February 28, 2008

Bye-Bye! The Last Gate Post Ever.

At least a few of our readers have figured it out already, but here goes: We've been winding things down at The Gate for the last couple of weeks, and today we formally say goodbye. Actually, we prefer John McLaughlin's way of doing things, so we say: Bye-bye!

It has truly been an honor and pleasure to write for and interact with you. (Even the Ron Paul fanatics who hate us because we don't cover him enough.)

The Gate would have turned a year old next month, but we're pretty proud of the more than 1,700 posts we've churned out. Most memorable for me -- Jane Roh -- was covering the U.S. attorney firings investigation, which culminated with the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in August, and liveblogging the David Petraeus/Ryan Crocker hearings in September. It's been an intense and rewarding experience, and I'll always be grateful for those opportunities.

And then there's our campaign coverage, where I've gotten some witty and insightful assists from fellow Deputy Managing Editor Irene Tsikitas. The abundant and frequently silly MSM campaign coverage wore us out at times, but it's been a real honor covering what is likely the most pivotal presidential election of my lifetime. (Won't miss liveblogging those debates, though.)

You can tell by the accompanying photo that we had lots of fun along the way, too. Thanks to our online graphics team, Ryan Merrill and Reuben Dalke, for gamely producing myriad image requests.

As for me, I am leaving National Journal and moving on. I will still be participating in the Horserace '08 weekly radio roundtable on the campaigns, so look for me on air and online. To keep up with my whereabouts and reporting, visit me on Facebook. If you want to weigh in on the demise of The Gate, e-mail thegate[at]nationaljournal.com.

Thanks for reading along. I enjoyed writing for you.

-JANE ROH

Posted at 3:27 PM
Posted to: Attorney Scandal, Campaigns, Iraq, WH 2008
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As House Approves Tax Bill, Senate Dems Look To Reconcile

Senate Democrats are inching toward including an energy tax plan as part of budget legislation to overcome a Republican-led obstacle there, as the House yesterday reaffirmed its support of repealing billions of dollars in incentives for oil and gas companies in a stand-alone measure.

While House Democrats have pushed through similar proposals this Congress with majority support, Senate Democrats have been unable to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster.

Senate Democrats have mulled including an energy tax plan that repeals oil and gas company incentives to pay for extending and expanding renewable energy and efficiency incentives as part of a filibuster-proof budget reconciliation bill.

See CongressDaily (subscription) for the full story.

Posted at 9:19 AM
Posted to: Congress, House, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: Kenyan Rivals Sign Deal; Bernanke Sounds Alarm

World. Rivals in Kenya have signed a deal forming a coalition government, ending the violence that has killed 1,500 since the disputed elections in December.

Administration. President Bush appointed the first U.S. special envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference -- a Texas Muslim named Sada Cumber.

Courts. The Supreme Court yesterday heard arguments on Exxon Mobil's appeal of a $2.5 billion award to those harmed by the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Congress. A bill that would more than triple the funding for the global AIDS initiative got a stamp of approval from both parties in the House as well as the White House yesterday.

Economy. During testimony on the Hill yesterday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told lawmakers that he is concerned about the economic downturn and that the Fed would consider further cuts in interest rates.

Iraq. Turkey is ignoring U.S. demands to end its incursion into Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:16 AM
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February 27, 2008

Clinton & Obama: The Alamo Debate In Ohio

Media fixation on the March 4 primaries as do-or-die contests for Hillary Rodham Clinton guaranteed that last night's debate -- the final one before voters in Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont go to the polls -- would get a lot of attention, but it was something of a surprise to see Clinton turn some of that attention back on the media.

Clinton called MSNBC's moderators out for going easy on Barack Obama, telling Brian Williams that she is used to always being tapped for the first question on any given topic. (Slate has a lengthy explanation of Clinton's comment about the SNL skit mocking the media for fawning over her rival.)

A question about the North American Free Trade Agreement sparked Clinton's comment last night at Cleveland State University. NAFTA is particularly delicate territory in bellwether Ohio, which has a high proportion of blue-collar workers concerned about jobs going overseas.

Continue reading "Clinton & Obama: The Alamo Debate In Ohio"

Posted at 12:07 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, WH 2008
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National Review Founder William F. Buckley Jr. Dies

Conservative icon and National Review founder William F. Buckley Jr. died this morning at the age of 82 at his home in Stamford, Conn. Citing his son Christopher, the New York Times reports that Buckley suffered from diabetes and emphysema, although the exact cause of his death is not yet known. He was reportedly found at his desk at home. "He might have been working on a column," his son said.

At The Corner, Kathryn Jean Lopez posted a tribute to the National Review's "dear friend, mentor, leader, and founder":

He died while at work; if he had been given a choice on how to depart this world, I suspect that would have been exactly it. At home, still devoted to the war of ideas.

As you might expect, we'll have much more to say here and in NR in the coming days and weeks and months. For now: Thank you, Bill. God bless you, now with your dear Pat. Our deepest condolences to Christopher and the rest of the Buckley family. And our fervent prayer that we continue to do WFB's life's work justice.

Buckley's final column, posted on NRO Feb. 2, is a recap of the preceding debate between Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama in Hollywood. Reflecting his love of the written word, the column is largely an homage to "Fowler's Modern English Usage."

Posted at 11:40 AM
Posted to: Media
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White House Threatens Veto Of Mortgage Reform Measure

The White House yesterday threatened to veto a Senate Democratic housing stimulus package, saying it would cost too much and rewrite bankruptcy rules that would undermine current mortgages.

In a Statement of Administration Policy [PDF], the Bush administration listed many items that it objected to in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's bill of direct aid and consumer-friendly initiatives designed to help homeowners who cannot afford to pay their mortgages because they took predatory loans. It said many of the provisions are "unnecessary, costly, and counterproductive."

The White House opposed a provision sponsored by Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., that would allow a judge to change the terms of a primary mortgage that has entered into foreclosure. Durbin reworked his provision to pick up support, such as credit union lobbying groups that received a carve-out for members that made interest-only loans for those with good credit histories.

Continue reading "White House Threatens Veto Of Mortgage Reform Measure"

Posted at 9:12 AM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Economy, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: War Debate, Turkish Troops In Iraq, Immigrant Deportations

Administration. President Bush is threatening to veto legislation that would remove nearly $18 billion in tax breaks for oil companies if the bill makes it through Congress.

Congress. The Senate has renewed debate on the Iraq war, with Democrats pushing discussion on a bill that would cut off funding.

Iraq. The Turkish military's continued presence in Iraq after an incursion into the Kurdish-dominated north prompted Baghdad to call for an immediate withdrawal of Turkey's troops.

Nation. The number of deportations of illegal immigrants is on the rise.

Courts. The Supreme Court ruled yesterday on a job-discrimination case about bias in corporate culture.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:05 AM
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February 26, 2008

North Koreans Reportedly Love 'Layla'

The Financial Times is reporting that the North Korean government has invited Eric Clapton to perform. The invitation comes on the heels of a historic visit by the New York Philharmonic to the Hermit Kingdom.

Judging by the New York Times' account of the intensely emotional concert, we can't even begin to imagine how "Slowhand" will be received. That is, by those North Koreans who have actually been permitted to listen to the British guitar icon's music.

FT reports that Clapton agreed to a concert "in principle," although his reps have yet to confirm it. Rock and pop are banned in North Korea. Some will have fun imagining Kim Jong Il rocking out to "Cocaine" -- but AP reports that his son, Kim Jong Chol, is the family's Clapton fan.

Continue reading "North Koreans Reportedly Love 'Layla'"

Posted at 3:31 PM
Posted to: Asia, Japan, North Korea, Nuclear Weapons, South Korea
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New Database Has Congressional Staffers' Numbers

Ever wonder how low-salaried Hill staffers survive in Washington, one of the more expensive cities on the East Coast?

The answer is supplements, supplements, supplements, in the form of "freelancing" campaign work for their bosses or acting as corporate consultants. A new Web site called LegiStorm has compiled the personal financial disclosure forms of staffers required to file them -- those with salaries higher than $111,675 in 2007. Per the site, about 15 percent of the 16,000 congressional aides fit the bill.

Continue reading "New Database Has Congressional Staffers' Numbers"

Posted at 3:07 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Congress
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Obama-McCain Squabble Injected Into Army Readiness Hearing

A controversial anecdote relayed by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in last week's Texas debate wended its way into a Senate Armed Forces hearing on Army readiness today.

Obama claimed that he'd "heard from an Army captain who was the head of a rifle platoon" that was sent to Afghanistan grossly undermanned and underequipped. "They were actually capturing Taliban weapons, because it was easier to get Taliban weapons than it was for them to get properly equipped by our current commander in chief," Obama said during Thursday night's debate.

Lindsey Graham, who lately has been stumping hard for Republican John McCain, relayed the story to Army Secretary Peter Geren and Army Chief of Staff William Casey during the hearing. "Has Sen. Obama talked to you or anyone in the department about this?" the South Carolina Republican asked.

"I have not discussed this with Sen. Obama," Geren replied, before handing the baton to Casey.

"As we looked into this, the best we could tell was this incident occurred back in 2003 and 2004," Casey said. "We talked to the brigade commander, looked at readiness reports. The brigade was manned over 100 percent and stayed 100 percent manned when they were there."

Continue reading "Obama-McCain Squabble Injected Into Army Readiness Hearing"

Posted at 12:26 PM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Barack Obama, Bush Administration, Campaigns, Congress, Democrats, Donald Rumsfeld, Iraq, John McCain, Middle East, Military, President Bush, Republicans, Robert Gates, Senate, WH 2008
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FEC Impasse Threatens To Undermine McCain & Obama

A fight over whether Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., can reject federal funds for his presidential campaign has thrown new attention on a stalemate hamstringing the Federal Election Commission and given unexpected attention to the role of McCain's possible election opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in that impasse.

The situation presents problems for both McCain, whom Democrats are accusing of defying the same campaign finance regulations he has championed, and Obama, who is seeing a hold he placed on an FEC nominee used in a bid to undermine his claims of working in a bipartisan manner.

McCain's problem, meanwhile, is generating calls for the White House or Senate Democrats to blink in their battle over FEC nominees.

"When you talk about the FEC, people's eyes glaze over.... But there will be increasing public pressure to do something as more and more people understand" the situation, said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Her group called Friday for Republicans to compromise to end the standoff.

Continue reading "FEC Impasse Threatens To Undermine McCain & Obama"

Posted at 9:14 AM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Congress, Democrats, John McCain, Republicans, Senate, WH 2008
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Earlybird Roundup: Health Care Costs, Crack Sentencing, N. Korea Talks

Administration. President Bush reacted coolly to governors' requests for a second economic stimulus package yesterday, telling state leaders it was too early to consider such action but that he would not rule it out.

Health care. A new study shows government spending on health care could double to more than $2 trillion by 2017.

Congress. Indicted Rep. Rick Renzi, R-Ariz., told FOX News yesterday he would not resign and would fight the federal fraud charges that have been brought against him.

Nation. Attorney General Michael Mukasey is asking police officers to join him in opposing the expected early release of about 1,500 convicted crack cocaine offenders.

World. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is pressing for six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program during a tour of East Asia this week.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:53 AM
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February 25, 2008

Canada May Withdraw From Afghanistan In 2011

Canada's Conservative government proposed a withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan by 2011 at the open of parliamentary debate on the future of the Canadian mission there.

"It is the opinion of the House that Canada should continue a military presence in Kandahar beyond February 2009 to July 2011 in a manner fully consistent with the U.N. mandate on Afghanistan," said Royal Galipeau, the Conservative deputy chair of Committees of the Whole House.

The Canadian House of Commons is debating that country's lead role in the Afghanistan mission. Support for the ongoing mission has dwindled among Canadians, who have seen a disproportionately large number of casualties in the Afghan conflict.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government has bristled at what it sees as reluctance among the other large NATO members to contribute resources and manpower to the fight against the resurgent Taliban. The patchwork-style NATO mission -- with Canadians, Britons, Dutchmen and Americans doing the lion's share of security and reconstruction work -- is facing Taliban fighters who have adopted tactics used by al-Qaida and insurgents in Iraq (e.g., suicide bombings) and a rampant opium trade that Afghan farmers are reluctant to abandon.

Ahead of a contentious NATO meeting in Lithuania early this month, Harper's government threatened to bring the Canadian mission to an end if other NATO countries did not increase their contributions. That threat still holds as the Canadian parliament hammers out its Afghanistan timeline.

Continue reading "Canada May Withdraw From Afghanistan In 2011"

Posted at 2:42 PM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Asia, Bush Administration, Canada, Condoleezza Rice, Iraq
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If You Needed Proof That This Primary Has Lasted Too Long...

... look no further than Time, where political reporters Mark Halperin and Joe Klein took a break from handicapping the presidential horse race last night to critique the red carpet fashions at the 80th Annual Academy Awards.

Seriously.

(In case you were wondering, Halperin finds Daniel Day-Lewis "wolfishly handsome" and Klein's a "sucker" for women like Tilda Swinton.)

Posted at 2:20 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Media, WH 2008
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FTC Punts On Sports Complaint

The FTC will not investigate a complaint that Major League Baseball, the National Football League and media giants misrepresent their legal rights through deceptive and intimidating statements during sports telecasts.

The complaint was filed last summer by the Computer and Communications Industry Association, which argued that the strong copyright warnings are aimed at intimidating rather than educating consumers.

For the full story, see this afternoon's CongressDailyPM.

Posted at 11:46 AM
Posted to: Trade
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Lawmakers Return With The Economy On Their Minds

After a week away from Washington, lawmakers return to the Capitol today looking to legislation they hope will address the economy, an issue increasingly on their own and their constituents' minds. But members also have to contend with intense negotiations over the farm bill, rewriting the nation's intelligence laws and looking for troop withdrawals in Iraq.

House Democrats this week will renew a floor fight over paying for billions of dollars in renewable energy and efficiency tax breaks by repealing incentives for oil and gas companies. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats will attempt to bring up a housing stimulus package of direct aid and consumer-friendly initiatives to help the struggling industry, though they first want to finish work on an Indian health care bill and revisit Iraq war legislation.

See CongressDaily's comprehensive preview of the Hill's post-recess agenda here.

Posted at 10:30 AM
Posted to: Congress, House, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: Pakistan Bombing, Cuba's New Leader

Pakistan. A top military official and three others were killed in a suicide bomb attack near a government office in Rawalpindi.

Cuba. Newly elected leader Raul Castro has promoted several top military loyalists from his brother's regime to his governing team.

Iraq. Defense Secretary Robert Gates yesterday condemned the Turkish military's incursion into northern Iraq.

Congress. When they return to the Capitol today, lawmakers will be taking up new legislation on the economy and resuming their battle with the White House over the wiretapping law.

Nation. Governors are pressuring Congress and President Bush to pass another economic stimulus package with funding for infrastructure.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:13 AM
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February 22, 2008

How About *A Campaign* You Can Xerox

Did Hillary Rodham Clinton step under a ladder and over a black cat before announcing her presidential campaign last year? The hits -- in the bad sense -- just keep on coming at her.

She was booed last night after sniping that Barack Obama was pushing a message of "change you can Xerox" -- a reference to Camp Clinton's charges that Obama plagiarized Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick -- an Obama supporter. It was an Ouch moment for Clinton, and the audience did not like it.

Yesterday's CNN/Univision debate at the University of Texas (transcript) was tense at times and warmly collegial at times. Neither candidate tripped up too badly, but it was clear that Obama has greatly improved his debating skills. Clinton's been strong there from the beginning, so she's not being awarded any extra points.

The New York senator ended the evening on a high rhetorical note that won a standing ovation. Points for that, right? Nope. Many viewers read her lips and saw a concession speech.

Continue reading "How About *A Campaign* You Can Xerox"

Posted at 5:52 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Edwards, John McCain, Republicans, WH 2008
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Horserace '08: NYT Comes To McCain's Rescue. Really.

This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss Hillary Rodham Clinton's Alamo moment, John McCain's anti-MSM moment and Barack Obama's momentum moment.

Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.

Posted at 5:32 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Horserace '08, WH 2008
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FP Responds To West Point

Yesterday, we published West Point's protest of a statistic found in the Foreign Policy magazine and Center for a New American Security [PDF] survey of active-duty and retired military officers released earlier this week. USMA spokesman Col. Bryan Hilferty said that 40 percent, not the 58 percent reported by FP, of the class of 2002 left active duty in 2007.

We requested a response from FP on Wednesday, and finally got one this afternoon.

"Foreign Policy fact checks every article that it publishes, ensuring that there is an objective and independent source for every statistic that appears in our pages. That is no less true of the U.S. Military Index appearing in the March/April issue of the magazine," editor Mike Boyer wrote in an e-mail today.

Continue reading "FP Responds To West Point"

Posted at 5:18 PM
Posted to: Military
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Renzi Indicted On Land Deal Charges

UPDATED.

Rep. Rick Renzi, R- Ariz., was indicted on federal charges of extortion, wire fraud and money laundering stemming from an investigation of land deals in his home state and an alleged payment in return for the lawmaker's influence, the U.S. attorney's office in Arizona said today.

The 26-page indictment [PDF] accused Renzi and two former business partners of conspiring to sell land that buyers could swap for federal property. The sale netted $4.5 million for one of the associates, the government said. The FBI conducted a raid in April on a business owned by Renzi's wife, leading to his decision to step down from the Intelligence, Natural Resources and Financial Services committees. Renzi previously announced he would not run for another term and would work to clear his name.

But stepping down next January isn't soon enough for the House Republican leadership. In a statement issued this afternoon, Minority Leader John Boehner urged Renzi to resign.

Continue reading "Renzi Indicted On Land Deal Charges"

Posted at 4:05 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Congress, Crime, FBI, House
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Bipartisan Lawmakers To Participate In 'Congress Debates'

The House Democratic Caucus and the House Republican Conference, in cooperation with the Democratic Leadership Council and the Congressional Institute, announced today that they will host the first in a series of debates between bipartisan groups of lawmakers on Monday.

The kickoff of "Congress Debates" will take place at the Jack Morton Auditorium at George Washington University. The topic will be the U.S. economy; according to the press release, the debates are meant "to foster bipartisan debate and discussion of the most important issues facing the country."

In the lineup for Monday's crossfire include: Reps. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill.; Adam Putnam, R-Fla.; Robert Andrews, D-N.J.; Eric Cantor, R-Va.; Artur Davis, D-Ala.; Steve Israel, D-N.Y.; Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash.; and Paul Ryan, R-Wis. The debate will be moderated by Atlantic Media Political Director Ronald Brownstein.

-Winter Casey, National Journal

Posted at 2:50 PM
Posted to: Congress
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Earlybird Roundup: Rove Accused Of Seeking Dirt; NRCC Calls In FBI

World. The U.S. condemned the Serbian government for inciting violence yesterday, when protesters attacked the embassy in Belgrade to oppose U.S. support for Kosovo's independence.

Administration. President Bush finished up his five-country tour of Africa yesterday with a visit to Liberia.

Politics. A former GOP staffer is accusing then-Bush strategist Karl Rove of instructing her to dig up dirt about an alleged extramarital affair involving former Gov. Don Siegelman, D-Ala.

Congress. The National Republican Congressional Committee has called in the FBI to investigate "irregularities" in NRCC finances.

Military. When the Pentagon shot down a wayward spy satellite earlier this week, it showed that the U.S. military has new weapons capabilities: anti-satellite missiles.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:12 AM
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Iraq: Turkish Invasion, Mahdi Cease-Fire, Troop Withdrawals

There are several big stories coming out of Iraq this morning:

Turkish troops launch ground incursion. The Turkish military announced this morning that it had begun a "cross-border ground operation" into northern Iraq "backed by the Air Force" last night. The operation, which is believed to involve thousands of soldiers, is targeting Kurdish rebels viewed as a threat to Turkey's security. The news has been met with caution and alarm by U.S. and EU officials.

Al-Sadr extends cease-fire. Recognizing a significant reduction in violence, radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr today instructed his followers in the Mahdi Army militia to extend their freeze on attacks on rival groups and U.S. forces for another six months. U.S. commanders are welcoming al-Sadr's decision to prolong the truce, which began in late August 2007, as they continue to try and build on the gains of the surge strategy.

Gates says withdrawals to continue after "pause." Speaking to reporters en route to Australia, which recently announced it was pulling one-third of its troops out of Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert Gates sounded optimistic that the U.S. could continue its own withdrawals after commanders conduct a brief re-evaluation of the security situation this summer.

Can we all agree that the surge is working? Apparently not. In today's Washington Post, columnist Charles Krauthammer charges that Democrats are willfully ignoring evidence that "we are winning" in Iraq thanks to the influx of U.S. troops last year. But Michael Kinsley counters that the success of the surge should be gauged by one simple test: "Has it allowed us to reduce troop levels to below where they were when it started? And the answer is no."

Posted at 8:22 AM
Posted to: Iraq, Middle East, Military
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February 21, 2008

West Point Disputes Attrition Rate In FP Report

On Tuesday, we wrote about a Foreign Policy magazine and Center for a New American Security [PDF] survey of active-duty and retired military officers that found growing concern about the strength of America's armed forces. We attributed the following statistic to FP's report on the survey:

According to Foreign Policy, nearly 60 percent of the West Point class of 2002 left active duty at their first chance to opt out, in 2007.

The United States Military Academy, better known as West Point, disputes that figure, calling it: "Hogwash. Gibberish. Misinformation."

Continue reading "West Point Disputes Attrition Rate In FP Report"

Posted at 5:07 PM
Posted to: Media, Military
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Delegation Led By Biden Safe After Emergency Landing In Afghanistan

Sens. Joseph Biden, John Kerry and Chuck Hagel are safe and unharmed after the helicopter transporting them made an emergency landing in Afghanistan.

"The helicopters transporting the Senate delegation in Afghanistan made an unscheduled landing this morning due to a snowstorm. There were no injuries and all members of the traveling party were safely transported to their destination at Bagram Air Base," said Biden spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander.

Biden is the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, on which Kerry and Hagel also sit. The three are in the region visiting Afghanistan, India, Turkey and Pakistan.

Biden is due to report on his trip before the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Monday.

-JANE ROH

Posted at 3:34 PM
Posted to: Chuck Hagel, Congress, John Kerry, Joseph Biden, Senate
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Angry Serbs Assault U.S. Embassy In Belgrade

Hundreds of protesters are attacking the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, Serbia's capital. Video footage captured one protester scaling the building to rip down the American flag, and fires can be seen in and around the compound.

"As long as we live, Kosovo is Serbia," Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said at another rally in front of the former parliament building. That gathering was peaceful, and drew around 200,000 people.

At the embassy, Serbs were throwing rocks and other objects at riot police and attempting to break through the police presence to raid the building. Serbs angry over Kosovo's declaration of independence -- a decision supported by the White House and much of the EU -- chanted "Kosovo is ours! Kosovo is Serbia!" and "We'll never give up Kosovo, never!" according to various media reports. (See accounts from AP, Reuters, BBC News and the London Guardian.)

The State Department tried to downplay the situation, emphasizing that the embassy was probably closed at the time. According to CNN, U.S. officials are denying that protesters actually penetrated the building.

"It has been up and running. It's been functioning. They've been carrying out their diplomatic functions and activities," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack at the afternoon briefing. "The question is whether or not it was open to the public."

McCormack stressed that the White House is sympathetic to the concerns of Serbs, angry because they consider Kosovo part of their religious and cultural heritage. NATO forced an end to ethnic cleansing of mostly Muslim Albanians in the former Yugoslavia in the late 1990s. Since then, the mostly Albanian province of Kosovo and the mostly Orthodox Christian Serbia have existed in an uneasy peace.

Continue reading "Angry Serbs Assault U.S. Embassy In Belgrade"

Posted at 3:32 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, EU, Europe, Russia, U.N.
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Recession Fears Drag Bush's Approval Rating To New Low

No wonder President Bush has been spending so much time in Africa and has a full slate of foreign travel planned for the rest of his final year in office. With the economic crisis eating away at the pocketbooks and the confidence of the American public, the president's approval rating has sunk to a stunning new low of just 19 percent in the latest American Research Group survey -- the first time Bush's job approval has dipped into the teens.

Bush's plummeting approval numbers are matched only by the slide in consumer confidence, with 74 percent rating the economy negatively and 78 percent saying it's getting worse in the ARG poll. Only 14 percent said they approved of Bush's handling of the nation's finances.

For more on these and other new numbers on Bush and the economy, see today's Poll Track.

Posted at 12:40 PM
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McCain Denies Improper Relationship With Female Lobbyist

John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, denied a New York Times report that hinted at a prior inappropriate relationship with a female lobbyist. The article, published online yesterday evening, quoted anonymous former aides who said they had grown concerned that McCain's relationship with Vicki Iseman had become romantic.

"If they were [concerned], they didn't communicate that to me," McCain said, speaking to reporters in Toledo, Ohio, with his wife, Cindy, at his side. "I've seen her on occasion, particularly in receptions and fundraisers and appearances before the [Commerce] Committee. I have many friends in Washington who represent various interests and those who don't, and I consider her a friend."

According to the Times report, Iseman's frequent appearances alongside McCain at events, in his office and on trips -- beginning in 1999 -- moved top advisers to intervene. Aides began "instructing staff members to block the woman's access, privately warning her away and repeatedly confronting him," according to the report.

Continue reading "McCain Denies Improper Relationship With Female Lobbyist"

Posted at 10:30 AM
Posted to: Campaigns, John McCain, Republicans, WH 2008
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CRS: Military Can Cover War Costs Longer Than Expected

The Pentagon has several budgetary options at its disposal to pay for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan well into August -- weeks longer than Defense Department officials have estimated, according to the latest Congressional Research Service report on war costs. Congress already has approved $70 billion to pay for the overseas military operations and another $16.8 billion to buy new mine-resistant vehicles in FY08, but senior Pentagon officials have warned they need another $102.5 billion for the wars before accounts dry up early this summer.

"Although CRS estimates also suggest that the Army's current funding will be exhausted by... early July 2008, DOD could extend that time line by one to two months -- or until mid-to-late August 2008 if necessary by using available authority to transfer additional funds to the Army," according to the Feb. 8 CRS report.

The military could make use of $7.7 billion in general transfer authority in its base FY08 budget and the $70 billion supplemental to pay for operations for an additional four weeks, the report said. Pentagon planners could also tap into $2.1 billion in excess balances in working capital funds -- umbrella accounts to pay for commercial and industrial activities -- to cover another week of operations.

Continue reading " CRS: Military Can Cover War Costs Longer Than Expected"

Posted at 8:55 AM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Bush Administration, Congress, Iraq, Military
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Earlybird Roundup: Bush Calls Musharraf; SCOTUS Rules On 401(k)s

Pakistan. President Bush called Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to discuss the country's election results as the leaders of the two winning parties prepared to consider forming a coalition government.

Courts. The Supreme Court came out yesterday with multiple rulings, including one giving state courts more freedom than federal courts in offering criminal defendants the benefit of reinterpreted constitutional laws and another allowing employees to sue over the mismanagement of their 401(k) retirement accounts.

Congress. Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., is beginning an appeal in his corruption case that will likely delay his trial.

Iraq. Australia will begin withdrawing its troops from Iraq in the middle of this year.

Nation. Prices on the most popular prescription drugs surged nearly 8 percent in 2007.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:45 AM
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February 20, 2008

If Speeches Were Horses, Clinton Would Be So Dead Right Now

Either the Obama campaign is too hopeful or too darn cynical for its own good.

And either the Clinton campaign is too arrogant or too tone-deaf for its own good.

Beware the punditocracy.

Whereas two weeks ago it was premature to call Ohio and Texas do-or-die states for Hillary Rodham Clinton, that is not the case today. In most other election years, Wisconsin and Hawaii would be two "so what?" states. Not this year, and not on the heels of three straight primary/caucus sweeps for Barack Obama.

Out of the 10 contests Obama's won since the Super Tuesday draw, Wisconsin's tilt toward Obama is the most significant. (NJ's James Barnes has a feature on this today.) Obama is eating into all of Clinton's constituents, including older white men, single white women and lower-income Democrats. Now the question everyone is asking is whether Camp Clinton can slow this train down.

Continue reading "If Speeches Were Horses, Clinton Would Be So Dead Right Now"

Posted at 5:40 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Bush Administration, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, President Bush, Republicans, WH 2008
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Kosovo's Break From Serbia Splinters World Community

Russia's foreign minister has declared an EU mission to Kosovo illegal days after the Balkan state declared its independence from Serbia.

"To put it mildly, it is a bitter irony that this mission to ensure the supremacy of the law in Kosovo is being sent in breach of the highest international law," Sergei Lavrov said in a press briefing.

Russia and Serbia are in disagreement with the West's interpretation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244, adopted in 1999 at the end of the Balkan conflict. The resolution reaffirms "the commitment of all Member States to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia," but it also reaffirms "the call in previous resolutions for substantial autonomy and meaningful self-administration for Kosovo."

Continue reading "Kosovo's Break From Serbia Splinters World Community"

Posted at 12:09 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Chechnya, EU, Europe, Russia
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Can These Guys Run Pakistan?

Pervez Musharraf, who seized power illegally and whose unpopularity now prompts rioting in Pakistan's streets, isn't going anywhere.

Not if he can help it, anyway. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal (subscription), Musharraf stubbornly insisted on his relevance to Pakistani politics and said he would help shepherd in the newly elected government.

But the leaders of the two parties that won big in Monday's parliamentary election -- former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League-N Party and Asif Ali Zardari of the Pakistan Peoples Party -- called on Musharraf to step down. The two are meeting today to discuss, in all likelihood, forming a broad-based coalition government that does not include Musharraf.

"He used to say that when people expressed no confidence in him that he would leave. Now the people have announced their decision," said Sharif, who was tossed out of office in the military coup led by the former general in 1999.

Continue reading "Can These Guys Run Pakistan?"

Posted at 9:17 AM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Al-Qaida, Asia, Bush Administration, Pakistan, President Bush, Terrorism
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Supreme Court Nixes Domestic Spying Suit

The Supreme Court yesterday rejected without comment a challenge to the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program. The decision is the latest setback to legal efforts to force disclosure of details of the warrantless wiretapping that began after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The American Civil Liberties Union wanted the court to allow a lawsuit by the group and individuals over the wiretapping program. Previously, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the suit, saying the plaintiffs could not prove their communications had been monitored. The government has refused to turn over information about the program that could reveal who has been under surveillance.

AP has details on ACLU vs. NSA. And for more on yesterday's Supreme Court decisions, see CongressDailyPM (subscription).

Posted at 8:51 AM
Posted to: Supreme Court, Terrorism
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Earlybird Roundup: Bush In Africa, Al-Sadr Threat, FEMA Spending

Administration. On the fourth leg of his five-country tour in Africa, President Bush today reassured the continent that the U.S. wasn't planning to build military bases there. Yesterday, he addressed the potential for genocide in Kenya.

Congress. Cuban leader Fidel Castro's resignation reopened old schisms between lawmakers over U.S. policy on Cuba.

Pakistan. Despite calls for his resignation after his party suffered an electoral defeat in Monday's election, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said yesterday that he will not step down.

Iraq. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has threatened to end a six-month cease-fire by the end of the week.

Nation. A new report from the Department of Homeland Security shows that FEMA has misspent millions of dollars it raised from selling used trailers.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:43 AM
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February 19, 2008

Military Poll: Armed Forces -- And U.S. -- Highly Vulnerable

Is the military broken?

That is a question the Pentagon and Washington have been asking since late 2003, when then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld inadvertently signaled that the country was in for a "long, hard slog" in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers themselves have been generally more positive about their mission than American civilians are. A new survey of military officers shows that while most maintain that the military is not broken, it cannot persevere under present conditions for long.

More than 3,400 active and retired officers -- 10 percent of whom served in Iraq, Afghanistan or both -- were surveyed by Foreign Policy magazine and the Center for a New American Security [PDF], a centrist think tank.

Just 42 percent of respondents described the military as broken, compared with 56 percent who disagreed. But 60 percent said the military was weaker. Just 25 percent said the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan had helped the military grow stronger.

The results are largely in line with other surveys of military officers, such as those conducted by the Military Times publishing group. But as warnings from the military about its own health have intensified over the years, the strain placed on active-duty troops has only grown. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced the new 15/12 deployment schedule last April, and there are no indications that those rotations will be eased this year, even as troop levels are brought back down to pre-surge levels. If anything, the Pentagon appears to be hinting that they will not.

When asked whether the war in Iraq had stretched the military "dangerously thin," a whopping 88 percent of respondents said yes. More gravely, the officers said, the military is currently ill-prepared to respond to other major conflicts. More than 80 percent said it was unreasonable to expect the military to engage in another war today. And on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 meaning completely ready, the officers gave America's readiness to go to war with Iran a 4.5.

That may be because many see the current mission in Iraq as untenable: Nearly three-quarters said the goals set for the military by civilian leadership after the fall of Saddam Hussein were unreasonable.

Continue reading "Military Poll: Armed Forces -- And U.S. -- Highly Vulnerable"

Posted at 3:35 PM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Asia, Bush Administration, CIA, Congress, David Petraeus, Donald Rumsfeld, Iraq, Middle East, Military, Robert Gates
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Dems 2008: Beware The F-Word

As Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama head into yet another crucial primary test today, the latest round of national polling suggests the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is still too close to call either candidate the definitive front-runner.

Yesterday's Gallup Daily Tracking survey had Obama surging ahead to a 7-point advantage over Clinton among national Democratic voters, prompting today's Poll Track to declare Obama the undisputed leader in the race. But earlier this afternoon, Gallup released new numbers showing that the gap between the two has narrowed once again, putting Obama and Clinton in a statistical dead heat at 46 percent to 45 percent, respectively.

The 3-point dip for Obama and similar bump for Clinton in just a single day comes as the New York senator has stepped up her attacks on her colleague from Illinois. Pundits, pollsters and other close watchers of the race will be anxiously awaiting the results from Wisconsin tonight to see if Clinton's last-minute effort to paint Obama as a plagiarist will help erode the strong level of support he currently has there, particularly among the independents who are able to vote in the Badger State's primary.

See the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's politics blog for full coverage of today's Wisconsin primary.

Posted at 2:25 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, WH 2008
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Castro To Resign After 50 Years In Power

UPDATED.

Cuba's iconic leader, Fidel Castro, announced today that he will step down as president and commander in chief. He assumed power in 1959 and is the world's longest-serving political leader.

Castro published the news in a letter to the online edition of the Cuban Communist Party's daily paper, Granma, writing that he would "neither aspire to nor accept the positions of president of the state council and commander in chief." A translation of the letter is available here.

Poor health has driven the 81-year-old leader out of the public eye. Just before undergoing surgery for what he calls "intestinal trouble" in July 2006, Castro handed power over to his brother, Raul, and has not been seen in public since. Fidel acknowledged his health issues in announcing his resignation: "It would be a betrayal to my conscience to accept a responsibility requiring more mobility and dedication than I am physically able to offer."

Raul Castro is now slated to take over his brother's position, with an official transition of power expected this weekend. Meanwhile, Cubans and the rest of the world will be watching to see who is named second-in-command to the 76-year-old.

Continue reading "Castro To Resign After 50 Years In Power"

Posted at 12:00 PM
Posted to: Cuba, Fidel Castro
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Earlybird Roundup: Musharraf's Party Defeated; Kosovo Recognized

Pakistan. President Pervez Musharraf's ruling party conceded defeat today after the opposition party of assassinated leader Benazir Bhutto won yesterday's elections.

World. During a speech today in Tanzania, President Bush justified the U.S. government's decision to formally recognize Kosovo as an independent state.

Administration. And in an earlier speech in Rwanda, Bush called for an end to the crisis in Darfur.

Iraq. Dozens of international companies have registered to compete for the development of Iraq's oil reserves.

Nation. Illinois lawmakers are re-evaluating a new gun law to determine whether it could have prevented last week's killings at Northern Illinois University.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:49 AM
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February 15, 2008

Horserace '08: Who's Deciding This Election, Anyway?

This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss Hillary Rodham Clinton's perception problem. Plus: those fickle superdelegates.

Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.

Posted at 3:47 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Horserace '08, WH 2008
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FISA Fight Spills Over Into Recess

President Bush and Republican congressional leaders today charged that House Democratic leaders put the nation at risk by failing to move legislation renewing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

"By blocking this piece of legislation, our country is more in danger of an attack," Bush said following a meeting at the White House with GOP leaders. "By not giving the professionals the tools they need, it's going to be a lot harder to do the job we need to be able to defend America."

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said the president's claims of imminent danger were overblown because Bush would still have authority to allow eavesdropping on suspected terrorists after the law expires at midnight. "A wide range of national security experts has made clear that the president and our intelligence community have all the tools they need to protect our nation," Hoyer said. He called Bush's remarks "wrong, divisive and nothing more than fear-mongering."

Continue reading "FISA Fight Spills Over Into Recess"

Posted at 3:20 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, House, President Bush, Senate, Terrorism
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Bush & Rice Head Into Africa

President Bush embarks on a tour of five African countries tonight and, as the New York Times puts it, the trip will "thrust himself into the role of peacemaker" as he tries to help international leaders address recent crises in the region.

He won't be alone: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be in Kenya, one of the administration's greatest areas of concern. In Nairobi on Monday, Rice will meet with former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who has been in the country since mid-January to try to mediate a bloody conflict sparked by Kenya's contested presidential election at the end of last year.

Annan said today that a deal between the two rival factions was "very close," but that a final solution about a power-sharing government had not yet been reached.

But Bush, for his part, is sticking to friendlier territory: Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia. At a speech yesterday at the Smithsonian's African Museum of Art, the president offered a rosy view of the five nations: "Each of these countries is blessed with natural beauty, vibrant culture, and an unmistakable spirit of energy and optimism. Africa in the 21st century is a continent of potential.... It's a place where democracy is advancing, where economies are growing, and leaders are meeting challenges with purpose and determination."

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Posted at 12:15 PM
Posted to: Africa, Bush Administration, Condoleezza Rice, Kenya, President Bush, Sudan
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GAO's Walker To Head Blackstone Think Tank

Comptroller General David Walker, who has made warning the nation about the gravity of the nation’s fiscal problems a central focus of his decade-long tenure at the Government Accountability Office, is leaving within the month. He will take a position at the helm of a brand new public policy think tank, underwritten by Wall Street billionaire and longtime budget hawk Pete Peterson.

Peterson, who walked off with nearly $2 billion when the Blackstone Group -- which he founded -- went public last year, is planning to spend at least half of it on the venture. In addition to focusing on trade and budget deficits, the think tank may also turn its attention to other national vulnerabilities, such as U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources and the problem of nuclear weapon stockpiles.

-Julie Kosterlitz, National Journal

Posted at 10:25 AM
Posted to: Congress
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Senators Grill Chertoff On Grants & FEMA Trailers

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff received brief expressions of praise from the members of the Senate oversight committee for his department's achievements yesterday, and then had to endure prolonged bipartisan grilling and protests over his proposed FY09 budget and a wide array of other issues.

Nearly every member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee protested the budget's proposed "cuts" in state and local homeland security grants.

Chertoff repeatedly noted that the grant levels requested were the same as in the FY08 budget but that Congress had increased them. He said the latest request for $50.5 billion represented "very difficult tradeoffs" among many high-priority needs, but the grants were funded at an appropriate level.

Continue reading "Senators Grill Chertoff On Grants & FEMA Trailers"

Posted at 9:10 AM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Katrina, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: NIU Killings, Lantos Service, Ground Troops Funding

Nation. A gunman shot and killed six students and himself at Northern Illinois University yesterday after storming into an oceanography class.

Administration. The White House asked the Supreme Court to step in to overturn a federal court ruling mandating that the government release extensive information about Guantanamo Bay detainees.

Congress. Colleagues said goodbye to 14-term Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., at a memorial service yesterday.

Military. Officials say the Army and Marine Corps will need $7 billion more than the funds allotted in the FY09 budget request for ground forces in Afghanistan and Iraq.

World. Thousands of people rallied to protest Philippines President Gloria Arroyo today, calling for her resignation over a corruption scandal.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:01 AM
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February 14, 2008

Most. Awkward. Endorsement. Ever.

"We always had good laughs together."

Those words, spoken by Mitt Romney about John McCain, might have seemed hard to believe just a few short weeks ago, when the two candidates were regularly exchanging harsh words both on the stump and on the airwaves. McCain's distaste for the man who endorsed him this afternoon was evident and amplified during the final month or so of the campaign. The acrimony was often attributed to Romney's wealth, the perception that he was a flip-flopper and the negative ads he aired against McCain and Mike Huckabee. But close watchers of the race know that McCain gave as well as he got in recent weeks, airing attack ads against Romney in Florida, Super Tuesday states and even in the Washington, D.C., metro area after Romney dropped out of the race.

"As all of you saw over the past year, things can get pretty rough in the thick of a campaign," Romney said as he announced his endorsement.

Despite the history of bad blood, however, those who heard Romney's exit speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference and saw McCain's smiley photo op with House Republicans earlier this week might not be too surprised at today's endorsement. Many prominent members of the GOP establishment -- talk-radio hosts and conservative commentators notwithstanding -- are making it known that they are throwing their full support behind McCain, if only because they prefer him to the alternative.

Continue reading "Most. Awkward. Endorsement. Ever."

Posted at 5:35 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Republicans, WH 2008
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Clinton Wins New Mexico Caucus By A Hair

Hillary Rodham Clinton has edged out Barack Obama in the New Mexico Democratic caucus, winning 73,105 votes to Obama's 71,396. But in terms of delegates, the rivals come out about even.

The final delegate awards haven't been meted out yet, but per an earlier Albuquerque Journal tally, which had Clinton with 68,659 votes to Obama's 67,538, the delegate count was 13 for Clinton and 12 for Obama.

Still, Clinton needed a good headline after days of glowing press granting the Illinois senator the glint of an aura of inevitability. A win for Clinton here was viewed as proof that she was running away with the Latino vote this cycle, while a win for Obama would have shored up his argument that he trumps the New York senator in red states and swing states.

In a painfully drawn out press conference, Brian Colon, chairman of the New Mexico Democratic Party, called the results "one of the slimmest margins of victory in" the state's history.

-JANE ROH

Posted at 5:22 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, WH 2008
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House GOP Walks Out Over Contempt Vote, FISA

UPDATED.

Enraged House Republicans staged a walkout from the floor after Democrats sought a contempt of Congress vote for White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten and former counsel Harriet Miers.

"We will not stand for this and we will not stay for this," said Minority Leader John Boehner, speaking from the House floor. "I would ask my House Republican colleagues and those who believe that we should be here protecting the American people to not vote on this bill. Let's just get up and leave."

And with that, a few dozen House GOP lawmakers got up and left. They convened on the Capitol steps to address the cameras.

Continue reading "House GOP Walks Out Over Contempt Vote, FISA"

Posted at 3:53 PM
Posted to: Attorney Scandal, Bush Administration, Congress, Harriet Miers, Homeland Security, House, President Bush, Senate, Terrorism
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Pentagon To Shoot Down Falling Spy Satellite

In a real-life version of the movie "Armageddon," the U.S. military is going to attempt to shoot down a broken spy satellite before it crashes into Earth.

"The first objective will be bringing it down in an unpopulated area," said Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "Second objective is to hit the tank, the hydrazine tank, and rupture it so we can off-gas the hydrazine as early as possible so the least amount of it returns to the Earth."

According to a CDC Web site, hydrazine is a hazardous substance used in rocket fuels. Contact with hydrazine can cause organ damage and cancer.

The government announced last month that the bus-size spy satellite had lost power and would fall back to Earth as soon as late February. At the time, the National Security Council said that "appropriate government agencies are monitoring the situation."

The last large American satellite to crash back to Earth landed safely in the Indian Ocean in 1979.

Continue reading "Pentagon To Shoot Down Falling Spy Satellite"

Posted at 3:29 PM
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Rifts In Lebanon's Christian-Muslim Coalition Growing

Once a beacon of moderation in the Middle East, the coalition between Lebanon's Christian and Muslim communities appears to be falling apart.

The "Paris of the Middle East" is divided today between two major rallies: one in support of the militant Shiite group Hezbollah and one commemorating the assassination of anti-Syrian former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. The conflict is essentially an argument about what the nation of Lebanon ought to be: a sovereign coalition between three major ethnic groups, or yet another Muslim state that views Israel with hostility.

Thousands of Hezbollah supporters turned out to mourn and vow vengeance for Tuesday's car bomb killing of Imad Mughniyeh, a forefather of modern-day Islamic terrorism. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah accused Israel of engineering the assassination, and promised retaliation.

''You have crossed the borders," he said. '"With this murder, its timing, location and method -- Zionists, if you want this kind of open war, let the whole world listen: Let this war be open.''

Israel's security forces are on alert, particularly along the northern border, and the prime minister's office issued a raised terror alert for Israelis at home and abroad.

Continue reading "Rifts In Lebanon's Christian-Muslim Coalition Growing"

Posted at 1:02 PM
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Lincoln Chafee Endorses Obama

Looks like the GOP has its very own Joe Lieberman: former Rhode Island Sen. Lincoln Chafee.

Chafee, the only Republican to vote against giving President Bush the authority to invade Iraq, is bypassing former colleague John McCain in favor of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, who wasn't yet in the Senate for the 2002 vote but opposed the war as an Illinois lawmaker.

"I believe Senator Obama is the best candidate to restore American credibility, to restore our confidence to be moral and just, and to bring people together to solve the complex issues such as the economy, the environment and global stability," Chafee said in a conference call with reporters.

Chafee's endorsement comes as McCain stumps for votes in the Ocean State later today.

Chafee, always a popular lawmaker in his state, was swept out of office on an anti-GOP tide in 2006. His successor, Sheldon Whitehouse, campaigned on an argument for Democratic control of the Senate to challenge President Bush's authority. The Republican Party didn't exactly rush to Chafee's defense, and last year Chafee left the GOP to become an independent.

The Providence Journal reports that Chafee excoriates the leaders of both parties, particularly on the Iraq war vote, in a soon-to-be-released memoir.

Posted at 11:46 AM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Bush Administration, Campaigns, Democrats, John McCain, President Bush, Republicans, WH 2008
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Iraqi Lawmakers Break Impasse Over Three Key Bills

After months of gridlock in Baghdad, Iraqi lawmakers overcame their differences to pass three key laws yesterday, including two legislative benchmarks set by the U.S. Congress to measure the country's political progress amid the continuing U.S. troop presence there. The passage of the three bills is being hailed as a significant development toward reconciliation, particularly among Iraq's Sunni and Shiite factions, although analysts caution that serious hurdles remain.

The three measures passed yesterday include approval of the $48 million budget for 2008, an amnesty bill for Iraqi prisoners, and legislation outlining provincial powers and paving the way for elections later this year. The latter two are considered crucial benchmarks of Iraqi political progress.

To help smooth passage after months of bitter debate and political deadlock, the three provisions were bundled together into a single bill, which allowed members dissatisfied with one or more measures to accept them as a whole.

Debate on the package was not without drama, though. Several lawmakers walked out when provisions they disagreed with hit the floor. But the New York Times reports that most returned in time to cast their votes for the final package, and "the jubilation at the conclusion of the session and the atmosphere of amity contrasted sharply with the stinging accusations and walkouts that have characterized many of the negotiations in recent weeks." As recently as Tuesday, the Sunni speaker was threatening to disband Parliament over its inability to legislate effectively.

Continue reading "Iraqi Lawmakers Break Impasse Over Three Key Bills"

Posted at 11:29 AM
Posted to: Iran, Iraq, Kurds, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Middle East
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With Some Help, Dems OK Anti-Torture Measure

A controversial measure barring the CIA from using torture cleared the Senate late yesterday, despite opposition from Republican presidential front-runner Sen. John McCain of Arizona.

Senate Democrats picked up the support of moderate Republicans, some of whom face tough re-election battles this year, to pass the conference report accompanying the annual intelligence authorization bill on a 51-45 vote.

The White House has threatened to veto the bill because it includes a provision that would prohibit the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies from using interrogation techniques not authorized by the U.S. Army Field Manual. Given the narrow vote, Democrats do not appear to have enough support to override a veto.

McCain's vote against the bill seemed to contradict his public statements opposing torture generally and the practice of waterboarding in particular. McCain, who is trying to appeal to his party's conservative base, told reporters he believes his position is consistent.

Continue reading "With Some Help, Dems OK Anti-Torture Measure"

Posted at 8:59 AM
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Earlybird Roundup: FISA Revisions, Craig Rebuke, Arroyo Plot

Administration. President Bush yesterday said he would not give the House more time to review the Senate's recently passed FISA revisions.

Congress. Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, got a formal admonishment from the Senate Select Committee on Ethics yesterday for trying to use his position to talk an officer out of arresting him for his conduct in a Minneapolis airport bathroom last summer.

Iraq. Three key bills were passed by the Iraqi parliament yesterday, ending a political impasse.

World. Officials in the Philippines are on high alert after discovering an al-Qaida assassination plot aimed at President Gloria Arroyo.

Nation. FBI officials revealed yesterday that they are conducting criminal investigations into 16 companies connected to the subprime mortgage crisis, and the SEC is looking into 24 more.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:55 AM
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February 13, 2008

House Panel Plays Hardball With Clemens

At a charged hearing today, Major League Baseball star Roger Clemens testified under oath that he has never used steroids or human growth hormone, even as House Oversight and Government Reform members charged that the pitcher had lied to the committee about his drug use.

"As we moved forward in our investigation, we found conflicts and inconsistencies in Mr. Clemens' account," Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman said. "During his deposition, he made statements that we know are untrue.... In other areas, his statements are contradicted by other credible witnesses or simply implausible."

The hearing, the second the committee has held on steroids and other drugs in Major League Baseball, featured contradictory statements by the seven-time Cy Young Award winner and his former trainer, Brian McNamee. McNamee told the panel today he had injected Clemens more than 20 times with steroids or human growth hormone. Clemens said he never took either drug, but was injected with vitamin B-12 and painkillers.

"Someone is lying in spectacular fashion," Oversight and Government Reform ranking member Tom Davis, R-Va., summarized. It is unclear if the committee will charge either man with perjury.

Continue reading "House Panel Plays Hardball With Clemens"

Posted at 4:51 PM
Posted to: Congress, House
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Bush, Congress Enjoy Feel-Good Moment

A historically unpopular president and an even more unpopular Congress came together today to remind Americans that they might not be so worthless after all.

Lawmakers squeezed around President Bush in the White House this afternoon as he signed into law a $168 billion economic stimulus package that will mean up to $1,200 in tax rebates for working couples plus $300 per child.

"A lot of folks in America probably are saying it's impossible for those of us in Washington to find common ground and reach compromise on important issues. I don't feel that way, and I know the leaders don't feel that way," Bush said, opening the signing ceremony. "As a result, we have come together on a single mission, and that is to put the people's interest first."

Lawmakers who have been highly critical of Bush's economic policies and of the stimulus bill itself, which was forged through intense negotiations and compromise, beamed in the background.

Continue reading "Bush, Congress Enjoy Feel-Good Moment"

Posted at 3:05 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Economy, President Bush, Taxes
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Outtakes From Clemens' Testimony, Pt. II

Q: Will you refer this matter to DOJ?

Rep. Tom Davis: I don't think we're there yet.

Posted at 3:03 PM
Posted to: Congress, House
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Suspects Confess To Bhutto Assassination

Two men being held in the Dec. 27 assassination of Benazir Bhutto have confessed to participating in the suicide bombing plot that killed the former Pakistani prime minister and more than a dozen others.

Hasnain Gul and Rafaqat, who goes by one name, told Pakistani authorities they provided the suicide bomber with shelter, "a suicide jacket and a pistol," the lead police investigator said.

The two were detained in a police raid in Rawalpindi on Feb. 7.

Posted at 2:07 PM
Posted to: Asia, Pakistan
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Outtakes From Clemens' Testimony, Pt. I

Q: Have you ever been a vegan?

Roger Clemens: I don't know what that is.

Posted at 1:44 PM
Posted to: Congress, House
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Hey, D.C.: It's Called 'Salt'

UPDATED.

District residents dread winter more than most Northeasterners -- not because it's particularly cold here, but because this city is comically helpless when confronted with flurries and ice. Now that the Beltway's inability to cope with treacherous winter weather has nearly felled America's secretary of defense, will the D.C. government get on this problem already?

That's right: The latest victim of D.C.'s saltless and unshoveled streets is former CIA Director and current SecDef Robert Gates, who slipped on an icy surface and fractured his shoulder last night. As many Beltway residents know, freezing rain quickly coated the region's streets and sidewalks yesterday evening, making walking and driving in this city more treacherous than usual. Maryland extended its polling hours in yesterday's Potomac Drainage Basin Primary because so many voters were taking their sweet time on the deadly roads.

Continue reading "Hey, D.C.: It's Called 'Salt'"

Posted at 12:34 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Robert Gates, Rudy Giuliani
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Lantos Remembered Ahead Of Clemens Hearing

Before inaugurating what was expected to be a tense day of testimony from Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee, the former trainer who claims to have injected the seven-time Cy Young Award winner numerous times with performance-enhancing drugs, House Oversight Chairman Henry Waxman took a moment to remember fellow California Democrat Tom Lantos.

"I think it's appropriate that as a longtime member of this committee and a very esteemed member of Congress, we recognize him and have a moment of silence," Waxman said, before allowing ranking member Tom Davis to say a few words.

"His keen intellect, indomitable spirit and wry insights left an indelible mark on all that he touched," the Virginia Republican said. "He will be missed and not forgotten."

Continue reading "Lantos Remembered Ahead Of Clemens Hearing"

Posted at 10:37 AM
Posted to: Congress, House
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Reps. Gilchrest & Wynn Lose Md. Primary Battles

Veteran Reps. Wayne Gilchrest (R) and Albert Wynn (D) of Maryland yesterday became the first members of Congress to lose their bids for renomination this year. The two relatively moderate lawmakers, both of whom were dogged by their positions on the Iraq war, each faced stiff opposition from the more extreme wings of their respective parties.

Gilchrest, who had bucked his party by voting against the Iraq war, lost to state Sen. Andy Harris, who had the backing of the fiscally conservative Club for Growth. Harris won, 44 percent to 32 percent, with 95 percent of precincts reporting as of early this morning. State Sen. E.J. Pipkin finished third in the GOP primary with 21 percent. In November, Harris will face Queen Anne's County State's Attorney Frank Kratovil in the Republican-leaning district on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Meanwhile, in Maryland's majority-minority 4th District, attorney Donna Edwards was winning the Democratic nomination this morning, 60 percent to 35 percent, with 75 percent of precincts reporting. She had come close to ousting Wynn, who voted for the war in Iraq, in 2006.

Yesterday's results in Maryland, only the second state to hold its congressional primaries so far this year, suggest it's going to be another bumpy ride for incumbents as the war and economic issues continue to drive wedges within both major parties.

Continue reading "Reps. Gilchrest & Wynn Lose Md. Primary Battles"

Posted at 10:35 AM
Posted to: Campaigns, Congress, House
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Senate To Battle Over Authorization Bill's Torture Provision

Having cleared a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act revision bill yesterday after weeks of skirmishing, the Senate is now expected to battle over legislation that would prohibit the CIA from using coercive interrogation techniques.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he will try today to advance the long-stalled conference agreement on a measure that would authorize intelligence programs and spending for the current fiscal year. Reid is seeking a vote to invoke cloture on the bill, which would cut off debate and set it up for final passage.

But Republicans and the White House oppose a provision in the authorization bill that would prohibit the CIA and all other U.S. intelligence agencies from using interrogation techniques not authorized by the U.S. Army Field Manual.

Continue reading "Senate To Battle Over Authorization Bill's Torture Provision"

Posted at 9:16 AM
Posted to: CIA, Congress, Senate, Terrorism
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Earlybird Roundup: Journalist To Be Released; Hezbollah Chief Killed

Iraq. The office of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's movement announced today that a British journalist for CBS News abducted in Basra would be released "within hours."

Terrorism. Imad Mughniyeh, a chief Hezbollah operative, was killed by a car bomb in Syria late last night; no group or individual claimed immediate responsibility for the attack.

Courts. The Bush administration is readying its legal defense against six al-Qaida suspects who are expected to claim they were mistreated through harsh interrogation methods at Guantanamo Bay.

Congress. Democrats in the House could vote as early as tomorrow to hold White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers in contempt.

Campaigns. Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain swept yesterday's primaries in Maryland, Virginia and D.C.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:13 AM
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February 12, 2008

WH '08: The Hurry-Up Primary Campaign

In homage to the great sportswriter (and Brookings Institution egghead) Gregg Easterbrook, we're dubbing today's spate of regional votes the Potomac Drainage Basin Primary. (It's no worse than any of the other nicknames we've seen.)

So in case you missed it, there's a primary vote happening today in Virginia, Maryland and right here in the District. Barack Obama's going to sweep those votes, and Hillary Rodham Clinton is going to keep losing contests until March 4's Ohio and Texas primaries, which she might also lose. Wow, those are a long way away. She's a goner.

And... scene.

So goes our cheeky ribbing of the media speculation-a-thon regarding today's primaries, which according to MSM bylaws a) must have a cutesy nickname (Chesapeake or Crab Cake?) and b) must be predictive of the nomination winner and, while we're at it, the winner of the November general election vote.

Continue reading "WH '08: The Hurry-Up Primary Campaign"

Posted at 6:10 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Bush Administration, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, President Bush, Republicans, Rudy Giuliani, WH 2008
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From Russia, With Contempt

Gazprom will continue to pump gas into Ukraine after negotiators resolved a dispute with Russia, but energy supplies might be the least of the former Soviet satellite's concerns.

Asked about Ukraine's bid for inclusion in NATO, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, "I draw your attention to the consequences that would follow. It is terrible to even think that in response to this... Russia cannot theoretically exclude aiming our offensive missile systems at Ukraine."

Putin said Moscow would not interfere with Ukraine's affairs, but warned Kiev that if it agreed to host missile systems or NATO bases, Russia would point its weapons at Ukraine. Putin has made similar threats to Poland and the Czech Republic, where the U.S. is planning to install anti-ballistic weapons systems.

Continue reading "From Russia, With Contempt"

Posted at 4:49 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Military, Russia, Vladimir Putin
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Senate Close To FISA Bill OK

The Senate was on track today to approve a White House-backed measure that would overhaul the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and give telecommunications companies retroactive legal immunity for helping the Bush administration conduct electronic surveillance on U.S. residents without court warrants.

After weeks of debate and votes on amendments, the bill remains essentially unchanged since it was crafted by the Senate Intelligence Committee and administration officials. Significantly, Republicans and a sufficient number of Democrats joined forces to defeat by large margins three amendments that would have stripped or altered the statutory immunity provision in the bill. The Senate voted 69-29 to invoke cloture on the bill, and was expected to pass it this afternoon.

But the fate of the bill remains in doubt because a House-Senate conference will be needed to resolve differences with a House-passed bill. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said last week that there does not appear to be enough time to complete work on a final bill before a temporary law overhauling FISA expires at the end of Friday.

Continue reading "Senate Close To FISA Bill OK"

Posted at 4:05 PM
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Bush Speaks Out On Hate Crimes

President Bush issued a forceful indictment of hate crimes during a White House event honoring Black History Month.

"The noose is not a symbol of prairie justice, but of gross injustice. Displaying one is not a harmless prank," Bush said, referring to a "a number of media reports" of noose displays. "And lynching is not a word to be mentioned in jest. As a civil society, we must understand that noose displays and lynching jokes have no place in a civil society. They are wrong and have no place in America today."

Bush's remarks come on the 199th birthday of Abraham Lincoln.

The District has been home to several high-profile racial incidents in recent months. Several contractors were fired after a Jan. 22 incident in which a noose was found in a break room at the site of the new Washington Nationals stadium. D.C. legislators have since introduced a bill making the display of nooses a hate crime.

Continue reading "Bush Speaks Out On Hate Crimes"

Posted at 3:41 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, President Bush, Race
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Mortgage Crisis Spreads, White House Responds

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced a new mortgage rescue plan that would help all kinds of borrowers, not just those who took out subprime loans.

Dubbed Project Lifeline, the program would enlist the six major mortgage lenders in a "targeted outreach to homeowners 90 days or more delinquent" that would "pause" the foreclosure process. Though the Bush administration continues to insist that the economy hasn't fallen into recession, today's announcement was an acknowledgement that better-off Americans are also suffering as a result of the lending crash.

"Project Lifeline has the potential to offer new solutions to responsible and able homeowners who want to keep their homes," Paulson said at a joint press conference with Jackson. Describing the effort to help struggling homeowners as "evolving," Paulson added, "As our economy works through this difficult period, we will look at additional opportunities to try to prevent additional foreclosures."

Continue reading "Mortgage Crisis Spreads, White House Responds"

Posted at 12:38 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Economy, President Bush
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Calls Intensify For Gaza Invasion

Angry Israelis are pressing for retaliation against Palestinian militants in Gaza, even as the repercussions of the humiliating 2006 war with Hezbollah are still being felt.

Dozens of residents from Sderot, an Israeli town that sees a near-daily barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza, traveled to Jerusalem over the weekend to protest perceived government inaction. Israeli Cabinet members, including Defense Minister Ehud Barak, have joined the cries for harsher tactics against Gaza militants, particularly after two brothers, ages 8 and 19, were seriously injured while fleeing rocket fire with their family.

Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit advised the military to give one Gaza neighborhood a day to empty out, and then to destroy it, BBC News reports. The Israeli army has yet to make a significant military incursion into Gaza, despite its nearly complete isolation from the friendlier regime in the West Bank and the world community.

Continue reading "Calls Intensify For Gaza Invasion"

Posted at 11:01 AM
Posted to: Fatah, Hamas, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, Palestinians
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East Timor Crisis Widens

A state of emergency has been declared in the small Southeast Asian island nation, one day after an assassination attempt on two of its top leaders. President Jose Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao were attacked in a failed coup.

Ramos-Horta remains on life support in an Australian military hospital with gunshot wounds in the chest, back and stomach. Gusmao escaped uninjured.

The state of emergency suspends large public gatherings and imposes an 8 p.m. curfew, according to the deputy prime minister.

Australian security forces have been called into the country to help enforce the state of emergency, and an op-ed this morning in the Boston Globe stresses the need for international intervention. The U.N. has maintained a presence in the country since Indonesia withdrew its control in 1999; East Timor won its independence in 2002.

See the CNN and Washington Post stories for more on East Timor's history and the current conflict.

Posted at 9:07 AM
Posted to: Asia
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Earlybird Roundup: Danish Cartoonist Plot; Journalist's Kidnapping

World. Danish authorities have arrested several suspects in connection with an alleged plot to kill one of the 12 cartoonists who depicted Mohammad in a newspaper two years ago.

Administration. The White House yesterday denied the country is in a recession, saying only that it predicted "slower growth" in the coming years.

Nation. The FBI plans to issue green cards to about 47,000 immigrants before their background checks are completed.

Iraq. A CBS News journalist and his Iraqi translator were abducted outside their Basra hotel on Sunday night.

Economy. General Motors offered buyouts to 74,000 employees -- its entire U.S. hourly work force -- after reporting a company-record $38.7 billion net loss for 2007.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:02 AM
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February 11, 2008

AP: U.S. Navy Intercepted Russian Jets

AP is reporting that two U.S. fighter jets intercepted two Russian bombers flying too close to the USS Nimitz over the weekend.

According to a U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity, a Russian Tupolev 95 swooped to a low altitude close to the Nimitz, while another "circled about 50 nautical miles out."

The incident coincides with another confrontation involving Japanese naval vessels. Japan lodged a protest against Moscow, claiming a Russian bomber violated the island nation's airspace. According to AFP, Japanese officials said a Tupolev 95 flew over "Sofugan, 650 kilometres (406 miles) south of Tokyo, for about three minutes" early Saturday morning.

Continue reading "AP: U.S. Navy Intercepted Russian Jets"

Posted at 5:25 PM
Posted to: Asia, Japan, Military, Russia
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Longtime Calif. Rep., Holocaust Survivor Lantos Dies At 80

UPDATED.

House Foreign Affairs Chairman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress, died this morning at Bethesda Naval Medical Center from complications of cancer of the esophagus. He was 80.

Lantos' office made the announcement and noted that his wife, Annette, as well as his two daughters and many of his grandchildren were at his side. No date for memorial services or a funeral had been set by this afternoon. Lantos announced in early January he would not seek re-election because of the cancer diagnosis, although he had said he planned to finish out his term.

"The passing of Tom Lantos is a profound loss for the Congress and for the nation and a terrible loss for me personally," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose San Francisco-based district borders the 12th District seat held by Lantos since 1980. "As the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to Congress, Tom Lantos devoted his life to shining a bright light on dark corners of oppression. He used his chairmanship of the Foreign Affairs Committee to empower the powerless and give voice to the voiceless throughout the world."

Continue reading "Longtime Calif. Rep., Holocaust Survivor Lantos Dies At 80"

Posted at 3:25 PM
Posted to: Congress, House
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DOD Analyst Netted In Chinese Espionage Ring

Gregg William Bergersen, 51, of Alexandria, Va., has been charged with passing on classified information he obtained as a Pentagon employee to two Chinese spies.

According to the Justice Department, Bergersen traded secret documents on the U.S. space program and military sales with Taiwan, an enemy of China, to Tai Shen Kuo and Yu Xin Kang both of New Orleans. The Washington Post reports that the trio met at various times in "Northern Virginia, Charleston, South Carolina and Las Vegas."

Bergersen, a weapons policy analyst at the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, faces up to 10 years in prison.

Continue reading "DOD Analyst Netted In Chinese Espionage Ring"

Posted at 2:58 PM
Posted to: Asia, China
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Military Commissions To Get First Major Test

The Pentagon formally announced today it was seeking the death penalty for six Guantanamo detainees for their alleged roles in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The cases, to be tried jointly at the government's request, are the first to hit the U.S. government's as-yet-untested military tribunals system.

The creation of a separate judicial system for foreign terrorism suspects has been slowgoing, fraught with do-overs and heavily criticized around the world. Last June, the first two cases to be brought before the newly established military commissions -- under orders from the Supreme Court and Congress -- were summarily tossed out on technicalities. Now, DOD is signaling its intention of finally putting the military commissions to the test, and with its biggest fish in the war on terror so far.

The highest-profile defendant is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who as al-Qaida's No. 3 confessed to planning and facilitating the 9/11 attacks as well as personally beheading American journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan.

Continue reading "Military Commissions To Get First Major Test"

Posted at 2:40 PM
Posted to: Al-Qaida, Bush Administration, Military, Terrorism
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Another Way To Look At The D.C. Handguns Case

In March, lawyers for the District of Columbia will go before the Supreme Court to argue that the Second Amendment does not trump a municipality's interest in regulating the flow of deadly weapons. It will be the high court's first crack at the contentious "right to bear arms" amendment in more than seven decades.

As is often the case when big cities grapple with an epidemic of gun violence, the winds of sympathy are blowing in the District's favor. Mayor Adrian Fenty's administration is taking a visible lead in this case, seeking to defend the strictest handgun law in the country: a ban on most private gun ownership and requirements on how guns are stored in private homes.

The justices will be asked to interpret a confusing clause in the Second Amendment, which would thereby clarify whether the right to bear arms is collective -- the prevailing interpretation in American jurisprudence -- or individual. But in an amicus brief, a guns rights group is asking the court to take a very narrow look at D.C. v. Heller. At issue: the District's failure to police itself.

Continue reading "Another Way To Look At The D.C. Handguns Case"

Posted at 12:30 PM
Posted to: Constitution, Crime, Supreme Court
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Earlybird Roundup: Iraq's Future, East Timor Attacks

Iraq. President Bush pledged yesterday that the U.S. would not establish permanent bases in Iraq. During a trip to the region, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said today that he thought a pause in the drawdown of U.S. forces stationed in the country would "make sense" this summer.

Administration. In his radio address Saturday, Bush fumed at senators for holding up confirmation of more than 180 nominees.

Terrorism. U.S. military prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for six detainees at Guantanamo Bay.

World. The president of East Timor was seriously wounded today when rebel gunmen attacked his residence.

Campaigns. Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton replaced her longtime campaign manager this weekend with her former chief of staff, Maggie Williams.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:10 AM
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Mortgage Brokers Feel More Heat

As Congress has attempted to target those responsible for abusive home loans, mortgage brokers have so far escaped the brunt of its wrath.

The brokers face their biggest challenge in coming months as the Senate begins work on legislation to curb predatory lending. Senate Banking Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., have fingered mortgage brokers as a primary culprit of the crisis, noting that while the industry was responsible for originating as much as 70 percent of subprime loans in recent years, it had little oversight from state regulators -- thus contributing to a marketplace that allowed as many as 2 million borrowers to be placed into loans they could not afford to repay.

See CongressDaily (subscription) for the full story.

Posted at 7:31 AM
Posted to: Congress, Senate
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February 08, 2008

Horserace '08: Holding Their Noses

This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss Mitt Romney's exit, John McCain's emergence as the presumptive Republican nominee, and conservatives who don't heart "Huckananny."

Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.

Posted at 5:18 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Horserace '08, WH 2008
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McCain & Conservatives: It's Not Love, But It'll Do

Conservative activists still haven't forgiven John McCain for thumbing his nose at them in 2000, when he challenged their candidate, George W. Bush, for the Republican nomination. That's evident this week, as thousands of the conservative grassroots convene at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington for the 2008 Conservative Political Action Conference.

Eleven months ago, as the 2008 presidential race was kicking into gear, there was zero support for McCain at CPAC. Though Mitt Romney emerged the CPAC straw poll winner, support for him at the time seemed to be borne of resignation. The conservative base was agonizing over its choices for the nominee, and at its dim hopes of hanging on to the White House in the wake of a tremendously unpopular Republican presidency. The ennui prompted Mike Huckabee to quip that the conference ought to be renamed, "Dude, where's my candidate?"

With no offense intended to Huckabee, who still remains in this contest, it's now pretty clear that, dude, your candidate is John McCain.

"I hope you will pardon my absence last year, and understand that I intended no personal insult to any of you. I was merely preoccupied with the business of trying to escape the distinction of preseason front-runner for the Republican nomination which, I'm sure some of you observed, I managed to do in fairly short order," McCain said at the conference yesterday, using humor as he often does to defuse an awkward situation.

It worked, and not just because the room was packed with the McCainiacs who were totally absent at last year's CPAC. Just hours before, Mitt Romney informed attendees he was dropping out of the race. Romney supporters were also on hand to hear from McCain, in an irony-laden, fresh-start introduction to the GOP's presumptive nominee.

Continue reading "McCain & Conservatives: It's Not Love, But It'll Do"

Posted at 5:07 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Fred Thompson, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Ron Paul, WH 2008
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The Democrats' Nail-Biter Continues

Even though the candidates have moved on to the next round of contests -- caucuses in Nebraska, Louisiana and Washington tomorrow; Maine on Sunday; and the Potomac Primary next Tuesday -- the final Super Tuesday tally in the incredibly tight race between Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama remains unresolved. As delegate counts from various states continue to trickle in, the latest count by MSNBC has Obama with a razor-thin lead over Clinton, 861 to 855.

Meanwhile, the results of New Mexico's Feb. 5 caucus still hang in the balance. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, MSNBC (a NationalJournal.com partner) has Clinton leading, 49 percent to 48 percent. But with just over 1,100 votes separating them, the two senators are waiting for more than 17,000 provisional ballots to be counted before a winner is declared.

AP reports that it "could be a couple of days" before there's an answer; UPI quotes state party leaders who say it may take another week. Either way, the two are likely to split the delegates from that state down the middle.

Continue reading "The Democrats' Nail-Biter Continues"

Posted at 2:38 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, WH 2008
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Scotland Yard: Blast, Not Gunshot, Killed Bhutto

After being called in several weeks ago to probe the death of Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, Scotland Yard investigators have concluded that a suicide bomb -- not a gunshot -- killed the former prime minister.

The report confirms that a gunman fired shots in Bhutto's direction just before the Dec. 27 blast, as previously reported, but that he missed and she was actually killed by the force of the explosion which caused her head to slam against her car. It also states that the gunman himself set off the bomb.

Continue reading "Scotland Yard: Blast, Not Gunshot, Killed Bhutto"

Posted at 9:05 AM
Posted to: Asia, Pakistan
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Earlybird Roundup: D.C. Gun Ban, Al-Maliki Threat, Missouri Killings

Administration. President Bush pressed the Senate yesterday to vote on more than 180 nominees whose appointments are languishing without confirmation.

Congress. A majority of legislators in both the Senate and House will urge the Supreme Court to uphold a lower court's ruling outlawing D.C.'s gun ban.

Iraq. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is being threatened with a no-confidence vote from partners in his coalition government.

World. The U.S. government is boosting its role in Kenya's peace talks.

Nation. A gunman killed two police officers and three city officials when he stormed into a city council meeting in a St. Louis suburb last night.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:03 AM
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February 07, 2008

Stimulus Bill Heads To The President's Desk

UPDATED.

The House and Senate overwhelmingly passed a $152 billion stimulus package this afternoon, by votes of 380-34 and 81-16, respectively. The bill will provide tax rebates to more than 110 million Americans; the Senate version added senior citizens and disabled veterans to the list of those receiving rebates in the original House bill.

The legislation will likely receive a similar warm reception at the White House. In a statement today after the Senate vote, President Bush indicated his approval. "This plan is robust, broad-based, timely, and it will be effective," Bush said, adding that it was "an example of bipartisan cooperation at a time when the American people most expect it."

Senate Democrats dropped their proposals to add unemployment benefits and home heating assistance to the package after an earlier version was defeated yesterday. As soon as the revised legislation passed in the Senate, the House began an expedited debate this afternoon.

The Washington Post and MarketWatch have more details.

Posted at 7:50 PM
Posted to: Congress, House, Senate
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McCain At CPAC: Joy, Boos, But Mostly Joy

Just a few hours after Mitt Romney announced he was pulling out of contention, a swarm of conservative activists were pushing and shoving their way into a hotel ballroom to catch a glimpse of the soon-to-be-officially-anointed Republican presidential nominee, John McCain. Much like the Arizona senator's revived White House hopes, the sight of hundreds of attendees brandishing "McCain for President" shirts, buttons and placards was a stunning turnaround.

The ballroom at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington was filled beyond capacity. After making the mistake of wandering around to interview attendees, this Gater was nearly shut out, along with fellow reporters from AP, the Financial Times and Time magazine. Hotel staff weren't even cracking the doors for NPR's Mara Liasson and the New York Times' Maureen Dowd.

After mistaking this Gater for one of CPAC's College Republican organizers (humph!), Liasson was squeezed in, along with some of the rest of us -- including yours truly.

Continue reading "McCain At CPAC: Joy, Boos, But Mostly Joy"

Posted at 5:30 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Republicans, WH 2008
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Mukasey: CIA Waterboarding Will Not Be Investigated

Attorney General Michael Mukasey today said the Justice Department will not open a criminal investigation into waterboarding by CIA employees because his department previously permitted use of the technique in interrogations of suspected terrorists. Waterboarding "cannot possibly be the subject of a Justice Department investigation, because that would mean that the same department that authorized the program would now consider prosecuting someone who followed that advice," Mukasey told the House Judiciary Committee at a department oversight hearing.

Mukasey's remarks followed an admission Tuesday by CIA Director Michael Hayden that the agency used waterboarding -- an interrogation technique that causes suspects to believe they are drowning -- on three al-Qaida detainees after Sept. 11, 2001. The department's Office of Legal Counsel has issued opinions that waterboarding is legal in some circumstances, though Mukasey and other Bush administration officials have said U.S. employees do not now use it.

Continue reading "Mukasey: CIA Waterboarding Will Not Be Investigated"

Posted at 4:39 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, CIA, Congress, House, Michael Mukasey, Terrorism
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Storm-Hit States Pick Up The Pieces

Cleanup and recovery efforts continue in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee, where a cluster of tornadoes and storms have killed at least 57 people. More than half of the fatalities occurred in hard-hit Tennessee.

President Bush is touring the Volunteer State tomorrow. Federal assistance has been authorized for the five states, and FEMA crews are already on the ground. USA Today reports that Tuesday night was "the nation's deadliest barrage of tornadoes since 76 people were killed in Pennsylvania and Ohio on May 31, 1985."

The Washington Post homes in on the story of an 11-month-old Tennessee baby found alive in the wreckage, yards away from where his mother was found. She did not survive.

The Memphis Commercial Appeal and Arkansas Democrat-Gazette have local reports of the recovery effort.

Posted at 3:30 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, President Bush
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Romney Ends White House Bid 'For Country, Party'

Speaking before a roomful of conservative activists in Washington, Mitt Romney drew his presidential campaign to a close.

"This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose," Romney said before an audience at the Conservative Political Action Conference. "If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America, and because I love America, I feel I must now stand aside, for our party and for our country."

Romney was announcing the suspension of his campaign -- a technical term that allows him to keep raising funds -- two days after a deeply disappointing performance on Super Tuesday. John McCain has won 13 of the states that have held primaries or caucuses so far, and Romney is close behind with 11. But McCain's wins in big-prize states like California on Tuesday gave him a nearly insurmountable delegate-count lead. With Mike Huckabee strongly defending his turf in the South, it became impossible on Wednesday morning to see how Romney could overtake the Arizona senator.

"I disagree with Senator McCain on a number of issues, as you know. But I agree with him on doing whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq, on finding and executing Osama bin Laden and on eliminating al-Qaida and terror," Romney said. "If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator [Hillary Rodham] Clinton or [Barack] Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror."

The crowd let its disappointment be known, booing Romney's decision to bow out and pleading with him to hang on. But the politically tuned-in CPAC attendees know better than anyone that their guy has virtually no shot at the Republican nomination.

McCain skipped the conference last year because he had no support there. He's scheduled to speak at 3 p.m. today, and now that Romney's out, will ride in as the Republican nominee. We got a preview of how he'll be received, courtesy of talk-radio host Laura Ingraham.

Continue reading "Romney Ends White House Bid 'For Country, Party'"

Posted at 1:32 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Rudy Giuliani, WH 2008
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More Warnings Delivered On Afghanistan

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice denied that her surprise visit to Kandahar today was Washington's way of sticking it to NATO allies not doing their fair share in Afghanistan.

"It's just the rationale of being able to get outside of Kabul and see one of the areas that's been very active," Rice said before touching down, according to Reuters. "I don't think there's any message there to anyone."

Poignantly -- or not, if Rice's statement is taken at face value -- she and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband were touring Kandahar, a former Taliban stronghold in the country's south. Most trips by top foreign dignitaries are confined to the much safer capital city of Kabul. Kandahar remains dangerous, but it is also a prime example of the effectiveness of NATO forces in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaida.

And in what has over the years become a ritual, Afghan President Hamid Karzai denied there were tensions between his government and its Western allies.

Continue reading "More Warnings Delivered On Afghanistan"

Posted at 12:00 PM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Al-Qaida, Asia, Bush Administration, Condoleezza Rice, Europe, Germany, Robert Gates, Terrorism, U.K.
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Senate Blocks Stimulus Bill

The Senate blocked a Finance Committee economic stimulus package, 58-41, Wednesday, just shy of the 60-vote margin needed for approval.

The vote was actually closer, as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., switched to a "no" in a procedural tactic that enables him to revisit the measure.

For now, the chamber is left with the House-passed stimulus bill, which would provide rebate checks and business tax breaks to the tune of $146 billion this year.

The House bill does not make seniors whose main source of income is Social Security eligible for rebates, nor veterans living off disability benefits. It also excludes unemployment insurance and would not allow companies to write off losses over a longer period to recoup taxes paid during profitable years -- of particular benefit to struggling homebuilders.

Continue reading "Senate Blocks Stimulus Bill"

Posted at 9:05 AM
Posted to: Congress, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: Guest Worker Program, Storm Damage, Bhutto Suspects

Administration. The White House announced plans yesterday to circumvent Congress and overhaul the country's guest worker program.

Nation. President Bush will visit Tennessee tomorrow to survey areas damaged by dozens of tornadoes. Fifty-four people were killed in the storms.

Terrorism. The commander of detention operations at the Guantanamo Bay prison confirmed the existence of Camp 7, a highly secret area where alleged key members of al-Qaida are kept.

Pakistan. Police have detained two more suspects on charges connected to the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.

Afghanistan. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her British counterpart arrived in Afghanistan today to press NATO allies on continuing to contribute to military actions in the country.

Congress. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., introduced a bill to allow football games to be shown on big-screen TVs in houses of worship.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:02 AM
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February 06, 2008

What's The Point Of NATO, Anyway?

The U.S. and Britain have been fighting an uphill battle to win deeper commitments from NATO allies in Afghanistan. With recent independent reports warning that Afghanistan may be tipping back into failed statehood, and a critical upcoming vote in Canada that could determine that country's ongoing security contributions, NATO member nations are facing a kind of do-or-die moment.

The question at hand is: What is NATO's mission in the 21st century?

NATO was formed during the Cold War to fend off the Soviet threat. It was a mutual security pact, in which an attack on one was to be perceived as an attack on all.

After the 9/11 attacks, it became clear that al-Qaida was now the biggest threat facing the West. With little debate, NATO's mission was updated for the 21st century, and forces were sent to Afghanistan.

More than six years later, the success of NATO's fight against the Taliban and al-Qaida is in dispute. The war in Iraq sapped resources from Afghanistan, and more importantly sapped confidence in the United States' and Britain's leadership roles there. Nations have withdrawn forces over the last several years, and now the fighting -- and dying -- falls disproportionately on the U.S., Britain, the Netherlands and Canada.

Member nations privately blame the U.S. and Britain for being so preoccupied with the war in Iraq -- overwhelmingly unpopular among member nations -- that they delivered a seemingly half-hearted effort in Afghanistan. Washington and 10 Downing Street vehemently deny this is the case.

Without positing it directly, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is challenging member nations to remember the point of NATO and step up their contributions. "I do think the alliance is facing a real test here. And it is a test of the alliance's strength," she said at a press conference with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband today.

Continue reading "What's The Point Of NATO, Anyway?"

Posted at 5:30 PM
Posted to: Afghanistan, Al-Qaida, Bush Administration, Europe, Germany, Iraq, Middle East, Military, Pakistan, President Bush, Robert Gates, Terrorism, U.K.
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Super Tuesday Updates: New Mexico & Romney

We called it quits last night with two states outstanding. The results are in for one of the states, while the other is turning out to be a nail-biter.

In the New Mexico Democratic caucus, the Clinton-Obama contest is still too close to call. Fewer than 120 votes separated Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama after counting earlier today, so that contest will be decided by provisional ballots, the Albuquerque Journal reports. State Democratic Party workers will begin counting the more than 16,000 provisional ballots today.

Per the Journal, Clinton took most of the counties while Obama bested her in Santa Fe and Bernalillo counties. The strong Latino vote helped Clinton here, but it's too soon to tell if that will be enough.

New Mexico is a proportional delegate state, with 38 up for grabs. That means both will walk away with some of the booty. But a win here for Obama adds another swing state to his column, further undergirding his claim that he would perform better than Clinton in the general election. That's why both candidates lobbied so hard for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson's endorsement. He declined to tap either until the nomination is decided, but he did watch the Super Bowl with Bill Clinton. (Of course, President Clinton used to be Richardson's boss.)

Continue reading "Super Tuesday Updates: New Mexico & Romney"

Posted at 2:24 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Republicans, WH 2008
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White House Keeping Eye On Storm Aftermath

The White House sought to convey a message to the thousands of victims of deadly storms that hit the South last night: We're on top of it.

Following the fumbled response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Bush administration has been closely watched during subsequent natural disasters. Yesterday, President Bush authorized emergency federal disaster assistance to Missouri, and this morning, he offered thoughts and prayers to the victims.

"I do want the people in these states to know the American people are standing with them," he said, adding that he pledged federal disaster assistance to the affected states.

More than 50 people have died in the violent storms and tornadoes that hit Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee, according to CNN. States of emergency have been declared throughout those states, and teams from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are on the ground.

Continue reading "White House Keeping Eye On Storm Aftermath"

Posted at 1:15 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Homeland Security, Katrina, President Bush
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The Economy: Not So Super

The excitement surrounding yesterday's unprecedented Super Tuesday nominating contests obscured the latest and perhaps most damning news to come out on the troubled economy: Activity in the crucial service sector slowed for the first time in nearly five years last month.

The report from the Institute of Supply Management shows a significant decline in non-manufacturing activity (previously the "firmest pillar of economic expansion") in January. Those numbers, coupled with last week's news that jobs were declining, are heightening concerns that the economy is not only headed for a recession, but is already in one.

"Recession is here," the headline on CNNMoney.com read yesterday. The report quotes several economists who said the ISM report was the tipping point for them.

Continue reading "The Economy: Not So Super"

Posted at 12:20 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Campaigns, Congress, Democrats, Economy, Hillary Rodham Clinton, House, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Senate, WH 2008
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Wednesday Morning Quarterbacking

So many numbers, so little sleep....

National Journal's Ronald Brownstein and James A. Barnes are up this morning with first reactions to the Super Tuesday results.

On the Republican side, Barnes parses John McCain's victory across a broad geographic and ideological spectrum of voters and notes that GOP nominating rules in the biggest states are working in the Arizona senator's favor.

Meanwhile, Brownstein pores over the exit polls and concludes that the persistent demographic divides separating Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama could keep the Democratic race hanging in the balance well into spring.

Posted at 9:50 AM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Republicans, WH 2008
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Earlybird Roundup: Deadly Tornadoes, FISA Veto Threat, Gaza Strikes

Nation. While most of the country focused on Super Tuesday voting, tornadoes tore through the South and Midwest, killing more than 40 and injuring hundreds.

Administration. President Bush threatened to veto a bill to change terrorist surveillance laws, demanding that it include liability protections for telecommunications firms.

Congress. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised a showdown on Bush's economic stimulus plan, the scope of which Senate Democrats aim to expand.

Iraq. Defense Secretary Robert Gates refused to estimate the costs of next year's war efforts in Iraq.

Mideast. Israeli airstrikes killed nine Hamas militants in Gaza yesterday.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:45 AM
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Big Fat Super Tuesday: It's Still Not Over!

1:58. Obama's declared the "winner winner" in Missouri. He and Clinton are running about even in New Mexico.

In the Republican field, it's near impossible to see how anyone stops McCain. A comeback for the history books, surely. It will be interesting to see how he's received Thursday at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, which he skipped last year because there was so much hostility toward him. The Gate will be there.

Meanwhile, Romney is meeting with his top advisers tomorrow to discuss his future, the Boston Globe reports. He's been accusing Huckabee of splitting the evangelical vote, but Huckabee's supporters are more likely to go to McCain should their guy bail out. The South was in a pretty anti-Romney mood today, and there's reason to believe this has something to do with religion.

Knowingly or not, Huckabee has used the religion wedge to his advantage. Some would say knowingly, although he hasn't really been called out on it.

We're going to call it a night. Check back tomorrow later today for those lingering New Mexico and Alaska results.

1:26. MSNBC's Chuck Todd did the math, and he projects Obama and Clinton will be about tied in delegate counts. They will have to soldier on in the upcoming contests: Louisiana (2/9), Washington (2/9), Maine (2/10), D.C. (2/12), Maryland (2/12), Virginia (2/12) and probably beyond.

Continue reading "Big Fat Super Tuesday: It's Still Not Over!"

Posted at 1:59 AM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, George H.W. Bush, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Mike Gravel, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, President Bush, Republicans, WH 2008
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February 05, 2008

First Winner Of The Day!

UPDATED.

Mike Huckabee became Super Tuesday's first winner after cleaning up West Virginia's 18 delegates in that state's close GOP nominating convention. The sniping has already started over the legitimacy of Huckabee's win.

Mitt Romney's campaign reacted to his loss by lashing out at main rival John McCain, accusing him of colluding with Huckabee at the convention.

"Unfortunately, this is what Senator McCain's inside Washington ways look like: he cut a backroom deal with the tax-and-spend candidate he thought could best stop Governor Romney's campaign of conservative change," said campaign manager Beth Myers.

Continue reading "First Winner Of The Day!"

Posted at 4:31 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Ron Paul, Rudy Giuliani, WH 2008
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¡Martes Gigante!

Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama are dueling for the coveted Latino vote in California, Arizona, Illinois and New Jersey. Though Clinton was viewed as having cornered this demographic, Obama's late-breaking sweep of support following his South Carolina primary victory could net him a significant portion of the Latino vote.

Carin Zissis of the New York-based Americas Society/Council of the Americas breaks down where these voters might go today.

Continue reading "¡Martes Gigante!"

Posted at 4:05 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Bush Administration, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, President Bush, Republicans, WH 2008
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Intel Chiefs Say Waterboarding Used In Interrogations

The intelligence community's annual public report on the threats facing the nation was overtaken during a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing today by the politically charged issues of waterboarding and other "coercive" interrogation techniques, extension of the government's eavesdropping authority and the National Intelligence Estimate on Iran's nuclear weapons program.

Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell and CIA Director Michael Hayden said waterboarding was a legal technique that should be available under certain circumstances if authorized by the nation's legal and political leaders. McConnell said, to his knowledge, only the CIA has used it. Hayden told the committee that the CIA has used the painful technique, which many consider a form of torture, only three times in its history. Those times, three years ago, were against "high value" al-Qaida terror suspects who were thought to have information on an imminent threat to the nation.

The intense discussion was triggered by a question from Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., about proposed legislation that would require all U.S. intelligence agencies to use only the interrogation procedures listed in the recently revised Army field manual.

Continue reading "Intel Chiefs Say Waterboarding Used In Interrogations"

Posted at 3:45 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, CIA, Congress, Detainees, Michael Hayden, Mike McConnell, Senate
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It's Not Super Tuesday Everywhere

Note to voters: Make sure your state is one of the 24 holding nominating contests today before you head out to the polls.

Milwaukee resident Ethel Goodwin set her alarm this morning so she would be near the front of the line at her local polling station. When she arrived at 6:30 a.m., there were several other people already waiting for polls to open.

One problem: Wisconsin's primary contests are on Feb. 19.

"We were listening to the news and they were saying that Super Tuesday, and all the state, I figured that included Wisconsin," said Goodwin. "Probably, I just misunderstood."

(Hat tip: WTMJ news radio)

UPDATE: In all fairness to Ms. Goodwin, she's apparently not alone. (Hat tip: Wonkette)

Posted at 2:44 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, WH 2008
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White House Courting Comedy Controversy Again

After playing it safe with dead-guy impressionist Rich Little last year, the White House has decided on a, um, more contemporary choice for this year's White House Correspondents Dinner entertainment: late-night talk-show host Craig Ferguson.

Ferguson is a fine choice for the dinner because he's proved to actually be funny, in spite of his introduction to American audiences on "The Drew Carey Show." And the cherry on top? The Scotsman just became an American citizen.

"As soon as I became an American I thought, you know what is going to happen, I am going to get jury duty or the CIA is going to get in touch and get me to assassinate a foreign state or something like that. Something boring," Ferguson told his audience on the show that aired last night. "Anyway, my first job as an American citizen, I can exclusively reveal tonight, is performing at the White House Correspondents Dinner this year. I'm doing it!"

Continue reading "White House Courting Comedy Controversy Again"

Posted at 2:35 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Media, President Bush
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Super Tuesday: While You're Waiting...

The day of reckoning is finally upon us: Voters in 24 states have begun heading to the polls to cast their votes in the busiest day yet of this frenzied presidential primary season. But with many of the most hotly contested battlegrounds located on the West Coast, it's going to be many hours (perhaps even days?) before the final results are in.

In the meantime, Ad Spotlight has compiled a handy list of the broadcast ads the six remaining candidates are airing in Super Tuesday states. NationalJournal.com's Kevin Friedl also compares the ad strategies of the two most cash-rich candidates in the race: Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.

If you're keeping score at home tonight, NationalJournal.com has a detailed chart of Super Tuesday states, including the types of contests they're holding and how many delegates are at stake in each race. Today's Poll Track, meanwhile, handicaps the contenders in each race based mostly on national polls, which, as Mark Blumenthal reminds us, are far from infallible.

Check back tomorrow morning for results from the Democratic and Republican contests, plus analysis by NJ's James Barnes and Ronald Brownstein. The Gate and Hotline's On Call will be following the results after the first polls close this evening.

Posted at 2:12 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, WH 2008
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Democrats Blast Bush's Budget Request

When President Bush delivered his final, $3 trillion-plus budget to Congress yesterday, congressional Democrats from both chambers wasted no time laying out their opposition to the proposal.

Senate Democrats quickly attacked the FY09 request, with Majority Leader Harry Reid blasting it as "more of the same," taking specific issue with the budget's proposed cuts in Medicare and Medicaid, its failure to address rising college costs and its neglect of energy issues. "Furthermore, this budget is fiscally irresponsible and highly deceptive, hiding the costs of the war in Iraq while increasing our skyrocketing debt," Reid said. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., said many of those proposed cuts will never get through Congress, particularly a proposed $178 billion cut in Medicare.

On the House side, the budget was met with condemnation from Democratic leaders for continuing "failed" policies and praise from Republican leaders for starting the annual conversation in a fiscally sound manner. The annual rhetorical battle over federal priorities sets up a replay of last year's partisan budget showdown, but with an election-year edge heightened by the economic downturn.

Continue reading "Democrats Blast Bush's Budget Request"

Posted at 10:22 AM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, House, President Bush, Senate
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Earlybird Roundup: Voting Machine Problems, Kenya Death Toll

Nation. As Super Tuesday dawns, a new report reveals that six states -- New York, New Jersey, Georgia, Arkansas, Delaware and Tennessee -- are at risk for severe problems from voting machines due to tampering or malfunction.

World. The death toll in Kenya surpassed 1,000 as former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan continues to meet with officials and business leaders to mediate the conflict.

Iraq. The military confirmed yesterday that U.S. troops killed three Iraqi civilians and wounded a child near Baghdad.

Congress. The Senate cut off debate last night and postponed a final vote on the economic stimulus package while the two parties hammer out their differences.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:30 AM
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February 04, 2008

WH '08: There Goes That Theory

We've been quietly wondering whether John McCain's sudden ascendancy would worry Democrats supporting Barack Obama enough to make them rethink their vote. Hillary Rodham Clinton has been cast as the "experience" candidate, and the veracity of that claim aside, she has been viewed as a safer bet to win against a strong war-on-terror candidate like McCain in the general election.

Remember Obama's victory speech after he won the South Carolina Democratic primary, when he and a stadium full of supporters asked America not to tell them change was impossible? Well, the "believe" mantra you've been seeing on all those campaign signs and hearing in so many of Obama's speeches appears to be taking hold, less than 24 hours before Democratic voters in 22 states go to the polls.

Several new surveys show Obama outperforming Clinton in national matchups against McCain. In one poll showing the two Democrats both beating McCain, Obama does it by an 8-point margin, compared to a 3-point margin for Clinton. Others show Clinton losing to McCain and McCain losing to Obama.

(Mitt Romney, by the way, gets bludgeoned by both.)

It looks as if Democratic voters tomorrow won't have to make a painful choice between following their heads and following their hearts after all.

Continue reading "WH '08: There Goes That Theory"

Posted at 6:17 PM
Posted to: Barack Obama, Campaigns, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Republicans, WH 2008
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Inside Bush's Budget: Pay Raise Disparities

President Bush proposed a 2.9 percent pay increase for civilian workers and a 3.4 percent pay boost for military personnel in fiscal 2009, according to budget documents released today.

The proposed pay raises rebuff calls for military-civilian pay parity from several lawmakers. Last week, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers sent a letter to the president, asking him to incorporate the principle of equal raises for service members and civilians in his budget request.

Continue reading "Inside Bush's Budget: Pay Raise Disparities"

Posted at 3:00 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Military, President Bush
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Suicide Bombing Comes In Time Of Weakness For Olmert

The first suicide bombing that Israel has seen in more than a year killed a 20-year-old woman and injured 11 others, and comes at a particularly delicate time in renewed Mideast peace negotiations.

The attack was claimed by al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the unofficial terrorist wing of the Fatah Party, and took place at a shopping center in the southern town of Dimona. A second bomber was shot and killed by police before he could detonate explosives strapped to his body.

"Monday's terror attack gives us a painful reminder that we must be vigilant and maintain our readiness in all areas," said Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. "We are waging a war on terror. It is continuing without bounds and we will get to everyone involved in terror activity."

According to BBC News, an al-Aqsa spokesman hinted that the breach along the Gaza-Egypt border made the bombing mission possible. Gaza militants blew up the border two weeks ago amid an Israeli-enforced blockade that made travel to purchase goods and visit family members nearly impossible.

Egyptian security forces finally sealed the last remaining breach on Sunday, but not without violent exchanges with some lagging Palestinians. Officials haven't yet confirmed whether the Dimona bombers entered Israel via Egypt, but the bombing has already led to calls for suspending peace negotiations with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Continue reading "Suicide Bombing Comes In Time Of Weakness For Olmert"

Posted at 12:45 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Fatah, Hamas, Israel, Middle East, Palestinians, President Bush, Terrorism
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Bush To Send Congress Largest Budget In History

President Bush is expected to send the nation's first-ever $3 trillion budget request to Congress today for the 2009 fiscal year. Bush's proposal will project about $400 billion in budget deficits over the next two years, bolstered in part by the current economic slump and the stimulus package. But AP reports that, once again, the largest spending increases in the FY09 budget are in national security.

Despite the huge projected deficits, Bush's budget includes sizable cuts in domestic spending, particularly for government health care programs, state and local anti-terrorism grants and social service programs, according to the Washington Post. The plan is already drawing ire from Democratic lawmakers, who charge that Bush is directing cuts at programs that benefit the poor and middle-class families while protecting his tax cuts for the wealthy.

Meanwhile, the projected deficits do not even take into account funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. CongressDaily (subscription) reports this morning that Bush "is expected today to ask Congress for $70 billion to cover" the cost of the wars "for the first few months of FY09 -- a request that, if approved, could ultimately push the total amount of supplemental spending for military and civilian needs over the $1 trillion mark over the life of this administration."

The war-funding request coupled with the $3 trillion budget means the spending battles that ensnared Congress and the White House last year are likely to continue well into 2008.

AP has a breakdown of some elements in Bush's budget, and the New York Times and Wall Street Journal (subscription) have more on the administration's proposed spending increases for military operations.

Posted at 9:13 AM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Economy, President Bush
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Earlybird Roundup: Nine Iraqi Civilians Killed; Chad Rebels Retreat

Iraq. American forces accidentally killed nine Iraqi civilians and wounded three others in an attack aimed at al-Qaida militants south of Baghdad on Saturday.

Chad. Government forces battled with rebels in the capital for a third day in fierce fighting that is believed to have killed and injured many.

Congress. Senate Democrats are not backing down (subscription) from their plans to expand the economic stimulus package passed by the House last week.

Administration. President Bush's $8.2 billion spending request for the State Department includes plans to address severe staffing shortages and double the agency's size over the next 10 years by hiring more than 1,000 new diplomats.

Nation. Several major studios are backing a proposed deal to end the Writers Guild of America strike that has brought Hollywood to a halt over the past three months.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:10 AM
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February 01, 2008

Horserace '08: Bracing For Super Tuesday

This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss the Barack vs. Hillary numbers game, the painful choice for base conservatives if John McCain emerges the winner, and why Mitt Romney's primary-campaign strategy could be trouble in the general election.

Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.

Posted at 4:19 PM
Posted to: Campaigns, Horserace '08, WH 2008
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Poland OKs U.S. Missile Defense System

UPDATED.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski confirmed this afternoon "an agreement in principle" to host a U.S. missile defense shield, AP reports. He was in Washington today to discuss the matter with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

"We understand that there is a desire for defense modernization in Poland, and particularly for air defense modernization in Poland," Rice said at a joint press appearance following their meeting. "This is something that we support because it will make our ally, Poland, more capable, it will make Poland, as the foreign minister has said, more able to operate with us."

The offer to help Poland bolster its air force apparently helped secure the tentative deal. But there were more details to be ironed out, Sikorski said.

"We are not at the end of the road as regards negotiations. We are in the middle of the road," he said. "We have an agreement in principle."

The deal is sure to provoke strong reaction from Russia, which in May threatened to train its long-range weapons on Europe if Washington went ahead with plans to build a new anti-ballistic missile shield in that neighborhood.

Continue reading "Poland OKs U.S. Missile Defense System"

Posted at 4:10 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Europe, Russia
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Everyone Except Exxon Mobil Frowning Today

Having lost one of his main talking points on the economy -- that the U.S. was enjoying an unprecedented, 52-month run in job growth -- President Bush sought to assure Americans today that the U.S. economy would get through the current "rough patch."

"During this downcycle, we want to help individual Americans," Bush said, speaking from Hallmark Cards, Inc. in Kansas City. "There is concern whether consumers will lose confidence in our economy. One way to address that issue is to have a temporary, robust tax rebate," he continued, referring to the checks that are going out to millions of households this summer.

Today's Labor Department report on January job growth was not the one everyone was expecting. Non-farm payrolls dropped 17,000 jobs, the first time the U.S. has lost jobs since 2003.

Capping a week of other negative indicators on the economy, "the disappointing report could tilt economists' reading of the U.S. labor market towards the belief that it is weakening significantly," the Financial Times reports.

But not everyone is shaking their head with worry today. Exxon Mobil reported $40.6 billion in net income, a historical best for the energy giant. The record profits are a result of the sharp spike in oil prices worldwide. (Rival Chevron also beat analysts' estimates.)

Continue reading "Everyone Except Exxon Mobil Frowning Today"

Posted at 12:57 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Congress, Economy, President Bush, Taxes
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Female Bombers Hit Baghdad Pet Markets

Concurrent suicide bombings struck pet bazaars in Baghdad today. Casualty reports are varying widely, but media sources are reporting anywhere from 45 to 70 people dead and up to 80 injured.

Both bombings were reportedly carried out by women. The first detonated an explosive device beneath her traditional black garment in the al-Ghazl market, an area targeted by bombers several times before. The attack was Baghdad's deadliest since April. A government spokesman told the media that the woman was not an Iraqi.

The second bombing was carried out in a Shiite area in southern Baghdad, where a woman detonated a bomb in a crowded bird market. Authorities originally said a bomb had been hidden in a box of birds, but they later determined it was a suicide attack.

AP reports that at least four other women have carried out suicide bombings since November.

Posted at 9:35 AM
Posted to: Iraq, Middle East
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Earlybird Roundup: Senate GOP Threatens Stimulus; Ban Urges Peace In Kenya

Congress. Senate Republicans pledged to block the $157 billion economic stimulus package penned by their Democratic colleagues, as Majority Leader Harry Reid scheduled a vote on the highly anticipated bill for Monday.

Supreme Court. Justices blocked another scheduled execution yesterday as the court continues to mull the constitutionality of lethal injections.

Kenya. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is in Kenya today to lend his diplomatic weight to the efforts to restore peace there.

Iraq. The number of U.S. deaths in the war rose in January after a steady, four-month decline in casualties.

Afghanistan. As lawmakers clashed with the Bush administration over the level of progress being made in Afghanistan, Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Germany to boost troop levels there.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 9:28 AM
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