Republican National Committee

A Democratic polling firm has U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) beating her 8th Congressional District challenger state Sen. Pres. Tim Bee (R-Tucson) by 25 points. A Bee internal poll only has her up by seven, and under the 50 percent threshold. With no third opinion, the truth remains elusive.

Pres. Bush hosted a fundraiser for Bee in Tucson on Friday, which the campaign estimates brought in $500,000 to be split among his campaign, the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Pima County Republican Party Federal Fund. At the same time, Bee released a poll, conducted by Margaret Kenski, a highly-regarded Republican pollster, that shows Giffords holds a seven point lead over Bee, 47 percent to 40 percent, with 13 percent undecided.

The Arizona Republican Party will be handling Sen. John McCain's fundraising in Arizona, according to Sean McCaffrey, the state party's executive director. This is evidence that the rift between the state and national parties, and more specifically the animus between McCain and the state party, has lessened.

"That intra-party stuff is behind us," said McCaffrey. "It's in the past."

The Arizona GOP, led by Chairman Randy Pullen, famously excoriated Sen. McCain over the senator's backing of the Bush immigration plan, which was wildly unpopular with the party's conservative base. Pullen was newly elected when the reform plan came up, and bad blood has existed ever since.

U.S. Sen. John McCainOn the fifth anniversary of Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln, Democrats are taking the opportunity to once again throw Sen. John McCain's words on Iraq back in his face.

Despite complaints that McCain's remarks to the effect that it would be acceptable for U.S. troops to stay in Iraq for 100 years were taken out of context, Democrats are not letting up on the issue. Moreover, they are trying to paint McCain as a "flip-flopper" for having previously advanced a position at odds with his current view on Iraq.