The Note
W A S H I N G T O N July 23—<br> -- Today's Schedule (all times Eastern):
—9:00 am: Senate Judiciary Committee votes on the appeals court nomination of William H. Pryor Jr.—10:00 am: Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with FBI Director Robert Mueller —10:00 am: Senator Lieberman's mother, Marcia Lieberman, visits seniors in Manchester, N.H.—10:05 am: White House Rose Garden event with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and U.S. Civilian Administrator in Iraq Paul Bremer—11:00 am: CIA Director George Tenet testifies before the House Intelligence Committee—11:00 am: President Bush meets with the former president of the Czech Republic—11:30 am: Senator Lieberman tours the Maricopa Skills Center in Phoenix, Arizona.—11:30 am: Marcia Lieberman visits a Meals on Wheels program in Manchester, N.H.—12:30 pm: Paul Bremer speaks at the National Press Club on post-war Iraq—2:15 pm: The President meets with Argentine President Nestor Kirchner —3:00 pm President Bush participates in ceremony for the 2003 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, White House—3:15 pm: Senator Lieberman speaks to the Navajo Nation Tribal Council in Window Rock, Ariz.—5:00 pm: Governor Dean attends a meet and greet in Canterbury, N.H.—5:45 pm: Senator Lieberman meets with Latino community leaders in Phoenix—7:00 pm: Governor Dean attends a community picnic in Lakeport, N.H.—8:00 pm: Deadline for signatures in California recall—8:00 pm: Senator Lieberman addresses the Hotel Employees International Union in Phoenix
NEWS SUMMARY
With a presidential statement on Iraq taking place write before or right after we intend(ed) to publish today's Note, writing this episode is/was a chronological challenge.
And writing about Niger is always a challenge: the White House argues it distracts from the fact that the nation (and many now carping Democrats) supported going to war against Iraq with or without those 16 words, while the Democrats counter that there are real issues of credibility here (and a chance to keep scoring political points).
So, in the new spirit of The Lists, let us list some things we think are true (keeping in mind "is versus ought-to-be") about the Niger matter at this very specific, fluid point in the news cycle.
1. When a White House puts out bad news on an otherwise busy news day, the bad news isn't JUST crowded out in the products consumers see (Niger isn't even on the front page of the New York Times for instance … ) — it also gets crowded out in newsrooms. Executive producer/editor time yesterday was largely owned by the Hussein son story and Jessica Lynch, as was the time of news assistants, researchers, tape PAs, etc.
2. So reporters assigned to Niger just weren't going to be feeling the love, and, knowing they would not get top billing (and, short of time, thanks to the late hour of the briefing) didn't hump this cycle on the story the way they otherwise would have.
3. When George Bush has a complicated, controversial story which threatens his political health, he turns to Dan Bartlett, whose competence and credibility with the press are a huge asset to this White House.
4. Yesterday's Bartlett/Hadley briefing is a fascinating read. Reading Hadley's tortured explanation of whether the president is responsible for what goes on in the White House makes one nostalgic for the Lanny Davis days.
5. Although a few of today's accounts juxtapose the new/current version of what happened with some of Dr. Rice's past statements, there is more of that to come, including with things said by the president. Get those tape researchers working!
6. Democratic and media suspicions continue to dovetail, and the new/current account is going to be picked at hard in the next day or two.
7. Judge Gonzales can thank his lucky stars there is no independent counsel law on the books.
8. There seems to be some Andy Card-ordered internal investigation going on at the White House that yielded one of the two new memos, but what caused the CIA to suddenly find the one they found? And who debriefed the president (per the briefing) on all this? Has anyone debriefed the VPOTUS?
9. And speaking of questions: Does this end the monster feud between the White House and the CIA? What will the absent Dr. Rice say the next time reporters can question her?
10. When does it become "What did Dr. Rice know and when did she know it?" and if the president's National Security Adviser was a male, would the trajectory be different?
MOST IMPORTANT POLITICAL EVENTS OF THE DAY
1. The president in the Rose Garden.
2. The recall certification in Sacramento.
3. Howard Dean in New Hampshire.
4. Rudy Giuliani at the opening of the RNC.
5. (tie) David Sanger's next phone call with Dr. Rice and whatever Congressman Bill Thomas does.
MOST IMPORTANT NEWSPAPER STORIES OF THE DAY
1. Dan Balz of the Washington Post on the politics of Iraq. LINK
2. The Los Angeles Times on some new recall wrinkles. LINK
3. Harold Meyerson's Washington Post op-ed on Howard Dean, Dick Gephardt, and John Kerry. LINK
4. Ron Fournier's look at some unhappy and worried Republicans on the eve of the RNC summer meeting, who don't like the president's poll numbers or staffing. LINK
5. The San Francisco Chronicle on how California 2003 could end up like Florida 2000. LINK
MOST IMPORTANT POLITICAL DYNAMICS TO WATCH
1. Where is Andy Card?
2. How quickly does Bill Clinton do the "switch" following his "bait" of supportive comments on Niger?
3. Will anyone in the Democratic Party organize the separate outstanding presidential campaign opposition research efforts on yellowcake?
4. Will the RNC meeting be a lovefest, a non-event, or an orgy of pushback?
5. Is Senator Rockefeller's Q going up?
In California recall news today:
-- The Los Angeles Times surveyed California county elections officials who confirmed more than 1.1 million signatures have been verified, well above the threshold to get the recall measure on the ballot.
-- The Secretary of State's office officially puts the current number of verified signatures received at 678,472 or roughly 75% of the total needed. The counties face an 8:00 pm EDT deadline to submit their final totals. Secretary of State Kevin Shelley could certify the recall as early as 8:30 pm EDT today, although he more likely will wait until tomorrow.
-- Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante told reporters he will set a date for the recall election within 24 hours of certification. The timetable would most likely allow replacement candidates more than 24 hours (as some have feared) to declare their candidacies.
-- A very limited timetable for an unplanned recall election has California election officials worried about total chaos at the polls.
-- But hold on: Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante says he doesn't know whether or not replacement candidates should appear on the recall ballot. He thinks that is a decision for the Commission on the Governorship and the California Supreme Court. The Secretary of State's office is reviewing the appropriate statutes.
The White House both talks up yesterday's huge developments in Iraq with the deaths of Saddam Hussein's sons and meets with the visiting Argentine President.
This afternoon, the president and First Lady will participate in an East Room ceremony for the 2003 recipients of the presidential Medal of Freedom.
The highest ranks of the U.S. intelligence community put in an appearance on the Hill - FBI Director Robert Muller at the Senate Judiciary Committee and CIA Director George Tenet at the House Intelligence Committee.
Congressman Gephardt heads to South Carolina tomorrow.
Governor Dean campaigns in Canterbury and Lakeport, New Hampshire today.
Senator Lieberman is in and around Phoenix, Arizona for Day Three of "Joe's Jobs Tour" with stops at a jobs center and meetings with the Navajo Nation Tribal Council and Latino leaders. He ends the day addressing the Hotel Employees International Union Local #631. The Senator's mother, Marcia Lieberman, stops in Manchester at a senior center and a meals on wheels program.
Related Stories
ABC News Live