September 30, 2006
The Saturday Brunch
Mark Foley's fast fall from grace means the GOP now has three House races with replacement candidates ... How close was James Baker to becoming the Rummy replacement? ... Allen's stumbles lead to a Webb fundraising boom ... The best political murder mystery in America is taking place in Nevada
The Brunch is an exclusive Saturday political news digest and tip sheet from the editors of The Hotline.
WHAT'S BREWING
All things Mark Foley: House GOP leadershipfirst knew of Foley's "inappropriate" contact with a page this spring. ... GOP Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) first became aware of Foley's email/IM situation in late '05 and he told Foley to "cut off" contact with the pages. ... The House voted unanimously to send the matter to the ethics cmte but the GOP did not go along with the Dem demand of a 10-day investigation. ... Foley is in "seclusion" at his DC townhouse. ... Foley's name will remain on the ballot but his votes will be counted for the GOP's designated replacement nominee. ... Dem Tim Mahoney, a self-funder who had boasted of poll numbers showing Foley already under 50, is the favorite to win now. Among interested GOPers: state Reps. Joe Negron and Gayle Harrell. ... FL GOP chair Carole Jean Jordan could convene a meeting of GOP execs from each county in the 16th CD as early as Monday to make a quick decision on a replacement. ... Negron's name is the one bandied about most in FL papers as Negron boasts of his leftover $1M from his short-lived AG race. Not all of the money can be used in a Congressional race but a lot of it can be converted. ... John Kerry travels to Palm Beach today for an airport fundraiser with Mahoney. ... The best place to gtet every Foley clip known to man is Sayfie Review.
There was other news made on the Hill yesterday, including the Senate passing an immigration bill to build a 700-mile border fence. The bill passed 80-19. No guest worker program... yet?
Live by the Woodward, die by the Woodward? The WH is pushing back hard on the latest Woodward Iraq book. ... The latest big news allegation from the book: Andy Card pushed Pres. Bush to replace Rumsfeld with James Baker.
The Charlotte Observer details John Edwards' campaign travels this cycle, including listing just about every '06 candidate the '04 VP nominee has stumped for this year.
Today is the final day to raise money for the 3rdQ. Very few campaigns have allowed word of their numbers to leak out. Look for a flurry of stories tomorrow and Monday.
Heads up: A slew of MSNBC/McClatchy polls will be hitting Monday morning at 6:00 a.m.. The VA SEN numbers have already leaked out.
Mark Foley isn't the only bizarre story on the political scene. Yesterday, the husband of the late impeached NV controller Kathy Augustine was charged with her murder.
This week on Hotline TV, Chuck and John delve into the Romney boomlet (is it now a standalone "boom"?), wonder if the TN SEN race has actually turned in the favor of Ford and what's this about Dems benefitting from immigration. Visit HotlineTV.net for the latest predictions, to sign up for email alerts or to view our now daily webisodes, plus check in on Fridays for the full weekly show!
SENATE RACES
AZ: This is one of the few top SEN races where Iraq hasn't been a major issue, that is, until the release/leak of a certain intel report. Pederson is up with a new ad calling Iraq "another Vietnam." Is the home of America's most famous Vietnam-era pol ready for that comparison?
CT: While it's atonement time for Joe Lieberman (D), there are a slew of other Dems, including Chris Dodd, that Lieberman would like to have seek forgiveness from him. ... Wesley Clark is the latest '08er to show support for Lamont.
MI: Is there any there there? It's a question that could apply to many things revolving around this race. But Mike Bouchard (R) is asking just that in his first negative ad against Debbie Stabenow (D) where he portrays her as a cardboard cutout.
MN: Soft on crime? That's what Mark Kennedy (R) is trying to convince voters of when they think of Amy Klobuchar (D).
NJ: The state GOP chair called on the state AG to open an investigation into Sen. Bob Menendez's (D) dealings which included a now-former Menendez aide using the senator's name to pressure someone.
OH: National security and things like body armour are front-and-center right now in this race. ... DeWine and Brown face each other on "Meet the Press" tomorrow.
TN: As first reported yesterday in Last Call, Tom Ingram (Lamar's CoS) is now the new big cheese in Bob Corker's (R) campaign. This change comes just a week after the campaign added a new media consultant to the mix, Fred Davis.
VA: Jim Webb apparently raised over $3M in the 3rdQ. ... Meanwhile, George Allen took to the airwaves again to deny using racial slurs. On "Hannity" last night, Allen said: "I don't recall every word I said, but this portrayal that it was part of my everyday vocabulary is false." ... Also, one of the women who stood up at a Allen press conference to criticize Webb for his '79 article about whether women should be in the Navel Academy, has now endorsed Webb. ... Finally, the latest MSNBC/McClatchy poll has the race tied at 43%.
WA: McGavick is getting some press for his push to get Cantwell to debate more than twice.
HOUSE RACES
MN 05: The Weekly Standard wants to know why the press hasn't probed Keith Ellison's (D) post more aggressively.
GOVERNORS RACES
MA: Deval Patrick (D) doesn't say he'd raise "taxes" in a fiscal crisis, but he doesn't promise he won't raise "fees."
MD: Just how popular is Martin O'Malley in Baltimore? We'll soon find out. Gov. Bob Ehrlich (D) has hit the airwaves questioning O'Malley's Baltimore record.
NV: Chris Dodd (D-CT becomes the latest WH '08er to head to the new 2nd caucus state to campaign for Dina Titus. Dodd will join Firefighter union chief Harold Schaitberger on 10/3 for the event (release).
CROSSING OUR TRANSOM
The MLB playoffs start Tuesday. Barring a Phillies/Astros miracle, it appears the '06 battleground states of MI (Tigers/MI GOV/SEN), NJ (Yankees/NJ SEN), MN (Twins/MN GOV/SEN) and MO (Cardinals/MO SEN) will have the most eyeballs on TV sets. Over/Under on number of Giuliani TV appearances during the Yankees' playoff run: 12.
Posted at 09:37 AM
Comments
It's Naval Academy, not "Navel" Academy, you idiots.
Jim J | 09.30.06 12:50 PM
Clark and Lamont
Wes Clark was one of the FIRST '08ers to show support for Lamont. Didja miss this one from September 11?
Hint: It was issued on the same day as Clark's Op-ed in the WSJ
A Judgment on Iraq
TexasKat | 09.30.06 06:17 PM
JimJ, maybe jim webb renamed it the "navel" academy after they started admitting "promiscuous" women...
come on, lighten up. "brunch" an amazing and witty compilation of the days' news... done by the time most of us are rolling out of bed on sat a.m.!
securitymom | 09.30.06 06:37 PM
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