« October 2007 | Main | December 2007 »

November 30, 2007

HRC: "Immensely Relieved," Campaign Goes On As Planned

Hillary Clinton appeared on national television tonight to express her relief for the peaceful resolution of a hostage situation at her campaign office in Rochester, N.H.

Clinton, who was not there at the time of the incident but flew to Portsmouth later in the day, said she met with the hostages and their families. She praised them for being "calm and collected under extraordinary pressure."

"I am immensely relieved that this has ended peacefully," Clinton said, surrounded by top local law enforcement officials and New Hampshire Attorney Gen. Kelly Ayotte.

Clinton said the hostage taker, Leeland Eisenberg, was seeking comfort for his "pain and suffering," but did not offer specifics about Eisenberg's requests because the incident is under investigation.

"He was someone who was not known to my campaign until he walked in the door today," she said. "... It appears that he was someone in need of help and sought attention in absolutely the wrong way."

Campaign workers are usually young and hopeful for the country's future, Clinton said, and they come to places like New Hampshire to be a part of the process, to make a difference. As a mother, she said she was especially concerned for their safety.

"It was a just a horrible sense of bewilderment, confusion, outrage, frustration, anger," she said. "I mean everything at the same time."

Clinton said she was kept apprised throughout the day by New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch and the police of the status of the situation. She also said that these incidents happen and that her campaign would move forward as planned in New Hampshire and beyond.

"I don't see any changes in my schedule, in my campaign," she said. "I am going to continue doing what I'm doing. I love being in New Hampshire."

Clinton resumes her regular campaign schedule tomorrow in Iowa.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 10:14 PM | Comments (0)

HRC In NH Tonight ...

... to hold 10:15 p.m. presser at the Sheraton Harborside Portsmouth Hotel.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 08:48 PM | Comments (0)

O.V.E.R.

MSNBC shows footage of the hostage-taker leaving HRC's Rochester office. He is shown taking off whatever it was he had strapped to his chest. Wearing a white shirt and red tie, he is cuffed and escorted into police custody ...

No one was hurt.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 06:18 PM | Comments (0)

And Now JRE

SENATOR JOHN EDWARDS STATEMENT ON THE SITUATION AT THE HILLARY CLINTON CAMPAIGN OFFICE IN ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE

(Manchester, NH) – Senator John Edwards released the following statement this evening:

"Elizabeth and I send our thoughts and prayers to everyone involved in the ordeal in Rochester, New Hampshire today. Everyday Americans who stand up and get involved on behalf of the candidates they believe in represent the very best of our democracy, and we are praying for a swift and safe resolution to the situation in the Clinton campaign office. We send our deepest admiration to the law enforcement officials working to keep everyone safe today and our warmest thoughts to Senator Clinton and her entire staff during this difficult situation."

Posted 11.30.07 05:53 PM | Comments (0)

Richardson Follows ...

WASHINGTON, DC-- New Mexico Governor and Democratic Presidential candidate Bill Richardson today released the following statement on the hostage situation at Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's Rochester, New Hampshire office:

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the hostages, their families, Senator Clinton, and her campaign staff. This incident is an unfortunate reminder of the reality that we always must remain aware of our surroundings and safety. My wife, Barbara, and I sincerely hope that today's incident will be resolved quickly and that no one will be harmed."

Posted 11.30.07 05:40 PM | Comments (0)

Obama Campaign Releases Brief Statement

Per Reid Cherlin, Barack Obama's NH press secretary:

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Clinton team as we await a safe resolution to this situation."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 05:23 PM | Comments (0)

Two Hostages Released in NH

Per the Concord Monitor:

Hostages released at Clinton campaign office
From staff and wire reports

Two hostages have been released from the Hillary Clinton campaign office in Rochester, the police said, but it was unclear if there were any more inside. An armed man took hostages at the office on 28 North Main St. today at about 1p.m.

Officials with the campaign said that there were two workers taken hostage in the office, but the police have not confirmed that those were the only two hostages in the building.

The two hostages were released at about 3 p.m.

The man had what appeared to be a bomb strapped to himself, said Bill Shaheen, a top state campaign official. He took two hostages, both volunteers, and released others, Shaheen said.

ABC News reported that the hostage-taker was an older male who was well-known locally and has a history of mental illness who told his son today to "watch the news."

He reportedly demanded to speak to Clinton. She was not in New Hampshire today and had been scheduled to address a Democratic National Committee meeting in Vienna, Va.

Witness Lettie Tzizik told television station WMUR that she spoke to a woman shortly after she was released from the office by the suspect. The woman was carrying an infant, and crying.

“She said, ‘You need to call 911. A man has just walked into the Clinton office, opened his coat and showed us a bomb strapped to his chest with duct tape,” Tzizik said.

Authorities sent a tactical bomb unit to assist local police, and the area was evacuated, said Maj. Michael Hambrook of the state police. A nearby school also was in lockdown.

The Clinton office is in the downtown area in a strip of several storefronts.

Posted 11.30.07 05:09 PM | Comments (0)

Rochester Update

WMUR -- Nearby campaign offices for Barack Obama (four doors away from hostage situation) and John Edwards were also evacuated ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 05:03 PM | Comments (0)

NH Police Presser: Won't Confirm Identity of Hostage Taker

In a televised press conference, NH State police said a five square block perimeter around the HRC building in Rochester has been secured. Bomb squad has been notified. No reported injuries. Following active leads. Won't offer detailes about alleged hostage taker. Won't confirm number of hostages.

"This is still a fluid investigation. We are investigating a hostage situation."

Meanwhile, MSNBC is reporting that the suspect is a white male in his 40s with a history of mental illness.

WMUR -- 20 to 30 business evacuated in Rochester.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 04:43 PM | Comments (0)

Clinton Campaign Statement

"There is an ongoing situation in our Rochester, NH office. We are in close contact with state and local authorities and are acting at their direction. We will release additional details as appropriate."

Posted 11.30.07 04:35 PM | Comments (0)

NH Rep. Hodes On Hostage Situation

Hodes Statement on the Hostage Situation in Rochester

Washington, DC – Congressman Paul Hodes issued the following statement today on the hostage situation in Rochester:

“I join all Granite Staters in hoping for a swift and safe resolution to the situation at Senator Clinton’s campaign office in Rochester. The volunteers, their families, and our first responders are in all of our thoughts and prayers.”

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 02:51 PM | Comments (0)

HRC Cancels DNC Speech in Northern Virginia ...

Because of hostage situation in Rochester, MSNBC reports ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 02:28 PM | Comments (0)

BREAKING NEWS: Hostages Held at HRC Hdqrts in Rochester, NH

BREAKING NEWS
MSNBC staff and news service reports
updated 18 minutes ago

ROCHESTER, N.H. - A man has taken people hostage at a New Hampshire campaign office for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton, police said Friday.

The man claimed to have bomb strapped to him when he walked into the office in Rochester, WHDH-TV reported.

WMUR-TV quoted a woman, Lettie Tzizik, who said she spoke to someone with a child who said she had just been released by the man.

"A young woman with a 6-month or 8-mont-old infant came rushing into the store just in tears, and she said, 'You need to call 911. A man has just walked into the Clinton office, opened his coat and showed us a bomb strapped to his chest with duct tape,'" Tzikik said recalling the moment.

Police have surrounded the building, evacuated the immediate area and placed other buildings, including a nearby school, in lockdown.

Clinton, who was scheduled to campaign in Virginia on Friday, was not present at the office on Rochester's Main Street.

The number of hostages was not immediately known.

This report will be updated as information becomes available.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Posted 11.30.07 02:02 PM | Comments (0)

Quote Of The Day

From today's Hotline:

"I think the surge is working."

-- Rep. John Murtha (D-PA), Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 11/30.

Posted 11.30.07 12:55 PM | Comments (0)

Huckabee's Media Swarm in NH

If anyone doubted that Mike Huckabee raised his profile after a fine performance in the CNN/You Tube debate Wednesday night, doubt no more.

This first-personer from NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli, who is in Concord today covering the former Arkansas governor:

"I've covered Huckabee up here at lets say at least a dozen events since September. Many of those events, I was the only camera there, and a few times I was the only reporter, period.

"Today, as he's about to begin speaking in Concord, there are, that I know for sure, at least two network crews (NBC and CBS), the Boston CBS affil, a CNN crew and Anderson Cooper, the CNN embed, and myself. Some national print folks, and plenty of local press, including John DiStaso, who doesn't come out to candidate events that often.

"Also, Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat, is introducing Huck.

"Just a sign of how far he's come so fast."

Lynch said that he and Huckabee became friends through the National Governors Association, Memoli reports.

Posted 11.30.07 12:23 PM | Comments (4)

Only In Iowa

Per NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann:

Interstate 80, which crosses the state of Iowa from east to west, isn't just a thoroughfare for campaign movement. It's also heavily traversed by truck drivers and other lone travelers who would perhaps be tempted to stop at the Baxter exit at the prominent clapboard building simply labeled "Adult Super Store."

Well, some forward-thinking religious activists have bought advertising space to subtly guilt travelers into reconsidering that sinful stop in Baxter. About five miles before the exit, a plainly worded billboard on the left side of 80 reads: "JESUS: Adult Super Savior."

Posted 11.30.07 11:41 AM | 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 11.30.07 10:33 AM | Comments (0)

Bloomberg/Obama Tete-a-Tete

Barack Obama and NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg met for breakfast this morning, an encounter that was publicly announced around 3 a.m.

Reporters watched the pols through a window of "The Luncheonette" on 50th Street between 3rd Ave. and Lexington. Though the mob assembled couldn't hear anything through the plexiglass, Bloomberg and Obama spoke for at least forty minutes over coffee, tea, eggs and bacon, reports NBC/NJ's Aswini Anburajan.

From the press's vantage point, it appeared that the mayor likes to put a 'liberal' amount of salt on his eggs. Sen. Obama appears to enjoy tea over a cup of joe in the morning.

The men shared a couple of laughs towards the end of the breakfast. Obama picked up the check of about $11 dollars and left a $10 tip on the table. The manager of The Luncheonette said the place was no stranger to politicians. Rudy Giuliani frequently stops in, and President Carter has also visited.

The mayor's office stressed that he has met with almost all of the candidates running for office, but could not confirm if he had such a a public "private" meeting with anyone else running for president. The last time the mayor met with Senator Hillary Clinton was on September 11th, according to aides.

The meeting between the two has fueled speculation about whether Bloomberg, who has said that he will not run for president, will endorse a presidential candidate. His press aides would not entertain the question today.

Posted 11.30.07 09:51 AM | Comments (0)

Kurtz Laments Reporters' Frustrations Covering HRC

Washington Post's Howard Kurtz writes today that reporters covering Hillary Clinton are struggling mightly for access -- and just to keep up with the candidate ...

"National correspondents are increasingly frustrated by a lack of access to Clinton. They spend much of their time in rental cars chasing her from one event to the next, because the campaign usually provides no press bus or van. Life on the bus means journalists don't have to worry about luggage or directions or getting left behind, since they are part of the official motorcade. News organizations foot the bill for such transportation, but campaigns have to staff and coordinate the buses -- and deal with the constant presence of their chroniclers."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.30.07 09:41 AM | Comments (0)

Ron Paul, Wild Card

Jennifer Skalka (Email this author)
© National Journal Group, Inc.

COLEBROOK, N.H. -- When Ron Paul walked into the living room of this large house with an American flag out front and the crackle of a warm fire inside, Gloria Burchett leaped from the couch and extended her hand. The West Stuartstown resident, a traveling nurse and the mother of four, explained that she had driven almost five hours from her latest job to tell the Republican presidential candidate that he has her support.

"It's just such an honor to meet you," said Burchett, an undeclared voter in this first-in-the-nation-primary state.

Over wine and cheese, Burchett's husband explained why they are eyeing Paul. "It's his principles," said Timothy Burchett, an undeclared voter with Democratic leanings. "He does not sway in the wind."

The Texas congressman is depending on folks like the Burchetts to help him upend the GOP contest in New Hampshire. This primary cycle, a record 45 percent of registered New Hampshire voters are undeclared, according to Secretary of State Bill Gardner. There are more undeclared voters this year than there are registered Democrats or Republicans, and they can vote in either party's primary.

Paul is the indisputable no-name candidate on the crowded Republican side, but his anti-war, pro-gun, anti-abortion message has helped him to gain traction in the Granite State, where voters have historically gravitated to the renegade, the long shot.

Think Pat Buchanan in 1996. Or John McCain in 2000.

Read the rest of my National Journal my piece ... After the jump.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

"My message is very simple: more freedom, less government," Paul said during the Colebrook gathering.

Interestingly, some of Paul's backers see him vying with Democrat Barack Obama for the support of those precious undeclared voters. Two more-unlikely foils, of course, couldn't possibly exist. Obama, the 46-year-old senator from Illinois, offers a personal story that reflects the country's modern-day melting-pot culture. Paul, 72, a gynecologist and great-grandfather, is lithe, with gray hair and a bulbous nose. He favors black orthopedic shoes. He fidgets when he talks. Gauzy oratory isn't his style.

One touts the "Audacity of Hope"; the other, "Hope for America." Any comparison is fantasy, perhaps, but there's some sense to their shared appeal.

"People want consistency," said John Babiarz, a libertarian who is backing Paul's bid.

Paul scored 8 percent in a recent CNN/WMUR poll in New Hampshire; he was at 4 percent two months ago. The candidate, who has three television ads in circulation in the state, might not have Mitt Romney's cash or cachet, but with his record one-day haul of $4.2 million in contributions, his is no campaign of unpaid college students sleeping on supporters' sofa beds.

"Ron Paul is the Buchanan of this decade," said state Rep. Fran Wendelboe, a New Hampton Republican. "I think that he could be a real sleeper in New Hampshire. He's bringing in people who haven't been involved before."

Wendelboe and other New Hampshire voters like her aren't suggesting that Paul is bound for victory, but they do think that he has the capacity to change the contest's dynamics.

McCain is counting on a strong finish in New Hampshire to stay in the race; he can't afford to be bumped out of second -- or third -- by Paul. The CNN/WMUR survey showed McCain running second, behind Romney but leading former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Andrew Smith, director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, said he sees Paul hurting Giuliani, who draws from a similar voter pool. Smith said that Paul's supporters tend to be male, blue-collar, hunters, and constitutionalists, the kind of people who might like an opinionated former big-city mayor.

There is one major hurdle for Paul in the latest CNN/WMUR polling -- 61 percent of Republicans surveyed said they would not back Paul under any circumstances.

Though Smith expects the Democratic primary to attract more undeclared voters, their leanings are still a mystery. There are a whopping 369,691 of them, Gardner said, while registered Republicans number 244,320 and registered Democrats 212,421.

New Hampshire Republicans can also be an unpredictable lot, more libertarian than Christian conservative. But the state's Live Free or Die motto could, in fact, be a fitting Paul anthem. The Constitution is his bible. If it's not in there, he is not interested in legislating it.

That sentiment is precisely what drew John Simpson, a 63-year-old retired state worker and registered Republican, to the Littleton Diner -- with his five children and nine towheaded grandchildren -- to tell Paul that he has their votes.

"Winning isn't what we need," Simpson said. "I think what we need is genuine, consistent principle."

Posted 11.30.07 09:37 AM | Comments (33)

Hotline After Dark -- You Asked For It

Mike Huckabee made the TV rounds last night:

Huckabee, asked why WH '08 GOPers are "submitting to religious vetting about" their "belief in the literal nature of the Bible": "When guys like you quit asking it, we'll quit answering it. But the fact is, we get asked these questions in the debates, and if we evade them, if we act like we're not going to answer them, then we're going to get hammered for being unwilling to address the questions that are put to us. So that's why I keep answering them."

On his Jesus answer to a death penalty question at the 11/28 debate: "If you play the first part of the answer is anything but funny because ... what I mentioned was that I carried out the death penalty ... more than any governor in my state. And I pointed out that no one else on that stage had ever done what I have done, that's actually have to carry out the death penalty. I mentioned that it was the toughest decision I ever made as a governor because it was the only decision that was irrevocable. ... It was a heavy responsibility. So there was anything but levity when it came to that issue with me."

MSNBC's Matthews: "You wouldn't believe, as president, that you were carrying out the will of God, would you? You wouldn't have a messianic notion because of your deep religious belief?"

Huckabee: "You're never, ever to be God. In fact, I think the most dangerous thing that a person has is this messianic complex, where he thinks that he's not being a servant of people, he's being God of people.
That's the opposite of what my faith teaches me. My faith says that if you want to be great, you become servant. You don't lift yourself up. You're willing to allow yourself to be put down. And I think when we see people who think they're running not for president but to be lord of America, that's a very dangerous thing. And I certainly don't look at it in that way" (MSNBC, 11/29).

On Fred Thompson's ad at the debate saying he flip-flopped on taxes: "It wasn't a flip-flop. First of all, if you noticed, that was about 110 pounds ago, and so I could use the excuse I was in a state of sugar stupor and was talking out of my head. But the reality is, that was a statement, about a minute's worth, taken out of context of a speech in which I was basically giving a put up or shut up speech to the legislature who had been saying we have got a $200 million deficit, and we don't like any proposal the governor has to fix it. So I said, OK, you don't like my proposals? Here's one of yours, I'll take it" ("Situation Room," CNN, 11/29).

And he appeared with Chuck Norris on "On the Record":

Huckabee, on his rise in IA: "Well, I don't want to over-predict what's going to happen, but we certainly have been on the right track. And the voters of Iowa are very sharp. They've been through this before. They look for somebody in a president that I think brings some authenticity and speaks straight to them. Midwesterners want it straight -- I want to say it in a rather crude way. They know the difference between the manure that's out in the cow pastures and the manure that the politicians put out, and they want to know the difference."

FNC's Van Susteren: "I'll take that as a compliment, by the way. I'm a Midwesterner."

Huckabee: "I'm an Arkansan, so, believe me, it is a compliment."

Norris: "I'm an Okie" (FNC, 11/29).

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

John Edwards also made multiple TV appearances:

Edwards, on GOPers being upset that CNN aired a question from a Hillary Clinton supporter at the 11/28 GOP debate: "Heaven forbid. I mean, how could we possibly survive if someone who is antagonistic or has a different point of view than you do ask you a question? And no, we can't possibly expect somebody who answers questions from either independents or the other party to get elected president of the United States. How could anybody be ready to do that? I think this whole discussion's ridiculous."

More: "I didn't get to see the debate. But I heard that Mitt Romney said something about the two Americas that I've talked about in the past and how he doesn't think they exist. You know, what planet does this guy live on? I mean, all you've got to do is pay any attention to what's going on" ("Countdown," MSNBC, 11/29).

In the latest installment of "World News Tonight"'s "Who Is?" series, ABC's Gibson interviewed Edwards:

Edwards: "When I was born, we were poor. ... My father had to borrow money from somebody, $50, to get me and my mother out of the hospital."

On his second run at the WH: "When I was running in the nomination process in 2003 and 2004, I'd spend most of my time thinking about being a candidate. And since that time, I've spent most of my time thinking about what I'd want to do as President. And those two things are not the same" (ABC, 11/29).

He was also on "Charlie Rose" (PBS, 11/29).

NOT LOOKING BACK IN ANGER

And Fred Thompson nat'l co-chair/ex-Sen. George Allen (R-VA) was in the "Situation Room" last p.m. to discuss the 11/28 debate, but conversation turned to questions about him:

CNN's Blitzer: "I think it is fair to say nobody appreciates and understands the intersection in recent of the Internet and politics better than you, given what happened to you ... when you were running the last time around, that so-called 'Macaca Moment.' Give us a little sense. We saw the You Tube debate last night. How much has this changed politics, the fact that people can get these videos, post them online and people see what's happening?"

Allen: "I think it is great. ... I look at the internet as the greatest invention since the Guttenberg Press for the dissemination of information and ideas. ... [The 'macaca' comment] was a mistake on my part.
... The more the people are informed and have access to information and ideas, the better."

On whether he thought he should have been on stage with the other WH '08 GOPers: "No. ... [Thompson's] one who I'm very comfortable in and enthusiastic and in endorsing because I think he is type of strong leader who has guided by principle foundations."

On whether he will have a political comeback: "I have not decided. My political efforts are helping Fred Thompson. I'm also presidential scholar for the Reagan ranch which is perfect in that I give speeches at colleges. .... Susan and I have not decided whether we will run again or not. But we get a lot of nice encouragement" (CNN, 11/29). [KATHERINE LEHR]

Posted 11.30.07 09:13 AM | Comments (0)

Chris Rock on Bush: "White people burning, he was there. Black people drowning, he don't care… He was putting out the (CA) fires with Katrina water."

NEW YORK, NY -- At the Apollo in Harlem on Thursday, some of the most memorable lines of the evening were not delivered by the historic theater's headliner Barack Obama, who was here for a campaign fundraiser.

Instead, it was comedian and actor, Chris Rock, who had the crowd cheering and roaring with laughter with his introduction of Obama.

In urging the audience to support Obama, Rock teased the crowd, "Progressive people want to be on the right side of history because you'd be real embarrassed if he won and you weren't down with him ... I can't call him now I was with that white lady what was I thinking?"

Rock went on to belittle President Bush and compared the way the federal government handled its response to the wild fires in California to the emergency response in Katrina.

"This is how [Bush] dealt with catastrophe. The fires in LA he was there the next day," Rock said. "White people burning he was there. Black people drowning he don't care… He was putting out the fires with Katrina water!"

The crowd went crazy, and when Obama took the stage he joked that it wasn't always a good thing to follow the likes of not only Chris Rock but also academic Cornell West who had previously spoken. The only other well known VIP to attend the event was rapper Q-Tip, who never took the stage, reports NBC/NJ's Aswini Anburajan.

Speaking for about half an hour, Obama stuck to a speech that he has delivered before in South Carolina on why he's running for office with a new kind of politics. He didn't attack his fellow Democrats.

However, he did get a lot of laughs, when he told the crowd that he wasn't running because of some "long-held ambition" or because he felt "it was owed to him."

The crowd at the fundraiser held at the Apollo was racially diverse and unusually attentive. The normally raucous theater had near pin drop silence at times as Obama spoke, a stark contrast to the loud cheering that can often drown at his voice at large gatherings.

The event at the Apollo and Obama's earlier photo op with Al Sharpton appeared to project the candidate as one who is at home with Black America.

More after the jump, however, from a Harlem truck driver who said HRC has his vote.

But Herbert Matthews a 48-year-old Harlem truck driver, showed that Obama has an uphill battle at least in New York.

"Obama we ain't never seen him out here. For him to come out because it's primary time and he needs the votes… we need someone who supports the community," Mattews said.

Matthews praised former President Bill Clinton and acknowledged that his support for Hillary Clinton stemmed more from his appreciation of her husband than it did from anything she had done.

"Hillary I mean you know she's never been out here to walk the streets like her husband," Matthews said, pointing out where President Clinton's office was, on 125th street and Adam Clayton Powell Drive.

Posted 11.30.07 08:26 AM | Comments (0)

Obama Woos Sharpton at Sylvia's, Sharpton Said Dems Have Marginalized Black Voters

Barack Obama spoke to a packed crowd at the Apollo Thursday night. But the real story happened a few hours before, when he sat down to have dinner with the Rev. Al Sharpton at Sylvia's Restaurant, a Harlem institution.

Obama had showed up at Sharpton's office just a few blocks away earlier in the day to ask the reverend to have dinner with him at Sylvia's so they could talk about the importance of hate crime legislation. The Obama campaign made sure to invite the New York and national press along to photograph the event.

Sharpton said repeatedly that his meeting with Obama was not an endorsement of the senator, though he did praise him for paying attention to the issue of hate crimes, reports NBC/NJ's Aswini Anburajan.

"And we are trying to get hate crime legislation, and I think it showed something for him to call us and bring me to dinner and say I want to come out strong on it," Sharpton said.

Asked if the meeting had moved the reverend closer to endorsing, "Well, we'll wait and see. I didn't go to the Apollo because I'm not endorsing," Sharpton added.

Sharpton bashes Dem candidates after the jump ...

Though this was not an endorsement of Obama, the picture of Obama with Sharpton recalled an image from the 1992 Democratic primary, when the mayor of Chicago insisted that he wasn't endorsing then Gov. Bill Clinton but allowed himself to be photographed with him. It was a tacit acknowledgment of support and helped Clinton considerably in Illinois. The question from last night is whether or not Sharpton was doing the same thing.

"Tonight he came to Harlem, and he came with a message that Harlem might want someone to discuss at a presidential level and that is hate crime," Sharpton praised Obama.

Sharpton added that he was looking to meet with all the Democratic candidates, including Hillary Clinton, on the issue of hate crimes and feels the issue is as urgent as ever because 2007 had been the year of Imus, Jena and hangman's noses, adding that a noose had been found at Obama's alma mater, Columbia University. He said that Obama had promised to bring up the issue during debates.

Whatever Sharpton's feelings, he had sharp words for the Democratic candidates on their treatment of black voters. He called African Americans the "most loyal constituency" of the Democratic party, but said they have been "marginalized" in their treatment by the candidates.

"I think the Democratic candidates take us for granted," he said and later added, "They want 90 percent of the black vote but they want to act like we are a marginal issue. To me that's offensive."

Sharpton also appeared to agree with Jesse Jackson's comments that aside from John Edwards, the Democratic candidates have not focused on issues of racial inequality, but but also praised Obama for reaching out on the issue.

"I've been saying all year that there has not been given a priority given to the concerns of African Americans and the concerns of racial disparity. ... How do our candidates expect our people to vote 90 percent for them and they are not giving any concern. Obama heard that and that's one of the things we talked about in my office and riding over here," Sharpton said.

Posted 11.30.07 08:15 AM | Comments (0)

November 29, 2007

Internal McCain Campaign Memo: GOP, Turn Down The Volume On Immigration

MEMORANDUM

TO: McCain Leadership

FROM: Rick Davis

DATE: November 29, 2007

SUBJECT: One President on Stage

At last night’s CNN/YouTube Debate in Tampa, Florida, John McCain was the only candidate who sounded like a president - clear in his vision for a safe and strong America - and the only candidate on stage with the experience and knowledge to be commander in chief on his first day in office. I have to think the Clinton campaign is having a great day after watching the various school yard fights that broke out between Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani. Do we really believe that by ripping our party apart on immigration we will be better able to win a general election against Hillary Clinton and the Democrats?

We need John McCain to be our party’s nominee to restore integrity to Washington and dignity to the chaotic selection process. All current national polls show that today John McCain is best able to defeat Hillary Clinton in the general election. Americans know he is ready to lead, but it is also becoming clear that John McCain’s ability to contrast with Hillary Clinton on substance, rather than just name-calling, will be a difference maker in the general election.

In his post debate analysis, Bill Kristol said, "McCain seemed by far the most plausible commander in chief." David Gergen agreed, saying that John McCain was the most presidential.

While other candidates spent their time delivering canned one-liners, debating lawn care and taking credit for stopping snow storms, John McCain took on the toughest issues with bold honesty and moral certainty. Instead of bickering and playing “gotcha politics,” he cut through the petty back and forth with a vision for America’s future in the war against Islamic extremism, fighting wasteful spending, reforming Washington, finding a real solution to border security and upholding American values. He did not equivocate and he did not rely on the advice of his lawyers and advisors; he spoke with a voice of reason and experience. As Jonah Goldberg with National Review said about his discussion of the immigration issue, he was “grown-up and serious.”

By being “grown-up and serious,” John McCain reminded us that the Presidency of the United States is more than just an office won in a partisan contest; it is the embodiment of the values and ideals of our nation. A president does not hide behind lawyers and advisors when discussing national security or the pros and cons of torture, as Mitt Romney did last night. A president stands up for the principles that make our country great and condemns such practice as antithetical to American values. John McCain was the only candidate on the stage last night not only willing to do so, but with the experience to speak with gravitas. As David Yepsen of the Des Moines Register said, “McCain had his strongest debate of the campaign. He was forceful and blunt throughout.”

The St. Petersburg Times summed up John McCain’s performance in an editorial this morning, “McCain's once-foundering campaign has experienced a recent resurgence, and the debate should give him another boost with Republicans interested more in tested leadership than pure ideology.” By acting like a leader, John McCain also showed why he’s the only candidate in this race who will defeat Hillary Clinton. No Republican is going to beat Hillary Clinton by debating lawn care; she is too politically savvy to take the bait and get into such petty debate.

John McCain will take on the tough issues, offer a vision and contrast it directly with Hillary Clinton’s liberal alternatives – not only offering a vision more acceptable to the American people, but restoring to politics the kind of leadership and discourse Americans long for in a president. One man on stage last night was presidential; one man on stage showed the moral fortitude we need in a leader; one man demonstrated that he is prepared to be commander in chief – John McCain.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 05:02 PM | Comments (7)

Sam Brownback Wishes He Were ... Babs

Sam Brownback stumping for John McCain today in Des Moines, revealed, perhaps, his very most secret desire ... To be Barbra Streisand.

Er?

"I wish that he had glitzier people up here to represent him," the former candidate told an audience of Iowa county officials this morning. "I'm not Barbara Streisand. I'm not Oprah."

"I wish I were," he added.

The often straight-laced conservative senator cocked his head and reconsidered the remark as the crowd chuckled. "Okay," he conceded with a smile, "But I wish I could sing like that."

Brownback, who dropped out of the presidential race in October, is now stumping full-force for colleague John McCain here in Iowa. The McCain campaign hopes to harvest support from former Brownback supporters, many of them Christian pro-life conservatives, reports NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann.

And no one can say that the man from Kansas doesn't have a sense of humor about it.

"Many candidates enter and few leave Iowa," he told members of the Iowa State Association of Counties. "I should know. I'm one of them."

Brownback told NBC/NJ after his remarks that there's a "certain wistfulness" to campaigning on a former rival's behalf, but he hopes that his endorsement of McCain will give him "some cache with another segment of the electorate." He conceded that many of his former supporters will likely be won over by Baptist charmer Gov. Mike Huckabee – "yeah, we'll lose some," he said -- but added that Huckabee suffers from weakness on foreign and economic policy experience.

All he wants, he said, is to makes sure that McCain isn't overlooked as Iowans consider their choices for January. "I just hope people give him a second look."

Brownback says that he came out of his failed bid for the presidency "a better man." But for now, he seems to be enjoying going to bat for his longtime Senate colleague.

And being a U.S. Senator ain't half bad either. "It's a great gig," he told the crowd today. "You should try it sometime."

Posted 11.29.07 03:46 PM | Comments (0)

For $310 A Week, You Can House and Feed a Richardson Campaign Volunteer

This email went out to NH Dems this week from Bill Richardson's campaign manager, Dave Contarino ... Money running out???

Dear XYZ,

I just waved goodbye to the third vanload of volunteers leaving Albuquerque for Iowa today. Tomorrow we're sending more people to New Hampshire. They are all part of the plan we finalized over the weekend. I don't know how much you paid attention over the holiday, but things have changed a lot since last Wednesday. The race is flattening out. The poll numbers are in flux. And the only candidate who has gained consistently in all polls is Bill Richardson. We're ramping up aggressively to pick up that momentum but we need $50,000 between now and Friday to cover the additional costs of shipping out the volunteers. Help us with $50, $100 or even $250 and watch the poll numbers move even more.

The Nation put it this way: "The action is with New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson."

"If the pattern holds, the New Mexican will easily overtake Edwards and could begin closing in on Obama by the time New Hampshire holds its first in the nation primary. It is worth noting that, according to the polls, Richardson is now viewed as more experienced than either Obama or Edwards by the New Hampshire voters. His numbers are dramatically up in other categories, as well, especially on measures of trust -- the New Mexican now leads Clinton in this category. Richardson's move into double digits in New Hampshire parallels his under-covered rise in the first caucus state of Iowa. While much of the discussion about recent polls from that state has focused on the news that Obama has moved narrowly ahead of Clinton -- they are actually in a statistical tie -- some of the most interesting movement in the first-caucus state has been toward Richardson."

Believe it, XYZ. Momentum like this can turn into a juggernaut with the right kind of push. We're already ahead of where Kerry was in 2004 -- and we're still moving up. We're launching strong new ads in Iowa and New Hampshire. Every time we've run new spots, our poll numbers have moved up. And we have every reason to expect it to happen again. All of this will cost an additional $250,000. And we only have four days to raise it. Your $50, $100 or $250 makes a real difference in our ability to match the Clinton and Obama media machines.

Let me put it in perspective. Every one of these volunteers costs us $310 per week to house and feed. But that person is going to knock on hundreds of doors, distribute 1,000 pieces of literature, and talk to 2,500 voters. And with the $200,000 in new ads, some 50,000 more voters will hear our message. You know that if we nominate the wrong Democrat, they're going to Swift Boat us all over again. And that means another George Bush in the White House. Only strong action by determined Democrats can change that outcome. I just got a phone call that one of our buses broke down just south of Wichita. I'm going to tell them that help is on the way.

Dave

That 'help is on the way' line, Very Kerry/Edwards 2004 ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 02:00 PM | Comments (4)

Quote Of The Day

From today's Hotline:

"I had nothing to do with the handling of their records."

-- Rudy Giuliani, on reports that his NYC security costs were shifted to obscure city offices, CNN, 11/28.

Posted 11.29.07 12:53 PM | Comments (1)

Fmr. Rep. Henry Hyde Dead at 83

Former Illinois Rep. Hyde Dies

By JIM ABRAMS –

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Rep. Henry Hyde, the Illinois Republican who steered the impeachment proceedings against President Clinton and was a hero of the anti-abortion movement, died Thursday. He was 83.

The death of the Illinois Republican was announced by House Minority Leader John Boehner's office on Capitol Hill.

Mary Ann Schultz, a spokeswoman for Rush University Medical Center, said Hyde died Thursday at 3 a.m. CST at that hospital. There was no immediate word on the cause of his death, although Hyde underwent open-heart surgery in July.

Hyde retired from Congress at the end of the last session. Earlier this month, President Bush presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The White House praised Hyde, a leading foe of abortion, as a "powerful defender of life" and an advocate for a strong national defense.

"He was a gallant champion of the weak and forgotten, and a fearless defender of life in all its seasons," Bush said of Hyde that day.

Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a statement: "In his respect for the institutional integrity of the House of Representatives, Henry took second place to no one."

Said Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, who heads the conservative Republican Study Committee: "Chairman Hyde was a pioneer in the effort to protect human life, and because of his tireless efforts, there are thousands of people living around the world today who remember his service to mankind."

"Henry Hyde was a credit to public service and to the House of Representatives," said Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, chairman of the Judiciary Committee. "He practiced the old school values like civility, which help make the legislative process work. And he knew how to defuse a difficult situation with humor."

The white-maned, physically imposing Hyde was a throwback to a different era, a man who was genuinely liked by his opponents for his wit, charm and fairness. But he could also infuriate them with his positions on some of the more controversial issues of the day.

He made a name for himself in 1976, just two years after his first election from the district that includes O'Hare Airport, by attaching an amendment to a spending bill banning the use of federal funds to carry out abortions.

What came to be known as the "Hyde Amendment" has since become a fixture in the annual debate over federal spending, and has served as an important marker for abortion foes seeking to discourage women from terminating pregnancies.

Hyde was also a leader in passing the ban on so-called partial birth abortions, the first federal restriction on a specific abortion procedure. "The people we pretend to defend, the powerless, those who cannot escape, who cannot rise up in the streets, these are the ones that ought to be protected by the law," he said during the 2003 debate. "The law exists to protect the weak from the strong."

Abortion was an issue that the Irish-Catholic Hyde pursued as a matter of conscience. Clinton's impeachment, by contrast, was a matter thrust upon him.

As chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, in 1998 he led House efforts to impeach Clinton for allegedly lying about his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, and then in 1999 was the chief House manager in the unsuccessful bid to win a Senate conviction.

A reluctant warrior, Hyde saw his own reputation tarnished during the process when an online magazine revealed that he'd had his own affair with a married woman some 30 years before. Hyde, in his early 40s at the time of the affair, brushed it off as a "youthful indiscretion."

You Say You Want a Revolution

Fred Thompson's "Revolution" video, aired in shorter form during the GOP debate last night, is being touted as the first true GOP attack ad of the campaign (that doesn't mention Hillary Clinton). It's available on the web only but could have an impact, in On Call's modest estimation, if it ran in condensed form in early states.

In it, Thompson's team shows clips of Mitt Romney asserting that abortion "should be safe and legal in this country" and that "I will preserve and protect a woman's right to choose and am devoted and dedicated to honoring my word in that regard ... " It includes as well clips of Mike Huckabee saying that a surcharge on the income tax is "fine" with him and that he'd back a sales tax as well. Rudy Giuliani, meanwhile, is shown endorsing Democrat Mario Cuomo for governor. "Mario Cuomo will simply be a better governor than George Pataki," he says. In another statement included in the video, Giuliani slams the NRA, saying it "goes way overboard, almost what the extremists on the other side do."

The punchline ... "During the Republican Revolution Fred Thompson was leading as a proud conservative. What were others doing? ... We will win next November by sticking to our conservative principles."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 12:31 PM | Comments (0)

Edwards Camp Scores GOP Debate For ... JRE

Well, that would be a stretch, for sure. But John Edwards' campaign posted this You Tube video from CNN's post-debate chat with undecided Republican voters ... At least one gal walked away from the GOP debate less than satisfied with the choices ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 11:42 AM | Comments (0)

American Conservative Union's Keene for Romney

Mitt Romney had a lousy night, failing to effectively explain his positions on abortion (he's for a ban now, but was indeed once upon a time pro-choice) and waterboarding (he can't say what interrogation methods he'd sanction as president, but would consult with military experts). And though his back and forth with Rudy Giuliani on immigration was awkward for both, Romney leaves one questionning how he could blatantly mislead viewers by saying he did not employ illegal workers on his property. Romney said he used a company that employed them but that he didn't know anything about the workers' individual status. Oh, ok ...

So this morning, with most post debate analysis scoring the event for minister/rocker/former governor Mike Huckabee, the Romney campaign, stuggling to pitch their guy as the contest's true conservative, trotted out an endorsement from David A. Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union and a Republican strategist.

In a statement issued today by the campaign, Keene said that "while I certainly can't pretend to speak for all or even most conservatives, the road that led me here today is one that many conservatives find themselves on and it is my hope that they will end up where I am today – convinced that Mitt Romney represents our best hope for 2008.

"As this race began, I intended to remain neutral both because there was no conservative consensus candidate and because I know and admire several of those running for the Republican nomination who I believe could win next fall.

"In recent months, however, Governor Romney has emerged as the single candidate most worthy of conservative support. That's why I'm endorsing him and intend to spend as much time as possible in the weeks ahead convincing my fellow conservatives that if we are serious about electing a conservative president in 2008, it's time to unite behind his candidacy."

Romney's response: "I am proud that David Keene has decided to join our campaign for conservative change that strengthens our military, economy and families. As Chairman of the American Conservative Union, he has greatly advanced the conservative movement. I look forward to working with him as our campaign moves forward."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 11:27 AM | Comments (4)

Promises, promises

Rudy Giuliani has a new television ad up in New Hampshire, telling voters there that he believes "reducing taxes produces more revenues." Instead of going after rival Mitt Romney's record on taxes, a point his campaign hammered yesterday before the Florida debate, he says that Democrats Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards will raise taxes "even more than they promise." Critical message in tax-averse NH. Question is ... Will Granite State voters buy it?

MAYOR GIULIANI: “When I became Mayor of New York City things were out of control. I lowered taxes. I reduced the growth of government. Made government more accountable. And New York City boomed. I would do these things for America because I know they work. I know that reducing taxes produces more revenues. Democrats don’t know that. They don’t believe it. Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John Edwards, here’s a promise I assure you they’ll keep. They are making the promise to raise taxes. The only thing I can tell you in addition to that is they’ll raise taxes even more than they promise. I’m Rudy Giuliani and I approve this message.”

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.29.07 11:19 AM | Comments (0)

CNN Apologizes for Not Vetting Gay General's Political Connections

It was an emotional moment in an otherwise quick moving, friction-packed GOP debate when U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Keith Kerr asked a question about gays in the military. Kerr, who said he served his country for 42 years and is gay, was in the audience to hear the candidates' answers. But buzz circulated promptly in the blogosphere about Kerr's ties to Hillary Clinton's campaign. Kerr had indeed endorsed HRC. CNN apologized ... Below for those who missed it ...

November 29, 2007
General from GOP debate linked to Democratic campaign

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (CNN) — During Wednesday night's CNN-YouTube debate retired brigadier general Keith Kerr, posed a powerful question about gays in the military. The general had been invited to attend the debate and was given an opportunity to address whether his question was answered.

Following the debate, CNN learned that Kerr was listed as a member of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Americans For Hillary Clinton Steering Committee.

CNN Senior Vice President and Executive Producer of the debate, David Bohrman, says, "We regret this, and apologize to the Republican candidates. We never would have used the General's question had we known that he was connected to any presidential candidate."

Prior to the debate, CNN had verified his military background and that he had not contributed any money to any presidential candidate.

Following the debate, Kerr told CNN that he's done no work for the Clinton campaign. He says he is a member of the Log Cabin Republicans and was representing no one other than himself.

Posted 11.29.07 11:12 AM | 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 11.29.07 11:00 AM | Comments (0)

Hotline After Dark -- Get Some Reaction

Here is some reaction to last night's WH'08 GOP CNN/YouTube debate in FL:

Ex-WH adviser David Gergen: "On style, I think that the most presidential tonight were John McCain, who has found his voice again. ... And I thought Rudy Giuliani. But the candidate I think that the spotlight was shining on tonight and who really emerged as the most authentic and human was Mike Huckabee. Huckabee continually responded to questions with a compassionate, sort of human quality that I think will appeal to a lot of people in their homes" ("AC 360," CNN, 11/28).

Bill Bennett: "I think that Romney stood out tonight. I think he was loud and clear, conservative. He was all in, as you would say in Texas hold 'em, whether it was the Bible, or on abortion, or on guns, on anything else, even taking McCain on, saying, look, I'm going to reserve the right to do something that you may not approve of, Senator McCain. I thought he came across very strong. ... That opening debate between Romney and Giuliani was, I think, the pivotal moment of the evening. And I think points to Romney. I think Giuliani came across badly" ("AC 360," CNN, 11/28).

Dem strategist Jamal Simmons: "John McCain clearly won this thing" ("AC 360," CNN, 11/28).

CNN's Toobin: "I think it's worth pointing out that one word you almost never heard tonight -- I think you heard it twice -- was Bush. There is actually a Republican president of the United States, and he was almost never mentioned. Yet at the same time, on almost every issue ... virtually all the candidates except Ron Paul agreed with President Bush. So I think the problem the Republican Party has is they are trying to pretend George Bush doesn't exist, but they agree with him on basically everything. And that, I think, may be a problem in November" ("AC 360," 11/28).

CNN's Brown: "I think we all agree Huckabee did have a good night, but ... he got a lot of lay-up questions. You asked a preacher to talk about the Bible, and he's going to hit it out of the ballpark.
He is extremely likable. I mean, that's his gift. But he does have to get beyond that, beyond the charm, and get deeper into the issues. ... I don't think the other candidates really pressed him that hard for reasons that he is so likable" ("AC 360," 11/28).

FUNNY MONEY?

There was also talk of Giuliani facing questions about his travel expenses as mayor of NYC:

CNN's J. King, on Giuliani billing obscure city agencies for tens of thousands of dollars in security expenses: "We've been asking the former mayor's staff when he was mayor about this, his campaign staff about this all afternoon. They refused to go on camera. But Tony Carbonetti, who is now with the campaign, who was Giuliani's chief of staff when he was mayor did tell CNN this. He said quote, 'These were all legitimate expenses incurred while protecting the mayor, which is a 24/7 enterprise.' Tony Carbonetti though could not explain why charges that you would expect to be on the mayor's central budget or on the police department budget, were instead allocated to these obscure agencies. They say in the Giuliani campaign they are trying to get those answers but they insist they weren't trying to hide anything at all, that the government records are available" ("Lou Dobbs Tonight," CNN, 11/28).

FNC's Cameron: "As a matter of ethics and appropriate behavior, the Giuliani campaign says there isn't one. And because he has acknowledged quite publicly that while he was married to Donna Hanover he was involved with Judith Nathan, they think this is old news. The question is whether or not it really plays to criticism of his personal life and whether or not his rivals pick it up and club him with it" ("Special Report," 11/28).

Bill Press: "He should have used Bernie Kerik's love nest down at Ground Zero. That would have been cheaper" ("Tucker," MSNBC, 11/28).

BRINGING IT BACK TO BILL

Bill Clinton saying he was against the Iraq war from the beginning received a substantial amount of coverage:

MSNBC's Carlson: "The question is not -- did Bill Clinton have the wrong position in 2003? The question is -- is he lying about it now? And he is and it's offensive to those of us who came out against the war before Bill and Hillary Clinton did. Like me, even. ... There were some Democrats who did. Brave Democrats who took a lot of crap for it. Bill Clinton was not among them. And for him to say now retroactively that that was his position when it demonstrably wasn't, is a lie" ("Live with Dan Abrams," 11/28).

FNC's Cameron: "The criticism from sources in the Obama campaign and the Edwards campaign, and from many of the Republicans in essence that this is once again another example of the Clintons trying to have it both ways. ... The types of rhetoric, the types of buzz phrases that became so damaging to Bill Clinton during his presidency that the Hillary Clinton campaign have always been fearful could reemerge and do her damage. Obama and Edwards are locked and loaded. They are ready to go after her as a double-talker again" ("Hannity & Colmes," 11/28).

CNN's Cafferty: "The point that matters to me is he was a private citizen at the time the war started. He wasn't president and he wasn't a member of the United States Senate. Hillary was. She voted for the war. And now, as a candidate for president, she has to defend that vote. I don't think it matters one way or the other what Bill Clinton thinks he may have said about his support for the war. It's irrelevant" ("Situation Room," 11/28).

FNC's Angle: "Senator Clinton's early stand on Iraq is a sensitive issue for her, one she has been trying to get voters to forget. But Bill Clinton has opened it right back up" ("Special Report," 11/28).

HOME IS WHERE THE FAMILY IS

And Chris Dodd was on "NewsHour" last p.m. as part of their WH '08 series:

Dodd, on moving his family to IA: "The decision was either to see them once every 10 or 12 days for a day and then leave again. And because of their ages, we could really pack up and come out here for six weeks, rent a little place, and made the decision to put Grace in a local public elementary school, in kindergarten, which has been terrific, and they've been wonderful to her. So I get to be with my family. ... To have them around and be with them has really made a wonderful difference."

Asked if he would put GOPers in his admin.: "I certainly wouldn't reject that at all. I think those kind of symbols are important. Franklin Roosevelt had Henry Stimson as his secretary of war. Bill Clinton had Bill Cohen. I remember strongly recommending Bill Cohen as part of that administration. I think the American people are looking for that. This idea that 50 percent plus one gives you the power to lead the country may be technically true, but you're not going to get much done" (PBS, 11/28). [KATHERINE LEHR]

Posted 11.29.07 09:08 AM | Comments (2)

November 28, 2007

Rankings ... With More Analysis to Come in the Morn

1. Huckabee
2. Giuliani
3. Romney
4. McCain
4. Paul
5. Thompson ...

Huck gave clear, thoughtful answers to questions about the death penalty, the Bible and immigration. He also had the funniest line of the night, per the WWJD? death penalty inquiry. "Jesus Was Too Smart to Ever Run for Public Office, Anderson." Huckabee also looked more statesmanlike than his frontrunner counterparts, who sniped about sanctuary cities, illegal workers and more.

Giuliani got off easy when asked to respond to Politico's report of his security detail's use of public dollars to facilitate affair with Judith Nathan. But he did stick it to Romney on the opening immigration q, pointing out that Romney did indeed employ illegal workers at his "mansion." Romney denied it, saying a person can't ask every individual who works on his property for their citizenship papers, but Rudy's campaign quickly blitzed reporters the Boston Globe article revealing that Romney hired a company that used illegal workers to tend his 2 1/2 acre grounds. Expect to see this denial and the Globe story in an ad ...

Romney, meanwhile, appeared on defense most of the night, on that opening immigration q, and on his shifting positions on abortion and gays in the military. He gave hazy answers to the latter two questions that smacked of HRC's initial debate answer to the driver's license q. He seemed to lose his skirmish with McCain over the waterboarding issue as well, declining to say if he'd back the controversial method of interrogation. Romney's most (only?) authentic moment came during the question of what the Confederate flag means to him. "That's not a flag that I recognize or that I would not hold up in my room. ... This country can go beyond that kind of stuff," he said.

More tomorrow ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 10:44 PM | Comments (1)

When I Was Mayor, Yanks Won Four Series

Rudy: "Since I've left being mayor of NYC the Yankees have won none."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 10:10 PM | Comments (0)

Ron Paul -- No Indy Run

Q to Ron Paul ...

Are you going to let America down by not running as an Independent?

No dice, he said. The revolution ends with the GOP nomination ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 10:07 PM | Comments (2)

Confederate Flag Represents What to You?

Romney: "That's not a flag that I recognize or that I would not hold up in my room. ... This country can go beyond that kind of stuff."

Thompson: "I know that everybody who hangs a flag up in their room like that is not racist. I also know for a great many Americans it's a symbol of racism. ... As far as a public place is concernedIi'm glad the people have made the decision not to display it."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:58 PM | Comments (0)

Trip to Mars for U.S. Space Program, Send HRC

Huckabee wants to expand space program. More money for science and technology. Not sure about whether we should send humans to Mars, but said he has a few suggestions about folks who should go if a trip materializes. "Maybe Hillary could be on the first rocket to Mars."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:57 PM | Comments (0)

Repay Social Security Trust Fund

Romney: Reagan meantioned in answer #4. ... But no clear response on the policy q.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:55 PM | Comments (0)

Openly Gay U.S. Retired Army Gen. Asks What's Wrong With His Service

Hunter:" I believe in what Colin Powell said when he said that having openly homosexual people serving in the ranks would be bad for unit cohesion."

Huckabee: Uniform code of military justice is probably the best rule. Conduct could put at risk morale. "I think that's what our policy is what it is."

Romney: (FLIPS and FLOPS when Anderson quotes him saying previously that he looks forward to a time when gays and lesbians can serve openly.) Times have changed, Romney said. "I didn't think don't ask don't tell would work. When i heard about it I laughed. ... "

The questionner, in the audience tonight, rose to express his dissatisfaction with the candidates' answers. "I did not get an answer from the candidates. American men and women in the military are professional enough to serve with gays and lesbians. ... Don't ask, don't tell is destructive to our military policy. ..." He served for 42 years and didn't reveal he was gay until he retired.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:47 PM | Comments (2)

New Romney Ad Released During Debate ... "Historic Choice"

To air in NH and Iowa ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:45 PM | Comments (0)

A Veep As Mighty As Dick Cheney?

Thompson: "I think that a vice president ought to have substantial authority." Expertise in domestic and national security areas critical. Be able to take place of president.

Too much authority to Cheney? Anderson asks...

McCain promises straight talk in answering the question. When Bush took office, he said, "he did not have as much national security experience as I do, so he had to rely on the vice president of the United States."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:40 PM | Comments (0)

A Noun, A Verb and 9/11, Rudy?

Q about whether Rudy is using 9/11 to win the White House.

Giuliani asks that people look at his whole record. Veers into discussion of prosecutions of criminals and talk of his management of NYC, says he reduced taxes, spending, welfare, abortions (?), increased adoptions. All before 9/11.

"I've been tested," he said.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:37 PM | Comments (0)

Waterboarding Ok?

Romney: "I oppose torture." But wouldn't say which measures he would and would not use. Would not answer the question.

McCain: "Well, governor, I'm astonished that you would think such a torture would be inflicted on anyone who we have held captive. ... it's in violation of the Geneva convention ... And, governor, if we're going to get the high ground in this world ... we're not going to torture people."

Smackdown.

Romney response: "I appreciate your strong response, and you have the credentials upon which to make that response." He still says, though, that he would not specify what means of interrogation he would sanction. (This is going to come back to bite Romney. This seemed a very Clintonesque driver's license answer..)

"Life is not 24 and Jack Bauer," McCain responded. Methods should be humane, but effective.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:28 PM | Comments (1)

Repair American Image in Muslim World?

Rudy: Remain on offense against Islamic terrorism. Reminds that post 9/11 he said Americans shouldn't engage in "group blame."

During Dem debate, Rudy said: "Not a single one of those Democratic candidates used the word Islamic terrorism. I don't know who they think they are offending."

McCain: Continue this troop surge in Iraq, which is succeeding. "We are winning the war in Iraq. That's the first thing I would do." Reconstruct Iraq. Fight back Dems efforts to set a date for withdrawal, "which is a date for surrender."

Hunter: Americans help in instances of disease and tsunami and more." I will never apologize for the United States of America."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:24 PM | Comments (0)

"Annual Snowfall Dramatically Reduced" Under Rudy Tenure, Jokes Rudy Video

So far the funniest, with Thompson's a smart second ....

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:23 PM | Comments (0)

Believe Every Word of the Bible?

Rudy:" I think it's the greatest book ever written. I read it frequently." But doesn't believe everything in it. Some things are allegorical, he said.

Romney: "I believe the Bible is the word of God. ... I try to live by it."

MH: "It's the word of revelation from God himself." No finite person is ever going to fully understand it ... If they do, their God is too small."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:17 PM | Comments (0)

Death Penalty -- WWJD?

Huck, appearing teary-eyed, says he's only person on stage who has had to make that decision -- and that it weighed heavily on him. "I believe there is a place for the death penalty, some crimes are so heinous, so horrible ... "

What Would Jesus Do?, Anderson repeats the question to Huck.

"Jesus Was Too Smart to Ever Run for Public Office, Anderson." The audience cheered. Even Rudy applauded.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:14 PM | Comments (5)

Romney Would Sign Abortion Ban

Sign abortion ban if Roe v. Wade was overturned?

Rudy: No, I would leave it to the states to make that decision. Doesn't think it should be criminalized, unless late term or partial birth abortion.

Romney: I agree with Sen. Thompson. We should overturn Roe v. Wade. And return these issues in the states. "I'd be delighted to sign that bill, but that's not where we are."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:09 PM | Comments (0)

Giuliani Team Sends This Globe Article To Reporters: "Illegal immigrants toiled for governor"

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/12/01/illegal_immigrants_toiled_for_governor/

Illegal immigrants toiled for governor

December 1, 2006

This story was reported by Jonathan Saltzman and Maria Cramer of the Globe staff and by Globe correspondent Connie Paige and was written by Saltzman.

SUCHITEPEQUEZ, Guatemala -- Outside his aqua-colored concrete house here, Rene Alvarez Rosales paused under an almond tree to answer questions about a subject with which he has surprising familiarity: Governor Mitt Romney's Belmont lawn.

For about eight years, Rosales said, he worked on and off landscaping the grounds at Romney's home, occasionally getting a "buenos dias" from Romney or a drink of water from his wife, Ann.

"She is very nice," said Rosales, 49.

About 6 miles away in Copado, a 37-year-old man who recently returned to Guatemala from the United States told a similar story, describing long days tending Romney's 2 1/2-acre grounds.

"They wanted that house to look really nice," said the worker, who asked to remain anonymous. "It took a long time."

As Governor Mitt Romney explores a presidential bid, he has grown outspoken in his criticism of illegal immigration. But, for a decade, the governor has used a landscaping company that relies heavily on workers like these, illegal Guatemalan immigrants, to maintain the grounds surrounding his pink Colonial house on Marsh Street in Belmont.

The Globe recently interviewed four current and former employees of Community Lawn Service with a Heart, the tiny Chelsea-based company that provides upkeep of Romney's property. All but one said they were in the United States illegally.

The employees told the Globe that company owner Ricardo Saenz never asked them to provide documents showing their immigration status and knew they were illegal immigrants.

"He never asked for papers," said Rosales, who said he had paid smugglers about $5,000 to take him across the US-Mexican border and settled in Chelsea.

The workers said they were paid in cash at $9 to $10 an hour and sometimes worked 11-hour days.

Romney never inquired about their status, they said.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:07 PM | Comments (0)

Favorite Make, Model, Caliber?

Thompson: "I own a couple of guns, but I'm not going to tell you what they are or where they are."

McCain: "I know how to use guns, I don't own one."

Mayor Giuliani said he doesn't own a gun. Romney said he has two guns in his home, both owned by son, Josh.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 09:04 PM | Comments (0)

Guns, guns, guns

Hunter will strongly enforce the Second Amendment. Shocking.

Q about past quote from Rudy that anyone wanting to own a gun should pass a written exam.

"i believe we have to be very aggressive about enforcing the gun laws that exist," Rudy said in response.

NYC, as a result, went from being the most dangerous cities to one of the safest, he added.

Rudy is booed for saying that government should be allowed to impose reasonable regulations. Criminal backgrounds, mental health issues should prohibit gun ownership.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:59 PM | Comments (0)

You Tube Videos From Candidates?

This is like a debate within a debate ...

Thompson's dishy vid shows footage, however, of Romney making a pro-choice promise.

"I was wrong," Romney said of his earlier position.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:57 PM | Comments (0)

Rudy Gets Off With A Quick And Easy Answer ...

Rudy answers Politico story q ... Says it's not true. That he had 24-hour security because "there were threats" ... "They followed me everywhere," he said of his detail.

"I had nothing to do with the handling of their records, and they were handled as far as I know appropriately," he said.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:52 PM | Comments (0)

I Pledge Allegiance to Grover Norquist

No to raising taxes? ... Norquist asks for the candidates' pledges ...

Tom Tancredo: Yes to Grover
Huck: Yes
MR: Yes, and signed pledge first, he notes.
Rudy: Yes
Fred Thompson: Never met a tax i like. "I don't do pledges to anybody but the American people."
McCain: "My pledge, and my record is up to the American people."
Paul: Never voted for a tax increase, never will. You can easily pledge to lower taxes, but you have to cut spending.
Duncan Hunter: Wrong to say absolutely, could have a national emergency.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:48 PM | Comments (1)

If Anyone Doubted That Paul Was Nipping At McCain's Heels in NH...

McCain to Paul about his pledge to bring the troops home from Iraq:
"That kind of isolationism, sir, is what cause WWII. We allowed Hitler to come to power with that kind of attitude of isolationism ... "

The message from the troops, McCain said, to their elected officials is: Llet us win."

Paul: The real question you have to ask, he said, is why do I get the most money from active duty officers and military personnel. "He doesn't even understand the difference between non intervention and isolationism," Paul said, as McCain stewed next to him.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:43 PM | Comments (1)

Spending cuts guys ...

Ron Paul: "Washington did not change me, and I would like to change Washington."

Paul would cut the Depts of Energy and Homeland Security. (Reagan mention No. 3, by the by, in this answer.)

Huck: Get rid of the IRS. Big applause. Enact fair tax. More big applause. And "I agree, we need to revamp Homeland Security."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:37 PM | Comments (0)

Have Republicans Forgotten How to Control Spending?

This Q from a Penn State student ...

McCain: We've provided over the greatest expansion of govt," he said. The latest example being SCHIP, the children's health insurance plan that will be paid for by a cigarette tax increase.

"I'd veto every single pork barrel bill that comes across my desk," McCain said, promising to use a veto pen that Ronald Reagan once gave him. First Ronald Reagan mention alert.

Giuliani: We need across the board spending cuts, "the way Ronald Reagan did." (Gipper mention No. 2)

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:34 PM | Comments (0)

Huckabee: "We're a better country than to punish children for what their parents did."

Q3: Do you back a law to give military families the same tuition breaks as illegal immigrants?

Mike Huckabee: "We're not going to punish a child because a parent committed a crime." Bill alluded to in the question, which didn't pass, but would've brought people from illegal to legal status, Huck said.

Romney: "He basically just said that he fought for giving scholarships to illegal aliens. ... Mike, that's not your money, that's the taxpayers money. ... The right thing is to help legal aliens." if you are here illegally, Romney said, you ought to be able "to return home."

They didn't get something better they had to earn the scholarships, Huckabee countered, asserting that without his education he wouldn't be standing on the stage.

Huck scored with this ... "We're a better country than to punish children for what their parents did."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:26 PM | Comments (3)

McCain Saddened by the Tenor of the Immigration Debate

John McCain: "This whole debate saddens me a bit," McCain said. Saying that he tried to propose a plan to secure the borders but that the American people weren't interested. They didn't buy the plan, McCain said, because they've lost faith in government, post Iraq, post Katrina and as deficits soar.

"We tried, and we failed," McCain said, reiterating that the border needs to be secured, but that the issue of illegal immigrants deserves a more thoughtful approach.

"These are God's children as well, and they need some protection under the law," he said. "And they need some of our love and compassion."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:20 PM | Comments (2)

These debate intros suck up 1/12 of the debate ...

Dick Armey, the ghost of Richard Nixon, aliens, Abe Lincoln, animals (stuffed and unstuffed) all submitted questions, according to Anderson Cooper.

And Chuck Norris is in the audience ...

Question one from Ernie of Brooklyn, NYC to Rudy Giuliani: When he was mayor NYC was a sanctuary city ... Will you continue to aid and abet flood of illegals into this country?

RG: NYC was not a sanctuary city, Giuliani said. He said his administration allowed children of illegal immigrants to go to school, to keep them off the streets during a crime wave. He would support the creation of a fence or virtual fence, tamper proof id card, among other measures.

Mitt Romney -- "Absolutely" NYC was a sanctuary city.

"This just happens to be a differencef between Mayor Giuliani and myself ... if you're here illegal we're not going to give you benefits."

RG: "Mitt generally criticizes people in a situation in which he's had the worst record." Romney, in fact, had not just a sanctuary city in his state, RG said, but he owned a "sanctuary mansion ... Iin his own home illegal immigrants were being employed."

"i would say he had sanctuary mansion not just sanctuary city."

MR: "Mayor, you know better than that."

RG: "You did have illegal imigrants working at your mansion. Did you not?"

MR: "No, I didn't."

Friction anyone?

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 08:00 PM | Comments (1)

Dem Debate Canceled Because of Writers' Strike

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A televised debate set for next month among the Democratic presidential candidates will be canceled to avoid a potential conflict with striking Hollywood screenwriters, a source close to organizers said on Wednesday.

The decision by the Democratic National Committee came after several candidates said they would refuse to cross picket lines of the Writers Guild of America, which has been on strike against major film and television studios since November 5.

A debate among eight Democrats running for the White House had been scheduled for December 10 at the CBS Television City studio in Los Angeles, where striking writers have been routinely picketing.

Posted 11.28.07 06:44 PM | Comments (1)

Trouble

Rudy Giuliani will likely have to answer questions tonight about a Politico report alleging that as NYC mayor he used public funds to rendezvous with his then mistress, now wife Judith Nathan, in the Hamptons.

Check out this excerpt from Politico reporter Ben Smith's story:

As New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani billed obscure city agencies for tens of thousands of dollars in security expenses amassed during the time when he was beginning an extramarital relationship with future wife Judith Nathan in the Hamptons, according to previously undisclosed government records.

The documents, obtained by Politico under New York’s Freedom of Information Law, show that the mayoral costs had nothing to do with the functions of the little-known city offices that defrayed his tabs, including agencies responsible for regulating loft apartments, aiding the disabled and providing lawyers for indigent defendants.

At the time, the mayor’s office refused to explain the accounting to city auditors, citing “security.”

The Hamptons visits resulted in hotel, gas and other costs for Giuliani’s New York Police Department security detail.

Giuliani’s relationship with Nathan is old news now, and Giuliani regularly asks voters on the campaign trail to forgive his "mistakes."

It’s also impossible to know whether the purpose of all the Hamptons trips was to see Nathan. A Giuliani spokeswoman declined to discuss any aspect of this story, which was explained in detail to her earlier this week.

But the practice of transferring the travel expenses of Giuliani's security detail to the accounts of obscure mayoral offices has never been brought to light, despite behind-the-scenes criticism from the city comptroller weeks after Giuliani left office.

Not the news Rudy probably wanted to break before a critical debate and just more than a month before primary season commences.

The NYT, ABC News, The Huffington Post and others have already picked up the Smith story. How will Giuliani dismiss these charges? Can he ... ? Will Nathan show for the CNN/YouTube debate?

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 05:59 PM | Comments (0)

37 Days Until The NH Primary, Or, Uh, 41 Actually

UPDATE -- EDWARDS camp says no error here, Web video is set to preview a canvass that begins this weekend in New Hampshire. The event is 37 days before the primary ...

"37 million Americans live in poverty, 37 days until the New Hampshire primary, 37 reasons why poverty affects us all ..."

This is the intro to a new John Edwards campaign video circulating on You Tube. It's an effective piece, with 37 Edwards supporters saying how hard it is to make ends meet, that they're strapped to repay college loans or for their health insurance and more. "Because I was the first in my family to graduate from college," Edwards says to camera.

But there's one bitty thematic problem -- it's actually 41 days until the Jan. 8 NH primary ...

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 04:36 PM | Comments (0)

Any HRC Bashing Tonight ... ?

Likely, though given the shift in dynamics in Iowa maybe not as likely as it was when the GOPers last debated. But Hillary Clinton spokesman Phil Singer forwarded to reporters today the latest reason, in his eyes, for any renewed GOP criticism of HRC -- a new CNN poll that shows her defeating Rudy Giuliani in Florida -- even though he holds a firm double-digit lead among Republicans.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 04:14 PM | Comments (0)

They're Fighting Already

So On Call was going to preview the Florida GOP debate, hosted tonight at 8 p.m. by CNN and You Tube, but the candidates are, it seems, doing this for us.

Mitt Romney might have been playing a virtually Kennedy-esque game of flag football with his clan earlier today, but the good fun was tainted by a Rudy Giuliani campaign release accusing the former Massachusetts governor of raising taxes. (Which could be perceived as the sin of all sins, by the way, by NH voters.)

The Rudy release quotes former Mass Gov. Paul Cellucci, saying, "Not only was Mitt Romney unsuccessful in cutting taxes, he raised them. Fees went up, government spending went up, and we still dont know just how much his universal health care plan will cost Massachusetts for generations to come. By any measure, Mitt Romney was unable to bring about the fiscal discipline in Massachusetts that Mayor Giuliani brought to New York City."

The document cites a slew of headlines highlighting those increases: $500 million in fees, $400 million in business taxes, an income tax hike on non-profits. The piece even quotes Hillary Clinton's Leg Director Laurie Rubiner telling Politico's Ben Smith that Romney's health care plan in Mass was essentially a big government plan. Romney's plan, others say, amounted to a huge strain, a tax, on businesses.

Romney wasn't having any of it. "I cut taxes 19 times," he told reporters, per NBC/NJ's Erin McPike. His campaign circulated a document to reporters, listing those 19 tax cuts. Among them, McPike reports, the Fire Sprinkler Accelerated Depreciation and the Senior Circuit Breaker Expansion. Some of the 19 were not filed by the governor but enacted by the legislature.

So, taxes. Expect, good readers of On Call, to hear just a wee bit more on taxes this evening.

More ...

Crime. Same two guys. Nuf said.

Watch for any combination of the first and second-tier candidates to go after Mike Huckabee, who has surged since the last Republican debate more than a month ago. Huckabee's gotten a pass so far, but as Romney scraps to hold on to a single-digit lead over Huck in Iowa, expect some fireworks. And look for Fred Thompson to have at Huck in some form or fashion as well. (Wayne DuMond?)

Thompson Communications Dir. Karen Hanretty did try to lower the bar on her boss's performance. "Thirty-second answers," she said, are not Thompson's best forum, per NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy. "How many primary voters and early state caucus goers will be watching these debates?" she said. "Quite frankly, the viewing audience hasn't been that high." She said debates don't really drive campaigns and elections.

Immigration, English-only education in the public schools, in-state tuition for immigrants. Nuf said. (Oh but one humble suggestion for Anderson Cooper, maybe as the candidates muse about the drain the nation's illegal immigrants place on the school system or how they're taking jobs that good Americans deserve, maybe Anderson could ask each man to cite the year of arrival of their first ancestors to this country. Maybe, too, he could inquire about their means of transport, where they lived and their first jobs in the United States. Just a thought.)

Look for John McCain to make the experience argument. If he's steady tonight and Romney and Rudy have at each other, McCain could look like the grown-up while they squabble.

And one final thing to watch for, the Fla. state GOP chairman forecast that the candidates would try to draw distinctions tonight between themselves and President Bush. About time.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 02:58 PM | Comments (0)

Quote Of The Day

From today's Hotline:

"You are going to see an aggressive approach to distinguish themselves from not only each other, but from the current president."

-- FL GOP Chair Jim Greer, on WH GOPers in tonight's debate, CNN, 11/28.

Posted 11.28.07 12:52 PM | Comments (0)

Dodd To Skip DNC Mtg To Campaign In Iowa

Chris Dodd is going to pass on the Democratic National Committee's fall meeting that starts tomorrow in Vienna to campaign instead in, you know it, Iowa.

"With barely more than a month left to caucus night, Senator Dodd will be taking his case directly to the people of Iowa instead of attending the DNC Fall Meeting in Washington, D.C.," Dodd communications director Hari Sevugan told On Call.

The move is moderately risky. The Dems (all other candidates are confirmed) will pretend to link arms and show a unified front while also turning on their individual charms (debatable) for party members and the top brass. But Dodd could show a measure of devotion, apprently not yet communicated by his family's move, by campaigning in Iowa instead of schmoozing with party muckety-mucks. In other words, Dodd can try to play the outsider. We'll see if he gets kudos for it ... Interesting gamble.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Posted 11.28.07 10:26 AM | Comments (0)

HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates

Updates from our Hotline Political Network Affiliates -- Updated 24/7

--Advertisement--

--Advertisement--

November 30, 2007

HRC: "Immensely Relieved," Campaign Goes On As Planned

HRC In NH Tonight ...

O.V.E.R.

And Now JRE

Richardson Follows ...

Obama Campaign Releases Brief Statement

Two Hostages Released in NH

Rochester Update

NH Police Presser: Won't Confirm Identity of Hostage Taker

Clinton Campaign Statement

NH Rep. Hodes On Hostage Situation

HRC Cancels DNC Speech in Northern Virginia ...

BREAKING NEWS: Hostages Held at HRC Hdqrts in Rochester, NH

Quote Of The Day

Huckabee's Media Swarm in NH

Only In Iowa

HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates

Bloomberg/Obama Tete-a-Tete

Kurtz Laments Reporters' Frustrations Covering HRC

Ron Paul, Wild Card

Hotline After Dark -- You Asked For It

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

NOT LOOKING BACK IN ANGER

Chris Rock on Bush: "White people burning, he was there. Black people drowning, he don't care… He was putting out the (CA) fires with Katrina water."

Obama Woos Sharpton at Sylvia's, Sharpton Said Dems Have Marginalized Black Voters

November 29, 2007

Internal McCain Campaign Memo: GOP, Turn Down The Volume On Immigration

Sam Brownback Wishes He Were ... Babs

For $310 A Week, You Can House and Feed a Richardson Campaign Volunteer

Quote Of The Day

Fmr. Rep. Henry Hyde Dead at 83

You Say You Want a Revolution

Edwards Camp Scores GOP Debate For ... JRE

American Conservative Union's Keene for Romney

Promises, promises

CNN Apologizes for Not Vetting Gay General's Political Connections

HPN: Updates From Our State Affiliates

Hotline After Dark -- Get Some Reaction

FUNNY MONEY?

BRINGING IT BACK TO BILL

HOME IS WHERE THE FAMILY IS

November 28, 2007

Rankings ... With More Analysis to Come in the Morn

When I Was Mayor, Yanks Won Four Series

Ron Paul -- No Indy Run

Confederate Flag Represents What to You?

Trip to Mars for U.S. Space Program, Send HRC

Repay Social Security Trust Fund

Openly Gay U.S. Retired Army Gen. Asks What's Wrong With His Service

New Romney Ad Released During Debate ... "Historic Choice"

A Veep As Mighty As Dick Cheney?

A Noun, A Verb and 9/11, Rudy?

Waterboarding Ok?

Repair American Image in Muslim World?

"Annual Snowfall Dramatically Reduced" Under Rudy Tenure, Jokes Rudy Video

Believe Every Word of the Bible?

Death Penalty -- WWJD?

Romney Would Sign Abortion Ban

Giuliani Team Sends This Globe Article To Reporters: "Illegal immigrants toiled for governor"

Favorite Make, Model, Caliber?

Guns, guns, guns

You Tube Videos From Candidates?

Rudy Gets Off With A Quick And Easy Answer ...

I Pledge Allegiance to Grover Norquist

If Anyone Doubted That Paul Was Nipping At McCain's Heels in NH...

Spending cuts guys ...

Have Republicans Forgotten How to Control Spending?

Huckabee: "We're a better country than to punish children for what their parents did."

McCain Saddened by the Tenor of the Immigration Debate

These debate intros suck up 1/12 of the debate ...

Dem Debate Canceled Because of Writers' Strike

Trouble

37 Days Until The NH Primary, Or, Uh, 41 Actually

Any HRC Bashing Tonight ... ?

They're Fighting Already

Quote Of The Day

Dodd To Skip DNC Mtg To Campaign In Iowa