Tuesday, January 02, 2007
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Compiled by Stephen Bach CNN Washington Bureau Making news today... President Ford's casket will be moved from the Capitol this morning to National Cathedral, where the National Funeral Service begins at 10:30 am ET. This afternoon, the casket will be transported to Ford's presidential museum in Grand Rapids, MI, for public viewing through tomorrow morning. "At the center of his efforts: a massive fund-raising push to bring in at least $100 million this year, with a scramble for at least $25 million in the next three months alone," the Daily News reports. Also included: "a list of the candidate's central problems in bullet-point form." So, what's on that list? Find out in Hot Topics below! President's Schedule: ================================================================= Political Hot Topics (Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country) IRAQ'S "UNRAVELING" IN '06 TOOK "MOST OF MR. BUSH'S WAR COUNCIL BY SURPRISE": President Bush began 2006 assuring the country that he had a "strategy for victory in Iraq." He ended the year closeted with his war cabinet on his ranch trying to devise a new strategy, because the existing one had collapsed. The original plan, championed by Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top commander in Baghdad, and backed by Donald H. Rumsfeld, then the defense secretary, called for turning over responsibility for security to the Iraqis, shrinking the number of American bases and beginning the gradual withdrawal of American troops. But the plan collided with Iraq's ferocious unraveling, which took most of Mr. Bush's war council by surprise. New York Times: Chaos Overran Iraq Plan in '06, Bush Team Says TROOP SURGE "ALMOST CERTAINLY" WILL BE "CENTERPIECE" NEW IRAQ STRATEGY: For the Bush administration, deploying tens of thousands of additional troops to Iraq may not be as tough a call as deciding when to bring them home. White House officials say a troop "surge" almost certainly will be the centerpiece of Mr. Bush's new strategy for Iraq to be unveiled mid-month. But while administration officials have gone to great lengths to emphasize that the extra troops will be in Iraq only temporarily, there is no clear definition of how long that might be. Several Democratic and Republican lawmakers who endorsed the increase say they want the extra troops in Iraq for just three to six months. Senior military commanders believe the extra forces can be sustained in Iraq for only six to 12 months before logistical and manpower strains become untenable. Wall Street Journal: Calibrating a Troop 'Surge' KISSINGER'S RE-EMERGENCE "STIRRING MEMORIES AND REKINDLING DEBATES" OF VIETNAM: Of all the aging Washington power brokers who have re-emerged in the shadow of the death of former President Gerald R. Ford, there is one, Henry A. Kissinger, for whom the return to the spotlight may be as much curse as blessing... He is expected to be among a select few, including President Bush, to eulogize Mr. Ford on Tuesday at services at the Washington National Cathedral. But at a time when the American public has soured on the war in Iraq - indeed, at the precise moment the United States is recording the milestone of 3,000 American deaths there - Mr. Kissinger's reappearance is stirring memories and rekindling debates about his role in managing another unpopular conflict, the Vietnam War. New York Times: Kissinger's Appearance Revives Memories of Vietnam Era DEMS WILL "LARGELY SIDELINE REPUBLICANS" DURING 1ST 100 HOURS: As they prepare to take control of Congress this week and face up to campaign pledges to restore bipartisanship and openness, Democrats are planning to largely sideline Republicans from the first burst of lawmaking. House Democrats intend to pass a raft of popular measures as part of their well-publicized plan for the first 100 hours. They include tightening ethics rules for lawmakers, raising the minimum wage, allowing more research on stem cells and cutting interest rates on student loans. But instead of allowing Republicans to fully participate in deliberations, as promised after the Democratic victory in the Nov. 7 midterm elections, Democrats now say they will use House rules to prevent the opposition from offering alternative measures, assuring speedy passage of the bills and allowing their party to trumpet early victories. Washington Post: Democrats To Start Without GOP Input 100 HOUR AGENDA INCLUDES MODEST, POPULAR BILLS... NO "REVOLUTION": When Democrats take power on Capitol Hill this week, House leaders will kick off their legislative campaign with a lightning-fast 100-hour agenda. But there won't be a revolution. In marked contrast to the Republicans who swept into the majority in 1994, incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her legislative allies are not planning to amend the Constitution or eradicate federal agencies. Instead, their initial legislative foray will focus on modest, politically popular issues, including initiatives to expand stem cell research, lower prescription drug prices and tighten congressional ethics rules. Los Angeles Times: Democrats to tackle modest proposals INTRA-PARTY DIFFERENCES COULD HINDER DEMS: While most attention will be focused on the divide between Republicans and Democrats, members of the new majority have their own differing perspectives, corresponding largely to length of service, that could ultimately prove more crucial to their success or failure. Of 233 Democrats who will be sworn in on Thursday, 147 - 63 percent - have been elected since Republicans won control of the House in 1994, and have never served in the majority. Those whose service predates the 1994 revolution, on the other hand, number only 86, or 37 percent. But it is this core of senior Democrats, Mr. Dingell among them, who will lead 20 of the 21 major committees and so exercise concentrated legislative power. New York Times: As New Congress Nears, House Democrats Could Be Headed for Own Divide DON'T EXPECT "A BIPARTISAN LOVE FESTIVAL": When the 110th Congress convenes Thursday, it will be a historic moment as the Republican Party turns the gavel over to Democrats in both the House and the Senate and the first woman takes her place as House speaker. That moment will mark a shift in the balance of power in Washington as President Bush's authority diminishes and Democrats attempt to hold him accountable for his administration's actions. Bush won't be able to control the legislative branch, telling Republican leaders what to do while generally getting his way. But after the pageantry and the pomp of swearing in newly elected members, Democrats may find it's uphill from there as they struggle to enact laws, not just pass bills. "I don't think the 110th Congress is going to be very productive," said Stephen Hess of the Brookings Institution. "If you thought the 109th was down the drain, wait till you see this." Chicago Tribune: Difficult year is predicted for Congress GET READY FOR "PELOSI-PALOOZA": During her first 100 hours as House speaker, Nancy Pelosi has vowed, she will sweep an aggressive legislative agenda through the newly Democratic-controlled House. But first comes Pelosi-palooza. In a three-day stretch of whirlwind events beginning on Wednesday, Mrs. Pelosi will celebrate her heritage (at the Italian Embassy), her faith (in a Roman Catholic Mass), her education (at Trinity College), her childhood (in Baltimore) and her current home (in a tribute by the singer Tony Bennett, of "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" fame). She will embrace her status as the first female House speaker with a tea for women. She will highlight her pull among Democrats with a $1,000-per-person fund-raising concert. And she will welcome visitors to the halls of Congress in an open-house tour. New York Times: A Party, With Pelosi Front and Center MEMBERS TOO BUSY FOR FREE TRIPS: The January junket to warmer climates, a postholiday tradition of sorts for some members of Congress, could be headed to the wayside. An accelerated work schedule set up by the new Democratic leadership has put a halt on many January excursions funded by lobbyists. Given that Democrats are taking over the House and Senate in part because of GOP ethics scandals, some lawmakers are fearful of the voters' wrath anyway if they go on the trips. "I think members are looking more closely at privately funded travel, and I think ... many of them are being careful and avoiding it," said Rep. Charles Dent, R-Pa. The last time members had to work much of January was 1995, when a newly Republican-led House took control, recalled Todd Hauptli, senior executive vice president of the American Association of Airport Executives. AP via Yahoo! News: Lawmakers' January junkets curbed THREE OF FIVE '08 SENATE DEMS GET GAVELS (AND FREE PUBLICITY): Senate Democrats interested in White House bids will get tons of free publicity starting in January with new and prominent posts on key panels. Senators hoping to pontificate on Iraq, global warming or health care policy will enjoy multiple hearings -- some televised live -- and the amplified political microphone that comes with being in the majority party. Among the five Democratic senators who are widely expected to seek their party's presidential nomination, three will hold chairmanships when the 110th Congress opens Thursday. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware will assume the most prominent post of the bunch as incoming chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee... Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts will be chairman of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut will lead the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. Washington Times: Senate panels to supply soapbox DODD'S BANKING POST OFFERS OPPORTUNITY "TO RAISE SOME REAL DOUGH": The White House isn't the only prestigious address on Sen. Christopher Dodd's mind as he nears a decision on whether he'll plunge into a crowded field of Democratic presidential contenders. Wall Street also looms large. The Connecticut senator will become chairman of the Senate Banking Committee in Congress, giving him oversight of the nation's banking, financial services and insurance industries. The post will create new fundraising opportunities - a potential boost for a longshot prospect like Dodd who must prove he can raise the tens of million of dollars needed to stay competitive in the 2008 campaign. "Any time you are chairman of a committee that oversees, arguably, the wealthiest sector of society, that's a significant opportunity to raise some real dough," said Chris Lehane, a Democratic strategist from several presidential campaigns. "But it's potentially a double-edged sword." AP via Yahoo! News: Dodd well-positioned for White House bid ROMNEY WILL FILE PAPERS AFTER FORD FUNERAL: Gov. Mitt Romney this week will submit the necessary paperwork to form a presidential exploratory committee, but not until funeral services for former President Gerald R. Ford have concluded, according to a top aide familiar with his plans. Romney will file by Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission, the aide said, a registration that will allow the Massachusetts governor to raise and spend money in pursuit of the 2008 GOP nomination. Romney, like Ford, is from Michigan. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, have already taken the same step. Romney ended a 10-day vacation at his home in Utah on Monday, and he had intended to file his paperwork on Tuesday, the first business day of the new year. AP via Yahoo! News: Romney to submit paperwork for 2008 bid DAILY NEWS OBTAINS DOCUMENT WITH RUDY'S '08 PLANS: It's clearly laid out in 140 pages of printed text, handwriting and spreadsheets: The top-secret plan for Rudy Giuliani's bid for the White House. The remarkably detailed dossier sets out the budgets, schedules and fund-raising plans that will underpin the former New York mayor's presidential campaign - as well as his aides' worries that personal and political baggage could scuttle his run. At the center of his efforts: a massive fund-raising push to bring in at least $100 million this year, with a scramble for at least $25 million in the next three months alone. The loss of the battle plan is a remarkable breach in the high-stakes game of presidential politics and a potentially disastrous blunder for Giuliani in the early stages of his campaign. New York Daily News: Revealed: Rudy's '08 battle plans GIULIANI LOOKING AT INVOLVEMENT IN BUSINESSES BEARING HIS NAME: Rudy Giuliani is weighing whether he'll change his level of involvement with his consulting company - which has clients that could present potential conflicts and provide fodder for opponents - if he runs for president, aides told The Post. "As we go forward in 2007... we will continue to examine what changes, if any, need to [take place] at Giuliani Partners," said Michael Hess, a partner at the mayor's consulting firm, which has reaped millions of dollars in contracts over the last five years. So far, Giuliani's firm has not released a full client list. Hess insisted most of the list has been made public. Other clients' names were not released because of security concerns, he said. GP, as well as the mayor's law firm, Bracewell and Giuliani, and his investment-banking firm all have clients that won't want to be made public, raising a potential transparency issue. New York Post: RUDY FACING BIZ DILEMMA SPITZER BEGINS "GARGANTUAN CHALLENGE" IN NEW YORK: Eliot Spitzer ended 12 years of Republican rule here on Monday with a blunt critique of the past and a call to "end the politics of cynicism and division in our state." With his predecessor, George E. Pataki, gamely looking on, Governor Spitzer said in his 20-minute inaugural address that New York, "like Rip van Winkle," had "slept through much of the past decade." He pledged to undertake reforms "substantial in size and historic in scope" and hinted at some of the contentious battles to come, including his plans to reshape state Medicaid and ethics policies. The speech was the beginning salvo in what many see as a gargantuan challenge Mr. Spitzer has set out for himself — to overhaul a state government paralyzed by gridlock and consumed by recurring scandals. New York Times: Spitzer Is Sworn and Begins Push on Ethics Rules INAUGURAL PARTIES OFTEN BANKROLLED BY SPECIAL INTERESTS: Thirty-six states elected governors in 2006 -- victories that will be celebrated this month with parties ranging from modest to star-studded. Several will cost $1 million or more. Many inaugural events will be exclusive affairs, paid for by nonprofit committees that aren't subject to state campaign-donation limits or reporting requirements designed to contain influence on elected officials. In essence, they are parties bankrolled by private groups that often solicit donations from the same people and entities that fund the campaigns. Wall Street Journal: Inaugural Options: To Go Populist or Plush? |
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