September 29, 2007
Dating Bill Gardner: NH Sets Filing Period But Not Primary Date
It will likely be another month until we know the date of the New Hampshire Primary.
Secretary of State Bill Gardner announced this afternoon that the filing period for the primary will begin Monday, October 15, and end Friday, November 2. That means Al Gore and Newt Gingrich, if they want to participate in the first in the nation primary, must make up their mind in the next month.
New Hampshire law calls for the filing period to be "the first Monday through the third Friday of the November." That’s when it was in 2003, for the primary held January 27, 2004. Gardner said in a phone interview 9/27 that moving the filing period up three weeks does not necessarily indicate that the primary would move likewise. “Nothing will happen now at least until the filing period begins,” Gardner said of his timeline for an announcement.
Gardner did confirm that it means there is a chance the primary “could be in December.” “We would be ready,” Gardner said. “This allows us to be prepared by moving [the filing period] ahead.”
Candidates who want to participate in the primary can file beginning at 8 am on 10/15. All you need is $1,000. Filing closes before 5 pm on November 2nd. Gardner said he would immediately then begin printing absentee ballots. [MIKE MEMOLI]
Posted 09.29.07 07:25 PM | Comments (0)
Huckabee, One Night Only
LONDONDERRY, N.H. -- Mike Huckabee let his bass guitar do the talking as he kicked off a weekend trip to the Granite State by jamming at a local bar here.
Huckabee traded his band, Capitol Offense, for local rockers Mama Kicks Friday night as he played before a crowd mixed with supporters and curious onlookers. "Would you like a president who has pardoned Keith Richards?" asked Fred Bramante, Huckabee's state co-chairman, as he introduced the former Arkansas governor. "Would you like a president who knows how to rock?"
The performance at Whippersnappers was a limited engagement; Huckabee played seven songs, including "Born to Be Wild," "Jailhouse Rock" and "Sweet Home Alabama." He didn't know the set list before he got on stage, but seemed to have no trouble with the set list. "I just had to follow them," he said.
Huckabee was joined on stage for three songs by former Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau. Boston's Tom Scholz was also on hand. "I couldn't believe I met those guys," Huckabee said after. "I was like speechless. I really was like a little kid." [MIKE MEMOLI]
Posted 09.29.07 07:20 PM | Comments (2)
"Desperate Housewives" Hunk Dials Into Iowa
It's not every day that a hunky actor leaves a message on my cell phone.
TV actor and noted eye candy James Denton, better known as the plumber from hit series Desperate Housewives, recorded an audio message for supporters of John Edwards, who he'll be stumping for this weekend along with Edwards' daughter Cate. Per my voice mailbox, he's in Iowa this weekend, and he'd "love to meet" me (and everyone else on the phone list) "along the way."
"It's so important that we have a president who actually listens to the American people," says Denton in the recording, "and who has the backbone to stand up to special interests and fight to make sure every American has the opportunities he had."
"John's has been doing this all his whole life, and that's exactly what he'll do as our president."
Oh, and he looks forward to meeting me this weekend.
Okay, Jim. But I have to be home by ten-thirty or my dad will KILL me. [CARRIE DANN]
Posted 09.29.07 03:10 PM | Comments (1)
Obama Compares Himself To Clinton, Bill Clinton That Is
Barack Obama may shy away from directly attacking Hillary Clinton by name, but in Concord, NH today he referenced her husband to distinguish his experience from those who have spent too many years in Washington.
"I remember what was said years ago by a candidate running for President," said Obama, “The same old experience is not relevant. You can have the right kind of experience and the wrong kind of experience.
Well that candidate was Bill Clinton. And I think he was absolutely right."
Obama toughened his lines on why "playing the game in Washington" was detrimental, tying those who tout their Beltway credentials to the deaths of thousands of American troops in Iraq.
"There are those who say we they can play the game in Washington. Well we shouldn't be playing a game when young men and women are dying in the battlefields of Iraq," Obama told the crowd. "We don't need the kind of experience that leads people into war."
His speech stressed his years as a consensus builder in the Illinois state senate and his role in helping pass ethics reform in Washington. Once again he would not refer to Sen. Clinton by name, but positioned himself as someone who was free of the special interest influence that could impede the passage of major legislative reforms. [ASWINI ANBURAJAN]
Posted 09.29.07 02:58 PM | Comments (1)
September 28, 2007
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"If you're making a speech to 1,500 people and somebody yawns, the story is the yawn."
-- Fred Thompson, Knoxville News Sentinel, 9/28.
Posted 09.28.07 12:39 PM | Comments (2)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.28.07 10:48 AM | Comments (0)
September 27, 2007
Hillary's Insider Advantage
Every day, the political class rates the 2008 White House hopefuls on the quality of their campaigns, how much money they’ve raised or how they performed in the latest debate. But who would make the best president?
Participants from both parties in the latest National Journal Political Insiders Poll believe that Hillary Rodham Clinton would be the best Dem to hold that job, while they split on which GOP contender would make the best president.
A hefty plurality of Dem Insiders (49%) think Clinton is best suited for the Oval Office, followed distantly by Chris Dodd and Barack Obama, who where tied for second with 13%.
Republican Insiders also give the nod to Hillary, but by a much smaller margin, 33 percent. As one GOP Insider said, she is “very pragmatic and solution-oriented. Although many GOP leaders in Congress don’t agree with her, there is a level of respect that is needed for the next executive.” . Bill Richardson, with his record as a tax-cutter in NM, was judged by 26% of the GOP Insiders as the best Dem, followed by Joe Biden, with 19%.
Among the GOP presidential field, 41% of GOP Insiders favored Mitt Romney followed by John McCain, 24% , and Rudy Giuliani, 23%. Twenty-eight percent of the Democratic Insiders, citing his bi-partisan tendencies, thought the best GOP pres. would be McCain, followed by 23% for Romney and, 18% for Mike Huckabee.
The Insiders also weighed in on whether they would like to see the WH noms in both parties agree to use only public financing in the general election. Here the two party’s different philosophies showed through. Among Democratic Insiders, 58% said they’d like to see that deal struck, while 39% said they wouldn’t.
As one Democratic Insider asked, “How is it better to have candidates spend the time raising money, unless we think that begging is an essential presidential trait?” But contrast that sentiment to the whopping 81 percent of Republican Insiders who were opposed to such a deal, while only 18 percent would take it. Said one GOP Insider, “Taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for the television commercials they despise" [JAMES BARNES].
Posted 09.27.07 03:39 PM | Comments (0)
PolitiScope: His Better Half?
Is Elizabeth Edwards helping or hurting her husband's presidential campaign? In his latest PolitiScope, John Mercurio answers the question.
Posted 09.27.07 02:42 PM | Comments (0)
The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Bill Clinton has chosen an interesting round of media outlets to promote his global initiative fund.
Yesterday he sat down with Martha Stewart and CNBC's Maria Bartiromo -- both of whom played to his target donor audience. In fact, during her interview, Stewart discussed how much she gave to Clinton's fund and had several employees come forward to discuss how they were inspired to give more to the community. And CNBC's audience is the business community -- one that can afford to donate to Clinton's cause.
His third interview of the day was with ABC's Charles Gibson, but, naturally, half of the televised portion focused on Hillary Clinton's WH run. Clinton continues the TV rounds today with a sit down with Bloomberg's Al Hunt and FNC's Greta Van Susteren. [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.27.07 01:06 PM | Comments (0)
Baracking The Vote
HANOVER, NH -- In a speech to students at Dartmouth College yesterday, Barack Obama's NH dir. told students that young voters could decide which WH Dem carries the Granite State in '08.
"If we can get two to three thousand extra votes from you guys that could be 4 to 5, 6, 7 percent of the vote," Matt Rodriguez said.
He pushed students to register and vote in NH and to encourage their friends and dormmates to do the same. Obama's camp has five dedicated college organizers to get out the vote on campuses across the state. Their efforts appear to be paying off, at least at Dartmouth, where Obama signs and t-shirts are ubiquitous across the picturesque New England campus.
Referencing the "strong support" for Obama on Dartmouth's campus and across the country, Rodriguez told students that Obama had the potential to pull votes from college students that are not going to any of the other candidates.
"If it's a battle between Hillary and Barack, it doesn't take a lot to win. Thirty thousand votes. Think about what a few thousand young people would mean," Rodriguez said.
Both Rodriguez and Jim Demers, a Dem strategist working with the Obama camp, stressed the idea of students being part of a historical sea change in politics should they help elect Obama.
"Young people connect with Barack Obama better than any other candidate," Demers said. "If this guy wins, it would be the first time since the Vietnam War that the youth vote made a difference."
The Obama camp's emphasis on campaigning among college students and young voters has raised eyebrows, especially in IA where the youth vote is not seen as a constituency that can be relied upon to turnout (see Dean, Howard '04). But Dean, now the DNC chair, discussed the potential impact that the 18-to-29 vote could have in this election on Wednesday night.
"The 18 to 29 year old vote increased by 20 percent in the 2004 election," Dean said, adding that '06 participation by this group had increased by 24%.
Eligible voters under 30 actually increased by 9% in '04 election. In the swing states of MN, MI, OH, WI and PA, their participation exceeded 60%, according to the Vanishing Voter Project at the Kennedy School of Gov't.
Demers, when speaking to the students about electability, brought up the potential hurdle Obama could face among the electorate as the first African-American president. He compared the notion that no one would for a Black candidate today to the idea that no one would vote for John F. Kennedy because of his religion.
"Everyone said a Catholic couldn't win the presidency, and Barack Obama as an African American candidate there are those that say he can't win. But the American stepped up and did it."
When asked by Dartmouth student Anna Bufa, 20, about whether Obama could win a general election, Demers echoed the theme that the Obama campaign has tried to stress all week - greater nat'l electability.
"With Hillary Clinton, the biggest concern I have is national polls saying 43 percent of Americans don't want to vote for her," Demers said "My fear is that we have a map that looks like the last two elections, and it will become about a race for a win in one state. That's how we got George W. Bush."
Appearing to channel the recent campaign endorsement given by ex-Dem chair Gordon Fischer , Demers also said Obama would provide coattails for other Dems on the ballot, and referenced the race between NH Sen. John Sununu (R) and Dem Jeanne Shaheen (D) in '08.
Whether the youth vote can actually give Obama an edge in the primaries is up in the air. In Iowa in 2004, there was a four-fold increase in caucus participation by 18 to 29 year olds, but in New Hampshire, by contrast, turnout levels remained the same, according to the Vanishing Voter Project.
The eventual dates of the primary calendar could have a tremendous impact on whether the youth vote could affect the outcomes of the primaries. Should the New Hampshire primary be held before students return to school, students would largely have to vote by absentee ballots. A campaign that relied on students for volunteer support during GOTV could also be affected, if students had to be relied upon to return to the state before classes started. [ASWINI ANBURAJAN].
Posted 09.27.07 12:44 PM | Comments (2)
GOP Adman Becomes ONE With Poverty
Bush-Cheney ‘04 adman Fred Davis has joined the Bono-endorsed anti-poverty ONE Vote '08 campaign as its sole media consultant.
“It’s nice to be on the side of all of humanity this time,” said Davis. “ONE is such a large undertaking that we consider it a replacement for work in the presidential primaries.”
Davis was chief creative consultant on Sen. John McCain’s White House run until leaving the cash-challenged campaign last July, and last year he consulted on former Sen. Bill Frist’s testing-the-waters ‘08 aspirations. Now Frist and former Democratic Senate Leader Tom Daschle are co-chairs of ONE’s “Vote ‘08” effort with Davis creating ads built on persuading ‘08 candidates to make genuine anti-poverty commitments.
“Very simple little challenge, don’t you think?” said Davis. “It’s an attempt to get politicians in America to understand that poverty is such a vital worldwide issue. Helping find solutions to poverty could so affect the way the world perceives the United States."
Davis’s Los Angeles-based media firm Strategic Perception started working on ONE ideas last week, joining ex- B-C ‘04 chief strategist Matthew Dowd who signed on recently as ONE’s chief strategist. (Check out Dowd’s personal website www.livegentle.com, where he’s writing about his current, three-week spiritual pilgrimage through India)
Davis and Dowd answer to ONE president/CEO Susan McCue, formerly chief of staff to Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid, with McCue ranked No. 47 on GQ magazine’s “50 Most Powerful People in D.C.” The U2 front man Bono has been a public face for ONE since its 2004 founding by major development and relief agencies. But McCue has had free reign to create her bi-partisan team with advisors such as Dem strategist Donna Brazile and Bush global communications strategist Tucker Eskew (who with Dowd was one of four founders of consulting firm Via Novo).
In an e-mail, McCue stated that ONE is, “building aggressive grassroots operations on the ground and will have a sophisticated media overlay.” With serious dollars from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, ONE lobbies Capitol Hill for global debt cancellation, worldwide clean water, African AIDS treatment, etc.
Besides ONE, this fall’s ‘07 cycle finds Davis working on Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher’s re-election bid and creating the Republican Governors Association ads for U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal’s second try at moving into the Governor's mansion in Baton Rogue. Davis’s ‘08 commitments include the Senate re-election bids of North Carolina’s Elizabeth Dole, Oklahoma’s Jim Inhofe and Tennessee’s Lamar Alexander, plus N.C. businessman/attorney Bill Graham’s gubernatorial run. [DAVID FINNIGAN]
Posted 09.27.07 12:44 PM | Comments (2)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"One thing that I don't want to do is wake up on Election Day and have this whole Barack Obama thing be 'a nice story.'"
-- Michelle Obama, NBC/National Journal, 9/26.
Posted 09.27.07 12:42 PM | Comments (0)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.27.07 10:22 AM | Comments (0)
September 26, 2007
Paccione Passes in CO-04
Another Dem top-tier challenger has a clearer field this afternoon, as CO-04 ’06 nominee Angie Paccione (D) has dropped out of the race, according to the Rocky Mountain News. That leaves Dem favorite Betsy Markey, a former aide to Sen. Salazar (D) and ’06 Reform nominee Eric Eidsness (D) as the two Dems remaining in the race against Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R).
Paccione announced this a.m. that she’s joining Pathways to Leadership, a business consulting firm. Paccione: “I thought that I might be able to work with Pathways to Leadership and campaign for Congress at the same time. However, the opportunities with Pathways have grown and I must say 'yes' to those opportunities."
Paccione came within 6K votes of knocking off Musgrave in ’06. But, this year, key CO Dems had started to coalesce around Markey, putting pressure on Paccione to exit. Paccione had raised just $90K for her repeat bid.
Her exit from the race continues a positive trend for Democrats. Against targeted GOPers, weaker Dems are dropping out of primaries, helping to clear the field for stronger and more viable Dem candidates. Markey now becomes the prohibitive favorite in this race, and should have more resources with which to combat the very vulnerable Musgrave in a general election. [TIM SAHD]
Posted 09.26.07 05:11 PM | Comments (4)
Terry Everett, Retiring
Rep. Terry Everett (R-AL 02) today announced his decision not to seek re-election in ’08, citing ill health.
Everett: "My health is good, but I have had two attacks of shingles in the last three years. This resulted in nerve damage to my right foot that has not been completely restored, which causes a few problems. I have recently determined that progress in that regard will be slower than I had hoped. While my health is good, there are other areas that come with age that I should pay more attention.”
For gun-shy GOPers wary of another retirement, an open seat here won’t likely cause too many headaches. The CD gave Pres. Bush 67% in ’04, and Everett hasn’t won re-election with less than 63% since winning the seat in ’92.
A small warning sign, though. The CD does have a 30% African-American population. That’s up from the 24% the district had when Everett won his first race in ’92 when he defeated ex-Gov. George Wallace’s (D) son, 49%-48%. But unless the GOP stumbles mightily and the Dems find a candidate that can galvanize the African-American vote, the GOP will hold onto the seat [TIM SAHD].
Posted 09.26.07 04:06 PM | Comments (0)
Giuliani Makes Changes Atop His Finance Team
NBC/National Journal embed Matt Berger confirms Politico's report that Rudy Giuliani is making changes in his finance team. "It wasn't the right fit," said a campaign aide. Jim Lee will now serve as finance co-chair and CEO of Giuliani's campaign.
Posted 09.26.07 02:05 PM | Comments (1)
Fortune Favors ...
Joe Biden saw his Iraq amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill pass the Senate this afternoon by a 75-23-2 vote. Passage wasn't just seen as a victory for Biden but a chance to get his '08 opponents on the record about his Iraq plan. Hillary Clinton, Chris Dodd, and Sam Brownback (who signed on as a co-sponsor) all voted for the plan. But Barack Obama and John McCain didn't vote on the measure. It will be interesting to see how Biden, who has tied his presidential fortune to the war in Iraq, responds. He's holding a presser on Capital Hill this afternoon. [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.26.07 01:39 PM | Comments (0)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"Giuliani doesn't need more weird."
-- The Wall Street Journal, on Giuliani interrupting his NRA speech to answer a call from his wife, 9/26
Posted 09.26.07 12:46 PM | Comments (1)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.26.07 11:08 AM | Comments (0)
Time For A Deal!
Hillary Clinton issued an official statement last p.m. on the UAW’s decision to strike, just hours before the union reached a deal with GM and a full day after any other WH Dem did so. Chris Dodd was the first candidate to issue his support for the union on 9/24.
Here’s when the statement from their respective campaign office arrived in our inbox:
Dodd: 9/24 1:17 PM
Barack Obama: 9/24 2:29 PM
Bill Richardson: 9/24 3:37 PM
Joe Biden: 9/24 3:56 PM
John Edwards: 9/24 4:32 PM
Clinton: 9/25 6:36 PM
[NORA McALVANAH]
Posted 09.26.07 10:21 AM | Comments (0)
Hotline After Dark -- The Speaker Has The Floor
Still a lot of TV talk last night on Iranian Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in the "Situation Room":
On Iraq: "We changed the debate on the war. We put a bill on the president's desk which said that we wanted the redeployment of troops out of Iraq to begin in a timely fashion and to end within a year. The president vetoed that bill. He got quite a response to that veto and the Republicans in the Senate then decided that he was never going to get a bill on his desk again. So we have a barrier. And it's important for the American people to know that while I can bring a bill to the floor in the House, it cannot be brought up in the Senate unless there is a 60 vote."
Asked if they can't limit funding: "I wish the speaker had all the power you just described. I certainly could do that. That doesn't bar the minority from bringing up a funding resolution. They have their parliamentary prerogatives, as well."
On the Dem base being angry about Iraq: "I'm frustrated myself" (CNN, 9/25). [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.26.07 08:46 AM | Comments (0)
September 25, 2007
Elizabeth The Great?
From today's Hotline:
Is E. Edwards helping or hurting her husband's WH campaign?
-- She emerged from WH '04 w/legions of admirers, and drew respect and warm condolences from every corner 3/22 when she announced her cancer had returned. But since then she has evolved into her husband's chief attacker, launching salvos at HRC and Obama that others (esp. would-be first ladies) wouldn't dare.
-- In today's NY Daily News, she continues to hit Clinton: "She's wrong on how it is we get univ. health care, and her own experience should have taught her that." The Clintons "lost the fight" in '93, she said, because they used their "pol. capital" on NAFTA. Their "stick-to-it-iveness ... wasn't there."
-- Quite notably, the NYDN says, Camp Clinton "declined to respond to Edwards' broadsides."
-- Of course they did. They know full well that E. Edwards holds a special place in voters' hearts. She's virtually untouchable in the WH'08 debate. The question is, did the Edwards camp, recognizing that reality, goad her into launching these broadsides, potentially driving up her own negs? Can she be her husband's biggest asset if she, herself, is viewed as polarizing?
Posted 09.25.07 02:31 PM | Comments (2)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"It is the Kerry model in a lot of ways."
-- John McCain camp mgr Rick Davis, on McCain's comeback strategy, Des Moines Register, 9/25.
Posted 09.25.07 12:37 PM | Comments (0)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.25.07 09:38 AM | Comments (0)
Hotline After Dark -- Doubling Down
Lots of talk about Iranian Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on TV last night but here are the political highlights:
Bill Richardson was on "NewsHour" as part of their '08 candidates series:
On Iraq: "A political compromise can only happen only if we get every one of our troops out, because they become targets."
More: "I don't understand the reasoning of my Democratic opponents who say they want to take all the combat troops out, but leave troops behind that are non-combat troops. I say, 'How are they going to defend themselves?' So my point is not that I'm trying to attract the antiwar vote. What I want to do is diplomacy, bring Iran and Syria in for possible diplomacy that will allow stability in the region, an all-Muslim peacekeeping force headed by the U.N. Get Turkey in there, get Jordan, get Egypt. This is a Muslim war."
Asked if he would have let Iranian Pres. Ahmadinejad speak to the U.N.: "Yes, as home of the U.N., yes. Those are multilateral agreements that any world leader can come to the United States, as long as they're members of the United Nations. And New York is the seat of the United Nations. But I wouldn't have allowed Ahmadinejad to go to Ground Zero. I'm glad the New York police said no. That would have been an insult to the families. Speaking of Columbia, I wouldn't have invited him, but Columbia did, and it was his platform."
On dealing with Mexico: "I think you also have to have stronger border security. You've got to find ways to have more technology to detect some kind of nuclear material at the border. I'd keep the National Guard there longer. But would I build this wall? No, that is foolish. This country is not a nation of walls. Plus, if you build a wall that's 12 feet tall, a lot of 13-foot ladders are going to happen. It doesn't work. What you also do is those that knowingly hire illegal workers need to be punished. And then, finally, there's got to be a legalization program. What's the alternative, round everybody up and deport them? That's not going to happen. Or the current status, which is leave the problem and not deal with it? I think that's unacceptable."
Richardson: "If I'm the nominee, I'll name my cabinet before the election, so that the American people know what team it is. I'll have independents. I'll have Republicans in my cabinet. I won't overdo the Republicans. But I just think that we need bipartisanship and we need not just talk about it. We need to show how we're going to do it, how we can govern" (PBS, 9/24).
TRUMP THIS
Donald Trump was in the "Situation Room":
Trump: "I play golf with Andrew [Giuliani]. And Andrew is a very, very good golfer, by the way. And he loves his father."
Asked the relationship between the Giulianis: "I don't think it is estranged at all. I mean, I speak to Andrew, he totally loves his father and respects his father, and loves his mother."
CNN's Blitzer: "That is good to know" (9/24).
PLACE YOUR BETS
Author Bill Sammon was on "Hannity & Colmes" to discuss his new book in which Pres. Bush predicts Hillary Clinton will get the Dem WH nod.
Sammon: "He's hedging his bet. On the one hand, ... he told me that he expects Hillary to win the nomination, which is the first time the president has actually predicted that. ... But I think even more significantly, he's now saying -- and I'm reporting this tonight -- that he, Bush and his aides have quietly been providing back-channel advice to Hillary and the other Democratic top tier candidates to leave enough wiggle room in their anti-war rhetoric so that, if they're elected president, they will still be able to preserve the war and not completely reverse Bush's policies that he's put in place all of these years. So he's trying to have it both ways. He's thinking the Republican's going to win, but in case the Democrats win, he's to get them -- look, if you end up sitting where I'm sitting here in the Oval Office, all this anti-war rhetoric is going to go away, and you're going to have to deal with the reality that I deal with. So he's giving them this advice" (FNC, 9/24).
Chicago Tribune's Zuckman, on reports of Bush saying HRC will get the Dem nod: "The fact is, up and down the ranks of the Republican party, they are convinced that she will be the nominee. I was having a conversation with a Republican strategist who's been involved in every presidential election for years the other day, and I said, isn't there some scenario you could imagine where she wouldn't get the nomination? And he said, well, I suppose if she gets hit by a truck" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 9/24).
Newsweek's Fineman, on HRC's Sunday show appearances: "Not only did she do all five, she did them under her own circumstances. She did them from a set in the barn up in her house in Chappaqua, beautifully lit, perfectly lit. It showed the control she has of the political process at this point. And, by the way, it also showed the attitude they have towards the media. They did all five of these today, so they don't have to do any more until after the primary season" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 9/24).
MSNBC's Matthews: "I have another theory that even if she had gone head to head with Tim Russert on 'Meet The Press' and had done pretty well, people would say that's a drew. But if she goes against five guys, and it's a draw in each case, she somehow wins. I think it was brilliant gamesmanship" ("Hardball," 9/24). [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.25.07 08:48 AM | Comments (0)
September 24, 2007
Biden: Fifth In Polls, But Third In Endorsements
Joe Biden will announce today the endorsement of IA House Speaker Pro Tempore Polly Bukta. This is the 9th IA legislative endorsement for Biden, who has made such events a central part of his IA strategy.
He's a top tier candidate when it comes to IA supporters but he still lags behind front-runners Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Last week a Wilmington News-Journal article pointed out Clinton had 16 legislative endorsements in IA, while Barack Obama had 10. [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.24.07 02:20 PM | Comments (3)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"If you had walked even a day in our shoes over the last 15 years, I'm sure you'd understand."
-- Hillary Clinton, asked why she and her husband have a "hyper-partisan" approach to politics, FNS, 9/23
Posted 09.24.07 12:44 PM | Comments (0)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.24.07 10:55 AM | Comments (0)
We're All Ears
Barack Obama's campaign has scheduled a 10 a.m. ET "campaign announcement" from Iowa. Will Obama be joined, perhaps, by Tom Harkin? Stay tuned ...
Posted 09.24.07 08:20 AM | Comments (1)
In Mackinac, It's Romney vs. McCain
MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. – While nat'l GOP primary polls show what could become a protracted fight between Rudy Giuliani and Fred Thompson, this weekend’s Republican Leadership Conference in MI revealed that right now the battle there might boil down to Mitt Romney and John McCain.
Unlike the three GOPers who spoke before McCain, cameras didn’t swarm the senator when he made his way to the podium in the sprawling dining room of Mackinac’s Grand Hotel. He may have been last in the order of the WH contenders on the docket with his 9/22 p.m. pitch, but attendees gave him the warmest reception and buzzed about it afterward.
“I think John McCain gave the best speech I’ve ever seen him give," MI GOP Chair Saul Anuzis said to reporters 9/23 a.m. "I told him that. It was from the heart, it was well-delivered.”
Anuzis said McCain needed this kind of boost by indicating that there was some “anguish” among McCain supporters in the state leading up to the weekend’s event due to last week’s resignation by McCain’s former state chair, MI AG Mike Cox.
Despite Romney’s fierce opposition last week to invitations extended to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to come before the U.N. General Assembly and also speak to students at Columbia University, it was McCain who got the most mileage out of the flap when he broached the issue. Romney’s speech only brushed on terrorism and didn’t get into specifics like McCain did on the Ahmadinejad visit. McCain’s comment that “I certainly think that a man who is threatening… and killing American troops should not be given an invitation to speak at an American university” earned him one of the few standing ovations awarded at the gathering.
Romney, meanwhile, paraded into the venue on 9/22 a.m., entering as “Michigan’s favorite son.” Anuzis offered: “I think he gave a good speech. It wasn’t the best speech I’ve ever heard, but he didn’t screw anything up either. But the enthusiasm was there from his supporters.”
And Anuzis pointed out that Romney was the only candidate to really work the dining room before taking the stage. ”You could see people noticing that, and I think that was a really good strategy,” he said. “He was the only one who did it, which I was, to be honest with, surprised.”
Differences in techniques over the weekend aside, both Romney and McCain curry favor with the state GOP because both campaigns have had staff there for more than a year and have energized voters there. That has helped to build the party and raise into the millions for it.
For McCain, it wasn’t just a strong performance or the recent presence of staffers there that helped propel him to second place in the Hotline’s straw poll there this weekend. His primary victory over George W. Bush in 2/00 has left him with a solid footing there nearly eight years later. Romney’s strength in the state, meanwhile, stems from his roots. He and wife Ann grew up there together, and his father, George, was gov in the '60s.
Both campaigns bussed in a healthy dose of college students and came up with a 1-2 finish in the poll. Romney won a 39-percent plurality from the nearly 1,000 votes, and McCain garnered close to 27 percent. Ron Paul and Giuliani came in third and fourth, respectively, with about 11 percent each; Thompson managed just seven percent for a fifth-place finish. Anuzis explained that the composition probably reflects where the activists in the state fall with respect to the candidates, but not necessarily where the voters are.
Charges flew at certain times about the infusion of volunteers registered on behalf of certain campaigns, but Anuzis waved that off. “Everybody was bringing people up,” he said, whether they were volunteers or College Republicans, and Duncan Hunter was no exception.
“This is not an easy place to bring people in and leave,” Anuzis advised. “It’s a very expensive process in that a lot of people have to stay here the whole time.”
Due to the new ethics package, the cost to fly in privately would near $20,000 per candidate, likely causing second-tier candidates like Sam Brownback and Mike Huckabee to skip the confab in favor of other events, which may have been mildly injurious to them in the straw poll.
McCain was believed to have flown in on a commercial airline, and he arrived on 9/21 p.m. He didn’t hop aboard a horse-drawn carriage to return to the mainland until 9/23 a.m., giving him the entire weekend to rub elbows with highly tuned-in MI GOPers. Rivals Giuliani, Thompson and Romney just swooped in for a partial day to give their speeches and attend events centered around them.
Moving Up Michigan
In the '00 primary, a hefty percentage of Dems and indies crossed over and voted for McCain because it was "open." This year, just after IA holds it caucus and NH conducts its primary, MI holds its partially closed primary on 1/15.
Romney told supporters on 9/22 a.m. that he considers MI's earlier primary “a good piece news.” Many acknowledged that Dems tend not to agree, and there’s a struggle with the nat'l party to figure out how to allow the party’s WH contenders to campaign there without rumpling feathers in other early primary states. Most of the Dem campaigns have said they will forego campaigning there to honor the traditional calendar.
Anuzis warned that could be a huge mistake. “We’re just taking advantage of it,” he said, explaining that Michigan’s high percentage of swing voters makes the state competitive and has made it one of the Dems' “key electoral states.”
In '04, Anuzis explained, John Kerry had to spend money getting back to MI to drum up support and ensure that he would win there, subtracting Election Day time he could spend in OH. The same thing befell Al Gore in MI when he was trying to draw out every voter in FL, according to Anuzis. Still, the last time Dems lost the state was '88.
It’s The Economy, Stupid
McCain might have made inroads with his 9/22 p.m. performance, but the direct appeals to Michiganders were made most forcefully by Romney and Giuliani.
“For me Michigan is a personal matter,” Romney said at several appearances on 9/22. “The fact that Michigan is undergoing in a one-state recession is not acceptable to me.” He declared his love for both the state and the automobile industry and said, “If I’m lucky enough to be the next president of the United States, I’m going to work hard to make sure Michigan gets back on top.”
Under Romney’s watch as RGA chair in '06, Republican Dick DeVos was unable to overcome Dem incumbent Jennifer Granholm , even though it was at one point considered to be a golden pickup opportunity. DeVos, who dined at the same table as Romney on 9/22, said after the session that there was no bad blood between them and that he couldn’t make a decision to support McCain, Romney or Giuliani for president because they had all helped in his election and “it’s hard to pick between friends.”
And in his official 9/22 lunchtime address, Romney told listeners, “If you like what Gov. Granholm has done to Michigan, you’ll love what a President Hillary Clinton would do in America.”
Giuliani took a more direct approach in his 9/21 p.m. address. “I can get you a new governor,” he declared, sighing “maybe next time.” Though he was the first headliner to address the entire conference, buzz about Giuliani was over when the program picked back up on Saturday.
He did pick up on one thing, though, which was the need to stress the economy. He compared the state’s conditions to those of NYC's in the '90s when he took the reins as mayor, although he did acknowledge there were different factors at play. He began his lengthy speech with a focus on economic issues, outlining for attendees that he intends to focus on lower taxes, smaller government, less regulation and “realizing that business is not the enemy.”
Romney and Giuliani also each spoke to their strategies in winning the general election as another selling point. While both said Michigan would be important to their general-election campaigns, Giuliani said he was the candidate who could employ a 50-state strategy, while Romney said both the coasts would remain blue, but that having come from the Midwest, he could put its states – especially Michigan – in play [ERIN McPIKE].
Posted 09.24.07 08:10 AM | Comments (0)
Obama, On Broadway
Barack Obama campaigns in Hillary Clinton's backyard this week, fundraising with Broadway stars on 9/24 and holding a rally in Washington Square Park on 9/26 p.m. NY is, of course, not in play. But Obama's previous events in NYC have been big successes. The size of the rally on the 26th, which will be held on NYU's campus, could be telling evidence of Obama's appeal to young voters.
Speaking of generational differences, Obama tried to mend a perceived schism between his appeal to young voters and (ahem) more mature ones this weekend in IA. Obama held town halls to discuss his middle class tax cut, which includes eliminating taxes for 7M seniors who make less than $50K/yr and lets 22M seniors to not have to file tax returns.
To put Obama's tax plan into context, half of all seniors don't pay taxes now, according to the AARP. As of '04 data, 17M tax returns were filed for senior households and 12.5M of those returns were for taxable income. A big question on the Obama plan is whether the $50,000 ceiling for not paying taxes applies to individuals or joint income tax returns.
He also had an editorial in the Quad City Times making a direct appeal to seniors on his tax cut and his plans for Social Security. Obama: "I do not want to cut benefits or raise the retirement age," and instead embraced a solution, endorsed by the AARP, which would apply the payroll tax to all income not just the first $97,500. Previously Obama had said that all three options, rasing the tax ceiling, the retirement age or cutting benefits were all on the table.
The key note in Obama's editorial, however, was his reference to the size of the population receiving social security benefits in Iowa. 20 percent of Iowans, or 1 in 5 receive social security. How many of these older Iowans are caucus goers? How many caucus for Democrats, and is Obama doing enough to create a base of support with these voters? [ASWINI ANBURAJAN].
Posted 09.24.07 08:00 AM | Comments (1)
Tancredo's 2nd Amendment Credo
KEENE, N.H. -- Tom Tancredo, who skipped the NRA Convention in DC on 9/21, put his 2nd Amend. creds on display here 9/23, serving as the "Celebrity Guest Shooter" at a local GOP fundraiser. "As opposed to other people who have made the statement, I have actually hunted all my life," Tancredo said.
Tancredo played the mark, meaning anyone who hit more targets than him in the three-phase competition was entered into a raffle for prizes, which included frozen turkeys. Tancredo, who did not use any of his own guns, joked after that he shot just poorly enough to ensure that everyone finished better than him. "It's just what you have to do, right?" he asked. "I think he did pretty well," said Juliana Bergeron, chair of the Cheshire County GOP. "Everybody says it's different if you're not shooting with your own guns" [MIKE MEMOLI].
Posted 09.24.07 07:54 AM | Comments (0)
September 23, 2007
Romney is the Survivor on the Island
Mackinac Island, MI - Ex-Gov. Mitt Romney won the Michigan Republican Leadership Conference straw poll, receiving 39 % of the 979 votes cast.
Sen. John McCain came in second with 27%, followed by Rep. Ron Paul with 10.8%.
The straw poll, sponsored by the Hotline, was held this Friday and Saturday on Mackinac Island.
Frmr New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was close behind Paul, taking 10.62%. Frmr Sen. Fred Thompson took 7%. All five spoke before conference attendees this weekend, as did Rep. Duncan Hunter, who took 1% of the vote. Mike Huckabee and Sam Brownback were scheduled to appear, but cancelled on Friday.
The Michigan Republican party unofficially certified the straw poll results.
Only conference registrants who were Michigan residents were eligible to vote.
FInal results are below:
S. Brownback 3 .31%
Rudy Giuliani 104 10.62%
M. Huckabee 25 2.55%
D. Hunter 12 1.23%
J. McCain 260 26.56%
R. Paul 106 10.83%
M. Romney 383 39.12%
T. Tancredo 0
F. Thompson 70 7.15%
Uncomm 16 1.63%
###
Posted 09.23.07 09:00 AM | Comments (39)
September 22, 2007
E. Edwards: Imagine This
One day after John Edwards announced his education platform, his wife Elizabeth Edwards told a New Hampshire audience that the plan is the latest example of him leading the Democratic field when it comes to addressing the issues. “Imagine what this race would look like if John weren't in it,” asked E. Edwards on 9/21 at a house party in Hooksett, NH.
At other events in the state on Friday and Saturday, Edwards also discussed health care and the Iraq war, and the importance of Democrats electing a candidate who can lead a strong general election ticket. “It’s not going to do us a whole lot of good to have the White House if we don’t keep the Senate,” Edwards said at a house party in Lee, NH on 9/21.
She said John Edwards bring “a constellation of things we rarely get in a candidate,” and that there “are too many important things for us to even remotely take a chance on anything less than a sure thing.”
Asked Saturday about her focus on the electability issue, Edwards said it is simply a “reflection of what I hear from people, that we absolutely have to win.” “I stress the issues that voters are actually concerned about,” she said.
At several of the events, Edwards said that Hillary Clinton's new health care plan, announced this week, “looks a lot like John’s." She also said he could be counted on to fight to make sure a universal system becomes reality. “We can’t let Harry and Louise stop us from getting the health care that we need,” she said Friday night in Epsom, NH. [MIKE MEMOLI]
Posted 09.22.07 06:21 PM | Comments (0)
Stuffed Chicken and Stump Speeches
Mackinac Island, MI - Today's lunch speech by homeboy Mitt Romney received polite, though not overwhelming response. Maybe it was the stuffed chicken over a bed of shredded carrots -- or maybe it was the speech itself, which prompted random, scattered laughs from the audience. However Romney did take the opportunity to criticize his own party, urging activists to instead be Reagan and Roosevelt Republicans.
Despite his railing on Washington Republicans, Romney twice mentioned President Bush -- a name that has scarcely been mentioned thus far this weekend. The first Bush mention referred to how the sitting president restored integrity to the White House, while the second mention hailed him for keeping the country safe for the past few years.
Spotted: Fred Thompson, who was mobbed in the Grand Hotel lobby just before Romney's lunch speech, with wife Jeri prominently at his side (he was easier to see over the crowd than she was). He speaks tonight at dinner, sharing the program with 2000 MI primary winner John McCain.
Both have a lot riding on their performances tonight. For the relatively unknown Thompson,the speech will be an opportunity to define himself. McCain, who just recently lost his state chairman, Atty Gen Mike Cox, must convince the audience that he remains a viable choice. McCain, along with Romney, has the most significant contigent of sticker-wearing/t-shirt wearing supporters.
Posted 09.22.07 04:06 PM | Comments (1)
But Does He Have a Credential?
Mackinac Island, MI- With some of the heavy hitters yet to speak - Rudy Giuliani was the dinner speaker last night, Mtt Romney speaks at lunch today - here's an early look at the Michigan Republican Leadership Conference by the numbers:
Price of a weekend stay in the Grand Island Hotel? About $300.
Number of Republican activists on said Island? at least 2,000. The dinner MC declared this year's event the largest ever
Number of times Rudy Giuiliani mentioned MoveOn: At least five
Number of times Giuliani mentioned Hillary Clinton: At least a dozen
Number of times Giuliani mentioned George Bush: Once
Number of candidate no-shows thus far: Two (Mike Huckabee and Sam Brownback)
Who's Hot: French President Nicolas Sarkozy (both Giuliani and Newt Gingrich mentioned him frequently)
Who's Not: Anyone in current Administration (no mention of any WH inhabitants).
More updates soon....
Posted 09.22.07 12:23 PM | Comments (1)
September 21, 2007
Rudy, Aim, Fire
Rudy Giuliani told the NRA much of what they wanted to hear 9/21 about his support for 2nd Amendment rights, writes NBC/National Journal's Berger, but he appeared to leave the DC conf with few converts.
“I think he is sincere; I just don’t know if he truly believes it down deep inside,” said Thomas Crum, a retired trucking exec. from Scottsdale, AZ. “I have a little difference with him just beginning to realize what his position really is.”
Members of the gun lobby who attended “A Celebration of American Values” conf. said they were encouraged by Giuliani’s appearance and what he said about support for gun rights. But many also said they were concerned about his track record supporting gun control as NYC mayor, and favored other cands in the WH GOP primary.
Bob Bell, a salesman from Clarkesville, MD, said he respected Giuliani’s leadership during the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, but preferred Fred Thompson, a longtime supporter of 2nd Amendment rights. Bell said Giuliani’s mayoral record - including his advocacy for the assault weapons ban and lawsuits against gun manufacturers - weighed heavy on him.
“He was a mayor of New York City, and try and get a gun permit up there,” he said.
To garner his support, Bell said, Giuliani would have needed to espouse the right to carry weapons and make a retraction for his earlier views.
Instead, Giuliani acknowledged disagreements with much of the crowd, but stressed “there are a lot of things you and I have in common.” His message focused largely on enforcing current gun laws and prosecuting crimes committed with a gun, rather than new gun ownership restrictions.
“The bottom line is we need to step up enforcement of gun crimes and leave law-abiding citizens alone,” he said to tepid applause.
Sitting next to Bell at lunch Friday, Joe Rogers was keeping a scorecard for each of the WH candidates on the conf's brochure. While some speakers had check marks, Giuliani was the only one with a 0 next to his name. The Wilmington, N.C. salesman said even Bill Richardson scored better during his taped remarks.
“I don’t think there’s anything he could have said and been truthful about to win over the crowd,” Rogers said of Giuliani. “To his credit, he spoke the truth.”
Friday’s speech was considered an important bellwether for how the GOP front-runner would perform among some of the party’s niche groups that have opposed positions Giuliani has taken in the past. He's likely to face other potentially hostile crowds if and when he reaches out to pro-life voters and opponents of same sex marriage.
While the NRA has never endorsed in a WH GOP primary, officials have left that door open this year, and are planning more forums in early primary states.
NRA Executive Vice President and CEO Wayne LaPierre said he liked what he heard from Giuliani.
“He said a lot of things that if you’re a law-abiding American firearm owner, you’re nodding and you’re saying ‘I agree with that,’” he said.
Judy McQuitty, a bookkeeper from Virginia Beach, VA, said she felt Giuliani was one of the least effective speakers, which also featured John McCain and Mitt Romney on video.
“He spent more time campaigning than the others,” McQuitty said of Giuliani. “I think all of them said the proper things to get the backing of the crowd. They all know where this crowd stands.”
But others said they believed Giuliani has had a change of heart on gun control.
“Things change, politicians have to change,” said Vance Perry of Richmond, VA. “Politicians who don’t change can’t grow with the situation. 9/11 changed a lot of things, obviously it changed Rudy Giuliani.”
Supporters at the Capitol Hilton event said they were not casting their primary ballot solely on gun control issues, but said any candidate seeking their vote needed to say the right things about the right to bare arms to even be considered by them. Several attendees said they believed Giuliani had recently passed that litmus test, while others remained unconvinced.
“It’s a defining issue, not because it’s the only issue or the most important issue,” said Alan Riley, a lawyer from Romney, WV. “But I find supporters of the second amendment don’t differ with me on many other issues.”
But even Rogers said that despite Giuliani’s zero on his scorecard, he would support him if he garnered the Republican nomination.
“I don’t stay home,” Rogers said. “If he’s the nominee, I support him. But I don’t say that with any enthusiasm.” [MATTHEW E. BERGER].
Posted 09.21.07 06:07 PM | Comments (0)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"A s I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted."
-- Ex-Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci, returning to the air after years in jail, Providence Journal, 9/21
Posted 09.21.07 12:41 PM | Comments (0)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.21.07 10:50 AM | Comments (0)
Hotline After Dark -- By Grabthar's hammer, You Shall Be Avenged!
Dan Rather was on "LKL" last night:
On why he's suing: "Two reasons, two core reasons. In no particular order -- although I do think the most important reason is somebody sometime has got to take a stand and say democracy cannot survive, much less thrive, with the level of big corporate and big government interference and intimidation in news." More: "The other is fair dealing. They had a contract with me. They had obligations under the contract and they didn't fulfill the obligations of that contract."
Asked if he thinks the original Guard report was correct: "Yes. And I think most people know by now that it was correct. ... By the way, I think there was a lot more in the president's military record we don't know about. ... We have a wartime president whose own military records are rather mysteriously missing. That's not, you know, that's not at issue in this lawsuit. But it was in the story."
Asked if he's worried: "I'm not going to sit here and tell you I'm not worried about anything. But I'm the person who stepped forward and said, OK, I'm ready to go under oath." More: "I'm ready to be deposed. The question is, are they? Because that's the only way you're going to get the truth of what happened at CBS News."
Asked if he would settle for money: "Absolutely not. Not. No. Absolutely not." More: "For me, it's not about the money. It is about this principle of what we're going to do with our democracy. ... If the time comes that there's money as a settlement, a substantial part of that will go to such outfits as ... Reporters and Investigative Editors Association, The Committee To Protect Journalists, because I would like the legacy of this lawsuit to be not that I made tons of money out of it, but that we kept the little flame, the flickering flame of hard-nose investigative reporting alive."
On apologizing for the Guard story on the "Evening News": "I played team. I worked at CBS for 44 years. I believe in the tradition, believed in the mystique, believed in the people. ... In the end, it was left up to me and I read it. I think anybody who's worked in a large corporation and had team leadership, responsibility, understands there's pressures."
On the commission investigating the Guard story: "It was designed to achieve a certain result so that the corporation would be exonerated."
Rather, on what kind of settlement he wants: "If God smiles and we'll be a little lucky, we will be able to make a legacy of the principle that independent journalism is very important in our way of life and our government" (CNN, 9/20).
SAM HE IS
PBS' Suarez sat down with Sam Brownback as part of their candidates '08 series:
On Iraq: "You can be against the war, and you can be against it on a policy basis, but the military, General Petraeus, they're doing everything they're asked to do. But we're not getting a political solution on the ground. So I'm pushing a three-state soft partition, and I think that's where we've really had a failure taking place."
Asked what happens in Iraq in Jan. '09: "I think we remain involved; I think you have to have a long-term U.S. commitment to Iraq. The key is getting our death losses down. We're in Bosnia 15 years after the Dayton Accords and the split there, soft partition. We're in South Korea 60 years after the Korean War. We can be there a long time if we're not losing soldiers."
Asked if Iraq has been a "windshield issue" that has block all other issues on the campaign trail: "It has, although I have to say, on our side of the aisle, immigration has more dominated the windshield, if you will, than even the war, just this really tough, visceral debate we've been having as a nation about immigration policy, about illegal immigration."
On his core issue: "What I want to talk about is rebuilding the family, because I really believe, in my heart and soul, that if we would rebuild and strengthen the family structure in the country, you'd start to really deal with a number of the most difficult problems we're having in the country today, in poverty, education, and in crime, but we've broken the family structure up" ("NewsHour," 9/20).
DON'T WORRY MEDIA, McCAIN STILL LOVES YA
And John McCain was on the "On the Record":
Asked about Gen. Petraeus recommendation to bring 35K troops home: "I trust his judgment. I hope that it's correct. And the whole surge tactic, it's really a tactic more than a strategy, is that we can have the Iraqi military take over more and more of the responsibilities and we can bring more and more of the troops home."
Asked the first few things he'd do as POTUS: "Commitment to prosecute this struggle against radical Islamic extremism in the most effective way and get the best minds in America, a pledge to eliminate wasteful and earmark pork barrel spending, a commitment to reach across the aisle to the Democrats and ask the American people to have them reach across the aisle to me to fix Social Security and Medicare."
Asked if he feels the media is unfair to him: "I would love to feel sorry for myself ... but no" (FNC, 9/20). [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.21.07 08:51 AM | Comments (0)
September 20, 2007
The Senate Goes On The Record For (And Against) Petraeus
The Senate today agreed to Sen. John Cornyn's (R-TX) non-binding measure expressing "the sense of the Senate" that Gen. David Petraeus "deserves the full support of the Senate." The amendment also "strongly" condemns "personal attacks on the honor and integrity of General Petraeus and all members of the United States Armed Forces."
The measure -- aimed at putting senators on the record about MoveOn.org's 9/10 "General Betray Us" ad in the New York Times -- passed by a vote of 72-25.
Of the WH '08 Dems in the Senate -- HRC, Obama, Biden, and Dodd -- none supported the measure (although Biden and Obama did not vote), which means, in essence, that no one chose to repudiate MoveOn.org's "General Betray Us" ad. It is hardly surprising, given the fact that Biden has been the only one to condemn the ad so far [calling it "a mistake," but not a "capital offense." Obama, meanwhile, merely said the ad was "counterproductive."]. And WH Dems can't afford to go on the record saying that they fully support Petraeus -- in the eyes of their primary voters, it would be tantamount to endorsing Bush's war policy.
Meanwhile, the Senate also voted on a similar Dem-sponsored resolution -- which more softly reaffirmed "strong support for all the men and women of the United States Armed Forces" and "strongly" condemned "attacks on the honor, integrity, and patriotism of any individual who is serving or has served honorably in the United States Armed Forces, by any person or organization." The Dem resolution failed to gain the necessary 60 votes for passage, in a vote of 51-46. But of the WH '08 Dems, Dodd, HRC, and Obama all supported the measure, while Biden did not vote.
And, even with HRC's support of the Dem measure, it may be only a matter of time before Rudy Giuliani's camp fires off a press release, condemning her for yet again failing to acknowledge Petraeus' service and integrity. [MAURA O'BRIEN]
Posted 09.20.07 03:15 PM | Comments (4)
TiVo Alert: HRC Does FNS
Almost exactly one year after her husband and FNC's Chris Wallace mixed it up on Fox News Sunday, Hillary Clinton will appear 9/23 on Wallace's show. HRC's doing other Sunday talk-shows as well.
Posted 09.20.07 02:44 PM | Comments (5)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"I think there's a place in heaven for women who support women."
-- HRC backer/ex-IA first lady Christie Vilsack, NBC/National Journal, 9/20
Posted 09.20.07 12:50 PM | Comments (0)
HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates
Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7
Nebraska -- Jordan on Politics
West Virginia -- Lincoln Walks at Midnight
New Jersey -- PoliticsNJ
California -- The Roundup
Missouri -- JohnCombest.com
Illinois -- Capitol Fax
Tennessee -- Tennessee Politics Blog
Florida -- SayfieReview.com
Alabama -- Doc's Political Parlor
Colorado -- ColoradoPols.com
Wisconsin -- WisPolitics
Texas -- Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report
Georgia -- Political and Policy Digest
Iowa -- IowaPolitics.com
New York -- The Politicker
New Hampshire -- NHNewslinks.com
Posted 09.20.07 10:18 AM | Comments (0)
Hotline After Dark -- Tighter Than A Tube Sock
CNN's J. King sat down with Rudy Giuliani in London:
Giuliani, on saying the U.S. will stop Iran if it pursues nuclear weapons: "The reality is we don't want them laboring under misimpression that we wouldn't take action. And they'll make some seriously wrong decisions. And we also want everyone to know what the point of demarcation will be for the United States."
King: "Your message to the American people is I have the judgment and the experience to do it better and so people finally said, look at your record. You're in this spat right now with moveon.org and by extension Hillary Clinton over the ads criticizing General Petraeus. Moveon.org came back at you with a criticism that, well, here was a guy who had this unique opportunity to sit on the Iraq Study Group. To get inside information from the generals, from the administration on everything that went right in Iraq, everything that went wrong in Iraq. You wanted to be president of the United States and instead skips the first two meetings and then leaves the group because he's giving paid speeches and he didn't want to offend the media."
Giuliani: "I couldn't give the time to it and secondly I knew that ultimately I could very well be running for president of the United States. Wasn't sure at the time. And had I stayed on that group, their report was put out just at the time I announced for president and it was totally politicized. It was a mistake to join in the first place. And as far as foreign policy experience goes, I've probably traveled to Europe, Asia and Africa more often in the last five, five and a half years than any of the people who are running for president. ... I've actually dealt with terrorism. I've actually dealt with it firsthand. And in most of these countries like here in England and Europe, I don't know how many times I've been here in the last five years, very often meeting with Tony Blair, other heads of state, police officials, I've given security advice all over the world. I'm well known all over the world. So I didn't feel like I needed foreign policy experience. I've had tremendous amount of involvement in foreign policy. And I really did think in retrospect that it would both politicize the situation for the commission and politicize the situation for me. And it probably was a mistake to join in the first place. And frankly, I wish moveon.org would do several more commercials attacking because if they do it could get me nominated. They are not exactly the most popular group among Republicans. They have spent $200 or $300 million assassinating the character of Republican candidates and the fact that they want to personally attack me is probably a badge of honor for me and probably is going to jump me five points in the Republican primary."
Giuliani, on the New York Times saying he only spent 29 hours at Ground Zero post-9/11: "I was there probably in the first two weeks more than 29 hours. So the New York Times in some cases is not the most accurate judge of my record. ... What I was actually pointing out was you can be there for a relatively short period of time and still get sick and still be considered in the category of people who are at risk. But the reality is that I was there a good deal of time. A lot more than the Times indicates. ... I wasn't there as much as some others but I was there enough that I would be in the at-risk category. ... In fact I have even been invited to join some of the studies ... to determine what kind of impact it had on me. The New York Times likes to think of it as I was there just bringing dignitaries there. What they don't remember is I was there sometimes in the middle of the night, I was there at the morgue, I was there when people's bodies were taken out. I was there to identify people. And I was there just sometimes for several hours just going around, talking to the people and making sure their morale was OK. I'm not saying other than a factual sense, I was there more often than some people who have gotten sick, less often than other people" (CNN, 9/19).
AND ON THE SEVENTH DAY ...
Bill Richardson was in the "Situation Room" last night:
On the MoveOn.org ad: "I disagree with that. They shouldn't have done it. On the other hand, MoveOn has done some great things to alert the American people about the escalation of the war. But they shouldn't have done that."
On saying IA should be the first caucus "for reasons related to the lord": "That was a stump speech. I was joking. The point I was trying to make is that there's a reason Iowa and New Hampshire have been first, because they scrutinize candidates. They know these examples of democracy. ... But ... it was a joke. I was kidding."
CNN's Blitzer: "So it has nothing to do with the lord?"
Richardson: "No" (CNN, 9/19).
OUR FAVORITE TEXAN IS BACK IN THE NEWS
There wasn't a lot of talk about Dan Rather's $70M lawsuit against CBS last night simply because O.J. continues to dominate the cable news cycle but here are some highlights:
CBS' Couric gave the suit a small mention toward the end of the newscast noting: "In other news Dan Rather filed a $70 million law suit against CBS." She then read from CBS' statement ("Evening News," 9/19).
ABC's Gibson: "Rather claims he was made the scape goat. ... He accuses the network of punishing him to pacify the White House" ("World News," 9/19).
NBC's Williams: "Tonight a giant of the television industry is suing a giant of the television. Dan Rather has reported the news in some form for over four decades. He has also made his share of news as he did again today" ("Nightly News," 9/19).
NBC's Allen: "From the moment Dan Rather was forced to step down as anchor of the 'Evening News,' his relationship with CBS apparently just kept getting worse" ("Nightly News," 9/19).
FNC's O'Reilly: "He's doing this to get back at Leslie Moonves" ("O'Reilly Factor," 9/19).
CNN's Blitzer: "A lot of people, I assume, are going to say that Don Imus worked out some sort of major financial settlement with CBS since then and maybe Dan Rather is looking for a settlement as well" ("Situation Room," 9/19).
MSNBC's Abrams, on Rather: "I really like him personally, and I think it's horribly unfair that to some his career is now defined by that Bush National Guard story. I think he got smeared based on the mistake. But his legal papers are an effort to litigate journalistic questions. He offers a detailed defense of how he handled the story. But why bring that to court? Why have his legacy further tarred by a lawsuit? There's no question Rather got hung out to dry by CBS, but that's the business. Those of us on the air get the credit and the blame, and they paid him through his contract" ("Live with Dan Abrams," 9/19).
Ex-CBS corr. Bernard Kalb: "Dan is determined to see that there's a cleansing of the record. He does not want his reputation, 40 years' worth of hard work in journalism, to be tarnished, to be smeared. So I think Dan will go right down on the mat on this" ("Live with Dan Abrams," MSNBC, 9/19). [EMILY GOODIN]
Posted 09.20.07 08:51 AM | Comments (0)
Bringing People Together ... To Give Me Money
Barack Obama's campaign has launched a new financial intiative, getting individual contributors to give money and have their donation matched by another supporter who agreed to match that amount.
"This isn't an anonymous donor program backed by big checks from Washington lobbyists or corporate fat cats," Obama campaign mgr David Plouffe writes in his email. "This is a one-to-one, supporter-to-supporter effort. If you make a donation, you'll be matched up with a real person -- another supporter who has put their faith in you. And you'll be able to read a note from them and send a response."
Talk about the politics of bringing people together.... soul mates find love through the Obama giving program, elderly IA pig farmer gets email from Greenpeace activist, the two meet and share veggie burger....
Posted 09.20.07 07:54 AM | Comments (4)
Angels In America
Hear that bell ringing? Must be an angel getting her wings ... or perhaps it's a woman backing another woman's pol. campaign. So goes the logic of ex-IA first lady Christie Vilsack.
“I think there’s a place in heaven for women who support women,” said C. Vilsack, who is, incidentally, supporting Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. [ATHENA JONES].
Posted 09.20.07 07:09 AM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2007
Clinton To Campaign For Tsongas
He beat her late husband Paul for the '92 Dem nod, but Bill Clinton will be in Lowell, MA on 9/30 to campaign for Niki Tsongas, the Dem nom to succeed ex-Rep. Marty Meehan (D-MA-05).
The Boston Globe's Viser has a good read on Clinton's visit, which poses a challenge to Tsongas' GOP rival, Jim Ogonoski.
Ogonowski said in an interview with WBZ radio that he would decline if Pres. Bush offered to campaign with him. This week, he excoriated House Min. Leader John Boehner (R-OH) for suggesting that troops staying in Iraq "will be a small price if we're able to stop Al-Qaeda."
A visit by Rudy Giuliani could provide a nice backdrop for two politicians who have used Sept. 11, 2001, as an underlying theme in their campaigns. But Ogonowski is backing Mitt Romney ...
Posted 09.19.07 03:12 PM | Comments (0)
Quote Of The Day
From today's Hotline:
"Tasering people because they're obnoxious is a hell of a standard."
-- Chris Matthews, "Hardball," MSNBC, 9/18
Posted 09.19.07 12:45 PM | Comments (2)
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