1. NewsMax Online Poll: Bush Wins Big; Kerry Too Liberal

NewsMax's online survey on the upcoming Bush vs. Kerry November election is still underway.

Already close to 250,000 votes have been cast in NewsMax's online survey and we have the first results.

Though the study is not scientific, it does offer a glimpse of what online users are thinking.

NewsMax poll voters were gleaned from users who visited NewsMax.com and other major news Web sites.

The poll results are good news for Bush and bad for John Kerry.

The poll shows that Bush's conservative base is solidly behind him, but he is still pulling from moderate/independent voters. Kerry continues to be viewed as an indefatigable liberal.

NewsMax surveys tend to be predictive. Our surveys have shown Bush would defeat McCain in the contested 2000 election; that Schwarzenegger would win handily in the recent California recall race; and that Mel Gibson would receive tremendous public support for his movie "The Passion of the Christ."

Here are the latest Bush vs. Kerry poll numbers:

If the election were held today, which candidate would you vote for?

81% -- Bush
19% -- Kerry

Do you approve of the job George Bush has done?

79% -- Yes
21% -- No

Please describe yourself:

60% -- Conservative
35% -- Moderate
5% -- Liberal

How would you describe George Bush?

53% -- Conservative
44% -- Moderate
3% -- Liberal

How would you describe John Kerry?

Conservative - 1%
Moderate - 17%
Liberal - 82%

2. Russia's Putin Still Focuses on Nuclear Weapons

The Soviet Union may have collapsed, but Russia's nuclear weapons program did not.

Though it has not gotten much attention since the end of the Cold War, or even since 9/11.

Even the liberal Center for Defense Information reports that the country is still "a massive nuclear force."

In February, Russia conducted nuclear exercises reminiscent of the Cold War era practice attacks against America.

Though the test reportedly failed in its attempt to launch ballistic missiles from a strategic strike submarine, it did not fail to remind Russia's citizens of "the good old days," nor to remind the rest of the world that though the Soviet Union is gone, Russia's power is not.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is apparently plotting how to increase his country's nuclear capabilities - and, therefore, his own power in the world, warns Center for Defense Information senior fellow Nikolai V. Zlobin.

"I think we are facing an urgent necessity to come up with a new concept of non-proliferation," Zlobin said. "From a diplomatic level (now), we should move to much deeper military cooperation, technological cooperation."

Zlobin urges that the U.S. should develop a "closer working relationship" with Russia in order to become a joint force in the defeat of "rogue states and extremists."

"My impression is that Russia is more ready for cooperation that the United States," he said.

3. Kerry Ignores Black Congressman

America's self-described would-be "second black president" has a lot of work to do to shed his image as an uptight, condescending New Englander.

This was obvious during Kerry's visit this past week to Palm Beach County, Fla.

Our reporter on the scene was surprised by the crowd at Palm Beach Community College.

The speech was billed as part of Kerry's "college tour." But only a handful of young people bothered to show up.

Kerry's campaign claimed 3,000 attendees. We counted only a few dozen blacks and even fewer Hispanics. Bad news for a party that takes the black and Latino vote for granted.

Of course, the Massachusetts Democrat exploited the few blacks who did show up by stacking the benches on stage with an unusually high percentage of his "multi-cultural" campaign. Such a nice photo opportunity, accurate or not.

But Kerry's discomfort with nonwhites was apparent in the way he introduced the VIPs campaigning with him.

He gushed over Sens. Bob Graham, Bill Nelson and Joe Lieberman and insisted that each one take the spotlight for a softball question from the crowd.

And he practically ignored the black congressman who was with them, Rep. Kendrick Meek.

Finally, midway through Kerry's harangue, which he had labeled as a "town meeting," Kerry suddenly dropped a reference to Meek - and then ignored him for the rest of the rally.

4. Pro-American Prince is Arabia's Billionaire Buffett

From his 1991 investment in a then-precarious Citibank to his interests in Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., and the Four Seasons Hotels chain, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is steadily gearing up his Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding for an initial public offering.

BusinessWeek reports that the Prince is known as the Warren Buffett of Saudi Arabia.

With his own name better known than his company's, the Prince, 47, is running ads in the U.S. in a brand-building campaign.

"It's on the table," the Prince said. "People have to be aware that, although Prince Alwaleed is behind this, there's an institution, too."

But the IPO is at least three years away, mainly because bin Talal wants to wade into politics, as "the Al-Saud dynasty faces a generational transition."

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