USNews.com: Political Bulletin: Friday, November 17, 2006

Friday, November 17, 2006

WASHINGTON NEWS

Hoyer Puts A Thumping On Murtha.

On the day in which she made history by becoming the first woman speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi is having to deal with an angry Democratic caucus and highly negative media coverage. Her choice for the majority leader post, Rep. John Murtha, lost to Rep. Steny Hoyer in a 149-86 vote. The AP notes Pelosi's own election is being largely "overshadowed by Murtha's defeat," and USA Today says "the next speaker of the House lost her first test Thursday."

Media commentators were merciless. Dana Milbank writes in the Washington Post that Pelosi "experienced her first smackdown." It "should have been a coronation," but "instead, her party...plunged into fratricide." The Los Angeles Times headlines its front-page report "Pelosi's Early Setback Has Her Party On Alert," and says Democrats "gave Pelosi a brusque lesson in the limits of her power." Hoyer "didn't merely defeat Murtha, Pelosi's strong preference, but trounced him." On the CBS Evening News, Bob Schieffer said the Murtha-Hoyer debate "has raised real questions about [Pelosi's] judgment." The Washington Post says the vote "was viewed by many in the party as a repudiation of Pelosi's strong-arm tactics." McClatchy quotes "one moderate Democratic congressman, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution," saying "Pelosi's backing of Murtha made her look petty and shook some members' faith in her leadership. 'She owes Murtha a lot; she owes the caucus more,' he said. 'A good leader knows when she has to tell a member no, even when it's your friend. She'll either get it and lead differently,' the congressman said, 'or she won't lead long.'"

The Baltimore Sun reports California Rep. Maxine Waters, "a Hoyer supporter, said Pelosi's campaign...had raised serious questions within the party. 'What most people didn't understand was the why's of it all,' Waters said." And the New York Times notes "some supporters of Mr. Murtha...were disgruntled and said they were trying to identify lawmakers who had broken pledges to support him. 'We won't trust them on issues like this the next time,' said Representative James P. Moran, a Murtha ally from Virginia who said Mr. Murtha had been betrayed."

Jailed Lobbyist Accuses Democratic Leader.

ABC News' "The Blotter" blog reported that sources "close to" the investigation of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff have revealed that the former GOP insider has fingered Democratic Senate leader Harry Reid of Nevada as one of the members of Congress who benefited from his political largesse. Sen. Reid's office was quick to deny any illegal or unethical actions. But a source "says Abramoff told prosecutors that more than $30,000 in campaign contributions to Reid from Abramoff's clients 'were no accident and were in fact requested by Reid.'" Abramoff has "reportedly claimed the Nevada senator agreed to help him on matters related to Indian gambling."

Rove May Leave Within Weeks.

The rumors that chief White House political architect Karl Rove will leave sometime next year are being bolstered with new insider reports that his partisan style is a hurdle to President Bush's new push for bipartisanship. A key Bush advisor tells the US News Political Bulletin, "Karl represents the old style and he's got to go if the Democrats are going to believe Bush's talk of getting along." The advisor said a departure might come in "weeks, not months." A Rove ally, however, noted that he has a record of out-witting his critics.

Vietnam-Iraq Analogy Overshadows Bush Asian Trip.

In Singapore, the first leg of his Asian trip, President Bush promoted free trade and addressed the situation with North Korea. Press accounts of Bush's remarks are generally negative, emphasizing Bush's weakened political position since the midterm elections. Also, with Bush traveling to Vietnam, several reports draw an analogy between the Vietnam and Iraq wars and say that analogy is overshadowing Bush's message. The Washington Times headlines its analysis of Bush's tour "Comparisons With Vietnam Shadow Bush Trip," and the Los Angeles Times says Bush "was shadowed by an issue that was politically difficult for him when he first ran for president, just as it was for [President] Clinton: the question of military service during the Vietnam War. And there was new attention to an issue that is politically painful for him in 2006: whether the Iraq war is turning into a new generation's equivalent of the torturous Vietnam conflict." The New York Times makes a similar point, in a story titled "On To Vietnam, Bush Hears Echoes Of 1968 In Iraq 2006." The Times says that "until now, when asked what he had learned from Vietnam," Bush has offered "a response drawn from conservative orthodoxy about what went wrong in Vietnam, underlying an argument that had the generals been allowed to fight their way, the United States might have won." But "he may feel compelled to say more after he lands in Hanoi. Mr. Bush will find himself inside government halls adorned with paintings of Ho Chi Minh."

Shadegg is Matthews' "Favorite."

On his MSNBC Hardball show, Chris Matthews introduced Rep. John Shadegg, who's running for House Minority Leader against Rep. John Boehner, as "a real Barry Goldwater principled conservative," and told him, "you're my one favorite candidate on the Republican side." Asked if he can win his race for minority whip today, Shadegg said, "I believe I can. I'm certainly hopeful. I'm not going to give you a count and tell you that we've got it locked up; we don't."

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POLITICAL NEWS

Giuliani Assembling Powerful Team.

The AP reports that Rudy Giuliani (R) "has assembled a group of high-powered business executives, including billionaire Texas oil mogul T. Boone Pickens, to raise money as the former New York City mayor weighs a full-blown presidential bid. Giuliani headlined a meeting of the finance committee in New York Wednesday." The New York Times adds, "In discussing the meeting, the supporters appeared to want to demonstrate that Mr. Giuliani had the connections and appeal to mount a campaign that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. In interviews, several of them said the former mayor had discussed his potential liabilities in a Republican primary -- perhaps the greatest being his liberal views on social issues like abortion and gay rights."

McCain: GOP Must Return To Principles.

Sen. John McCain, expected to run for president in 2008, was busy on several campaign fronts yesterday. In addition to forming an exploratory committee, McCain set out to solidify his support among GOP conservatives, many of whom are wary of the Arizona Senator. In his well-received speeches to the Federalist Society (an influential group of conservative lawyers) and to GOPAC (the political action committee founded by former Speaker Newt Gingrich) McCain appeared to reach out to the GOP base. The New York Times calls the speech "an unambiguous embrace of conservative ideology," while the Washington Times reports that at the Federalist Society, McCain "drew a standing ovation at the beginning and at the end of his remarks." The AP notes McCain "called on the Republican Party to return to its common-sense conservatism -- and implicitly cast himself as the one who can lead the party's rebirth." McCain said, "We lost our principles and our majority. And there is no way to recover our majority without recovering our principles first." McCain said "voters felt that Republicans valued their incumbency over their beliefs on such conservative standards as limited and efficient government -- and he urged a return to those tenets." The Washington Post reports McCain cited Ronald Reagan "frequently as the guidepost for the future of the party. In contrast, he never mentioned [President[ Bush by name, although he was implicitly critical of the administration's conduct of the war in Iraq."

Edwards Still Undecided On '08 Run.

Ex-Sen. John Edwards, asked on CNN's The Situation Room if he wants to be president, said, "Maybe, a resounding maybe. I haven't decided for sure, but I'm seriously thinking about it. ... I'll decide in the next few months. And it will be dependent in part on how Elizabeth [who has been fighting cancer] is doing. But right now, she's doing great. And whether I think it's an important thing for the people that I would want to represent for me to run for the White House."

Ford, Warner Considering 2008 Senate Bids.

Asked on CNN's The Situation Room about the fact that Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) is up for reelection in 2008, Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D), who made a name for himself in the state this cycle with a losing Senate bid, said, "I read that somewhere. The next two years will be interesting." Blitzer: "You're certainly not ruling that out?" Ford: "No, not at all." ... On the GOP side, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that Virginia Sen. John Warner (R) says that he is undecided on seeking reelection, but the defeat of fellow Virginia Republican George Allen (R) will be a factor for keeping him in the Senate "The absence of that experience, in terms of senators that represent the state, is a factor." Warner did not set a deadline for making a decision, although the Times Dispatch reports that "he said such a decision traditionally comes about 18 months ahead of the elections."

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POLITICAL HUMOR

The Latest From Late Night Comedians.

Jay Leno: "Do you have any idea how unpopular President Bush is now? Do you know on Air Force One now, he can't even get the window seat anymore."

Jay Leno: "A recent study shows that Osama bin Laden wields a surprisingly low amount of influence over Islamic ideology. They don't listen to him. I don't want to say Osama is losing power, but you know what his Al Qaeda code name is now? Donald Rumsfeld."

Jay Leno: "A team of scientists say pollution may actually be helpful in counteracting global warming because a layer of air pollution high up could help cool the earth. And today the oil companies said, 'That's what we've been trying to tell you!'"

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