Grapevine

By PAUL GRAY/

SPEAK SOFTLY, AND UNPLUG YOUR LAPTOP. George Bush's peripatetic presidency is beginning to exhaust those who are supposed to cover his every move. The White House travel office notes a sharp decline in the number of reporters who automatically accompany Bush on his constant domestic tripping -- to speak at Republican fund raisers, plant trees and inspect natural disasters. For those who still follow the President wherever he may go, Los Angeles Times correspondent David Lauter has invented "The Poppy," an award bearing Bush's childhood nickname. It will eventually be bestowed upon the reporter who maintains the lowest ratio of paragraphs published to miles traveled with the President. The home offices may bristle, but competition so far is stiff.

With reporting by DAVID ELLIS