Morning Buzz: March 31, 2008

President Bush left this morning for Europe, where he will be meeting with leaders from Ukraine, Croatia, and Russia before traveling to Bucharest, Romania, for the NATO summit, which begins Wednesday. Before departing, Bush delivered a speech from the White House in which he asked Congress to pass important legislation on intelligence gathering, housing, and trade matters while he is away.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson released a 200-page economic reform proposal today calling for significant changes to the day-to-day regulation of U.S. markets. If enacted, it would constitute the largest overhaul of U.S. financial regulatory powers since the Great Depression.

While primary season is still in full heat on the Democratic side, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain is starting a new leg of his bid for the White House: a weeklong biography tour, beginning with a speech at Mississippi State University today. The former prisoner of war is casting himself as an "imperfect servant of my country" who was born into a family of American warriors.