ABC World News reported last night that John McCain "can claim some momentum after winning a nail-biter in South Carolina." But "Mitt Romney won in Nevada. And now, the race is turning to Florida, where Rudy Giuliani has been spending an enormous amount of time and money." ABC (Claiborne) added Giuliani "has had Florida pretty much all to himself the past couple of weeks, while his rivals campaigned elsewhere. Now, all of the top Republican contenders are about to descend on Florida for what is expected to be a rough and tumble battle, for the largest delegate prize yet. Florida is where Rudy Giuliani will make his stand - or else probably fall." McCain "comes into Florida with momentum from his win in South Carolina. But independents, McCain's strength, cannot vote in this state."
NBC Nightly News said "capturing South Carolina gives...McCain what every GOP nominee has had for the last 28 years: a victory in the gateway to the solidly Republican South, sweeter because McCain's bid ended bitterly there in 2000." But "Romney has won Nevada and Michigan, and McCain in New Hampshire and South Carolina and Mike Huckabee in Iowa, no Republican is yet clearly the party's favorite." Each added NBC, "to some extent" was "backed by a segment or region of the party. Winning Florida's the nation's fourth largest state will require widespread appeal."
USA Today quotes Florida GOP chairman saying that "coming off his South Carolina win over former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, 'McCain has a lot of momentum, but it's still very fluid.'"
Sen. John McCain beat out Mike Huckabee in the South Carolina Republican presidential primary Saturday, after both men put significant effort into the state. Fred Thompson, a distant third, was said to be assessing his options, but he did not exit the race. However, Rep. Duncan Hunter, who finished last among active candidates in both South Carolina and Nevada, did end his White House run. The South Carolina results, with 97% reporting: McCain 143,224 (33%), Huckabee 128,908 (30%), Thompson 67,897 (16%), Mitt Romney 64,970 (15%), Rep. Ron Paul 15,773 (4%), Rudy Giuliani 9,112 (2%), Hunter 1,035 (0%).
The win is seen as giving McCain momentum heading into the Florida primary next Tuesday and beyond. On its front page, the Washington Post writes, "From Rush Limbaugh to Tom DeLay, voices that once held sway over the Republican rank and file unloaded on John McCain over the last week, trying to use a conservative electorate in South Carolina to derail" his bid. But while McCain "failed to persuade many of the old Republican power brokers, he wrapped up the Republican establishment where it counted most, South Carolina." The New York Times said on its front page yesterday that McCain's victory, "on top of his win earlier this month in New Hampshire, capped a remarkable comeback for a campaign that was all but written off six months ago. In an unusually fluid Republican field, his aides said they hoped the victory would give Mr. McCain a head of steam going into the Jan. 29 Florida primary and the nationwide series of nominating contests on Feb. 5."
The Los Angeles Times says the "day's outcome gave McCain a significant boost because it was his second primary victory and was a sharp loss" for Huckabee, "who had hoped to run strongly in the Southern state." In a front-page story, the Washington Times also calls it "a major boost" for McCain that "gives him momentum going into next week's Florida primary."
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Elsewhere this weekend, Mitt Romney cruised to victory in Nevada on Saturday, where he was the only top GOP candidate to compete. The CBS Evening News reported Romney "was the easy winner on the Republican side." CBS (Whitaker) added, "Please excuse the pun, but Mitt Romney took a gamble coming here to Nevada while everybody else was in South Carolina, a gamble that he insists paid off." The Nevada results, with all precincts reporting: Romney 22,649 (51%), Paul 6,087 (14%), McCain 5,561 (13%), Huckabee 3,616 (8%), Thompson 3,521 (8%), Giuliani 1,910 (4%), Hunter 890 (2%). The AP says Romney "ignored a loss in South Carolina to celebrate an easy win in Nevada's caucuses, which followed up his victory Tuesday in Michigan's primary." The New York Times says Romney "coasted to victory" in "the first major Western contest of the presidential campaign." The Denver Post says Romney built on "early support in the Intermountain West," where he earlier won in Wyoming. The Politico says the "blowout Nevada win came as no surprise to the campaign, which has switched its focus in recent days from winning states to winning delegates."
The AP reports that while campaigning for Mike Huckabee yesterday, actor Chuck Norris said that John McCain "is too old to handle the pressures of being president. 'I didn't pick John to support because I'm just afraid that the vice president would wind up taking over his job in that four-year presidency,' said Norris, who was hosting a fundraiser for Huckabee at his Lone Wolf Ranch." Huckabee "distanced himself from Norris' comments. 'Only John McCain and his hairdresser know for sure,' he quipped, at a ranch house on the sprawling East Texas estate."
The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that Fred Thompson "reportedly was meeting with his advisers to decide whether he should drop out of the race or soldier on toward the next primary in Florida on Jan. 29. ... But political analysts said Thompson's showing in South Carolina might have been the final blow."
The Wall Street Journal reports with the "dogfight in Nevada behind them," Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama "prepared to battle it out in South Carolina while spreading their efforts to the nearly two dozen states that will hold primaries on Feb. 5." Just "minutes after giving her victory speech at a Las Vegas casino, Mrs. Clinton flew to Missouri where she held a rally in St. Louis that attracted nearly 4,000 people. On Sunday, she attended church at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem in her home state of New York." Obama "celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. on Sunday with a speech at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards spent the weekend campaigning in South Carolina." ABC World News reported, "The Democrats are focused squarely on South Carolina, where, once again, the issue of race will be an issue." ABC added Obama "said today that this state is going to be absolutely critical to his success."
The AP reports heading into "the most racially diverse contest yet in the presidential campaign, Obama took to the pulpit at Martin Luther King Jr.'s Ebenezer Baptist Church on the eve of the federal holiday marking the civil rights hero's birth 79 years ago. He based his speech on King's quote that 'Unity is the great need of the hour.'" In New York, "at the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, Clinton told how she had traveled years ago with her church youth group to hear him speak."
Democratic Frontrunners Planning MLK March On South Carolina Capitol USA Today reports that Clinton, Obama and Edwards are scheduled today to take part in "an NAACP-sponsored march to the state Capitol, where the Confederate flag still flies" in a "symbolically charged commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr."
Democrats Set To Debate In South Carolina The Charleston Post and Courier reports that tonight's Democratic debate in Myrtle Beach will be "a monumental moment" because it "promises to explore the issue of race as it pertains to presidential politics." The Greenville News adds that the debate, which is sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus, "could help shape how South Carolina votes on Saturday -- and how other states vote in upcoming primaries. It might prove to be a watershed moment for" Clinton, who "finds herself playing catch-up to Illinois Sen. Barack Obama for the votes of black Democrats in their first ballot box test in a diverse state."
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The Politico reports Barack Obama "launched Sunday what his top aides described as a more aggressive bid to challenge 'unbelievable falsehoods' pressed last week in Nevada by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former President Bill Clinton." With Obama's "new strategy, the Democratic nomination fight took on a new contour: It's Obama versus two Clintons, not just one. And the line of attack emerging from his second consecutive primary loss appears to be this: The Clintons are a couple whose words cannot always be trusted." ABC World News reported, "Today, in an exclusive interview with ABC News, Barack Obama made what may be his strongest comments yet against the Clinton campaign. And his target was not Hillary Clinton. But former President Bill Clinton, who has been an increasingly vocal critic of Obama on the campaign trail lately. Here's what Obama said." Obama: "The former President, who I think all of us have a lot of regard for, has taken his advocacy on behalf of his wife to a level, I think is pretty troubling. He continues to make statements that aren't supported by the facts. ... You know, this has become a habit. And one of the things I think we're going to have to do is directly confront Bill Clinton when he's not making statements that are factually accurate."
In Nevada's Democratic caucuses Saturday, Sen. Hillary Clinton won 50.7% of county convention delegates, while Sen. Barack Obama won 45.2% and John Edwards 3.8%. ABC World News reported Clinton "has pulled out a victory in what was a hotly contested caucus." ABC (Wright) added, "The Clinton campaign played the expectations game here in Nevada masterfully. They cast themselves as the underdog fighting against the big union backing" Sen. Barack Obama "and crying foul at every turn, but today Clinton won hands-down." CBS Evening News said, "Here's the bottom line: Sen. Obama brought his optimism to Nevada. Sen. Clinton brought her organization. In the end, organization won." NBC Nightly News said Obama "really had been trying to downplay expectations here for the last couple of days saying if he won in Nevada it should be considered a huge upset. They point to the fact that Hillary Clinton was ahead here by some 25 points not too long ago. Barack Obama didn't even wait to hear the results. In fact, he left before the caucuses began."
The AP writes that Clinton "has wind at her back," while "Obama could use a gale." The Reno Gazette-Journal says "whites and women helped Clinton win while blacks overwhelmingly backed Obama." The Las Vegas Sun says Clinton's win "gives her much-needed momentum going into next Saturday's South Carolina Democratic primary, where Obama was seen as having an advantage because of that state's large African-American population."
On its front page, the Washington Post reports, "Obama's campaign argued that the outcome in Nevada was a shared victory and laid claim to 13 delegates, compared with 12 for Clinton, because of the way his support was distributed around the state. Obama aides also complained of what they said were voter-suppression tactics." The New York Times reports on its front page that the "complex formula that gave more weight to votes in some parts of the state" aided Obama. In a statement, Obama said, "We came from over 25 points behind to win more national convention delegates than Hillary Clinton, because we performed well all across the state, including rural areas where Democrats have traditionally struggled."
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Reports on the debate over an economic stimulus plan suggest Congress and the White House may be close to striking a deal. U.S. News and World Report, in an article titled, "3 Things You Need To Know About Washington's Stimulus Plans," says this week the plan is "pretty much a done deal." While "the details still need to be worked out, but both Bush and congressional Democrats are probably looking at a package of roughly $140 to $150 billion in stimulus, or 1.2 percent of gross domestic product. (By contrast, the fiscal stimulus package that was part of the 2001 tax cuts was worth $40 billion -- 0.4 percent of GDP -- or about $45 billion in today's dollars.)" Last night, ABC World News also said that "to hear the politicians in Washington talk about it today, it's almost a done deal."
Rep. Charles Rangel, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, said on ABC's This Week that his panel is "way ahead on this game. Speaker Nancy Pelosi called us together in December, with Barney Frank and George Miller and other House leaders, in order to see that we would be ready, if indeed there was a recession or talks about a recession. ... Fortunately for us, the speaker has been working closely with the secretary of the Treasury. I have been working with Secretary Paulson. And so all the president has done is give broad outlines that we already have agreed to." He added that "at the end of the day, I can assure you that the American people will not be disappointed, and there will be a bipartisan package ready." Sen. Chuck Schumer, on Fox News Sunday, also said he is "optimistic" Congress will pass a stimulus deal by March 1. Schumer commended Bush for advocating a stimulus package in the first place, for taking "the permanent tax cuts off the table...that would have made it very difficult to pass," and for agreeing to forego laying out specifics of a plan before negotiating with Congressional Democrats.
On Friday, Bush called for a tax relief stimulus package representing roughly one percent of the US gross domestic product somewhere between $140 billion and $150 billion. The AP said the President's "urgent remarks gave fresh impetus to congressional leaders already hard at work on an economic rescue package that would include extra money for food stamps and jobless benefits in addition to tax rebates of hundreds of dollars each for millions of Americans." Congressional Democratic leaders "pledged to cooperate with Bush and congressional Republicans," but some said they were "disappointed that Bush had focused only on taxes." On its front page, the Washington Post reported the "principles outlined by Bush opened a path to an agreement with congressional Democrats that could come as early as next week."
The New York Times reported Sunday that as the White House and Congress "begin negotiations on a package of measures to stimulate the economy, the big fight will be over whether to put extra money in the hands of tens of millions of low-income families who paid little or no income tax last year. Nearly 40 percent of Americans owed no federal income tax last year, though even low-income workers paid taxes for Social Security and Medicare." While the President "has refused to disclose specifics of his $145 billion plan, administration officials and Republican lawmakers favor a proposal that would offer rebates of up to $800 for individuals and $1,600 for families -- but only if they paid that much in taxes last year. For practical purposes, analysts estimate, a family of four with an income of $24,000 would receive no government payments at all, and families with incomes below $40,000 would at most receive partial rebates. But a household with an income of $100,000 or more could get back $1,600." USA Today
ABC World News reported, "It's worth noting that Wall Street does not seem to be overly stimulated by this stimulus plan. The market actually dropped on Friday after the plan was announced."
McCain Dubious About Bush Proposal Bob Novak, in a syndicated column appearing in today's Washington Post, writes that Sen. John McCain, viewed as the GOP frontrunner for the presidential nomination after his win in South Carolina, "has not entirely abandoned 'straight talk' in seeking Republican anointment. I asked him Saturday whether he knew of any instance of an economic stimulus such as Bush's proposed $800-per-taxpayer handout actually averting a recession. He said that he did not and that the proposal bothered him."
The New York Times reports, "The Pentagon is considering Gen. David H. Petraeus for the top NATO command later this year, a move that would give the general, the top American commander in Iraq, a high-level post during the next administration but that has raised concerns about the practice of rotating war commanders." The Times adds "a senior Pentagon official said it was weighing 'a next assignment for Petraeus' and that the NATO post was a possibility. 'He deserves one and that has also always been a highly prestigious position,' the official said. 'So he is a candidate for that job, but there have been no final decisions and nothing on the timing.'"
Zakaria: War In Iraq Has "Largely Ended" Writing in Newsweek, Fareed Zakaria says, "Pity the U.S. presidential candidates. They had their positions on Iraq all worked out by last summer and have repeated them consistently ever since. But events on the ground have changed dramatically, and their rhetoric feels increasingly stale. They're fighting the Iraq War all right, but it's the wrong one. The Democrats are having the hardest time with the new reality. Every candidate is committed to 'ending the war' and bringing our troops back home. The trouble is, the war has largely ended, and precisely because our troops are in the middle of it."
The AP reported over the weekend that the "apparent gaps in White House e-mail archives coincide with dates in late 2003 and early 2004 when the administration was struggling to deal with the CIA leak investigation and the possibility of a congressional probe into Iraq intelligence failures." The gaps "473 days over a period of 20 months -- are cited in a chart prepared by White House computer technicians and shared in September with the House Reform and Government Oversight Committee, which has been looking into reports of missing e-mail."
The Washington Post reports E. Duncan Getchell, "whose nomination to the federal appeals court in Richmond triggered criticism from Virginia's two US Senators, has withdrawn his name from consideration, the White House said yesterday." Getchell's withdrawal "further complicates efforts to fill the five vacancies on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit," which "had been known for its conservative bent, but it has lost several prominent Republican appointees and has been moving in a more moderate direction." The Hill says "left-leaning critics of Getchell called him an ideologue and blasted his membership in the conservative Federalist Society."
The Washington Times reports lawmakers "attending the National Policy Alliance Summit, an organization representing more than 3 million black government workers and elected officials, said they are more interested in effective government than partisan political battles." The organization was "able to adopt resolutions calling for the HIV/AIDS epidemic to be declared a national emergency, ending the proliferation of mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines, fully funding No Child Left Behind and other issues."
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Jay Leno: "Let's see what's going on, oh, according to the latest polls, American voters are warming up to Hillary Clinton, you know what this means? This could be the best proof yet of global warming. Hillary's starting to thaw."
Jay Leno: "John Edwards keeps coming in third in all these races around the country. But he said he's not worried. He also said he no longer believes there are two Americas. He now thinks there are three and he's going to keep looking for an American until he finds one that wants him as president."
David Letterman: "Here's big news for TV viewers, 'American Idol' is coming back. Fantastic show. It's a tremendous, honestly. In terms of entertainment, it's just one step above karaoke. Honestly. You know the 'American Idol' features a group of self-deluded pretenders and publicity seekers. It's just like the presidential race."
David Letterman: "New York city mayor Bloomberg may run for president. Are you aware of that? It's on his bucket list."
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