The Note
W A S H I N G T O N, Oct. 27—
, 2003 -- Today's Schedule (all times Eastern):
—8:45 am: President Bush meets with Ambassador Paul Bremer, White House —9:00 am: Reverend Al Sharpton attends a breakfast at New Light Baptist Church, Detroit—9:45 am: Off-camera White House press gaggle with Scott McClellan—11:20 am: General Wesley Clark holds a press conference with Wisconsin elected officials supporting his campaign, Madison, Wis.—12:00 pm: Reverend Sharpton attends a campaign rally, Royal Oak, Mich. —12:00 pm: Senator Joe Lieberman addresses the Rochester Rotary Club, Rochester, N.H.—12:00 pm: Governor Howard Dean receives the IUPAT endorsement, Des Moines —12:00 pm: Senate convenes for morning business—12:30 pm: On-camera White House press briefing with Scott McClellan—1:00 pm: Senator John Kerry holds a book signing at a Barnes and Noble, New York City—1:50 pm: General Clark holds a discussion on health care at Milwaukee Area Technical College, Milwaukee —2:00 pm: Senator Lieberman addresses the Every Child Matters forum, Durham, N.H.—2:15 pm: Senator Kerry joins Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney as she announces her endorsement of his campaign, New York City—2:30 pm: Governor Dean attends a meet and greet with Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., Chicago —2:30 pm: Senator John Edwards meets with Pottawattamie County Democrats, Council Bluffs, Iowa—3:00 pm: Congressman Dennis Kucinich attends a press conference with New Hampshire Greens, Concord, N.H. —3:30 pm: Senator Edwards meets with Montgomery County Democrats, Red Oak, Iowa—4:00 pm: Vice President Cheney speaks at a rally for Mississippi gubernatorial candidate Haley Barbour, Columbus, Miss.—5:00 pm: Congressman Kucinich meets with SEIU members, Concord, N.H. —5:15 pm: Senator Edwards meets with Union County Democrats, Creston, Iowa—6:00 pm: Governor Dean attends a campaign fundraiser, Chicago —6:30 pm: Senator Edwards meets with Clarke County Democrats, Osceola, Iowa—7:00 pm: Senator Lieberman speaks at St. Anselm's College, Goffstown, N.H.—7:00 pm: Former President Bill Clinton headlines a DNC fundraiser at Dream, D.C.—7:00 pm: Reverend Sharpton appears on "Hardball: Battle for the White House" at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, Mass.—8:00 pm: Senator Edwards meets with Lucas County Democrats, Chariton, Iowa
NEWS SUMMARY
It was the orator Al Gore who famously said, "Everything that oughta be UP is DOWN and everything that ought to be DOWN is UP."
Could the political world be on the verge of a 41-43 split, with this Bush running for re-election accompanied by a supply-side fueled economic boom but serious questions about his foreign policy stewardship?
A lot happened on Iraq and in the Democratic presidential nomination battle this weekend (interesting newspapers stories, Sunday show appearances, a debate, and eye-catching polls), but it is all going to be politically overshadowed by the economic growth numbers due out Thursday.
If you are the kind of person foolish enough to habitually skip* the front page of the Sunday Los Angeles Times, we can barely look at you.
But out of more pity than contempt, we will share the keen electoral bomb the sharp-witted Peter Gosselin lobbed onto that august space yesterday:
"When the gross domestic product for the July-September quarter is announced Thursday, it is expected to show that the economy barreled forward at an annual rate of 6% or perhaps even 7% — a performance unmatched since the glory days of the '90s boom."
"Although growth is likely to slow somewhat between now and the end of the year, most analysts think that it will remain strong enough to ensure a second-half growth rate of 5%." LINK
Sure Gosselin does the journalistically on-the-one-hand-on-the-other-hand, prediction-is-difficult-especially-about-the-future hedging, but his point is clear: growth numbers like these (even with balky job numbers) are going to take major sting out of the Democratic attacks.
And what The Note calls "the OTHER Times" follows up today with a Gotham lead story about wages, wages, wages — which is not quite as politically potent as the Don Evans tri-part mantra, but it's pretty darn good.
The New York Times reports that "wage increases for employees at almost all income levels are giving important and unexpected support to the nation's economy" and is a must-read for all the interesting data about whose wages are going up and why. LINK
Democrats on the Hill and the hustings, who are still trying to figure out how to talk about Iraq in order to score points, just might have to figure out how to explain why a president who presides over this much growth is still a "miserable failure."
The economy and foreign policy. Foreign policy and the economy.
The see and the saw of the two are shaping up to be the swing factors in BC04. Pictures of high-level US officials escaping Iraqi bombs give more confidence to the sloggers than the progressives, but we are the first to say this could all change if Saddam Hussein is found and things are looking up by election day.
We Noted just how much Iraq talk there was at last night's debate, especially enjoying this quote from Donna Brazile to Mr. Fournier of the AP:"There's a huge credibility gap our party has on national security — not because we don't have enough military medals, but because we have no plan of action."
Aside from the heat, last night's debate in Detroit among the nine Democrats seeking the presidential nomination generated not much real light — just déjà vu themes and intraparty battles from the past debates. We don't expect anything that happened to change the race conclusively.
Once again, driven by journalist questions, the greatest points of disagreement between the candidates came on the war in Iraq and the president's request for new funding, as did the harshest attacks on President Bush himself.
There were a lot of sharp elbows, time overruns, and verbal shots — even a cut-away of an annoyed Howard Dean.
President Bush met with Paul Bremer at the White House this morning and has no other public events today. He has a couple of meetings and a bill signing on Tuesday. He makes remarks on Medicare in the Rose Garden on Wednesday. He heads to Columbus, Ohio, and San Antonio for Bush-Cheney 2004 fundraisers on Thursday. He stumps in Kentucky and Mississippi this Saturday.
Vice President Cheney speaks at a rally for Haley Barbour today in Columbus, Mississippi.
Governor Dean campaigns in Iowa, Chicago, and Colorado today. He's in Colorado and California on Tuesday, California again on Wednesday, and Seattle on Thursday.
General Clark campaigns today in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has private fundraisers in Chicago tonight. He's in New Hampshire and D.C. on Tuesday, back in New Hampshire on Wednesday, South Carolina on Friday, and California on the weekend.
Senator Kerry will be in New York City today for interviews, a book signing, and private campaign events.
Congressman Gephardt has no public events today. He campaigns in Iowa on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Senator Lieberman is in New Hampshire today and tomorrow. He'll be in D.C. later in the week.
Senator Edwards campaigns in Iowa today. Tomorrow, he campaigns in Iowa and New Mexico. He's in Los Angeles on Wednesday and Thursday. He'll be in Oklahoma and Iowa this weekend.
Congressman Kucinich campaigns in New Hampshire today and tomorrow. He's in Ohio and California this coming weekend.
Ambassador Moseley Braun is in Detroit today for a couple of editorial board meetings.
Reverend Sharpton campaigns in Detroit this morning before heading to Boston for his turn on "Hardball: Battle for the White House."
Former President Clinton headlines a DNC fundraiser at Dream in D.C. tonight. We hear that Beyonce won't be there. Whether or not you're on the list, here's what the place looks like if you're interested: LINK
The economy:
The Wall Street Journal 's Greg Ip lays out how the Fed has been making its decisions on interest rates — and the debate over not only what to do about interest rates, but what the Fed would say about its interest rate policies for the coming months, or in this case, a "considerable period." Now the issue revolves not only around controlling inflation, but also staving off possible deflation.
"The dispute in August was over more than just the words 'considerable period.' As the importance of Fed talk has grown, some officials, especially reserve bank presidents, who see little of Mr. Greenspan between meetings, have chafed at their lack of input into the statement. It is typically handed out at the end of the meeting and while sometimes commented upon and tweaked, it is not normally put to a vote, as it was in August."
The Wall Street Journal 's G. Thomas Sims takes a broad view of interest rates worldwide, which could begin rising soon. Sims Notes the change in focus for central banks from combating recession to staving of inflation.
"Despite the comments, the Fed is in no hurry to raise rates. With inflation as low as the Fed wants and high unemployment threatening to push it lower, most U.S. economists expect the bank to wait until well into next year before starting to raise interest rates. Indeed, that assumption is one reason the dollar is falling against other major currencies: Traders are betting that returns will start to look much better in other currencies such as the euro."
Democratic debate:
You've seen the headlines. If you watched last night (and those of you who didn't, you know who you are), you saw the sniping. Here's what the morning papers have to say:
The New York Times ' Nagourney and Cardwell on Sunday evening's back-and-forth-and-back on the war in Iraq and the $87 billion in post-war funding — with nary a mention, really, of domestic issues. LINK
The Washington Post 's Dan Balz on same: The Boston Globe 's Kornblut and Healy, in a parallel universe, report that the debate "showcased the candidates for two key groups of voters: union members and African-Americans, both powerful forces in the Michigan caucuses on Feb. 7." LINK
The Los Angeles Times' Mark "Zed" Barabak: LINK
USA Today 's Susan Page: LINK
The Boston Herald's Guarino and Miga give their round up, and they have a separate article to share that they think Kerry had a good night. LINK and LINK
Democratic candidates traded blistering attacks over the question of Iraq in Detroit Sunday, writes David Lightman of the Hartford Courant. LINK
The politics of national security:
Today's papers play the debate as a match-up all about the Politics of National Security. The Note counted two dozen uses of the word "Iraq" or "Iraqi" last eve, and one dozen mentions of $87 billion.
As for the Politics of Iraq for the president, the New York Times writes that no matter what the spin, Sunday's strike on the hotel housing Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz "is a serious setback" for the Bush administration LINK
The President himself in a Bremer photo-op this morning said things are improving in Iraq and that the United States will stay the course despite the attacks. But check below for more ginning of Rummy, this time with Senator John McCain at the table. Look for Rummy to appear on local TV as part of the White House's regional media strategy and look for the nets to seek them out for their own use.
While the administration was Accentuating the Positive, Filtering Out the Negative this weekend, the Washington Post ran two stories we URGE you to read:
Thomas Ricks on an Army report detailing the problems with intelligence in Iraq. LINK
And Sunday's Barton Gellman lead dissecting the failure to uncover evidence of an Iraqi nuclear program. LINK
Surely it does not help the administration's case to have John McCain raising the Vietnam analogy to Newsweek's Mr. Fineman, who also reports the president's "job-approval rating is holding at 51 percent. But the human and financial costs of the war-symbolized by death-a-day news reports and the $87 billion funding request-have made Dean a power in (New Hampshire), and are beginning to worry administration insiders. 'If we don't get Iraq right in time,' fretted one National Security Council official, 'we could lose the election'." LINK
(And we bet the White House Noted Chuck Hagel's not-exactly-convincing-answer to Mr. Russert's question of whether McCain would have made a better President than the current one.)
A Newsweek investigation of the $87 billion "money pit" in Iraq raises "serious questions about the vast amounts of money Bush has demanded for Iraq with little tolerance for debate." LINK
And continuing where we left off last week, Newsweek offers more Don bashing from the Secretary's side of the aisle: LINK
"One senior Republican senator was furious at Rumsfeld's vague responses at a recent Hill session. 'When a senator asked how many troops we would have in Iraq a year from now, he said, 'We're hoping for a sizable foreign involvement, and we're optimistic that things will be improved,' and blah, blah, blah,' he told Newsweek. "It was a typical nonsensical, nonsubstantive briefing, like he always gives.'"
Reuters offers this on the White House's happiness with Rumsfeld and the Secretary's prospects in Term No. 2:
"A well-placed Republican source said Rumsfeld was not currently in danger of being fired, but doubted he would return as defense secretary if voters give Bush another term."LINK
ABC News Vote 2004: The Invisible Primary:
In Sunday's Washington Post , Jim VandeHei wrote, "Democratic presidential candidates are distancing themselves from tough gun control, reversing a decade of rhetoric and advocacy by the Democratic Party in favor of federal regulation of firearms." LINK
We wonder if Diamond Jim saw Senator Kerry's closing statement in Detroit last night!
Speaking to more than 100 union leaders Saturday in New Hampshire, five of the Democratic candidates pledged to create jobs and keep them from going overseas, reports Pat Hammond of the Union Leader.LINK
On Sunday, the Boston Globe 's Raja Mishra wrote about the growing importance of the February 3 primaries, particularly South Carolina, but didn't do anything to solve the problem of the 25s: Which February 3rd states matter most and is the 4th (the day after) about "wins" or delegate accumulations? LINK
Anne Kornblut reported on the new (Dean-leading-big-time) New Hampshire poll in Sunday's Boston Globe . LINK
Democrats — particularly the centrists of the New Democrat Network — are looking to cut into President Bush's relationship with Hispanic voters with Spanish-language TV ads in the next few months, the Wall Street Journal 's Eduardo Porter reports.
Dean:
From ABC News' Dean campaign reporter Marc Ambinder:
"Sunday's endorsement by the 335,000-member California Teachers Association (CTA) did not take Governor Dean's campaign by surprise."
"Senior CTA officials approached Dean after he spoke to the California Democratic Party convention in March of 2003, and a courtship began. The CTA formally interviewed Dean in June, and he won by a large margin a vote of CTA's elected teacher representatives yesterday, according to the union. The union said that Dean's strong criticism of the No Child Left Behind education law, and his desire to fully fund special education programs, resonated with its membership."
"The CTA is a very powerful prong of the 2.7 million-member National Education Association. Both campaign and union officials refused to speculate whether the CTA endorsement represented a good omen about the parent's union's choice."
"In Iowa today, Dean will pick up an endorsement from his first national labor group — the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades."
Dean's getting the rock star treatment these days as he leads the field, according to a Sacramento Bee profile. LINK
Clark:
As part of a weekend of "whither the Clark campaign," the New York Post 's Deborah Orin quotes the Clark campaign's Matt Benett thusly:
"We relish being the underdog — we know we have some catching up to do," Clark spokesman Matt Bennett said yesterday in reaction to a Newsweek poll showing Dean on top. LINK
Yesterday, the New York Times ' Kit Seelye highlighted problems in the campaign like last-minute scheduling of events and the campaign's failure to perform political tasks.LINK
The L.A. Times did their own version of the story on Saturday.
From ABC News' Clark campaign reporter Deborah Apton:
"General Clark may not be a career politician, but he acted like one this weekend. At a private dinner in downtown Manchester Friday evening, the waitress came by The General's table to tell him that some students from a local prep school (and their parents) were in the back room wanting to meet him. Clark put down his salad fork and headed to the back of the room, where a spontaneous town hall meeting broke out. When his curious dinner guests went into the back room to see where Clark had gone for so long, students were heard quizzing The General questions on topics like the Middle East. And, before the forum ended and before Clark headed back to his table to eat his entrée, he remembered he had a Clark04 pin in his pocket. He took it out to pin it on one woman whom he later referred to as a 'Republican for Clark.'"
Lieberman:
The Hartford Courant's David Lightman writes about two big issues for Lieberman and people contemplating his candidacy: religion and Israel. LINK
The New York Post 's Nicole Gelinas assails Lieberman's tax plan, saying it hurts East Coast voters. LINK
Lieberman makes the case for his tax plan in a Wall Street Journal op-ed today, discussing middle-class tax cuts, collapsing the income tax brackets from six to five, spending limits and investment tax credits. And in the "with friends like these" department, the Senator also calls the Wall Street Journal editorial board more charitable to his plan than either RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie or his Democratic opponents.
Lieberman wasn't really joking when he told Don Imus on Friday that he'd choose John McCain to be his secretary of defense. LINK
AP reports that Lieberman is having a hard time raising money in the states he wants to win. LINK
Senator Lieberman, finding himself stuck in the middle of the nine Democratic candidates, is banking on three state primaries, writes Joseph Straw of the New Haven Register. LINK
Kerry:
In Saturday's Boston Globe , Patrick Healy reported in a nice piece of shoe-leather journalism that Kerry "acknowledged [Friday] that he did not know the specifics of such a plan but said that UN Secretary General Kofi Annan assured him 'there were specific discussions' about a nonmilitary compromise that senior Bush aides 'shut the door to.'" LINK
Following the lead of Clark, Sharpton, and Lieberman (with Edwards to come), Kerry has released his own book about his vision for the country and where he would take it if elected. The Chicago Sun-Times' Steve Neal calls the book "thoughtful" and "worthwhile reading." LINK
Edwards:
Edwards says fie to pundits, shrugging off charges that his start is fading, reports the News & Observer. LINK
The latest News & Observer poll has Edwards coming in third. LINK
From ABC News' Edwards campaign reporter Gloria Riviera:
"Brothers and Sisters … is this our America?"
"Edwards' accent was as dramatic as the Sunday hats in full effect at Baptist Churches he visited in Detroit the morning of the debate. Sequins, feathers, mesh and more. Purple, gold and blue and a sharp gray fedora-top-hat combo of particular height. Sunday is for pulling out all the stops and Edwards did so by starting off his address with three little initials: J. F. K."
"'You know, I am reminded of the words of President Kennedy. He said, here on earth God's work must truly be our own. Brothers and sisters we got work to do … we have work to do but with the Lord's help, with the Lord's help and only with the Lord's help, we will do it, we will rise above it, we will lift up our people.'"
"Edwards seemed as comfortable at the pulpit as he is in living rooms in Iowa. He gauged the mood of the room and upped his tempo accordingly for a crowd naturally primed to respond well to his Cities Rising urban initiative, unveiled the evening before at a campaign event in Lansing, Michigan. The initiative is not new — everything is in the booklet — but at various stops Edwards highlights location-specific elements. He spoke about improving schools for the "system of have nots" — as Edwards refers to the schools system currently available those in poor urban areas — and improving teacher pay.
Gephardt:
From ABC News' Gephardt campaign reporter Sally Hawkins:
"If Congressman Gephardt hasn't made it to services at the Baptist church in St. Louis where he grew up in a while, he more than made up for it in Detroit on Sunday. While other candidates made an appearance or two at black churches around the city, Gephardt had a whirlwind tour of five Baptist churches in four hours. In and out, in and out … and on to the next. The churchgoers who saw him today were generally receptive to a slightly spiritualized version of his stump speech. Despite sticking out like a sore thumb, Gephardt seemed to feel right at home."
"At each stop, Gephardt humored the crowd by telling them that he was taught to love his friends and his enemies as he would love himself. He said to one enthusiastic crowd, 'loving my friends as much as myself was always easy, it was the enemies part that was tough. Especially, when I got to Congress and I met Newt Gingrich.' "
"Stop #4 brought a few awkward moments when Al Sharpton, scheduled to speak after Gephardt, took the altar when Gephardt was still talking up his health care plan. While hundreds of parishioners at the Little Rock Baptist Church looked on clapping and chanting with enthusiasm, Sharpton sat motionless and staring straight forward. Gephardt was merely the warm-up act, right? Just as Gephardt finished his speech, he and Sharpton embraced and then held hands high above their heads. Gephardt's speech was a hit with the crowd, but he didn't stick around to see how this preaching thing is really done. By the time Sharpton took the podium, the campaign was well on their way to church #5."
"At the Detroit debate, Congressman Gephardt stayed out of the limelight. Asked only four questions throughout the entire hour and a half, Gephardt stuck to his basic Bush-bashing on the war and the economy and spared his Democratic opponents. He continued to talk up his role in the Clinton economic plan and the prosperous 1990s. While neither an attacker or an attackee, Gephardt didn't seem to get as much air time as previous debates when he stirred the pot. And an uneventful debate meant uneventful closing remarks. Veteran Gephardt observers could lip synch along, since he played it safe and stuck to his stump speech, word for word."
Kucinich:
From ABC News' Kucinich campaign reporter Melinda Arons:
"Congressman Kucinich focused on two things this weekend: making New Hampshire a priority, and getting Howard Dean to stop airing an ad there claiming he was the only one to oppose the war. Kucinich had events all day and late into the evening in New Hampshire Friday and cancelled his appearance at the peace rally in Washington on Saturday to appear in person at the New Hampshire AFL-CIO meeting in North Country."
"The Kucinich of last week would surely have gone to Washington for the rally, where he would have enjoyed high billing and addressed thousands, but the new Kucinich is reflecting some within the campaign's feeling that making one's case before a couple hundred Granite Staters is more important than preaching to the anti-war choir. The union membership-card-waving Kucinich got several standing ovations for his pledges to bring the troops home from Iraq and to cancel NAFTA and the WTO."
"At the AFL CIO event, Kucinich tried in vain to accomplish his main goal this week: getting the Dean ad off the air. Like a political reporter waiting to ambush Dean for an exclusive interview the governor never agreed to, Kucinich lingered in the lobby of the Mountain View Grand Resort in Whitefield, New Hampshire Saturday morning, waiting to talk to Dean about the ad he's running in which Dean accuses his opponents of not doing anything to stand up to Bush during the march to war last year. In Kucinich's eyes such a comment is just about the worst thing one could ever say about him, and adds insult to the injury of Dean having already stolen a great deal of Kucinich's anti-war thunder. Dean greeted Kucinich with a cordial 'Hi, Dennis' and they huddled for about 10 minutes, with a few muffled 'I understand's and 'I appreciate that's audible on Dean's part, but no resolution."
Judging from Rochelle Riley's column in the Detroit Free Press, Kucinich did not make up for his gaffe and infuriated his host Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick: LINK
Sharpton:
On Saturday, the New York Times Noted that senior advisers from many campaigns want long-shot candidates to stay home from the debates including "straggler" Al Sharpton because no one can stand out. LINK
"'Sharpton responded, 'If you can't beat Al Sharpton in a debate, you sure can't beat George Bush in an election.'"
The Boston Globe on Sunday noted that the other candidates are reaching out to the hip-hop generation, in essence following Sharpton's lead. LINK
From ABC News' Sharpton campaign reporter Beth Loyd:
"On Friday, a very relaxed Reverend Sharpton spoke to a group of 350 students at American University, focusing on Bush's foreign policy and the GOTV effort, adding an Iraq/Vietnam comparison to the stump. He proved that his quick wit goes far beyond one-liners. He was in the middle of a Bush-bash and his cell phone rang. He said, 'that was probably Bush telling me to 'be cool' but I think I'll just turn it off.' He registered about 50 students at the end."
"Saturday night was gospel night. Reverend Sharpton was an emcee along with Vicky Winans for a Gospel concert in Landover, Maryland. There were 12,000 people there, some big-name gospel stars, an abundance of sequins and one very late Reverend. He showed up an hour late and someone had to fill in for him until he arrived."
"Many of the candidates spent their pre-debate morning hours in black churches. For Sharpton, it was just another Sunday. After his first sermon, at New Light Baptist, the pastor took a collection for 'the political campaign of Al Sharpton.' Sharpton immediately jumped up and made very clear that the money would go to the National Action Network's voter registration drive. Then he was off to Little Rock Baptist. Perhaps it was because he was in his element and the church choir at Little Rock was inspirational — or perhaps it was just because he followed Gephardt. Whatever the case, Sharpton's preaching was on fire."
Moseley Braun:
From ABC News' Moseley Braun campaign reporter Monica Ackerman:
"On Saturday Moseley Braun went from speaking to African-Americans to an unusual Taiwanese-American audience. First she visited the key Midwestern state of Wisconsin where she spoke at the Black Holocaust Museum before a small, yet vivacious, crowd. Then she appeared at the Woodland Organization's 38th convention in Chicago."
"One of her strongest supporters, Congressman Danny Davis, was there, and said, 'She doesn't have a lot of money but she has a lot of spark and energy … … winning is a lot of different things … … when the deal goes down, win, lose or draw, Carol Moseley Braun will have been there. Win lose or draw there are eight candidates who will not have the most votes. Win lose or draw I think democrats will have had a good exploration of issues. We will have debated the problems and the key deal is lets beat George Bush in November.'"
First-in-the-nation:
On Sunday, the Des Moines Register 's Tom Beaumont wrote that if Lieberman or Clark go on to win the nomination, life in Iowa as we know it will cease to exist. LINK
Now the Manchester Union Leader is a little miffed about the New York Times ' "quaint" remark. LINK
A New Hampshire documentary highlights the importance of old-fashioned politicking in the state's presidential primary, writes the Union Leader's Benjamin Kepple. LINK
Democratic National Convention:
With a big mug shot of The Macker on the Boston Herald's Web page, Ellen Silberman reveals that DNC convention staffers are being paid with tax dollars. LINK
Maybe we've become accustomed to high wages in the Bush era, but this seems like no big whoop to us.
It would have been nice if the reporters had included the salary levels of past convention officials who held comparable jobs.
And it is always nice to see how much the Globe and Herald aren't buying into that notion that the hometown papers should be boosters for the convention.
New Hampshire:
Knight Ridder's Henry Eichel lets you all in on a dirty little secret of First in the Nation: No other state beyond Iowa and New Hampshire have the well-developed political and political media cultures that allow candidates to draw broadbased crowds.LINK
Eichel takes you to a couple of 50-person events and pretty much concedes that that's as well as most candidates can do this far out from a primary with little tradition.
Who needs Zogby to fire up Karen Hicks' army!?!?
In a Boston Globe /WBZ survey of 400 Democrats and Independents released Sunday, Dean clocked in at 37 percent, leading Kerry by 13 points. Dean led by 12 points in the same poll last month.LINK
Libertarians around the nation, unite in the Granite State! The New York Times on one man's move to make New Hampshire a laboratory libertarian community.LINK
ABC News Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:
Barbara Bush talks politics with the New York Times ' Ms. Bumiller, saying:-Her son is not a "far-right nut"-She thinks the president is "very courageous"-She believes there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq-The First Mother stands by her characterization of the Aspiring Nine as "one sorry group"LINK
The Washington Post 's R. Jeffrey Smith and Renae Merle have a huge look into the White House's role in awarding a contract to Boeing that didn't go through the usual channels. LINK
The Washington Post 's Claudia Deane and Dan Balz examine the importance of the "investor class" to the president and his party. LINK
The 9/11 commission is now considering subpoenas to obtain White House documents as frustration grows with the administration. LINK
Tennesseans have raised at least $1.8 million and counting. LINK
Big Casino budget politics:
The Washington Post 's Jonathan Weisman reports on some House Republicans' effort to craft a new tax cut to help manufacturers. LINK
Legislative agenda:
The Washington Post 's Helen Dewar writes, "As Congress struggles to adjourn by mid-November, Republican leaders face a sobering reality: Medicare and energy legislation, moving haltingly toward a final showdown, hold the key to the scorecard for the first session of the 108th Congress." LINK
Janet Hook did her own swell version of this in yesterday's Los Angeles Times.
Bush Administration strategy/personality:
USA Today 's Marilyn Adams reports that Secretary Mineta is overnight exchanging some words with FedEx about his choice for a deputy. LINK
California's new governor:
The Los Angeles Times' Ron Brownstein previews the power and the glitter of the Bush-Schwarzenegger political buddy movie, and Notes that it may not necessarily be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Schwarzenegger campaigned on positions closer to those of the Democrats looking to oust Bush from the White House than the Republican base, and his real skill may end up being his ability to negotiate federal help with California's budget problems. LINK
"With the state facing so many problems, Schwarzenegger needs every bit of help he can squeeze out of Bush. And the White House needs Schwarzenegger to succeed in office if Bush is to have any chance of seriously contesting California in 2004. So if the administration is in a position to expedite a payment or interpret a federal rule in a way that helps California, the state is more likely to get the benefit of the doubt now than under Democrat Gray Davis."
Governor-elect Schwarzenegger will meet with California's congressional delegation in Washington on Wednesday as part of his move to ask the government to help out his ailing state.LINK
Politics:In a move meant to solidify their Republican base for the upcoming election year, Republican Senators, lead by Bill Frist, are launching a counteroffensive against Democratic filibusters on judicial appointees, says Robert Novak. The plan entails three phases, each meant to step up the pressure on Senate Democrats from now till the end of the session.LINK
Roll Call's Mark Preston reports, "With the help of Democratic lawmakers, a progressive radio outfit plans to launch a national talk show in January, the first step by a liberal organization to gain a presence in a medium dominated by conservatives in recent years."
Democratic leaders and staff have involved themselves with this project and are even being enlisted to raise money for the radio network, which depends on donors to stay afloat. Plans for broadcast markets have not yet been finalized.
The New York Daily News picks up on Bill Frist's comments on moving additional abortion legislation through the Senate in coming weeks. LINK
Looking for a job? Lloyd Grove says Maria has an opening for a chief of staff.LINK
(No, no, we aren't accepting any resumes!)
The State's Lee Bandy makes a case for the South's battleground potential, this time for the Senate race in 2004. LINK
*The Note, you should know by now, splits infinitives with abandon.