Kerry/Drudge: I was going to withhold comment for a while. Drudge is good at reporting what people are whispering, and after his apology to Sid Blumenthal, I don't doubt he's a little more circumspect. But this could drift away like the talk in '92 that Poppy Bush was at one time rather, eh, close to a female staffer. Didn't pan out. As Flyer says, it's a long way from Drudge to 60 Minutes.

Should it matter? I don't think so. A lot will depend on how Kerry handles the story, should it blow up. My problem with Clinton was never his peccadillos, to put it mildly; rather, I think he committed crimes as president while covering up for one. The real question will be how Kerry tries to put this behind him. If it's not true, no problem. If it is true, can he get over it with the big sit-down, cry-it-out interview? Maybe, but Clinton had some natural skills in that area. He was fantastic when it came to hangdoggy, lip-sucking shame (even if it was false shame). Kerry seems like a different type.

So far, it's a non-story; most of the reporters following Kerry right now won't jump on this, even if they want to. Who wants to blow their access to the man with a question that can be shrugged off? "It's Drudge, after all," is the only answer a reporter will get -- just before he finds himself unofficially barred from talking to Kerry for good.