President Bush's quick visit to the scene of the wildfires that ravaged Southern California was reported as a study in contrasts to the Administration's handling of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. While some observers noted that Katrina was a disaster of a different magnitude, most media reports gave a positive assessment of the Administration's effort to aid fire victims. In addition, media reports gave a positive spin to Bush's alliance with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, noting the political odd couple's cooperation in managing the disaster.
The networks all noted Bush's trip to the region, with CBS and NBC highlighting the political angle and comparing it to his handling of Katrina. ABC World News reported he "thanked firefighters, telling them the nation owes them a debt of gratitude. And he met a family, the Jeffcoats, one of 1,400 families who lost their home." The CBS Evening News reported Bush "dismissed comparisons between Katrina and California and seemed generally satisfied by the efforts he witnessed today. But if he actually thought anybody was doing a heck of a job, he didn't say so in public."
NBC Nightly News reported the state's "Democratic lieutenant governor dismissed the four hour visit as a public relations stunt. But the President said it served a purpose." President Bush: "It's important for me to come out and see firsthand the situation. There is no question a lot people are suffering, and no question there's been terrible losses." The AP reports President Bush "had a message Thursday for Southern Californians weary and frightened from five days of wildfires. 'We're not going to forget you in Washington, D.C.,' he declared in an eerie echo of what he once told Hurricane Katrina victims."
The Los Angeles Times reports Bush "on Thursday brought a dose of compassion to fire-ravaged Southern California." Yet "in touring by air and foot a region still ablaze in crisis, Bush also confronted a legacy of mismanagement in the face of natural disaster -- his administration's breakdown in the wake of Hurricane Katrina." The San Diego Union-Tribune notes those "finally returning to Rancho Bernardo homes after days of displacement were stuck in traffic for hours so Bush's motorcade could pass, and delays left firefighters longing for food and showers."
McClatchy reports even "critics of the White House say the administration responded swiftly to the wildfires, a sharp contrast to its handling of Katrina's devastating impact on New Orleans and the Gulf Coast two years ago." The New York Times reports in a front page story that President Bush "pointedly praised Mr. Schwarzenegger's handling of the country's biggest disaster since Hurricane Katrina two years ago, making veiled comparisons to local relief efforts at that time in Louisiana." The Washington Post reports the President and Schwarzenegger "gave each other credit for what they described as the prompt and effective response of state and federal agencies that had kept the number killed by the fires low, though the inferno has devastated 753 square miles and will end up causing more than $1 billion in damage." The Financial Times reports, "So far, President Bush's more engaged approach seems to be paying off."
Bush, Schwarzenegger Allies Of Convenience The New York Times reports it "took an inferno in Southern California to thaw the ice between" Bush and Schwarzenegger. It is "no secret in California or Washington that the two have never been buddy-buddy, dating from when Mr. Schwarzenegger was a top fitness adviser to Mr. Bush's father."
House Democrats quickly pushed a revised SCHIP bill through with a vote of 265-142, but their tactics challenged by Republicans as heavy-handed -- failed to attract the needed GOP votes for a veto-proof majority. Both sides publicly complained that the other was uninterested in compromise. Democrats said Republicans ignored the changes made to address their complaints, while the GOP said Democrats timed the bill to coincide with interest group attack ads.
McClatchy says the bill "fell seven votes shy of the 272 needed for a veto-proof two-thirds majority." President Bush "promised to veto the new legislation if it came to his desk." While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., "and top Democrats tried to put a positive face on the setback, Thursday's vote was an obvious disappointment and left the majority leadership vulnerable to criticism that their strategy of hastily crafting the legislation and then pushing for an immediate vote was flawed." The AP says the bill was "so politically charged that one Republican bluntly accused Democrats of timing the events to dovetail with attack ads planned by organizations supporting the legislation." Democrats "vehemently denied the charge."
The Washington Post reports Republican supporters "feared that the day's events had so poisoned the atmosphere they would never persuade the dozen or so Republicans they need to override a Bush veto." The Politico reports House Republicans "spent much of Thursday raging against the process by which the bill came to the House floor, complaining that they had no chance to amend it and did not see the legislation until last night." The Wall Street Journal says Democrats "appear to have hit a wall that could force some reassessment in tactics."
The Los Angeles Times says "there have been no direct negotiations between the administration and the legislation's congressional supporters. Each side blames the other for the impasse." The New York Times reports if "some version of the new bill is approved by Congress and vetoed by Mr. Bush, and if the House again sustains his veto, Democrats said they might extend the existing children's insurance program through next summer." The Washington Times reports House Democratic leaders "said it was important to bring the bill to the floor this week in order to renew the program before the Thanksgiving recess next month."
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House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel's new plan to eliminate the alternative minimum tax (AMT) and increase taxes on the wealthy is being portrayed as the first salvo in a fresh debate over taxation. However, the story has yet to break through to the front pages even of business-oriented newspapers, and none of the three broadcast networks mentioned it during their Thursday evening newscasts.
The Wall Street Journal puts the story on page A5 under the headline "Tax Blueprint Mixes Pain, Gains," saying the Democrat's plan "could hurt oil and technology companies, manufacturing firms and others" in order to offset the impact of "an across-the-board cut in tax rates long sought by many corporations." But the Journal says the bill is little more than a "discussion piece" right now, since it has little chance of being taken up this year and may be too much of a hot-button issue to "get serious traction" before the 2008 elections. The Washington Post says the legislation is unlikely to be taken up soon, and that the debate over it "is likely to spill into the 2008 presidential campaign." The Post highlights the four percent surtax on married couples with adjusted gross income exceeding $200,000, which goes up to 4.4 percentage points for couples whose income tops $500,000, as one of the "bill's most controversial elements."
The Los Angeles Times also says the Rangel plan "is the starting gun in a debate that will rage in the House in the months ahead -- including within the Democratic Party -- and into the general election campaign next year." USA Today runs just a brief 150-word item on the proposal, noting Rangel's claim that the plan would lessen taxes on 91 million families.
The Chicago Tribune says Rangel "called his proposal 'the mother of all tax reforms,'" but Republicans were quick to dub it "the 'mother of all tax hikes.'" The Washington Times puts skeptical quotes in the phrase "tax 'relief.'" The Financial Times adds that Republicans also warned the bill would "depress growth and destroy jobs."
The Christian Science Monitor reports in an optimistic article on the decline of al Qaeda that "across the Arab world, where Al Qaeda had sought to build influence and bases of operation on the back of widespread anger against the US over its war in Iraq and the broader war on terrorism, the movement is now showing signs that it is stalled, if not in retreat. Experts say Al Qaeda's failures have largely come down to its brutal methods, which have turned off large numbers of Arabs."
Meanwhile, the AP reports al Qaeda "sympathizers have unleashed a torrent of anger against Al-Jazeera television, accusing it of misrepresenting Osama bin Laden's latest audiotape by airing excerpts in which he criticizes mistakes by insurgents in Iraq. Users of a leading Islamic militant Web forum posted thousands of insults against the pan-Arab station."
FBI Warns Anew Of Shoe Bombs The CBS Evening News' Bob Orr last night reported on a joint FBI-Homeland Security bulletin that "bluntly warns that terrorists are still working to use modified footwear as a concealment method for explosive devices. The alert follows the discovery of bomb detonators expertly hidden in the hollowed out soles of this pair of shoes on a European bus last month." Experts "worry that a team of terrorists could beat security by carrying unassembled parts of a bomb past a checkpoint."
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The AP reports social conservative leader Sen. Sam Brownback "pronounced himself 'much more comfortable' with Rudy Giuliani's position on abortion after the one-time rivals for the Republican presidential nomination discussed the issue Thursday." Giuliani "flew to Washington for a meeting he requested with Brownback in the Kansas senator's Capitol Hill office. Brownback dropped out of the race last week, citing poor fundraising, and his former rivals have been seeking his endorsement." Brownback said, "I'm much more comfortable. Justices are key. He's stated publicly many times about his support for strict constructionists like, I believe he said Roberts. John Roberts is a personal friend."
The Politico reports Brownback "said he was not yet ready to offer his endorsement." Asked if he "could support somebody who supports abortion rights, Brownback said, 'I don't know that he would...whether he'd describe himself as a pro-choice mayor or a pro-choice candidate.'" When "questioned exactly how he'd describe himself, Giuliani offered his usual recitation of how he views the issue, saying that he wants 'to see a society in which there's no abortion,' but that he's 'not in favor of changing the law and the right that presently exists.'" But he "did appear to go further than usual in mimicking the commonly used language of President Bush and other anti-abortion Republicans."
Sen. Hillary Clinton celebrated her 60th birthday in style last night, hosting a massive campaign fundraiser at Manhattan's Beacon Theatre, which featured Billy Crystal as the MC. Long Island Newsday reports that event featured a musical performance by Elvis Costello, who led the crowd in a rendition of "Happy Birthday." "'Happy Birthday, Mrs. President,' crooned Costello, echoing Marilyn Monroe's serenade of President Kennedy." The AP reports that the "star-studded fundraiser" brought in more than $1.5 million for the campaign.
The New York Times opens its coverage with a "rare shot" Clinton fired at Rudy Giuliani, chiding him for "saying he would root for the Red Sox in the World Series," noting that Giuliani has "mocked" Clinton for claiming to be a Yankees fan despite her concurrent allegiance to the Chicago Cubs. At the event, "Clinton noted that both she and the evening's M.C., Billy Crystal, were devoted to the Yankees. 'I have been a fan, and I remain a fan of the New York Yankees - no changes, no looking to curry favor with anyone else,' she said to much laughter and applause from the audience of mostly New York Democrats." Giuliani has been an outspoken fan of the Yankees, who are rivals of the Red Sox.
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A pair of new national polls out this morning show conflicting trends in the Democratic primary nationally. A Fox News poll released last night shows Hillary Clinton leading the Democratic field with 42%, followed by Barack Obama with 25% and John Edwards with 13%. The rest of the field is at 2% or less. In a similar poll in early October, Clinton Led Obama 50%-18%. A CBS News poll released last night showed Clinton expanding her lead. The poll shows Clinton topping the field with 51%, followed by Obama, 23%, and Edwards 13%. A similar CBS poll taken in September showed Clinton leading Obama 44%-25%. Part of the explanation may lie in the timing of the surveys the Fox poll was conducted October 23-24, while the CBS poll was taken October 12-16.
The Fox poll shows that on the GOP side, the race is relatively static. Rudy Giuliani continues to hold a double digit lead over his rivals. Giuliani is backed by 31%, followed by Fred Thompson, 17%; John McCain, 12%; Mitt Romney, 7%; and Mike Huckabee, 5%. The rest of the field is at 3% or less.
A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Rudy Giuliani taking back the lead from Hillary Clinton in a 2008 trial heat in the key state of Florida. Giuliani now leads Clinton 46%-43%, reversing a 46%-43% Clinton lead in a similar poll taken two weeks ago. However, Clinton still tops the other GOP candidates. She leads John McCain 44%-43% and Fred Thompson 46%-41%. Mitt Romney trails Clinton by the larger margin of 47%-39%. Giuliani also tops the two other major Democratic contenders, leading Barack Obama 47%-40% and John Edwards 44%-41%. McCain ties Obama and trails Edwards. Thompson and Romney both trail Edwards and Obama by single digits in trial heats.
Clinton remains the runaway favorite in the Democratic primary, taking 43%, followed by Obama, 18%, and Edwards, 12%. Giuliani has a narrower lead on the GOP side, leading with 30%, followed by McCain and Thompson, each with 14%, and Romney, 12%.
The Sacramento Bee reports that Hillary Clinton "maintains a commanding lead over her Democratic challengers in California's Feb. 5 presidential primary, holding more than a 2-1 margin over...Sen. Barack Obama, according to a Field Poll released Thursday. The poll, conducted Oct. 11-21, also found Clinton handily beating all potential Republican opponents in California in hypothetical general election matchups." Among likely Democratic primary voters, Clinton leads with 45%, followed by Obama with 20%, John Edwards with 11% and Gov. Bill Richardson with 4%. The Bee notes, "Poll director Mark DiCamillo said there is no sign of Clinton fading and 'there doesn't appear to be any movement by any of the other candidates.'"
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Jimmy Kimmel: "The big story this week is the terrible wildfires here in California. ... President Bush arrived in San Diego, where he met with Governor Schwarzenegger. Our fate is in the hands of the only two American politicians who don't speak English."
Jimmy Kimmel: "And once again, the President committed another faux pas. He showed up with two dozen Hershey bars and a big bag of marshmallows."
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