The Note

W A S H I N G T O N, Nov. 10&#151;<br> -- Today's Schedule (all times Eastern):

—8:00 am: Senator Joe Lieberman meets with patrons at Lindy's diner, Keene, N.H.—10:30 am: Governor Howard Dean holds a press conference, Des Moines, Iowa—11:30 am: First lady Laura Bush attends a Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraiser at a private residence, Wilmington, Del.—12:00 pm: President Bush makes remarks at a Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraiser luncheon, Little Rock, Ark. —12:15 pm: Senator Lieberman makes remarks on long-term care for seniors, Concord, N.H.—12:30 pm: Senator John Kerry meets with veterans, Des Moines, Iowa—1:00 pm: Senate convenes for legislative business—1:50 pm: General Wesley Clark tours a veterans hospital, Tucson, Ariz.—2:30 pm: Senator Kerry meets with veterans, Marshalltown, Iowa—3:00 pm: Congressman Dennis Kucinich attends a rally with progressives and holds a press conference at San Francisco State University, San Francisco—4:00 pm: General Clark tours a veterans hospital, Phoenix—4:10 pm: President Bush makes remarks on the economy at a BMW plant, Greer, S.C.—4:30 pm: General Clark holds a "Conversations with Clark" town hall forum, Phoenix—4:30 pm: Senator John Edwards meets with supporters at the Commerce Club, Atlanta—5:00 pm: Senator Kerry meets with veterans, Cedar Rapids, Iowa—6:00 pm: President Bush makes remarks at a Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraiser dinner, Greenville, S.C.—6:00 pm: First lady Laura Bush attends a Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraiser dinner, South Portland, Maine —6:45 pm: Senator Kerry meets with veterans, Iowa City, Iowa—8:00 pm: Louisiana gubernatorial debate between Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Blanco and Bobby Jindal, Baton Rouge, La.

NEWS SUMMARY

Using techniques taught us by the Republican staff of the Senate Intelligence Committee, The Note has obtained a draft of a memo that fired Kerry campaign manager Jim Jordan apparently intended to send to his successor, Mary Beth Cahill.

What is striking about the document (besides the Heineken smudges and the Post -midnight time stamp) is its sweeping tone.

But, then, it IS only a draft.

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DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT

TO: MBC FROM: JJ RE: Big Bad John

Congratulations — you are inheriting a great national staff, a great Iowa staff, a great New Hampshire staff, and Judy Reardon's agita.

There ARE, however, some things to watch out for to make sure the machine continues to hum.

1. At the slightest provocation, particularly during live television interviews, The Candidate will throw the staff under the bus. For instance, I was once sacrificed on "Meet the Press" for some on-the-record criticism of HoHo that in retrospect reads in tone and substance like a Connie Morella press release compared to what The Candidate is now saying about Dean.

2. Make some sort of deal with a Boston-area milk company to get Michael Whouley's picture on cartons. We have to find the guy.

3. The Candidate is in Iowa today; may I suggest no custard stops?

4. The corrollary of "Let The Spouse Be the Spouse" is "Let Chris Black Be Chris Black." You'll know what I mean shortly if you don't already.

5. I have no fu***** (REDACTED) idea what Cam is doing, but The Candidate seems to believe he is the second coming of Tad Devine.

6. Jeanne Shaheen seems smart, ruthless, and knowledgeable about how to win New Hampshire. But, then, I gather you two have been spending some time together lately, so you probably knew that.

7. If you can find a way to get the national political press corps to hold HoHo accountable for the things he says, more power to you. Most of them don't much like The Candidate, and don't cut him a break — ever. And I think there is a connection between those things.

8. You'll be tempted to ask the research shop to get you a memo on The Candidate's achievements in Congress. Save yourself some time and don't.

9. Often, we line up endorsements and come up with a plan about how to unveil them for maximum strategic effect. Remember: this works best if the endorsers don't just blurt out their support whenever they feel like it. Also, if you set up endorsement press conference calls, remind the endorsers not to trash the significance of their own endorsements.

10. Getting into Canada requires proper ID. (Actually, that one belongs on a different list — ignore it … .)

11. Bob Shrum was right — "The Courage to do What's Right" is a really effective campaign slogan.

12. Going to war publicly against the Boston Globe might make you feel good, but it won't effect what is the most relentlessly negative coverage of any presidential candidate EVER by a hometown paper — and I mean the news page. Don't even get me started on the op-ed page.

13. Your friend Jill Alper should run the world — see if you can make that happen.

14. You'll be wondering what the fourth-quarter fundraising number will be like. It's not something I want to commit to paper. Just have Gibbs practice in front of a mirror: "We'll have enough resources to get our message out."

15. I think we finally have an answer on the Iraq vote that works. As John Sasso always says, "8th time's the charm."

16. Best to get The Candidate to stop musing in public about decisions that he hasn't made yet. And, since we have budgeted to take those matching funds, make darn sure that The Candidate is fully ready to write a personal check before you let him make any announcement. In fact, I'd suggest having the check in hand — certified.

17. Finally, have fun. There are still a lot of people in the party like you who believe that The Candidate is the party's best and only hope of beating George Bush, and we have all seen moments and flashes in which John is That Man.

Your task, in the few short weeks you have, is to somehow make him perform at that level each and every day. There's no evidence it can be done, but you gotta try. You and New Hampshire can make The Candidate The Comeback Kid.

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As for Cahill, who becomes the only woman running a major presidential campaign this cycle, she has a lot of fans. She met with her new D.C. team this morning, in a meeting that was described by one knowledgeable source as "very subdued but very receptive."

So, as Robert Bartley would say, who is Mary Beth Cahill? We all know her resume — Kennedy, Barney Frank, EMILY's List — but who is she really?

And no, she's not the "charismatic karaoke" host of Boston area fame LINK or the guitarist LINK.

Cahill, an alum of Emmanuel College where she received her B.A., has run three Senate races. She won with Leahy and Pell, but fell short with Aucoin. She's also been part of dozens of House races. She was an Assistant to the president for Public Liaison under President Clinton, and oversaw China WTO.

She also spent time under Governor Michael Dukakis in his office of the Commonwealth and on the staff of Rep. Robert Drinan.

And sorry guys, she's taken.

The Massachusetts native has been described as "savvy" and win-oriented and has known Kerry for some 20 years leading up to their union on this campaign.

Said one wily Democratic observer who knows her well, "She is as talented and savvy as any presidential campaign manager out there, but her greatest attribute is that her only agenda is to win. After being courted by several presidential races over the last year, she's joining Kerry because he is the only one that can beat George Bush in the general election."

Another Democratic fan of hers told The Note, "She is very smart, very focused, extremely disciplined, and very tough. Very tough."

Before we got the draft of the Jordan memo, our lead was going to be "The Top Ten Casualties of Howard Dean's Success," with Jordan as Number One.

Before the news of the firing, our lead was going to be Howard Dean's strength in the nominating process. The weekend must-reads were pretty much about the one topic dominating presidential

Politics:

Dean. When Brownstein (Saturday), Balz (and Diamond Jim), and Bagourney (the latter two pieces on Sunday) all write about the same thing — in this case, just how high Dean's current catbird seat is — you know it is Big. LINK; and LINK

Note in particular the must-read paragraph in the Post story that says that some Democrats wanting the Clintons and Al Gore to come to the rescue and stop Dean!

Every presidential cycle the Chatterers in one or both parties (and the press) go through a period of "buyer's remorse" — sometimes it is BEFORE the nominee is effectively chosen, sometimes it is after.

In 1992, as Bill Clinton kept on rolling up delegates, Johnny Apple had Lloyd Bentsen, Dick Gephardt, and all sorts of other people as shoo-ins to accept the nomination in New York.

It's become common wisdom to say that Howard Dean's biggest enemy for the nomination is … Howard Dean, but a corollary of that is that the stronger he seems, the more energy builds up in the lingering remnants for what passes for the Establishment of the Democratic Party to stop him.

This seems unlikely, what with the facts that

a. such talk only serves to rile up Dean's supporters (most of whom have NEVER eaten at Tortilla Coast … ) and b. Note the use of the word "remnants" above (and we were being generous … )

Let's face it: on the current economy/deficit/war trajectories Al Gore or Hillary Clinton at the top of the ticket could probably hold (we are reading this off the back of an envelope) 200 to 220 electoral votes without breaking a sweat. There are plenty of Democratic wisegals and wiseguys who think Dean will be lucky to win half that number.

At some point, if the race doesn't look close at the top of the ticket, Democrats could start seeing ugliness all around them, and begin to worry about downballot effects.

REMEMBER: THE NOTE IS WRITING ABOUT HOW THINGS LOOK TODAY, AND *MIGHT* LOOK DOWN THE ROAD. WE AREN'T PREDICTING ANY OF THIS, AND/BUT, AS KEN MEHLMAN KNOWS, THE PRESS ALWAYS CHEERS FOR A CLOSE RACE!!

Anyhoo, our point is that until and unless one of the other Democratic candidates emerges as a strong enough candidate to be the clear anti-Dean, the hand-wringing is going to be deafening.

Speaking of … .

Just as Elizabeth Kolbert could have predicted, the Hillary-Clinton-for-president stories aren't going away anytime soon. Michael Blood of the New York Daily News stirred the pot again this weekend wondering if New York's junior Senator could emerge as the ultimate anti-Dean candidate. LINK

"Sources close to the New York senator and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, have made it clear that they think the dovish Dean would be ruinous for the Democratic Party," writes Blood.

And, a Quinnipac University poll has Bush trailing the five leading Democratic candidates and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in New York. LINK

Senator Kerry campaigns in Iowa today. He's in Arizona tomorrow. He appears on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Tuesday. He's in New Hampshire on Wednesday and Thursday, and Iowa on Friday and Saturday.

President Bush attends Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraisers today in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Greenville, South Carolina. He'll also make remarks on the economy at the BMW plant in Greer, South Carolina, today. He's in D.C. on Tuesday and Wednesday. He heads to Florida on Thursday for a pair of Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraisers. He's back in D.C. on Friday.

Mrs. Bush attends a pair of Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraisers today in Wilmington, Delaware, and South Portland, Maine.

The Iowa Democratic Party's Jefferson Jackson dinner is this Saturday in Des Moines. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (There she is again!!) will keynote the event, and Governor Dean, Senator Kerry, Congressman Gephardt, Senator Edwards, Congressman Kucinich, and Ambassador Moseley Braun are scheduled to attend.

Senator Lieberman is scheduled to be in D.C. on Saturday, Reverend Sharpton is scheduled to be in South Carolina, and General Clark has no public events scheduled for that day.

Governor Dean is in Iowa today, where he'll hold a press conference this morning in Des Moines and attend a private campaign fundraiser tonight in Cedar Rapids. He's in Iowa again on Tuesday. On Wednesday, SEIU and AFSCME are scheduled to make a joint announcement in D.C. about an endorsement for Dean. He campaigns in New Hampshire on Thursday and then back in Iowa for the weekend.

Congressman Gephardt attends private fundraisers in New York today. He does more of that in New York and New Jersey tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday. He's in Des Moines on Saturday for the J-J dinner.

General Clark campaigns in Arizona today. He's in New Hampshire Tuesday through Friday.

Senator Edwards is in Atlanta today. He campaigns in South Carolina on Friday. He's in Des Moines on Saturday.