August 14, 2007
Hotline After Dark -- The Goodbye Karl Rove Edition
Karl Rove's departure and legacy was the subject of much discussion last night:
ABC's Gibson: "From the time the president took the oath of office Karl Rove has been the most powerful unelected man in Washington. ... Any picture you may see of George Bush, chances are Karl Rove is right there" ("World News," 8/13).
NBC's O'Donnell, on Rove's future plans: "He told me today he has no plans to work on a presidential with any of the '08 Republican contenders. He does to plan to write a book with the full encourage of the president" ("Nightly News," 8/13).
FNC's Goler: "The president called him the architect of the political strategy that shaped his entire public life and when it came time to say goodbye to Karl Rove, Mr. Bush almost seemed at a loss of words" ("Special Report," 8/13).
CNN's J. King: "To those who cast him as Geppetto and the president as somehow Pinocchio, that is a gross exaggeration. ... He has very little say in foreign policy, but he does have a huge say in how those policies are sold politically and how those policies are communicated. And, when it comes to domestic policy, he is the most important man in the White House. Take two signature issues on which the president failed, reforming Social Security and reforming immigration. Those were Karl Rove's babies. And when the president's legacy is written that he tried and failed on those two issues, Karl Rove will be in the next sentence, because those were his issues" ("AC 360," 8/13).
MSNBC's Shuster: "The news that Karl Rove is leaving was greeted with regret by other White House officials. They said Rove will be missed. Democrats said good riddance and argued that Rove had put the interests of the Republican Party ahead of the interests of the American people. Left unclear is whether Rove will ever be forced to testify about the controversies or whether he will simply ride into the sunset as a Bush White House defender" ("Hardball," 8/13).
Ex-WH adviser David Gergen: "The dream that he and George W. Bush brought to the White House, the large political enterprise was that of creating a durable Republican majority. ... But now the tide seems to have turned. And I think, at the end of the day, you have to say that this dream they came to the White House with has gone smash in the deserts of Iraq" ("NewsHour," PBS, 8/13).
Fortune's Easton: "He's not some genius, but he is a very smart political adviser" ("Special Report," FNC, 8/13).
NBC's Todd: "Rove now is going to be on legacy duty" ("Tucker," MSNBC, 8/13).
NOT FOR ALL ROMNEY'S MONEY
Rudy Giuliani was on "Kudlow & Company":
Asked if he regrets not participating in the IA straw poll: "Not at all. It was the right decision. The reality is, we didn't get started early enough to really make a competitive showing there. After we watched the vote turnout that took place it was one of the lowest turnouts ever for a straw poll and the amount of money that the candidates had to spend it did not seem like it would have been a worthwhile investment. We want to focus on the caucus that's coming up in January. We want to pull all our emphasis into that so it is a question of use of resources. I think every campaign makes a different decision. Our campaign, McCain's campaign , Fred Thompson's possible campaign, made the decision not to go. I congratulate the ones that came in first and second and third, but I would not have wanted to spend the money they spent or at least one of them spent on that. I do not think it was worth it" (CNBC, 8/13).
ENJOYING HIS VICTORY LAP
Mike Huckabee continued to make the TV rounds:
On his straw poll showing: "It was kind of like 'Rocky.' You lay there and you think, I don't know if I can beat the guy, but I can go the distance. And that's what we showed, and it really was a victory for us."
More: "The only thing people have ever said about me was that, you know, he would be a great guy if he just had the money. And I have been saying that we have got the message, and the message ought to produce the money. You know, a lot of donors told us that, if we got some traction, they would help us. Well, I'm telling them, we have got the traction. You need to send the check. And, once that happens, this campaign is totally different. That's the only thing that has lacked."
Asked about reports he'd be Giuliani's VP: "I think the real question is, would I pick Rudy to be the running mate? I still believe ... that this is a long way off. And we are talking about the hot days of August of 2007. Let's take another look at that in about November or December, and then we will talk about who should be on the top of the ticket" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 8/13).
Asked what the primary/caucus schedules means: "We've got to raise a lot of money for one thing."
On his sense of humor: "Even kids would rather have their oatmeal with a little cinnamon in it. ... I don't want to be a person whose candidacy is marked by a roomful of consultants who script every word and make sure I don't say something that's off the cuff. I think the American people are looking for someone who's looking for someone with a little bit of candor" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 8/13).
THE ISSUE HE CAN'T GET AWAY FROM
John McCain was on the "O'Reilly Factor" last night. Most of the discussion focused on illegal immigration:
McCain: "The lesson I take from the last debate we were in ... is that I still support the comprehensive approach to immigration reform, but we've got to secure the borders and it has to be done first. As president, I would say that the governors would have to certify that their borders, the border state governors would have to certify that their borders are secure" (FNC, 8/13).[EMILY GOODIN]
Posted at 09:11 AM
Comments
Post a comment
The Watergate · 600 New Hampshire Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20037
202-739-8400 · fax 202-833-8069
NationalJournal.com is an Atlantic Media publication.
