House passage of the $516 billion omnibus spending bill may signal the beginning of the end of the spending showdown between congressional Democrats and President Bush. The Los Angeles Times says the bill "hews closely to the White House's budget limits but shifts billions of dollars to the Democratic majority's priorities." The measure "was approved 253-154." Lawmakers "then voted 206-201 to add $31 billion for military operations in Afghanistan, but the bill includes no money for the war in Iraq. The Senate, as early as today, is expected to add $40 billion for Iraq. The bill would then return a final time to the House." The Washington Post reports that "aside from the war funding issue, the White House said it was 'pleased' with the final spending level, even with the added billions for 'emergency' spending on border security, veterans care and other long-anticipated issues."
The Hill reports, "House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) called the legislation 'troubling and unacceptable,' charging that Democrats were planning to 'pile billions in worthless pork onto the backs of our troops.'" The AP says Democrats feel "comfortable that...Bush will ultimately sign the measure despite grumbling from GOP conservatives." Likewise, the New York Times also notes that "despite complaints from conservative Republicans that the measure was bloated and unacceptable, Mr. Bush offered guarded praise for the legislation," and the Wall Street Journal cites "strong signals that...Bush will accept the compromise once Iraq war funding is added by the Senate, possibly as early as Tuesday." Fox News' Special Report said Bush "appears to have held the line on overall federal spending as Democratic leaders worked out a massive spending bill after days of wrangling."
House Liberals Seen As The Big Losers Media reports are depicting Hill liberals as the losers of the long spending showdown. Under the headline "Liberals Lose Bigtime In Budget Battle," The Politico reports, "This much is clear: Democrats in Congress buckled under pressure from the White House to hold spending near the administration's specified limit, and they're poised to give the president more war money with no strings attached." But "the buckling didn't stop there." USA Today reports "Rep. Dave Obey, D-Wis., who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, summed up many Democrats' frustrations by calling the bill 'totally inadequate to meet the long-term investment needs of the country.'" The Christian Science Monitor reports, "Heading into the last days of the legislative session, Republicans in Congress and President Bush are chalking up some surprising victories on federal spending."
Omnibus Contains 9,000 Earmarks Roll Call reports, "The massive 2008 omnibus appropriations bill released by...Obey early Monday includes nearly 9,000 earmarks." Democrats "note there are fewer earmarks than the last omnibus appropriations bill under a Republican Congress." Under the headline "An Earmark Christmas," The Hill also reports "Congressional negotiators have added scores of new earmarks to a massive 3,565-page spending bill that lawmakers had only a few hours to review before an expected vote Monday evening. Democratic leaders did not make the bill available for public viewing until late on Sunday night."
Job Approval For Both Parties At New Low USA Today reports that as Bush and Congress "battle on the budget, homeland security and the war in Iraq, Americans blame both Republicans and Democrats for the impasse. By more than 2-to-1 ratios, they give the president, congressional Democrats and congressional Republicans unfavorable ratings in a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll released Monday." Although "just 30% of those polled give Democrats in Congress good marks, they favor the party by a 53%-40% margin in next year's elections."
The Financial Times reports US Iraq commander General David Petraeus "has started assessing military options for the country after the troop surge winds down next summer as a debate intensifies in the Pentagon over what to do next." At the "heart of the debate in the Pentagon is whether the US should continue to withdraw troops after the surge" of five brigades "has wound down thereby relieving pressure on the heavily stretched army or whether to keep a post-surge force of about 130,000 troops for some time to bolster the security gains."
Meanwhile, the AP reports Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, the US commander in Baghdad, said that although "violence in Iraq has declined, withdrawing U.S. troops too quickly would spell failure in some parts of the capital." Gen. Fil said "that although violence is down, it has dropped because the troop buildup ordered by President Bush in January has made it possible to have a 'force presence that is almost throughout the city" - that is, coalition and Iraqi forces, supplemented by so-called 'Concerned Local Citizens.'"
The Washington Post says that while "overall violence continues to decline in Iraq," the "rate of decrease has slowed since September and a few indicators have actually gone up in recent weeks, according to U.S. military figures released yesterday by the White House." The data "show a continuation of the precipitous decline in blasts caused by improvised explosive devices that began early last summer." USA Today reports Iraq's "Shiite-dominated government has agreed to take over support of a U.S.-funded plan that has organized thousands of Iraqis - including former insurgents and their sympathizers - into local security groups."
Rice Makes Unannounced Visit To Kirkuk The AP reports Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "made an unannounced visit Tuesday to the city that Iraq's Kurds call their Jerusalem, an oil-rich territory claimed by many where the United States says it sees new signs of cooperation and progress." Rice will meet with "members of a civilian-military reconstruction unit based in Kirkuk and meeting provincial politicians of all stripes."
The Wall Street Journal says a Pentagon report "will accuse Iran of continuing to funnel weapons and training personnel into Iraq, adding fuel to a heated debate among U.S. policy makers about whether Iran deserves any credit for the steep declines in Iraq's once-unrelenting violence." The "military assessment about Iraq, set to be released to Congress today, will paint a positive picture of Iraq's overall security situation, according to several officials familiar with its contents."
First Russian Nuclear Fuel Arrives The AP reports Iran "received its first nuclear fuel from Russia on Monday, paving the way for the startup of its reactor in 2008." Both the US and Russia "said that with the shipment, the Iranians would no longer have any reason to produce enriched uranium that could be used to build a nuclear weapon."
The New York Times reports the US "lost a long battle when Russia...delivered nuclear fuel to an Iranian power plant that is at the center of an international dispute over its nuclear program." The Washington Post reports that in an appearance in Virginia, President Bush "expressed support for the Russian delivery, saying it obviates the need for Iran to proceed with a program to enrich uranium. Bush also said he still believes that 'Iran is a danger to peace,' despite a recent U.S. intelligence finding that Tehran ended a covert nuclear weapons program four years ago." The Washington Times reports the Russian Foreign Ministry "joined Mr. Bush in saying that Iran has no need to enrich uranium, a day after making their first delivery to the Islamic regime."
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Sen. Joe Lieberman's endorsement of John McCain yesterday is generating extensive and generally positive media coverage. Most of it suggests the endorsement adds to the Arizona senator's already growing momentum in New Hampshire. ABC World News reported, "If any more evidence is needed that this is an unprecedented and unpredictable political year, consider the following: Today, a Republican candidate was endorsed by a man who seven years ago was the Democratic candidate for Vice President." ABC (Moran) went on to show Lieberman saying, "Let's put America first again and John McCain is the man as president who will help us do that." The McCain camp "is hoping Lieberman can help woo independents who make up 40% of the electorate here in New Hampshire, and they are playing up two big newspaper endorsements this weekend, The Des Moines Register and The Boston Globe. Do you think they bring votes?" McCain: "I think they bring credibility. I don't know if they bring votes. I think they bring credibility and therefore people will say, 'You know, with people like that supporting him, I will have another look.'"
Later onABC World News ), George Stephanopoulos said of McCain, "I think he gets a second look. I'm not sure the endorsements from fairly liberal editorial boards help him with hardcore Republican primary voters, but it does help him in New Hampshire with independents." What he needs "is two things, he needs Mike Huckabee to win, first of all in Iowa, then he has to win in New Hampshire. If he does he's the comeback kid of 2008. If not, he's out." The CBS Evening News also said Lieberman's endorsement "is important in New Hampshire, where about 44 percent of voters are independent," while NBC Nightly News reported that McCain, "whose candidacy needed a bump, got it. Not only from a string of endorsements from newspapers over the weekend, but also from...Lieberman."
Fox News Special Report last night characterized Lieberman's backing a "surprise" and a "significant endorsement." Asked if it was difficult for him to pass over the Democratic presidential candidates and endorse McCain, Lieberman said on MSNBC's Hardball, "Look, these are a lot of fine people. A lot of them are my friends. But...I think particularly on national security and the ability to work across party lines to get things done, including in the war on terrorism, John McCain is the best, so I decided to go with the best. Incidentally [of] all those Democrats, not one of them asked me to support them. John McCain did ask for my support."
The New York Times, under the headline "McCain Senses Momentum Is Starting To Help Him," reports that as "a sign of a re-energized candidacy," McCain "plans to return after Christmas Day to campaigning in Iowa, where he has failed, until recently, to gain support and has devoted few resources since the near-collapse of his campaign in the summer." However, there may be a downside to the Lieberman endorsement. The AP reports, "Support from a high-profile senator who almost always caucuses and votes with Democrats risks alienating conservative GOP voters, angry already at what they see as McCain's abandonment on immigration and campaign finance."
According to the AP, "The increased attention Rudy Giuliani has been giving to New Hampshire doesn't seem to be paying off. The Republican still trails in the first-in-the-nation primary and also faces likely defeats in other early voting states. ... He's not giving up on New Hampshire yet. He returned Monday, telling an audience in Durham that he hoped they would give him a boost 'right here in New Hampshire, where you've got one heck of an important primary coming up.'" The AP adds that "given that lack of progress and to save money for later contests, Giuliani is scaling back his TV ads somewhat this week in the state. Aides say clutter on the airwaves during the holiday season was a factor and he may boost his television presence again. He plans to return to New Hampshire Friday."
Asked on Fox News' Hannity and Colmes about reports that he is pulling ads from New Hampshire, Giuliani said, "They make those decisions, it's based on proportionate strategy. From the beginning our strategy has been you've got to win as many of those -- I originally thought it was only 20 primaries, but now as many of the twenty-nine primaries that come up between now and February 5th. ... So you're going to see money moving around. You may see more money going back in one place like New Hampshire, you may see some of it go to Florida, some to February 5th states."
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Giuliani's "approach to New Hampshire has left local politicians and analysts confused. In many ways, he is the ideal candidate for New Hampshire Republicans, being an economic conservative, a foreign-policy hawk, and a social moderate. At times, he has made a major effort both in terms of candidate time and paid advertising. At other times, he has backed away. 'The candidates who are doing the best in New Hampshire, in both parties, are those doing it the traditional way,' State Republican Chairman Fergus Cullen said. 'The ones who've made the most visits, who've done the most town-hall-style meetings, they're at the top.'"
NBC Nightly News reported Mike Huckabee "has been facing increasing scrutiny to go with his increased standing in the polls of late...one area critics have been looking at closely, granting clemency to some prisoners in his home state." According to NBC, "In all Huckabee granted 1,023 commutations and pardons in ten years as governor, twice as many as his three predecessors combined. Prosecutor Larry Jegly, a Democrat, complains many were violent criminals." NBC added that Prosecutors contend that "many of those freed claimed to have found religion while in prison and were backed by ministers. At the time Huckabee acknowledged that his belief in redemption factored into his decisions."
One of Huckabee's rivals is looking to make hay out of the issue. Fox News' Special Report reported that Mitt Romney "is launching another attack on Mike Huckabee, accusing the former Arkansas governor of being weak on crime." Romney ad: "Mike Huckabee gave 1,033 pardons, including 12 convicted murderers." Fox noted that Romney accuses Huckabee of softening sentences of meth producers a hot-button crime scourge in the Midwest. Huckabee...fired back at Romney with both barrels." Huckabee: "They are now significantly behind me" and "find that desperate, and I think at this time, despicable tactics are the only thing they have left in their arsenal." The New York Times provides a description of Romney's ad along with a transcript of the narration. The Times contends that the ad "is somewhat misleading on what Mr. Romney did regarding methamphetamine. ... Facing pressure from prison overcrowding, Mr. Huckabee signed legislation that exempted those in prison for certain methamphetamine-related crimes from the requirement that inmates serve 70 percent of their sentences before being eligible for parole." In an analysis for the AP (12/18), David Espo relates, "The mention of methamphetamines in the ad's final seconds comes at a time when Iowa officials report widespread manufacture and use of the drug, resulting in increased crime and family disruption."
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The Quad-City Times reports this morning that Iowa Congressman Steve King (R) yesterday endorsed Fred Thompson, "a move Thompson supporters hope will provide fresh momentum in the final two weeks before the caucuses. 'There is only one candidate who epitomized the full spectrum of our conservative values,'" King said during a Des Moines news conference. King "said he didn't reveal his choice to anyone, not even his wife, until the news conference. Representatives from Mitt Romney's and Thompson's campaigns were in the audience."
ABC World News reported Barack Obama's crowds "are energized, across northwest Iowa today, big crowds in small places." The AP reports Obama told audiences that "powerful interests in Washington have swayed a new farm bill toward big business...campaigning in the most rural region of this crucial early voting state and promising to do better as president. 'Once again the lobbyists stepped in to make sure that big agribusinesses got the multimillion-dollar giveaways that they've come to count on,' said Obama."
The New York Times notes Obama and John Edwards, "courting many of the same undecided Iowa voters, added to their efforts Monday to distinguish between each other on the issue of reducing special-interest influence in Washington." The Washington Post adds that Obama "pushed to invigorate his supporters and convince the handful of undecided Democrats that showed up that he intends to play in what has mostly been John Edwards territory," adding that he "is hitting four or five towns a day this week by bus in a swing of 'meet the candidate' events that will take him to 22 counties."
The AP reports that Hillary Clinton is wasting no time in touting her endorsement by the Des Moines Register on Sunday. She is up on the air with a TV ad in Iowa that features the endorsement, which includes "excerpts that focus on Clinton's experience as a lawyer, first lady and U.S. senator since January 2001."
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USA Today reports that a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll shows that in the GOP presidential race, "five candidates are in competitive positions - four of them effectively tied for second place. Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani continues to lead, supported by 27% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents. .... Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee was second among Republicans, at 16%. Tied at 14% were Arizona Sen. John McCain, former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney."
USA Today reports, "Democratic voters increasingly are focused on nominating the most electable presidential candidate, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama fares better than New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton against prospective Republican rivals. ... Among Democrats, Clinton is backed by 45% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, up 6 percentage points from a poll taken two weeks earlier that showed her standing eroding. The modest rebound came despite recent controversy over the tone of her campaign toward Obama. Obama is at 27%, up 3 points, and former North Carolina senator John Edwards is third at 15%."
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The late night shows continue to be in reruns due to the ongoing writers' strike.
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