Welcome back from a long holiday off. Those who took the Patriots and their 20-something line last night got what they deserved. On a separate note, what's the best way to recover from a stint as a Capitol Hill Chief of Staff? One ex-Senate head is launching the world-famous Beckett Farms Barbecue sauce. With that, here's what those still attached to Washington are watching today:

-- No House and Senate action today. The two chambers are on recess until next Monday, when they return for the final sprint. President Bush prepares for three heavy meetings today, including sit-downs with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas. The two will sit down in the Oval Office with the president in advance of the start of the Annapolis Conference, which kicks off today. The third meeting, with American Nobel prize winners, will get awkward right about the time Al Gore walks into the room.

-- But things are still buzzing atop Capitol Hill. Sources tell NBC News and CNN that Mississippi Sen. Trent Lott will step down by the end of 2007. The Republican Whip was the subject of retirement rumors in 2006, but ran for re-election anyway, saying his state needed him to stay on Capitol Hill while it recovered from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. With his resignation, Gov. Haley Barbour will choose a replacement, likely from the ranks of six other statewide elected Republicans and two members of Congress. Early speculation will likely focus on retiring Rep. Chip Pickering, who was said to have his eye on a Senate seat. The appointee will have to run for retainment in November, making Mississippi the second state with both Senate seats up this year.

-- On the House side, what's the best way to overcome a lack of resources at the NRCC? Encourage a bunch of rich guys to spend their own money running for Congress! The New York Times today takes a look at some of the dozen wealthy candidates running in close districts next year, including candidates taking on Reps. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Melissa Bean (D-IL), Darleen Hooley (D-OR) and Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX). The 14 candidates who have already put more than $100,000 into their own races does something to help the NRCC overcome its fundraising gap, but it also ensures the Millionaire's Amendment will be tripped in more than a few seats.

-- After the last break presidential candidates get until Christmas, everyone is back at full speed. Barack Obama this morning announced he would pull out the big guns and campaign with Oprah Winfrey in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids next Saturday, then Columbia, South Carolina, and Manchester on Sunday, December 9th. It's extraordinarily rare for a campaign to announce an appearance so early, but we're guessing they're not going to have many empty seats in the media section for the events.

-- There's a reason Obama and Winfrey are stopping in Iowa first: The state caucuses first. And appearances by Oprah are not the only benefits the state sees. Whether it's the $2 billion annually for ethanol subsidies or the $1.10 the state receives for every federal dollar it is taxed, Iowans know how to attract money, the Boston Globe writes. But it's not only presidential candidates who are forking cash over to the state. Give some credit to Sens. Chuck Grassley and Tom Harkin, two very senior senators who do their best to bring home the bacon.

-- Fred Thompson's final sprint got off to something of a bad start when he made an appearance on Fox News Sunday and criticized his hosts. Wait, wasn't this the candidate who basically lived on Sean Hannity's show for a few months? "This is the constant mantra of Fox, to tell you the truth," Thompson said in response to criticism from Charles Krauthammer and Fred Barnes. JMart has video as Thompson takes shots at Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney and the very network he was appearing on. Thompson's campaign has been hit with charges that the candidate is lazy, and his efforts today will do little to assuage those fears: As other candidates race around the country, Thompson appears on three radio programs.

-- Speaking of taking shots, Hillary Clinton and Obama are sparring over health care, the latest round focusing on the two front-runners' call for mandating coverage -- Clinton does so, Obama does not -- and whether that's a key piece to the whole "universal" concept. The bottom line: Obama's rhetoric against Clinton has become sharper, while Clinton is going after Obama more directly and by name. Clinton, meanwhile, is taking the electability argument for herself, as she says she's "by far the most electable Democrat" during a campaign stop in Nevada (ne-VAY-duh) Iowa yesterday, writes The Swamp's Rick Pearson.

-- Snub Of The Day: Guess the DNC was serious about that whole no delegates thing. The St. Pete Times takes a look at hotel rooms reserved for the Florida delegation at Democrats' Denver convention and finds ... they weren't assigned one. Of course the Florida party was stripped of its delegates when it moved its primary ahead of the approved February 5 window earlier this year. But not reserving a hotel should the credentials committee reestablish the delegation, which is likely? That's harsh.

-- Today On The Trail: John Edwards holds a media availability in Bow, New Hampshire, then heads to Manchester and Nashua for events, finishing the day in Manchester. Clinton is in Concord, Goffstown and Brentwood, New Hampshire, while Barack Obama rallies in Littleton and Dennis Kucinich is in Nashua. Chris Dodd has events in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Davenport, while Joe Biden campaigns in Humboldt, Clarion, Forest City and Mason City and Bill Richardson stops in Mount Ayr, Bedford and Sydney, Iowa.

-- On the GOP side, Rudy Giuliani gets the Politics & Eggs once-over in Bedford, New Hampshire. John McCain has an event in Lexington, South Carolina, while Fred Thompson conducts his radio interviews, Mike Huckabee raises money in Austin, Texas, and Ron Paul holds a rally in Myrtle Beach.