Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Pelosi calls meeting with Bush 'constructive'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called her meeting with President Bush "constructive," and said the president listened to her delegation's concerns after their recent trip to Iraq.
"We reported on our trip to Iraq and Afghanistan to him," Pelosi said directly after the meeting. "He spent a good deal of time to us listening to each one of us give our impressions of what we saw there." Pelosi added, "I think it was a very constructive meeting, it was respectful and we found some areas of agreement, in terms of our sizing up what the challenges are there." Rep. David Hobson of Ohio, the lone Republican on the delegation that traveled to Iraq, also said the president was open to discussion. "He asked a number of questions, he made a number of comments -- it was all very positive," Hobson told reporters. "We found a number of areas where we agree." The meeting comes a day after news surfaced the president has agreed to establish a "bipartisan working group," with congressional leaders to improve dialogue between the two branches of government. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Levin takes McCain's name off statement knocking administration on Iraq benchmarks
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Carl Levin on Wednesday took a colleague's name off a statement issued Tuesday after his fellow senator said he hadn't seen the statement before it was released.
The initial statement, originally carrying the names of Levin, the chairman of the Senate's Armed Services Committee, and the committee's ranking GOP member, Sen. John McCain, slammed the administration for not specifying meaningful consequences for Iraqis if they don't meet their commitments. The statement came in response to a letter from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that was itself a response to earlier letters from Levin and McCain. McCain, who is introducing a resolution backing President Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq, said Wednesday he hadn't seen the statement before it was released. "We wanted to know what the benchmarks were that the president referred to in his speech" on Jan. 10, the Arizona Republican said. "We thought we ought to have those, OK? Now I'd like to analyze them, see which have been met, see which ones haven't been, and basically see how that bounces off our resolution, which has benchmarks as well." Rice's letter attached a list of goals with a timeline dating back to September 2006 that the Iraqi Policy Committee passed. She also noted that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki made a number of additional commitments, listing four of them but providing mo timeline for their completion. Most of the goals on the timeline have not been completed. Levin is also sponsoring a resolution, one of two competing measures that oppose the president's plan to increase force strength in Iraq by more than 20,000 troops. -- CNN Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash
Graham says anti-Iraq resolution 'undercuts our ability to be successful'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Lindsey Graham, a vocal supporter of President Bush's plan to increase troops in Iraq, urged his colleagues Wednesday not to support a non-binding resolution that condemns the policy, telling CNN such a measure will have dire consequences.
"The worst thing you could do is allow this commander to go off to a new fight with a new mission and make a political statement you think he's going to lose," The South Carolina Republican told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "I will not stand for that." Graham also reacted to Arlen Specter's comments yesterday to CNN in which the Pennsylvania Republican said he had never seen "such emotion and such concern" amongst the GOP caucus. "It undercuts our ability to be successful, emboldens our enemy, so there's a lot of emotion," the senator said. "We paid a heavy price for our mistakes. I'm trying not to compound them." -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Rice hopes Colts trample da' Bears
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice often spends her days trying to bring two opposing factions to the negotiating table in the hope of finding peaceful resolutions. But on Sunday, Rice is shelving diplomacy and is taking sides in Super Bowl XLI.
The nation's top diplomat will be rooting for the Indianapolis Colts over the Chicago Bears this Sunday. Rice told a meeting of network bureau chiefs Wednesday that while she is a big fan of Bears coach Lovie Smith and Colts coach Tony Dungy, she really wants Colts quarterback Peyton Manning to win a Super Bowl ring. Rice's favorite team, the Cleveland Browns, did not make the playoffs. Rice is one of the highest-profile football fans in the nation's capital and has said her dream job is to be commissioner of the National Football League. -- CNN Washington Bureau Chief David Bohrman Frist's new project: YourIdeasAmerica.com
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- He isn't currently seeking any political office, but former Sen. Majority Leader Bill Frist wants to stay involved in public issues.
The Tennessee Republican is spearheading a new website -- www.yourideasamerica.com -- an online community that encourages readers to debate current issues and offer solutions, according to a statement sent to supporters of Frist's Political Action Committee. The online forum will touch on a range of issues including health care, the war on terror, energy, and tax policy. Frist, honoring a pledge he made when first elected to the Senate in 1996, relinquished his seat after the end of his second term. He ended speculation of a White House bid in December, stating he was taking "a sabbatical from public life." -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
House passes huge spending bill
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House Wednesday passed a $463.5 billion spending bill to keep the government operating past the Feb. 15 expiration date of the current continuing resolution.
The vote was 286-140. Republicans complained, however, that the Democrats allowed no amendments and only limited debate on the bill; the Democrats argued that they were left to clean up the mess Republicans left last year when they failed to pass all the appropriations bills. The House and Senate passed appropriations bills for the Defense and Homeland Security Departments last year, leaving the rest of the government's discretionary spending under a continuing resolution that held spending at 2006 levels. The current bill includes $32.3 billion for veteran's health care, $6 billion for the FBI to fund new positions, $432 million for building new prisons and $13.6 billion to fund Pell Grants. Amendments are likely, however, when the Senate takes up the bill next. Clinton cancels campaign visit to New Hampshire
NEW YORK (AP) -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has canceled a presidential campaign visit to New Hampshire this weekend because the stepfather of her husband, former President Clinton, is seriously ill.
"Due to the illness of President Clinton's stepfather Dick Kelley, Senator Clinton will unfortunately have to postpone her trip to New Hampshire this weekend. She looks forward to rescheduling her trip as soon as possible," campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Hanley said Wednesday. Hanley did not elaborate on the nature of Kelley's illness. Kelley, a resident of Hot Springs, Ark., and a former food brokerage executive, married Bill Clinton's mother, Virginia, in 1982. He was her fourth husband. Kelley has remained close to the Clinton family since Virginia Kelley's death in 1994. Clinton campaigned in Iowa, another key early voting state, last weekend and was scheduled to spend Saturday and Sunday traveling through New Hampshire, which hosts the first presidential primary in 2008. Pelosi to be 'blunt but polite' to Bush about Iraq
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to be "blunt but polite" with President Bush when she and other recent visitors to Iraq and Afghanistan meet today at the White House, a senior Democratic aide told CNN.
The aide also notes Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, who frequently sparred with the Bush administration over Iraq during the past year, plans to attend this White House meeting since he was among those in Pelosi's delegation. This comes a day after news surfaced that the president and Democratic congressional leaders agreed to form a "bipartisan working group" on Iraq and the broader war on terror. In a letter to Bush dated Tuesday, Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid argue for increased dialogue between the two branches of government, proposing the president meet regularly with the congressional leadership. "Clearly, we need more bipartisan cooperation and a more regular dialogue between the legislative and executive branches, both in formal sessions through the committee structures and through less formal means on these critical national security challenges," the Democratic leaders wrote. -- CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry
Pataki releases New Hampshire supporters if they can't wait
CONCORD, New Hampshire (AP) -- Former New York Gov. George Pataki told supporters in the first primary state he is not ready to jump into the presidential race and won't object if they get behind other candidates.
Pataki, a Republican who stepped down as New York governor this month, spoke at a private dinner Tuesday in Manchester. He had no public stops during the one-day visit. At the dinner, he said he wasn't going to rush a decision about running and instead wanted to focus on policies, not politics. "He didn't shut the door last night. He said 'at the present time,"' said Dave Currier, a former state representative who was with Pataki on Tuesday. Currier said Pataki informed his supporters that if they wanted to back other GOP candidates, he would understand. Pataki spokeswoman Alicia Preston also said the former governor would give a speech on energy policy in Concord in March, adding that he preferred to focus on policy not politics. Bush makes visit to New York Stock Exchange
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- While in New York City Wednesday, President Bush made a surprise visit to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
He is only the second sitting president to visit the trading floor. Ronald Reagan visited in 1985. Bush told CNN's Susan Lisovicz he was "impressed" by the positive reception on the floor. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Could Texas move up its presidential primary?
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A Texas state representative is seeking to move up his state's presidential primary in hopes the Lone Start State will play a more crucial role in selecting each party's nominee for president.
This comes as state legislatures in California, New Jersey, Illinois and Florida are also seriously considering proposals to move up the date of their primaries, the results of which could seriously alter the campaign terrain. Texas State Rep. Roberto Alonzo of Dallas, a Democrat, introduced legislation Tuesday that would move Texas's presidential primary on the first Tuesday in February. Texas is currently scheduled to hold their primary in mid-March. "Given that we will be electing a new president, since President Bush cannot seek re-election, and also given that the new president may be in office for eight years, it is imperative Texans have a strong say in whom the nominees for each party are going to be," Rep. Richard Raymond, a Democratic supporter of the bill, said in a statement. Related: Greenfield: Could the primaries be over too soon? -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Justice makes available to Leahy, Specter sensitive FISA documents
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Wednesday the Justice Department is making available to leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee "as early as today" sensitive documents they demanded from the secret court that prompted the government's reversal on its warrantless surveillance program.
Gonzales told reporters the judge's orders and related documents from the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act court are being provided to committee Chairman Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, and ranking Republican Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, who have angrily demanded access to the documents. For months the two lawmakers, who have oversight over the Justice Department, have been frustrated by Gonzales and other department officials who have said that, because of the sensitivity of the National Security Agency surveillance program, they would brief only the leaders of the intelligence committees about it. The program was aimed at international communications involving suspected terrorists. Two weeks ago the Justice Department said a secret new judicial order from the FISA court had made it possible for the administration to drop its warrantless surveillance, and to begin getting the court's approval for eavesdropping requests of suspected terrorists. At a contentious hearing the following day, Gonzales indicated he would consider making the documents available to them. "We'd obviously be concerned public disclosure may jeopardize the national security of our country," he said. The documents would not be made public in any form, he said. "We're talking about highly classified discussions about highly classified actions of the United States government," Gonzales told reporters. Spokesmen for Leahy and Specter had no immediate comment, although Leahy's office indicated they were likely to comment later Wednesday. -- CNN Justice Producer Terry Frieden
Huckabee recruits two Iowa Republicans
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Two days after announcing he was exploring a bid for the 2008 GOP presidential nomination, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee formally enlisted two high profile Iowa Republicans to chair his presidential committee in the key campaign state.
Bob Vander Plaats, the party's 2006 lieutenant governor nominee, and former House Speaker Pro Tem Danny Carroll will work to build Huckabee's grassroots network in Iowa, according to a statement. In the statement, Huckabee called the men "two of the most recognized and respected conservative leaders in Iowa." -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Biden not the first person to wait twenty years for second presidential bid
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware, formally jumped into the 2008 presidential race Wednesday, two decades after he first sought the White House in 1988.
But Biden isn't the first person to run for president, wait 20 years, and then run again. Ohio Governor "Fire-Alarm Joe" Foraker, a Republican, ran unsuccessfully in 1888; as a senator, Foraker ran again in 1908. He failed miserably both times, which may explain why he waited 20 years between White House bids. More recently, Idaho GOP Senator William Borah, "the Lion of the Senate" waited even longer -- 24 years -- between presidential campaigns. He ran a favorite-son candidacy in 1912, then laid low until 1936 when he won a string of victories in the primaries before losing to Alf Landon, the Governor of Kansas, at the convention. Landon went on to lose to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in a landslide that year. Numerous other politicians have run for president over two decades, including Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, and William Jennings Bryan. Unlike Biden, Foraker and Borah, these men ran multiple times during the decades in question. -- CNN Polling Director Keating Holland
'08ers on the trail Wednesday
Sen. Joe Biden files to become candidate for president
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., filed papers with the Federal Election Commission Wednesday opening his presidential campaign.
"Friends, today I filed the necessary papers to become a candidate for president of the United States," he said on his Web site, joebiden.com. In a statement posted on the site, Biden said that above all else he is running because of the Bush administration's failures in Iraq. "The next president of the United States is going to have to be prepared to immediately step in and act without hesitation to end our involvement in Iraq without further destabilizing the Middle East and the rest of the world," Biden said. "Our safety is literally at stake, our soldiers lives are at stake, our energy supply from the region is now at risk and America's leadership among the world's nations is at state. "President Bush will leave the next president with absolutely no margin of error in dealing with some of the most critical challenges this country has faced in the past 50 years." Biden will appear Wednesday night on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart." Appearing earlier Wednesday on CNN's "American Morning," he was asked about his fund-raising and relatively low standing in the polls: "This is a process. This is a marathon, and ultimately it comes down to the living rooms in people's homes in Maquoketa, Iowa, and Berlin, New Hampshire, and down in Sumter, South Carolina. And that's where the competition will be, and I think I can compete there," he said. -- CNN's Stephen Bach
Obama reserves Old State Capitol for day of announcement
SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (AP) -- Another clue surfaced Tuesday in the mystery over where Barack Obama will announce his final decision on whether to run for president.
Obama has reserved the Old State Capitol for Feb. 10, the day he plans an announcement, Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office said. Abraham Lincoln served in the Old State Capitol when he was a state representative. It was the site of his famous "House Divided" speech warning that America could not remain half slave and half free. If Obama decides to run, making the announcement there would help reinforce his message that America should set aside partisan differences. It would also invite comparisons to Lincoln, another lanky Illinoisan who served in the state legislature and in Congress. Obama, a Chicago Democrat, was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004 after serving eight years in the Illinois Senate. An Obama spokesman refused to comment on whether the campaign has reserved the historic site. Bush, Democratic leaders agree on bipartisan Iraq panel
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush and Democratic congressional leaders agreed Tuesday to form a "bipartisan working group" on Iraq and the broader war on terror to try and improve the dialogue between the White House and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, according to White House and congressional aides.
The breakthrough came after a "good phone conversation" between the president and the two Democratic leaders Tuesday afternoon, according to White House spokeswoman Dana Perino. Jim Manley, a spokesman for Reid, said Reid and Pelosi were happy with the development. "Under this proposal, the White House and the congressional leadership will work together cooperatively to develop the agenda, and the House and Senate leadership will decide who will participate from the hill," Manley said. The first meeting will be next week for the president and the informal group that will include Reid, Pelosi as well as key Democratic and Republican lawmakers on the armed services and foreign relations panels on the Hill. Separately, the president will meet Wednesday at the White House with Pelosi and other lawmakers who just returned from a Congressional fact-finding mission to Iraq and Afghanistan. A senior Democratic aide said the goal of the working group is to have a "more regular dialogue on national security issues" between both sides amid deep division between the two parties over the next steps in Iraq. But in a sign of the continuing tension, the Democratic staffer stressed that this working group is different than the bipartisan panel that the President first proposed earlier this month in that the agenda and participants will be set by both sides. According to this staffer, Democrats felt that the President's proposal would have called for the White House "unilaterally making these decisions." -- CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry
Romney faces questions about his faith
COLUMBIA, South Carolina (AP) -- Republican Mitt Romney on Tuesday dismissed questions about whether his Mormon faith would be an impediment to his White House aspirations, echoing the argument that voters will be choosing a president not a pastor.
The former Massachusetts governor faced questions about his faith in this Bible Belt state where a few Republicans expressed deep reservations about backing a Mormon. Romney said he was making inroads with the GOP in this early voting state. "I've had a number of meetings with pastors of various faiths and religious leaders," Romney said in an interview with The Associated Press. "Almost to a person they've subscribed to what Dr. Richard Land (of the Southern Baptist Convention) said, which was: 'We're not electing Mitt Romney as pastor in chief.'" Romney added: "In the early days of an acquaintance between a candidate and the electorate, the focus is on the personal, social issues and then it changes to be a focus on the major critical issues of the day." That failed to sway Republican State Rep. Gloria Haskins. "I don't think that I could see someone who is a member of a faith so contrary to my faith having my support," said Haskins, a graduate of Bob Jones University, the Christian fundamentalist college. Haskins is backing Sen. John McCain of Arizona. In September, Charleston County GOP chairwoman Cyndi Mosteller questioned Romney after a speech, asking him to explain his faith. On Tuesday, Mosteller, who is a Baptist, said, "The question is: Does Governor Romney support Joseph Smith's doctrines? We as evangelicals don't believe we can go in and change Paul's doctrine. I don't see how you move around this." Romney said he is making inroads with Christian conservatives. "I've been very encouraged so far," he said. "People have been willing to endorse my efforts." CNN Political Ticker AM
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Compiled by Stephen Bach CNN Washington Bureau Making news today... In an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer yesterday, Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) spoke about the debate within his own party: SPECTER: "We had a meeting today, a closed-door meeting of Republican senators, and I have never seen such -- such emotion and such concern. It's a life-and-death situation... I have been in the Senate a while now. And I haven't seen any issue that's gripped the Senate like this one has." Meanwhile, "Democrats, who are united in their desire to stop the escalation, are regarding the Republican divisions with some glee," the Post reports. ABC's Betsy Stark asked Bush about his "tough talk" on Iran's role in Iraq: BUSH: "It's not tough talk to say that the Commander in Chief expects our troops to be protected. That's common-sensical talk, it seems like to me. Some are trying to take my words and say, 'Well, what he's really trying to do is go invade Iran.' Nobody's talking about that." His website, joebiden.com, is now live, and tonight he'll appear on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart." Appearing earlier today on CNN's American Morning, Biden was asked about his fundraising and relatively low standing in the polls: BIDEN: "This is a process. This is a marathon, and ultimately it comes down to the living rooms in people's homes in Maquoketa, Iowa, and Berlin, New Hampshire, and down in Sumter, South Carolina. And that's where the competition will be, and I think I can compete there." Find out in Hot Topics below! President's Schedule: Also on the Political Radar: ================================================================= Political Hot Topics (Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country) DEMS REGARD GOP DIVISIONS ON IRAQ "WITH SOME GLEE": Republican misgivings over President Bush's new war strategy are increasingly dividing the GOP as the Senate moves toward a showdown over the deployment of 21,500 additional troops to Iraq. Republican strategy had envisioned a single resolution that would allow the party's senators to express doubts about the plan without stating their outright opposition. Instead, Republicans appear to be balkanizing, with at least five GOP drafts now in play and more Republicans stating their reservations... Democrats, who are united in their desire to stop the escalation, are regarding the Republican divisions with some glee. Washington Post: For GOP, Discord In Dissent On Iraq FALLON SAYS HE HASN'T "GOTTEN INTO THE DETAIL" OF IRAQ PLANS: The admiral picked by President Bush to oversee his new strategy for Iraq testified yesterday that he does not know much about the plan that the administration says will determine whether the U.S. wins the war. "I have not gotten into the detail of these plans," Adm. William J. Fallon told the Senate Armed Services Committee, adding that he has been concentrating on his current job as head of the U.S. Pacific Command. Adm. Fallon specifically declined to endorse Mr. Bush's plan, saying he first has to get to the region and assess matters. The admiral's lack of knowledge startled some senators. "I'm surprised that you don't have that understanding going in, frankly," said Sen. Carl Levin, Michigan Democrat and panel chairman. He had asked whether the flow of new troops could be slowed based on battlefield conditions. Washington Times: 'I don't know the details' OBAMA INTROS BILL TO REMOVE ALL TROOPS BY 2008: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama said Tuesday U.S. combat forces should be out of Iraq by spring 2008 to end "a foreign policy disaster." The senator introduced a bill to force the redeployment under law, but that's unlikely while Bush is president. Still, Obama said he's taking Bush up on his challenge to critics to offer alternatives. ''It is important at this point that Congress offer specific constructive approaches to what's proven to be a foreign policy disaster,'' Obama said, "because we've got too much at stake to simply stand on the sidelines and criticize." Obama's bill would cap troop levels in Iraq at the early January level of around 130,000 service members. It would require that troops begin coming home May 1 with the goal of removing all combat brigades by March 31, 2008. Chicago Sun-Times: Obama wants '08 deadline for U.S. pullout BUSH SAYS HE "MIGHT HAVE BEEN MISUNDERSTOOD" ON IRAN: President Bush believes he might have been misunderstood when he started speaking about the need to go after Iran for its involvement in aiding the insurgency in Iraq. As he traveled to Illinois today to share good news on the economy, he said the subject has been overshadowed by the war in Iraq, and he clarified his stance on Iran, which he does not plan to invade. "Nobody's talking about that," he told ABC News' Betsy Stark. "To say that defending ourselves in Iraq... has some greater goal is just simply not the case." Rather, Bush is going after those who may try to harm U.S. troops. "We'll deal with it by finding their supply chains and their agents and... arresting them, getting them out of harm's way. In other words, we're going to protect our troops," Bush said. "It's not tough talk to say that the commander in chief expects our troops to be protected." ABC News: Bush Says Invading Iran 'Not the Plan' NEGROPONTE QUESTIONED ON "CONFRONTATIONAL POLICY WITH IRAN": John D. Negroponte, nominated as deputy secretary of state, defended the Bush administration's more confrontational policy with Iran in a Senate confirmation hearing that was peppered with demands from both sides of the aisle that the United States show restraint in dealing with Tehran. In a sign that the debate over Iraq is increasingly becoming a debate over Iran, Mr. Negroponte, appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, found himself answering the same questions, over and over again. "Do you think we are drifting toward a military confrontation with Iran?" demanded Senator Chuck Hagel, Republican of Nebraska. "I don't think that has to be, Senator," Mr. Negroponte replied. "I think we would strongly prefer that the issues between us and Iran be resolved peacefully." New York Times: Choice for No. 2 at State Dept. Defends Bush's Stance on Iran IRAN SUPPYLING "VARIETY OF POWERFUL WEAPONS" TO IRAQI MILITIAS, SAYS ODIERNO: Iran is supplying Iraqi militias with a variety of powerful weapons including Katyusha rockets, the No. 2 U.S. general in Iraq said Tuesday. "We have weapons that we know through serial numbers... that trace back to Iran," Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno said in an interview with USA TODAY. His comments came as the Bush administration has been taking an increasingly tough stance against what it alleges is Iranian meddling in sectarian violence in Iraq. Last week, the White House confirmed that the president had authorized U.S. troops to take action against Iranian agents in Iraq who present threats... Odierno did not provide further details on how weapons were linked to Iran. The Iranian government has denied providing weapons to Iraqi militias. USA Today: General says U.S. has proof Iran arming Iraqi militias PENTAGON STOPS F-14 PARTS SALES PENDING "COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW": The Pentagon said Tuesday it had stopped selling surplus F-14 parts, announcing the step after congressional criticism of security weaknesses that had given buyers for countries including Iran access to the aircraft parts and other valuable gear. Sales of parts from the recently retired fleet were halted last Friday, Defense Logistics Agency spokesman Jack Hooper said, adding that marketing of the parts will remain suspended until a "comprehensive review" is completed. He did not immediately elaborate. The decision comes as a Democratic senator moves to cut off all Pentagon sales of surplus F-14 parts, saying the military's marketing of the spares "defies common sense" in light of their importance to Iran. AP via Yahoo! News: Pentagon halts sale of F-14 parts MILLER SAYS "VERY IRRITATED AND ANGRY" LIBBY TOLD HER ABOUT PLAME: Former New York Times reporter Judith Miller yesterday helped the prosecutor who landed her in jail and forced her into the witness chair, providing potentially damaging information about the confidential administration source she tried to shield, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Deliberately and sometimes defensively offering her account in Libby's perjury trial, Miller told the jury that "a very irritated and angry" Libby told her in a confidential conversation on June 23, 2003, that the wife of a prominent critic of the Iraq war worked at the CIA. Libby had told investigators he believed he first learned that information from another journalist nearly three weeks later -- the assertion at the core of the charges against him. Washington Post: Reporter's Account Hurts Libby Defense AN "ORCHESTRATED CAMPAIGN TO MISLEAD THE PUBLIC ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE," SAYS WAXMAN: As a United Nations panel readied an update on global warming this week, charges erupted in Congress on Tuesday over alleged White House political manipulation of scientific climate-change research. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said at a hearing that evidence indicated Bush administration officials had tried to "mislead the public by injecting doubt into the science of global warming." Two advocacy groups released a survey to the panel in which a number of government climate scientists said either that their research had been edited to change the meaning or that they were told to delete references to "global warming" or "climate change" from reports. Chicago Tribune: Warming data allegedly manipulated FBI LOOKING INTO CA REP'S LAND DEALS: After months of GOP ethics scandals, House Republicans chose Rep. Gary Miller (R-Calif.) as the ranking member of a panel charged with investigating financial institutions - even as the FBI was looking into his land deals. Ranking member Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) named Miller to the top GOP spot on the oversight and investigative subcommittee Jan. 9, according to a committee release. Watchdog groups have been raising red flags on several of Miller's land deals since The Hill and other media outlets first scrutinized them early last year. Yesterday, a spokesman for the southern California city of Monrovia confirmed that agency officials had contacted the city about Miller's land deals in the last two months. The Hill: Rep. Gary Miller, in senior perch, is part of FBI probe BIDEN TO ANNOUNCE BID, APPEAR ON "THE DAILY SHOW": When U.S. Sen Joe Biden launched his first bid for president in the 1988 campaign, he did so the old-fashioned way: with a flag-waving rally surrounded by hundreds of supporters at the Wilmington Train Station. Today, when the Delaware Democrat announces his second run for the Oval Office, the process will be, well, different. No rally. The candidate will barely even be in his home state. But in true cyberage style, today should provide Biden with plenty of national exposure, including the debut of his campaign Web site and an appearance on, of all networks, Comedy Central. The News Journal: Biden to make it official on Comedy Central BIDEN'S SON HUNTER SUED: R. Hunter Biden, a Washington lobbyist and son of U.S. presidential hopeful Senator Joseph Biden, fraudulently excluded a partner from the purchase of a hedge-fund investment firm, the partner claims in a lawsuit. Biden and his uncle James Biden squeezed investment consultant Anthony Lotito Jr. out of the 2006 acquisition of New York-based Paradigm Cos., Lotito says in a complaint filed Jan. 5 in New York state court. The Bidens lied to Lotito about their joint offer while negotiating a better deal alone, Lotito's complaint says. The Bidens deny the claims. "He wants back what was stolen from him," said Lotito's lawyer, Brian Wille of Kostelanetz & Fink LLP in New York. "He entered into this transaction believing in the honesty and integrity of the Bidens." Bloomberg: Biden, Senator's Son, Is Sued Over Purchase of Hedge-Fund Firm SOME TOUGH TALK FOR COMPETITION: Senator Joseph Biden doesn't think highly of the Iraq policies of some of the other Democrats who are running for President. To hear him tell it, Hillary Clinton's position is calibrated, confusing and "a very bad idea." John Edwards doesn't know what he's talking about and is pushing a recipe for Armageddon in the Middle East. Barack Obama is offering charming but insubstantial fluff. And all of them are playing politics. "Let me put it this way," Mr. Biden said. "You didn't hear any one of them get in this debate at all until they announced for President." New York Observer: Biden Unbound: Lays Into Clinton, Obama, Edwards EDWARDS ALSO HAS SOME CRITICISM FOR DEM RIVALS: In 2004, John Edwards rarely had an unkind word to say about his rivals for the presidency. But it isn't 2004 any more. Should Hillary Clinton apologize for backing the Iraq war? "That is a moral decision she has to make," Edwards told me. Is George Bush a "good man in difficult circumstances trying to do the right thing?" No, Edwards said. He is not. That nonbinding resolution against the Iraq troop surge favored by Barack Obama? "Useless," said Edwards. "Exactly like a child standing in the corner and stomping his feet." Success teaches little; failure is a wonderful instructor. And Edwards has learned a lot from running and losing last time around. The Politico: Edwards '08: Talking Tough ROMNEY IN SOUTH CAROLINA: Endorsements won't get the next president of the United States elected, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said Tuesday. And that's why, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate said, he is pursuing a campaign of grass-roots politics that attracts voters, not necessarily their elected officials. "The lead is with people and whether they warm to the message and are excited about the candidate," Romney said in an interview with The State. "And that's what counts. A message is what people want to hear. And when you decide who you want to vote for, you don't say, 'Gosh, I wonder what my city counselor is going to do.'" Romney acknowledges he is not the front-runner to win South Carolina's pivotal first-in-the-South presidential primary. That is a spot held by U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. The State: Romney stops by Columbia "QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS FAITH": Republican Mitt Romney on Tuesday dismissed questions about whether his Mormon faith would be an impediment to his White House aspirations, echoing the argument that voters will be choosing a president not a pastor. The former Massachusetts governor faced questions about his faith in this Bible Belt state where a few Republicans expressed deep reservations about backing a Mormon. Romney said he was making inroads with the GOP in this early voting state. "I've had a number of meetings with pastors of various faiths and religious leaders," Romney said in an interview with The Associated Press. "Almost to a person they've subscribed to what Dr. Richard Land (of the Southern Baptist Convention) said, which was: 'We're not electing Mitt Romney as pastor in chief.'" AP via Yahoo! News: Romney faces questions about his faith ANTHEM OPEN MIKE SHOWS NEW MEDIA PITFALLS: On Saturday, one week into [Hillary Clinton's] presidential campaign, the threat of a new, unflattering image surfaced: MSNBC used a microphone to capture Mrs. Clinton singing the national anthem in Des Moines. Her voice was, shall we say, off key. The recording was quickly downloaded to YouTube, the video-sharing Web site, and the Drudge Report - no friend of Mrs. Clinton - was steering readers to watch it. (By Tuesday afternoon, more than 800,000 had.) Clinton advisers found out about the YouTube video within minutes, and their campaign war room made a calculated decision: not to respond at all. They did not want to draw news media attention to the video; nor did they want to upstage their preferred news of the day, Mrs. Clinton's debut in Iowa. New York Times: To '08 Hopefuls, Media Technology Can Be Friend or Foe Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Feingold urges Dem colleagues to cut off funding for Iraq war
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin, criticized fellow Democrats Tuesday for advocating a non-binding resolution against a troop increase in Iraq, saying such a resolution will not go far enough in changing President Bush's policy.
"These are the same people who told us we ought to go into Iraq in the first place," Feingold said in an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer about Senate Democrats who were unwilling to support his proposal to cut off funding for the war. "These are people that said you simply can't oppose a war like Iraq. They were wrong on that. They're also wrong about this. We need to get out of there." Feingold also dismissed recent suggestions by Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, that Congress cannot influence the president's action in Iraq "unless we get a very strong political consensus that includes Republicans as well as Democrats." "The fact is if we are able to cut off the funding for the war, the president will not be able to conduct the war," Feingold responded. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
'08ers weigh in on global warming
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A few presidential hopefuls offered their views on global warming Tuesday at a Senate hearing that sounded more like an echo chamber.
"This is a problem who's time has come," said Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-New York. "This is an issue over the years whose time has come," said Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona. "Will we look back at today and say this was the moment we took a stand?" said Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois. The candidates may have competing political goals, but there was general agreement on global warming at the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing. The panel chairwoman, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, convened the session to survey lawmakers as Congress prepares to work on the issue. Obama and McCain have introduced a bill with Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Connecticut, that would impose mandatory caps on greenhouse emissions for power plants, industry and oil refineries. They would also let businesses buy emissions "credits" from other companies that have exceeded their reduction targets. Clinton and Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware, another candidate who submitted written testimony, also are co-sponsors. But not everyone is on board. "My sense is a rush to climate change at this moment, all due respect to Senator Clinton, is something about an '08 election," complained Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho. Lawmakers want more public money in presidential campaigns
WASHINGTON (AP) -- As the cost of presidential campaigns moves toward the $1 billion mark, leading congressional advocates of tougher campaign finance laws want to reduce the influence of special interests by pumping more taxpayer money into the system.
Three House members and one senator on Tuesday introduced legislation that would increase the amount of money in the presidential public financing system and increase the spending limits for candidates who participate in it. It would not change the rules for the 2008 presidential election. "This system that's in place now is not sustainable," said Rep. Martin Meehan, D-Massachusetts, who introduced the legislation in the House with Reps. Christopher Shays, R-Connecticut, and David Price, D-North Carolina. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin, introduced similar legislation in the Senate. The legislation would triple the amount available to candidates during state primaries and eliminate state spending limits. It would increase the amount available for general elections to $100 million (More than $80 million would be available in 2008). It also would offer more money to candidates whose opponents chose to decline the public money and raise more on their own. To pay for the extra money, the sponsors would increase the voluntary presidential campaign checkoff on income tax returns from $3 to $10. The proposals follow Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's decision to avoid the public system entirely during her 2008 presidential bid. Other candidates, including Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, and Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, are contemplating taking a similar step. Anti-war protesters arrested outside Clinton's office
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Capitol Police arrested six women from the anti-war group "Code Pink" outside Sen. Hillary Clinton's office Tuesday who were calling on the New York Democrat to adopt a more aggressive anti-Iraq stance.
In addition to the six arrested, nearly 50 other members of the all-women's group stood outside Clinton's office to show their disproval with the Democratic presidential candidates' stances on the war. "The entire group then entered Clinton's office and effectively wove a web of pink yarn and ribbons to symbolize Clinton's web of lies," a statement from 'Code Pink,' said. Clinton, who originally voted to authorize the war in 2003, has come out against the proposed troop increase and advocated capping Iraq troop levels at their Jan. 1 levels. -- CNN Radio Correspondent Lisa Goddard Biden's first campaign event: live Webcast
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Joe Biden, slated to formally become a presidential candidate Wednesday, will simultaneously launch a presidential campaign Website -- www.joebiden.com (currently his PAC Website) -- and host a live Webcast at 8 p.m. ET Thursday, according to a letter Biden sent to his supporters.
In what has already become a popular trend in the '08 campaign, the Delaware Democrat is encouraging supporters to submit questions via e-mail, vowing to "get through as many of them as we can." -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Pelosi, back from Iraq, calls conditions 'catastrophic'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, having recently returned from a trip to Iraq and Afghanistan, expressed renewed disappointment with the conditions she witnessed.
"The situation in Iraq is catastrophic. Let's make no mistake about that," Pelosi told reporters on Capitol Hill. "The question is how many more lives will we have to lose? How much longer will we have to stay there in order to prove the point that this plan is not working?" Pelosi also reiterated her opposition to sending additional troops to the country, saying she saw "no evidence of any political and diplomatic initiative worthy of the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform." But Pelosi brushed aside suggestions her criticism of the war was hurting the troops' moral, saying, "it's the policy we disagree with. We don't disagree with the troops." Related: 'Time is short' in Iraq, commander nominee says -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Hastert recovering after gall-bladder surgery
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, recently underwent surgery to remove his gall bladder, according to a statement from his office.
Hastert's office did not provide details of the surgery or say when it took place, only stating that it was conducted at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. "Hastert is expected to make a full recovery and looks forward to resuming his regular schedule and returning to his duties representing the 14th Congressional District," the statement said. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Iraq at 'precarious juncture,' U.S. intel chief says
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iraq is at a "precarious juncture" after nearly four years of war, with chances for increasing stability weighed down by increased violence, corruption and sectarian division, outgoing Intelligence Director John Negroponte said Tuesday.
Negroponte's comments came as he announced that a long-awaited National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq will be sent to Congress by Monday. "I want the NIE to speak for itself, but what I would like to say is that my belief that success in Iraq remains possible is based on my experience in dealing with Iraq as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. and ambassador to Iraq and as director of national intelligence," he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Negroponte has been tapped to replace Robert Zoellick as deputy secretary of state. He appeared before the committee for his confirmation hearing Tuesday. The long-overdue intelligence estimate -- a classified document -- is the authoritative consensus of U.S. spy agencies. An unclassified version of a previous NIE was a key piece of evidence in the Bush administration's arguments that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was necessary to keep Baghdad from producing chemical, biological and nuclear weapons and providing them to terrorists. A CIA-led survey later found that Iraq had dismantled its weapons programs under U.N. supervision in the 1990s, though it had tried to conceal some weapons-related research from inspectors. "Here's what I would say: Iraq is at a precarious juncture," Negroponte said Tuesday. "That means the situation could deteriorate, but that there are prospects for increasing stability in Iraq. And achieving increased stability will depend on several factors; among them, the extent to which the Iraqi government and political leaders can establish effective national institutions that transcend sectarian or ethnic interests and, within this context, the willingness of Iraqi security forces to pursue extremist elements of all kinds." He said other factors that could tip the balance include the ability of U.S. and Iraqi troops to stop Sunni Muslim extremists, led by al Qaeda's operatives in Iraq, from fomenting further sectarian violence between Sunnis and the country's Shiite Muslim majority -- and the extent that Iraq's neighbors, particularly Iran and Syria, stop the flow of weapons and fighters across the border. The Bush administration has repeatedly accused Iran and Syria of meddling in Iraq, with President Bush vowing to "respond firmly" to Iranian interference in the war. Negroponte said U.S. policy is to resolve differences with Tehran by peacefully -- "but at the same time, we don't believe that their behavior, such as supporting Shia extremists in Iraq, should go unchallenged." -- CNN Congressional Producer Ted Barrett
Maine considers rule to bar text messages from lobbyists
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) -- Wary of lobbyists calling signals from the sidelines, Maine is taking steps to ban text messages and e-mails to lawmakers in session as it becomes the latest state to address the ever-expanding use of electronic communications in statehouses.
Maine's proposed House rule seeks to prevent abuse of "secret, instant communications" by lobbyists who closely monitor actions by representatives in session, said the sponsor, state Rep. Herbert Adams. Maine's proposed rule is one of farthest-reaching in the country, he said. "It's an effort to deal with a serious problem that will only get worse if it's not dealt with now," said Adams, D-Portland. "Being a practical Yankee state, this was a good place to think it through first." More than 30 states have addressed in some fashion the use of electronic devices, such as pagers, cell phones and desktop printers, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Some states are concerned about ethical implications of using those devices, while others are more concerned about decorum, Adams said. White House lawyer: Libby said, 'I didn't do it'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Around the time a probe was launched over the leak of a covert CIA operative, the top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney told a White House lawyer, "I didn't do it," the attorney testified Tuesday.
David Addington, then Cheney's legal counsel, said he didn't ask I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby to explain his comment. Libby made the comment to Addington during a September 2003 meeting, according to Addington's testimony. Addington succeeded Libby as Cheney's chief of staff when the latter was indicted and resigned in 2005. Addington said he advised Libby that discussions between them were not necessarily privileged, and Libby responded, "Thanks, but I didn't do it." Libby is accused of lying to a grand jury and to FBI agents when he told them that he learned of Wilson's identity from reporters. Libby is not charged with leaking the operative's name or CIA connection. Full story -- CNN's Paul Courson
Maine considers rule to bar text messages from lobbyists
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) -- Wary of lobbyists calling signals from the sidelines, Maine is taking steps to ban text messages and e-mails to lawmakers in session as it becomes the latest state to address the ever-expanding use of electronic communications in statehouses.
Maine's proposed House rule seeks to prevent abuse of "secret, instant communications" by lobbyists who closely monitor actions by representatives in session, said the sponsor, state Rep. Herbert Adams. Maine's proposed rule is one of farthest-reaching in the country, he said. "It's an effort to deal with a serious problem that will only get worse if it's not dealt with now," said Adams, D-Portland. "Being a practical Yankee state, this was a good place to think it through first." More than 30 states have addressed in some fashion the use of electronic devices, such as pagers, cell phones and desktop printers, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Some states are concerned about ethical implications of using those devices, while others are more concerned about decorum, Adams said. Angry Republicans block congressional pay raise
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When Democrats blasted Republicans last fall for taking annual congressional pay raises while blocking numerous attempts to raise the minimum wage, it was an effective campaign tactic. Democrats vowed not to accept the annual cost-of-living hike until Congress increases the minimum wage.
But Republicans angered over the political attacks are unwilling to allow Democrats to reinstate the so-called members' COLA, forcing Democratic leaders to scuttle the 1.7 percent pay hike for the entire year. "There will be no COLA adjustment," said a disappointed Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the House's No. 2 Democrat, on Tuesday. Hoyer has for years played a central role in finessing the ticklish issue of lawmakers' pay, working cozily with GOP leaders to make sure an annual pay-related vote went smoothly. Lawmakers' pay will be frozen at $165,200 for this year in the dispute, in which Democrats violated a years-long understanding that the competing parties would not use the pay raise issue in campaign ads. A huge spending bill for the current budget year is moving through the House on Wednesday, and Democrats tried in recent days to reach agreement with Republicans on language to delay the pay raise a few more weeks or months to provide more time for the minimum wage bill to advance into law. Republicans said no. "The DCCC ran their own ads attacking (GOP) members on this," Blunt said. "Because of that their members are going to suffer in terms of not being able to have a COLA." Bush makes case for tax cuts, promises to balance budget in five years
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush touted the country's economic health and advocated for continued tax cuts during a speech in East Peoria, Illinois Monday.
"The tax cuts have worked," Bush told workers at a Caterpillar factory. "I hope you don't fall prey to people in Washington saying, 'We need more of your money in order to balance the budget.' I don't think so. I think what we need to do is to set priorities like you set priorities with your money and make sure we focus on that which is necessary to do. And the most important priority we have is to defend this homeland from attack." The president said he would submit a 2008 budget that, he believes, would move the federal government towards a balanced budget in five years without raising taxes. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Romney gets more backing in Iowa, recruits pro-life lawyer
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- He hasn't formally declared that he's running for president yet, but former Massachusetts Republican Gov. Mitt Romney continues to rack up endorsements from key campaign states and assemble veteran staff members. Former Iowa House Speaker Brent Siegrist, and former first congressional district candidate Brian Kennedy will serve on Romney's Iowa leadership team, the campaign announced Tuesday. Romney, who traveled to Iowa last weekend, called the Hawkeye State "critical" and said Siegrist and Kennedy help him "continue to have a strong presence in Iowa." The Massachusetts Republican has also recruited James Bopp, Jr., a veteran GOP lawyer focusing on pro-life issues, to serve as a "special advisor on life issues." "As Governor, Mitt Romney has stood side-by-side with those seeking to protect the weakest and most innocent of our society," Bopp said Tuesday in a statement. "In one of our country's most liberal states, he has acted to protect the sanctity of life." -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney Negroponte: New NIE to be delivered to Congress next week
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Deputy Secretary of State-designate and former National Intelligence Director John Negroponte told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Tuesday that the new National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq will be delivered to Congress "first thing next week -- by Monday at the latest."
"I want the NIE to speak for itself, but what I would like to say is that my belief that success in Iraq remains possible is based on my experience in dealing with Iraq as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. and ambassador to Iraq and as director of national intelligence," Negroponte added. "And I don't think I'm at variance with the intelligence community in my judgments." -- CNN Congressional Producer Ted Barrett
Democratic '08ers to make case to DNC
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Nine potential Democratic presidential candidates will speak at the Democratic National Committee's annual winter meeting this week. DNC Chairman Howard Dean and Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada will also address the meeting.
Speakers (in order of appearance) on Friday, February 2 Senator Christopher Dodd (Connecticut) Senator Barack Obama (Illinois) General Wesley Clark Senator John Edwards (North Carolina) Representative Dennis Kucinich (Ohio) Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (New York) Speakers (in order of appearance) on Saturday, February 3 Senator Joseph Biden (Delaware) Governor Bill Richardson (New Mexico) Senator Mike Gravel (Alaska) Governor Tom Vilsack (Iowa) -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Specter: President not sole 'decider'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush isn't the only 'decider' when it comes to the Iraq war, according to the ranking GOP member on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
During a committee hearing Tuesday on congressional powers with respect to the Iraq War, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, reacted to the president's statement last week that he was "the decision maker" when it comes to troop levels in Iraq. "The president repeatedly makes references to that fact that he is 'the decider,'" Specter said. "I would suggest respectfully to the president that he is not the sole decider, that the decider is a shared and joint responsibility, and that when we talk about the authority of the congressional power of the purse ... we're talking about authority which ought to be recognized." Full story -- CNN Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash
Poll: Bush not getting credit for good economy
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- As President Bush gets set to tout America's economic health during a speech Tuesday in East Peoria, Illinois, recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation polls indicate a majority of Americans think the economy is doing well but disapprove of the president's handling of it.
While 63% of Americans rate the economy as "good" in a poll conducted January 19-21, nearly 53% of Americans disapprove of the president's handling of the economy, according to a poll conducted on January 11. The margin of error for both polls is plus of minus 3%. CNN/OPINION RESEARCH CORPORATION POLLS Economic Conditions Today Good 63% Poor 36% Sampling error: +/-3% pts January 19-21 How Bush is Handling the Economy? Approve 43% Disapprove 53% Sampling error: +/-3% pts January 11 No memory loss with latest Libby prosecution witness
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- If Lewis "Scooter" Libby's defense team hopes to continue a strategy of highlighting memory problems among prosecution witnesses, they may have a tough time with the latest person to testify. David Addington, Libby's successor as Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, so far has indicated he recalls every detail down to how many documents he was asked to round up for investigators in the case. "The total of documents produced by then was 12,046 pages and a lot of that is Mr. Libby's handwritten notes," Addington testified in response to a question as to whether Libby's notes would have been more than a thousand. -- CNN's Paul Courson
FAA to announce new retirement age for pilots
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal Aviation Administration chief Marion Blakey will announce a proposal Tuesday to increase the mandatory retirement age for commercial pilots from 60 to 65, according to FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere.
The age limit has been in place since 1959. The FAA proposal would match age limits for commercial pilots in the United States with international standards, Spitaliere said The International Civil Aviation Organization, the group that governs aviation for most countries, increased the age limit for commercial pilots to 65 in November. The FAA proposal would allow one pilot in the cockpit to be between 60 and 65 years old if the other is under 60. -- CNN's Brianna Keilar and Katie Ross
Bush: No slight intended by 2-letter gaffe
WASHINGTON (AP) -- This one has gotten a little ic-ky for the White House.
President Bush said Monday he wasn't trying to disparage the party now running Congress by referring to it as the "Democrat majority" -- as opposed to the "Democratic majority" -- in his State of the Union speech. "That was an oversight," Bush said in an interview with National Public Radio. "I mean, I'm not trying to needle." Bush's dropping of the "ic" at the end of the word prompted grumbling by Democrats that he purposely got their name wrong. This is not a new charge. President Reagan used to refer to the "Democrat Party." Democratic leaders have long considered it demeaning when their suffix is omitted, and some of them figured it was no accident in a speech as highly choreographed and rehearsed as Bush's State of the Union. Bush said he wasn't even aware that he had done it. "I meant to be saying, why don't we show the American people we can actually work together?" Bush said. The verbal shot came in the same breath as the president was congratulating Democrats for winning the House and Senate in the November election. In the language the president was supposed to read, the reference was "Democratic," not "Democrat." "We take him at his word that it was an oversight," said Brendan Daly, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California. New York Times reporter to testify in Libby case
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff and successor to Lewis "Scooter" Libby will resume his testimony Tuesday in Libby's high-profile trial, and is to be followed on the stand by former New York Times reporter Judith Miller.
While at the Times, Miller served 85 days in jail in 2005 for refusing to testify before the grand jury in the investigation of who leaked the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson. David Addington, a prosecution witness, told CNN he expects to finish testifying Tuesday. Addington came to the stand Monday and began to establish the process he used as Cheney's counsel in 2003 to respond to Justice Department requests for documents as the probe began. After prosecutors finish their initial questioning, Addington will be cross-examined by Libby's defense lawyers. Prosecutors can ask follow-up questions. Following that, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton can pose any questions from the jury, a process he has followed with previous witnesses. CNN Political Ticker AM
For the latest, breaking political news, check for updates throughout the day on the CNN Political Ticker. All politics, all the time. Compiled by Stephen Bach CNN Washington Bureau Making news today... President's Schedule: Also on the Political Radar: Foreign Relations also holds a 1 pm ET hearing on alternative plans for Iraq, featuring Iraq Study Group Co-Chairs Lee Hamilton and James Baker. ================================================================= Political Hot Topics (Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country) WHITE HOUSE WILL "HAVE A GATEKEEPER" AT EACH AGENCY: President Bush has signed a directive that gives the White House much greater control over the rules and policy statements that the government develops to protect public health, safety, the environment, civil rights and privacy. In an executive order published last week in the Federal Register, Mr. Bush said that each agency must have a regulatory policy office run by a political appointee, to supervise the development of rules and documents providing guidance to regulated industries. The White House will thus have a gatekeeper in each agency to analyze the costs and the benefits of new rules and to make sure the agencies carry out the president's priorities. This strengthens the hand of the White House in shaping rules that have, in the past, often been generated by civil servants and scientific experts. It suggests that the administration still has ways to exert its power after the takeover of Congress by the Democrats. New York Times: Bush Directive Increases Sway on Regulation TOUGH TALK ON IRAN IN BUSH'S NPR INTERVIEW: President Bush said Monday that he does not intend to invade Iran, but he's willing to do "whatever it takes" to defend U.S. troops in Iraq whom he says have been attacked by Iranians. "If Iran escalates its military action in Iraq to the detriment of our troops and/or innocent Iraqi people, we will respond firmly," the president said in a half-hour interview with NPR Senior Correspondent Juan Williams, the first broadcast interview the president has given since his State of the Union address. Asked whether he would seek the approval of Congress for a move against Iran, the president said he had "no intent upon going into Iran," adding, "Of course, we'll protect our troops. NPR: An NPR Interview with President Bush FULL TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW (via NPR.org) BAKER TO TESTIFY AFTER "WEEKS OF RESISTANCE": James A. Baker III, the co-chairman of the Iraq Study Group, has ended weeks of resistance and today will testify before Congress on the war, avoiding a split with his fellow co-chairman, former Rep. Lee Hamilton (D-Ind.). Sources familiar with the efforts to persuade Baker to testify said he did not want to appear to be lobbying against President Bush at the height of his push for 21,500 additional troops in Iraq. Baker will answer senators' questions today during a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which includes three Democratic presidential hopefuls and Sen. Chuck Hagel (Neb.), the chamber's most forceful Republican critic of the war, who also is mulling a White House bid. The Hill: Baker agrees reluctantly to testify on Iraq WHAT HAPPENED TO "IC?" President Bush says the missing "-ic" in the State of the Union address was nothing more than an oversight. Near the beginning of the speech last week, Bush congratulated "the Democrat majority" for its electoral victory, using a long-standing Republican formulation seen by many Democrats as a calculated insult. Some liberal bloggers and party strategists saw the president's omission of the last two letters of the party's proper name, Democratic, as a sign of insincerity in preaching bipartisanship. Nothing of the sort, Bush said in an interview yesterday with National Public Radio's Juan Williams. "That was an oversight," said Bush, who frequently uses the formulation. Washington Post: Bush Says Missing '-ic' Was an Oversight MILLER TO TAKE THE STAND IN LEAK CASE: Journalists will take center stage at the CIA leak trial as Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald begins calling reporters as witnesses. Fitzgerald said Judith Miller was to take the stand Tuesday, the first time the former New York Times reporter has testified publicly against the man she went to jail to protect as a source. I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the one-time chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, is accused of perjury and obstruction for lying about conversations he had with journalists about outed CIA operative Valerie Plame. Miller spent 85 days in jail for refusing to cooperate with Fitzgerald's investigating and reveal her conversations with Libby. She retired from the Times in November 2005, declaring that she had to leave because she had "become the news." AP via Yahoo! News: Reporter to take stand in CIA leak case "THE LONGER YOU QUESTION FLEISCHER, THE LESS KNOWLEDGE YOU TAKE AWAY": It's been almost four years since Ari Fleischer stepped down from the podium, but he has lost nothing off the old curveball. Questioning the former White House press secretary in the Scooter Libby trial yesterday, defense lawyer William Jeffress Jr. asked if Fleischer had read a document Jeffress placed in front of him. "In a generic sense," Fleischer said. Did he work for White House communications director Dan Bartlett? "Nominally," Fleischer replied. "On paper, Mr. Bartlett had a box above me... I wouldn't put it that way." Thus did Libby's defense team learn what any reporter could have told them: The longer you question Fleischer, the less knowledge you take away from the experience. And Fleischer, protecting his own role in the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame, was determined not to give even a kernel of fact to Libby's defense. Washington Post: Fleischer Handles Questioning in the Usual Fashion RESERVE CORPS JUST A "PRESIDENTIAL THROWAWAY LINE?" President Bush's call last week for a Civilian Reserve Corps to help troubled countries is either a solid idea whose time has come or yet another throwaway applause line in a State of the Union speech and it's up to Mr. Bush to decide how it turns out. For a proposal during the annual address to Congress arguably the biggest presidential stage this one is mostly bare-bones. There is no plan or legislation, just a pledge to work with Congress to try to create something. "The big question right now is whether the White House is really going to seriously act on it," said Carlos Pascual, who worked on the idea when he was director of the State Department's Office of Reconstruction and Stabilization. "I think it's the right thing to do. I'm glad the president raised it. It's not going to happen unless the president, the national security advisor, the secretary of state pick up the phone" to Congress. Washington Times: Civilian Reserve just words in a speech HOUSE GOP SLAMS DEMS FOR RUSHING $463.5 BILLION SPENDING BILL: Democrats have unveiled a massive spending bill combining the budgets of 13 Cabinet agencies with increases in aid for lower-income college students, while cutting President Bush's funding requests for foreign aid and closing military bases. House Republicans such as party whip Roy Blunt of Missouri slammed Democrats plans to advance the huge $463.5 billion measure through the House Wednesday without giving Republicans or rank and file Democrats a chance to offer changes in an Appropriations Committee session or on the floor. Most lawmakers - and the public - were to get their first chances to read the budget tome Tuesday, barely a day before the House was supposed to vote it up or down. AP via Yahoo! News: Democrats unveil massive spending bill WITH DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF BILLS, MINIMUM WAGE HIKE MAY TAKE A WHILE: The Senate is expected to clear the way on Tuesday for an increase in the minimum wage that Democrats and some Republicans agree is overdue. But the Senate's approval may not mean that workers will actually start receiving bigger paychecks in the immediate future. The Senate bill differs from the one that cleared the House, and includes $8.3 billion in tax breaks for small businesses that Republicans and some Democrats say are necessary to offset the cost of the wage increase. The House bill, which passed by a vote of 315 to 116, with 82 Republicans joining the Democrats, included none of those tax breaks. New York Times: Senate to Consider Minimum Wage Bill With Tax Breaks IT'S NOT ALL LOBSTERS AND GOLF FOR REPS. BEHIND BARS: Experts in the federal prison system, and ex-cons who have been there themselves, say that it would be misleading to think that Congressional felons are living the high life at a "Club Fed"-like facility, eating steak and lobster for dinner and spending their days on golf courses. These experts say that life in a federal prison camp, especially for someone who used to be in a position of authority, is hard. While there is little supervision, and you can walk away at any time, the same rules and regulations that govern an inmate's every move apply to low-risk inmates as to their more violent counterparts. "Clearly, if you're going to have to go to an institution, the minimum security places are the places to go," said Alan Chaset, a retired Virginia attorney who specialized in reducing sentences for convicted felons. Roll Call: Lawmakers Must Adjust Behind Bars DENVER, TWIN CITIES PARTIES CAN BE ON LOBBYISTS' DIME: Ethics rules recently approved by Congress to curb lobbyists' influence did little to change a key way they curry favor with lawmakers: underwriting the national conventions where presidential nominees are picked. A bill to be unveiled in the House of Representatives today would limit lawmakers' ability to raise money from special interests for conventions but would not affect the 2008 events. A Senate bill passed this month would bar members from attending lobbyist-sponsored parties thrown in their honor but would leave intact the ability of special interests to pay for the quadrennial events. USA Today: Lobbyists' dollars can fund political conventions MESSAGE CONTROL... "DON'T BE THE NEXT GEORGE ALLEN": The fear gnaws at senators, embodied in a catchphrase that conveys their dread: Don't be the next George Allen. In Republican campaign strategy sessions and conference calls, candidates and consultants are invoking Allen's name as a verb -- to be "George Allen-ed" -- and devising tactics to avoid a fate similar to that of the former Virginia senator, taken down by a shaky, 51-second video that volleyed around the country via YouTube. "You have to assume there is a recording device of some kind on you at all times -- that is what I am telling all of my people," said Sen. John Ensign, Nev., chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which will work with 21 incumbents up for re-election next year. The Politico: New Fear: Being 'George Allen-ed' NEW SPEAKER REACHES OUT TO BLOGGERS: Shortly after her swearing-in as the first female House speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi took time to field questions from a few dozen Internet bloggers on a conference call that was off limits to mainstream media. Last week, Pelosi's aides arranged for bloggers to question two Democratic House leaders on another conference call shortly before President Bush's State of the Union speech. Pelosi also hired a full-time staff member this month dedicated to blogger outreach, and is making plans to launch a blog of her own. The day she was sworn in, bloggers were given special accommodations at the Capitol to cover the event, and fed lunch. AP via Yahoo! News: Pelosi reaches out to blogging community SNOW SLAMS HILLARY FOR IRAQ ATTACK: The White House blasted Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday, accusing her of launching "partisan attacks" that hurt the morale of U.S. troops in Iraq. White House press secretary Tony Snow jumped on Clinton's statements in Iowa over the weekend that it would be the "height of irresponsibility" for Bush to pass on the Iraq war to his successor. "Like it or not, the terrorists are simply not going to lay down their hatred on Jan. 20, 2009 - just as they did not lay down their hatreds when George W. Bush took the oath of office, and they had already been in the stages of planning for Sept. 11," Snow said. Snow warned people to "expect a lot of 'can you top this' rhetoric" early in the campaign season, as Clinton wrapped up her first foray to Iowa since announcing her presidential candidacy. New York Post: Hillary Under Attack OBAMA SAYS NO "SENSE OF URGENCY" FROM WH ON KATRINA RECOVERY: Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama blasted the Bush administration Monday for the slow pace of Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts, saying reconstruction no longer seems to be a White House priority. "There is not a sense of urgency in this administration to get this done," said the senator from Illinois. "You get a sense that will has been lacking in the last several months." Obama, the Senate's only African-American member, was in New Orleans for a field hearing on Gulf Coast rebuilding conducted by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Chicago Tribune: Obama blasts Bush adminstration on Katrina recovery SCHILLING GETS ON THE McCAIN BANDWAGON: For a pitching ace, Curt Schilling sounded an awful lot like a politician yesterday, even as he declared his intentions to stay with Red Sox beyond the 2007 season. "We have really gotten to... a point in time in this country where I really do feel like people are pulling the lever for the candidate they dislike the least," Schilling said during an interview on WRKO radio. "And that's sad, it really is." Schilling downplayed talk of a future run for John F. Kerry's Senate seat, but he also said he has considered politics as a possible next step to a baseball career that has brought him name recognition and enormous public admiration... Schilling made clear yesterday that he is not wedded to a party affiliation, saying he supports ideas from both Republicans and Democrats. The Sox hurler supported President Bush in 2004 and said he's inclined to back Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) in 2008. Boston Herald: Curt: I will 'seriously consider' political life SCHWARZENEGGER ON "COLLISION COURSE" WITH FEDS OVER HEALTH PLAN: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants $3.7 billion a year in new federal funding to cover a big chunk of his healthcare plan for Californians, putting him on a collision course with budget hawks in the nation's capital and leaders in other states seeking assistance. The sheer size of the federal allocation Schwarzenegger's plan would require is raising eyebrows. "That's a big number on an annual basis," said Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, the ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee. "California hasn't yet passed a law [implementing the governor's plan], but when they do, I would think people are going to take a deep breath." The cost of helping states fund their health plans has already attracted the attention of budget cutters because it is complicating President Bush's stated goal of balancing the federal budget in five years. Los Angeles Times: Schwarzenegger's healthcare reform proposal could conflict with Bush's aim to balance federal budget O.C. CANDIDATE FAKES PHOTO WITH ARNOLD: The campaign of an Orange County supervisorial candidate, whose slogan is "Honesty, Integrity and Leadership," has been caught doctoring a photo so that it places the politician close to Gov. |
