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Sunday, May 11, 2008
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Sen. Barack Obama's formal entry into the presidential race led both network news broadcasts that aired Saturday night, and also received prominent coverage from major newspapers across the country. Reports cast Obama in a favorable light, but suggest that his early honeymoon with the media and the nation is likely to come to an abrupt end now that he is a candidate. ABC World News said Obama "told the nation today what most have known for weeks: He is running for president. And he did it in bold fashion, choosing Springfield, Illinois -- political home of the man many consider America's greatest president, Abraham Lincoln -- to make the official announcement. Sen. Obama did not stop the comparisons there, directly linking himself to the great uniter." NBC Nightly News said, "At the state House where Lincoln called on a divided nation to unite," Obama "pledged to bridge a political divide, offering himself as part of a new generation to build a more hopeful America."
The Washington Post says in the lead of its Sunday front-page report that Obama invoked "memories of Abraham Lincoln" and challenged "a new generation to help him transform the nation." Obama said, "What's stopped us is the failure of leadership, the smallness of our politics -- the ease with which we're distracted by the petty and trivial, our chronic avoidance of tough decisions, our preference for scoring cheap political points instead of rolling up our sleeves and building a working consensus to tackle big problems." The New York Times reported Sunday Obama presented himself "as an agent of generational change who could transform a government hobbled by cynicism, petty corruption and 'a smallness of our politics.'" But "for all the excitement on display, Mr. Obama's speech also marked the start of a tough new phase in what until now has been a charmed introduction to national politics. Democrats and Mr. Obama's aides said they were girding for questions about his experience in national politics, his command of policy, a past that has gone largely unexamined by rivals and the news media, and a public persona defined more by his biography and charisma than by how he would seek to use the powers of the presidency."
Obama drew a large, excited crowd to his announcement in Springfield on Saturday. The Financial Times reports on "the scale of Saturday's rally" in Springfield, Illinois "the crowd was in the thousands despite freezing temperatures and the frenzied excitement surrounding it showed that Mr Obama is already in possession of that most precious of political commodities: momentum." McClatchy Newspapers said that "local authorities estimated the crowd at between 15,000 and 17,000." While his supporters didn't seem to mind the weather, a piece in the Washington Post suggests that the media did. Obama, "raising questions about his judgment and risking the ire of the national press corps...held fast on his first major campaign decision: to conduct his announcement speech in the frigid outdoors here on Saturday. And so, as much as it was a political story, the Obama event became a weather story. ... Even by the standards of the wintry spells in New Hampshire and Iowa that political reporters and candidates ritually confront, it was a brutal morning in the Illinois capital."
From Springfield, Obama headed for the key early state of Iowa, where the Des Moines Register reported Obama told a "crowd of about 2,500" in Cedar Rapids, "I want to win. But I don't just want to win. I want to transform this country, and the only way I'm going to do it is if you make this a vehicle for your hopes and dreams." Those at the Cedar Rapids rally "said they've heard that Obama is being called a fresh face, a rock star, a political rocket who has that mysterious political 'X-factor' that makes him a charismatic candidate. They acknowledged Obama is new and wildly popular, but said Iowans have sensitive antenna, and many aren't making up their minds yet." The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reported that appearing before "about 1,000 people" at a high school gymnasium in Waterloo, IA, Obama "encouraged his listeners not to lose hope in the political process. He called for unity and change in America. 'The only thing that is required is some political will. The only thing that is required is some leadership,' Obama said. '... And that is what I am offering in his campaign.'"
Obama Wants US Out Of Iraq By Early 2008 Obama clearly also intends to make his opposition to the Iraq war, which contrasts him to Sen. Clinton, a focal point of his campaign, telling the Springfield crowd, "That's why I have a plan that will bring our combat troops home by March of 2008. Letting the Iraqis know that we will not be there forever is our last, best hope to pressure the Sunni and Shia to come to the table and find peace." NBC Nightly News reported last night, "Tonight Senator Obama is speaking to students at the University of Illinois in Chicago. And earlier at a campaign stop in Iowa, Senator Obama indirectly criticized Senator Clinton's defense of her Iraq war vote. He said it was possible to see that invading Iraq was a bad idea, even before the war." The Chicago Tribune reports a "homecoming for" Sen. Obama "turned into an anti-war rally Sunday evening, as he returned to his home city" of Chicago "following the weekend launch of his candidacy for president to find a crowd of 7,300 troubled over the Iraq war." A "vocal crowd of anti-war protesters quickly made the issue the central focus of Obama's evening rally at the University of Illinois at Chicago Pavilion, holding up a sign that read 'Cut the Funding' during his address and chanting loudly as he tried to speak." Obama said, "I'm glad they were there. They feel a sense of urgency about a war that should have never been authorized and a war that should have never been fought."
Obama made his opposition to the Iraq war a central theme throughout the day. Iowa's Mason City Globe Gazette reports Obama "began the courting of Iowa party activists Sunday with a blistering critique of the war in Iraq. More than 6,000 people who came to hear him at the Iowa State University campus saved their biggest cheers for his criticism of the war." Obama said, "We ended up launching a war that should have never been authorized and should have never been waged and to which we now have spent $400 billion and have seen over 3,000 lives of the bravest young Americans wasted." In an interview, Obama "predicted the war in Iraq will dominate American politics for some time to come and wants the discussion to include creating a broader foreign policy framework."
However, Obama's kick off was not without a gaffe, although it appears the media is willing to forgive him. For example, the Washington Post reports Obama "challenged his Democratic rivals to lay out specifics for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq and declared that the thousands of lives lost so far in the war had been 'wasted.'" Obama "later said he regretted his choice of words, telling an interviewer that he meant the troops' sacrifices 'have not been honored' by an adequate policy. But Obama indicated in his earliest steps on the campaign trail that he considers Iraq a central distinction between himself and the rest of the Democratic field."
Obama Spars With Australian Prime Minister In a sign that he is garnering more attention than your standard presidential candidate, Obama also exchanged shots with a prominent ally of the US over the Iraq war yesterday. ABC World News reported last night that Obama "got a taste of the rough and tumble world of presidential politics. Obama, often criticized for his lack of foreign policy experience, had his plan to withdraw US troops from Iraq by 2008 attacked by an unlikely source, the Prime Minister of Australia, an ally of President Bush." John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia: "If I were running Al Qaeda in Iraq, I would put a circle around March 2008 and pray as many times as possible for a victory not only for Obama, but also for the Democrats." The Chicago Tribune reports that Obama hit right back, saying, "I would suggest that he call up another 20,000 Australians and send them to Iraq. Otherwise, it's just a bunch of empty rhetoric." The AP reports that Obama said, "It's flattering that one of George W. Bush's allies feels obliged to attack me."
The media coverage of Sen. Hillary Clinton's first visit to New Hampshire in ten years stood in sharp contrast to the positive coverage received by Sen. Barack Obama's announcement. While Democratic activists in the Granite State treated Obama like a rock star when he swung through there in November, Clinton's visit was marked by repeated questions, heavily focused on by the media, about her vote to authorize the Iraq war. NBC Nightly News reported last night that Clinton "has been telling New Hampshire voters that she's the most experienced Democrat running for president. But many of them are asking why then did she vote to authorize the war in Iraq?" ABC World News reported that "the frontrunner repeatedly faced questions about her vote to authorize the war in Iraq. Today, she referred to that conflict as a civil war."
The AP reports that from "crowded town hall meetings to smaller gathering at private homes...invariably, the questions returned to Iraq. What would she do to end the conflict if elected president? Would she support cutting funds to stop President Bush's planned increase in troop levels? And, perhaps most importantly, why won't she recant her 2002 vote authorizing the military invasion?" The New York Times reports Clinton "was challenged on Iraq from corner to corner of New Hampshire this weekend, while Senator Barack Obama drew cheers in Iowa for his opposition to the war." Besides "giving voters a chance to probe the views of two major rivals for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, the weekend appearances gave the two campaigns a chance to road test their strategies for dealing with the central issue of Iraq in the primaries and beyond." USA Today reports Clinton faced "pointed questions from Democratic activists about her early support for the war in Iraq," but she "refused to characterize her 2002 vote authorizing the invasion as a mistake." The Washington Post reports Clinton is "sending a message to primary voters as well as to her opponents that governing -- unlike campaigning -- is about finding common ground and forging compromise, not making difficult promises." The "response to Clinton's approach was mixed."
Ultimate Impact Of War Vote Unclear. Veteran political journalist John DiStaso writes in the New Hampshire Union Leader that "most questioners Clinton faced yesterday were friendly, if not adoring. Only a handful pressed her hard and those who did focused on Iraq." The New York Times says that despite questions about the war, she was overall "warmly received."
Clinton Position Improves In Key States Despite the recent focus on Obama, Clinton appears to be doing better in some key states. A Zogby poll of 500 likely Iowa Democratic caucus participants shows Clinton gaining ground, and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack losing support, in the leadoff state. Clinton is backed by 24% of respondents, tied with John Edwards. Obama is at 18%, Vilsack 9%, and Sen. Joseph Biden 4%. A month ago, Edwards was at 27%, Obama 17%, and Clinton and Vilsack tied at 16% each, with Biden at 3%. In New Hampshire, a Zogby Poll of 500 likely primary participants shows Clinton moving into the lead, backed by 27% of respondents. Obama is backed by 23%, Edwards, 13%, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, 3%.
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While most of the media remains focused on the Democrats, Rudy Giuliani appears to be making big strides in courting Republicans and bridging the divide between his views on social issues and those of conservatives who often dominate GOP primaries. In California on Saturday, Giuliani backed President Bush on the Iraq war, and called for vigorous prosecution of the war on terror, seeking to make these issues the dominant themes in his nascent presidential bid. The Los Angeles Times said Giuliani "praised President Bush's war leadership on Saturday and mocked supporters of a nonbinding congressional resolution condemning the U.S. troop buildup in Iraq. ... Drawing parallels between Iraq and America's Civil War, Giuliani compared Bush's political troubles to Abraham Lincoln's. When the Civil War was unpopular, Giuliani said, Lincoln 'kept his eye ahead.'" The San Jose Mercury News reported that Giuliani's "talk-tough, campaign-ready stemwinder Saturday on terrorism and the Iraq war was a preview of how he intends to win over conservatives, even as they expressed doubts on his views on social issues such as abortion and gay rights." The New York Sun reported that Giuliani "ridiculed" efforts in Congress to pass a resolution on Iraq, saying, "What I don't get is the non-binding resolution. I don't get that. In the business world if two weeks were spent on a non-binding resolution, it would be considered non-productive."
Giuliani appears to have been well received by the California crowd, which may pay big dividends if the state moves up its presidential primary to two weeks after New Hampshire's, as expected. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the audience "was primed for a lovefest: Excited Republicans in the hall jumped to their feet and cheered when scores of young volunteers waving 'I (heart) Rudy' signs marched through the room, where the man introduced as 'America's mayor' took the stage to the sound of the Clash tune 'Rudie Can't Fail.' Giuliani regaled the crowd with self-deprecating stories of his days as a federal prosecutor, moved them with recollections of the horror of the Sept. 11 attacks and delivered an inspirational call to action regarding the nation's current problems. His speech was interrupted repeatedly by applause, cheers of 'Rudy! Rudy!' and several standing ovations from the grassroots activists." The Ventura County Star reports, "Judging from his reception at the convention, Giuliani appears to be the early front-runner in the minds of California's Republican partisans. His leadership appeal has for many trumped the traditional conservative-moderate split that has dominated intraparty Republican politics for decades, as even many conservatives seem willing to overlook Giuliani's positions that run counter to their beliefs on abortion, gay rights, gun control and illegal immigration."
Well, at least one Republican won't be running for president. The Houston Chronicle reported over the weekend that Texas Gov. Rick Perry's chief political consultant, Dave Carney, said Perry "has no interest in national politics and may seek re-election in 2010." Carney said "speculation that recent decisions by Perry, including his mandate that middle-school girls be inoculated against a sexually transmitted virus linked to cervical cancer, are designed to raise the governor's profile nationally is 'one of the most retarded things about the political observers in Texas.'"
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The Los Angeles Times reports that as the House prepares to start its debate over President Bush's Iraq strategy, Democrats "are counting on many Republicans to join them in passing a resolution opposing President Bush's troop buildup." GOP Rep. Wayne T. Gilchrest "predicts that 30 to 60 of his colleagues will back the nonbinding resolution, which would be the strongest repudiation of Bush's Iraq policy from Republicans since the war began nearly four years ago." Likewise, the Washington Post reports Republicans are "girding for broad defections on their side." The Wall Street Journal and Christian Science Monitor run similar stories.
Yesterday, on the Sunday political shows, House leaders debated the ground rules for the upcoming debate. The AP reports House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said "a House vote on Iraq this week will be limited to the question of supporting President Bush's troop escalation." Hoyer's comment "drew a vehement objection from House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, who said House Democrats had promised to allow a vote this week on a Republican alternative opposing a cutoff of money for the war." But Roll Call says "a Democratic lawmaker, who asked not to be named, asserted that many rank-and-file Members" had lobbied "against allowing Republicans to offer a substitute resolution, asserting it could 'fracture' the majority."
Former undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith, appearing on Fox News Sunday, responded to the claim that the pre-war briefing he put together titled, "Iraq and Al Qaida Making the Case," was "all wrong." Feith said, "Nobody in my office ever said there was an operational relationship between Iraq and Al Qaida. It's just not correct." The AP notes Feith "was responding to a report by the Defense Department inspector general that Feith's office 'did not provide the most accurate analysis of intelligence to senior decision makers.' The IG's report found that there was no support for the Pentagon's claim of a 'mature symbiotic relationship' in all areas between Iraq and al-Qaida."
Feith, on CNN's Late Edition, said, "What the inspector general is criticizing is the fact that people in the Pentagon criticized the quality of the CIA intelligence. And the inspector general, I think wrongly, says that the criticism of intelligence was intelligence work, and it was inappropriate for non-intelligence people to do that. ... The inspector general, with all due respect, was in an area of opinion for which there are no legal standards, and he made an argument that is self-contradictory, doesn't hang together." The Los Angeles Times reports Feith also "defended as 'good government' his office's prewar findings."
House Increases Scrutiny Of White House U.S. News and World Report reports, "Elected with a mandate to clean up Washington, congressional Democrats on oversight committees across Capitol Hill are still just revving up; many are hiring staff and deciding what exactly to investigate. Those investigations can take months, and the showdown hearings could be a long way off. But investigations are coming. Lots of them." US News adds, "A real flash point could come if the Bush administration claims executive privilege and withholds information from Democratic investigative committees."
Newsweek, in its cover article, reports that at "least one former White House official contends that some Bush advisers secretly want an excuse to attack Iran. 'They intend to be as provocative as possible and make the Iranians do something [America] would be forced to retaliate for,' says Hillary Mann, the administration's former National Security Council director for Iran and Persian Gulf Affairs." US officials "insist they have no intention of provoking or otherwise starting a war with Iran," but the "longstanding war of words between Washington and Tehran is edging toward something more dangerous. A second Navy carrier group is steaming toward the Persian Gulf, and NEWSWEEK has learned that a third carrier will likely follow." Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Colin Powell "thinks Bush simply wasn't prepared to deal with a regime he thought should not be in power. As secretary of State he met fierce resistance to any diplomatic overtures to Iran and its ally Syria."
Powell's criticism comes as the US releases evidence of Iran's involvement in Iraq's violence. The New York Times reports on its front page, "After weeks of internal debate, senior United States military officials on Sunday literally put on the table their first public evidence of the contentious assertion that Iran supplies Shiite extremist groups in Iraq with some of the most lethal weapons in the war. They said those weapons had been used to kill more than 170 Americans in the past three years." The officials also asserted, "without providing direct evidence, that Iranian leaders had authorized smuggling those weapons into Iraq for use against the Americans." The Washington Post, USA Today, AP, Washington Times and Los Angeles Times also report the story.
Meanwhile, the AP reports "skeptical congressional Democrats said Sunday the Bush administration should move cautiously before accusing Iran of fomenting a campaign of violence against US troops in Iraq." The Congressmen spoke on the morning talk shows as the US military delivered its briefing in Baghdad. For example, Sen. Christopher Dodd said on CBS's Face the Nation, "I read the same report, but I'm also concerned about some of these reports coming out of intelligence analysts. ... That's how we got into the mess in Iraq. That's why some of us supported those resolutions because of doctored information."
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Jay Leno: "President Bush announced today he will leave on a tour of Latin America. His first stop -- Los Angeles."
Jay Leno: "Justice Department officials have determined that a President of the United States does have the legal authority to have someone killed. Did you know that? ... No, if you're the President, you can actually legally order the killing of someone in the United States. And today, Bill Clinton withdrew his support for Hillary. He said, 'That's it. I don't want to be involved with that.'"
Conan O'Brien: "The rumor in Hollywood right now is that Al Gore may announce he's running for president during a speech at the Academy Awards. Yeah, that's right, folks. They found a way to make Oscar speeches even more boring."
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