AP hits ex-NASA's O'Keefe but then gets hit back
Last week, the Associated Press's Baton Rouge, La., bureau scooped big-time competitors with a report that the GAO was auditing former NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe . Now the report is drawing fire in Washington. But not because people think O'Keefe, the new chancellor of Louisiana State University, did wrong; it's because many feel the bean counter was unfairly maligned. The story: Sen. Susan Collins asked the GAO to audit NASA's credit card expenses. AP, citing four sources, turned that into a hit on O'Keefe's travel and other expenses. But GAO and Collins's office tell us that he isn't the focus. And NASA insiders say O'Keefe is a cheapskate who jammed too much work into trips. AP is sticking to its story; critics suspect disgruntled NASA tipsters. "My integrity," says O'Keefe, "has never been questioned, and I don't expect this will either." Retired NBC reporter Fred Francis, a NASA consultant, says, "After 38 years as a journalist, I wish I had the talent of an AP reporter from Baton Rouge who was able to get four unnamed sources in Washington to trash someone. The story was just flat wrong."
Condi Vs. Hillary? It's possible
She's been secretary of state for less than a month, but Condi Rice has so wowed Washington and the world during her two foreign trips that there's new buzz she's blazing a trail to the presidency. The talk started inside Bush circles when Siena College in New York State issued a poll showing big support for a 2008 White House run by Rice. It caught fire last week when insiders revived an old rumor that Vice President Cheney would retire for "health reasons" and be replaced by Rice. "She's the leading Republican woman in the race," brags a friend, "and her numbers are high with men and women. That's unheard of." Well, almost. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's popularity among men and women polled by the Siena Research Institute was even higher. Still, a black conservative woman with rich government experience? "That's the dream resume," says a GOP strategist. "Very formidable," adds another. And she's fun, be it hosting a party on her jet to watch a tape of the Super Bowl or trying out new fashions. "She is," cheers one pal, "the supermodel secretary of state."
The 2008 Five
Five Democrats have begun informal staff interviews for 2008 presidential runs, according to a few who've been interviewed. So far, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is dubbed "the most aggressive" in seeking out aides, followed by Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack . The others are Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh, former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards , and 2004 candidate Sen. John Kerry .
It's Governor Dean
Please don't call newly minted Democratic Party boss Howard Dean , the former Vermont governor and 2004 presidential primary candidate, "Mr. Chairman." Make it "Governor," if you don't mind. Party insiders say the new rule is just one of many examples of his formal, almost aloof style, brought to the DNC after the carnival-barking, cheerleading nature of Terry McAuliffe . They say Dean avoids the staff when arriving in the morning, keeps his office door closed, hasn't decorated his walls with family or political memorabilia, and mingles only with a small crowd of advisers. Friends, however, say that's just his style. "He's more like a CEO," says one.
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