The Note: "Face the Nation"
WASHINGTON, Oct. 12, 2004 — -- NOTED NOW
TODAY'S SCHEDULE (all times ET)
Three weeks until Election Day
1 day until the third presidential debate
NEWS SUMMARY
How fitting and proper that on the day before another night that could decide who wins the White House, everyone (and everything) is playing to type:
The candidates are in pure battlegrounds -- President Bush in Colorado; Senator Kerry in New Mexico; Vice President Cheney in Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota; and Senator Edwards in Wisconsin.
(What states REALLY are still in play?)
The press is obsessed with the "too close to call" storyline.
(How big a lead would a candidate have to have in several reputable national polls for the media to give up that cherished narrative?)
The AP's Owl Eyes — Ron Fournier — is big picturing the whole thing: "(T)he next three weeks will be even more negative and personal, a prospect likely to bring out the worst in both men." LINK
(Will there be any galvanizing events/moments after tomorrow night, or just battleground state slogging?)
Matthew Dowd and Stanley Greenberg are both exhibiting their normal professorial confidence in the outcome.
(Which presidential candidate is more afraid of losing, and which is more confident of winning?)
The Bush campaign's rapid response operation (new ad, POTUS and VPOTUS muscular language, talking points echoing galore, morning show and cable framing) turns a national security message that dominates the news cycle.
(Can it be counted as "rapid" response if the article that set it off was available 96 hours before the war room went into motion?)
New Media gambits abound — with the FLOTUS on Larry King and Edwards on Leno.
(Are either of the presidential candidates going to do Oprah or SNL before 11/2?)
The Washington Post's Dana Milbank is scrutinizing the President's record.
(Has Mike Abramowitz sold his TV sitcom pilot about Dana and Mike Allen yet?)
Milbank is also presenting one of the day's few must reads on a Tuesday redolent with calm-before-the-storm pacific — writing about the contrasts between Bush events and supporters and Kerry events and supporters. Read it: LINK
(If George Bush's currently-in-rhythm stump speech is rated 100, what score would Kerry's get?)
Paul Krugman is trying to be all macro-y about the President's record. LINK
(Where IS that Columbus Dispatch endorsement?)
Oil prices are up and there is violence in Iraq.
(Is John Kerry's capacity to make political hay over those things as limited as ever?)
Tucker Eskew and James Carville are proving they are both gentleman and scholars as they are partisan talking heads.
(Why is it that some surrogates still don't understand the importance of The Smile?)
The Los Angeles Times' Ron Brownstein is elevating Springsteen over Shakespeare: LINK
(Can anyone offer any metrics to suggest if those rock concerts helped Kerry or not?)
The Wall Street Journal's Ms. Versatile — Shailagh Murray — writes in separate stories about Evan Tracey's world of bracketing and in-store bakeries.
(Will the Kerry ad team have figured out the cleverness of the Bush media buying strategy by election day?)
The New York Times' David Brooks is posturing as a non-partisan cross between de Tocqueville and Erma Bombeck. LINK
(Is there a possible outcome of this election in which the man who takes the oath of office in January can unite Red and Blue America?)
In Purple America today, President Bush holds an 11:30 am rally in Colorado Springs, CO, a state Bush won in 2000 but is competitive this time, and raises money in Paradise Valley, AZ at 3:50 pm. He spends the rest of the day preparing for Wednesday's 9 pm ET domestic policy debate.
Wednesday's debate will be held on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ. The moderator will be CBS' Bob Schieffer.
Sen. John Kerry will spend all of Tuesday preparing for Wednesday's presidential debate at the Inn and Spa at Loretto in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has NO public activities scheduled for Tuesday. Kerry was originally scheduled to fly to Phoenix, AZ on Tuesday evening but he scrapped those plans so he could get in more debate prep time. He is now scheduled to fly to Arizona-the site of the third and final presidential debate-on Wednesday at 12:15 pm ET.
Sen. John Edwards holds a town hall meeting in Commerce City, CO at 11:30 am, he tapes the "Tonight Show" with Jay Leno in Burbank, CA at 7:00 pm ET and he raises money in San Francisco, CA at 11:25 pm ET.
Vice President Cheney campaigns at 9 am in Davenport, IA, at 12:45 pm in Milwaukee, WI and at 4:55 pm in Rochester, MN.
First Lady Laura Bush appears on CNN's "Larry King Live" at 9 pm ET.
At an international conference in Tokyo on Tuesday and Thursday, Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage leads a US delegation pushing countries to speed their Iraq relief efforts. LINK
Today, the Wisconsin Ad Project will release its latest summary of television advertising in the states.
And be sure to check Noted Now after 5:00 pm for the latest ABC News tracking poll.
ABC News Vote 2004: the Tempest in Tempe:
USA Today's Susan Page writes, "Unease about the country's direction has eroded Bush's job approval rating into dangerous territory for an incumbent president. And Kerry holds a decided advantage on the domestic issues that will be the focus of their last face-to-face encounter." LINK
USA Today's Mark Memmott reports that 46.7 million people watched Friday's debate, which was a drop off from the 62.5 million of the first debate, but still more than the largest audience of the 2000 debates -- 46.6 million. <>
The storm's a-brewin'! The Arizona Republic marks the arrival of the presidential candidates in the Grand Canyon State. "Bush is scheduled to arrive on Air Force One at 11:25 a.m. at Sky Harbor International Airport, and Kerry will come in at 8 p.m." LINK
Catch this in a story about Bob Schieffer's debate prep: "Schieffer has received plenty of suggestions about what questions to ask. Readers of The Arizona Republic alone e-mailed about 250 suggestions to the paper for Schieffer over the weekend." LINK
The Arizona Republic reports that local Tempe business owners are nervous about the large number of politicos and national press descending upon them today seeking service. Tempe's Monti's La Casa Vieja looks to be the place for Democrats to be tonight. "The state Democratic Party has reserved a room inside the restaurant, which is across the street from Tempe Town Lake where Democratic candidate John Kerry will attend a post-debate rally." LINK
The ASU student newspaper, the State Press, explains how Gammage Auditorium received the privilege of hosting a presidential debate. LINK
Protestors at ASU are playing dead. LINK
The Wall Street Journal's Alan Murray writes that the issue of baby boomers' retirement will prove a sticky one that neither candidate will want to talk about in tomorrow night's debate.
The Boston Globe's Glen Johnson reports that fellow Bay Stater Rep. Barney Frank is helping Sen. Kerry prep for the domestic policy debate. LINK
Former Massachusetts Governor and 1996 GOP Senate candidate William Weld predicts on the Wall Street Journal op-ed page that Sen. Kerry will win the third and final debate, and says the style Kerry displays far exceeds his substance. But he says Bush will be re-elected.
ABC News Vote 2004: Bush vs. Kerry:
According to the latest ABC News tracking poll, the second presidential debate didn't move the horse race numbers -- they remain 50 percent for Bush and 46 percent for Kerry -- and while Kerry's personal popularity has improved, Bush still leads him on issues of leadership and clarity. In addition, 15 percent of likely voters said they have not definitively made up their minds, and of those, 6 percent said they are truly undecided.
Ron Fournier seems not too happy with the candidates: "After two debates, voters have seen President Bush look peevish and heard him pass the buck. They've watched Sen. John Kerry deny he's a flip-flopper and then argue that Saddam Hussein was a threat - and wasn't. It's no wonder so few minds have changed. Three weeks and one debate from Election Day, the vulnerable incumbent and his flawed challenger are struggling for the upper hand. Private and public polls show Bush and Kerry neck-and-neck for the popular vote, and the all-important race to 270 Electoral College votes is just as close." LINK
The Washington Post's Dana Milbank thinks Bush is appealing to the base and Kerry is appealing to the center. He also thinks Kerry's supporters are motivated more by their distaste for Bush than they are by their affection for Kerry. "The reception for Kerry is warm at Democratic events; the reception for Bush at GOP events is akin to that of a rock star." MORE
David Lightman looks at how the "quiet" issue of abortion has mobilized voters on both sides. MORE
"NARAL Pro-Choice America, the abortion rights group, has been targeting women under 40 in five key states. It began running ads earlier this month in Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, telling people 'George Bush is not a doctor, but he's playing one.'"
"Anti-abortion groups don't reveal as much of their strategy, but National Right to Life political action committee director Carol Tobias noted her organization has 3,000 chapters in 50 states and 'they're energized.'"
"The two sides' arsenals include the cutting edge and the old school. West Virginians for Life is offering a video clip to Internet users explaining how Kerry backs abortion 'for any reason, all nine months of pregnancy.' The abortion rights activists counter with their own Internet offering called 'The Crawford Wives,' a takeoff on the robotic Stepford wives.'"
In their write-up of the Bush and Kerry sparring in New Mexico, the Washington Post's Farhi and Allen get Kerry communications director Stephanie Cutter to say of the Bush team's attack on Kerry's "nuisance" comment: "They're trying to get us off our message, and we're not going to let them." LINK
"Apparently both candidates were playing to their political bases by their choice of locations. While Kerry spoke in liberal Santa Fe about alternative energy, Bush spoke about terrorism in Hobbs, a conservative community in the southeastern area of the state often called 'Little Texas,'" observes the Santa Fe New Mexican's Terrell. LINK
Maura Reynolds and Peter Wallsten of the Los Angeles Times wonder if the Bush campaign's latest attack ad may backfire. LINK
"...Republican pollster Tony Fabrizio, who is not working for the Bush campaign, said Bush's attacks could wind up hurting the president by undermining his credibility."
"'The Bush campaign did an effective job creating questions about Sen. Kerry's credibility that led them to a double-digit lead' in several national polls in early September, Fabrizio said. 'But it would be a shame if that knife were turned on them because they pushed the envelope too far with ads like they released' Sunday."
With some new CMAG numbers, the Los Angeles Times' Nick Anderson looks at the more local appeal of the Kerry campaign compared with the more national view of the Bush campaign when it comes to ad strategy. LINK
The Los Angeles Times takes a look at the battle for the "Field & Stream" vote. LINK
USA Today's Peronet Despeignes Notes that "if elected, either candidate will find it hard to set the course of job growth in the $11 trillion-a-year U.S. economy. Its direction is set by more than 130 million workers, long-running technological and demographic trends, and massive flows of trade, investment and spending not easily swayed by any one person - even if that person is the president." LINK
Robert Gavin of the Boston Globe takes an in-depth look at how the candidates differ on how to solve the deficit. Here's a taste: "Bush would extend the broad array of tax cuts passed in his first term. Kerry would limit those tax cuts to families making less than $200,000 a year, but spend the money gained from raising taxes on the wealthy, primarily by expanding health care programs to lower insurance premiums and cover the uninsured. Either way, according to independent analyses, the cost is the same: at least $1.2 trillion over 10 years." LINK
The New York Times' David Kirkpatrick and Laurie Goodstein look at the efforts of the Bush campaign and Catholic clergy to target conservative Catholic voters and urge them to vote against John Kerry based on his stance on abortion, Noting that "never before have so many bishops so explicitly warned Catholics so close to an election that to vote a certain way was to commit a sin." LINK
The Washington Post's Robin Wright reports that the Bush Administration likes to cite Afghanistan's election as a model for Iraq's elections but analysts say the comparison only goes so far. MORE
In a Washington Post op-ed, a professor of political science at Duke University looks at the "astonishing" results of a Military Times survey which shows Bush leading Kerry among active-duty military personnel by a margin of 72 to 17 percent and his lead among Guard and Reserve respondents by a margin of 73 to 18 percent. MORE
The New York Times' Dean Murphy looks at the way that homeland security funds are distributed among the states -- focused more on equal distribution than on the possible terror threat in a particular state. MORE
The New York Times' Sheryl Gay Stolberg writes that the death of actor Christopher Reeve sheds more light on the issue of stem cell research. MORE
The New York Times' David Brooks looks at Bush and Kerry's differing visions of the world. LINK
The Wall Street Journal's Shailagh Murray takes a closer look at both campaigns' pre-buttal ads and talking points.
The Wall Street Journal's ed board looks at Bush and Kerry's health care plans: "We believe Mr. Kerry's leads inevitably toward the kind of low-innovation, low-quality government systems found in Europe and Canada. Mr. Bush's, meanwhile, would make health insurance more portable and flexible, while preserving a market for the kind of medical progress promised by the deciphering of the genome. We only wish this genuine clash of ideas was getting the attention it deserves."
The Washington Post's dissection of political language looks at the use of the term "out of the mainstream," particularly its use by the Bush team. LINK
ABC News Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:
President Bush pounded away at terror and taxes in Colorado yesterday, reports Jim Hughes of the Denver Post. "You can tell he's a sweet guy and a good father, and if you're going to love your family, you're going to love your country," said University of Denver student Courtney Dahlberg, who attended the Red Rocks event with a friend "wearing matching cowboy hats and braids, ruffled mini skirts and homemade 'We Love George Bush' T-shirts." LINK
But Erin Cox and Jeremy Meyer write, "dueling chants filled the air at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Monday before a campaign rally by President Bush" in the Denver Post. "'Four more years,' yelled supporters inside, hoping for a second term for the Republican president they awaited." Meanwhile, "Three more weeks," shouted about 40 protesters outside the north gate of the amphitheater, "with an eye to Election Day on Nov. 2." MORE
The New York Times' Roger Cohen, David Sanger, and Steven Weisman write a magnum opus on the evolution of President Bush's foreign policy, critical of his move from coalition building to tough talker, and how the rest of the world has viewed the transition. The trio argue that Bush's relationship with some foreign leaders, however, remains strong, and that the cowboy caricature has faded in some places. MORE
"The Nov. 2 election will see if Mr. Bush's approach to foreign policy -- replete with images of courage and endurance, of moral certitudes and of generational struggle to defeat a new enemy while transforming an entire region -- has proved persuasive to most Americans. It has clearly divided America's friends."
Dick Stevenson of the New York Times writes up President Bush's comments on the trail in Colorado and New Mexico on Monday, where he moved to shift the conversation from Iraq to keeping the country safe from terrorist attacks -- providing not only stronger ground for him, but also the opportunity to slam Sen. Kerry's comments about reducing global terrorism to "nuisance" level. MORE
"If women react to Mr. Bush's made-no-mistake tactic the way they react to it when it is used by men in their lives, a majority may well be more angered than reassured. That's because it drives many women nuts when men won't say they made a mistake and apologize if they do something wrong," writes Deborah Tannen in a New York Times' op-ed. MORE
The Washington Post's Dana Milbank writes that Paul Light of Brookings says Bush "ranks last in the number of 'major legislative proposals' on his domestic agenda; Milbank writes that Bush's reference to the Dred Scott decision in last week's debate was "something of a coded message to abortion opponents"; finally, Milbank asks for "the guy" from Ground Zero that Bush regularly refers to in his speeches to identify himself. He then traces the different descriptions Bush has offered. MORE
The Boston Globe's Peter Canellos looks at what happens when Republicans control the White House and the Congress -- the President does not take out the veto pen. MORE
The Bush-suit-jacket-bulge mystery resurfaces in the New York Daily News. MORE
The New York Daily News Notes newly-off-the-market heartthrob George P. Bush helped to turnout a big crowd for Bush in New Mexico yesterday stumping for "Uncle George" a "man of principle." MORE
ABC News Vote 2004: Kerry-Edwards '04:
David Halbfinger of the New York Times looks at Sen. Kerry's comments on energy costs in New Mexico on Monday, where he also hit President Bush on gas and oil prices. MORE
The Santa Fe New Mexican's Steve Terrell on what Kerry didn't include in his energy speech: LINK
"...he didn't mention that New Mexico's state government has enjoyed a revenue windfall from rising oil and natural gas prices. Mainly because of higher-than-expected revenues from taxes and royalties on oil and gas production, the Legislature and Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson have been able to balance the state's budget while cutting income taxes and increasing spending on education and other programs."
"The energy speech, along with a rally Sunday night in Albuquerque, offered no new proposals. But it enabled Kerry to capture front-page headlines and local television coverage in one of the most competitive states of the election," writes Michael Finnegan of the Los Angeles Times. MORE
The New York Times' Randy Archibold writes up Sen. Edwards' call on Monday for a crackdown on methamphetamine abuse in rural areas. MORE
The Chicago Tribune's Jill Zuckman reports on Kerry paying tribute to Christopher Reeve yesterday. MORE
Gen. Wesley Clark hit the trail for Kerry in Miami on Monday. MORE
ROAD TRIP!!! Page Six reports that Chris Heinz and Jamie Whitehead are going to college campuses and expected to cause a scene. Good times. MORE
The Washington Times Notes THK has toned it down some on the stump, to the disappointment of some of her supporters now nostalgic for the "shove its" of days gone by. "After one event, disappointed supporters were heard saying, 'Where was the Teresa spitfire?'" reports Christina Bellantoni. MORE
Elizabeth Edwards didn't mince words as she drummed up the female vote in central Ohio. MORE
ABC News Vote 2004: casting and counting:
"Secretary of State Donetta Davidson is asking Colorado counties not to turn felons away from the polls, but to let them cast emergency ballots that likely won't count on Election Day," reports Susan Greene in the Denver Post. MORE
Voters whose names don't show up on rolls on Nov. 2 will still be given provisional ballots provisional ballots "as long as they show ID, take an oath and, it is hoped, tell the truth," says Davidson according to the Rocky Mountain News. MORE
The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz on network plans to show caution in calling the winner of the 2004 presidential election after what happened in 2000. The piece includes a quotation from ABC's own superstar Dan Merkle. MORE
Hillsborough County in Florida might have as many as 6,000 unprocessed voter registration applications by the start of early voting on October 18. MORE
USA Today's Andrea Stone takes a look at the Florida race, Noting that each candidate's efforts to court Hispanic voters is just one of many subplots taking place. MORE
Elsewhere in Florida:
The Florida Supreme Court will hear the provisional ballot count challenge tomorrow, as a federal judge last Friday said that voters must make every effort to show up in the right precinct and that voters whose registration is valid and not questioned must do so in the right precinct.
Rep. Wexler's lawsuit on paper trails for electronic voting machines is scheduled to receive a full hearing on October 18, the same day Floridians get to vote early if they want. The judge has indicated that his ruling (whatever it will be) will not take effect until after this election.
On a separate but related matter, the Secretary of State has yet to promulgate (as promised) rules for manual recounts of touch screen machines. We expect some sort of announcement this week.
Knight Ridder's Frank Davies maps out a Colorado-what-if scenario. MORE
ABC News Vote 2004: the Big Four battlegrounds: Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin:
The Washington Post on how shifting loyalties among ethnic groups may sway the outcome in Florida. MORE
In USA Today, Grant Boxleitner writes about how the hurricanes could help President Bush in Florida. MORE
The latest Quinnipiac University poll out of the Keystone State shows John Kerry edging George Bush among likely voters 49% to 47% similar to where the race was in the September 28 Quinnipiac poll. Kerry improved some of his internal numbers since the last poll (though still running behind Bush) on qualities such as "acts more like a leader" (Bush 50 - Kerry 42) and "doing a better job explaining what he would do as president" (Bush 47 - Kerry 42).
"Central Ohio health-care providers probably have enough flu shots for the elderly, the very young, the chronically sick and a few other high-risk groups, officials said," so leads today's Columbus Dispatch. MORE
"Predictably, [Dick] Cheney's 24-minute speech was enthusiastically received in solidly Republican Clermont County. In the last 10 elections since 1964, Clermont County has ranked as the 10th most Republican county among Ohio's 88, providing an average of 61 percent of its vote to GOP presidential candidates," reports the Columbus Dispatch's Hallett. MORE
ABC News Vote 2004: the battlegrounds:
The Bush/Cheney Southeast Chairman Ralph Reed comments in Arkansas about the tumultuous nature of a battleground: "I don't believe in this state or any other state that we should be overconfident or we should rest on our laurels," Laura Kellams of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports. MORE
The Seattle Intelligencer's Alex Fryer reports on how Washingtonians will benefit from the latest round of tax cuts. The state's chief economic forecaster says though it will help the economy, it will have minimal impact on job creation. MORE
Another break in at a Washington State Bush/Cheney campaign office -- the second in two weeks. Police say the apparent targets were a television and a computer, both left behind at the scene. From David Postman of the Seattle Intelligencer. MORE
The Oregon AP reports on upcoming visits by President Bush and three from Sen. Edwards. MORE and MORE
Oregon's voter registration deadline is today!!!
Phillip Brasher of the Des Moines Register reports on the issue of farming and trade in the presidential race. MORE
Brasher also reports on how difficult it can be for the two candidates to curry farmers' favor. MORE
Kirsten Searer of the Las Vegas Sun reports on an upcoming push in Nevada, as early voting starts Saturday. MORE
Steve Tetreault of the Nevada Review-Journal reports on how the new tax cuts will affect Nevadans. MORE
In a visit to Portland High School, former Secretary of State Madeline Albright slams the Bush record on foreign policy. Joshua Weinstein of the Press-Herald reports. MORE
The Charleston Gazette's Eric Eyre reports on comments by ABC's own Cokie Roberts that Kerry needs to win over more women voters. MORE
Nader-Camejo:
The AP looks back on this point in Ralph Nader's campaign four years ago and Notes while circumstances have changed, the candidate has remained consistent in his message. "Four years ago, Ralph Nader had a seat on the Sunday talk shows, a spot on 43 state ballots and a gutsy, low-budget campaign that was packing in supporters. Unbowed at age 70, he is back this year sounding the same pox-on-both-your-houses message. But this time he stands at just 1 percent in most polls and former allies are trying to get him to sit down."
"'Welcome to the politics of joy and justice,' Mr. Nader called out to 15,000 noisy fans who crammed Madison Square Garden four years ago this week for a Green Party rally to hear celebrities such as Susan Sarandon, Michael Moore and Bill Murray extol him as a clarion voice of democracy." MORE
Ralph Nader has launched his write-in campaign to win votes in California, though he is not on the printed ballot. The Michigan Daily reports 2,459 individuals have registered at the Nader/third-party vote trading website . That is still far short of the 36,000 total votes that were traded by similar sites four years ago, according to VotePair, reports Jameel Naqvi. MORE
The corporate tax bill:
The New York Times' Carl Hulse looks at how Congress wrapped up this week, with the intelligence bill and spending measures still to be settled. MORE
Edmund Andrews of the New York Times reports that the Senate on Monday passed the corporate tax bill by a vote of 69 to 17 -- and that lots of companies benefited from the breaks. MORE
"Adjournment had been held up for days by legislative brushfires that erupted over the corporate tax bill. Proponents hailed it as a job creation measure that would simplify the nation's Byzantine tax laws for multinational corporations, address long-festering grievances and clamp down on loopholes, such as one that allows companies to escape taxation by reincorporating at a post office box in an offshore tax haven," the Washington Post's Jonathan Weisman reports. MORE
The Wall Street Journal's Shailagh Murray and David Wessel call the bill "a treasure trove of tax breaks for scores of industries, U.S. multinationals with profits parked overseas, tobacco farmers subject to Depression-era quotas and residents of states that rely heavily on sales taxes. The costs of the roughly $100 billion in new tax relief are offset by a crackdown on tax shelters, dozens of business tax increases and a few gimmicks."
"Yesterday, the Senate voted to approve a major tax-law revamp that focuses mainly on corporations. But lawmakers also approved important changes that will benefit many people, especially those who live in states with sales taxes but no state or local income taxes -- including Florida, Texas, Washington and South Dakota," writes the Wall Street Journal's Tom Herman.
The Washington Post ed board writes that the corporate tax bill's reduction of how much it gives to the Motion Picture Association of America "suggests that Congress is corrupt not only in the manner in which it awards prizes to favorite lobbyists, but also in the manner in which it denies such prizes." MORE
ABC News Vote 2004: the Senate:
We would humbly submit that having your GOTV operation resign three weeks before election day is not the best thing in the world. MORE
Watch for the Daschle-Thune debates tonight, Friday, Sunday, and Monday.
"Calling Republican opponent Mel Martinez a 'hypocrite,' Democratic Senate hopeful Betty Castor released on Monday her harshest attack ad yet, one that claims Martinez 'allowed' George W. Bush to campaign and be photographed with an accused terrorist professor in 2000 -- years after Castor had been criticized for not firing him when she was a university president," the Miami Herald's Marc Caputo reports. MORE
Perhaps the only chance Democrats have of winning back the Senate is with some very conservative sounding Democratic candidates, posits Richard Simon of the Los Angeles Times. MORE
Like underdog Inez Tenenbaum, who debates Jim DeMint for the second time tonight. MORE
Politics:
Stuart Rothenburg looks at the "dangerous dozen" open House seat races. MORE
Media:
This Saturday, head to the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center for a special screening of the provocative, controversial and Academy Award winning 1974 documentary on the United States' involvement in Vietnam, "Hearts and Minds" by Peter Davis. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. and includes a post-screening discussion with Peter Davis and Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation President Bobby Muller. Buy your tickets here: LINK
USA Today's David Lieberman reports on investors' reactions to the Sinclair "Stolen Honor" decision. MORE
The Washington Post's Kurtz and Ahrens on Sinclair "drawing political fire," not least from the DNC, for its plans to "carry a movie attacking Kerry's Vietnam record. MORE
The Los Angeles Times provides some background on the filmmaker of "Stolen Honor." MORE
Janeczo Jacobs with the Des Moines Register's take on the Sinclair controversy. Iowa's KDSM and KGAN are slated to air the documentary. MORE
Ray Routhier of the Portland Press-Herald reports on WGME's plans to air the documentary. MORE
Vote For Change concern hits DC:
Music makes (some of) the people come together:
Last night the Vote for Change concert tour wrapped up at Washington, DC's MCI Center, with acts including John Mellencamp, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, the Dixie Chicks, James Taylor, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, the Dave Matthews Band, and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band singing their hearts out and imploring their audience to vote... well, for change, in three weeks.
The political persuasion of the stars on stage was hardly a mystery, but much of the between-song banter focused on voting and statements of the "You can make a difference" persuasion rather than advocating President Bush's defeat. "We are R.E.M. and we approve of this concert," said frontman Michael Stipe when the band took the stage. And though the name "Bush" wasn't actually uttered until 10:00 pm (by the Dixie Chicks' Natalie Maines), the rhetoric only heated up from there.
Yet the focus was on the music as much as -- if not more so -- on the message. By the end of the raucous set by the Dave Matthews Band, this crowd would've bought a bunch of Amway products if encouraged to do so -- on their way to register to vote, that is. But it was Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band that got the hearts of the baby boomers, as well as the Gen Xers, all aflutter. The only act to specifically reference the Sundance Channel viewing audience who was watching the show live, Springsteen called John Fogerty to the stage to rip through a version of "Fortunate Son," and in a short monologue told the crowd, "All this fuss about the swing voter . . . It's October 11. What the hell are you waiting for?"
And it was the music, in the end, despite Stipe moving from one side of the stage to the other to show off his Kerry T-shirt and despite the rhetoric, that spoke the loudest. The two-song encore, sung by the obligatory assemblage of the whole group? "What's So Funny 'Bout Peace Love and Understanding" and "People Have the Power."
TODAY'S SCHEDULE (all times ET):
— 9:00 am: Vice President Cheney delivers remarks at a coffee with community leaders at the Thunder Bay Grille, Davenport, IA
— 10:00 am: Dr. Welton Gaddy, leader of the progressive interfaith movement, and Paul Weyrich hold a joint audio press conference on religious questions for the presidential debate
— 10:00 am: "Operation Truth," a national non-profit organization formed by veterans of the Iraq War, unveils a new TV ad, Madison Hotel, Washington, DC
— 11:30 am: President Bush makes remarks at a Victory 2004 Rally at the Colorado Springs World Arena and Ice Hall, Colorado Springs, CO
— 11:30 am: Sen. John Edwards attends a town hall meeting at Adams City High School, Commerce City, CO
— 11:30 a.m. Elizabeth Edwards holds a town hall meeting on "Keeping Our Families Safe" in Laconia, NH
— 12:00 pm: The Senate convenes at noon, US Capitol, Washington, DC
— 12:45 pm: Vice President Cheney participates in town hall meeting at the American Serb Hall, Milwaukee, WI
— 1:00 pm: Mrs. Bush attends a rally, Dickerson's Event Center, Las Cruces, NM
— 1:30 pm: Eric Schaeffer of the Environmental Integrity Project and Western Pennsylvania resident Charlotte O'Rourke hold a news briefing to say the number of polluters the EPA has taken to court in the first three years of the Bush Administration is down dramatically compared to the last three years of the Clinton Administration, JW Marriott, Washington, DC
— 2:00 pm: Teresa Heinz Kerry holds a town hall meeting with the Hispanic community at the Puerto Rican Association of Central Florida, Orlando, FL
— 2:00 pm: Mrs. Edwards discusses "Strengthening Our Families," Concord, NH
— 3:30 pm: First Lady Laura Bush delivers remarks at a BC'04 rally at the Dickerson's Event Center, Las Cruces, NM
— 3:50 pm: President Bush attends a Victory 2004 fundraiser luncheon at the Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain, Paradise Valley, AZ
— 4:55 pm: Vice President Cheney delivers remarks at a Victory 2004 rally at the Olmsted County Fairgrounds, Rochester, MN
— 7:00 pm: Sen. Edwards tapes the Tonight Show, Burbank, CA
— 7:00 pm: Mrs. Edwards greets Kerry-Edwards supporters, Burlington, VT
— 7:00 pm: The Skinner Leadership Institute, others hold a form, "Election 2004: How Would Jesus Vote," with faith leaders from both sides of the political aisle to discuss how to effectively vote spiritual beliefs and values, Hyatt Regency-Washington on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC
— 7:00 pm: Georgetown University sponsors a lecture with Acting Solicitor General Paul Clement on international law in the Supreme Court, Healy Hall, Washington, DC
— 9:00 pm: First Lady Laura Bush appears on CNN's "Larry King Live"
— 11:25 pm: Sen. Edwards attends a DNC fundraiser at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA
— 11:35 pm: Sen. Edwards appears on the Tonight Show