Posted by Mark Silva at 2:48 pm CST

President Bush is hardly the first politician to liken law-making to the manufacture of sausage.

But Bush’s assessment today of the immigration debate taking shape in Congress, at his urging, carried an especially flavorful analogy.

Posted by Mark Silva at 8:45 am CST and updated at 2:20 pm CST

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- The difference between Dave "Mudcat'' Saunders and most Democratic campaign consultants is that Mudcat knows the difference between the cherished "Bubba'' voter and the sorry redneck.

Here's a big new test of that knowledge: Can Jim Webb, decorated Vietnam veteran, author and secretary of the Navy under President Reagan who is now sharply critical of the war in Iraq, overcome an incumbent Republican senator, George Allen of Virginia, with the help of a couple of guys who know their way around the backwoods of a very Red state?

Posted by Mark Silva at 6:15 am CST

Censure of the president and immigration reform are only a couple of the most controversial plates on the table of the Swamp today:

8:30 am CST: Senate resumes consideration of S.2454, the Border Security bill. There will be no roll call votes in the Senate today.

Posted by Mark Silva at 3:35 pm CST

Who says President Bush has no appreciation for the finer, cultural attractions of the foreign countries that he visits? So what if he went to India and never stopped to see the Taj Mahal?

Today, Bush took a little – and we mean, little – tour of the ancient Mayan ruins at Chichen-Itza on his way to a trilateral summit meeting with the leaders of Mexico and Canada at Cancun.

Posted by Mark Silva at 3:20 pm CST

"America is rushing headlong into disaster,’’ said the man testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today. This can be averted, he noted, “if we can only find the political will to do so.’’

This is one way to get the Senate’s attention – particularly when it comes to this nation’s dependence on imported oil, a dependency that affects every American who climbs behind the wheel of a car, pickup or SUV.

Posted by Matthew Chayes at 3:05 pm CST

A day after the Bush administration defended the legality of its military tribunals for suspected terrorists before a skeptical Supreme Court, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice took center stage for a broad defense of the Bush administration’s foreign policy in a ballroom overflowing with international lawyers.

And when you get lawyers in a ballroom, watch out for fireworks--or at least what passes for fireworks in this swamp of a town.

Posted by William Neikirk at 11:05 am CST

I was sitting at my desk when the phone rang. It was Steve Neal, our White House correspondent. He was out of breath, excited. "Reagan's been shot!" he shouted. "They've taken him to the hospital."

That call 25 years ago today touched off a surge of office activity as we all pulled together to report and write the story. We had early afternoon editions in those days, so time was of the essence. I paused a moment to gather myself. I had lived through the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King as well as attempts on Gerald Ford's life. I said to myself, "Please not again."

Posted by Mark Silva at 6:10 am CST

President Bush has left Washington for a two-day meeting with leaders of Mexico and Canada -- he arrived in Cancun, Mex., last night -- and the normally all-business traveling president will start his day with a tour of the historical Chichen-Itza ruins outside Cancun. Meanwhile, back in the Swamp:

8:30 am CST: Senate Foreign Relations Committee, hearing on "The Hidden Cost of Oil.'' 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Posted by Jeff Zeleny at 5:38 p.m.

In the end, the Democratic point man on ethics and lobbying reform voted no.

When the Senate passed its election-year ethics package this afternoon by a 90 to 8 vote, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) was among those opposing the legislation. Two other Democrats and five Republicans also voted no, including Arizona Sen. John McCain, one of the most vocal advocates on the subject.

So why would the senators who seemed so supportive of reform object to the legislation? Because the final product was thin soup, absent any of the tough components ranging from regulating air travel to creating an office of public integrity to police the lawmakers.

Posted by William Neikirk at 3:50 p.m. CST

Public officials spend much of their time putting a positive spin on their achievements. That's natural. But with the sharp partisan divide in American politics, sorting through the rhetoric to determine how well your government is performing can lead to confusion.

Reading reports from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) often helps me cut through the political cacophony. The GAO, Congress' watchdog arm, gathers facts independently and lays them on the line. Often, the reports can be a little on the dull side, but beneath most all of them lies a deep current of truth: Your government needs to improve its performance, especially when it comes to the biggest issue of our time, security.

Posted by Mark Silva at 2:45 pm CST

The favorite ride of the president’s incoming chief of staff is a Harley Fat Boy, and to appreciate how much of an insider Joshua Bolten has become in the Bush administration, suffice it to say that Bolten keeps a spare hog at the president’s ranch.

Yet Bolten also is Washington, D.C-born, son of a career CIA man. And despite his credentials as one of the central strategists of the 2000 presidential campaign born in Austin, Tex., Bolten counts the liberal Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey among his fans - Corzine once competed with Bush in hiring Bolten.

“I’ve ridden motorcycles for a long time - it’s not just a midlife crisis,’’ Bolten told C-Span in an interview last year. “The one that I ride most now, the one that’s really close to my heart, is the Harley-Davidson Fat Boy, a 2003 anniversary edition.’’

Posted by Frank James at 11:55 a.m. CST

President Bush was saved from having to make a ticklish decision this morning about whether to go through with his scheduled meeting with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo by the arrest of Charles Taylor, the former Liberian president and warlord.

Taylor “disappeared” from the Nigerian city where he had been living in exile following reports that Nigeria had agreed to hand him over to United Nations forces. The U.N. was to turn him over to a war-crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone for his alleged role in atrocities against the population committed by fighters aligned with him.

Posted by Frank James at 7:05 a.m. CST

Some Washington events-of-interest for Wednesday, March 29, 2006, from the Associated Press.

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) holds a helmet safety press conference to launch a new helmet guide. With Dick Button, Olympic gold medalist and skating commentator, who serves as national spokesman for the Brain Injury Association of America. 10 a.m. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, fourth floor hearing room, Bethesda, Md.

Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) holds a news conference on outsourcing homeland security and trade policy. 10 a.m. Cannon Terrace. Cannon House Office Building.

Posted by William Neikirk at 5:35 p.m.

Ben Bernanke came out blazing Tuesday in his first big meeting as chairman of the Federal Reserve. The central bank raised short-term interest rates a 15th straight time and signaled that there will likely be a 16th at its May meeting. And some analysts predicted that there could be more after that.

For those who thought that Bernanke was going to be a laid-back guy who thought there should be a pause in raising interest rates, he was a big disappointment. He and his central bank colleagues cited the potential for more inflationary pressure coming from higher prices for energy and other commodities. They boosted the Fed's benchmark short-term interest rate from 4.5 to 4.75 percent.

Posted by Frank James at 4:09 pm CST

The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, known as TRAC, released a new study that shows that the Internal Revenue Service conducts face-to-face audits on a smaller percentage of millionaires than low-income taxpayers.

While this is not a new trend, it is still interesting, especially as April 15 approaches.

Posted by Frank James at 1:38 p.m. CST

The White House announcement that Andrew Card is stepping down as White House chief-of-staff to be replaced by Josh Bolten, who will vacate the Office of Management and Budget director’s job, is being treated as big news in Washington.

It’s likely that most people beyond the Beltway couldn't care less about this high-level personnel shuffle. But what happens inside the White House can often have global consequences. So a change like this could matter, even to those who’ve never heard of Card.

Posted by Frank James at 12:04 p.m CST

The Indian embassy issued a press release with a word unfamiliar to a few of us in the newsroom--'prepone,' as in "We will prepone the press conference, not postpone it." For anyone out there who knows, is this a typical Indian usage or is there a rogue wordsmith at the Indian embassy?

Posted by Frank James at 7:02 a.m CST

Some Washington events-of-interest for Tuesday, March 28, 2006, from the Associated Press.

National Association of Health Underwriters holds a half-day conference to discuss solutions to the health insurance coverage problems facing Americans. Congressional update with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. Congressional staff debate "The True Cost Drivers in Health Care." "President's Health Care Agenda," with Al Hubbard, Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and the Director of the National Economic Council. 8:30 a.m. Capital Hilton Hotel, 1001 16th St. NW.

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the wartime executive powers and the NSA's surveillance authority. 9 a.m. Hart Senate Office Building, room 219. Begins as closed session, followed by open session.

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Bioterrorism and Public Health Preparedness Subcommittee hearing on the infrastructure for public health services. 10 a.m. Dirksen SOB, room 430.

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonse Jackson addresses the annual legislative conference of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers. 2 p.m. Wyndham Hotel, 1400 M St. NW.

Posted by Andrew Martin at 1:10 pm CST

It seems as if everyone in the dairy business is out to stop Hein Hettinga, a prosperous dairy farmer who just happens to sell about the cheapest milk in the nation.

First the U.S. Department of Agriculture passed regulations, effective April 1, that would effectively curtail Hettinga’s business. And now, Congress is considering a bill-called the Milk Regulatory Equity Act-which would do the same thing. It’s scheduled for a vote Tuesday in the House of Representatives, having already passed the Senate.

Posted by Mark Silva at 11:20 am CST

Samira Honarmand first came to the United States from Iran 12 years ago, became a citizen and had two children - “I have lots of good American friends. And my boys, ’’ she proudly declares, “they are American.’’

And today her mother, Ozra Fathi Koohi, became an American as well, raising her right hand and swearing the oath of citizenship in a small assembly imbued with great meaning - with President Bush greeting the 30 newest U.S. citizens this morning at the start of what promises to be a contentious debate about reforming the nation’s immigration laws.

Posted by Frank James at 7:00 a.m CST

I received a press release over the weekend announcing a hunger strike in San Francisco to protest some of the more draconian immigration legislation on Capitol Hill right now.

The press release appears to be a case of no good deed going unpunished, at least when it comes to Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.,) the moderate Republican chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The press release says the planned hunger strike is to protest of H.R. 4437 which they identify as the "Specter bill" and part of a "witch hunt against immigrants."

But the bill the protesters are incensed about is not Specter's legislation but that of Rep. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the HOUSE Judiciary Committee, and a Wisconsin Republican.

Posted by Frank James at 8:00 a.m CST

Today the Senate takes on a little bit of that March Madness feel, with last-second heroics possible as the Senate Judiciary Committee races to meet today's deadline, imposed by Senate Majority Leader Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) to produce an immigration-reform bill.

If the clock runs out today on the committee and it hasn't produced a bill, Frist has said he will introduce his own legislation that's heavy on enforcement. His bill would do little, however, to ease the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. into some form of legal status.

While the judiciary committee appears to be headed towards tightening enforcement too, it also by most accounts wants to establish a path for legalization.

Posted by Frank James at 6:00 a.m. CST

Some Washington events-of-interest for Monday, March 27, 2006, from the Associated Press.

Senate Judiciary Committee takes up immigration reform legislation and other matters. 10 a.m. Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace holds a discussion on Islamist movements and the democratic process in the Arab World. 12:15 p.m. 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW

School of Advanced International Studies holds a discussion on the upcoming Cancun conference between the U.S., Canada and Mexico. 12:30 p.m. Room 812, 1619 Massachusetts Ave. NW.

Veterans Administration Secretary Nicholson gives the "State of VA" speech. 12:30 p.m. National Press Club.

Falun Gong practitioners hold a rally and hunger strike to demand an investigation into reports of an alleged death camp for followers of Falun Gong. 1 p.m. Lafayette Park.