AFP, “Buffett Tells German Magazine US Is Already In Recession”: “So Warren Buffett tells German magazine Der Spiegel in an interview to be published on Monday. ‘It is perhaps not a recession in the way that economists would understand it... but people are already feeling the effects and it will be deeper and longer than people think,’ Buffett said on a visit to Frankfurt. Buffett, the 77-year-old chief of the Berkshire Hathaway Inc., blamed financial institutions for introducing instruments ‘they can no longer control’ and said the ‘genie can no longer be put back in the bottle.’ “

LIKELY LESS SEVERE -- Financial Times lead story across its global editions – “Recession still likely in US, says Greenspan,” by Krishna Guha in Washington: “The US is still more likely than not to have a recession in spite of the relative stabilization in the economy in recent weeks, Alan Greenspan has told the Financial Times. The former chairman of the Federal Reserve said: ‘I still believe there is a greater than 50 per cent probability of recession.’ But, he said, ‘that probability has receded a little and I think the probability of a severe recession has come down markedly’.”

OVERSERVED: “the Republican brand.”

THE MAP:

--Politico’s Carrie Budoff Brown looks at THE MOUNTAIN WEST as Senator Obama’s ticket to ride: “The underlying goal of Obama’s trip this week through New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado is to lay claim to a region that Obama views as one of his best opportunities to pick off states in November. … President Bush picked up 19 electoral votes across these three states – the margin by which Democrat John Kerry fell short in the Electoral College in 2004. … ‘If we win these three states, plus the traditional Democratic base, he is president,’ [ New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said of Obama, in an interview Monday.”

--The Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader spotlights “Obama’s Appalachian challenge” and asks “Will Obama fight for rural votes?: “Last week, U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, who has been mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate for Obama, made the point [on MSNBC] ]that the traditional Scots-Irish culture of Appalachia should be more of an ally than an enemy of the African-American community. (Hat tip: Jonathan Martin)

WHILE YOU WERE OUT – The New York Times’ Katharine Q. “Kit” Seelye posted the most detailed account of what was happening in the Clinton bubble when the RFK story broke on Drudge, linking to an inaccurate N.Y. Post dispatch about Senator Clinton’s interview with the Sioux Falls (S.D.) Argus Leader: “The initial N.Y. Post item read this way: ‘She is still in the presidential race, she said today, because historically, it makes no sense to quit, and added that, “Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June,” making an odd comparison between the dead candidate and Barack Obama.’ Mrs. Clinton did not make that comparison. …

“In the deli section [of a supermarket where she was campaigning], we were seeking reaction from Clinton aides. One of them, Mo Elleithee, who had been with Mrs. Clinton at the editorial meeting, said her comments were being distorted. A usually mild-mannered man, he was noticeably angry. He gave an on the record statement, saying that any attempt to portray her comment as anything other than a timeline was ‘inaccurate.’ He came back again to add the word ‘outrageous.’

“As the story picked up steam, Mrs. Clinton decided to try to tamp it down on camera, within about two and a half hours of the original comment (in contrast to her letting a week go by in March before addressing her misstatements about having been under sniper fire in Bosnia). She had not spoken to her traveling press corps in more than a week and in this case, did not take questions but simply appeared, against the backdrop of a grocery aisle, made a short statement and left.”

BLAKEMAN, PLOUFFE IN NEWSDAY – “Obama victory may assure political post for Cooper,” By Reid J. Epstein: “When Suffolk Legis. Jon Cooper publicly backed Sen. Barack Obama's Democratic presidential campaign early last year, he received a phone call from a member of the Long Island Congressional delegation who backs Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. The message: ‘Think of your future,’ the member of congress said. ‘Think of your constituents.’

“But Cooper (D-Lloyd Harbor), who has been the Illinois senator's most prominent Long Island supporter, may likely soon find himself in an enviable political position. … As almost every other elected official on Long Island and in the city endorsed Clinton early, complete with a bus ride to Albany for a Capitol steps photo-op at the campaign's outset, Cooper said he focused solely on the issues, particularly Clinton's 2002 Iraq war authorization vote.

“If Obama loses, said Bradley Blakeman, a Washington consultant who is a veteran of both Bush administrations, Cooper should watch his back. … Now as Obama edges closer to clinching the Democratic nomination, Cooper is joking about tropical island nation ambassadorships and planning six-figure summer fund-raisers in The Hamptons and in Nassau. He is also hosting a fundraiser June 12 at his Lloyd Harbor home with David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager. Cooper, who is co-chairman of Obama's national gay and lesbian outreach committee and sits on the campaign's national finance committee, said he's focused only on electing Obama, not on his own political future. …

“Blakeman was a new Adelphi University graduate in 1980 when he volunteered as a driver for Ronald Reagan's campaign. Once Reagan won, Blakeman, formerly of Valley Stream, parlayed his support into a presidential commission post and later a job working for Vice President George H.W. Bush. Blakeman said an Obama victory would make Cooper ‘the greatest thing since sliced bread.’ ”

OBIT – SYDNEY POLLACK, from Reuters: “Hollywood filmmaker Sydney Pollack, who won a pair of Academy Awards for the epic romance ‘Out of Africa’ and earned praise for acting stints in films including ‘Tootsie’ and ‘Michael Clayton,’ died on Monday after a battle with cancer, his spokeswoman said. He was 73. During a varied career spanning almost half a century, Pollack directed such stars as Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford in ‘The Way We Were,’ Tom Cruise in ‘The Firm’ and Dustin Hoffman in ‘Tootsie.’ Redford starred in seven of his films, including ‘Out of Africa,’ alongside Meryl Streep. Pollack died at his home in the coastal Los Angeles suburb of Pacific Palisades at about 5 p.m. local time. He was diagnosed with cancer about 10 months ago, but doctors were never able to determine the primary source of the disease, said spokeswoman Leslee Dart.”

SAT OPTIONAL AT WAKE FOREST -- Breaking this morning, from a release: “Beginning with the freshman class of 2009, Wake Forest University will make college entrance examinations optional for admission. Wake Forest will become the only top 30 national university with a test-optional policy. Students, who in the past were required to submit either the SAT or ACT as part of their applications, can decide if they want their standardized test scores to be considered.”

BUSINESS BURST – The Washington Post, “Selling In-Depth Research on Federal Doings,” by Thomas Heath: “Entrepreneur David Bradley is launching a Washington company aimed at acquiring intelligence on how federal activities will affect the private sector and then selling that information to investors such as big mutual funds, endowments and hedge funds. Called Potomac Research, the model is similar to Bradley's predecessor companies, the Corporate Executive Board and the Advisory Board, both of which sell deep research to corporations through a subscription-based service. … Potomac Research will not be affiliated with Atlantic's media business. … Potomac Research has hired several employees and is looking to expand aggressively, with the company evolving over time.”

DESSERT – USA Today, “ 'Indiana' whips up a frenzy at the box office,” by Scott Bowles: “Having proved over the weekend that he still cracks the whip at theaters, Indiana Jones' next mission may be the search for the next sequel. Despite a 19-year hiatus between installments, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull took in $126.1 million for the four-day Memorial Day weekend holiday, according to studio estimates from Nielsen EDI. The haul was the second-biggest Memorial Day weekend opening on record, behind only last year's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which earned $139.8 million. Throw in the $25 million that Indy grossed on Thursday, and the fourth episode of the Harrison Ford franchise has nabbed $151.1 million. Analysts had considered Crystal Skull a threat to the record holder, Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, which raked in $172.8 million in 2005. But Crystal Skull ended up No. 5 among biggest five-day debuts.”