Entries for July 2008

Democratic members of Congress have long been warned to avoid Stephen Colbert's "Better Know a District" segment on his Comedy Central Show, The Colbert Report, where the faux pundit usually has them answering inappropriate questions or talking about inappropriate things.

But that didn't stop Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney from appearing on the show this week to showcase her "fightin' " 14th District of New York and promote her new book, Rumors of Our Progress Have Been Greatly Exaggerated, which focuses on women's advancement in politics.

"I felt like having some fun," Maloney told our Nikki Schwab at her book party the day after her appearance aired. "The closing days of Congress are very tedious."

While Maloney was expecting to have to answer ridiculous questions, she wasn't prepared for when Colbert whipped out a breast pump during the interview.

"It was outrageous, it was outrageous, I was stunned, and I almost fell out of my seat!" she says. "He's sitting there and he starts unbuttoning his shirt and I'm thinking, 'What is happening?' " Colbert continued to ask questions while pretending to pump out some Gatorade.

Her book party at the Sewall-Belmont House in Washington was decidedly tamer. Sen. Hillary Clinton, who says she put 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling during her run for the White House, spoke at the party to a screaming and mostly female audience.

Clinton had only praise for Maloney's book. "Her book is so perfectly titled because, after all, rumors of our progress are exaggerated," Clinton said.

It's hard to judge who needs the money more, but it just seemed awkward if not rude this week when Bill Clinton issued an E-mail fundraising letter for his AIDS project just two-and-a-half hours after his wife's plea to many of the same people to help retire old campaign debt. If communication is the key to a strong marriage, then it ought to be the same for dueling fundraising operations. It all started Wednesday when Hillary Clinton sent an invitation to donate $5 for a chance to have dinner with her. "It sure is nice having a little more time on my hands and I'd love to spend some of it with you. Would you like to join me for dinner?" she asks. Note, it's dinner with her, not him and her. "My staff has been calling this my 'retirement dinner'—not because I'm retiring, of course, but because we're working on retiring the debt we owe to small vendors all over the country." She adds: "Let's go to dinner! Every little bit helps and even $5 can make a real difference." It's a cute and probably effective effort. That is, until Bill weighed in with his powerful request to pledge support for his campaign to rid Africa of AIDS. "Please take my voice with you to Africa—and on to Mexico City for the International AIDS Conference—to speak for the millions living with HIV/AIDS and malaria who desperately need lifesaving treatment and for the countless people living in rural areas who do not have access to adequate health care." Clinton's request for $25 or more is more subtle, but if faced with the two pleas on the same day, which would you most likely write a check for?

It takes a special breed to serve at the CIA. Actually several. K-9s, to be exact, that sniff out drugs and explosives both at the CIA and overseas in hot spots like Iraq and Afghanistan. There are 35 dogs in the K-9 corps, part of the Special Services Branch. But it's not all boring work. These dogs get to travel, sniffing around the Super Bowl and even the Olympics. And they star at local fairs, where playing cards of the pups are gobbled up like baseball trading cards at the All-Star Game. At one recent fair, over 2,000 cards of K-9 Agents Boris and Ringo were pawed out.

Drug smugglers who ship tons of cocaine in on handmade subs are about to get the U.S. Coast Guard treatment. Because of a loophole in U.S. maritime law, the orange navy can't stop unflagged ships in international waters, meaning that these little subs and semisubmersibles can float legally right up to our waters. But new legislation OK'd this week in the House and set for consideration in the Senate will let federal authorities stop unflagged vessels in international waters. It's an antiterrorism and antidrug issue that came to Washington's attention when handmade drug subs loaded with 12 tons of coke started showing up. From 2001 to 2007, 23 incidents involving the vessels occurred. This year, there have been 29, and the Coast Guard speculates that the vessels are responsible for moving 32 percent of all cocaine between Colombia and the United States. Leading the effort to change the laws is New Jersey Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg. "Too many unregistered ships bring illegal drugs to our shores and our neighborhoods," he tells us. "Our bill will close this loophole and help prevent the overseas trafficking of illegal drugs, weapons, and other dangerous contraband." The guts of the legislation, according to Lautenberg's office, are this:

Applies Only to Unregistered SPSS Vessels

Most ships traveling between multiple countries are registered to a single country (called a " flag state " ), and fly that country's flag. When traveling international waters, these ships then exercise a right called "exclusive flag state jurisdiction," which means they are protected from interference— like boarding, search and seizure, or arrest— from authorities of any country except for their flag state.

However, an unregistered vessel operating in international waters is subject to the jurisdiction of the nation in whose waters it is located.

Lautenberg Bill

The Lautenberg bill would define what is considered a submersible or semi-submersible vessel without nationality and would prohibit individuals from operating such a ship. It would also designate their operation as a threat to national security and allow the Coast Guard or other federal authorities to interdict and arrest persons using, navigating, or operating these unregistered ships.

Yeah, yeah, he first has to win the presidency, but there's lots of buzz about whom Sen. Barack Obama might pick for his top cabinet jobs. Among them: Sen. Hillary Clinton as head of Health and Human Services. Her allies suggest she might be interested if the job were elevated to the top tier of agencies and if she were allowed to push healthcare reform. Other names: Sen. John Kerry as secretary of state, former Sen. Tom Daschle as White House chief of staff, former Clinton Commerce Secretary William Daley to head Treasury, and exiting Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel at Defense. Obama associates insist that they are not studying the cabinet puzzle yet, but with the media and his supporters treating him like the president already, can naming a cabinet be far behind? As for his ongoing search for a vice presidential nominee, there is nothing new to add other than that supporters of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson want his name in the mix.

DAVID HORSEY / TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES

Congressional supporters of Sen. Barack Obama's campaign say that he is looking to name his running mate as early as next week, once Congress goes on recess. "He wants to refocus his campaign on his agenda and doesn't want anything interfering," says a key Democratic leadership aide. "He wants Congress out before he does this." Others say the timing and spotlight on Congress leaving town suggest that Obama will be picking a senator, such as Indiana's Evan Bayh or Delaware's Joe Biden. But don't count out a Washington local: Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, who ducked a question about his talks with Obama during an interview on WTOP. Senate aides working with the Obama campaign say that the delay is aimed at making his vice presidential choice the top story next week at a time when the Washington news will be slow due to the recess. Also, he would like to switch the campaign debate between him and Sen. John McCain away from Iraq and his recent overseas trip to his vice presidential selection and the judgment that went into that. "This would put McCain back on defense and response," says an ally.

The media seem to believe all their hype that this looks to be a presidential election for the record books. Applications to cover the conventions—Democrats in Denver and Republicans in Minneapolis-St. Paul—are up 40 percent. Not too surprisingly, the Democratic National Convention is garnering the most requests (even Maxim and Playboy want in), making hotel rooms and rental cars even harder to find in the Mile-High City. Still, despite the excitement of a race between Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama, not every activist is gearing up to party. Take lobbyists and fundraisers. Rules have many staying home, prompting hotel catering managers and restaurant owners normally booked months before conventions to beg for business. For example, the landmark Radisson Hotel in Minneapolis E-mailed previous customers: "I have some space available for some of our special clients . . . please let me know if you are planning anything in this area."

What is the nation's top spy doing posted at Heinz Field, home to the Pittsburgh Steelers? Well, it's nothing devious like last year's "Spygate," when the New England Patriots were hit with charges of spying on opponents. In fact, it's downright friendly. See, CIA Director Michael Hayden is a Pittsburgh native with a real devotion to his hometown. Just last month at his Air Force retirement, the general said that while he left the city 39 years ago, "the city has never left me." And now, the city is recognizing its favorite son. Right near where Hayden grew up on the North Side, the city named a street for him close to Heinz Field. Gen. Michael V. Hayden Boulevard is at the intersection of Allegheny Avenue and North Shore Drive in the Steel City. Hayden tells us that he was honored and delighted when his brother, Harry, relayed the news to him. And he had just one question, according to reliable sources: Can he park his car there during Steelers games?

Henry Kissinger, Nixon's secretary of state who opened the door to China, has another new move up his sleeve. For the first time, he's lending his name to a foreign policy think tank. Whispers has learned that the Woodrow Wilson Center will soon announce the creation of the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States. This is the real deal: Hank will be joined by Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Yang Jiechi. The center looks to raise about $25 million to build an institute that will focus on helping to foster relations with China. Insiders, meanwhile, joke that the institute's acronym is a real but sad statement on current U.S.-world relations: KICUS.

It's more than just the dog days of summer. Word is that Sen. Barack Obama is really looking around for the dog he's promised daughters Malia and Sasha for spending so much time running for president. Well now PETA has weighed in with a good idea. Adopt a dog: Don't go the puppy mill route. In a letter provided to Whispers today and printed below, President Ingrid Newkirk urges the Democrat to go to a shelter and not give in to the pressure from dog breeders who want Obama to have a purebred. "Adopting an animal not only saves a life, but demonstrates compassion, and the companion animal overpopulation crisis deserves attention from all Americans. Every animal purchased from a breeder or a pet shop takes a home away from a needy animal at an animal shelter, waiting and hoping for a chance at the American dream of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," writes Newkirk. And she even has an idea for what the national dog should be: mutts. PETA adds that it appears the senator is considering their idea and will adopt a mixed breed. Of course, he could ask Sen. John McCain for advice. He has a mutt and a purebred.

    July 28, 2008

    The Honorable Barack Obama and Family

    John C. Kluczynski Federal Office Building, Ste. 3900

    230 South Dearborne

    Chicago, IL 60604

    Dear Senator and Mrs. Obama:

    We hope you are well. We understand that greedy dog breeders are panting and drooling over the    prospect that prominent figures may unwittingly promote their business and may try to "sell" you on the idea of getting a purebred dog. I'd like to give you some important information before you make your choice.

    Senator, no one needs to tell you that this country is proud to be a melting pot, and that there is something deeply wrong and elitist about wanting only a purebred dog. Millions of Great American Mutts—the dog that should be our national dog—are set to die in our nation's extremely overcrowded pounds and shelters for lack of good homes. Compassionate people nationwide are choosing to adopt a homeless pound puppy—a grateful refugee from a society that has not always treated the true "underdog" kindly—rather than cater to special interests who do not have dogs' interests at heart.

    Adopting an animal not only saves a life, but demonstrates compassion, and the companion animal overpopulation crisis deserves attention from all Americans. Every animal purchased from a breeder or a pet shop takes a home away from a needy animal at an animal shelter, waiting and hoping for a chance at the American dream of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

    Please let us know if we can assist you. I can be reached at 757-622-7382, extension 8302.

    Thank you.

    Very truly yours,

    Ingrid E. Newkirk

    President and Founder