|
1/22/04
Edwards starts to scare Clark
The surprising results of the Iowa caucuses coupled with Dick Gephardt's withdrawal from the Democratic presidential race has sent Wes Clark's campaign into a frenzy to become a player in the February 3 Missouri and Oklahoma primaries where Geppy was expected to be a major factor. Campaign insiders say that Clark, who didn't run in Iowa so he could focus on next week's New Hampshire primary, worries that the Iowa runner-up, John Edwards, is picking up enough steam to replace Gephardt as the force in the Missouri and even Oklahoma races.
The move to quickly build a campaign in the two states comes as several Gephardt aides are planning to join the Edwards campaign, a move that could help the North Carolina senator organize for the February 3 primaries in five states (Arizona, Delaware, Missouri, South Carolina, Oklahoma) and caucuses in two states (New Mexico and North Dakota).
It's also the latest indication of the conflict in the Clark campaign, sources tell our Suzi Parker, over the controversial decision to skip Iowa because the retired Army general entered the race so late. Insiders now wonder if they couldn't have beaten Iowa winner John Kerry by splitting the veteran vote, thereby getting the momentum to win in New Hampshire.
1/16/04
Clark’s privacy lobbying may be hit
With the Iowa caucus fast approaching Monday, advisers to Wes Clark–who is not in the Iowa vote–are bracing for an attack campaign next week aimed at stopping the retired Army general’s surge in the New Hampshire primary set for January 27. One expected assault: that Clark, after leaving the military, lobbied for an Arkansas firm that mines data and personal information of consumers.
Campaign officials say Clark worked for Acxiom, which recently which won a contract to work on Capps II, the federal government’s airline passenger screening system. He did lobby for Acxiom as it worked to help in security screening of Americans after the 9/11 attack. Officials said he lobbied a range of government officials including Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Vice President Cheney, and John Poindexter, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency head who resigned under fire. He also met with the FBI and Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Insiders say that while working with Acxiom, Clark pushed for privacy restrictions on the data that could be mined on Americans and U.S. visitors. In fact, he is credited with urging Poindexter to meet with privacy experts, one of whom allegedly leaked DARPA’s plan to mine private databases for info on alleged terrorists. Civil liberties advocates said the Total Information Awareness program was a violation or privacy. That leak and one on another Poindexter program led to his resignation amid charges he was building a Big Brother dynasty.
Aide Chris Lehane said that Clark urged greater privacy when dealing with Acxiom. A company statement provided by the campaign added: ”We were very pleased to have Wes Clark associated with our efforts. He worked very closely with us to improve efforts to protect our nation, always keeping private citizens' privacy and civil liberties issues in mind every step of the way."
Read up on Acxiom and data mining.
1/15/04
A rat in the D.C. primary
Here's one reason why the Washington, D.C., presidential primary is considered a joke. In the voter's guide sent to all residents for this week's primary won by Howard Dean, a full page is given to Democrat "Vermin Supreme." Yup, it's a rat. Its politics: "friendly fascist." Its platform: Fight gingivitis. Its slogan: "A country's future depends on its ability to bite back." Its promise: "I shall lie to you, because I can."
Still, maybe some will agree with Supreme's final statement: "All politicians are vermin."
Find Vermin Supreme on page 15 of the voter's guide.
1/14/04
FBI’s Mueller joins in O’Neill bashing
Another top aide has come to President Bush’s defense against loudmouthed former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill, who claims in a new book that the prez in cabinet meetings was “like a blind man in a roomful of deaf people.”
One day after Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld suggested that O’Neill was a traitor for the kiss-and-tell book, FBI Director Robert Mueller III described the president as engaged and interested in meetings he has attended. “I can tell you that he’s engaged,” Mueller said over a chicken and mashed potato lunch. Asked what he means, Mueller added: “He certainly probes; he asks questions, understands, and is interested in what’s been done in the last 24 hours to make certain that the country’s secure.”
So what does Mueller think of O’Neill? “No comment.”
Also: Many White House aides aren’t venting on O’Neill. But that’s because they’re doing something much worse. They say they have “pity” for the old guy, describing him as a “Mr. Magoo” who just didn’t get Washington and who made the mistake of talking to a reporter-author while still heartbroken about getting fired for–you got it–his verbal gaffes, among other reasons.
1/13/04
The second coming of Clinton
If you liked Bill Clinton, you'll love Wes Clark. At least that's the message coming out of Clark's campaign and the former president's top aides. "This is a campaign that has embraced the legacy of Bill Clinton," says Clark spokesman Chris Lehane, a former aide to Clinton and Vice President Gore. As previously reported by Whispers, Lehane announced yesterday that several Clinton aides and supporters are being dispatched to New Hampshire to help Clark's upstart campaign wrestle second place in the January 27 primary from either John Kerry or Dick Gephardt. Campaign insiders say while Clinton won't endorse any candidate before a nominee is picked, he's helping Clark more than the others, especially in New Hampshire, where he's still popular.
In a conference call midday Tuesday, former Clinton aide Eli Segal said that the Clark campaign often asks Clinton for his "advice and counsel" on everything from position papers to reactions to polls. And Clinton's there to help "at a minute's notice."
Lehane said that all the Clinton-Clark surrogates will fan out Saturday, dubbed "All American Day," then help Clark host a nighttime rally.
Check out Wes Clark's new biographical video.
1/6/04
Bush win, place, show
Howard Dean may be racing to the front of the pack campaigning to face President Bush in the fall, but winning the nomination could be the high point for the ex-Vermont governor, according to Democratic pollster Peter Hart. His latest calculations suggest Dean losing to Bush 53 percent to 39 percent. Worse, Bush right now is unusually strong in virtually all critical categories. He beats Dean by 22 percent among male voters, 3 percent among women voters, and 10 percent among independents. What's more, Bush wins all age groups. He bests Dean by 3 percent among voters 35 and younger and by 15 percent with those over 35. And, adds Hart, no other candidate would do any better. Dean, he says, "is doing as well as anybody." His recommendation: Woo "persuadables," or independent voters looking for move vision and less antiwar talk.
Back to Washington Whispers
|
