Monday, April 02, 2007
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Compiled by Stephen Bach CNN Washington Bureau Making news today... An aide to Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) tells CNN that they expect the campaign to post between $3 million and $4 million in the first three months with about $1.9 million of that being transferred from his Senate campaign account. In the Republican presidential primary, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee told CNN he expected to raise $500,000 in the first quarter and show $300,000 in the bank. Former Sen. John Edwards, D-North Carolina, has raised over $14 million for his bid for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, his campaign announced Sunday. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has raised about $6 million in the first quarter of 2007 after starting his White House bid "from scratch" in late January, a campaign aide tells CNN. Check The Ticker today for updates and complete Q1 fundraising coverage. New York Post: Judi's Job with Pup Killer Firm New York Daily News: Judith gets a First Lady thumbs up from her ex On President Bush's absence, he added: "The president is really sorry he couldn't be here tonight, but he had another obligation... His book club is meeting." (The Politico) So, why is W. skipping today's Nats home opener vs. the Florida Marlins? Find out in Hot Topics below! President's Schedule: At 2:35 pm ET, the president presents the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy to the United States Naval Academy Football Team in the Rose Garden. Also on the Political Radar: ================================================================= Political Hot Topics (Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country) AT LEAST TWO MORE WEEKS OF GONZALES NEWS BEFORE BIG DAY ON THE HILL: For all the explanations Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has given about his role in the firing of eight U.S. prosecutors, he hasn't yet given one under oath to Congress. For the White House, it suddenly seems that day can't come fast enough. The Bush administration scrambled Sunday to move up Gonzales' planned April 17 testimony. The idea was rejected by Democrats, who said it was too late to adjust the schedule. The Senate has just started a one-week vacation, while the House is taking a two-week spring break. The push to more quickly get Gonzales to Capitol Hill reflects the frustration of Republican senators, the White House and even the Justice Department over how long it will take for the embattled attorney general to testify before Congress. Each passing day adds life to the story. AP via Yahoo! News: Democrats won't reschedule Gonzales "MORE DRAMATIC SHOWDOWNS COMING SOON": Even as their confrontation with President Bush over Iraq escalates, emboldened congressional Democrats are challenging the White House on a range of issues -- such as unionization of airport security workers and the loosening of presidential secrecy orders -- with even more dramatic showdowns coming soon. For his part, Bush, who also finds himself under assault for the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, the conduct of the Iraq war and alleged abuses in government surveillance by the FBI, is holding firm. Though he has vetoed only one piece of legislation since taking office, he has vowed to veto 16 bills that have passed either the House or the Senate in the three months since Democrats took control of Congress. Washington Post: Democrats To Widen Conflict With Bush DISAPPOINTED DOWD BREAKS WITH BUSH: In 1999, Matthew Dowd became a symbol of George W. Bush's early success at positioning himself as a Republican with Democratic appeal. A top strategist for the Texas Democrats who was disappointed by the Bill Clinton years, Mr. Dowd was impressed by the pledge of Mr. Bush, then governor of Texas, to bring a spirit of cooperation to Washington. He switched parties, joined Mr. Bush's political brain trust and dedicated the next six years to getting him to the Oval Office and keeping him there. In 2004, he was appointed the president's chief campaign strategist. Looking back, Mr. Dowd now says his faith in Mr. Bush was misplaced. In a wide-ranging interview here, Mr. Dowd called for a withdrawal from Iraq and expressed his disappointment in Mr. Bush's leadership. New York Times: Ex-Aide Says He's Lost Faith in Bush WHY NOT GO TO THE BALL GAME? This is a baseball story, so let's get right to the stats. Today is Washington's 65th Opening Day since 1910, when William H. Taft gave us a tradition: the ceremonial first pitch by the president. Taft threw the inaugural one for the Senators that year. In the local club's 63 home openers since, a dozen presidents have done the honors 45 times, from front-row seats or from the mound, making them 46 for 64 overall (.719). Pretty reliable. President Bush kept up the tradition in 2005, celebrating baseball's return to the nation's capital after a 33-season absence. But he missed last year's home opener -- and he'll miss today's, too, when the Nationals host the Florida Marlins at 1:05 p.m. Except for when the world was at war, only two other presidents, Woodrow Wilson and Richard M. Nixon, missed Opening Day ceremonies two years in a row. And Wilson had suffered a stroke. Washington Post: Balking at the First Pitch PELOSI PLAYS MESSENGER IN MIDDLE EAST: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will tell Syrian leaders when she visits Damascus this week on a trip criticized by the Bush administration that Israel will only engage in peace talks if Syria stops supporting Palestinian militants, Israel said Sunday. The message came during Pelosi's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert during the Israel part of her Mideast tour. "Pelosi is conveying that Israel is willing to talk if they (Syria) would openly take steps to stop supporting terrorism," Olmert's spokeswoman Miri Eisin said. "But at this point the Syrian government, by openly backing terror all around the Middle East, is not a partner for negotiations." AP via Yahoo! News: Pelosi conveying Israel message to Syria "FROM SCANDAL TO SCANDAL" IN NEVADA: As Jim Gibbons campaigned for the Nevada governorship last fall, the five-term Republican congressman ricocheted from scandal to scandal and from gaffe to gaffe. When he squeaked to a narrow victory with 48 percent of the vote, he hoped to be able to focus on his legislative agenda and put his problems behind him. Things have not turned out that way. Since Gibbons took office, his troubles have only increased. The FBI is investigating gifts from a friend to whom Gibbons steered business while he was in Congress. In March, Gibbons revealed he had established a legal defense fund last fall, raising questions about whether he used unreported money from his campaign. And last week the Wall Street Journal reported Gibbons's wife was a consultant to a company that Gibbons helped to get a federal contract. Meanwhile, the local press mocks the governor's apparent ignorance about his own legislative proposals. Washington Post: Scandals and Missteps Dog New Nevada Governor GIBBONS HIRES ABRAMOFF'S ATTORNEY: The federal investigation into gifts that Gov. Jim Gibbons received from a defense contractor is not a story followed closely by legal affairs reporter Nina Totenberg. But the moment the National Public Radio correspondent heard that Gibbons had hired defense attorney Abbe Lowell, she knew what to expect. Lowell is a consummate Washington defense attorney, an insider with connections throughout government. He knows when political behavior crosses over into illegal behavior - and works diligently to try to blur the line on behalf of clients. Las Vegas Sun: Gibbons goes for the best when hiring his lawyer STILL MANY QUESTIONS AFTER INITIAL Q1 REPORTS: The record-shattering presidential fundraising totals posted by Hillary Clinton and John Edwards pose as many questions as they provide answers. While the money chase is an important gauge of political strength, it is not the only measure that matters this early in the 2008 race. The numbers shed no light on how wisely the campaigns are spending the millions they are taking in or how much money they have left. With more and more states rushing to hold primaries in January and early February, candidates must be careful to build the state-by-state operations they need now while socking away plenty of money for ads later. AP via Yahoo! News: Fundraising just part of '08 picture GIULIANI LEADS, BUT LACKS "GROUND TROOPS" IN KEY PRIMARY STATES: Former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani is maintaining a lead in Republican presidential nomination preference polls, but his campaign team appears disorganized and lacks visible "ground troops" in key states, campaign professionals say. By contrast, they say, Arizona Sen. John McCain remains the early leader in getting the best campaign talent available nationally and in several important states. And although former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney trails Mr. Giuliani and Mr. McCain in polls, he has impressed Republican campaign professionals as having the best-organized and most-efficient operation and also by lining up support among social conservatives in South Carolina, a key early primary state. Washington Times: Giuliani holds lead among GOP hopefuls FRED THOMPSON WOULD "BORROW SOME" OF FRIST'S ADVISERS: While actor-turned-politician Fred Thompson's (R) public flirtation with a 2008 presidential bid has garnered increasing media attention, behind the headlines lie a litany of logistical questions about the former Tennessee Senator's ability to build a campaign operation should he decide to run. Those close to Thompson say his interest in a White House run is genuine. Yet the practical evidence that he is preparing to build a national political and fundraising team from scratch - at a point when his GOP competitors are already well out of the gate - remains minimal. Thompson is taking counsel from former Senate Majority Leaders Howard Baker (R-Tenn.) and Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) as well as from Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), and several House Republicans are also wooing him to run. But the star of NBC's "Law & Order," whose last political campaign was in 1996, has no ready-made political organization of his own. If he runs, he is expected to borrow some from Frist's inner circle of political advisers. Roll Call: Thompson May Enlist Frist Aides TOMMY THOMPSON SAYS HE'S "THE RELIABLE CONSERVATIVE": Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson joined the growing list of Republican candidates in the 2008 presidential race Sunday, staking claim to conservative ground. "I am the reliable conservative. My record shows that. All the people have to do is look at my record and I am one individual they can count on," Thompson said on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos. With regard to slow fundraising figures and his low standing in the polls, Thompson argued that "Things are starting to coalesce and I feel very optimistic about my future." The former governor, who also served as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, said he believes Americans are looking for change in the 2008 election. He described a "completely different Iraq strategy" that included polling the Iraqi government to see whether it wants U.S. troops in the country. The Hill: Tommy Thompson joins '08 field TANCREDO TO JUMP IN: U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, a Littleton Republican, is set to announce today on an Iowa talk-radio program that he is running for president. The anti-illegal-immigration stalwart will tell radio host Jan Mickelson in Des Moines that he is formally joining the race for the Republican nomination, two sources close to Tancredo said. "We're looking at a day of announcements on talk radio," a source close to the campaign said. "That's where the conservative movement has made its mark. That's where our people get their news." Denver Post: Tancredo to join 2008 race today ELIZABETH EDWARDS HAS NO INTEREST IN CABINET MEETINGS: Elizabeth Edwards says she has no interest in attending Cabinet meetings if her husband, Democrat John Edwards, is elected president. Edwards says the first lady has a "great big megaphone and you get to talk about things you care about and I hope I'd be busy doing that and mothering my adorable children as opposed to sitting in Cabinet meetings." She made the comments in an interview with ABC News' "Nightline" that is scheduled to air Monday night. The network on Sunday released excerpts of the interview. Last week, GOP presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani told the network's "20/20" program that he saw no reason to ban his wife, Judith Nathan Giuliani, who once worked as a nurse, from attending Cabinet meetings if he won election. AP via Yahoo! News: Edwards' wife: No interest in Cabinet OPPO RESEARCH SPIRITUALLY COUNTERPRODUCTIVE, SAYS KUCINICH: The 2008 presidential run isn't very old, but the Democratic field has its first flip-flopper. Last week, the campaign of Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, sent an e-mail to his supporters enlisting their help to monitor the campaigns of the other '08 contenders. But a day later, the candidate himself sent another e-mail, recanting the first message. Declaring that the campaign has "arrived at a teachable moment," Kucinich wrote that he believes "such tactics are spiritually and politically counterproductive." "The other candidates are all fine public servants and long-time friends," he continues. "I ask that you join me in wishing every one of them well by expressing compassion for all candidates who strive to serve. 'Monitoring' projects are inherently pretentious, divisive and mean-spirited [and] come from a place of fear." Kucinich allows that he "reserve[s] the right and accept[s] sole responsibility to draw factual comparisons on policy matters." DC Examiner: Kucinich pulls plug on oppo research |
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The CNN Political Ticker provides the latest political news.To sign up for our twice daily Ticker emails, visit CNN.com member services page. If you do not have a CNN.com account, you can register here. If you have any feedback, suggestions or news tips, drop us a line here. NEW IN THE TICKER
• Richardson raises $6 million for White House bid• Edwards campaign raises $14 million • Clinton raises $26 million for presidential bid • Clinton raises $26 million in first quarter • Huckabee calls Clinton 'brilliant' and 'very stron... • Giuliani's flat tax flip flop? • Romney: Drop "Bush" and Jeb is the winner • Tancredo likely to launch White House bid Monday • Richardson to travel to North Korea • Bush visits Walter Reed Friday for first time sinc... SUBSCRIBE
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