August 29, 2007
Hotline After Dark -- A Tale Of Two Senators
ABC's Woodruff reported on Sen. Ted Johnson's (D-SD) recovery for "Nightline":
Johnson, on the day of his stroke: "I remember that time, and all the way to the emergency room -- ambulance ride, the emergency room. And then I become vaguer. I don't remember anymore."
Woodruff: "Johnson was unaware that the scene outside George Washington Hospital quickly became a media circus, much to the dismay of his worried family and staff inside."
Barbara Johnson: "To look outside your hospital window and see five or six satellite trucks lined up and 60 or 70 members of the press -- God bless you for what you do -- but it was just overwhelming." More Barbara Johnson: "One of our oldest sons said it best, he said, 'It's like our dad is a poker chip.' And The control of the Senate rested on him."
Woodruff: "Johnson had brain surgery that night, and what doctors found was not the effects of a stroke, but rather an arteriovenous malformation, or AVM. ... An estimated 300,000 Americans are born with AVM. Most go through life never knowing they have it, but for those who suffer a bleed, the effects can be devastating. Johnson was fortunate that he got to the hospital so quickly, and that once there the neurosurgeon on duty just happened to be an AVM expert."
Johnson, on how he's improved: "Across every dimension, my right leg, my right arm, my speech, is all improved. Not, not much, but, all improved."
Barbara Johnson: "I thought we would be much further along than we were today. ... The brain heals slowly, at its own pace."
Johnson therapist Paul Rao: "He's ready to return to the Senate." More: "He is a functional senator." Rao: "His comprehension is virtually intact. When he has complex sentences or paragraphs, sometimes a challenge. But in terms of day-to-day conversation and communication, he's 100 percent."
Johnson: "You constantly improve. Bit by bit, but constantly improve."
Johnson, on the '08 election: "I plan on it." More: "I expect to run and to win" (ABC, 8/28).
THANK YOU FOR A BEING A FRIEND
John McCain was on the "Tonight Show" last night:
Asked if he has a tattoo: "I almost wish I did."
On Gonzales resignation: "It should have happened long ago." More: "Well, when you're hurting the person you're supposed to be loyal to, then obviously I think it's up to you to leave. And I don't know why he waited."
On Larry Craig: "I don't know, except that it's disgraceful. ... It's great fodder. I've enjoyed your opening comments, but it harms our reputation with the American people, which is also -- already badly tarnished. I don't know if you saw a poll lately. It showed the approval rating of Congress was at 18, I think an historic low since Gallup has been taking polls. You get down that low, you're down to paid staffers and blood relatives. You can't get much lower than that."
More: "You know, Senators, believe it or not, do not socialize much. We're gone on the weekends. Usually we only work three days a week when we're not voting ourselves a pay raise."
Jay Leno: "So the only chance to meet people is in the men's room at the airport?"
McCain: "No, ... I have friends in the Senate, but they don't have the kind of club that they're used to be when they would all stay in Washington and socialize on the weekends. It's just not like that anymore."
McCain, on his campaign: "Well, we're doing so poorly, I thought maybe I would announce on this show that I'm running for president of the United States. But I love being the underdog. I have been all my life. We have, obviously, made mistakes, but I'm very enthusiastic."
Leno: "Do you think that Fred Thompson will get into the race before Election Day?"
McCain: "Maybe Fred shouldn't have to because he's already been president two or three times, as you know. He's been head of the CIA. He's been an admiral. He's been a president." More: "Fred's a good friend of mine, and he's a fine guy. And I sat next to him in the Senate, and I wish him will. He's a great guy, and he's a very attractive, articulate person."
Asked how important the internet is to a campaign: "I think every politician's worst nightmare is YouTube."
Leno: "Will there be a McCain Girl?"
McCain: "Bea Arthur" (NBC, 8/28).
CALLING WASHINGTON "DISGUSTING"?
Mitt Romney was on "Kudlow & Company" last night:
On Larry Craig: "Well, very disappointing. Once again, we've found people in Washington have not lived up to the level of respect and dignity that we would expect for somebody that gets elected to a position of high influence. Very disappointing. He's no longer associated with my campaign, as you can imagine. He resigned just today. And you know, he was one of those who was helping my effort, and I'm sorry to see that he has fallen short."
Asked if he'll call on Craig to resign: "You know, I haven't made a call on that at this stage. You know, I haven't seen the allegations yet, I just heard that there was a guilty plea and he submitted a resignation as my liaison in the Senate. And you know, I'm very disappointed that he's disappointed the American people."
More: "I think it reminds us of Mark Foley and Bill Clinton. I think it reminds us of the fact that people who are elected to public office continue to disappoint, and they somehow think that if they vote the right way on issues of significance or they can speak a good game, that we'll just forgive and forget. And the truth of the matter is, the most important thing we expect from an elected official is a level of dignity and character that we can point to for our kids and our grandkids, and say, 'Hey, someday I hope you grow up and you're someone like that person.' And we've seen disappointment in the White House, we've seen it in the Senate, we've seen it in Congress. And frankly, it's disgusting."
Asked why he's not calling on Craig to resign then: "I don't know the circumstances right now of his setting, and so I really can't call without having reviewed it. ... I will review that, and we'll give you a call on that. I certainly felt that Bill Clinton shouldn't have stayed in office. But you know, with regards to this setting, why, we'll take a close look at it."
More: "Expecting people to live a life consistent with the dignity of the office to which they're elected is something which the American people should be able to count on" (CNBC, 8/28).
THIS STORY'S GOING TO BE GETTING LOTS OF TV TIME
And there was plenty of talk on Sen. Larry Craig's (R-ID) presser and whether or not he will resign:
ABC's Stephanopoulos: "Every Republican in Washington is hoping he'll decide not to run again. Idaho is one of the reddest of red states. If Craig decides not to run again he'll certainly be replaced by a Republican who can win. If he tries to hang in there, Democrats could make this race" ("World News," 8/28).
NBC's Russert: "Republicans ... have a simple answer -- they just want Senator Craig to exit, to leave. Why? Because they believe the Senate seat in Idaho is a safe, Republican seat. ... Any Republican can hold on to it except maybe Senator Craig" ("Nightly News," 8/28).
WashingtonPost.com's Cillizza: "I think he's leaving the Senate one way or another. I think this issue is, is it on his own terms in terms of a retirement or is it on someone else's terms, in terms of a resignation?" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 8/28).
Washington Times' Sammon: "I do not know whether or he is gay or not, but I think he is guilty of this crime, and I think I think they are going to hound him until he leaves office ultimately" ("Special Report," FNC, 8/28).
CNN's Toobin: "The circumstances when you can withdraw a guilty plea are extremely narrow: You were on drugs and didn't understand what you were doing. You didn't speak English. You were being physically coerced, threatened with death or if you didn't plead guilty. This situation, where you have a highly educated, highly sophisticated United States senator making a conscious decision to waive an attorney and plead guilty, I don't see any circumstances where the Minnesota courts will allow him to withdraw this guilty plea" ("AC 360," 8/28). [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted at 07:24 AM
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