Clark and Race

Steven Taylor discusses some disturbing race baiting by Gen. Wesley Clark. One expects this sort of thing from Al Sharpton, not someone trying to position himself as the sensible alternative to Howard Dean.

Cross-post from OTB

Bush and the Base

The Washington Times carries a story that is especially amusing given the "Bush is an extremist" argument made by many of the Democratic contenders:

President Bush is beginning to anger certain hard-line conservatives, particularly over fiscal issues, the way his father did in the year before he lost to Bill Clinton in 1992.

It's not clear how deep the dissatisfaction goes, and whether it will translate to damage at the polls in November.

"I'm hearing a lot of anger," says Richard Viguerie, the guru of conservative political direct mail. "I'm beginning, for the first time, [to hear] people talk about 'it would not be the worst thing in the world if Howard Dean were president,' because the size of government would stay still rather than increase 50 percent under a second Bush administration."

***

Pat Buchanan, whose challenge of President George Bush in 1992 is credited by some conservatives as leading to the Clinton presidency, says that if it weren't for the ongoing war the current president would be facing a primary challenge.

I agree with Buchanan and Viguerie and share their frustrations. But, unlike them, I understand that one can't be a pure ideologue and succeed as president. For one thing, governing in a Republic is partly representative, and the American people as a whole are neither particularly ideological nor overwhelmingly conservative. While most Americans don't want to pay high taxes, they do seem to have an near-unending appetite for governmental programs. Furthermore, as a practical matter, the Republicans don't control the Senate. The Democratic minority is an effective check on any impulse Bush would have toward radical conservatism.

Cross-post from OTB

Bats and Snowballs

Howard Dean and Dick Gephardt, rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, have a sub-contest underway: who can raise the most money between now and the end of the quarter, New Year's Eve.

As of this 5 a.m. morning, Gephardt's fundraising measurement (which he depicts on his web site as a tortoise's snowballs - don't ask) shows $906,163.04 raised so far in his end-of-quarter push.

Dean's fundraising measurement - a bat - showed his campaign is running at $559,510.38, also as of 5 a.m.

If you set both odometers to zero as of this morning, and count up until midnight, Pacific Time, on Wednesday night, it may provide some interesting insight. Will Democratic insiders marshal an "anybody-but-Dean" effort, and throw tons of last-minute money at Gephardt, who has been running neck-and-neck with Dean in Iowa? Or will Dean's frontrunner status only grow, and show it, by outpacing his main rival's fundraising heading into the first-in-the-nation Democratic presidential contest?

Forget the pundits. Focus on the bat and snowballs.

(Cross-posted at Late Final.)

Gallup Watch: Issues 2004

Terrorism is the top issue on everyone's mind heading into the 2004 presidential election, followed by education and the war in Iraq, according to the most recent numbers collected by Gallup.

"The economy" was ranked as the fourth most important issue, the survey found:

Fewer Americans are citing the economy as an extremely important election issue now than was the case earlier this fall, when 49% rated it as extremely important. This could be due to generally positive news about the economy in recent weeks.

Election day is ten and a half months away, but the issues are breaking in a way to make it a very interesting campaign season.

(Cross-posted at Late Final.)

Dean held closed energy task force

Published on Monday, December 29, 2003, in The Washington Times:

* * *

By John Solomon
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Democratic presidential contender Howard Dean has demanded the release of the deliberations of Vice President Dick Cheney's energy task force. But as Vermont governor, Mr. Dean had an energy task force that met in secret and angered state lawmakers.

Mr. Dean's group held one public hearing and volunteered the names of industry executives and liberal advocates it consulted in private — after the fact, but the Vermont governor refused to open the closed-door deliberations of the task force on restructuring the state's near-bankrupt electric utilities.

In 1999, Mr. Dean offered the same argument that the Bush administration uses today for keeping deliberations of a policy task force secret.

"The governor needs to receive advice from time to time in closed session. As every person in government knows, sometimes you get more open discussion when it's not public," Mr. Dean was quoted as saying.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Mr. Dean defended his recent criticism of Mr. Cheney's task force and his demand that the administration release its private energy deliberations even though he refused to do that in Vermont.

Mr. Dean said his group developed better policy, was bipartisan and sought advice not just from energy executives, but environmentalists and low-income advocates.

He said his task force was more open because it held a public hearing and divulged afterward the names of people it consulted even though the content of discussions with them was kept secret.

The Vermont task force "is not exactly the Cheney thing," Mr. Dean said. "We had a much more open process than Cheney's process. We named the people we sought advice from in our final report."

Mr. Dean said he still thinks it was necessary to keep deliberations of the task force secret, especially because the group was reviewing proprietary financial data from Vermont utilities.

"Some advice does have to be given in private, but I don't mind letting people know who gave that advice," he said.

The Dean campaign said it was "laughable" to compare the two.

"Governor Dean confronted and averted an energy crisis that would have had disastrous consequences for the citizens of Vermont by bringing together a bipartisan and ideologically diverse working group that solved the problem. Dick Cheney put together a group of his corporate cronies and partisan political contributors, and they gave themselves billions and disguised it as a national energy policy," spokesman Jay Carson said yesterday.

In September, Mr. Dean argued that the task force and the Bush energy policy were unduly influenced by Bush family friend and then-Enron energy chief Kenneth Lay.

"The administration should also level with the American people about just how much influence Ken Lay and his industry buddies had over the development of the president's energy policy by releasing notes on the deliberations of Vice President Cheney's energy task force," Mr. Dean said Sept. 15.

In 1998, Mr. Dean's Vermont task force met in secret to write a plan for revamping state electricity markets that would slow rising consumer costs and relieve utilities of a money-losing deal with a Canadian company.

The task force's work resulted in Vermont's having the first utility in the country to meet energy-efficiency standards. It also freed the state's utilities from their deal with a Canadian power company, Hydro Quebec, that had left them near bankruptcy but passed as much as 90 percent of those costs to consumers. Utility shareholders also suffered some losses.

The parallels between the Cheney and Dean task forces are many.

Both declined to open their deliberations, even under pressure from legislators. Both received input from the energy industry in private meetings and released the names of members of the task force publicly.

Mr. Dean's group volunteered the names of those it consulted with in its final report. Although Mr. Cheney has refused to give a list to Congress formally to preserve executive privilege, his aides have divulged to reporters the names of many from whom the task force sought advice.

President Bush's campaign and the Republican Party received millions in donations from energy interests in the election before its task force was created. Mr. Dean's Vermont re-election campaign received only small contributions from energy executives, but a political action committee created as he prepared to run for president collected $19,000, or nearly one-fifth of its first $110,000, from donors tied to Vermont's electric utilities.

One co-chairman of Mr. Dean's task force, William Gilbert, was a Republican Vermont lawyer who had done work for state utilities. At the time, Mr. Gilbert also served on the board of Vermont Gas Systems, a subsidiary of the Canadian power giant Hydro Quebec.

Many state legislators, including Mr. Dean's fellow Democrats, were angered that the task force met secretly.

"It taints the whole report," Democratic state Rep. Al Stevens told AP in 1999. "I'd have more faith in that report if the discussions had been open."

Elizabeth Bankowski, who served as the other co-chairman of the task force, told the legislature that the requirement the task force meet in secret "was decided in advance by the governor's office and the governor's lawyer."

* * *

2004 Elections and the South

I have a column in today's Mobile Register on the role of the southern states in the '04 elections (the primaries, general election for President and congressional elections).

Access it here.

Report: Bush Leads Dean In Michigan

Though Michigan voters are skeptical of President Bush's handling of the economy, they still back him in a head-to-head race against the Democratic presidential frontrunner Howard Dean, according to a poll published today by the Daily Oakland (Mich.) Press:

Concerning the coming presidential election, respondents were evenly split - 45 percent each - over whether they were likely to vote for Bush or for the Democratic challenger.

But against three of the leading Democratic challengers, Bush showed a comfortable lead. He outpaced former Vermont Gov. Dean 51 percent to 44 percent and held bigger leads over U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts (51 percent-41 percent) and U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut (52 percent-39 percent).

Michigan is a particularly strategic state for the eventual Democratic presidential nominee. In the razor-close 2000 election, then-Vice President Al Gore took the state and it's 18 electoral votes. The state will have 17 electoral votes in 2004.

(Cross-posted at Late Final.)

The Post-Christmas Toast is Done

This week's handicapping of the Democratic field is complete.

Are you a Democrat who wants to be President? You'd better be a moderate from the South.

So says Rick Heller at Centerfield blog.

Check out his impressive chart:

Presidential Winners Since 1948

Yup. There seems to be a definite trend out there...

DICK MORRIS PREDICTIONS

Dick Morris joins the fray, predicting that "a landslide victory for Bush [is] quite possible if Howard Dean wins the Democratic nod" and that the GOP should make strong gains in the House and Senate. Noting the retirement of five key Democratic Senators and recent polling and demographic shifts, Morris estimates,

The most likely result would be a Republican gain of three or four, knocking the Democrats down to only 44 or 45 seats, barely enough to sustain a filibuster. If Bush wipes out Dean in a landslide, the Democrats could fall even lower, although it seems unlikely that they would drop below the magic number of 40 needed to oppose closure on Democratic filibusters.

Republicans will keep control of the House easily; the reapportionment of 2002 assures GOP control for the rest of the decade. In a series of state deals, Republicans and Democrats both agreed to put Democratic voters into districts now represented by Democrats. The Republicans liked the idea because it gave them permanent control of the House. Democrats loved it because it assured them of lifetime tenure in the lower house. (The only reason the Senate is so competitive is that the politicians can't gerrymander state lines!)

This analysis is quite reasonabe given present trends. Of course, any number of things could still happen in the next ten months. But with things looking up on both the economic and foreign policy fronts, it seems unlikely the voters will want to dump the party in power.

Cross-post from OTB

NADER OUT - PROBABLY

Ralph Nader apparently isn't going to be a spoiler again this year--at least not as a Green.

Ralph Nader, the third-party candidate viewed by many Democrats as the spoiler of the 2000 election for taking votes away from Al Gore, has decided not to run on the Green Party ticket next year, a party spokesman said Tuesday.

Nader, who garnered nearly 3 percent of the national vote in the last presidential election, has not ruled out running for president as an independent and plans to make a decision by January.

"I think we're all a little bit disappointed," said Scott McLarty, a Green Party spokesman. "I suspect Mr. Nader would have gotten the nomination."

Nader called party officials Monday to inform them of his decision, said Ben Manski, a Green Party co-chairman and spokesman. Nader's reasons were not clear, Manski said.

Interesting. While I'd like to have Nader in the race as a cushion to help President Bush get re-elected, having a pure two-man race is preferable systemically. What I don't quite get is why Nader would decide not to run as a Green but not close the door on running, period.

Cross-post from OTB

Kucinich Ad: Compulsory Draft Could Return

Rep. Dennis Kucinich, the peace candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, is seeking donations to run one of nine, new 30-second T.V. commercials.

One such commercial, available for viewing online, is narrated by actor Danny Glover and, over a close-cropped photo of Kucinich, says:

Listen up young America. If pre-emptive war continues to drive our foreign policy; if our volunteer troops are stretched thinner and thinner...

You could be facing compulsory draft. All young Americans deserve a world without end, not a war without end.

Kucinich for President. The eyes that see through the lies.

For the record, none of the current presidential candidates - including President Bush and Kucinich himself - advocate a return to the military draft.

Ralph Nader 2004 Presidential Exploratory Committee

A message from Ralph Nader:

* * *

Welcome to our exploratory website, which could be subtitled -- for both you and me -- "keep an open mind and evaluate the variables." We are a country dedicated to the pursuit of justice and happiness. This requires unfettered debate, an abundance of choices and perspectives, authentic electoral competition, clear articulation of issues and, finally, tolerance, if disagreement, for those who speak to these issues.

Review our postings and please let us know what you think. Orchestrated campaigns and anonymous utterances, pro or con, are not very helpful and will be ignored. But how we best inspire our country's politics and bring out the best from our fellow Americans is an open question for exploration.

With appreciation for your thoughts and contributions,

- Ralph Nader

* * *

Via NZPundit.

The Toast is Fresh

PoliBlog's Toast-O-Meter, a weekly news round-up and handicapping of the 2004 Democratic nomination process, is now up.

BDS: Bush Derangement Syndrome

By Bird Dog on Tacitus

* * *

BDS

Last week, Charles Krauthammer made a diagnosis of people who make outrageous statements relating to President Bush, giving this ailment a name, Bush Derangement Syndrome. We've seen many examples of this malady in the last few weeks. To wit:

Howard Brush Dean III: "The most interesting theory that I've heard so far -- which is nothing more than a theory, it can't be proved -- is that he was warned ahead of time by the Saudis," Dean replied. "Now who knows what the real situation is? But the trouble is by suppressing that kind of information, you lead to those kinds of theories, whether they have any truth to them or not, and they get repeated as fact."

Put the shoe on the other foot, guys. How would you react if Bush were to say this: "The most interesting theory about Dean that I've heard so far -- which is nothing more than a theory, it can't be proved -- is that he cheats on his wife. Now who knows what the situation is?" Simply put, this type and level discourse is unbecoming someone who desires the most powerful job on the planet. The question about Dean's judgment is a serious one.

HBD the III's weaselly response was: "The difference is that I acknowledged that I did not believe the theory I was putting out." Howard, here's a tip. If you don't believe the theory, don't repeat it. Come on.

John Kerry: "I voted for what I thought was best for the country. Did I expect Howard Dean to go off to the left and say, 'I'm against everything'? Sure. Did I expect George Bush to f - - - it up as badly as he did? I don't think anybody did."

Saddam Hussein, AFTER his capture: "I'd like to sit down now. I'm the president of Iraq. You wouldn't treat your own president this way". Uh, bub, let me whisper something to you. You're no longer president! He also predicted that he would win Iraq's upcoming presidential election. Actually, it looks like he's been deranged for a little while.

Cardinal Renato Martino: "Seeing him like this, a man in his tragedy, despite all the heavy blame he bears, I had a sense of compassion for him," he told reporters. Talk about misplaced compassion.

Hillary Clinton: "I cannot even imagine four years of a second term of this administration, with no accountability and no election at the end." So Bush is going to cancel the 2008 election?!

Madeleine Albright: "Do you suppose that the Bush administration has Usama bin Laden hidden away somewhere and will bring him out before the election?" The mad utterings of a former Secretary of State.

Jim McDermott: "I've been surprised they waited, but then I thought, well, politically, it probably doesn't make much sense to find him just yet," he said. "There's too much by happenstance for it to be just a coincidental thing that it happened on this particular day," he continued.

Again, Hillary Clinton: "I shouldn't take it personally. Because what (the Bush) administration was attempting to do was turn back the progress of the entire 20th century." The ENTIRE 20th century?! Holy smokes!

Derrick Z. Jackson: "With no weapons, no ties, and no truth, the capture of Saddam was merely the most massive and irresponsible police raid in modern times. We broke in without a search warrant." I wonder what the "Z" is his middle name stands for. Certainly not Zzzzz.

Again, from HBD the III: "The capture of Saddam Hussein has not made America safer." Those famous nine words. Rival Jilted Joe said it best: "If he truly believes the capture of this evil man has not made America safer, then Howard Dean has put himself in his own spider hole of denial." More from Spinsanity.

(Of course, Saddam and Martino are not Democrats. Just showing examples of BDS. The following paragraphs are specifically addressed to Democrats).

Folks, what in blazes is going on? Lileks suggests that Democrats are mainstreaming the extreme. The Washington Post makes a similar observation. Is that it? Or is it that the party out of power goes a little crazy, as David Brooks suggested a while ago.

In any case, taken as a whole, these comments do not help Democrats, as this Democrat made clear. A final note. As this article, Paranoia Politics: Some Democrats are Nuttier Than a Tin of Almond Roca, observes: "It's a different matter, though, when it comes to politicians. Paranoia does matter, and some liberals need to do a better job of either treating their paranoia or hiding it."

I believe in a strong two-party system, since one party serves as a check and balance on the other. Comments like the above do not help.

* * *

Gallup: Bush's approval rating jumps to 63%; Bush now leads Dean among registered voters by 60% to 37%

These new Gallup numbers are just out.

Dean recently said that the capture of Saddam Hussein has not made America safer. Perhaps he didn't consider that Saddam Hussein's capture made America much safer - by making it very unlikely that Dean could be elected President.

Clark Gets the Diva/Children's Book Author Endorsement

Madonna: "I think [Clark] has a good handle on foreign policy, I think he's good with people, and I think he has a heart and a consciousness," pop singer Madonna said. "He's interested in spirituality -- I mean, those things mean a lot to me."

Sure beats Kucinich's endorsement from Grandfather Twilight.

Or does it?

Howard Dean peddles hate for cash

At "Howard's Hatefest"...

* * *

Who Says Dean and His Ilk Have No Sense of Humor?

DEBORAH ORIN at the New York Post reports on the "no-videos-allowed" Dean fundraiser in New York in HOWARD'S HATEFEST. [Emphasis added.]

[T]here were no TV cameras last Monday night when pro-Dean comics took the stage on West 18th St. in Chelsea at a $250-a-head Dean fund-raiser (reduced from $500) and competed to see how often they could use the F-word in the same sentence.

Comic Judy Gold dissed President Bush as "this piece of living, breathing s---" and Janeane Garofalo ridiculed the Medicare prescription-drug bill that Bush had just signed as the "you can go f--- yourself, Grandma" bill.

Just a few days before, rival John Kerry had used the F-word to attack Bush in Rolling Stone magazine in an apparent bid to sound hip, but Dean's event was "enough to make John Kerry blush," as rival Dick Gephardt's spokesman Erik Smith tartly put it.

And the Dean event got a lot worse. Comedian David Cross used the N-word for blacks in a disjointed "joke" apparently based on the premise that it's fine for a pro-Dean comic to use racial epithets as long as the goal is to claim Republicans are racists.

Comic Kate Clinton evoked Michael Jackson (hit with new child-sex-abuse charges) and said: "Frankly, I'm far more frightened of Condoleezza Rice" - the Bush national security adviser who has nothing in common with Jackson except being black.

Rice seems to drive liberal woman comics especially nuts. Sandra Bernhard insulted her in racial terms with a "Yes Massa" accent at another Dean fundraiser the same night. Perhaps the pro-Dean comics find it unbearable that the most powerful black woman in U.S. history, close friend to the president and his wife - and a brilliant classical pianist to boot - dares to be a Republican.

Actually, there was something to offend everyone. Dean rival Joe Lieberman got ridiculed for being unable to campaign on Jewish holidays because he's Orthodox. Vice President Dick Cheney was accused of talking "like Mary Jo Buttafuoco."

Cheney's wife Lynne was called "Lon Chaney" - the long-ago movie star who specialized in playing ghouls in horror films. And Cheney's daughter Mary, who is gay, was called "a big lezzie."

Even the apolitical "jokes" were ugly - like a suggestion that it's bizarre to see an Asian baby with Asian parents because so many Asian babies are adopted by whites.

Dean was present and later deplored the racist tenor of the jokes, but took the cash and let credit go.

* * *

Classy.

Howard "Dr. No" Dean: Is he Dividing the Democrats?

At least Joe Lieberman - who seems to have made a hobby out of dissing Dean - thinks so.

"He seems to believe if you are just against everything, that's enough. Against removing Saddam Hussein, against middle-class tax cuts, against knocking down the walls of protection around the world so we can sell more products made in America," Lieberman said. "Dr. Dean has become Dr. No."

He also thinks Dean is unelectable. So does the Democratic Leader Council.

Then there's the attack ad, paid for by Americans for Jobs, Health Care and Progressive Values:

Who are the Americans for Jobs, Health Care and Progressive Values? Their press secretary is Robert Gibbs—who, until recently, worked on John Kerry’s campaign. Their Treasurer is David Jones, who used to raise money for Dick Gephardt. The president of the organization, Former Congressman Edward Feighan, was one of the earliest $2,000 contributors to Dick Gephardt’s presidential campaign.

You can view the ad here and read more about Dean and the "smear campaign" against him here.

Dean's Big Foreign Policy Speech

Howard Dean is trying to attack his weakness before his opponents do. He has surrounded himself with experts and even delivered a 'major' Foreign Policy speech yesterday. You can read the text here.

Also, go check out Dan Drezner's analysis of the speech. He points out that Dean isn't really saying that much that is different from Bush.

D.C. Democrat calls Howard Dean supporter "poor white trash"

"White people don't understand our issues."

Is this racism?

If yes, is racism in this instance morally or legally wrong?

If yes to any of the above, isn't this the official position of the national Democratic Party - i.e., they support "affirmative action" (which inevitably results in preferential treatment based on race)?

Note: the new committee member causing the controversy appears to be a Howard Dean supporter. Is this evidence that African-Americans are less likely to support Howard Dean?

Not the Opposition, the Enemy

I'm Australian, not American. I'm a Liberal, not a Democrat, and opposed to the Republicans (All three labels have different meanings here). But even I can see that the US Democrats are in a parlous state. Truly dire. As witnessed by some comments on the Official Democrats Site :

Well, tha capture of Sadaam takes the 'failure to capture' issue off the table.

Now that the economy is picking up (mall was packed yesterday), Iraq is getting better, prescription drugs on the way, education spending at an all-time high, no further terrorist attacks——what is left?

Oh, yes, the capture of Bin Laden.

If that happens, we are completely sunk.
Posted by Erik Latranyi :: 12/14/03 08:57 AM

They're not the Opposition, they're the Enemy. And they're becoming increasingly out of touch with reality and facts. For example, the next post:

Marsh - I do not believe one single US life was worth the capture of this guy. He did nothing to the US - and the Iraqi people have shown they would prefer to have him there, than to have US occupation for years to come.

Erik: I do not believe that the capture of Bin Laden will sink us. Bush has cooked his own goose with Economy, Deficit, Corporate deals, Education cut-backs, etc.

Posted by Pam Bergren :: 12/14/03 09:01 AM

We live in times where "All are for the Party, and none are for the State" to misquote Macaulay.

Where can the majority of people who normally vote Democrat turn to when their party is being run by such as these?

An excerpt from the Poem I (mis)quoted reads:

Then none was for a party;
Then all were for the state;
Then the great man helped the poor,
And the poor man loved the great:
Then lands were fairly portioned;
Then spoils were fairly sold:
The Romans were like brothers
In the brave days of old.

Now Roman is to Roman
More hateful than a foe,
And the Tribunes beard the high,
And the Fathers grind the low.
As we wax hot in faction,
In battle we wax cold:
Wherefore men fight not as they fought
In the brave days of old.

We can't afford this Avian Excrement after 9/11. A healthy democracy demands a healthy opposition, not the type of Lunacy that sees every Victory for Democracy as a Defeat for Democrats.

This Week's Toast is Done

Check on the latest Toast-O-Meter is up. It is weekly new round-up of the Nine candidates for the Democratic nomination and handicapping of the field.

Campaign Finance Ruling Gives GOP Edge

Dec 10, 5:21 PM (ET)

By SHARON THEIMER

* * *

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court's campaign finance ruling gives the Republicans, who raise far more in small donations, a big advantage in next year's elections for the White House and Congress.

Democrats will have to try to make up the difference through outside groups exempt from most of the new restrictions.

Several Democratic-leaning groups are already in action, raising millions in corporate, union and unlimited "soft money" donations that the national parties can no longer accept under the new law.

With an eye toward unseating President Bush and taking control of Congress, they plan to finance the get-out-the-vote drives and political issue ads that their party has underwritten in the past with large soft money checks.

Republican activists had largely held off on forming new outside groups, waiting to learn the law's fate while the GOP and Bush built a commanding advantage in raising the limited donations permitted under the law. With the justices' ruling, Republicans are now aiming to match the Democratic soft-money groups dollar-for-dollar.

"If the other side is going to raise tens of millions of dollars in soft money and if the Supreme Court says it's OK to spend that on political activity, then we would be foolish not to play by the same rules," said Frank Donatelli, a GOP consultant and co-founder of Americans for a Better Country, a pro-Bush group. The group is vetting its plans with the Federal Election Commission before going ahead.

Meanwhile, congressional and presidential candidates and the national political parties must abide by the new restrictions that took effect after the 2002 elections and have now been upheld by the high court after months of legal uncertainty. The law lets candidates collect twice as much from each individual donor - $2,000 - as they could in the last election.

"It has forced elected officials to reach out to more people for smaller contributions," said Rep. Chris Shays, R-Conn., a sponsor of the campaign finance law who along with his colleagues must run for re-election next year.

Republicans have long raised more than Democrats in so-called hard money donations, which come from individuals and political action committees and are limited in size. But Democrats made a push in the 1990s to narrow the gap by raising corporate and union donations aggressively. The GOP also raised lots of soft money.

With that gone, Republicans enjoy an instant advantage.

The Republican National Committee and its Senate and House counterparts together raised $173 million in hard money through the first 10 months of the year, compared to just $75 million for the three national Democratic committees.

Bush has already raised more than $100 million for his re-election, compared with the top Democratic presidential fund-raiser, Howard Dean, who had about $25 million at the end of September.

"Today's ruling breaks the Democrats' back," National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Reynolds boasted.

* * *

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce says it will spend on phone banks and direct mail, among other activities. The AFL-CIO has said the law won't prevent it from spending millions trying to get its members to the polls.

The National Rifle Association plans to ask each of its 4 million members to give at least $20 to its political action committee, money it could use for direct candidate support, including ads calling for candidates' election or defeat.

"It's not going to shut us up," NRA executive director Wayne LaPierre said of Wednesday's ruling. "And we're up to the task, so stay tuned."

But with the legal issues now settled by the Supreme Court, the big test of the new system will occur with the new outside soft money groups that are cropping up.

"I think it clearly underscores the need to do what we're doing," said Harold Ickes, a former Clinton White House official who has formed one such group called the Media Fund which intends to raise $10 million to help elect Democrats next year.

* * *

Link to story.

Job Growth increasing: advantage Bush

From David Malpass in National Review Online: The Jobfull Recovery Begins.

* * *

There are many signals out there that new jobs are arriving. The employment component of the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) November index for manufacturing moved above the critical 50 level for the first time in more than three years, indicating that the employment drought in manufacturing is coming to an end.

The four-week moving average of initial jobless claims has fallen to 359,000. This is below the post-1989 average and not far above the 315,000 level common in the mid-1990s when job growth was fast. As a percentage of employment, the current weekly claims level is consistent with past periods of fast job growth.

One reason for the lag in job creation after the 2001 recession was the unusually deep drawdown in inventories (there's a strong correlation between inventories and job creation). But inventories rose in September and October, indicating that robust job growth will follow.

* * *

Via PrestoPundit.

The Supreme Court's campaign finance law ruling is out

It's captioned: McConnell v. FEC.

Different Justices wrote different portions of the majority opinion. It looks like a train wreck. More later...

Lieberman strikes back

Lieberman Lashes Out at Dean

Senator Says Endorsement Runs Counter to Gore's Views

By Dan Balz and Edward Walsh
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, December 10, 2003; Page A10

* * *

DURHAM, N.H., Dec. 9 -- Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.) responded to his rejection by former vice president Al Gore with a sharp attack on Howard Dean on Tuesday, questioning Gore's judgment and warning that the former Vermont governor would lead the Democratic Party back into the political wilderness.

* * *

Earlier Tuesday on NBC's "Today" show, Lieberman said he was "caught completely off guard" by the Gore endorsement. "I heard about it from the media," he said.

Lieberman returned repeatedly to the theme that Dean is someone who would reverse the gains Democrats made under President Bill Clinton. "What really bothers me is that Al is supporting a candidate who is so fundamentally opposed to the basic transformation that Bill Clinton brought to the Democratic Party in 1992," Lieberman said on "Today." "Clinton made our party once again fiscally responsible, pro-growth, strong on values, for middle-class tax cuts, and Howard Dean is against all of those. So Al Gore will have to explain why he is supporting somebody who I think would take our party and country backward, not forward."

Lieberman's campaign aides said the Gore endorsement will "crystallize" the race for the Democratic presidential nomination by dramatizing the differences between Lieberman and Dean. "It seems to have energized our supporters and brought us a whole lot of new ones," said Mandy Grunwald, Lieberman's media consultant.

* * *

Lieberman, speaking at a coffee shop here, said he had no idea whether his criticism of Gore's "people versus the powerful" message of 2000 -- criticism he has aired several times since that campaign -- contributed to Gore's decision. He said he has spoken with Gore "occasionally" and had sought his endorsement. "I hoped we would have a chance to speak before his decision," Lieberman said.

* * *

Gore, Dean Plotted Endorsement in Secret

From Newsday:

* * *

Joe Trippi [Dean's campaign manager] said he got wind that something was up Sunday when Dean ordered his staff to charter planes for Iowa. When he asked Dean what was going on, the boss said, "I can't tell you."

Trippi said he had a feeling Gore's endorsement was the big secret, but he didn't find out for sure until late Sunday night or Monday.

He said the courtship began in September 2002, when Gore gave a speech denouncing President Bush's position on Iraq. He said the address stiffened Dean's opposition, and the former Vermont governor praised Gore in conversations some time after the address.

The pair had several talks in the next 15 months, with Dean peppering Gore about foreign policy. In the last six months, they talked to each other every two weeks, mostly by phone.

About a month ago, Gore and Dean met privately in Tennessee for about 90 minutes. In deference to Gore's penchant for secrecy, Trippi didn't mention the meeting when he met a top Gore adviser, Roy Neel, later in the day.

In recent days, Dean sent Gore a draft of a foreign-policy speech he plans to deliver Monday in California. Gore took it with him on a trip to Tokyo.

When Dean took the call from Gore, he expected another session in which the former vice president would offer advice and suggestions. Instead, he offered his support.

"I've decided I want to endorse you," Gore told Dean, according to Trippi. The former vice president suggested they go to Iowa, site of his 2000 caucus victory over Bill Bradley.

They didn't see each other until moments before Tuesday's announcement in Harlem. They hugged and shook hands, their alliance no longer a secret.

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More links for this story are available at nikita demosthenes.

Kerry goes Presidential: uses f*** word.

December 6, 2003 -- Struggling 2004 Democratic wannabe John Kerry fires an X-rated attack at President Bush over Iraq and uses the f-word - highly unusual language for a presidential contender - in a stunning new interview with Rolling Stone magazine.

Sen. Kerry (Mass.) used the undeleted expletive to express his frustration and anger over how the Iraq issue has hurt him because he voted for the war resolution while Democratic front-runner Howard Dean has soared by opposing it.

"I voted for what I thought was best for the country. Did I expect Howard Dean to go off to the left and say, 'I'm against everything'? Sure. Did I expect George Bush to f - - - it up as badly as he did? I don't think anybody did," Kerry told the youth-oriented magazine.

Brookings Institution presidential scholar Stephen Hess said he can't recall another candidate attacking a president with X-rated language in a public interview.

"It's so unnecessary," Hess said. "In a way it's a kind of pandering [by Kerry] to a group he sees as hip . . . I think John Kerry is going to regret saying this."

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Ok. Kerry's toast. Dean's next. Game over.

The Toast is Done: The 12/5 Edition is Up

The lastest Toast-O-Meter is up.

The basics: Dean remains the Top Slice, Gephardt in the two slot. Clark moves up to number three, but not because of anything he has done, but rather the fact that the Kerry campaign remains in flames.

Come by and see the entire round-up.

Bush To Announce Return To Moon On Dec. 17?

How's this for a campaign promise? From Canada.com:

Washington is abuzz with talk Mr. Bush will breathe new life into the U.S. space program in a speech on Dec. 17 marking the centenary of the Wright brothers' first powered and sustained airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C.

It is also possible he might save any announcement for his State of the Union speech in January.

Although the White House is tight-lipped on the subject, Mr. Bush is expected to confirm new missions to the moon and speak about the possible establishment of a permanent lunar station.

Clark Says He Would Avoid Pre-Emptive Strikes

The Nashua, NH Telegraph offers an account of Wes Clark's Thursday assault on Bush foriegn policy. Among the noteables:

“I think my first act is to put the pre-emptive strike doctrine into the shredder,” Clark said to applause from a crowd of more than 150 jammed into the college’s lounge.

Clark got emotional after lashing out at Bush’s failure to publicly meet with the families of the more than 400 soldiers who have been killed in Iraq.

“He will go to a dozen fund-raisers for re-election, but he won’t go to one home and put his arms around a mother who has lost a child and that’s wrong,” Clark said, his eyes welling up with tears.

Nader: Heeees Baaaack?

Several sources, and here the Independent, are reporting that Ralph Nader is raising money for an exploratory bid, and that a Nader 2004 Presidential Exploratory Committee had been set up three months ago.

Which brings us the latest Command Post 2004 Poll: Which candidate does Nader hurt most? Cast your vote in the right-hand column (and if you came to this page directly, click here to go to the main 2004 page and see the poll).

Command Post Dem Poll Results

The results of our most recent Command Post 2004 poll (and thanks to all who voted):

Bush was right: the Kyoto Treaty is dead

Bush was right (and so was the unanimous U.S. Senate - duh): The Kyoto Treaty is dead.

That's right, I said...

It's not pinin'! It's passed on! This protocol is no more! It has ceased to be! It's expired and gone to meet it's maker! It's a stiff! Bereft of life, it rests in peace! If you hadn't nailed it to the perch it'd be pushing up the daisies! It's metabolic processes are now 'istory! It's off the twig! It's kicked the bucket, it's shuffled off it's mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-PROTOCOL!!

Here's the original story from the BBC: "Russia pulls away from Kyoto pact."

Via samizdata.net.

P.S. My favorite new blog for the day: dangerous liberty.

stranger than fiction

Ladies and gentlemen, Denis Kucinich's mind has left the building.

Edwards Launches Spanish-Language Blog

First, candidate blogs were the trend. Now it appears non-English-language candidate blogs may be the new trend. Visit Blog de Unidos Con Edwards here. (And if you've kept an eye on the cool Candidate Blog RSS Feed section over there in the right-hand column, you'da seen it already.)

(Editor's Note: When do you think the Edwards camp will change all the buttons and other hyperlinks on Blog de Unidos Con Edwards to Spanish? As of this posting, they're all still in English. Also no RSS as yet.)