CNN Political Ticker, AM

Compiled by Lindsey Pope, Lauren Kornreich, and Mark Preston
CNN Washington Bureau

Making News Today…

* Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, delivers a major speech on healthcare today, but former Sen. John Edwards will seek to dominate the headlines with a bold new initiative, CNN’s Candy Crowley reports from Iowa. Edwards, who has already put out a detailed healthcare plan, will tell the Laborers’ International Union of North America that if elected president he will offer legislation to cut off healthcare coverage for himself, Congress and all political appointees in mid-2009 unless a universal healthcare plan has been enacted. Edwards, who has said that a tax increase will be needed to pay for his plan, has been critical of his Democratic rivals saying that they are not being honest about the cost of their own plans. Clinton also addresses the union today.

CNN's Sasha Johnson and Crowley report that Clinton’s plan will include among other things: a requirement that all Americans have health insurance, establish federal subsidies to people who cannot afford insurance, and a requirement that insurance companies sell insurance to any applicant and prohibit them from charging sick people more money.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will hold an early morning New York event to criticize Clinton’s plan.

* The hunt for a new head of the Justice Department is over, CNN’s John King reports. Former federal judge Michael Mukasey has accepted President Bush’s offer to replace Alberto Gonzales as U.S. attorney general. Bush is likely to announce today that Mukasey is his nominee.   Full Story

* Most of the Democratic presidential hopefuls appear before two union audiences today as the candidates seek to woo one of the most important constituencies in their party. The SEIU’s Member Political Action Conference meets at the Washington Hilton. In addition to hearing from the Democratic candidates, “Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger will present SEIU’s plan for electing a pro-worker president in 2008,” according to an SEIU news release. Full schedule

Meanwhile, some 700 miles west of the nation’s capital, the Laborers’ International Union of North America gathers in the Windy City. To see the schedule in Chicago today as well as a webcast of the speeches.  Full Story

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Political Hot Topics
(Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country)

WH FAVORITE FOR AG SEEN AS "VERY POLITICAL": With President Bush settled on naming Michael B. Mukasey to replace former attorney general Alberto R. Gonzales, and intending to announce his choice as early as today, the man favored by many for the job has instead been passed over. Washington Post: On the Path to Attorney general, Olson Runs into a Roadblock

OFFICIAL: U.S. HAS FAILED TO FAILED TO CARRY OUT PENALTIES TO COMPANY'S RELATED TO IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM: In the six months since the United Nations Security Council acted to freeze the assets and curb the overseas travel of Iranian officials, including members of the Revolutionary Guards, an embarrassing snag has occurred: the United States lacks passport numbers and other data to go after most of the people listed. New York Times: Lack of ID Data Impedes U.N. Sanctions Against Iran

GATES TO OPPOSE SENATE TROOP PLAN: Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said he would advise President Bush to veto a Senate proposal that would effectively force a major drawdown of American forces in Iraq. Washington Times: Gates: Veto Senate Plan on Troops

CROCKER MEMO SAYS GOVERNMENTS RESPONSE TO IRAQI REFUGEES "HALTED": The U.S. ambassador to Iraq warned that it may take the U.S. government as long as two years to process and admit nearly 10,000 Iraqi refugees referred by the United Nations for resettlement to the United States, because of bureaucratic bottlenecks. Washington Post: Crocker Blasts Refugee Process

GROUP SAYS "BETRAY US" AD AN ILLEGAL DONATION: The American Conservative Union has complained to the feds that The New York Times' alleged discount to MoveOn.org for its contentious "General Betray Us" ad amounted to an illegal corporate contribution to a political committee. New York Post: $ign of the Times

CHENEY: IF YOU DON’T WANT YOUR MEMOS TO GET YOU IN TROUBLE SOME DAY, JUST DON’T WRITE ANY”: Anyone awaiting an anthology of Vice President Dick Cheney’s papers might be in for a disappointment. Speaking on Friday at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum in Grand Rapids, Mich., Cheney said…“researchers like to come and dig through my files, to see if anything interesting turns up.” DC Examiner Yeas and Nays: Cheney Writes No Memos

SOME WORRY TOO MANY BILLS PASSED WITHOUT PROPER DISCUSSION: Senate conservatives are upset that the leaders of both parties in the chamber have in recent years increasingly used a practice known as “hotlining” bills — previously used to quickly move noncontroversial bills or simple procedural motions — to pass complex and often costly legislation, in some cases with little or no public debate. Roll Call: "Hotlined" Bills Spark Concern

HEALTH CARE COMPROMISE WOULD INCREASE TABACCO TAXES: Senate and House negotiators said Sunday that they had agreed on a framework for a compromise bill that would provide health insurance to four million uninsured children while relaxing some of the limits on eligibility imposed by the Bush administration. New York Times: Compromise on Health Care Bill Sets Stage for Veto

CONGRESS TACKLES IMMIGRATION ISSUE AGAIN: Three months after Congress failed to pass a broad immigration overhaul, lawmakers are quietly returning to the hot-button issue, discussing narrower measures that address illegal immigrants and low-skilled laborers. LA Times: Congress Quietly Returns to Immigration

DUNCAN HUNTER, "IF YOU GET OVER MY FENCE, WE SIGN YOU UP FOR THE OLYMPICS IMMEDIATELY.": The battered ribbon of carbon-steel and wire-mesh fencing has divided much of this city from Mexico for more than a decade. It helped inspire the Bush administration's plans for more than 700 miles of new fencing along the porous, 2,100-mile southwestern border. USA Today: In the Southwest, Fixing the Fence Never Ends

NAPOLEON DYNAMITE AD SEEKS LEGISLATIVE ASSISTANT WITH "SENSE OF HUMOR": A recent job posting for a legislative assistant position in the office of Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-Fla.) — which included the rather unusual requirement that applicants “know how to cook a delicious bass” and submit recipes attesting to that ability — last week got some chuckles among Hill staffers. Roll Call Heard on the Hill: Vegetarians Need Not Apply

GREENSPAN: "I'M SADDENED BY THE WHOLE POLITICAL PROCESS": Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan spent much of the past 40 years as an influential economic adviser to both Republicans and Democrats, but today feels estranged from both. News coverage of his memoir has focused on his criticism of Republicans for forsaking their small-government principles. But in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Mr. Greenspan expressed just as much dismay with the Democratic Party. WSJ: Grennspan’s Dismay Extends Both Ways

RUMSFELD STARTS TALK ABOUT HIS POS-PENTAGON LIFE: In a rare foray into public debate since stepping down as defense secretary late last year, Donald H. Rumsfeld blasted the recent advertisement by MoveOn.org against Army Gen. David H. Petraeus and decried the current state of political discourse in Washington for its "tendency to try to criminalize public service." Washington Post: Rumsfeld Foundation to Encourage Public Service

UNDER BLOOMBERG NYC BUDGET HITS $60 BILLION: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has promoted himself as a model of fiscal restraint, issuing dire warnings about the slowing economy, recently asking agencies to limit hiring, and even listing “fiscal responsibility” as an interest on his MySpace page. New York Times: Under Bloomberg, Budget and Revenues Swell

BLOOMBERG TO TAKE HIS NEW INDEPENDENT STATUS ABROAD: Mayor Bloomberg, who has crisscrossed the nation talking up his nonpartisan policy-making, is now exporting his independent politics to other countries. NY Sun: Bloomberg Set to Export His Political Brand

"WILL OF PEOPLE" QUESTIONED IN SF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE PROPOSAL: If Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger goes through with his expected veto of San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno's measure to allow same-sex marriage in California, it's almost guaranteed the governor will say he's following "the will of the people." San Francisco Chronicle: "Will of People" Likely Schwarzenegger Manta on Sam-Sex Marriage

WAR IN IRAQ, REASON FOR SHAHEEN'S SENATE RUN: Democrats' efforts to pad their slim Senate majority got a boost Sunday when former New Hampshire governor Jeanne Shaheen announced that she'll challenge Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., next year. USA Toay: Democrats Get Boost in Effort at Senate Gains

FIRST IMPRESSION IS A LASTING IMPRESSION FOR '08ERS: Bonding with voters is a must for presidential candidates in New Hampshire, Iowa, and other early voting states that will set the course of the nomination battle, where people expect to not only meet the contenders in person but develop a sense of the candidate as a human being. Boston Globe: Candidates Ability to Connect with Voters is Everything

BATTLE OF THE '08 BIOS ON WIKIPEDIA: On Sen. John McCain's Wikipedia entry, the argument has been over whether he is a conservative, moderate or liberal Republican… On Wikipedia.org, the write-it-yourself encyclopedia, everyone can be an editor, and every day thousands of them are engaging in fierce battles over the life stories of the 2008 presidential candidates. Washington Post: On Wikipedia, Debating 2008 Hopefuls' Every Facet

GROUP PRESSES CANDIDATES ABOUT GAY RIGHTS AT STEAK FRY: The civil rights group “One Iowa” is on hand at the Harkin Steak Fry today attempting to talk with the six Democratic presidential candidates about the rights of gay, lesbian and transgendered people. Des Moines Register: Steak Fry: Gay Rights Group Questions Candidates

OBAMA'S PERSONAL THINK TANK: Barack Obama's presidential bid may have a well-cultivated insurgent feel, as the candidate both benefits and suffers politically from a relatively thin record of experience in Washington. Chicago Tribune: Obama's Policy Team Loaded With All-Stars 

HRC USES JEWISH HOLIDAY TO TOUT SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL: As she fights for the Democratic presidential nomination against Senator Obama, among other opponents, Senator Clinton is reminding voters of her strongest pro-Israel commitments, including her 1999 vow that Jerusalem be considered the "indivisible eternal capital of Israel." New York Sun: Clinton reminds Voters of Commitment to Israel

DONATELLA VERSACE SAYS SHE WANTS TO DRESS HILLARY: NOTE to Hillary Rodham Clinton – while on the campaign trail please lose the suits, stay far, far away from red – and whatever you do, do not trudge around in thick heels! New York Post: Hey, Hillary: Lighten Up! http://www.nysun.com/article/62739

"MY FRIENDS THINK I'M A POLITICS GEEK.": Kelsey Bogacz enjoys writing, playing soccer, and hanging out with other kids here age. But other 12-year-olds are pretty hard to find where Bogacz most enjoys spending her spare time: at budget committee hearings, school board meetings and political campaign events. New Hampshire Union-Leader:  Seventh-Grader Prefers Politics to Video Games 

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On the Political Radar:

* President Bush is expected to name Michael Mukasey today as his nominee to replace Alberto Gonzales at the Justice Department. In the morning, Bush has a video teleconference with “Iraq Provincial Reconstruction Team Leaders and Brigade Combat Commanders” followed by a meeting with Portugal’s prime minister. Later in the day, Bush has a photo opportunity with the National Spelling Bee Champion.

* Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, delivers a major healthcare speech at the Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines, Iowa this morning. She also addresses the SEIU conference in D.C. and the Laborers’ International Union of North America in Chicago.

* Former Sen. John Edwards appears before the SEIU in DC and the Laborers’ International Union of North America in Chicago.

* Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will hold a press availability in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. this afternoon and later meets with local residents in Tampa, Fla.

* Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, attends a Veterans Appreciation Breakfast and “No Surrender” rally in Aiken, S.C., a “No Surrender” rally in Lexington, S.C., a “No Surrender” rally in Sumter, S.C., and a “No Surrender” rally in Charleston, S.C.

* Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, delivers an economic speech this morning at the NASDAQ Marketsite in New York and then addresses the SEIU in Washington, D.C.

* Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks this morning about Sen. Clinton’s, D-New York, healthcare plan at an event in New York City.

* The Senate Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook

* The House Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook