 |
| Open Theism Discussion Board > Public Forums > Let’s solve the problem of evil > Bush = Money?=Love=Sex | Forum Quick Jump
|
| 
DLW
Registered Member
Date Joined Apr 2003
Total Posts : 2457
| Posted 5/21/2003 8:15 AM (GMT -6) |   | Bush=Money
TiVo Curt Gowdy
http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/US/TheNote.html
I think it is worth considering how the Bush Administration is raising large funds from its economic conservative base. These funds will be used over the next two years to obfuscate issues and generally make sure that social/religious conservatives vote Republican, since he can't get reelected without our votes. The question is are there not conflicts/tensions between economic and social conservatism? Has not Bush, like Reagan, spent the vast majority of his political capital on Economic Conservative issues? Would we not get more attention to more issues of importance to us if we compromised our political objectives and developed more autonomy from either party, playing the two off of each other?
I have a good paper(written by a guy applying to work at my university) that shows how states with lower limits on contributions tend to have closer, more competitive elections and generally slightly lower taxes and higher levels of social expenditures. Money(or the democracy of the dollar) apparently talks, and it tends to drown out popular democracy's role in determining whose interests will our government serve?
By Mark Halperin, Marc Ambinder, David Chalian & Brooke Brower.
W A S H I N G T O N May 21—We could lead with big Big Casino confusion; John Edwards' pitch for the rural vote; Joe Lieberman's health care gambit; the Whitman resignation from EPA; or the Webby Awards People's Voice voting end game.
NEWS SUMMARY ——————————————————————————
But all that would be wrong.
The only sensible political lead today (as was true yesterday, and as will be true many, many times between now and inauguration day, 2005) is the historic fundraising capacity of George W. Bush.
It is a topic at once heavily covered and completely undercovered.
Leave aside your views about the role of money in politics — the technical efficiency with which Team Bush gets supporters to pony up cash on the barrelhead is one of the most awesome phenomena in the history of American politics.
The Note often uses extreme hyperbole in order to break through the crowded media landscape, but this isn't one of those times.
The Rolodex; the finance staff; the Bush name; the big-state base; the appeal to all wings of the party; the Yale/baseball/HBS/oil connections — it all adds up and it truly is the original (circumstances dictate the use of the cliché) Bush shock and awe.
From the details of tonight's congressional gala, to the emerging outlines of the president's own re-elect fundraising events, there has never been anything like this in American history, and, as we said yesterday, the contrast with the capacity of the Democratic candidates to raise money is beyond striking.
So let's start your day off right with Faye Fiore's mega-must-read Los Angeles Times story about this evening:
"When President Bush walks into this city's sparkling new convention center tonight for his first fund-raising appearance since the Iraq war, he will do more than mark an early moment in the 2004 election season. He will also prove a compelling political equation: Bush equals money … ." LINK
"But the gala dinner also will offer an early look at a popular president about to blend his roles as commander in chief and hot-ticket campaigner." "'Even though the money being raised is for congressional candidates and not for the presidential reelection, this event sends a very strong message to the political community about the extent of Bush's political and fund-raising strength,' said Dan Schnur, a GOP strategist in Sacramento. 'In its own way, this dinner is as much a kickoff to next year's campaign as the president's landing on the decks of the [aircraft carrier] Abraham Lincoln … .'"
"The GOP has long proven itself better at raising hard money — a political reality Bush will demonstrate tonight, surrounded by about 5,000 check-writing supporters and serenaded by the Oak Ridge Boys. In exchange for their contributions, donors will get a photo opportunity with the president and a commemorative watch." "Democrats concede that the president's fund-raising prowess will leave them outspent. 'It's the beginning of the juggernaut,' said Democratic strategist Leslie Dach … ."
Ms. Fiore than goes sensible, quoting Stu and Charlie practically back-to-back, which is both wise and courageous:
"One potential downside as Bush wades into the fund-raising pool is that he opens himself to criticism by foes that he is exploiting his wartime popularity for partisan gain." "'This preview of his financial muscle will be welcomed by Republicans, but Democrats will use it as an opportunity to take a shot at him as fund-raiser-in-chief in a time of war,' said Stuart Rothenberg, an independent political analyst in Washington."
"But GOP officials are banking on the belief that the public will overlook an occasional trip to the stump at this point, as long as it doesn't appear to monopolize the presidential agenda." "'The statue of Saddam [Hussein] fell six weeks ago,'one GOP strategist said. 'This is an appropriate time to do a political event.'"
"With the new campaign finance law under judicial review, no one is certain which rules will ultimately prevail. The safest strategy is to strike early and raise as much money as possible." "Bush's popularity 'can only go down between now and the election,' said Charlie Cook, a nonpartisan campaign analyst in Washington. "And the time for House and Senate candidates to cash in on high presidential poll ratings is now, before he turns his focus to his own reelection." "Said Cook: 'They gotta get while the gettin's good.'"
Roll Call 's Breshanan and Kane also preview tonight's dinner:
"In a sharp departure from past years, the National Republican Congressional Committee stands to take nearly twice as much money as its Senate counterpart away from tonight's dinner honoring President Bush at the new Washington Convention Center. Overall receipts from the dinner are now projected to reach $18 million or more. "
"While the NRCC and the National Republican Senatorial Committee have traditionally split the take from the dinner down the middle, the House committee is poised tonight to bank roughly $5 million more than the NRSC."
"Bush's enormous popularity has enabled both committees to raise far more than originally anticipated for the event. Less than one week ago GOP operatives were setting the expectations at $10 million, an estimate they now say could eventually double when all the checks are counted."
"Tonight's event is expected to have a very serious tone, with a strong emphasis on Bush's stewardship of the nation since Sept. 11, 2001. In addition to Bush, Allen and NRCC Chairman Tom Reynolds (N.Y.) will get to speak, as will Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.)."
"After dinner, the tone will turn much peppier … "
"[Members of Congress] will then introduce the commander in chief's favorite self-proclaimed party band: 'Rotel and the Hot Tomatoes,' a five-piece band from Austin, Texas, featuring three sequin-clad female singers playing tunes from the '50s, '60s and '70s."
Enjoy! LINK
One of our favorite manifestations of the fundraising prowess of Bush and Cheney is that they regularly get away with leaving fundraisers after a pretty short period of time — in part because the dirty little secret is that most donors (particularly jaded DC lobbyist-types) don't want to hang around all night themselves.
That could be key tonight, what with the return of Hall of Fame broadcasting legend Curt Gowdy to the broadcast booth for the Red Sox-Yankees game on ESPN.
You can bet that Richmond-'92-style, this President Bush will surely be sneaking peaks at his watch, and wishing he could be home by 8:00 pm. LINK
Beyond the help he is giving to raise money for the party, there is more information on the president's own upcoming fundraisers: The Note has learned that the DC event will likely be on June 17th, at what Washington insiders of both parties call the Hinckley Hilton.
The Note remembers well the Bush event there for the 2000 campaign, at which the famous room used for the big press dinners was wall-to-wall full with supporters (no room for tables), who were given some Allbaugh Snacks (pretzels, etc. LINK ) and nothing else, but an uplifting speech about restoring honor and dignity to the Oval Office.
The New York Post 's Deborah Orin anticipates big bucks at President Bush's June 23 New York fundraiser at the Sheraton, citing a Governor Pataki memo sent out to "fat cats" and designating "four tiers of 'commitment' … with chances for Bush photo-ops, lunch with Bush strategist Karl Rove plus dinner with Bush after the "general reception" in exchange for a $200,000 collection. LINK
The AP says: "General chairs for the event must agree to raise at least $200,000; co-chairs agree to raise $100,000; vice chairs, $50,000; and members promise to raise at least $20,000.
"Since early money is so critical, we ask that you make your commitment now and begin fulfilling your pledge as soon as possible," Pataki wrote.
"Those agreeing to raise at least $50,000 are promised a June 10 lunch in New York City with top Bush adviser Karl Rove."
"Those pledging to raise $20,000 or more get their photograph taken with the president at the June 23 event and can attend a dinner with Bush after the 'Bush-Cheney '04 New York Kickoff Reception' that is being held at the New York Sheraton Hotel in Manhattan."
And then there is the Sunshine State.
"Another sign that Florida remains hot: The Republican Party of Florida will import one of the GOP's brightest national stars — former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani — for an annual fund-raiser, a "statesman's" luncheon in Orlando on June 25,' the Orlando Sentinel reports. LINK
"Bush's fund-raising in South and Central Florida will follow five days later."
And don't forget the commander-in-chief role that will stoke the fundraising even more.
The AP's Jennifer Loven reports that the president "wants to burnish his administration's image abroad by highlighting global U.S. generosity as he prepares to attend a major meeting of world leaders next month." LINK
"Delivering the commencement address at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Wednesday, Bush was to tout 'the great role America's compassion abroad plays in averting wars and in solving problems,' White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said."
"The White House's aim is twofold: build goodwill in the wake of international opposition to the U.S.-led push for war in Iraq, and persuade other wealthy countries to do more in the global fights against AIDS, hunger, poverty and other ills, aides said."
Finally this morning, EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman tendered her resignation to the White House yesterday. She plans to leave the Post on June 27.
Whitman, often criticized by environmentalists who believed she presided over the gutting of ecological protections, and by business interests, who believed that was she often too eager to enforce laws they deemed inefficient, told EPA employees in an e-mail this morning that she was "proud" of her tenure and looked forward to spending more time with her family.
In her letter of resignation, she told Bush "t has been a true honor to be able to lead this Agency as it worked to implement the innovative, effective environmental
policies to which you are so clearly committed."
"As rewarding as the past two-and-a-half years have been for me professionally, it is time to return to my home and husband in New Jersey, which I love just as you do your home state of Texas. I leave knowing that we have made a positive difference and that we have set the Agency on a course that will result in continued environmental improvement. Please accept my deepest thanks for the opportunity to serve our country in your Administration and my every good wish for continued success in leading the Nation in these challenging times."
Whitman cancelled a planned appearance at a DC-area school.
Webby Awards:
The Note is even further behind today than it was at this time yesterday.
The Pride of the Googling monkeys is down 28% to 26% in the Webby's People's Voice award, now with 2 days of voting left. LINK
It's not too late to help us out by telling, well, pretty much everyone you know to Vote The Note.
Note-loving citizens of the world can vote here LINK by following these simple instruction. LINK
The latest must-read posting (from the hometown of Hall, Tapper, and Oates) starts off like this:
The Note is better than Tex-Mex. Better than Rice Chex. Better than sex.
We aren't sure we can agree with all that, but we applaud the rhyming schema.
Read 'em all here. LINK
Big Casino budget politics:
Ah, confusion.
The New York Times ' tax cut lead: "House Republican leaders agreed today to go along with the White House and the Senate and eliminate the tax on stock dividends, if only briefly, and Congressional Republican leaders promised to move swiftly to complete action on the bill this week." LINK
The Washington Post 's tax cut lead: "President Bush advised House and Senate tax writers yesterday to accept the House's plan to cut the tax rate on both stock dividends and capital gains to 15 percent, signaling a willingness to back off for now on his ambitious plan to all but eliminate taxes on corporate dividends." LINK
What's a Googling monkey to think?
Let the Wall Street Journal break the tie, we suppose: "President Bush prefers the Senate's dividend plan because it meets his request to repeal the tax, if only temporarily. But House Republicans still are pushing their approach to reduce the dividend tax, along with most capital-gains taxes, to a new top rate of 15%. Both bills also would provide tax relief to families and individuals and investment incentives for businesses."
Even as a calculation error is found, that Monday White House meeting produced a rousing "let's get it done!" posture on the Hill, and the can-do spirit of GOP leaders on the tax bill can be summed up by Tom DeLay's quotes in the New York Times :
" … Majority Leader Tom DeLay acknowledged that the total tax cut would have to stay under the limit imposed by the Senate: $350 billion over 10 years." LINK
"Though Mr. DeLay's acknowledgement seemed to be a bow to the Senate, which sought a tax cut far less than many House Republicans would like, he said he hoped unusual methods could make the actual tax cut much higher, while nominally remaining less than the Senate limit."
"'Numbers don't mean anything,' Mr. DeLay said. 'In the tax code and dealing with a jobs-and-growth package, you can be very creative and still have a major impact.'"
The tone of all the coverage suggests that a bill will be passed, but there will be general intraparty ugliness before that happens.
The Wall Street Journal has this action-packed, personality-soaked graph:
"The goal remains to complete the final bill by the end of the week, before leaving for a one-week Memorial Day recess. But it isn't a happy undertaking. Senate Republicans are furious that House members continue to snipe at their version, and the faulty cost estimate provided even more ammunition. Mr. Thomas said he would sooner pull the plug on negotiations than agree to a tax package that he regards as unsound. At the White House Monday, House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R., Ill.) blew up at Mr. Grassley for agreeing to the $350 billion cap during budget negotiations, administration and congressional sources said."
The Wall Street Journal ed board says neither tax cut package is really big enough anyway, and adds this bit of reportage: "The House bill … will not change investor or business behavior nearly as much as total dividend-tax elimination. White House chief economist Greg Mankiw estimates in an internal memo that it would produce only about half as many new jobs as Mr. Bush's original proposal."
The Note can't remember the School House Rock lyrics for this part of How a Bill Becomes A Law.
The AP's Mary Dalrymple reports that "Senate tax writers discovered they made a $70 billion error while calculating the cost of a dividend tax cut that is the centerpiece of President Bush's plan to lift a stagnant economy." LINK
"The error in the Senate's version of the bill will not be quickly fixed because Senate Democrats refused to give their consent, [Senator Chuck] Grassley, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said Tuesday. 'It would have taken 60 seconds to make this correction, but they wouldn't give 60 seconds to save $70 billion,' Grassley said."
"The error means that a reduction and then temporary suspension of taxes on dividends paid to shareholders, which is contained in the Senate bill passed last week, would cost $194 billion, not $124 billion as previously estimated. The bill calls for halving taxes on dividends this year and would suspend them in 2004, 2005 and 2006."
"Analysts traced the $70 billion error to language that suspended taxes on dividends based on accumulated earnings. Lawmakers had intended to make the policy apply only to dividends based on the current year's earnings, meaning the tax cut would have been smaller."
"The change pushed the cost of the Senate-passed tax cut to $420 billion, much more than the $350 billion limit that GOP moderates set to control the growth of deficits. Moderates in both parties hold key votes in the narrowly GOP-controlled body."
Stay tuned for the next exciting episode of Adventures in Parliamentary Procedure.
Knight Ridder's James Kuhnhenn reports, "Pressured hard by the White House, congressional Republican leaders from both the Senate and the House of Representatives said Tuesday that they wanted to deliver a tax-cutting package by the end of the week. [Iowa Senator Chuck] Grassley's role as the Senate's top negotiator could well determine the size of a tax reduction that would affect millions of Americans and could have economic consequences for years to come." LINK
"'My agreement with [Senators] Voinovich and Snowe stands until they tell me it doesn't apply,' Grassley said late last week. In his promise to them, Grassley vowed that 'at the end of the day, the tax cut side of the growth package will not exceed $350 billion.'"
"Republican aides said Tuesday, however, that Grassley could be off the hook because the plan that's now being floated would keep the tax cut at $350 billion by separating two costly items from the total: aid to states and a refundable tax credit for workers whose income is too low to pay taxes. Those would be considered as spending, not tax cuts."
ABC 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:
Ah, the vibrant strands of modern American conservatism: social traditionalists … economic libertarians … . libertarian libertarians … paleo-cons … .and the "national greatness" neo-con crowd.
Republican activists are fond of saying that tax cuts are the glue that holds the strands together. As long as you cut 'em, you don't really have to worry about the movement fracturing. (See, Bush, H.W., 1992 et. al.)
But, as the Washington Times Notes today, there are many economic conservatives for whom tax cuts are only part of the foundation. Opposition to big government — whether by dint of the government's actual size, its international aspirations or its intrusive power — is another.
For all the chatter on the left about how the "right wing" has Karl's direct dial and Lezlee Westine's Blackberry, a few big feathers of that wing feel sheared off from the bird — with that farm law as Exhibit A, and the president's failure to pursue major spending cuts Exhibit B.
And on that score and in a story only he could write, Z. Hallow has evidence that some economic conservatives aren't as "in" at the White House as previously thought. LINK
We're not sure how much this article reflects a division within the grassroots as much as it does the elite, but it's going to be a must-read at the White House, and therefore, a must-read for us.
"Conservative activists fear that they are not exercising as much influence on the Bush White House as they did in previous Republican presidencies. In a memo to hundreds of fellow conservatives, a former Reagan administration official says traditional views are being edged out by a neoconservative 'national greatness' ideology that accepts big government and advocates interventionist foreign policy."
"'Today, most conservative pressure ends up as simple cheerleading for the White House,' Donald J. Devine, who was President Reagan's director of the Office of Personnel Management, wrote in the memo. 'That can be helpful, but there is nothing that pushes politics further to the right, leaving conservatism and the Republican Party to drift.'"
"For nearly half a century, conservatives nudged American politics, Republican ideology and government policy toward modern conservatism's founding principles. Chief among those principles is limited government."
"Yet 'government keeps growing,' says Mr. Devine, now vice chairman of the American Conservative Union. 'Journalistic conservatism is silent about this growth of government, which is especially fueled by neoconservative dreams of empire and which threatens the whole project of American liberty.'"
"Veteran conservative journalist M. Stanton Evans agrees. 'By far the biggest political disappointment for me — and I think for many other conservatives — has been our failure to get a handle on the problem of big government,' he says. 'This very much interacts with the question of the GOP, which always runs pretty hard on this issue, but has trouble translating its rhetoric into practice.'"
"The close identification between the conservative movement and Republican politics is part of the problem, said former Reagan administration official Floyd Brown."
"At a recent White House briefing, visiting conservative leaders urged the administration to fight harder for Senate confirmation of judicial nominees, even though some of the nominees were considered moderates who had served in the Clinton administration."
"'It is strange that conservatives are pushing us so hard on this when normally you would be opposing us for nominating a judge with a relatively moderate record and who served under Bill Clinton,' Mr. Devine quoted White House political adviser Karl Rove as having told the assembled conservatives. 'The Democrats have been so relentless that the whole battle has been between the left and the political center.'"
"Mr. Devine said, 'Rove put his finger directly on the nub of the matter: Conservatism today is not even on the battlefield.'"
Tell that to the Democrats!
ABC 2004: The Invisible Primary:
The leaders of EMILY's List, the pro-choice Democratic women's group, got to hear one-by-one from some of their presidential candidates yesterday, as they criticized the president's "despicable" "right-wing" conduct, his "unconstitutional" "actions" and his "extreme judicial nominees."
All the candidates but Ambassador Carol Moseley Braun appeared to give (slightly modified) versions of their stump speeches.
On one end of the spectrum was Senator Lieberman, who spiced up his usual remarks with several new morsels (repeated references to his wife and daughters; his horror over a violent video game).
On the other end was Congressman Gephardt said two words about EMILY's List's core issue, warning about a slate of judges who would cause the country to "lose choice."
Dan Balz sums up the Emily's List event in the Washington Post , giving Carol Moseley Braun the first quote and Dennis Kucinich the photo. LINK
The Boston Globe 's Susan Milligan writes that the Democratic candidates were "united … in an attack on the Bush administration's record on domestic issues and warned that another four years of Republican rule would lead to the loss of abortion rights." LINK
Milligan monitored the crowd reaction, observing:
"All seven of the Democratic contenders who spoke at the event were greeted warmly and applauded, especially when they made reference to President Bush's choice of candidates for the federal bench."
"But Kerry and former Vermont governor Howard Dean received the most enthusiastic responses, with their speeches sometimes drowned out by applause."
Milligan later adds: "The only woman among the group, Moseley-Braun wound up the crowd with detailed denunciations of Bush judicial nominees. Both she and Representative Dennis J. Kucinich, Democrat of Ohio, received somewhat muted applause."
Milligan points out that Moseley-Braun alone is eligible for contributions from the group (what with her being the only woman, and all), and also includes a few good quotes:
Dean ("'If you look at my record as governor, you won't find a better feminist running for president'"); Gephardt (who, apparently sticking to his talking points, "called health care the 'moral issue of our time'").
Milligan also writes that "[a]ll the candidates reiterated their commitment to abortion rights" and quotes Democratic pollster/Edwards attendant Harrison Hickman: "'Bush is doing better with everyone, but the one group with whom he falls very far, very fast are women."'
The Wall Street Journal 's John Harwood runs through the health care positioning of the Big Six, making the major pronouncements that specificity can cause political problems, and bigger might not be better in the end.
And this is key: "His gambit has worked, at least in the short term. Labor unions, which loom especially large in Iowa, love it. 'Gephardt has reinflated his campaign,' says Andrew Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union. The plan's sweep also appeals to African-Americans, who polls show have the greatest appetite for big changes. Echoing Mr. Gephardt's talking points, uncommitted Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina says the plan 'seems workable' as a way to expand coverage while stimulating the economy."
The Boston Globe 's Robert Kuttner advises the Democratic contenders to be bold on health care, assessing the current system; stating the need for national health insurance; and dismissing the announced proposals of Dean and Kerry and the anticipated proposals of Edwards and Lieberman. LINK
Of Gephardt's: "Congressman Dick Gephardt, by contrast, had the nerve to throw a long pass. The problem is that he hurled it in the wrong direction."
Roll Call 's Mark Preston has a comprehensive look at the battle among Democrats for endorsements from congressional colleagues.
Preston writes, "While House Democrats are starting to pledge their support for individual presidential candidates, only four Senate Democrats have made their support known. Vermont Sens. Jim Jeffords (I) and Patrick Leahy (D) are backing former Green Mountain State Gov. Howard Dean; Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) has endorsed Lieberman; and Kennedy is supporting Kerry."
"While rival campaigns evaluate the worth of a Congressional colleague's endorsement, senior campaign aides seem to agree that it is essentially worthless unless the endorsee plays an active role."
"Perhaps two of the most prized endorsements, those of Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Fritz Hollings (D-S.C.), remain unclaimed and will continue that way for the foreseeable future."
Writing NOT about Steve Cohen, but about the legacies of Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, and Jackson, hawkish Democratic strategists Donna Brazile and Timothy Bergreen take to the op-ed page of the Wall Street Journal to demand that their leaders (including the presidential candidates) work to re-make the party's image on national security matters.
The Los Angeles Times' classy Elizabeth Jensen posits "earlier-than-usual viewer interest" in the election, and we would love to know on what she bases that. LINK
How many Al From surprise parties do there have to be before The Note is invited to even one?
And what do Democrats from the Democratic wing of the Democratic party think of one being held yesterday at the Capital Grille, a GOP stronghold? LINK
About 120 Democrats, including 7 Senators (Lieberman, Clinton, Bayh, Carper, Landrieu, Stabenow, and Ben Nelson), former Senators Chuck Robb and Joe Tidings, and Representative Jane Harman, showed up to surprise top Dean fundraiser From for his 60th birthday, with three cakes adorned with the DLC's trademark themes "Opportunity", "Responsibility", and "Community". (Not a "Security" cake in sight, apparently.)
Keep in mind that the big day isn't until May 31st, but since Congress is out next week, MOCs wanted a chance to commemorate.
EDWARDS
Senator John Edwards plans to tell an audience at a biomass energy conversation plant in Nevada, Iowa today that "[R]ural America and small-town America are in trouble."
Edwards will use the speech to hector Bush, who spoke at the same plant in May of 2001, and to take a poke at his own party.
"Remember — the president stood right here. He came here to promote his energy policy. Then he went back Washington and cut millions for programs like this, while fighting for billions more for his friends in the oil and gas industry," a draft of Edwards' speech says.
"Just because you have yourself a new ranch and wear a big belt buckle, doesn't make you a friend of rural America."
"But my party isn't perfect by any means. Too many Democrats too often act like rural America is just someplace to fly over between a fundraiser in Manhattan and a fundraiser in Beverly Hills."
"We need to take dramatic steps in four areas to bring new life to the great plains, rolling hills, and small towns of rural America."
"First, we need to draw the capital and encourage the investment that rural businesses need in order to prosper. Second, we need to use the power of new technology to make the most of rural communities' extraordinary strengths. Third, we need to help rural communities restore the basic support systems that are elements of every successful community, like good schools and good health care. And fourth, we need to take responsibility for preserving the rural way of life, both the small farms and the beautiful country that define this part of America."
The Washington Post 's R.H. Melton reports on Senator Edwards' visit to the Tysons Corner area, where he spoke to economy-embattled, dot-com-wounded members of the Potomac Officers Club. LINK
Edwards received a "warm introduction" from Chuck Robb and some good reviews for his "centrist message" from the wary crowd of (chiefly) Republican businesspeople.
Melton, focusing on the Virginia angle, and Noting Senator John Kerry's two recent visits to Richmond, writes:
"Though he was making only his first visit as a presidential candidate to Northern Virginia and its technology sector, Edwards said he was relying on those business leaders to help him in Virginia's primary, which the legislature recently moved up to Feb. 10, following the crucial South Carolina contest. Campaign advisers said the two southern primaries are virtual must-wins for the 49-year-old North Carolinian."
And also in the Virginia vein:
"Edwards is following in the footsteps of Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner (D), who parlayed his success — and millionaire's Rolodex — as a Northern Virginia venture capitalist into victory in the 2001 race. Warner's base of financial contributors included kindred spirits in telecommunications, software development and start-up companies, many of them Republicans and others who had no interest in state politics."
"Longtime Democratic operative Steve Jarding, who ran Warner's campaign, helped get Edwards's campaign off the ground before jumping to the campaign of U.S. Senator Bob Graham (D-Fla.); Scott Darling, who helped raise a record $20 million for Warner, is Edwards's finance director."
The Note braved the traffic of Tysons Corner, Virginia yesterday to hear Senator Edwards speak to the POC, a self-described group of "seasoned, CXO-level professionals with successful track records of developing high-tech businesses in the Greater Washington area." The Note thinks of it as the Mark Warner caucus.
Organizers said the roughly 130 people in attendance paid only to cover the cost of lunch at the posh Ritz-Carlton, and that the group was in no way endorsing Senator Edwards, though former Virginia Governor and Senator Robb seemed to do that in his introduction of North Carolina's senior senator, whom Robb described as having "one of those Horatio Alger backgrounds."
Somewhat surprisingly, Edwards did not tailor his speech to the techie audience, sticking instead with the standard stump mix of the economy, education and Iraq/homeland security.
Responding to Robb's teasing that Edwards needs a degree from Duke to complement his N.C. State and UNC degrees and complete the Research Triangle "trifecta," Edwards asserted, "There is no danger of me ever going to Duke."
Neither Robb nor Edwards commented on the potential for ACC expansion.
Senator Edwards criticized the Bush Administration's handling of post Saddam Iraq for the benefit of the Senate record. The Raleigh News & Observer's John Wagner writes it up thusly. LINK
"U.S. Senator John Edwards on Tuesday accused the Bush Administration of conducting a 'confused and chaotic' policy in post-war Iraq. 'The American-led civil administration is understaffed, under-equipped and unprepared.'"
Mr. Wagner also recaps the Senator's busy day around town.
DEAN
Governor Dean's response to the DLC made it into his IAMAW speech, and into Will Lester's notebook. LINK
KERRY
The Manchester Union Leader headlines its editorial on Senator Kerry's service plan "Kerry's Plantation," which is basically all you need to know about the tone of the piece. LINK
The Boston Herald's Noelle Straub understandably covered the EMLY'S List event in a Kerry-centric way. LINK
Straub writes that local boy Senator Kerry had some strong words about the Democratic party as well as about the Bush Administration:
"Senator John Kerry joined fellow Democratic presidential hopefuls yesterday attacking President Bush, but also turned his sights on his own party — saying Democrats' failure to take a bold stand led to recent losses.
"'I don't think the Democratic Party broke through,' Kerry said about the 2002 elections, in which Republicans recaptured both houses of Congress. 'The only issue on the table to the perception of Americans was security. There was no voice on domestic issues of importance — jobs, education, health care."'
Kerry used some of his newer and flashier lines:
"Playing to the liberal audience, Kerry said the party 'should not be bashful' in standing up to the GOP. 'We don't need a Democratic Party that says to the Republicans, "Oh, yes, but a little slower,"' Kerry said. 'We don't need a Democratic Party that turns its back on years of accomplishment and lacks ambition. We don't need in America a second Republican Party."'
And: "'I can't wait to remind this country that landing on an aircraft carrier with a Navy pilot doesn't make up for the lack of an economic plan or a security plan for the United States,' Kerry said."
Senator John Kerry also addressed a packed bar of young Democrats in Manhattan's Flatiron district last night.
Mr. Kerry delivered his standard stump speech for roughly 15 minutes and then proceeded to take questions from the crowd for about 30 minutes, followed by 30 minutes of mixing and mingling.
A few things of Note:
1. Only one inebriated Democrat had to be escorted out of the building by security.
2. Some serious in-person oppo research being conducted by a senior aide to a Kerry opponent.
3. A heckler urging Mr. Kerry to use the "ketchup money" in his quest to defeat President Bush elicited this response from the Senator: "Nobody buys Hunts anymore, do they?"
4. The person in charge of music selection may want to rethink what song plays Senator Kerry off the stage. LINK
We are still awaiting Walter Shapiro's professional review of Mr. Kerry's standup routine.
In re our confusion over Senator Kerry's remarks at his prep school, the ever-helpful Robert Gibbs tells The Note: "While John Kerry attended St. Paul's for five years, the school was a six-year school (grades 7-12) at the time. Kerry entered during the 8th grade in 1957 and graduated in 1962."
GEPHARDT
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Jo Mannies reports that Gephardt "said Tuesday that the latest terrorist attacks overseas make it imperative that President George W. Bush address the dangers at home caused by the United States' dependence 'on unstable countries' for oil." LINK
"Gephardt said he planned to unveil a detailed anti-terrorism position in about a month, but felt compelled by the latest attacks to lay out some key concerns now."
LIEBERMAN
The AP's Nedra Pickler previews Senator Lieberman's pitch of "a $150 billion 10-year plan Wednesday designed to speed the system of turning federal research on disease cures into treatments on drugstore shelves." LINK
"While his rivals for the Democratic nomination focus on plans to expand health care to the uninsured, Lieberman tried to distinguish himself by focusing on cures for ailments such as cancer, heart disease and multiple sclerosis."
It might be a bit premature to call him Hollywood Joe. However, Senator Lieberman's somewhat awkward relationship with the entertainment industry notwithstanding, Debra Messing's family Graced the Senator with their presence at a recent Massachusetts fundraiser. LINK
Will Lester also somehow made it to a Lieberman young professionals event, where the Senator said a de facto gag rule on talking about the Middle East is unhelpful. LINK
GRAHAM
The Los Angeles Times' ed board urges the administration to declassify its report on the intelligence lessons of 9/11. LINK
KUCINICH
The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Stephen Koff questions the electoral statistics Congressman Kucinich has been using on the campaign trail of late.LINK
"Speaking at a forum for Democratic presidential hopefuls, the congressman from Cleveland implied that he was responsible for a seismic political shift — from Republican to Democratic — in the 10th Congressional District."
"'I represent a district in Cleveland, Ohio, that when I first ran was a 66 percent Republican district,' Kucinich told supporters of Emily's List, a network of Democratic women who are for abortion rights."
"'And through working on progressive issues and running consistently a progressive-oriented campaign, I took that district from a 66 percent Republican district to a 74 percent Democratic district.'"
"In 1996, Kucinich won his seat in the U.S. House by beating incumbent Martin Hoke. The Republican Hoke first won the 10th District seat in 1992 with 57 percent of the vote — which is what Kucinich said he meant to say when he mistakenly used the 66 percent figure."
"As for the 74 percent figure, that's the percentage of votes Kucinich won in his 2002 re-election campaign."
"'It wasn't any intention' to mislead, Kucinich said. 'I was attempting to demonstrate that I was able to take a district and turn it around.'"
MOSELEY BRAUN
The Chicago Tribune's Jeff Zeleny follows up on his "CMB's not active enough" piece with a "CMB's not raising enough" piece. LINK
Braun "made a public appeal for her fledgling White House bid Tuesday, saying she might have to 'fold my tent' unless she collects much-needed money to sustain her candidacy for eight months until the balloting begins in the 2004 Democratic race."
"While the applause [Tuesday at the EMILY's List forum] for Braun was vigorous, she did not receive a standing ovation from the women's group, as Kucinich did. The group emphasizes supporting women candidates, but officials said they are so intent on defeating President Bush that they are searching for the nominee who stands the best chance of being elected. 'We are looking at their viability,' said Janet Harris, a spokeswoman for EMILY's List."
IOWA
Don't lose track of the Tom Dorr U.S. Department of Agriculture nomination. LINK
ABC 2003: The Vote:
The Courier-Journal of Louisville has the results of yesterday's gubernatorial primaries in Kentucky.
First , the GOP primary: LINK
"U.S. Rep. Ernie Fletcher defeated three rivals yesterday to win the Republican nomination for governor, overcoming a legal challenge that forced him to change running mates in the middle of his campaign."
In the Democratic primary: LINK
"Albert Benjamin Chandler III, scion of the old Kentucky political family, narrowly won the Democratic nomination yesterday to become the 54th governor of Kentucky."
"He and his running mate, Charlie Owen of Louisville, will face Republicans Ernie Fletcher and Steve Pence in the fall."
"With all the votes counted, Chandler and Owen won by 3.5 percentage points — 50 percent for Chandler and 46.5 percent for Richards — in a race that was closer than many had predicted. Jody Richards, speaker of the Kentucky House, and his running mate, Tony Miller, finished second."
And the Cincinnati Enquirer's Patrick Crowley sizes up the Fletcher v. Chandler Fall Classic. LINK
"Kentucky has a November gubernatorial race the parties wanted, the pundits predicted and Tuesday's primary voters decided."
"Two political heavyweights — Republican Ernie Fletcher and Democrat Ben Chandler — won their party's nominations Tuesday and will square off in a fall campaign that will set the tone and tenor in Kentucky politics for the next several years."
"Republicans view Fletcher as the GOP candidate who can win the governor's mansion for the first time in 32 years. He has an impressive resume — two-term congressman, doctor, minister, engineer, fighter pilot — who has the deep backing of the party's establishment."
"On the Democratic side, Chandler enjoys one of the great assets of a political campaign: a well-known and even beloved name. His grandfather, A.B. "Happy" Chandler, was a two-term governor and U.S. senator who is one of the legends of Kentucky politics."
Legislative agenda:
Following up on his mega-hit New York Times filibuster piece from last week, Norm Ornstein has a hands-down must-read in today's Roll Call — complete with the word "gobbledygook" and "the detail and nuance that are owed to the Roll Call readership."
Can Norm work a room or what?
"No issue has had more hypocrisy attached to it in Congress than the filibuster. Go back through the decades and read Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives blithely reverse positions as they move from majority to minority or vice versa, or from holding the White House to not. Call it 'situational constitutionalism.' As such, take any pronouncements from the mount declaring filibusters unconstitutional on their face with great skepticism."
The unparalleled New York Times duo of Pear and Toner revisit the issue of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, with the Hill still wedded to equal benefits for all, and the administration still playing with the fire of trying to use a better bennie to help marketize the system. LINK
The Hill examines Vice President Cheney's roll as strategy-man in Congress. LINK
BCRA:
The AP's Sharon Theimer reports, "Freed for the moment from restrictions on political ads, the National Rifle Association says it will air an advertisement urging Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., to support legislation shielding gun dealers from lawsuits." LINK
Roll Call 's Amy Keller writes, "Even as the National Rifle Association cheered the decision by a panel of federal judges to stay its decision on the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, a move that will allow the group to immediately begin airing issue ads, attorney James Bopp lashed out at the gun owners' organization and other plaintiffs in the landmark case for contributing to what he feels was a strategic defeat for opponents of the statute."
"Bopp — who is considering an appeal of the stay — fired off an angry missive via e-mail Tuesday blaming [Kentucky Senator Mitch] McConnell's counsel and others for having contributed to the court's 2-1 decision to suspend enforcement of their May 2 decision and, in effect, restore BCRA in its entirety until the Supreme Court can rule in the case."
Politics:
The State's Lauren Markoe reports that after "trying my best for 10 years" to find a Democratic successor, Senator Hollings "will not run for re-election if his party can find another strong candidate, the 81-year-old Democrat indicated Tuesday." LINK
The AP's Matthew Daly writes, "Democratic senators accused the Smithsonian Institution on Tuesday of self-censorship because it moved a photo exhibit of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to a basement hallway." LINK
"The new location, between a loading dock and a freight elevator, has forced visitors to peer over large boxes to view the photos, the senators contended."
The Wall Street Journal 's David Rogers for some reason profiles Robert Byrd today.
Goo goo groups and Hilde get Mike Madden of the Argus Leader Washington bureau to look at the possibility that John Thune has lost some of his purity on campaign financing. LINK
The New York Post 's Page Six reports that Senator Clinton communications director Karen Dunn is off to Yale Law School, but will return to politics when the degree is in hand. LINK
The Post Notes "Dunn — a tireless Clinton defender — has been with the former First Lady since her Senate campaign was launched in 1999."
Meanwhile, Page Six has the Senator herself "hawking" her new book to fellow senators, including Lindsey Graham.
The New York Post 's Fredric Dicker says AG Eliot Spitzer confirmed he's considering a run for NY governor in 2006. LINK
The New York Times ' Jennifer Steinhauer Notes that the "fiercely antismoking" Mayor Bloomberg will allow an outdoor designated smoking area at Gracie Mansion for Rudy Giuliani's much anticipated (by the New York papers, certainly) Saturday wedding. LINK
A day after the Washington Post story about the NYC/DC shuttle crisis, Washington Post columnist Bob Levey sings the praises of the Amtrak Quiet Car. LINK.
Heavenly indeed.
Lloyd Grove follows the Blumenthal/Hitchens catfight. LINK
Judicial confirmation battles:
The Note got an email from Terry McAuliffe this morning with this subject line: "Breaking news: Urgent Supreme Court update."
The subject line was the least breathless part of the email.
Will the White House nominate Senator Harry Reid's son for a judgeship? Probably not … LINK
Economy:
The New York Times ed board takes its turn hitting the Snow piñata.LINK
Robert Samuelson says the president is gambling with the dollar and the world economy. LINK
Federal unemployment benefits expire in a few days, and a group of centrist Republicans want Congress to extend them. LINK
The AP's Genaro C. Armas reports, "The number of Americans past retirement age and in the job market has risen by half in the last two decades, the Census Bureau says." LINK
"Some want to keep working; others have no choice."
"The number of people 65 and older who are working or looking for work numbers almost 4.5 million, the bureau said in a report released Tuesday — a rise of almost 50 percent between 1980 and 2002."
Bush Administration strategy/personality:
Check out the full-page "open letter to Karl Rove" on B3B of today's Wall Street Journal , from State Senator Efrain Gonzalez, Jr. (NY), president of the National Hispanic Policy Institute.
And the Karl Rove correction in the New York Times , pointing out that he isn't the political director — although one does wonder who will get that job. LINK
In light of The Note's Ari sighting last night, we wonder if he would weigh in on the latest Capitol Hill debate: Is a better steak to be had at the brand new Charlie Palmer's or the venerable Capital Grille?
Media:
The New York Times remains in turmoil, so Gail Collins writes about Buffy, and Johnny Apple writes about some "immaculately matured and kept" French cheeses. LINK and JLINK
Prayer from Kenya
From the Cowardice that dare not face new truth,
From the Laziness that is contented with half-truth,
From the Arrogance that thinks it knows all truth,
Lord Deliver Me.
Edited by - DLW on 06/09/2003 6:44:59 PM | | Back to Top | | |
 | Forum Information | Currently it is Monday, November 09, 2026 10:55 AM (GMT -6)
There are a total of 97,718 posts in 6,040 threads.
In the last 3 days there were 0 new threads and 0 reply posts. View Active Threads
|
Forum powered by dotNetBB v2.42EC SP3
dotNetBB © 2000-2026 |
|
|