Breaking Bread Now, Heads Later

The groundwork is being laid for the first meeting between the two party chairmen, longtime Democratic boss Howard Dean and GOP newbie Sen. Mel Martinez. But it's not just to gab over a cup of Starbucks.

Both sides want to make sure that the other won't let states hold primaries before New Hampshire's first. We hear that the GOP will activate a rule to punish state parties if they do by slashing their number of delegates at the nominating convention in half. The Democrats don't have a similar rule.

By Paul Bedard