No More Freebies For Those Foreign Pressies
First french fries, now Le Monde ? Officially, it's because money's tight, but some Bush administration officials aren't hiding the fact that there is a little payback for anti-American coverage in the State Department's decision not to fund foreign press centers at the Democratic and Republican presidential nominating conventions. "They can come and pay like everyone else!" barked an angry administration official. "It's ridiculous; this is foreign press welfare." Said a British scribe: "I can't believe this is for a little ribbing in the press." What's happening is this: For the first time since Ronald Reagan ran for re-election in 1984, the State Department isn't pampering the foreign press by outfitting high-tech briefing rooms at the political conventions. "This year, money was tight," explained State's Adam Ereli. "You can't do everything you want to." The savings: a whopping $500,000. Instead, they'll have to cover the Boston and New York events like the rest of the press. Payback? Gosh no, says Ereli. "That's crazy," said the diplomat. "We're not shutting them out."
When TV Spots Beat The Real Deal
Here's an idea from one of TV's political ad-rating gurus to help Sen. John Kerry out of his slump: Stop making live appearances and rely just on those great television spots. And President Bush, adds Frank Luntz , do the opposite because your ads mostly stink. "Kerry's sound bites resonate with everyone," said Luntz, explaining what his MSNBC focus groups have told him. But, he added, "the candidate is hopelessly flawed." Luntz just tested Kerry and Bush ads and found Kerry's about perfect. "Kerry," he told Whispers, "currently has the television ad edge." Viewers even liked how he tied in the clunky "I approved" line with a hit on the prez. Swing voters especially like Kerry's ads. But Luntz says Kerry himself is a chore to listen to. Over to Bush: His best ad challenged Kerry on his defense votes. But if you add to the mediocre ads the GOP's constant nicking at Kerry's credibility and the Democrat's scramble to protect it, then Luntz gives the overall edge to Bush. "It's like a bullfight," he says. "With every step, the bull fights harder and harder but gets weaker and weaker."
Bill's free pass
Don't look for the White House to ask former President Bill Clinton for a look-see at his book before it's released this summer, just to make sure he's not giving away state secrets. "It's just a courtesy," said one Bushie.
The Senate's D.A.
Law & Order 's District Attorney Arthur Branch --Washington's former Sen. Fred Thompson --has been renewed for another year, we hear. Seems the popular NBC show thinks the showman-politician with that cool Tennessee twang has helped boost ratings. In an odd way, that's good for the Bush-Cheney campaign, because they like Thompson to speak on behalf of the administration. "We love him," chirps a Bush insider, "because he's got this common-sense approach that people just get."
The Wrong Helmet
You'd think that for all their carping about Sen. John Kerry 's votes against defense spending, the Bush campaign would know the difference between a modern Kevlar helmet and an old, Vietnam-style one. But nooo. Turns out the soldier in the Bush ad titled "Weapons," which raps Kerry's spending votes, is wearing an old-fashioned helmet. "Maybe if George Bush and his chicken-hawk buddies had seen battle," says a Kerry aide, "they'd know the difference between props and equipment that saves lives." An unembarrassed Bush aide fired back: "He is a symbol of Kerry's votes to deny troops in Iraq body armor and other equipment."
Saudi Richy-Riches
When an investigator looking into payments to Saudi college kids in the United States told us "they're not going to school like you and I did," he wasn't referring to their course schedules. Turns out the Saudi Embassy provides an allowance of up to $60,000 a month for royal family members, a mere $1,219.43 for others. We know because the government is reviewing Saudi spending here to make sure terrorists aren't cashing in.
Limbaugh's Legions
Dittoheads this week launch an attack on prosecutors targeting Rush Limbaugh 's drug use, claiming he's the subject of a political witch hunt. "This is the first salvo to defend Rush against a blatant, liberal, and extralegal bid to run Rush off the radio," conservative PR guru Greg Mueller tells us. The first shot appears in the American Spectator this week with a claim that the Democratic prosecutor in Florida wants Rush's scalp to help in his re-election. Then look for conservatives to flood radio and TV talk shows to smear the prosecution.
Be On West Wing
Say what you want about liberals and their politics, but one thing can't be denied: They've got star power. That will be on display in Washington next weekend when organizers of the May 9 Million Mom March host an NRA Blacklist Ball feting the hundreds on the National Rifle Association's hit list. But the May 8 event won't just bring stars like TV's Richard Belzer to town. They'll be auctioning off walk-on roles on The West Wing and a spinoff of The Practice and a Kenneth Cole shopping spree.
Staying The Course
Don't look for independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader to quit the race, no matter how much pressure the Democrats put on him. "You don't start a presidential campaign," he said, "and get tens of thousands of volunteers and people to work their heart out for you and then say in October, 'Well, sorry.' " Reason: It would undermine efforts to build a third-party movement.
Practically Twins
Thanks to last week's online Alexander Autographs auction, we learn that President John F. Kennedy and Sen. John F. Kerry , both Massachusetts liberals, have even more in common than we already knew. They share the same initials. No, silly, not the tired old JFK stuff. Turns out that Kennedy signed letters to his best friends "JK." And that's exactly how Kerry's pals refer to him, "JK." The auction also revealed that Bill Clinton 's signature is still golden but that nobody cares anymore about Gerald Ford. Of nine Ford autographs, only three sold, and the top price was just $95. An Abraham Lincoln won the highest bid in the presidential category, $7,000. And somebody paid $3,750 for a lock of his auburn-colored hair--or 40 strands of his "fine hair," to be exact.
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With David E. Kaplan
This story appears in the May 10, 2004 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.