Hamlin

IN THE FACE of distressing economic problems and tumbling popularity polls, President Bush is facing a tough re-election campaign and is undoubtedly seeking ways to strengthen his position. Although Samuel Skinner has replaced John Sununu as his chief of staff, is this enough?Or will Bush, like Abraham Lincoln in 1864, resort to an even more drastic political ploy? Will he replace his vice president in an effort to strengthen the Republican ticket?While it was not the Martin D.Tullaionly time it has happened, undoubtedly the most significant dumping of a vice president took place in 1864.

Howard Hamlin wouldn't cross the street to vote yesterday. Literally. Well, he would have had to cross more than one street and round a couple of corners, but the 49-year-old Govans resident was just a short walk from his polling place yesterday when I came across him. The polls were open and there probably wouldn't have been a wait for a ballot booth, but, nope, Hamlin had no plans of voting. "I've given up because of so many disappointments," Hamlin said. "They say one thing and do another."

When Bob and Marian Matthis came to Baltimore to search for a home this year, they were trailed by a Home and Garden Television cable channel film crew. The newlyweds became the first family to have their home search in the Baltimore area filmed for House Hunters, the channel's top-rated show. The network was drawn to Baltimore because of its unique architecture and the number of older homes in the area, said Nate Hamlin, a show producer. Hamlin particularly liked the area's Colonial-style homes and the charm they conveyed on camera.

Just when you think the dog days are easing their grip, another blast of 100-degree heat reminds us we still have some melting left to do.We can't offer you relief in the form of a cold beer or a dip inthe pool, but we can comfort you with the thought that cooler days are ahead and, with them, in part, the promise of another season of high school sports highlights. So imagine wearing a Windbreaker and sipping a cup of hot chocolate in the bleachers to brace yourself against a chilly fall breeze.

In a light but steady rain, 12 members of Sgt. 1st Class James Stoddard Jr.'s battalion stood at attention as his coffin was transported from a hearse to the vestibule of St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church in Odenton. With bagpipes sounding, two soldiers removed the flag that had been draped over the simple casket, folded it in the customary triangular fashion and saluted. Stoddard, 29, of Crofton, was killed Sept. 30 while serving in Afghanistan after his Humvee rolled into a ditch. His death came during a third tour of duty after deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq, and just over a year after his father, James Stoddard Sr., was memorialized and buried at the same parish in June 2004.

It's sometimes said that everyone has a double. But what if you found out you also had a triple, or a quadruple? Or, for that matter, what if there were 20 of you? These are among the questions raised by British playwright Caryl Churchill's elliptical drama A Number, receiving its Baltimore premiere at Everyman Theatre. In A Number, a grown son discovers that he has at least 20 clones. Then he discovers that he is a clone -- that his father had his original son cloned, then raised the clone instead.

Just as doubts began to arise about his potential and whether he could challenge Jimmie Johnson for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, Denny Hamlin showed just how much he wanted it. Were you in utter shock when the two Joe Gibbs Racing cars, Hamlin's and Kyle Busch's, pitted while leading Monday's race at Martinsville with 10 laps to go, and nobody went with them? Did you gasp when Hamlin bulldozed his way to fourth by the time another caution was called? That No. 11 team sure has a flair for the dramatic.

The Ravens surprisingly cut defensive end Trevor Pryce and re-signed reserve safety Ken Hamlin on Wednesday. But Pryce's release is considered only a temporary one. There is a "high possibility" that the team's sacks leader from a year ago will return, coach John Harbaugh said. "Trevor is a valuable part of this team," Harbaugh said. "He'll be back with us. " Pryce, 35, who recorded 6 1/2 sacks last season, took a $2.5 million paycut this offseason to remain with the team.

At no point during this season has Jimmie Johnson denied Denny Hamlin is a legitimate threat to his bid for a fifth consecutive championship. And right about now, everyone better believe him. "The No. 11 certainly can be the champion at the end of the year," Johnson told reporters in Michigan on Sunday. "I think it is too early to really form an opinion for anyone. But you can't deny the victories and laps led and what they have been doing." Hamlin's fifth win of the season brought him to within 47 points of leader Kevin Harvick . Hamlin's teammate Kyle Busch is second, 22 behind Harvick.

You'll excuse the Greg Oden jokes that followed Denny Hamlin's disclosure that he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee playing basketball over the weekend. Oden, a former No. 1 overall NBA draft pick, has spent most of his career with the Trail Blazers struggling through knee injuries. Hamlin has had his share as well. But the difference is Hamlin doesn't need healthy, functioning knee ligaments to succeed at his sport. Hamlin drove half of last season on a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee, which he had surgically repaired last month.