-- Let's give Speaker Hastert credit… The Speaker put it all on the line before the Republican House Conference (which is what they call their caucus). This, even with the defection of Steve Forbes, Congressman from Long Island, who went over to the Democratic party last weekend. Minority Leader Dick Gephardt is committed to winning control of the House so he can be the Speaker, just once in his life. To that end he wants to stop ANY activity in the House so he can claim the Republicans are leading a do-nothing Congress blah-blah-blah.

-- Bill Bradley was an All-America basketball player at Princeton then in the NBA for the New York Knicks. The Gore campaign has to be slapping themselves on the forehead each and every hour of each and every day for Clinton's "help."

-- Television Intellectual Jerry Springer … Springer was a City Councilman in Cincinnati. He was caught with a hooker and had to resign. He ran again and was elected. Under the Cincinnati system, the title of "Mayor" rotates among the council members. Springer's turn came up and he was the "Mayor of Cincinnati."

-- "Paddlin' Al" … Gore, to remind everyone what a rugged outdoorsman he is, took a short canoe trip down the Connecticut River. The river is very low (as is the Potomac, here in Washington) because of a protracted drought. There is some debate as to who asked that precious water from reserves be released just before Gore's trip so his canoe would not scrunch against rocks on the bottom of the river. But the political error was in not stopping the release of water, no matter who suggested it.

-- "Evian would be about twice as much … A 1.5 liter bottle of Evian at the Safeway costs 4.2 cents per ounce or about $5.38 per gallon which you sweat right back out - er, PERSPIRE right back out. As a reality check, premium gasoline this weekend was going for about $1.32 per gallon.