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United by Lipstick to Fight Violence
Tweet Share on Facebook February 25, 2007 CommentAvon is joining Mary Kay February 27 to demand Congress fund the Violence Against Women Act. And note to lawmakers not into this program: Running when you see one of Mary Kay's pink brigade won't work. Avon's got some 5 million worldwide agents who dress just like you.
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A Scandal for the Silver Screen
Tweet Share on Facebook February 25, 2007 CommentFrom our Buzz Etc. files: There's talk that outted cia operative Valerie Plame's story may hit the silver screen. It all started when she was spotted lunching with actress Morgan Fairchild and hubby Joe Wilson. cia types say her book has been iced in the clearance process, so the quickest way to seize on the scandal is to make a movie. Separately, there's speculation that Bush Commerce chief Carlos Gutierrez is being wooed by Latin America's tv giant Univison.
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A Nasty Habit, All Snuffed Out
Tweet Share on Facebook February 25, 2007 CommentHe was among Congress's heaviest smokers, but now former Majority Leader Dick Armey has given up his Carlton menthol 100s. "I was just thinking about my wife one day," he tells us, "and I realized that of all the things I could do on this Earth that would make her happy is to quit smoking." Just like that, he did. "If a guy knows that, then it seems to me a guy has got to quit." Certainly, his wife, Susan, had told him many times before to snuff out the nasty habit. "I heard it a lot, of course," he says, but it didn't sink in until about two months ago. "We don't want to shock and startle your women readers, but even though I heard it over the years, I guess I'm living proof that on some occasions, some husbands sometimes actually hear what their wives say." Still, he did question his move. "I spent the next four weeks of my life trying to figure out if her happiness really meant that much to me." It went so well that he's not sympathetic to others like Sen. Barack Obama, who chews Nicorette to get over the habit. "If he's chewing this stuff, he's not stopped smoking," says Armey, who revealed a broader skepticism of crutches used by those with bad habits. "I'm laughing now, but if we ever indict a Mormon in Congress, what is the guy going to do, because he can't check into an alcohol rehab facility. … I don't know what a politician that's indicted does if he can't check into rehab and say, 'The whiskey did it.'"
With Rick Newman -
Out Loud
Tweet Share on Facebook February 25, 2007 Comment"Everybody in politics lies, but they [the Clintons] do it with such ease, it's troubling."
David Geffen, a former Clinton donor and supporter who now backs Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination"I had my glass of ethanol this morning, and I'm feeling good."
Sen. John McCain, the GOP presidential candidate, pandering to voters in corn-rich Iowa"Remember one thing: You will never hear me complain that I can't run for president."
Arnold Schwarzenegger, California governor, saying he's happy with his political and entertainment careers and not bitter that as an immigrant he can't run for presidentSources: New York Times, Washington Post (2), Politico
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Cartoon
Tweet Share on Facebook February 24, 2007 Comment -
Huck Goes Hunting for Votes
Tweet Share on Facebook February 22, 2007 Comment (1)
It's almost turkey season, and 2008 GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee knows what that means–it's time to hunt for votes. No, no, not in the woods. The former Arkansas guv is heading to Nashville this weekend to woo the 40,000 or so attendees at the annual National Wild Turkey Federation convention.
Huck's a big hunter (that's the guv with his lab, Jet, in the picture) and belongs to most of the groups that promote conservation and hunting like NWTF, Ducks Unlimited, and BASS.
"NWTF, DU, BASS, and similar organizations of which I'm a part are vital in providing funds for improved habitat for wildlife and to enhance the resources and protect and improve the environment," he told our Suzi Parker. "The money raised from these organizations go directly to enhance God-given natural resources. They also provide opportunities for practical assistance and advice for hunters and anglers."
If you're going to the event at Opryland, expect lots of bragging: Huckabee plans to talk about how he, NWTF Executive Director Rob Keck, and Ranger Boats founder Forrest Wood won this year's "One Shot Antelope Hunt" in Wyoming.
Photo credit: Huckabee Exploratory Committee
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Thursday's Cartoon
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Wednesday's Cartoon
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D'oh! Bush Way Worse Than Nixon
Tweet Share on Facebook February 20, 2007 CommentLet's hope by now you've seen our President's Day cover story by Jay Tolson heralding the 10 worst presidents of all time. Some have naturally asked: Where's George W. Bush? Well, the history on the 43rd president is just starting to be written, so he's not on the list. But if new polling by John Zogby is any indication, neither Richard Nixon nor our No. 1 bum James Buchanan will have to worry long about topping the worst list.
That's because Zogby tells us that Bush is considered by voters the biggest presidential failure in the past 60 years. His failure rating: 30.2 percent, far more than Nixon's 23 percent. Zogby's polling asks voters simply to rate the presidents as great, near great, average, below average, and failure. We'll just focus on the "great" and "failure" ratings for presidents since FDR.
Roosevelt: 58.7 percent said he was great, making him the greatest in modern history. Just .02 percent called him a failure.
Truman: 26.5 percent great, 0.5 percent failure.
Ike: 21.1 percent great, 0.1 percent failure.
JFK: 43 percent great, 0.5 percent failure.
LBJ: 5.9 percent great, 7.6 percent failure.
Nixon: 4.5 percent great, 23 percent failure.
Ford: 17.5 percent great, 0.9 percent failure.
Carter: 13.5 percent great, 10.2 percent failure.
Reagan: 34.4 percent great, 3.7 percent failure.
George H.W. Bush: 10.3 percent great, 8.2 percent failure
Clinton: 21.1 percent great, 11 percent failure.
W: 7.9 percent great, 30.2 percent failure.
And that's not the only news. Zogby's January poll found that the older and smarter you are, the more you think Bush is a failure. The largest age group with that opinion is made up of those 50 to 64. And 32.4 percent of those with some college education think he stinks.
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Amazing Grace, the Movement Movie
Tweet Share on Facebook February 18, 2007 Comment
JOE CIARDIELLO FOR USN&WRDon't call the new release Amazing Grace just another political thriller. What was once billed as an educational movie is fast becoming the model for bipartisanship. For weeks the hottest flick in the political and religious underground, Amazing Grace debuts at the White House this week, capping President Bush's focus on Black History Month. "We really think this is a wonderful movie that can inspire a new direction in Washington," says a Bushie.
"Our film shows the good that politics can do," says Erik Lokkesmoe, the film's project manager. Amazing Grace charts the effort of British politician William Wilberforce to end the slave trade 200 years ago with the help of an odd team that included former slave ship Capt. John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace after finding God. Former Rep. Floyd Flake, now the president of Ohio's Wilberforce University, thinks all his former House colleagues should see it. "They could learn a lesson from it," he tells us. Even though it doesn't hit theaters until February 23, Bush is late to the endorsement parade. A crowd from liberal Rep. John Lewis to conservative Sen. Sam Brownback and groups from the Humane Society to Focus on the Family have applauded it, prompting movie makers to almost yawn at the White House invitation. "We find that these kinds of invitations and opportunities are everywhere," says Lokkesmoe.
