------------------------------------------------------ The Hardball Briefing On MSNBC ------------------------------------------------------
Folks don't fail us now...We're starting up at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT and going until the "last dog dies" as Clinton once said back in the day...Or 2 am ET, depending on what time that actual dog dies Did anyone listen to Chris on Imus this morning? If you did you heard Imus and his top consigliere Charles bustin' Chris' chops over his energy level and enthusiasm...Charles said something like "Chris, we're gonna be watching tonight with a big bowl of popcorn"...Right on Charles! Me too but we'll be working at the same time...All of you get to chill freestyle on the couch...Btw, according to the Imus e-mail Chris will be on tomorrow morning at 8:29 am ET or something like that... The show is smoking hot tonight but you already knew that: We've got the full panel of the smartest folks in the biz (Howard, Dee Dee, Trippi, Pat, Ron Reagan, Brokaw, Russert, Trippi & De Graff)...In addition we're throwing together a cornucopia of cool guests you won't find anywhere else: Norah, Barnicle, Reps. Barney Frank, Marty Meehan, Maxine Waters & Elijah Cummings, Hoffa, Devine, Axelrod, Senator Bob Graham, Gov. Bob Taft and Jerry (Brown, not Springer)...As you'd expect we'll have some surprises along the way and all the campaign speeches and stuff... This'll be bigger than the Oscars, trust me... Oh yeah, Cheney's out making the interview rounds trying to steal some of the press attention from Kerry and spoke with our own Lester Holt...We'll talk to Lester and roll some clips from his Cheney interview http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4430696/ Dominic Bellone put this together from Washington, DC Mortman's in the House: Get ready for super spin from Edwards...Perhaps Iraq's ex-Minister of Information can help http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4429815/ Kerry, Edwards stump down to the wire...Massachusetts senator looks to sweep 'Super Tuesday' states (Reuters) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4429063/ Scores killed in Iraq blasts...Scores were killed and wounded Tuesday in a series of coordinated blasts that struck major Shiite Muslim shrines in Karbala and in Baghdad as thousands of pilgrims converged for the final day of a major religious festival. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4426435/ Bush on terrorism: "We are relentless," Bush said, adding that two-thirds of the key leaders of the al-Qaida terrorist network have been captured or killed. "We are strong. We refuse to yield. The rest of them hear us breathing down their neck. We're after them. We will not relent. We will bring these killers to justice." http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040302/D812BH880.html Super Tuesday voting under way...With Super Tuesday voting under way, Sen. John Edwards' best chance for a win appeared to be in Georgia -- where a new opinion poll had him narrowing the gap with Sen. John Kerry in the Democratic presidential race. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4400168/ Scattered glitches as e-voting gets biggest test..Some machines fail to boot up; problems with encoders, security (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4424621/ "Iowa is supposed to be the beginning of the process, but instead it was almost the end of it," pollster Patrick Caddell said. "What you don't get in this process is a real testing," in which candidates get poked and prodded by voters, not just reporters and insiders, over a sustained period. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4424567/ GOP plans votes to put Democrats on the spot...Gay rights, abortion and guns to highlight candidates' positions (The Washington Post) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4424568/ A Democratic-leaning online group will run television commercials in 17 presidential battleground states starting Thursday to counter President Bush's multimillion-dollar advertising blitz that will begin the same day. (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4430844/ In the final Atlanta Journal-Constitution/WSB-TV tracking poll leading up today's vote, Edwards narrowed Kerry's once 20-point lead, gaining the support of 37 percent of voters to Kerry's 51 percent. http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/0304a/02super.html Senate votes to extend assault weapons ban...Amendment is part of broader lawsuit immunity bill http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4429245/ In the coming days, Republicans will step up their push to register 3 million voters this year with the help of an election-year prop - an 18-wheeler full of computers, plasma TVs and multimedia equipment designed to communicate the GOP message. (NY Post) http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/19493.htm Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who announced his bid for governor last year from Jay Leno's couch, returned to "The Tonight Show" with a friend - the man he defeated in the recall election. (AP) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040302/D8129UDG0.html Opinion/Editorial WP: In a week, U.S. shifted on Haiti....The U.S. government returned Aristide to power nearly 10 years ago, and did much to manufacture the final push that drove him into exile. The Bush administration's refusal to send troops may have been as important as its message to Aristide that Haiti had no future with him in power. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4418657/ WP: Should journalists carry guns?...As violence continues to plague postwar Iraq, American journalists there say they've never been more nervous about their safety. The question of personal safety has become a hot button issue. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4418763/ Bush ads target base, Hispanics...The first advertising of President Bush's re-election campaign begins Thursday, and the multimillion-dollar buy, the cable stations chosen for the spots and the type of ad provide a window on his spring strategy: appeal to the conservative base. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4420934/ Doonesbury http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/ ========================================= This email is never sent unsolicited. You have received The Hardball Briefing Newsletter because you subscribed to it or, someone forwarded it to you. To remove yourself from the list (or to add yourself to the list if this message was forwarded to you) simply go to http://www.msnbc.com/tools/newstools/e/emailextra.asp?nfeature=19 <http://www.msnbc.com/tools/newstools/e/emailextra.asp?nfeature=19>