The Note

W A S H I N G T O N, Jan. 7—
, 2004 -- Today's Schedule (all times Eastern):

—9:00 am: Sen. John Kerry appears live on New Hampshire Public Radio's "The Exchange," Concord, N.H.•9:45 am: Gov. Howard Dean attends a "Caucus for Change" pancake breakfast, Muscatine, Iowa—9:45 am: Off-camera press gaggle with White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan —11:00 am: Sen. John Edwards speaks about his plan to limit lobbyist influence, Des Moines, Iowa—11:00 am: Treasury Secretary John Snow delivers economic address, DC—12:00 pm: President Bush attends a Republican National Committee Luncheon, Washington, D.C.—12:00 pm: Sen. Kerry speaks about his Worker's Bill of Rights plan, Bedford, N.H.—12:00 pm: Gen. Wesley Clark hosts a "Conversations with Clark" at Peterborough Town House, Peterborough, N.H.—12:00 pm: Ambassador Carol Moseley Braun attends a candidate forum at the New England Community Action Association, Nashua, N.H.—12:30 pm: On-camera press briefing with Press Secretary McClellan—1:00 pm: New York Gov. George Pataki delivers the State of the State address, Albany, N.Y.—2:00 pm: Rep. Dennis Kucinich visits with the New Hampshire Community Action Association, Nashua, N.H.—2:30 pm: Sen. Kerry attends a town hall meeting at Timberland Company, Stratham, N.H.—2:45 pm: President Bush proposes new immigration rules, The White House—2:45 pm: Sen. Joe Lieberman delivers a major speech about the political center, Nashua, N.H.—3:00 pm: Rep. Richard Gephardt rallies with steelworkers, Georgetown, S.C.—3:00 pm: Rev. Al Sharpton meets with Dr. Mera White and GeB HeTep (per Jas), Washington, D.C.—3:15 pm: Rep. Kucinich visits a retirement center, Windham, N.H.—4:00 pm: Sen. Edwards hosts an open forum at Spartanburg Technical College, Spartanburg, S.C.—5:00 pm: Rep. Gephardt meets with local Democrats, Myrtle Beach, S.C.—5:00 pm: Rep. Kucinich attends New England College's Convention 2004, Manchester, N.H.—6:15 pm: Rep. Kucinich meets with New Hampshire Democratic Party leaders, Manchester, N.H.—7:00 pm: Sen. Kerry attends a chili feed, Merrimack, N.H.—7:00 pm: Gen. Clark hosts a "Conversations with Clark" at Fuller Elementary School, Keene, N.H.—7:00 pm: Sen. Lieberman attends a house party, Windham, N.H.—7:00 pm: Sen. Edwards meets with voters at Workman's Restaurant, Greenwood, S.C.—7:30 pm: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" with Woodbury County Democrats, Sergeant Bluff, Iowa—8:30 pm: Sen. Lieberman hosts a town hall meeting at Marion Gerrish Community Center, Derry, N.H

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NEWS SUMMARY

Your bullet points in this news cycle's efforts by the media-politico complex to take out Howard Dean — or, at least, to make this thing a race:

(Any similarities between abcnews.com's The Note and the deanforamerica blog are purely coincidental … ..)

Item 1: The Boston Globe 's puckish Scott Lehigh breathlessly writes this must-read lead: "A sense of skittishness about Howard Dean is beginning to stir in New Hampshire. Whether that doubt freshens to a gaffe-driven gust or is merely an evanescent breeze of unease remains to be seen, but creeping disquiet about Dean came up often in conversations with more than three-dozen voters on Friday and Monday." LINK

"Indeed, those misgivings were a regular reason voters who had been leaning toward Dean cited for coming to campaign events to evaluate US Senator John Kerry and retired General Wesley Clark."

"Some thought Dean has proved too prone to shoot from the lip. Others worry he has too short a fuse. A few specimens of that rarest of political species — strategic Democrats — have become convinced he just couldn't beat George W. Bush."

Now, to be sure, at this point Lehigh literally goes into a "to be sure" paragraph — making it clear that Dean's core supporters (40%?) aren't budging. Lehigh suggests that there now seems to be room for one of the other candidates to gather up undecideds and finish a strong enough second to claim the mantle of "Dean Alternative."

Item 2: There's a USA Today Gallup poll — screaming across the front page --that shows Wes Clark moving up within the margin of error of Dean nationally, giving The General's vast PR army a chance to reinforce a point as powerful as it may be prescient-- that Clark (with money in the bank and Katrina Swett in cold storage) is the most likely Dean Alternative.

And Dean's fav/unfav in that poll is going to freak out unalligned members of Congress.

Item 3: There are two new anti-Dean ads unfurling today.

One — airing in Iowa at what is claimed to be more than a token buy level — by the Club for Growth, displaying its Schumerian flair for PR.

Details on that spot are below, but the script belongs right here in the summary — and is sure to catch Gail Collins' eye.

Courtesy of the Los Angeles Times write-up:

"The ad features a husband and wife and opens with an announcer asking, 'What do you think about Howard Dean's proposal to raise your taxes by $1,900 a year?'"

"The husband replies, 'Well, I think Howard Dean should take his tax-hiking, government-expanding, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times -reading … '"

"The wife jumps in: 'Body-piercing, Hollywood-loving, left-wing freak show back to Vermont where it belongs."

And a major candidate in the South Carolina Republican senatorial primary — Charlie Condon — is unveiling a spot today going after Dean on foreign policy.

Item 4: The Boston Globe has another enterprise piece on Dean's record that says "(a)s governor of Vermont, Howard Dean came under scrutiny for his administration's alleged failure to ensure that government contracts were doled out to the lowest bidders, with a 1993 auditor's report finding that no-contract bidding was widespread throughout state government." LINK

Item 5: The Globe also has a piece suggesting Dean's bandied-about tax cut pitch is most likely to be"a targeted income-tax reduction for families with children," rather than a payroll tax cut. But this one is Item 5 because you will laugh at the typical Burlington chaos and, uhm, free-wheeling processes that yield Dean campaign policy. LINK

Item 6: The New York Times ' Rachel Swarns, with a little back-up help from Ms. Wilgoren, writes of Joe Trippi's Tuesday bellow that Camps Kerry and Gephardt are teaming up to make "off the hook" a negative term once again.

Writes Swarns, "A senior adviser to Howard Dean accused two rival campaigns on Tuesday of harassing Dr. Dean's supporters here with a relentless flurry of telephone calls intended to disrupt his organizing strategy for the upcoming Iowa caucuses." Do Note David Wade's channeling of Chris Lehane and Erik Smith's use of the phrase "paranoid delusion."

(We leave it to sophisticated readers less polite than we are — and more inclined to have Trippi hurl profanity at them in the lobby of the Fort Des Moines than we are — to figure out why this story is Item 6.)

Item 7: Cub reporter Dave Broder, on the ground now for days and days in Iowa, says Dean is on parallel paths that could lead to "nomination or detonation," forcing Joe Lockhart to decide if he wants to swallow his '90s training and agree with Broder or not. LINKItem 8: The New York Times editorial board believes that whatever the public response to all the Dean-as-governor investigations, "Dr. Dean has certainly made things worse with his own actions" by choosing to seal his records as governor "longer than usual." LINKOther politica to focus on?

A. Yes, yes, yes — if Phil Gramm or Tom DeLay said what Senator Clinton said about Ghandi, the PC liberal media would swirl up and put a Lott of pressure on them to leave public life. We hereby agree that there is a double standard, and we wish there weren't. LINKAnd we hope that that satisfies Trent Duffy, Ron Bonjean, Terry Holt, and Mindy Tucker. But we don't think it will.

B. The most powerful person in politics, Evan Tracey of the Campaign Media Analysis Group, helps the Los Angeles Times write-up this significant point:

"(A) study found that despite Dean's significant fundraising advantage among Democrats, he wasoutspent on TV advertising by three of his party rivals as 2003 ended

and the New Year began." LINK

"From Dec. 29 to Jan. 4, Dean spent about $480,000 for ads on broadcast channels in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Iowa. Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts spent $516,000 on TV advertising during the week; retired Gen. Wesley K. Clark, $612,000; and Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri, $662,000. The figures do not include ads on cable television and in small broadcast markets. The figures, compiled for The Times by the Campaign Media Analysis Group, suggest that in the closing stretch of the campaigns in early-voting states, Dean's top rivals for the nomination are in position to compete on television with the front-runner."

"Their financial viability is something of a surprise, given the $40 million Dean raised in 2003, a one-year record for Democrats. Among the other major candidates, only Kerry collected more than $20 million."

C. ABC News Kerry campaign reporter Ed O'Keefe takes us behind the scenes of Kerry's seeming surge in Iowa, concluding that it reflects targeted appeals to women and Democrats, concentrated voter identification by Whouleyian/Norrisian forces, a tighter stump speech, and targeted labor support.

Even more, concludes O'Keefe, who has observed the Senator nearly every day for months, Kerry seems more comfortable and more driven — and that comes off to voters who see him. See all of O'Keefe's reporting in the Kerry campaign section, below.

D. A chance encounter between Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton, per ABC News's Beth Lloyd, who covers Sharpton: "When the Rev. Sharpton took the pulpit on Sunday at Savannah Grove Baptist Church in Effingham, S.C., he had no idea that Rev. Jackson was going to show up. About 15 minutes into Sharpton's fiery sermon, Jesse Jackson walked in the door. Reverend Jackson also had no clue that Sharpton would be there. Imagine their surprise."

"Sharpton told ABC News that the two men hadn't talked in months, so one could sense a bit of tension in the air. Sharpton said Reverend Jackson sat quietly down on stage behind the pulpit and listened to the sermon. Afterwards, according to Sharpton, Reverend Jackson took the pulpit for ten minutes and urged the congregation to get out the vote. The two men cordially shook hands afterwards but had no time for conversation. '"I was running late to the next church.'"

Sharpton said the media in South Carolina falsely reported that the two men were campaigning together — to his admitted amusement. "I bet the Dean folks were going crazy."

That last line, we'd Note, is a reference to the conclusion about many Democrats that a Jackson endorsement of Dean is inevitable, and coming soon.

E. Tonight "World News Tonight with Peter Jennings" continues its special series "Who is … " with a personal look at General Wesley Clark. The piece, reported by Peter Jennings, includes the following exchange:

Peter Jennings:: Do you remember as a child when you first thought about the Army?

Gen. Clark: Somehow I had a nickel. And I don't know how I got, it was my first money. So I walked a mile to a variety store, and the only thing I bought with the nickel was a toy soldier. And he was like a plastic, rubber soldier like they had in 1950, he was a machine gunner. He was laying down like this, prone position, with a machine gun. And I walked home with that in my fist. And I had that little machine gunner for years. That's the first time I ever thought about the army.

Tune into your local ABC station to see "Who Is … General Wesley Clark." That's on "World News Tonight with Peter Jennings."

F. ABC News' Reena Singh reports that former Vice President Al Gore taped a 60-second radio ad for the Gov. Dean Tuesday and today the spot will debut in South Carolina.

New York Gov. George Pataki gives the State of the State address in Albany today.

Gov. Dean campaigns in Iowa today.

Senator Lieberman gives a major speech from New Hampshire about the importance of the center in American politics. (That's, "the center," not "the Center.")

Per ABC News Lieberman campaign reporter Talesha Reynolds, "The speech will be aimed at framing the race as a choice between himself, Howard Dean and the current Administration. This time around the focus is more on George Bush than Dean, but Lieberman will continue his assertion that they each represent the extremist wings of their parties, while he is the 'man in the mainstream.'"

Rep. Gephardt is in South Carolina today and in Iowa tonight.

Senator Edwards is in Iowa this morning and South Carolina tonight.

Senator Kerry, Gen. Clark, Rep. Kucinich, and Ambassador Moseley Braun are in New Hampshire.

Rev. Sharpton is in Washington, D.C. today.

ABC News Vote 2004: the Democratic nomination fight:

Today's USA Today /CNN/Gallup Poll brings huge news for Gen. Clark, and good signs for President Bush. The poll, conducted Jan. 2-5, shows Clark with 21 percent and within striking distance of Dean. LINK

Deborah Orin writes up the new poll, predicting a whole lotta roiling goin' on among the Democrats, and yesterday's debate too.

LINKThe Washington Post 's Howard Kurtz looks at the latest ads from Gephardt, Lieberman, and Dean, and how the subjects of each — trade for Gephardt, family and medical leave for Lieberman, and health care and Iraq for Dean — are aimed more at rallying their faithful than at shaking things up. LINKLos Angeles Times' Mark Z. Barabak offers up a play-by-play of yesterday's NPR debate, from the scuffles over taxes, education, the Iraq war and polarization in politics, leading his coverage with Dean calling his rivals' criticism of his tax policies "hogwash." Also Noted: the participation of a tie-less Kerry and a jacketless Dick Gephardt. The details that get lost on radio! LINK

The AP's Ron Fournier leads his radio-only debate coverage with the strategy shift that resulted in a gang-up on both Dean and Gephardt. LINK

The Des Moines Register 's Tom Beaumont leads his debate coverage with the division on "pocketbook" issues. LINKWalter Shapiro listened to the debate and he Notes that it "underscored the surprising degree of Democratic harmony on most domestic issues." LINKBut the Boston Globe 's Kornblut and Johnson assure us that Lieberman and Dean still had fun with each other.

Jonathan Weisman writes a brief on Democrats' reactions to a report that the White House is telling employers how to avoid paying overtime. LINKThe AP's Leigh Strope reports that "Democratic presidential hopefuls criticized the Bush administration Tuesday for suggesting how employers could avoid paying overtime to 1.3 million workers who would be newly eligible in its proposal."

The New York Times ' Nick Kristof opines about the "God gulf" of distrust that "divides churchgoing Republicans from relatively secular Democrats." LINKThe AP's Genaro Armas presents the AP's count of super delegates. LINK"In the first 'ballots' cast of the 2004 race, the former Vermont governor has endorsements or pledges of support from 80 Democratic "super delegates" — elected officials and other party officials who will help select a nominee at this July's convention. Rival Dick Gephardt, the former House Democratic leader who has served as Missouri congressman for 28 years, has the backing of 57 super delegates. Four-term Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts has the support of 50."

"Among the remaining candidates, three-term Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the 2000 vice presidential nominee, has 25 super delegates, while Wesley Clark, the retired general who has never held elected office, has 22. First-term Senator John Edwards of North Carolina has 15. The long-shot hopefuls — Al Sharpton (3), Carol Moseley Braun (3) and Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio (2) — were in single digits. One Democratic super delegate has endorsed President Bush."

The Los Angeles Times' Ron Brownstein notices that Dean's rivals (with the exception of Lieberman) are attacking him on everything — except his opposition to the war in Iraq in the hopes of not "provoking the antiwar activists who comprise a powerful Democratic constituency, especially in Iowa." But are they avoiding having to defend their votes supporting the war or failing to gain a foothold by not going for that jugular?

The Union-Leader's Michael Cousineau highlights the off-beat 2 ½-hour, 17-person debate among the lesser-known presidential hopefuls who just seem to be "looking for a place to be heard." And now they have been.

The Concord Monitor has a very fun gallery of photos. We love the Sharpton up-close picture on page two.

The economy:

Treasury Secretary Snow will address the U.S. Chamber of Commerce today and The Note has an exclusive preview of his remarks.

In his prepared remarks, Snow says, "Without the passage of the president's [tax] plans, by the second quarter in 2003, the unemployment rate would have been nearly 1 percentage point higher. As many as 1.5 million fewer Americans would be working, and real GDP would have been as much as 2 percent lower."

Snow goes on to say, "What's more, without the president's tax cuts, it is likely that by the end of 2004 the unemployment rate would be as much as 1.6 percentage points higher than it will be. 3 million fewer Americans would be working, and real GDP would be as much as 3.5 to 4 percent lower."

And Snow has this zinger for those who question what Dean has donned the "Bush tax cuts": "Consider this: if the 2001 and 2003 tax relief acts were to expire now, it would raise taxes by an average of $1,544 for 109 million taxpayers in 2003."

"Let me be perfectly clear: failure to make the tax relief permanent would be a huge mistake and would put our recovery in jeopardy."

ABC Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:

The Florida Times-Union reports of a Karl Rove dinner with the big Florida donors in the infamous Palm Beach County tonight, Noting that this is Rove's second visit to the state in six weeks. All of you Democratic candidates running against him, and not each other, are you watching?LINKPresident Bush will make his first appearance in Palm Beach County since the 2000 election on Thursday for a fundraiser, the Sun-Sentinel reports. The $2,000-a-head event is expected to bring in about $750,000 ">LINKThe Washington Post 's Mike Allen looks at Bush's immigration proposals "that would bestow temporary legal status to millions of undocumented workers in the United States and their families as long they can prove they are employed." LINKThe Wall Street Journal 's Greg Hitt and Joel Millman play up the plan's helpful effects in easing tensions with Mexico and the huge political stakes in vying for the support of Hispanic voters — not to mention the ire of conservative congressional Republicans.

Wayne Slater of the Dallas Morning News turns in a great look at President Bush's need to shore up its Southern base — particularly among evangelicals, according to Karl Rove's strategy — and the effect it's had on Dean, who's now starting to talk about God on the stump. LINKThe Washington Post 's Tom Edsall leads succinctly and powerfully about the huge fundraising advantage that President Bush has over Howard Dean. Four times! LINK USA Today 's Susan Page looks at the paper's poll and concludes that at this point, President Bush appears to have put the ghost of the 1992 campaign behind him. LINK

Kerry:

From ABC News' Kerry campaign reporter Ed O'Keefe:

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA-Jan. 6--Shortly before the turn of the New Year, Senator Kerry carefully made his way down the aisle of the ever-jolting "Real Deal Express.".

Kerry plopped himself down in the press lair — the back cabin of the bus affectionately nicknamed the Merv Griffin suite — and began taking questions.

When asked why, as it seemed the Senator was suggesting, he felt frontrunner Howard Dean had stepped up his attacks on a re-focused Kerry, the Senator offered only one word: "footsteps."

Only six days into 2004 and 13 days until the Iowa caucus, the Kerry camp is an unusual position: needing to quickly gain on Gephardt and Dean all the while keeping expectations low enough to make the surpassing of either or both rivals a momentum-building surprise.

In other words, the Massachusetts Senator needs to take footsteps without making tracks.

Privately, Kerry aides already spy a Dean camp effort to dramatically raise expectations for Kerry, luring Gephardt into attack mode, and leaving the congressional pair to duke it out for silver and bronze.

If indeed this is the plan, Tuesday's NPR debate in which Gephardt took after Kerry on Social Security and Medicare might well have left many a Deaniac smiling.

But spin aside, Kerry's homestretch focus in Iowa boils down to several objective factors including time and money, target audiences, and organization.

Time & Money: From January 9 onward, Senator Kerry will make Iowa his home. Since September, Kerry has spent $1.5 million airing seven ads in the state and, when speaking to reporters Tuesday, Kerry did not rule out more. Senator Kerry has picked up the pace on his already packed schedule, holding upwards of seven public events a day and speaking to average crowds of 120-180 people in the Hawkeye State. Perhaps most significantly, Kerry is sharper yet simultaneously more relaxed on the trail, delivering a stump speech that sometimes dragged upwards of 30 minutes in nearly half that time.

Target Audiences: By far, Senator Kerry's largest supporter group is veterans. The Kerry camp claims more than 2,200 veterans have signed supporter cards, one-third of them being new caucus goers. National Veterans for Kerry Director John Hurley has set up shop in Iowa nearly full time, organizing vet events including arranging regional screenings of "Brothers in Arms", a recently released documentary about Kerry and his Vietnam crewmates. One of those crewmates, Ames, Iowa native Gene Thorson, was even featured on a Kerry pamphlet mailed to 75,000 veteran households.

And on caucus night itself, former Senator Max Cleland (D-GA), who has twice traveled to Iowa on Kerry's behalf, will be on hand at the Marshalltown Veterans Home, a caucus site. Teresa Heinz Kerry has taken the lead in "Women for Kerry" events which have been growing in the state for some time. The well-received and outspoken Heinz Kerry has also been dispatched to numerous environmental and Latino outreach events.

And, even as Kerry is squeezed by the mega-labor endorsements for Dean and Gephardt, the Senator is attempting to carve a niche of relatively smaller unions and those individuals whose unions endorsed Dean or Gephardt but who remain unimpressed. Firefighter support in hand, Kerry has reached out to the steamfitters and plumbers' union as well as key individuals like Justin Shields of the Hawkeye Labor Council.

Organization: Touting the endorsement of 26 state legislators--twice the number of Dean and Gephardt combined, as the candidate frequently mentions — Kerry hopes that local voices will speak louder on the 19th than national endorsements. With the John-Norris-built infrastructure in place, the Kerry camp has called in the Massachusetts mafia (a.k.a Michael Whouley) to finish the job.

Ceci Connolly spends some time rolling through Iowa on the bus with Kerry, writing that in his brief tour with folk singer Peter Yarrow, "Kerry appears to have found his muse." LINKThe Washington Post editorial board looks over Kerry as a candidate, Noting that despite his experience and pedigree, it's "too bad" that the Senator has had a hard time connecting with voters, and that Kerry's "Hail Mary" pass in Iowa needs to pay off. LINKThe AP's Holly Ramer writes up Kerry's plans for a workers' bill of rights. LINK >

The Des Moines Register reports that "not-so-hot dogs" put a kink in Kerry backers' picnic plans. LINKRead more from the trail with Kerry on abcnews.com: LINK

Dean

The Chicago Sun Times reports Mayor Daley digs Dean — or at least finds his message has real appeal. Says Daley of Dean, "He's tapping into this whole anti-Washington, anti-establishment [movement] … If you look at the polls, he is hitting a chord there against the establishment, the Democratic Party and everything else." More Daley: "He symbolizes that, if you go to Washington as a senator or congressman, you cannot run for president. That's a real big symbol." LINKAnd, we would add, Da Mayor is a pretty big symbol his own self.

The Globe's Sarah Schweitzer reports in yet another enterprise piece on Dean's record that, as governor, Dean "came under scrutiny for his administration's alleged failure to ensure that government contracts were doled out to the lowest bidders, with a 1993 auditor's report finding that no-contract bidding was widespread throughout state government."

David Broder: "Howard Dean is now racing the clock to see what comes first — nomination or detonation." LINKOrin also works the phrase "slam dunk" into the brouhaha over the Bradley-Dean love fest.

LINKThe Washington Post 's Jim VandeHei reports on Bradley's endorsement of Dean, writing that, alongside the Gore endorsement, it "enabled Dean to say in a radio debate Tuesday afternoon that he is a unifying figure in the Democratic Party." LINKThe Wall Street Journal 's Gerald Seib talks about religion, and Dean's decision to embrace discussing it on the stump as an opening salvo in addressing the cultural divide over values. One of the biggest moral issues, Seib writes, citing this week's Zogby poll, is gay marriage. LINK

Los Angeles Times' Matea Gold notes that "Dollar Bill" and the Governor could not have looked more different: "the lanky basketball legend bending down to embrace the onetime wrestler, whose head just reached the taller man's shoulder." LINK

And we are pretty sure the foxy Ms. Gold never thought she would type the words "Matt Henshon" again, but we liked more her getting an interview with Bradley and asking him if he would do a joint event with Al Gore, to which he "demurred."

From ABC News Dean campaign reporter Reena Singh:

Bradley may have been on stage with Howard Dean, but Al Gore was also close by. The former Vice President finished taping a 60-second radio ad for the Gov. Tuesday and today the spot will debut in South Carolina. Gore even made an "appearance" at Jim and Mary Bruno's house party in Des Moines. Dean's cell phone rang mid-speech and when he recognized the digits, the Governor said, "This one I am going to get." The patient guests eventually let out a cheer when they discovered the caller was Al Gore. After an aide jotted down the VP's home number, the Governor passed on a message: "The Vice President says he loves you all, he's really grateful for all the help and he is looking forward-I think he is going to come out and campaign for us."

Read more from the trail with Dean on abcnews.com: LINK

The Chicago Tribune's John McCormick reports that "Bradley, a 6-foot-5 former NBA star, towered over the 5-foot-8 former governor of Vermont during an appearance Tuesday at Dean's Iowa campaign headquarters. But a 6-inch platform on the stage where Dean spoke made the two men appear nearly equal in height as television cameras filmed them standing before a giant U.S. flag." LINK

The Des Moines Register 's Mark Siebert writes up the Iowa angle of the Bradley endorsement.

LINK

The New York Times ' Jodi Wilgoren writes that lots of big names are hitting the trail on behalf of Dean in the near future, including Al Gore, who will campaign for Dean in eastern Iowa this weekend and in South Carolina later in January. LINK

The Boston Herald's David Guarino reports on the campaign's admission that "it was wrong for [Dean's] staff to reveal secret nuclear security documents, a violation of federal law." LINK

The AP's Nedra Pickler reports that Dr. Steinberg Dean will find her way into the public orbit, but Gov. Dean asserts again that she will not be a "'prop.'" LINK

USA Today 's Fred Bayles has an extensive look at what happened (and what didn't happen) in Vermont after the civil unions law went into effect. LINK

"Vermont statistics indicate that gay marriage has a limited appeal, to couples both in and out of the state. The annual number of civil unions has dropped steadily after the first year. Just half the gay households in the state have taken advantage of the law."

Jennifer Harper of The Washington Times declares the national press may be taking it especially hard on the Democratic frontrunner, Noting that his image may have suffered a blow or two in recent weeks. "The press has gone on patrol," she writes. LINKLloyd Grove reports in the New York Daily News that Arianna Huffington is the Governor's latest fan.LINK

From The Hill: Rep. Zoe Lofgren says Dean's "vaunted intention to boost Democrats in close House races is a work in progress" and that explains the fact that he has yet to reach out to Ben Chandler, the Democratic candidate in the Feb. 17 Kentucky special election. LINK

Gephardt:

From ABC News' Gephardt campaign reporter Sally Hawkins:

DES MOINES, IOWA, Jan. 6 — As the mercury in Iowa continues to bottom out, the race toward Jan. 19th is heating up even more with news reports that Senator Kerry is gaining ground here and could pose a threat to the Gephardt-Dean showdown.

At the NPR debate, Iowa's top-tier trio made up of Kerry, Gephardt and Dean exchanged barbs like never before. Gephardt took aim at Kerry for his Social Security and Medicare plans after Kerry lumped Gephardt and Dean together in an attack on their plans to repeal the Bush tax cuts.

At a post-debate media blitz, Rep. Gephardt seemed almost uncomfortable as he went after Kerry. When a reporter suggested the debate was another Dean pile on, Gephardt disagreed and used the question as an opportunity to take another jab. "I talked about the Social Security proposal that John Kerry has that I don't think makes sense because it would undermine the Social Security trust fund so I don't think that's a good idea."

A mild attack, perhaps, but significant since it seemed to reveal that the Kerry threat level has been raised to orange.

Campaign manager Steve Murphy told reporters that while they are worried about qualifying in a couple of Iowa City precincts where Dean is set to run away with the delegates, and where even Kucinich has a steady following, they are not worried one bit about a Kerry surge.

Iowa press secretary Bill Burton said Kerry has put all his eggs in one basket. "He's a great guy, but look at the facts. He's moved all his senior level advisers and a lot of staff members here. If anyone has a one-state strategy it's John Kerry. And, he has a lot of challenges in Iowa. Gephardt has 95,000 union members in Iowa. It's hard to beat that."

When asked if he had reached out to Senator Harkin, Gephardt said he has "tremendous respect for Senator Harkin, he's a great friend and I've worked with him on lots of issues. I'm sure … I'd love to have his support — and I'm sure everybody would love to have his support but that's a decision that Tom Harkin has to make and I don't think he's made it yet."

Bill Burton, who once worked for Harkin and keeps in regular touch with his staff agreed, "He's keeping his decision close to the vest."

Gephardt has hundreds of people piling in to Iowa and not all of them are steelworkers.

The campaign is expecting a long list of Capitol Hill supporters to arrive over the next few days to divide and conquer. Some will hold their own campaign events and even hit the airwaves. Names include Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Scott Schiff, whose has also loaned his press secretary to the Gephardt campaign in South Carolina.

Gephardt has also added Donnie Fowler Jr., formerly of the Clark campaign, to their roster in Iowa but an endorsement from former DNC Chairman Don Sr. is still on their wish list … for now.

Read more from the trail with Gephardt on abcnews.com: LINK

Clark:

The AP's Holly Ramer reports that Clark "isn't ruling out a trip to Iowa in the next two weeks, even though he hasn't been competing in the Democratic Presidential caucuses there." LINK

The Boston Globe 's Joanna Weiss writes about Clark's absence in Iowa. LINK

From ABC News' Clark campaign reporter Deborah Apton:

BEDFORD, N.H., Jan. 6 — The General's "Clark04" luggage label is number 44. Presumably, the number represents what Clark hopes he'll someday become-the 44th President of the United States. But while setting his sights on that numbered position, Clark can't seem to shake the legacy of number 42. President Bill Clinton.

It's a common question on the campaign trail — do you know Bill Clinton? In Portsmouth on Sunday, a man on the street asked Clark if he knew Clinton during his Oxford Rhodes scholar days. Clark gave his standard "no" answer-"I was two years before Bill Clinton."

But it is widely known that while the fellow Arkansan is not yet Clark's Al Gore, they are friendly, and they do speak from time-to-time, like the day when Dean received Gore's endorsement. And while Clark once tried to distance himself from number 42, Clark is now embracing him, proudly pointing out in a Monday night "Conversation with Clark" that Clinton appears in the new Clark television ad in New Hampshire presenting The General with the Medal of Freedom.

However, the casual friendship has now made its way into Clark's campaigning, causing a positive reaction from the crowd on Tuesday night in Bedford, NH. Drawing on a question about the Republican Party's accountability for the Iraqi war, Clark said that the Democratic Party needs to pull together. Clark said that the United States "wasted millions of dollars and years … trying to find something that Bill and Hillary Clinton did wrong." Clark followed up by saying he'd like to know "why the United States Congress and [the Republican Party] are not demanding" everyday why President Bush entered into an unnecessary war.

So is Clark evoking the Clinton legacy to further his own popularity? Clark's press secretary Bill Buck responded by saying, "Bill Clinton is a popular figure in the Democratic party," symbolizing "an America at peace, with a robust economy. That is a vision of America that General Clark talks about everyday, and embracing that record helps draw the distinction between where George Bush has taken this country and where General Clark will take it."

Read more from the trail with Clark on abcnews.com: LINKThe Wall Street Journal editorial board sizes up The General's tax plan, calling it "reverse tax reform," i.e., a huge tax increase, and says the campaign should've delivered it to Karl Rove's desk with a big red bow.

According to The State, The General has seems to have released his foot soldiers into South Carolina, the Buffalo Soldiers ("black politicos with close ties to President Clinton"), that is. LINK

Edwards:

From ABC News' Edwards campaign reporter Gloria Riviera:

OTTUMWA, IOWA, Jan. 6--"Watcha got?" asked John Edwards as he scanned the taps and swung a leg over the black vinyl barstool at the VFW Hall in Ottumwa, IA. "I'll take a Bud," he said as he took off his coat and settled between bar manager Lori Darren and Dennis Lord. "Budweiser!" Lord shouted to the rest of the bar, "A man after my own heart."

Precisely. Edwards wants each and every caucus goers' hearts to commit to his campaign on the spot and he has less than two weeks to get it done. "If I had time, I would reach out and grab every one of you in your chair right now," he told the hootin' and hollerin' crowd of over 125 in Ottumwa.

Toward the end of the Q&A session, Edwards got a "gimme" question on healthcare. When the crowd heard his promise to provide veterans with the same coverage United States senators receive, he got fist-in-the-air pumps and high-fives in the audience. In fact, some people danced (albeit briefly) in the aisles when it was over.

The campaign calls the town "our kinda place" because it is filled with middle class Americans Edwards has based his platform on serving. As he walked into the Walter P. Schafer Pool Hall, past the wall-sized Bingo schedules where "Edwards 8:00p" was neatly entered in pencil for today, Lord took him aside. "I saw your commercial, my dad worked in a mill too," he told the Senator. Edwards' latest ad, "Milk," promises to "put the law back on the side of the American people" and is currently on the air in Ottumwa in addition to key markets like the Quad Cities, Des Moines and Mason and Sioux cities. "What kind of mill did your dad work in?" Lord asked. Edwards stopped to answer before letting a staffer move him along, "Cotton, a cotton mill." Over beers Lord draped his arm around the Senator and raised a glass to "El Presidente."

Over the course of the below freezing, six-event day that started in Mason City and wrapped up at the VFW bar in Ottumwa, Iowa, Edwards told every audience that he has learned something about Iowans. "Boy, they are direct, so I want to be direct with you." And then the line that makes Press Secretary Jennifer Palmieri cringe. "People say to me, how old are you?" Edwards confesses. "I'm 50! I am 50-years-old." The VFW crowd loved it, although Palmieri's fear that it's all but certain to be a part of press coverage is certainly, er, justifiable. But Edwards believes in addressing concerns in his "closing argument" and he knows this is one of them. He got a huge round of applause, earning him a greenlight from Palmieri to loosen his tie and have a beer at the end of his long day.

The one and only noticeable moment of silence came when Edwards mentioned Senator Kerry in a simple, non-attack context. Whereas the VFW audience huffed and sighed at Dean's name, there was a reserved quiet (was it a don't-go-there-veterans'-respect?) for Kerry.

John Revolinksi was at an afternoon event in Cedar Rapids event and is leaning toward Kerry in part because he seems "presidential." "Edwards would be the dream vice president candidate," John said. "If he doesn't actually make it as the nominee they are going to be begging him to be the vice president." His wife Christina came because she knew enough about Kerry and Dean but wanted to find out more about John Edwards. She says people in her town are asking, "Who is John Edwards?" She left read to sign on to caucus for him. "I feel like he is just coming out into his own and we are just beginning to see him."

Tomorrow the Senator heads to South Carolina on a charter that leaves the press corps behind, commercially stranded in Des Moines and forced to skip ahead to New Hampshire.

Read more from the trail with Edwards on abcnews.com: LINKWith votes still up for grabs in Iowa, Edwards is barnstorming the state as a centrist, avoiding attacks and painting himself as electable, writes the Charlotte Observer's Jim Morrill. LINKRandal Archibold on Edwards' plans for education and criticisms of No Child Left Behind.

LINKArchibold offers a two-fer on Edwards, watching both the candidate and the stump speech in Iowa. LINKThe AP's Holly Ramer writes that Granite State voters are stepping up the partying for Senator John Edwards, capping off his 100th town-hall meeting in the state with an equal number of house parties next weekend. LINK

Lieberman:

From ABC News' Lieberman campaign reporter Talesha Reynolds:

MANCHESTER, NH, Jan. 6 -The Lieberman campaign launched a two front battle on Tuesday. The Senator was deployed to Des Moines for the NPR radio debate where he continued his dogged critique of Howard Dean. And the forces at home engaged in a back and forth with the Clark campaign over Clark's new tax plan.

Since December, Senator Lieberman has focused his criticisms on Howard Dean, almost completely to the exclusion of the other Dems, to bolster his "Clear Choice" rhetoric. When it comes to the Democratic candidates, Lieberman wants the conversation to be about himself and Dean. Period.

But in the battle to become the Dean alternative, Gen. Clark poses the biggest threat to Lieberman. Since both Clark and Lieberman have opted out of Iowa, the stakes in New Hampshire are very high. So there have been some fierce attacks on Clark in recent days, like the release of Clark's "complete resume" that included his Republican voting record since 1972.

Now that Clark is overtaking the Senator in some New Hampshire polls here, and may be positioned to finish second, the Clark attacks have increased. The campaign issued a release calling Clark's plan a "phantom" and claimed that it would leave out "close to 100 million middle class tax payers — all of whom would get a tax cut under the Lieberman Tax Fairness Plan."

Kucinich

From ABC News' Kucinich campaign reporter Melinda Arons:

Jan. 6 — Rep. Kucinich made some news during the NPR radio debate Tuesday, but not the kind candidates usually hope for. While chiding Gov. Dean for promising to balance the budget without making cuts in what Kucinich calls "the Pentagon's bloated budget," moderator Neal Conan pointed out that "Congressman Kucinich is holding up a pie chart, which is not truly effective on the radio." Kucinich responded, "Well, it's effective if Howard can see it."

Even slight ridicule can be good news for a campaign anxious for media attention, but the coverage gained from the event was not enough. Highly sensitive to the little amount of media coverage there's been of Kucinich in comparison to the top-tier candidates, and angry that NPR correspondent Mara Liasson had failed to mention Kucinich in her report Tuesday morning, the campaign sent out a release telling supporters to flood NPR's newsroom with emails and phone calls in protest, giving out the email addresses and phone numbers of everyone from the assistant producer to the correspondent herself.

Read more from the trail with Kucinich on abcnews.com: LINK

Moseley Braun:

The AP reports that Moseley Braun will not be on the ballot for the New York primary. LINK

New Hampshire

Jonathan Finer was at the New Hampshire debate yesterday for lesser-known candidates.

LINKWe love the kicker!!

The land of 5-plus-2-equals-7

Salon's Charles Taylor says folks should pay attention to the Moveon ad competition — especially Democratic folks.

LINK

The Hill offers a great report on GOP efforts to counter the left-leaning 527s with a push from the business community, writing "for the last several months, trade associations have been working on collaborative plans to influence employees within their respective industries and to get them to the polls in the hope of electing pro-business candidates. They plan to hold a 'summit meeting' soon to formalize their respective roles." Note the key role the piece says one Mr. Mehlman is playing in this effort and the signal that sends. LINK

(Note: We sincerely enjoyed the latest message from Paul Weyrich naming "left-wing strategist" Mike Lux as an activist to watch and urging grassroots conservative activists to counter the 527 power of the other side!)

Re-map flap:

The Washington Post reports that a three-judge federal panel approved Texas Republicans' redistricting plan designed to shift 6-7 seats currently held by Democrats to Republican control. LINK

The Times says that Democrats may appeal.

LINK

Politics:

The Hartford Courant's Jon Lender and Dave Altimari report that federal investigators have turned up the heat in the corruption investigation of Gov. John Rowland, issuing subpoenas for personal documents concerning improvements to his lakeside cottage in Litchfield, personal investments, tax returns and gifts from state contractors and employees. ">LINKJohn Zogby tells the crowd assembled at the Monitor breakfast (and no, we still can't score an invite … ) "Democrats have to do something about family values." LINKThe Miami Herald 's Lesley Clark reports that Rep. Katherine Harris will decide by the end of next week whether she'll mount a run for U.S. Senate. Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez opened his campaign account on Monday.LINK

House of Labor:

Ben Smith of the New York Observer looks at the powerful organizing prowess of Dennis Rivera, president of SEIU Local 1199, and his operation to organize — including putting up half the funding for the Take Back America SEIU PAC, the $1 million campaign to put ads on the air for Howard Dean in Iowa. LINK

Politics of national security:

Chip Cummins of the Wall Street Journal looks at the discussions between U.S. advisers and Iraqi oil officials about forming a large state-run petroleum firm like those in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, which could attract foreign investment, but limit foreign competition — to the consternation of oil companies hoping to gain access to Iraq's oil. The question is whether the assumed greater stability of a state-run Iraqi oil company — also aimed at blunting accusations that the U.S. would try to control Iraqi oil — or free market forces will prevail.

LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's Neil King and Christopher Cooper report that Bechtel Group Inc. is getting another $1.82 billion in reconstruction contracts in Iraq. LINK

David Frum and Richard Perle write in a Wall Street Journal op-ed write about the different approaches to American foreign policy: "vigorous, decisive action, including a readiness to use military power, against the terrorist enemy" and "diplomacy and international organizations like the U.N. are the key to defeating terrorism" supported by "soft-liners." They argue that it ain't the decisive ones who are driven by ideology.

Elisabeth Bumiller profiles Condoleeza Rice. The Brent Scowcroft and Richard Haass quotes were our favorites.LINK

Senator Schumer is pushing for the White House to require staff to come clean about talks with reporters about the CIA leak LINK

The Schwarzenegger era:

The Wall Street Journal 's John Emshwiller writes up Gov. Schwarzenegger's call for the California legislature to act on his proposals to help pull the state out of financial trouble. ">LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Michael Finnegan analyzes the address, in which Schwarzenegger called himself a salesman — and Notes that he'll need to be a good one, given the budget cuts he's likely to propose and the lobbying he'll have to do among legislators to win their support. ">LINK

Bush Administration strategy/personality:

:

The Washington Post begins excerpting Ann Gerhart's new book about First Lady Laura Bush with a passage about the Bush daughters, Jenna and Barbara. LINK