McCain supporters working hard to get around McCain-Feingold spending caps, with a little help from the Republican Governors Association.

The whole China-Cuba drilling for oil offshore Florida myth jumps the shark: Rudy Giuliani has signed on, too.

We’ve got what he said then — and what he’s saying now — all laid out at TPM Election Central.

The Fourth can’t come soon enough, says TPM Reader JP …

Before we all torpedo the best candidate we have had in 30+ years over this FISA thing, be aware of the two facts: (1) there is a long-established government contractor immunity doctrine in American law & what the telecoms did after 9-11 in obeying government demands for compliance is right in stride with that doctrine, and (2) in any event, the federal government is likely required to indemnify the telcos for any judgment or settlement they’d have to pay. Is this really the make-or-break litmus-test the netroots is clamoring for? No way. Is this just another example of liberals eating their own? You betcha. Pop open a brew, chill out, enjoy the 4th and then get back to the task of electing this guy president.

There’s no question Barack Obama has shifted his position on FISA. But I’m hearing more and more that Obama has clearly shifted his position on Iraq. I’ve been a bit under the weather the last few days. So maybe I’ve missed something. But can anyone show me any evidence that this is really true? I know the McCain campaign is saying it? And I know bleating, game-playing neocons are saying it. But now that I’m seeing network talking heads saying it, can I see some evidence beyond the fact that the idea is getting pitched by the McCain campaign? Many thanks …

Dean Baker: “Total private sector job gains in the Bush years may fall below 3 million by November. The annual average for the Clinton years was 2.6 million.”

Obama, perhaps ill-advisedly, said today he will “continue to refine” his proposed policies for troop withdrawals from Iraq. Ill-advised because you might expect that nuance to be seen as opening the door to backtracking on his withdrawal plans.

Sure enough, overheated coverage of his remarks has followed this afternoon.

Obama has just finished a second press availability to clarify his initial remarks.

We’ll have the video shortly.

Late Update: As promised:

Later Update: The McCain campaign issued the following statement late today:

“Today, Barack Obama reversed that position proving once again that his words do not matter. He has now adopted John McCain’s position that we cannot risk the progress we have made in Iraq by beginning to withdraw our troops immediately without concern for conditions on the ground. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind when the facts on the ground dictate it. Indeed, the facts have changed because of the success of the surge that John McCain advocated for years and Barack Obama opposed in a position that put politics ahead of country.

“Now that Barack Obama has changed course and proven his past positions to be just empty words, we would like to congratulate him for accepting John McCain’s principled stand on this critical national security issue. If he had visited Iraq sooner or actually had a one-on-one meeting with General Petraeus, he would have changed his position long ago.”

Confronted with growing dissension on his own website from supporters opposed to his reversal on FISA, Obama is forced to address the issue directly in an online statement.

In case you missed it, take a look at TPM’s timeline on Obama’s position on the issue.

I spent most of today in bed with some kind of nasty cold. So I only caught up on any news this evening. And I must confess to being little short of astounded by the avalanche of press BS I’m reading on Barack Obama’s position on Iraq.

The McCain camp seems to have a lot of reporters eating out of its hands since many journalists don’t appear to grasp the basic distinction between strategy and tactics. I’ve even had normally sensible journalist colleagues forwarding me RNC press releases like they’re passing on the revealed truth. McCain’s campaign actually put out a statement claiming that Obama “has now adopted John McCain’s position that we cannot risk the progress we have made in Iraq by beginning to withdraw our troops immediately without concern for conditions on the ground.”

I’ve watched this campaign unfold pretty closely. And I’ve listened to Obama’s position on Iraq. He’s been very clear through this year and last on the distinction between strategy and tactics. Presidents set the strategy — which in this context means the goal or the policy. And if the policy is a military one, a President will consult closely with his military advisors on the tactics used to execute the policy.

This is an elementary distinction the current occupant in the White House has continually tried to confuse by claiming that his policies are driven and constrained by the advice he’s given by his commanders on the ground. There’s nothing odd or contradictory about Obama saying that he’ll change the policy to one of withdrawal of American combat troops from Iraq with a specific timetable but that he will consult with his military advisors about how best to execute that policy.

For the McCain campaign to put out a memo to reporters claiming that Obama has adopted McCain’s policy only shows that his advisors believe that a sizable percentage of the political press is made up of incorrigible morons. And it’s hard to disagree with the judgment.

The simple truth is that this campaign offers a very clear cut choice on Iraq. One candidate believes that the US occupation of Iraq is the solution; the other thinks it’s the problem. John McCain supports the permanent deployment of US troops in Iraq. That is why his hundred years remark isn’t some gotcha line. It’s a clear statement of his policy. Obama supports a deliberate and orderly withdrawal of US forces from Iraq. It’s a completely different view of America’s role in the world and future in the Middle East. Reporters who can’t grasp what Obama is saying seem simply to have been permanently befuddled by George W. Bush’s game-playing over delegating policy to commanders.

Leading Republicans begin to worry that the McCain campaign is struggling to figure out how to “define” Obama. That and other political news of the day in today’s Election Central July 4th Roundup.