Washington Whispers
Condi's Ready to Play—Golf, That Is
Condoleezza Rice, the popular secretary of state oft-touted as White House timber, has taken up the sport of presidents—golf. "She's got the bug," says a close aide. Now before you take this as evidence she's running and slap a Condi for President sticker on your car's bumper, we're reliably told that she took up the sport for fun. "It's one more mountain to climb," says a friend.
Seems she caught that bug about three years ago when Stanford pal Stephen Krasner, her former policy adviser, urged Condi to hit the greens. It started with a few lessons in Washington, blossoming into a love affair. Now we didn't know about this because Rice chooses to play out of the public eye with friends, like on the three golf courses at Andrews Air Force Base. She even carries her clubs on diplomatic trips to Asia so that she can get in a few holes during long layovers in Hawaii. How good is she? Her aide jokes that her handicap is "probably classified," but we're told that she didn't embarrass herself in 2006 when playing with teen phenom Michelle Wie.
Rice wants to take her passion for the sport to another level. Like helping Tiger Woods, who hosted last week's pro tourney in Washington, use golf to push major causes. "She would very much like to do what she can to raise awareness of golf as a sport," says her aide.
Quit the Senate, McCain Is Urged
Before he falls out of the top tier of GOP White House hopefuls, chief advisers to Sen. John McCain are urging him to quit his day job and become a full-time presidential candidate. "Just resign," one says he told McCain. "Show you're all in." Advisers say being a senator is a drag. He doesn't have enough time to campaign and raise money. Worse: The issues he has to vote on, like immigration reform, are killers. If McCain takes that advice, here's the game plan. "Pick three issues conservatives care about and nail them," says one adviser, "and attack [Sen.] Hillary Clinton every day. He needs to break out, and becoming the anti-Hillary will work."
Barney's Got That Butterball Look
First pup Barney's almost 7 years old, and you know what that means: He's starting to fatten up in his older years. Once the energetic kid who used to run around with the famous "Barney Cam" on his noggin, we hear that the president's Scottish terrier is putting on weight. So much so that he has to be carried down the steps of Air Force One, behind Laura Bush's bounding younger Scottie, Miss Beazley.
Tony Snow Tells Pals He's OK
White House Press Secretary Tony Snow is telling friends that he has a very good shot at winning his second bout with cancer. He's even boasting that he has a better chance this time than he did when he was first diagnosed with colon cancer. For now, he's still undergoing chemotherapy every other Friday, and that wears him down. But we're assured that he'll be there for the grand opening of the renovated White House briefing room July 12.
advertisement
