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The Morning Grind / Political Hot Topics |
Cabinet shake-ups
 |  President Bush speaks to reporters Thursday in Washington at his first news conference following his re-election . |
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 VIDEO |
 CNN's Tom Foreman on the president and court appointments.
 CNN's Jeff Greenfield on the role of moral beliefs in the vote.
 CNN's Ed Lavandera on Hispanic voters and President Bush.
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Check out the links below to hot political stories around the country this morning.
CABINET SHAKE-UP? President Bush said yesterday that he will spend the weekend considering changes in his Cabinet for his second term, feeding speculation inside and outside the White House over shake-ups in key agencies in coming weeks. As part of what Bush called a "great Washington sport," Republicans, including several in the administration, predicted numerous impending Cabinet changes that could strongly influence U.S. policy over the next four years.The Washington Post: President to consider changes for new term
SECOND TERM AGENDA: In his 40-minute news conference yesterday, Bush also said he would begin work immediately on his proposal to overhaul Social Security, one of the biggest goals in his second-term agenda. He called for Congress to move speedily to limit lawsuit awards against doctors, said he would push for tougher educational standards for high schools and signaled that he had settled on broad principles for rewriting the tax code.The New York Times: Confident Bush outlines ambitious plan for 2nd term
IOWA BALLOTS: Unofficial results in Iowa showed Bush defeated Kerry in Iowa by 14,045 votes. That tally will keep changing through Tuesday, as special precinct boards across the state continue to meet to count 15,264 provisional ballots and as many as 50,000 uncounted absentee ballots. But no one's officially calling Iowa for Bush, despite Republicans, Democrats and election officials agreeing Thursday that Iowa's uncounted ballots are unlikely to change who won the state.The Des Moines Register: Last state standing
GEARING UP FOR '08: The first speech of the 2008 presidential campaign has already been given -- by John Edwards. His aggressive, future-oriented introduction to John Kerry's concession speech left little doubt that he'll try to stay on the public stage. Two ambitious Republicans, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, appeared Wednesday on five networks apiece. Howard Dean claimed in an e-mail to supporters of his grass-roots politics group that "we have begun to revive democracy." And then there's New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, the former first lady and a star by any measure.USA Today: Would be candidates preparing for 2008
ROVE'S ROLE: With Bush's re-election, Karl Rove has not only cemented his reputation as one of the canniest campaign gurus in a generation but has also put himself in position to shape second-term policies that could help realize his longtime goal of consolidating a broad Republican electoral majority for a generation to come.The New York Times: Next up for Bush Strategist
MARRIAGE BLAME GAME: Some Democrats were suggesting even before the election that San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom had played into President Bush's game plan by inviting a showdown on the divisive same-sex-marriage issue. Most of the talk has been behind closed doors. But Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a fellow Democrat and Newsom supporter, said Wednesday that Newsom's same-sex marriage drive in San Francisco "did energize a very conservative vote" on an issue that "people aren't ready for."The New York Times: Some Democrats blame one of their own
ELIZABETH EDWARDS' DIAGNOSIS: Elizabeth Edwards faces likely surgery for breast cancer, an illness diagnosed just hours after her husband conceded defeat Wednesday. Edwards, 55, found a lump in her right breast last week. She saw her personal physician before her husband's Friday night rally in Raleigh. The doctor said the lump appeared cancerous and advised her to see a specialist, aides said. She chose to wait until after the election.The Charlotte Observer: Edwards learns she has breast cancer
THE GUARDIAN'S FLOP: When the left-leaning British newspaper The Guardian launched a campaign last month to allow its readers to correspond with working-class swing voters in Ohio, it hoped to start a friendly dialogue between foreigners interested in the 2004 presidential campaign and U.S. voters who would decide its outcome. But the letters -- many of which criticized the war in Iraq, spoke of fear abroad of U.S. foreign policy and implored recipients to vote President Bush out of office -- were attacked as an invasion of privacy and intrusion into U.S. sovereignty.USA Today: Brits' campaign backfires in Ohio
STAR STRUCK: Kerry's bid for the White House rallied A-list movie stars, savvy moguls, brand-name rock heroes and street-smart rappers to its cause. But in the end it came down to the little people -- the voters -- and they didn't seem particularly star-struck.The Los Angeles Times:But They're famous
SHARPTON SPLIT: The Rev. Sharpton and his wife, Kathy, are splitting up after 24 years of marriage. "It's entirely amicable," said Sharpton rep Rachel Nordlinger. "They are on the best of terms. But at this point, their daughters are grown and they want to pursue their separate interests." Rumors the couple had grown distant have dogged Sharpton for months.The New York Daily News: Rev. Al and wife split
Compiled by Mark H. Rodeffer
