A group called Brave New Films has opened a petition demanding the Senate Democratic Steering Committee strip Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman of his Homeland Security committee chairmanship due to his support of Pres. Bush and the presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain. The group claims to have more than 32,000 signatures in its attempt to bump Lieberman from the Democratic leadership by next year. The group also produced a short clip film, in which it pieced together a number of Lieberman moments in the news.

On a conference call with reporters earlier today, Sen. Sam Brownback and McCain senior policy adviser Randy Scheunemann reponded to Barack Obama's comments on the Supreme Court's ruling on D.C.'s handgun ban.

"Today's ruling, the first clear statement on this issue in 127 years, will provide much-needed guidance to local jurisdictions across the country," Obama said in a statement.

Brownback said Obama's comments were either "an incredible flipflop" or revealed "incredible inexperience" considering Obama's previous remarks on gun control.

It was part of a pattern, Brownback said, of Obama changing his positions from "more liberal in the primaries to more conservative in the general election." He predicted that Obama would also begin to change his position on withdrawing from Iraq.

"I think you're probably going to see that more," Brownback said, referring to Obama's views on the surge.

Schuenemann criticized Obama of "sidestepping questions [on the gun ban] for months."

"Despite being a constitutional law professor, he had no position on this," said Schuenemann.

However, Obama has "a clear, consistent record of opposing Second Amendment rights," he said.

"The most important issue in the election [for Obama] is the political fortunes of Barack Obama," said Schuenemann.

Dan Balz notes in today's Washington Post that, so far, the campaign between a "change agent" and a "reforming maverick" is just one big dose of the same old, same old:

A campaign between Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain once offered enormous possibilities for something new. Instead, the two presumptive nominees have opened their campaigns for the White House with what looks and sounds like a repeat of the kind of politics both have promised to leave behind.

Since Obama (D-Ill.) wrapped up the Democratic nomination a few weeks ago, he and McCain (R-Ariz.) have served up a series of indignant exchanges over foreign policy, terrorism, the economy, energy and campaign money. Their aides have gone further, with snarling put-downs in conference calls and taunting e-mails that flow constantly out of the Chicago and Crystal City headquarters.

Balz cites the campaign's rising "negativity and petulance," "hyperagressiveness," high "testosterone levels," and the resurgence of the "attack-counterattack cycle":

On a host of issues, the differences between the candidates are profound and should provoke a vigorous debate. Both candidates once promised that such a debate would be civil and respectful. But right now the presidential campaign appears to be more a rerun of the kind of polarized battles of the recent past than something that heralds something new.

Ah, politics as usual. "Change," it turns out, is pretty easy to say. When elections are on the line, well...it might just have to take a back seat.

John McCain was quick to issue the following statement on the SCOTUS decision, which contains a fairly solid knock on Obama, reviving his "bitter cling" comments from the primary:

"Today's decision is a landmark victory for Second Amendment freedom in the United States. For this first time in the history of our Republic, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms was and is an individual right as intended by our Founding Fathers. I applaud this decision as well as the overturning of the District of Columbia's ban on handguns and limitations on the ability to use firearms for self-defense.

Unlike Senator Obama, who refused to join me in signing a bipartisan amicus brief, I was pleased to express my support and call for the ruling issued today. Today's ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller makes clear that other municipalities like Chicago that have banned handguns have infringed on the constitutional rights of Americans. Unlike the elitist view that believes Americans cling to guns out of bitterness, today's ruling recognizes that gun ownership is a fundamental right -- sacred, just as the right to free speech and assembly.

This ruling does not mark the end of our struggle against those who seek to limit the rights of law-abiding citizens. We must always remain vigilant in defense of our freedoms. But today, the Supreme Court ended forever the specious argument that the Second Amendment did not confer an individual right to keep and bear arms."

We'll post Obama's statement as soon as it comes out.

UPDATE: Here's Obama's statement:

"I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through common-sense, effective safety measures. The Supreme Court has now endorsed that view, and while it ruled that the D.C. gun ban went too far, Justice Scalia himself acknowledged that this right is not absolute and subject to reasonable regulations enacted by local communities to keep their streets safe. Today's ruling, the first clear statement on this issue in 127 years, will provide much-needed guidance to local jurisdictions across the country.

As President, I will uphold the constitutional rights of law-abiding gun-owners, hunters, and sportsmen. I know that what works in Chicago may not work in Cheyenne. We can work together to enact common-sense laws, like closing the gun show loophole and improving our background check system, so that guns do not fall into the hands of terrorists or criminals. Today's decision reinforces that if we act responsibly, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our communities and our children safe."

Quinnipiac/WSJ/washpost.com polled voters from June 17-24 in four swing states -- Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin -- and found Obama leading McCain in all four. Chris Cillizza breaks down the poll results at washpost.com.

Colorado (1,351 LV, MoE +/- 2.7%)
Obama 49
McCain 44

Obama leads by 5.3 points in the RCP Average for Colorado

Michigan (1,411 LV, MoE +/- 2.6%)
Obama 48
McCain 42

Obama leads by 2.0 points in the RCP Average for Michigan

Minnesota (1,572 LV, MoE +/- 2.5%)
Obama 54
McCain 37

Obama leads by 11.0 points in the RCP Average for Minnesota

Wisconsin (1,537 LV, MoE +/- 2.5%)
Obama 52
McCain 39

Obama leads by 9.3 points in the RCP Average for Wisconsin

In the Headlines

"High Court to Announce Ruling on D.C. Gun Ban" (Paul Duggan, Washington Post) - With its term coming to an end, the U.S. Supreme Court this morning is expected to issue its ruling on the District's handgun-ownership ban in a case that could result in a landmark interpretation of the Second Amendment.

"McCain vows U.S. energy independence by 2025" (Stephen Dinan, Washington Times) - Sen. John McCain vowed Wednesday to break OPEC's stranglehold on U.S. energy and to have the country achieve what he termed "strategic" energy independence by 2025, saying he will pursue almost every option for conservation and new production.

"Democrats in Delicate Talks to Unify Party" (Adam Nagourney and Jeff Zeleny, New York Times) - With the help of one of Washington's best-connected lawyers, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are negotiating a thicket of complicated issues, like how to repay Mrs. Clinton's campaign debt and her role at the Democratic convention. The talks come as they try to leave behind their intense rivalry and work out a plan to cooperate this fall.

"Obama plans fight for Bush states as Hillary Clinton pushes unity" (Michael McAuliff and Kenneth Bazinet, New York Daily News) - Barack Obama's campaign chief said Wednesday the campaign isn't putting its chips on a handful of battleground states this fall, and will press its offensive wherever there is an opportunity to turn a red state blue.

On the Morning Shows

Good Morning America - Father Michael Pfleger, on whether he went too far in mocking Hillary Clinton: "I was at a Church that I've spoken to many times and when you're around family, do you get carried away? Absolutely. I apologize for the mannerisms of what I said, I think entitlement is a reality in this society."

CNN American Morning - Mitt Romney, on Barack Obama, "I'd like to see a time where Barack Obama says, 'I disagree with my party, I'm going to reach across the aisle and work against my party.' He'll always be on the left wing of his party, always putting his own interests and the interests of his party ahead of the nation."

From Late Night

Conan O'Brien:

(Greg Bobrinskoy contributed to the Morning Report.)

Some good polling numbers over at VP Watch today, including one showing that an Obama/Richardson ticket could be a winner -- in New Mexico of course.

Since the end of the Democratic primary the $64,000 question has been, "how many Hillary Clinton supporters were so disappointed and disillusioned by the outcome that they won't support Obama and will cross over and vote for John McCain this fall?"

It's an impossible question to answer, especially at this point in the campaign when the general election is just barely underway. But we do have some recent polls that give us a glimpse at where things stand right now.

In addition to breaking down the general election vote by party, the most recent Fox News and Newsweek polls drilled down to focus on how Hillary Clinton primary voters are indicating they will vote in November.

As you can see, relative to the pool of all Democrats respondents, support for Obama among this subset falls by 13 and 11 percent, respectively, while support for McCain rises 7 percent in both:

So there does seem to be some lingering fallout among Clinton supporters, though it should be noted that Obama increased his overall lead in both polls.

What the national polls can't tell us, however, is how this fallout is distributed around the country and whether it is concentrated in certain states that could pose problems for the Obama campaign.

Luckily, we have some data from Quinnipiac's recent swing state survey that gives us some indication of how Clinton primary voters in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are feeling. As you can see, Florida closely mirrors the national numbers but the trend is more pronounced in Pennsylvania and especially Ohio, where the net change (drop in support for Obama/increase in support for McCain) reaches 22 and 29 points respectively:

Again, it should be noted that Obama increased his lead over McCain in every Quinnipiac state poll, indicating that despite whatever lingering fallout exists with Clinton supporters, Obama is more than making up the difference with gains among other groups.

Still, it should give the Obama campaign a bit of a pause to see that, at least for the moment, one in four Democrats who voted for Hillary Clinton in the primaries in both Ohio and Pennsylvania indicate they will crossover to vote for McCain in the fall.

Last night Fox News' Greta Van Susteren interviewed Speaker Pelosi, which is worth watching:

Part 2:

Today's Washington Post profiles Hillary's first day back at work:

Hillary Clinton was taking the elevator up to her Senate office yesterday for the first time since she lost the Democratic presidential nomination when one of her aides, Philippe Reines, warned her about the condition of her office.

In her months-long absence, Reines cautioned, "things have gotten a little casual."

The vanquished candidate swung open the door of her private office and found two of her legislative assistants in T-shirts, caps and sunglasses playing at a ping-pong table while the rest of the staff cheered them on. Clinton tossed her head back with her famous laughter, then sat on the couch to watch Mike Szymanski score match point against colleague Ann Gavaghan.

The girl had lost -- again! To the ping-pong loser, Clinton had some empathetic advice. "Ann," she said, "you have to be very gracious in defeat."

"It was a lesson Clinton learned at great cost in her extended battle with Barack Obama," Dana Milbank writes, reporting that Clinton's first day was one of hugs, high-fives, and some showy public chumminess:

In a sense, her stature had increased during the failed primary battle: She left as a legislator but returned as the leader of an 18 million-strong movement of women and working-class voters -- a group whose support Clinton's Democratic colleagues fervently desire.

And so, as Clinton entered a private luncheon in the Capitol, these colleagues greeted her with cheers, hugs and high-fives. "It's great to be here among my colleagues," Clinton teased, "just another regular, plain old superdelegate."

Also, in case you were wondering--by the end of the last paragraph, moments after Hillary suggests turning it into a "conference table," the ping-pong table is long gone.