Odd Ones Out [*]
After consideration of the Kerry-Feingold amendment mentioned below, the Senate voted 60 to 39 against a proposal by Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) that would have required a withdrawal of American forces to begin by year-end without establishing a timetable for a complete withdrawal. All Republican senators voted against the Levin amendment, as did six Democrats: Mark Dayton (Minn.), Mary L. Landrieu (La.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), E. Benjamin Nelson (Neb.), Mark L. Pryor (Ark.), and, of course, Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.). (Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV [D-W.Va.] did not vote.)

Honor Roll [*]
Earlier today the U.S. Senate took up for consideration and then defeated a proposal offered by Sens. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) and Russell D. Feingold (D-Wis.) to redeploy American combat troops out of Iraq by July 1, 2007. Eleven other senators backed the Kerry-Feingold amendment: Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii), James M. Jeffords (I-Vt.), Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), Frank R. Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

Four Hours' Work Might Get You a Bus Pass [*]
The U.S. Senate yesterday turned down an opportunity to raise the federal minimum wage, currently (and seemingly forever) at $5.15 an hour, largely on a party-line vote, though eight Republicans jumped over to the side of reason and reality. Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.) was not one them.

Only on Page 6 [*]
The New York Post's Page Six has the scoop, or a scoop, on Dan Rather: "Deposed CBS anchor Dan Rather seemed to be enjoying his newfound freedom at Destino on Tuesday night, just hours after announcing he was finally leaving the network. . . . Rather was described by our spy as 'in great spirits.' He clinked champagne flutes with his wife, Jean, and accepted congratulations from fellow diners Rocco DiSpirito and Alyssa Milano, who told Rather to order the meatballs." [Hyperlinks added.]

Santorum Still the Likely Loser
Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) is still far behind his opponent Bob Casey Jr., according to the latest Quinnipiac University poll: 52 percent to 34 percent, with the senator's approval rating at a new low of 38 percent. Fitting then, that his reelection campaign will begin running TV ads throughout Pennsylvania beginning tomorrow.

Hat Tip for Tipper
Catherine Lucey of the Philadelphia Daily News chats with Tipper Gore about her latest photographic work in "Catching up with the Gores."

What's an Average Joe to Do?
It's not easy being the White House's favorite Democrat in the U.S. Senate, as David Lightman of the Hartford Courant explains in "Party Puts Lieberman In a Bind," though I would argue the bind is of Joe Lieberman's own making.

[* Note: Additional items may be posted to "Political Notes" after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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