Morning Road Map

By Michelle Levi and Steve Chaggaris

McCain wraps up his week-long focus on the economy at a town hall meeting in Hudson, Wisconsin at 11am. He'll hold a press conference on the Straight Talk Express around 1:45pm. Then at 2:15pm, he will make a campaign stop in Eau Claire, WI. McCain will spend Saturday in Sedona, AZ with no public events.

Obama discusses energy security at a town hall meeting in Dayton, Ohio at noon. He has two closed Chicago fundraisers tonight. On Sunday, Obama courts Hispanic voters and speaks at the National Council of La Raza Annual Conference in San Diego, CA. McCain speaks at that conference on Monday.

NEW THIS MORNING: McCain's campaign is releasing a new TV ad aimed at Hispanic voters that will air in Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada. It uses a clip of McCain from a June 2007 debate where he points out that many Hispanic Americans have and continue to serve in the military. "[L]et's from time to time remember that these are God's children. They must come into country legally, but they have enriched our culture and our nation as every generation of immigrants before them." WATCH HERE

GRAMM'S "NATION OF WHINERS" COMMENTS
NY Times, "Gramm Refers to 'Nation of Whiners,' Touching Off Rebukes"

Washington Times, "Obama mocks Gramm remarks"

Newsweek's Fineman, "Gaffe Alert! McCain doesn't need enemies. He has friends."

Washington Post, "Gramm Remark Adds to McCain's Difficulty Addressing the Economy"

USA Today, "McCain breaks with economic adviser over 'whiners' remark"

JESSE JACKSON'S "CRUDE" COMMENTS
LA Times, "Jackson's Obama comments almost went unnoticed": "A Fox News technician transcribing the tape overnight heard it, and it took off from there."

NY Times, "Jackson Barks But Does He Still Have Bite?"

Washington Post, "Jackson Incident Revives Some Blacks' Concerns About Obama"

The Hill, "Dust-up over Jackson remark reflects generational shift"

Chicago Sun-Times' Mitchell, "Jackson's explanation, like his comment, is absurd"

Newsweek's Fineman, "A Gift from Jesse"

FUND-RAISING
Associated Press, "McCain has best fundraising in June, $22M"

NY Times, "Candidates Are Slow to Identify Bundlers": "Since November, Mr. Obama had added just two new names to a list of 326 fund-raisers who have bundled contributions of $50,000 or more for him, despite the campaign's taking in more than $180 million during that time. After receiving an inquiry from The New York Times, the campaign scrambled on Thursday evening to update its list of bundlers, adding 181 names, a jump of more than 50 percent, and increasing the amounts some were credited with raising. The number of bundlers who have collected $200,000 or more increased to 138 from 78... The spotty disclosure records of Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain, despite repeated entreaties from watchdog groups, compare unfavorably with that of George W. Bush in his two runs for president... It is unclear how many bundlers might be missing from Mr. McCain's list. He has enjoyed a surge in fund-raising in recent months, after struggling much of last year, and absorbed many former fund-raisers for Mitt Romney, Rudolph W. Giuliani and other Republican rivals who were not on his initial list."

LA Times, "McCain still behind in the race for money"

Politico, "McCain camp reassures GOP of finances"

Washington Post, "McCain Manager Predicts an Even-Money Race"

The Hill, "McCain camp: Obama needs $200 million to 'keep pace'"

NY Times, "Clinton and Obama Mend Fences by Raising Funds"

Washington Post, "Donors Asked To Give for Two – Clinton Debt Adds to Obama Burden"

ECONOMY
Bloomberg News, "McCain, Obama Woo Hispanics, Duel Over Prescriptions for Growth"

Time Magazine, "McCain: Selling an Economic Policy"

Washington Post, "Obama Brings Economic Message to N. Va."

OBAMA'S FOREIGN TRIP
Politico, "Controversy precedes Obama Germany visit": "Barack Obama's planned visit to Europe later this month has thrust him into a diplomatic kerfuffle that threatens to undercut one of the cornerstones of his foreign policy—the notion that, unlike President Bush, he will listen to and work harmoniously with governments allied with the United States. The controversy began when word leaked that the Obama campaign, during the candidate's first trip abroad as the presumptive Democratic nominee, was considering Berlin's historic Brandenburg Gate as the backdrop for a major address on transatlantic relations."

VEEPSTAKES
Politico, "Wolfson: Clinton not being vetted 'as far as I know'"

Associated Press, "Obama seeks info on Dodd in vice president search"

St. Paul Pioneer Press, "Pawlenty: Not being vetted for veep"

Politico, "VP prospects move to fix flaws": "In ways both trivial and significant, even as they downplay their interest in the job, the politicians shortlisted for the vice presidential nomination seem to be making the adjustments widely perceived as necessary to preserve and enhance their chances of landing on either the McCain or Obama tickets. In some cases, the fine-tuning has been as superficial as a new haircut. Minnesotans accustomed to Gov. Tim Pawlenty's "hockey hair," noted its replacement by a more conventional, close-cropped cut this spring amid speculation about the governor's national profile. Yet the repackaging usually takes more substantive form, such as the reversal of a long-held but politically disadvantageous position or a bolstering of credentials."

ALSO:
NY Times, "A Hint of New Life to a McCain Birth Issue": "In the most detailed examination yet of Senator John McCain's eligibility to be president, a law professor at the University of Arizona has concluded that neither Mr. McCain's birth in 1936 in the Panama Canal Zone nor the fact that his parents were American citizens is enough to satisfy the constitutional requirement that the president must be a 'natural-born citizen.'"

LA Times, "McCain's broken marriage and fractured Reagan friendship": "Outside her Bel-Air home, Nancy Reagan stood arm in arm with John McCain and offered a significant -- but less than exuberant -- endorsement. 'Ronnie and I always waited until everything was decided, and then we endorsed,' the Republican matriarch said in March. 'Well, obviously this is the nominee of the party.' They were the only words she would speak during the five-minute photo op. In a written statement, she described McCain as 'a good friend for over 30 years.' But that friendship was strained in the late 1970s by McCain's decision to divorce his first wife, Carol, who was particularly close to the Reagans, and within weeks marry Cindy Hensley, the young heiress to a lucrative Arizona beer distributorship."

Chicago Tribune, "Democratic 'family' rift hard to heal"

Wall Street Journal's Cook, "Obama and the 'Boys of Summer'": "Things seem to be going swimmingly for the Democrats these days. They are riding high in the polls. Money is still pouring into their campaign coffers. Democratic registration figures are up considerably from fours ago. And the party is healing after the bruising primary battle between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Game over. Right? The presidential election is in the bag. That is the tone of some political speculation these days. But if anyone needs a reminder that the race for the White House is far from over, he or she should read John Fund's column in the Wall Street Journal of a fortnight ago, "No, McCain Isn't 'Doomed.'" Fund clearly is no bosom buddy of Obama or the Democrats, but his point is well-taken: When it comes to presidential politics, the Democrats aren't a party that can afford to be overconfident."

Christian Science Monitor, "How the candidates' speaking styles play": "If the 2008 election is a study in contrasts, few are as striking as the candidates' differences as public speakers. McCain is the blunt-spoken platoon leader, briefing soldiers for battle. Senator Obama is the evangelist, calling out from the hilltop. McCain levels. Obama transcends. McCain is straight talk, Obama great talk."

NY Times, "The Candidates Speak Off the Cuff, and Trouble Quickly Follows"

Wall Street Journal's Gordon, "2008: A Watershed Election?": "Exciting as presidential elections can be, they don't often change things fundamentally. Now and then, however, they can remake the American political landscape for years to come, and the country enters into a new era. Will 2008 be one of those watershed elections? Perhaps, but not in the way that many people think."

USA Today, "Taking the high road runs risks"

WCCO, "Deadline Looming, Ventura Considers Senate Run"

LA Times, "Cynthia McKinney outlines Green Party goals": "The former congresswoman is the leading contender for the party's presidential nomination. She wants to draw enough votes to raise its national status."