Dave Matthews: No Political Chicken

Here's an idea for those Bush-bashing Dixie Chicks, whose summer ticket sales have taken a licking in markets upset with their ranting. Stop whining about your country fans and do what you did in 2004: Give in to your political outrage by following the model of groups like the Dave Matthews Band. Because Dave Matthews isn't just talking the talk: During his summer concert swing, he is teaming up with other political rockers for the Midterms Matter Tour--a reference to the fall elections--to sign up new voters.

You didn't know the pop-rock bandleader played the beltway game? Well, that was him with the Dixie Chicks at Bruce Springsteen's 2004 concerts for Sen. John Kerry. And he's just as passionate today. "Both parties," he tells us, "are doing a pretty appalling job." His No. 1 issue: the environment. "Is terrorism and immigration really all there is?" he asks. "Global warming is obviously much more important." The more he talks, the hotter he gets. "It takes drowning polar bears to get our government to get their heads out of their asses and start to even maybe, on occasion, talk about global warming."

His is an educated, though liberal, view fed by his favorite media: the Washington Post and the New York Times. And, oh, the Nation. "I guess this throws me into the category of some raving lunatic lefty," he says of his favorite mag, "but it seems kind of moderate to me."

Three for 2008: Hill, Russ, and Mark

We know, we know, the race for the White House is a long way off. But there is already a growing buzz on the Democratic side that there are just three worthy candidates likely to end up in a pitted primary battle starting in 19 months: New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold, and one-term ex-Virginia Gov. Mark Warner. Here's the 411 from a top Democratic maven: Clinton is the, well, elephant in the room, the "uber" candidate; Warner gets the mainstream moderates; and progressive Feingold is attractive to the activists who seem to be taking over the party.

Bubba Agrees, Texans Do it Best

Former President Bill Clinton is weighing in on the immigration battle between GOP House hard-liners and the White House. "The House Republicans' position that all these people are basically criminals and ought to be deported," he says, "is morally suspect and practically crazy." The ex-prez prefers President Bush's gradual legalization of illegals combined with greater border security. Why? Clinton says Texans know best since they are from a border area "where people are not afraid of Mexicans."

A Writer With a Bead on Bush

The lives of President Bush and Robert Draper have been intertwined ever since the newsman wrote for the Texas Monthly, where he covered the former guv. So it was natural that when GQ hired him away in 1997, he was assigned the profile of the likely presidential candidate. "I was able to get access, pre-presidential, that no one had," says Draper. After Bush's 2000 election, Draper kept up with the Bushies like Karl Rove and Karen Hughes but didn't obsess about Dubya. "I didn't have any ambitions," he tells us, "of making a cottage industry out of George W. Bush." That changed when it appeared that no author had stepped up to write a "straightforward" bio of the prez. So in 2004, Draper reveals to us, he reached out to Hughes about a book project, got the high sign for insider access, and started work for Simon & Schuster's imprint Free Press. His book, due out late next year, is about as close to a sanctioned Bush biography as can be. "The entire constellation of characters has been made available, and I'm grateful for that," says Draper. The reason: They don't believe he has a political bent. "What's valuable," he says, "is getting a sense of this man who became the pivot point on which America and the world turn." One story line: Bush is not the frat boy dunce described in the press. "He has a very aggressive intellect," says Draper. "You really had better bring your lunch when you have an argument with him." Another: Bush is frustrated that he couldn't duplicate his Texas bipartisan approach in Washington. Draper's working title is The Consequential President, a reference to both the 9/11 strike and the subsequent war that have dominated the administration. It's also about Bush's need to matter. "The president does have a real compulsion," says Draper, "to be of consequence, to be distinctive. He's one of those guys who doesn't just want to be on the playing field. He's got to be the quarterback. He's got to achieve a certain score to be a success."