific conversation with President Clinton and is honored to have his support in this campaign. He has always believed that Bill Clinton is one of this nation’s great leaders and most brilliant minds, and looks forward to seeing him on the campaign trail and receiving his counsel in the months to come," campaign spokesman Bill Burton said.

Obama and the former president had a particularly contentious relationship during the Democratic primary between Obama and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), but the two have been making recent efforts to heal any wounds caused by the extended primary fight.

Clinton released his first statement of support for Obama last Tuesday, though he has not made any joint campaign appearances with the Illinois senator. Sen. Clinton has now made multiple appearances with Obama.

Last week Obama said he "going to need" the both Clintons on the campaign trail and envisions both will be "actively" working on his behalf and to help other Democrats.

Obama called Clinton "one of the most intelligent, charismatic political leaders that we have seen in a generation."

Barack Obama's campaign will begin airing its second television ad of the general election tomorrow in 18 states, the campaign announced today.

The ad focuses on Obama's advocacy for workers. A narrator tells viewers Obama worked his way through college and Harvard law, turned down "big money offers" to work as a community organizer, and went on to advocate tax cuts for workers and welfare-to-work programs.

The 18 states where the ad will air are: Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Virginia.

See the ad below:

Barack Obama has failed to practice what he preaches on equal pay, conservatives charge, while John McCain’s personal tax records is worth examination, liberals note. Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton’s break with the administration over North Korea and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) claim that terrorists will attack the U.S. early in the next president’s term are also topics of the day.

A CNS News story claiming Obama has paid his male Senate staffers more than he has paid women has The Corner’s Kathryn Jean Lopez suggesting the Democratic presidential candidate does not walk the walk on equal pay. Hot Air’s Ed Morrissey charges says Obama should look in the mirror before asking the federal government to examine the private sector for not paying the sexes equally.

McCain has too many properties to keep track of and that could be why he’s not paying his taxes, AMERICABLOG’s Joe Subday jokes while noting that Newsweek recently reported how the McCains had failed to pay taxes on a San Diego condo. The flap, MyDD’s Jonathan Singer notes, will only have moderate effect on the presidential race.

Bolton’s break on North Korea is unconventional, splitting off to the right instead of the middle, RedState’s Moe Lane surmises. Most administration officials who break away do so by turning moderate, but Bolton upped his stock for a cabinet post in a new administration by criticizing President Bush’s lifting of sanctions, Lane determines. Bolton was right as Bush has lifted sanctions without any reason to think North Korea will stop its nuclear program, Michelle Malkin argues.

Why does anyone listen to Joe Lieberman? Firedoglake’s Scarecrow asks after Lieberman claimed terrorists would attack the U.S. early on in a new administration, testing the president’s response. Lieberman’s claim is weak, and his implication that voters should pick McCain for his terrorist credentials is weaker, Matthew Yglesias says.

FROM THE BLOGS:
Does Obama Pay Women Less Than Men? - Ed Morrissey, Hot Air
Is Getting Shot Down a Qualification? - Big Tent Democrat, TalkLeft
Patriotism - Matthew Yglesias
Barack Obama's ACORN Connection - Vladimir, RedState
Confirmed: Wesley Clark Is an Idiot - Michelle Malkin
Take the McCain Residences Tour - Joe Subday, AMERICABLOG
The Learning Tour - Carol Platt Liebau, Townhall.com
The White House & Inconvenient Truth - Living Liberally, Open Left
McCain to Press Obama on Iraq - Marc Ambinder
Clark on McCain - Kevin Drum, Political Animal
WSJ On Obama's Oil Falsehoods - Ed Morrissey, Hot Air
Defending Charlie Black - Barron YoungSmith, The Plank

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
Where False Obama Rumors Fly - Washington Post
Bush Administration Freezing Cuts in Medicare Fees - AP
Oil, Gas Prices Surge - USA Today
Bush Signs Supplemental Spending Bill - The Hill

Barack Obama rejected retired General Wesley Clark's comment regarding John McCain's military service Monday.

"As he's said many times before, Senator Obama honors and respects Senator McCain's service, and of course he rejects yesterday's statement by General Clark," said Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton.

Clark said Sunday on Face the Nation, "I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president."

The John McCain campaign assembled a group of veterans and colleagues familiar with the former POWs military service to hit back at what the campaign says is a pattern of attacks from the Barack Obama campaign against McCain's military service.

The group, which the campaign is calling the "McCain Truth Squad," fired back at retired General Wesley Clark after Clark said Sunday on Face the Nation, "I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president."

Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) said he was "utterly shocked" that Clark would attack McCain in such a "disrespectful way." Warner, who knows Clark from his 30 years on the Armed Services committee, said Barack Obama show "poor judgment" in allowing Clark to make the attack against McCain.

Each of the participants in the call said the remark was intended to "denigrate" McCain's service.

Obama campaign rejected Clark's comment Monday. "As he's said many times before, Senator Obama honors and respects Senator McCain's service, and of course he rejects yesterday's statement by General Clark," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.

McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said the attack is part of a pattern from the Obama campaign of attacking McCain's military service.

The move not only followed up on Clark's comment, but also preempted a planned speech from Obama on patriotism.

The Obama campaign has recently felt pressure to beef up the candidate's patriotic profile. Not only does Obama tout his patriotic sentiments in a speech Monday, titled "The American We Love," but the campaign's most recent ad also makes a hard pitch on the Illinois Senator's "heartland" values.

During Monday's conference call, it seemed clear the McCain campaign hopes to keep Obama on his heels on patriotism and among veterans.

GQ.com has profiled Libertarian presidential candidate and former Republican Rep. Bob Barr (Ga.), asking him about the Republican Party, his thoughts on John McCain, and his switch to Libertarian ideals.

Barr tells GQ.com that the GOP doesn't care about issues of substance anymore, and that he's "not sure that anybody can legitimately say that McCain is conservative."

Barr is grilled over his former prominence in the war on drugs, and he tells GQ.com that "having been involved in it, witnessing it, and after a great deal of study, I’ve come to the conclusion that it simply isn’t working and we ought to get the federal government out of it." In 1998 Barr authored an amendment prohibiting D.C. from using taxpayer money to vote on the legalization of drugs.

See the profile here.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) does not see himself becoming majority leader any time soon, painting a bleak picture for his Republican Senate colleagues as they head into November.

"We are not going to be back in the majority in the Senate next year," McConnell said in an interview on CNN. "The numbers make that impossible."

But while McConnell conceded that the GOP holding a majority in the next Senate would be "impossible" the Kentucky Republican, who some suggest is himself vulnerable, said he is "optimistic" that Republicans will not lose many seats.

"We have a robust minority," McConnell said.

The Cook Political Report currently ranks six GOP Senate seats as toss-ups. Republican Senator John Warner's Virginia seat is ranked as likely Democrat.