Politics makes strange bedfellows. In the Democratic primary, consultants and political hacks have had two cycles to work for various candidates without a winner, and now they're working for new campaigns. Obama strategist David Axelrod, for example, was with John Edwards four years ago, while Edwards picked up former Dean strategist Joe Trippi.

Yesterday, Senator Hillary Clinton brought on a new traveling press aide who just makes the strange bedfellows sentiment funny: Jay Carson, formerly communications director for President Bill Clinton's office, will join the senator on the trail. Carson served as national spokesman for Gov. Howard Dean during the 2004 campaign.

Bedfellows can also be used to stick it to your opponents. Names like Zell Miller, the Georgia Democrat who keynoted the 2004 Republican convention, and Joe Lieberman, who has endorsed Republican Senator Susan Collins' re-election bid, come immediately to mind. Former New York Gov. Rudy Giuliani is having a fun time with the support of a former Massachusetts governor.

No, Mitt Romney hasn't dropped out to back Rudy. But one of Romney's predecessors, ex-Gov. Paul Cellucci, will moderate a forum on taxes and fiscal responsibility this weekend, an event put on by the Giuliani campaign.

Not all bad news for Romney, though: William Weld, Cellucci's predecessor and now a New York resident, is backing Romney over close pal Giuliani.

Finally, as former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tries everything he can to break into the top tier, his efforts may be working, campaign manager Chip Saltsman tells David Brody. "People actually return our phone calls," Saltsman said.

Seven years ago, as chair of the Tennessee Republican Party, Saltsman, seeking a gubernatorial candidate to replace term-limited Gov. Don Sundquist for the 2002 cycle, Saltsman said his ideal candidate would be then-Sen. Fred Thompson. Oh, irony.

In other, non-bed-related news, the Rocky Mountain Poll, released by the Behavioral Research Center in Arizona, shows incredibly bad news for Senator John McCain. The embattled presidential contender, should he lose, would have to rebuild his coffers for a 2010 Senate reelection campaign.

The poll, though, shows popular two-term Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) leading McCain in a hypothetical matchup, 47% to 36%, with 17% undecided. Conducted 7/27-8/4, the poll surveyed 629 voters who gave Napolitano a 59% excellent or good job rating, while just 9% said she was doing poorly or very poorly.

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