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The Situation: Monday, March 20Editor's Note: The Situation Report is a running log of dispatches, quotes, links and behind-the-scenes notes filed by the correspondents and producers of CNN's Washington Bureau. Watch "The Situation Room" with Wolf Blitzer on CNN 4 p.m. ET to 6 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. ET to 8 p.m. ET weekdays. Senator puts hold on Coast Guard commandant nomination On CNN TV
RelatedSEND YOUR COMMENTSYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSPosted 6:37 p.m. ET A Nevada senator has put a hold on the nomination of Vice Admiral Thad Allen to be the next commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, irking Homeland Security officials who say they want to see an orderly transition of the Coast Guard's hierarchy before hurricane season begins in June. Republican Sen. John Ensign put the hold on Allen's nomination using a procedure that allows an individual senator to stall presidential nominations. Officials tell CNN that Ensign sent Allen a lengthy questionaire, most of which concerned the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but also expressing concern about the Coast Guard's policy concerning the evacuation of pets during Hurricane Katrina. Allen served as Principle Federal Officer during the Katrina response after replacing embattled FEMA Director Michael Brown. While he oversaw FEMA operations during Katrina, he will not be in charge of FEMA in his new position. The Department of Homeland Security official said he was "disheartened and surprised" by Sen. Ensign's action, saying that "time is a critical issue" given the approach of storm season. Jack Finn, a spokesman for Ensign, said, "We have several questions that we want answered before Senator Ensign is comfortable with proceeding." He declined to elaborate, saying, "I'm not getting into that. We generally don't get into that publicly." Sen. Ensign, a veterinarian, was named Legislator of the Year for 2005 by the Humane Society of the United States, and during the early weeks of the Katrina recovery he pressed Allen to appoint a coordinator to oversee animal welfare issues, according to new releases on his website. The current Coast Guard Commandant -- Thomas Collins -- is to step down in May when his term expires. The Situation OnlinePosted 4:00 p.m. ET Today in the Situation Room: Republicans Talk Impeachment: Why GOP'ers Amazon on Abortion: Do Amazon.com Good for Google: In a ruling on Friday, why a federal judge rebuffed the government's demand for a list of Google Town on E-Auction Block: For the price of a house, you could own your own town Federal lawyer in Moussaoui trial may face chargesPosted 12:47 p.m. ET Justice Department prosecutors have begun exploring possible criminal charges against Carla Martin, the government lawyer whose actions prompted the judge in the sentencing trial of Zacarias Moussaoui to throw out key aviation-related witnesses, federal law enforcement sources tell CNN. No decisions have been made, however, and no action is expected soon, they said. Two sources familiar with the case said if any charge is brought against Martin it would likely have to be investigated and brought by an arm of the Justice Department not directly involved in the case to ensure no actual or perceived conflict of interest. That rules out any charges by federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia where the Moussaoui trial is taking place. It may also exclude potential charges against Martin by prosecutors in the Criminal Division at "Main Justice" where Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and other top officials oversee key decisions in terrorism prosecutions. One source said that options being considered include turning the matter over to a neighboring jurisdiction such as the U.S. Attorneys office in Washington, in Maryland, or in West Virginia. The sources refused to speculate on what possible charges will be considered. The Morning GrindPosted: 9:50 a.m. ET "The Fourth Year" President Bush heads west to Ohio today to deliver his latest remarks on the "Global War on Terror," as the Iraq War enters its fourth year with no signs that insurgent related attacks are subsiding. Today, a roadside bomb killed six people -- including two Iraqi police commandos -- and wounded two others in Baghdad, CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq reports. Earlier in the day, nine bodies were found throughout the city -- killed by shots to the head -- bringing the number of bodies discovered around Baghdad in the past eight days to 186. Bush, though, sounded an upbeat message yesterday on the three year anniversary of the war saying he was "encouraged by the progress" being made in Iraq and pointed to the successful elections in December as evidence that the country is on the right track. "We are implementing a strategy that will lead to victory in Iraq," Bush said. "And a victory in Iraq will make this country more secure, and will help lay the foundation of peace for generations to come." Vice President Cheney and Gen. George W. Casey, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, echoed Bush's optimism in appearances on the Sunday talk shows. But Sen. Joe Biden (D-Delaware) challenged Bush's assessment that the situation is getting better in Iraq, during an appearance on CNN's Late Edition. "By any measure, in my view, we're worse off in Iraq today than we were a year ago," said Biden, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Bush is scheduled to speak about the war on terror at 12:25 p.m. ET. Before leaving for Cleveland, Bush meets with NATO's Secretary General at 9:30 a.m. ET. Democrats will seek to pre-empt the President's remarks by holding an 11 a.m. ET news conference just steps from the Senate floor to criticize the White House for its handling of the Iraq War. Biden and John Podesta of the Center for American Progress will headline this event. It is one of many "security-related" forums that will be held across the country during this district work week, said Rebecca Kirszner, a spokeswoman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada). Bush is not the only top administration official visiting Ohio today. Cheney headlines a fundraiser for Republican state Rep. Chuck Blasdel, who is running to replace retiring Rep. Ted Strickland (D). Strickland is giving up his seat to run for governor. The fundraiser is being held in Hanoverton, and Cheney will speak at 12:30 p.m. ET. Later in the day, Cheney heads to New Jersey to headline a fundraiser for Republican state Sen. Tom Kean, Jr. Kean is challenging Sen. Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) for the seat previously held by Gov. Jon Corzine (D). Corzine appointed then-Rep. Menendez to the seat earlier this year after he was sworn-in as governor. Menendez holds a four percentage point lead over Kean, 40 percent to 36 percent, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released this morning. Nearly one-fifth of the registered voters are undecided. Quinnipiac also polled on hypothetical match-ups for the 2008 presidential contest. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) is the overwhelming favorite of New Jersey Republicans to run for president registering 57 percent of support, while Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) received 25 percent. Nearly half of New Jersey Democrats, 48 percent, would like Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-New York) to pursue her party's nomination. Sen. John Kerry (D-Massachusetts), the 2004 nominee, finished a distant second with 15 percent, and Biden and former Sen. John Edwards (D-North Carolina) each registered 10 percent. In head-to-head match-ups, Giuliani would beat Clinton 53 percent to 39 percent and McCain would defeat the New York Democrat 54 percent to 39 percent, the Quinnipiac poll shows. And the International Association of Fire Fighters will hear from top lawmakers, administration officials and campaign operatives throughout the day at its legislative conference being held in the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Capitol Hill. The lineup as follows: 9:15 a.m. ET, Biden; 10 a.m. ET, Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Nebraska); 10:30 a.m. ET, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland); 10:45 a.m. ET, Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman; 11:20 a.m. ET, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff; 1:50 p.m. ET, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D); 2:35 p.m. ET, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean; 3:20 p.m. ET, White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card; 3:45 p.m. ET, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland). Political Hot TopicsPosted: 9:50 a.m. ET POTUS, VEEP "UPBEAT" ON THIRD ANNIVERSARY OF WAR: President Bush and Vice President Cheney hailed the progress being made by Iraqi leaders to form a unity government yesterday, as the administration tried to dispel a growing perception that a continuing wave of sectarian violence has pushed Iraq into a full-fledged civil war. Bush, speaking on the third anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, assured Americans that his administration is pursuing a strategy "that will lead to victory in Iraq," an outcome about which polls show the public is increasingly skeptical. Cheney, meanwhile, dismissed assertions made by former Iraqi prime minister Ayad Allawi that the nation is in the throes of civil war. Washington Post: Bush Still Upbeat on Outcome In Iraq HOUSE ON TRACK TO SPEND JUST 97 DAYS IN DC: The House of Representatives is on track this year to be in session for fewer days than the Congress Harry Truman labeled as "do-nothing" during his 1948 re-election campaign. Members of Congress are taking an entire week off for St. Patrick's Day. It's the latest scheduling innovation to give members more time to meet with constituents. Through Friday, the House was in session for 19 days, compared with 33 for the Senate. If they stick to their current schedule -- including two weeks off in April, a week in May and July, plus all of August -- House members will spend 97 days in Washington this year. The House was in session 108 days in 1948, according to the chamber's archives, compared with 141 days last year. USA Today: Lawmakers get out of the House K-STREETERS NOT CONCERNED ABOUT BUSINESS: Some of Washington's top lobbyists say that they expect to find ways around congressional efforts to impose new restrictions on lobbyists' dealings with lawmakers in the wake of the Jack Abramoff corruption scandal, and that any limits will barely put a dent in the billions of dollars spent to influence legislation. Though Congress may ultimately vote to eliminate a few of the more visible trappings of special pleading, such as gifts, free meals and luxurious trips, lobbyists say they have already found scores of new ways to buy the attention of lawmakers through fundraising, charitable activities and industry-sponsored seminars. An estimated $10 billion is spent annually to influence legislation and regulations, and that spending is not likely to be diminished by the proposed lobbying changes, these lobbyists contend. Washington Post: Lobbyists Foresee Business As Usual FEINGOLD FALLOUT: Congressional Democrats say Sen. Russell D. Feingold's move to censure President Bush for authorizing warrantless surveillance is a distraction from their quest to take back Congress in the fall. "Every time we get in a great strategic position, we manage to energize the Republican base," Rep. James P. Moran, Virginia Democrat, told The Washington Times. "Everything is going well for the Democrats and President Bush is tanking in the polls, and then Russ Feingold comes up with the idea of censure, which is going to go nowhere and is not just quixotic but is somewhat self-serving," he said. Mr. Moran's comments echoed a theme used by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi last week during a briefing with reporters. The California Democrat said that Republicans want censure to become an election issue to make the minority party look bad and that she would not support censuring the president. Washington Times: Feingold's censure call a distraction for his party McCAIN WOOING "ESTABLISHMENT" REPUBLICANS: The audience will sparkle with Hollywood glitz at tonight's re-election fundraiser for California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. But for the star speaker, Sen. John McCain, it's just one more stop on a long 2008 presidential trail. For months, McCain has been quietly assembling the pieces of a national campaign: lining up donors, courting his Senate colleagues, reaching out to social conservatives, earning IOUs from other politicians. The outsider of the 2000 Republican campaign is still a maverick, but he is carefully following the insider strategy of the man who beat him. "George Bush defeated me in the primary because he had the entire Republican establishment behind him, and he ran a good campaign," McCain said in an interview. "He had worked very hard to gain that support." Baltimore Sun: McCain adopts insider strategy HILLARY CHALLENGER DIDN'T VOTE FOR THE BOSS: Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Kathleen Troia McFarland, who repeatedly skipped New York elections, failed to vote for President Ronald Reagan even while working for him in Washington, newly acquired records show. McFarland, a Park Avenue matron who says she drafted Reagan's "Star Wars" defense proposal while serving as a high-level Pentagon official from 1982 to 1985, didn't vote in 1984, when the president was seeking re-election, records obtained by The Post show. An official voter profile from the Washington, D.C., Board of Elections & Ethics shows McFarland, who hopes to challenge Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, registered to vote from a Washington address in June 1983, when she served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, a position she describes as equivalent to a three-star general. New York Post: GOP Hopeful Missed Reagan Vote CARVILLE, MATALIN TO RUN HIGH SCHOOL CAMPAIGNS: Most high school election campaigns are decided over bake sales and banners. Not so for the Washington-area students at the focus of Lifetime Television's new reality show Election. Seasoned political strategists--and spouses--JAMES CARVILLE, 61, who helped orchestrate Bill Clinton's winning campaign in 1992, and MARY MATALIN, 52, a longtime adviser to Dick Cheney, have signed on to counsel the candidates for school president. Will this be the most serious student campaign ever? "I don't think there will be a media campaign," says Matalin. TIME: From the Oval Office to the Pricipal's Office COMPANIES PUT POLITICAL GIVING INFO ONLINE: Under pressure from shareholder activists, a small but growing number of major U.S. companies have agreed to disclose their political donations on their corporate websites. Campaign contributions are a matter of public record, but getting a complete picture of a company's political giving is difficult because the donations can be scattered over scores of individual campaign finance reports at the local, state and federal levels. Since late last year, companies including Amgen Inc., Staples Inc. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. have agreed to post their contributions on their websites. Some other companies, including PepsiCo Inc., Coca-Cola Co. and Eli Lilly & Co., enhanced their political disclosure policies last fall. Los Angeles Times: More Firms' Political Ties Put Online EVEN WITH NO SERIOUS CHALLENGERS, MEMBERS STILL BIG SPENDERS: Rep. Spencer Bachus hasn't drawn a serious opponent in the past three elections. So far, his only 2006 challenger is a write-in with $49 in the bank. But the Alabama Republican burns through significant sums of campaign cash, as do plenty of other House members sitting in safe congressional seats. Among the items billed in 2005 to Bachus's campaign account and his "Growth and Prosperity" political action committee: $6,689 for U2 concert tickets and expenses as part of a campaign event; $1,298 in lodging in Vail, Colo.; and $270 for the catering of an "American Idol" party. Washington Post: Lawmakers Holding Solid Seats Spend as if They Were Shaky 
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