**Washington Metro Crash
*"One Metro train slammed into the back of another on the Red Line at the height of the evening rush yesterday, killing at least seven people and injuring more than 70 others in the deadliest accident in Metrorail's 33-year-history," Washington Post reports.

*Statement from President Obama last night: "Michelle and I were saddened by the terrible accident in Northeast Washington D.C. today. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends affected by this tragedy. I want to thank the brave first responders who arrived immediately to save lives. My staff has been in touch with Mayor Fenty's office and will continue to monitor the situation."

**President Obama
*The new ABC News/Washington Post poll has Obama's approval rating at 65 percent, down 4 points from April. Now 31 disapprove. On specific issues, he polls the worst on handling the deficit (48/48) and the auto bailouts (45/50). The right track/wrong track, after steadily rising in his first four months, has slipped slightly to 47/50. More voters have a favorable opinion of Democrats (53/40%) than Republicans (36/56). On the stimulus, 28 percent say it's helped the economy, 19 percent say it's hurt, and 52 percent say it's made no difference.

*Cillizza on today's presser: "The president is, without question, the best advocate for his own policies given the still strong personal approval numbers that he carries in the eyes of Americans. They trust and like him and are, therefore, more likely to side with him on policy matters when they hear directly from him. That's exactly the sort of opportunity that today's press conference affords Obama."

*Howard Kurtz on Rahm Emanuel: "Perhaps no White House chief of staff in modern history has worked the media as aggressively and relentlessly as Emanuel. Drawing on his long-standing relationships with journalists, Emanuel serves up on-the-record quotes, background spin and the sort of capital gossip that lubricates relationships. The former Chicago congressman also seeks their take on events and floats possible administration tactics."

*The White House, under criticism from gay rights groups, has invited top advocates for a reception next Monday to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion, the New York Times reports. "The White House has not publicized the reception, and officials did not respond to e-mail requests for comment."

*"President Obama does not discuss the fact that he still occasionally smokes, a habit he very publicly tried to kick during his race for the White House. But there he was on Monday, talking about cigarettes," the Times notes.

*Ben Smith profiles Hillary Clinton, who "has become a disciplined loyalist who jostles for White House influence just like any Cabinet secretary, and who has advanced her cause by striking some key internal alliances. Most surprisingly, she has about as low a news-making profile as is possible for someone who is arguably the most famous woman on the planet. When she slipped and broke her elbow last week, it was the most press coverage she had gotten in months."

*When he visits Ohio today, Biden will announce the creation of a Cabinet-level task force to coordinate federal efforts to help auto-dependent communities rebuild, the Detroit News reports. "The move gives a more formal structure to the work of Ed Montgomery, a labor economist tapped by Obama earlier this year to coordinate federal aid to communities battered by the auto industry's downturn. Among the group's tasks: to coordinate federal aid to areas affected by the industry's crisis and to recommend changes in law or federal policy that could help them recover."

*The Energy Secretary made a joke in Iowa yesterday. Steven Chu: "Before I really start I'd like to preempt any question you might ask me. And so I'm in Iowa, but I'm not here because I'm thinking of running for the presidency."

**Congress
*"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will roll the dice on a top priority this week, bringing a contentious climate-change bill to the floor despite strong misgivings from her rank-and-file and an outspoken chairman who remains a major impediment," Politico reports.

*AP: "House Democrats are pushing forward with a partisan health care bill even as a key Senate Democrat labors to achieve an elusive bipartisan compromise on President Barack Obama's top legislative priority. The action on both sides of the Capitol comes with lawmakers mindful of next week's July 4 congressional recess. Most will return home to face constituents with plenty of questions about their plans to overhaul the nation's costly health care system."

*"Sen. John Ensign returned to Capitol Hill Monday, a week after admitting an extramarital affair, but stayed largely silent under the media glare. The Nevada Republican showed up at his first-floor office in the Russell Senate Office Building in the afternoon, declining to comment in detail to reporters ... Ensign was greeted warmly by his Republican colleagues when he walked on to the Senate floor," The Hill reports.

More, from Roll Call: "Sen. John Ensign (Nev.) is expected to address his GOP colleagues at their weekly luncheon today to try to turn the page on the high-profile sex scandal that has derailed his rising political career."

*Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, in a statement following the GOP's blockage of the Travel Promotion bill: "This is obstructionism at its best, and it follows what the Republicans have admitted they want to do -- stop any and all progress. This is a bill that would have saved the government money -- almost a half a billion dollars over 10 years. It is a bill that would create 40,000 jobs in its first year. The Republicans blocked this on fictitious grounds..."

**In the States
*A new Quinnipiac poll finds 51% of New York voters say they would support a law allowing same-sex couples to marry. Forty-one percent would not support it, and 8% are undecided.

*Mike: "Political observers looking to see how the stimulus battle might play out in the 2010 midterms have an early example in the Kansas Senate race. Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R) launched the first TV ad of that campaign today, and it slams President Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi while urging Kansans to join him in his fight against the government spending program."

*FL Sen: "Far be it from any candidate to predict failure, but the supremely confident Meek redefines 'quixotic.' Facing the probability of a general-election match-up with a Republican governor whom 60 percent of Democrats like, Meek is working like few candidates before or after him. He got started early -- to the surprise of many -- and has quietly plodded his way to solid fundraising numbers and the endorsement of just about every major Democratic group that matters in politics," The Hill reports.

*Philadelphia Inquirer hears more from Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.) on a possible Senate run. "They've asked me to run for the Senate as a Republican. I don't know if I'm going to do that," he said in Philly yesterday. "My wife talks about beaches in Florida. I don't know if I want to run for the House again, let alone for the four years of Biden's term." A decision comes this summer. He also said he's worried about the future of the GOP, saying the party's message is "getting old." "My vision for the Republican Party is a presidential candidate who can be a good leader. ... I know it's not Sarah Palin or Newt Gingrich or Dick Cheney."

*Add Mike Huckabee to the list of Republicans who want a stronger voice from Obama on Iran. "God help us if we do not hear their voices" and stand with them, he said, per the AP.

*Alaskans think Gov. Sarah Palin's silence on 2010 means she won't seek re-election, Politico reports. "There is nothing that she has done that leads me to believe she will seek reelection," said Andrew Halcro, a former Republican state legislator who ran for governor as an independent candidate in 2006 and is weighing another run. "If you're Palin, once you've flown first class, you don't go back to coach. She's been to the show and certainly seemed to like it there."

*The Sacramento Bee, on Antonio Villaraigosa's announcement: "The political reality for Villaraigosa was that he faced some significant challenges in seeking higher office. He won re-election in March with a lackluster margin. His marriage broke up after an affair with a Spanish-language television anchor. His new relationship with another newswoman - a former Miss USA - added to his playboy image as Californians wrestle with economic uncertainty. And no Los Angeles mayor has ever been elected governor."

*Ballot Trouble: "The chances are looking increasingly slim that Republican Norm Coleman will ever win his battle with Democrat Al Franken over Minnesota's contested Senate seat. But Coleman's seven-month legal odyssey, however fruitless for him, has shed light on an important problem that isn't limited to Minnesota: absentee ballots," National Journal's Eliza Newlin Carney reports.

*LA-3: "Political insiders on both sides of the aisle are convinced that Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) is set to challenge Sen. David Vitter (R) in 2010, which begs the question of what happens in Melancon's south-central district next year. Judging by all the noise out of the National Republican Congressional Committee over the news that Melancon is considering the race, there is little doubt that the Bayou State's 3rd district is about to rocket to the upper echelon of GOP targets," Roll Call reports.

*Is Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) running for president in 2012? The Clarion-Ledger takes a look.

*The State: "Sanford's staff said late Monday that the governor is hiking on the Appalachian Trail, ending four days during which staff and state officials said they had not heard from him. ... Joel Sawyer, the governor's spokesman would not disclose where on the trail the governor was hiking, nor would he reveal whether Sanford was hiking alone." State Sen. Jake Knotts (R), a Sanford critic: "As the head of our state, in the unfortunate event of a state of emergency or homeland security situation, Governor Sanford should be available at all times to the chief of SLED."

--Kyle Trygstad and Mike Memoli