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April 2006
Just another brick in the wall …
Texas Senator John Cornyn’s mailbag has been heavy of late: He’s received about 20 bricks in the mail from constituents who support building a wall between Texas and Mexico. The bricks arrive in boxes — and due to the post. Sept. 11 congressional security measures, end up in Cornyn’s office after a lengthy screening that gets all of them irradiated. Cornyn does not support a wall going across the entire border, but supports a “virtual wall” manned by sensors and cameras, and actual fences in city areas. “I don’t know how much it costs” to mail a brick, said Cornyn spokesman Don Stewart. but, like all other constituent mail, the bricks get a response. “They get a letter back,” Stewart said. “It talks about his border security efforts and his thoughts on high-density areas where fencing works.”
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Airwaves Battle on Air Force One
The controversy du jour aboard Air Force One today was one near and dear to the hearts of many otherwise happy couples: Command and control of the TV tuner.
“It’s come to my attention that there’s been requests – this is a serious question – to turn these TVs on to a station other than Fox, and that those have been denied,” Washington Post reporter Jim VandeHei told Press Secretary Scott McClellan. “My question would be, is there a White House policy that all government TVs have to be tuned to Fox?”
“Never heard of any such thing,” said McClellan, soon to be replaced by Tony Snow of Fox News, long viewed as an operation that enjoys most favored network status in the Bush White House.
“My TVs are on all four different channels at all times,” McClellan said of the four-screen array across from his West Wing desk.
He also noted that every White House television has split-screen capability.
“Well,” said VandeHei, “they always seem to be tuned to Fox.”
He went on.
“And these are paid for by taxpayer dollars. And my understanding is that you guys have to watch Fox on Air Force One. Is that true?”
No way, said McClellan.
“First time I’ve ever heard of it,” he said. “First time you’ve brought it to my attention, meaning the first time the press corps has brought it to my attention. In fact, I’ve watched other channels on here.”
Despite McClellan’s TV options, the record will show that – other than when the movie of reporters’ choice is showing (and that frequently invites a gender-based battle over what to watch), Fox is showing on the screens in the press cabin of Air Force One.
As McClellan and VandeHei talked TV channels, Agence France Presse photographer Tim Sloan volunteered that he was the one who raised the issue.
“I was the Fox victim,” he said, “and I was told, the quote was, ‘No,’ when I asked for CNN. … I was told, ‘We don’t watch CNN here. You can only watch Fox.’”
Asked who told him that, Sloan said “the magic people at the other end of the phone” in the press cabin.
McClellan said he found the issue “quite amusing, to tell you the truth.”
“I mean there are a lot of people on this plane that do watch that channel,” he said of CNN. “First time you brought it to my attention. I’ll go see what we can do on it.”
Moments later, after a quick trip up front, McClellan came back with the update.
“We just called up. They’re going to be changing it, at your all’s request, to the channel that you requested, which is CNN,” he said.
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FACE MASKS MAY NOT PROTECT AGAINSGT FLU
The kind of industrial face masks you can buy at a building supply store have not been tested to show they can protect persons who wear them from influenza, the National Academy of Sciences reported Thursday. And, with the masks expected to be in short supply in a flu pandemic, there is no reliable way to decontaminate and re-use them, said a special committee of scientists. Â ”Even the best respirator or surgical mask will do little to protect a person who uses it incorrectly, and we know relatively little about how effective these devices will be against flu even when they are used correctly,” Donald S. Burke, professor of international health and epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University and co-chair of the committee. Â ”Substantial research must be done to increase our understanding of how flu spreads, develop better masks and respirators, and make it easier to decontaminate them.” Masks designated “N95” have been found by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to protect against 95 percent of certain airborne dust particles. The masks are widely used, both in industries and hospitals. The committee was created by the academy after the Department of Health and Human Services requested advice on whether masks would help restrain epidemic spread of the influenza virus.
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Ode to K Street
As the U.S. House of Representatives gets set to debate and vote on its version of lobbying reform, (a bill that’s been watered down and maligned by reform organizations as a “do-nothing” piece of legislation,) Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., took to the floor this morning with a poetic jab at his counterparts:
Dear K Street, How Do I Love Thee?
“Mr. Speaker, investigators have recently uncovered a letter from the Republican Leadership to special interest lobbyists — I’d like to share it with you today.
Dear K Street Lobbyists,
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth of thy oil wells,
For thou shall have $14.5 billion to drill them.
I love thee to the heights of thy drug profits,
For the Medicare bill gives you $139 billion.
I love thee for thy golf courses, and for thy private jets.
I love thee for thy donations, libations, and vacations.
For now we must part, and I’ll call it reform,
But remember, in December, once we get past November,
The travel ban expires, and I’ll meet you at the tees.
“Yours forever, ‘cause I can’t quit you,
“The Republican Congress.”
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Quote of the Day
“And that’s one of the best parts about teaching, being surprised by the effect you have on your students. Sometimes, the child everyone in town has pegged as a lifelong jokester goes on to do something great thanks to his teachers. He might even become president of the United States,” Laura Bush during White House ceremony for National Teacher of the Year Kim Oliver of Maryland.
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SMALL BUSINESS PAL
A week after Rep. Katherine Harris slammed Sen. Bill Nelson as being no friend to small businesses, the non-profit Florida Small Business Development Center Network bestowed its 2006 Small Business Dividend$ Award on Nelson.
The presentation, scheduled for this evening in the Rayburn House Office Building, is to recognize Nelson’s “many accomplishments relative to the success and future of entrepreneurs and small businesses,” according to a letter from Jerry Cartwright, the organization’s state director.
The network, which bills itself as “The Premier Source for Business Assistance in Florida,” cited Nelson’s support for the Small Business Administration, business loan programs, veterans issues and tax credits for small businesses that offer employee health care and that employ national guardsmen. It also mentioned Nelson’s support for eliminating the estate tax on small businesses and family farms.
The organization includes an advisory board of prominent Florida business leaders and has two state lawmakers — both Republicans — as advisors: state Sen. Jeff Atwater of North Palm Beach and state Rep. David Mealor of Lake Mary.
Former award winners include former Sen. Bob Graham, a Democrat, and Rep. Bill Young, a Republican.
Harris repeatedly criticized Nelson’s business support record last week and cited his low ratings by the National Federation of Independent Business as evidence.
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Cornyn’s not feeling snubbed
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, says not being invited to the White House for an exclusive meeting between several key lawmakers and President Bush on immigration reform wasn’t a snub. “I don’t really see it that way,” Cornyn said. “I’ve been invited a number of times.” A dozen senators, including at least three Democrats, spent the afternoon with President Bush on Tuesday hashing out details of a sweeping immigration reform bill making its way through Congress. But conservative lawmakers like Cornyn and Sen. John Kyl, R-Ariz., who are pushing their own more stringent guest worker proposal, weren’t at the meeting. “I interpret it as the President realizing he can’t get a bill, unless he gets a bill out of the Senate.” Later, Cornyn dismissed widespread reports of a breakthrough on the deadlocked immigration legislation after the Bush meeting. “Really this is just a prelude … everyone knows the bill will be written in conference committee.”
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EPA nominee approved by committee
WASHINGTON – A Senate committee voted 10-8 on party lines Wednesday to recommend full Senate confirmation of a controversial Environmental Protection Agency official as head of the agency’s air pollution control division. William Wehrum’s appointment as assistant EPA administrator for air and radiation had been opposed by environmentalists because of his role in pushing through rules easing pollution requirements on electric power plants. The vote in favor of confirmation hinged on Sen. Lincoln Chafee, R-R.I., who has sided with Democrats and independent Sen. James Jeffords of Vermont on previous air pollution issues. Chafee, who has been endorsed for reelection this year by the Sierra Club, did not attend the committee meeting and his affirmative proxy vote was cast by committee chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla.
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Snow Answers Cox Newspapers’ Questions
In his first comments since accepting the post as White House press secretary, Tony Snow today fielded a few questions from Cox Newspapers. Here’s what he said:
Q. What were the last things you had to get tied up before you agreed to take the job?
A. Figuring out if I had cancer. You can’t say, “A little thing. I still have cancer.” I do CAT scans every three months. I had a routine scheduled one last Thursday and the results didn’t come back in until late yesterday afternoon. So that was the deal. (Snow is recovering from colon cancer)
Q. What kind of things did you have to talk to (administration officials) about concerning the job?
A. Basically you talk about what you’re going to do and the most important thing is to make sure that we’re going to have a good working relationship with you guys.
Q. Did they talk about the job description being any different than it has been with Scott (McClellan) or did you want it to be any different?
A. Well, I didn’t play a comparison game. Rather than get too much into the nuts and bolts just watch and see. I hate to be coy about it but I’m going to be coy. At least I won’t pretend. In any event we will be seeing you a lot and I will be talking to I hope a lot of you guys. We will do some sessions to figure out what you think we can do better.
Q. Your criticism of him in the past, are you free to keep telling him that kind of stuff now that you are on the payroll?
A. Probably not in those exact words.
Q. But the same message? They want to hear it?
A. Yeah. They want people to express their opinions. You’re not coming here to drink the Kool-Aid. You’re coming here to serve the president. And at this particular juncture I think what you want is as much honest counsel as you can get. So when I agree I’m going to agree but when I disagree I disagree. But on any opinion his vote is the tie-breaker.
Q. On Iraq, you’re still fully on board with what’s going on over there?
A. The president is the guy who runs the place. I’ll speak for him and some other point I’ll speak for myself. How’s that?
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Snow Lands in White House
President Bush this morning introduced Tony Snow of Fox News as the new White House press secretary. Snow will replace Scott McClellan, who announced his resignation last week.
“My job is to make decisions and his job is to help explain those decisions to the press corps and the American people,” Bush said in the White House Briefing Room, flanked by Snow and McClellan. “He understands, like I understand, that the press is vital to our democracy.”
Snow, a White House speechwriter when the current president’s dad was in office, told reporters, “One of the things I want to do is just make it clear that one of the reason I took the job is not only because I believe in the president, because, believe it or not, I want to work with you. These are times that are going to be very challenging.”
Bush noted that Snow, as a commentator, “sometimes has disagreed with me.” Earlier this year, after Bush’s State of the Union Address, Snow wrote that the speech “distilled the essence of his presidency … brilliant foreign policy and listless domestic policy.”
Bush today joked about Snow’s criticism, saying “I asked him about those comments, and he said, ‘You should have heard what I said about the other guy.’”
After the brief announcement, Bush, Snow and McClellan left the room while ignoring reporters’ questions.
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Snow today
Tony Snow’s current employer says the White House will be his next employer. Fox News reported today that Snow, host of the network’s “The Tony Snow Show,” has accepted the job as White House press secretary, replacing Scott McClellan, who announced his resignation next week. The White House is expected to announce the selection today.
Fox News reported that Snow, who is recovering from colon cancer, got a clean bill of health on Tuesday from his oncologist.
Snow was a White House speechwriter for the current president’s dad.
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Martinez see immigration breakthrogh
“I think today was a confidence building measure for the Democrats,” Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., said Tuesday after President Bush met with about a dozen senators at the White House to discuss pending immigration legislation.
Martinez, one of the co-authors of the compromise immigration plan with Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., said there are still “a few days” for senators to come to agreement. “No doubt there are difficult discussions that have to take place, but I think we are on our way.”
In the bipartisan meeting, Bush made it clear he supports a bill along the lines being considered in the Senate, Martinez said. Such a bill would include a “pathway to citizenship, at the back-of-the-line without amnesty” for those immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, and a guest-worker program for temporary legal immigrants.
“I think they (senators) saw in him determination and assurance that he is committed to a comprehensive solution that is much beyond where the House is,” Martinez said.
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No Snow in today’s forecast
Amid increasing speculation that Tony Snow of Fox News is heading in as the new White House press secretary, the guy who now has the job says no major personnel announcements are expected today. Scott McClellan, who announced his resignation last week, this morning told reporters not to anticipate any news today “on positions you may be interested in.” That includes Treasury secretary where another Snow - John, unrelated to Tony - has long been speculated to be on his way out.
McClellan, whose departure will be determined by when he is replaced, refused to speculate on when his last day on the job will be. “I’m doing my part to push it along,” he said.
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Gas Price Politics
Two days after Sen. Bill Nelson criticized the Bush administration and Republicans in Congress for their energy policies, the National Republican Senatorial Committee sent out a news release accusing Democrats of playing “partisan politics with gas prices in a flailing attempt to distract from the growing economy.”
Nelson gave the Democratic response to President Bush’s radio address Saturday commenting that “Americans are frustrated, and sick and tired of billion-dollar giveaways to the oil companies, while the price of gas goes through the roof.”
The senator said the U.S. should put more emphasis on developing hybrid vehicles and alternative fuels such as ethanol (which can be made from sugar). He also said the U.S. should produce more synthetic fuel from coal and raise the gas mileage standard for passenger cars to at least 40 miles per gallon. It’s now 27.5 mpg.
The NRSC memo accused Democrats of voting in favor of raising gas taxes and against energy bills in Congress. Specifically, it noted Nelson voted against considering a comprehensive energy bill in 2003 and against final passage of the energy bill in 2005.
The NRSC memo did not mention that Republican Sen. Mel Martinez also voted against the energy bill last year. Florida’s two senators said they opposed a provision in the bill calling of an inventory of oil and gas reserves in the Outer Continental Shelf including the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
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Young Epidemiologists win $50,000
A survey exposing widespread deliberate self-harm by Tennessee high school students and a study that suggests Idaho teenagers can offset the negative effects of minor mood disorders with exercise won two students college scholarships of $50,000 in a national “young epidemiologists” competition. Natalia Narzarewicz, an 18-year-old high school senior in Oak Ridge, Tenn., surveyed over 1,000 students and discovered that over one-third of them had engaged in such acts as deliberately burning or cutting their skin. She shared first-place honors in the annual “young Epidemiology Scholars Competition” with Aman Prasad, also 18, of Pocatello, Idaho. Pocatello surveyed 800 9th and 10th graders and found correlations between positive mood scores and regular exercise. The scholarships were awarded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which sponors the annual competition to encourage students to consider epidemiology as a career. Judges included top epidemiologists, as well as high school teachers. Nearly 700 high school juniors and seniors participated in this year’s competition. Prasad and Narzarewicz were among 60 finalists, all of whom received scholarships of $2,000 or more. Second-place scholarships of $20,000 went to Elizabeth Baker of Tucson, Ariz., and Soumaya Iriivinti of Derry, N.H. Chriistina Badal of Gulf Stream, Fla., and Erin Vickery of Decatur, Ga., were regional finalists and received $15,000 scholarships.
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Washington Week in Preview
Congress returns (the Senate on Monday and the House on Tuesday) from a two-week recess with nervous Republicans hoping to pass something they can run on in the off-year elections (no one likes to be called “do nothing”) . Most of the action will likely center on immigration and a variety of fiscal matters.
FISCAL MATTERS
Katrina, War Supplemental
First up in the Senate will be a bill that would provide $91.9 billion in supplemental fiscal 2006 appropriations, including $67.6 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, $19.2 billion for hurricane relief and $4.3 billion for foreign assistance. Opening statements are expected Monday, with a vote on Tuesday.
Budget Resolution
Meanwhile in the House, GOP leaders will try to agree on a budget resolution by settling differences in the ranks over earmark rules, emergency spending restrictions and domestic spending levels. It won’t be easy and it could be a test of new majority leader John Boehner’s effectiveness. House Appropriations Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., scuttled a budget deal Boehner, R-Ohio, had negotiated with conservatives earlier this month.
Lobby Reform
Passing the lobbying bill—which has earmark reforms—would ease some of the battle over the budget resolution. The House takes up the matter Wednesday.
Pension Reform
Some observers expect it to be taken up this week.
IMMIGRATION
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing Tuesday largely focused on guest-worker proposals. The committee takes up the immigration reform compromise bill on Thursday.
OTHER ISSUES
Bush
The major highlight of week could be any additional spring cleaning that goes on around the White House. McClellan on Friday denied reports that Harriet Miers stint as White House counsel could be coming to an end. Not under consideration, says McClellan.
The president is out West through Monday, when he will conclude the trip with an immigration speech is in Irvine, California as Congress prepares to return to Washington to continue work on that contentions issue. Keefe may cover.
On Tuesday, faced with another round of rising gas prices, Bush will make an energy speech in Washington. That same day, the Navy football team is due at White House as winner of Commander=in-Chief’s Trophy as top military academy team. It’s the kind of event at which Bush always reminds athletes to be role models. Could be interesting this time as Navy is led by quarterback Lamar Owens, who has been charged with raping a classmate in January.
The Wednesday highlight is remarks to teachers of the year at the White House. It’s back on the road on Thursday as Bush goes to Louisiana and Mississippi to participate in programs honoring volunteers.
Foreign affairs tops the Friday agenda with Bush hosting the president of Azarbaijan. The weekend features Bush remarks at the White House Correspondents Association dinner.
Politics
The Log Cabin Republicans hold their convention in Washington, beginning Thursday. Another presidential hopeful brings his act South this week when Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack speaks at the J-J dinner in South Carolina on Saturday. Other events of interest on the hustings:
— Apr. 29, 2006: John Kerry addresses the Florida Victory ‘06 Reception in Tallahassee, FL — Apr. 29, 2006: Newt Gingrich and talk show host Sean Hannity headline the annual Iowa Republican Party Lincoln Dinner, Des Moines, IA — Apr. 29, 2006: Sen. John Kerry attends the Florida Democratic Party “Florida Victory ‘06 Reception” in Miami Beach, FL*— Apr. 29, 2006: Gov. Tom Vilsack (D-IA) keynotes the SC Democratic Party’s Jefferson Jackson dinner in Colombia, SC
Government Secrecy . The Information Security Oversight Office, an arm of the National Archive, is expected to release a much anticipated audit Wednesday (April 26) of the federal government’s secret reclassification program. The report will look at what the intelligence agencies have removed from the open shelves of the archive as part of the program and ways to make the system more transparent.
Homeland Security
A chemical safety watchdog group issues a report Tuesday saying that chemical facilities in 47 states have exchanged extremely hazardous materials with safer alternatives. The Center for American Progress, a liberal policy group, said 14,000 other plants still use highly toxic chemicals that could endanger nearby residents.
Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Monday, April 24
Beginning at 10 a.m., the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the following case: Brigham City, Utah v. Stuart Does the “emergency aid exceptionâ€? to the warrant requirement — recognized in Mincey v. Arizona — hinge on a police officer’s subjective motivation for entering the home? Under the 4th Amendment, was the gravity of the “emergencyâ€? or “exigencyâ€? sufficient to justify the police officer’s entry into the home to stop the flight? Kircher et al. v. Putnam Funds Trust et al. May a party appeal a district judge’s decision to remand a case to state court pursuant to the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998 (SLUSA)?
Tuesday, April 25
Beginning at 10 a.m., the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the following case: Dixon v. U.S. Where a criminal defendant raises a duress defense, should the burden of persuasion be on the government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not under duress — or upon the defendant to prove duress by a preponderance of the evidence? Empire Healthchoice Assurance v. McVeigh What is the federal jurisdiction in a suit by a federal government contractor to enforce a provision in a health benefits plan for federal employees, that is part of a government contract under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act of 1959?
Wednesday, April 26
Beginning at 10 a.m., the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the following case: Hill v. McDonough et al. Is a complaint brought by a death-sentenced state prisoner — who seeks to stay his execution in order to pursue a challenge to the chemicals utilized for carrying out the execution — properly re-characterized as a habeas corpus petition? Does a challenge to a particular protocol the state plans to use during the execution constitute a cognizable claim under the Supreme Court’s decision in Nelson v. Campbell and under 42 U.S.C. sec. 1983? Mohawk Industries, Inc. v. Williams et al. Can a defendant corporation and its agents constitute an “enterpriseâ€? under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, in light of the settled rule that a RICO defendant must “conductâ€? or “participate inâ€? the affairs of some larger enterprise and not just its own affairs?
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Out West
President Bush today winds up his West Coast swing with an immigration speech in Irvine, California and a Las Vegas campaign event for Rep. Jon. Porter, R-Nevada.
In Irvine, Bush will pitch his “Comprehensive Immigration Reform” concept. The daily White House Morning Update, an administration-friendly digest of the president’s schedule and the morning’s headlines, says Bush will tout a “temporary worker program that rejects amnesty, allows foreign workers to fill jobs no American is willing to do and reduces smuggling and crime at the border.”
In Las Vegas, Bush will be backing a GOP congressman who has been voting in favor of immigration legislation that does not align with the president’s thinking. Porter voted for the punishment-heavy measure approved earlier this year by the House and opposed an amendment that would have treated violations as misdemeanors instead of felonies.
As is its custom, today’s White House Morning Update is heavy on morning headlines about progress in Iraq and Afghanistan, but devoid of mention of a Washington Post headline saying “Inspectors Find More Torture at Iraqi Jails” or the Los Angeles Times editorial calling for Vice President Cheney’s resignation.
“I haven’t read the L.A. Times editorial,” Press Secretary Scott McClellan said Sunday when asked about it.
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Diaper duty calls for the Majority Leader
House Majority Whip Roy Blunt R-Mo. and his wife, Abigail, have adopted a baby boy, 18-month-old Alexander Charles Blunt. They adopted the infant from a Moscow orphanage. Blunt joins several members of Congress who have adopted children, including Rep. Anne Northrup, R-Kentucky, who has two adopted children, and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who also is raising two adopted children.
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Scenes from the South Lawn
Quite a week at the White House, particularly on the South Lawn where it began and ended with protests within the fences of a secure compound that is supposed to be protest-proof.
In both cases, the protesters were allowed in by the White House: hundreds as guests and one as a credentialed reporter.
It began on Monday when 100 or so gay couples with children quietly made their point about what families can look like by accepting the White House annual open invitation to the Easter egg roll. The gay couples insisted it was not a protest, but they also knew they’d attract reporters and cameras who would help them make their point.
Score one for cleverness.
The second South Lawn protest was far more embarrassing for the administration. As Chinese President Hu Jintao began his remarks during a formal welcoming ceremony on the South Lawn, a woman identified as Wang Wenyi screamed at him and Bush, urging both to stop the oppression of Chinese followers of Falun Gong, a spiritual movement banned in that country.
Wang threatened Hu, saying his “days are numbered.”
Like the gay families at the egg roll, Wang got in with White House approval. Despite the fact that she has engaged in this kind of loud protest before, Wang was granted a press credential as a reporter for The Epoch Times, a Falung Gong-affiliated publication. Nothing we could do, the White House said, insisting Wang qualified as a journalist.
Score one for ingenuity.
“In protesting in this manner, she did not act on behalf of Epoch Times,” the paper said in a statement.
But the paper also used the opportunity - as Wang had used her opportunity on the South Lawn - to push its point.
“We think the world does need to understand what might have moved a respected medical professional such as Dr. Wang to take such unconventional actions,” the paper said in its statement. “The Epoch Times has reported that, based on the statements of doctors performing organ transplants in China, in the next 11 days thousands of Falun Gong practitioners will be slaughtered in China in a particularly horrifying manner: through having their organs harvested while they are still living.” Chinese officials have denied the allegation.
Bush apologized to Hu for the incident and the Chinese leader was gracious in accepting the apology, according to White House aides. But Hu - who attracts protesters most everywhere he goes - surely felt he would be immune from them on the South Lawn of the most protected building in America.
All in all, it made for quite a week on the South Lawn, also the scene this week for Press Secretary Scott McClellan’s resignation announcement and a rare aborted takeoff of Marine One with the president on board, grounded due to communications problems.
And if that was not enough fun and games for the week, Bush - in a strange sort of wrong-way replay of an incident he endured in China last November - left a lasting impression in the form of photos of him tugging on Hu’s jacket as the Chinese leaded headed in the wrong direction during the South Lawn welcome ceremony.
The will-intentioned effort looked like something else in photos of the moment.
To some, it offered a reminder of another wrong-way incident involving Bush and China. Last November, after a press conference at a Beijing hotel Bush famously tried to walk out through a locked door, producing photos of him making a strange face and jokes about having no exit strategy.
By Friday morning on the South Lawn, as he headed off for a weekend in California, Bush was smiling and waving as usual as he climbed into Marine One at the end of quite a week in his backyard.
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Who heckled Hu?
The protester, wearing a White House-issued press credential, who screamed at President Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao on the South Lawn has a history of such behavior.
On July 25, 2001, Wang Wenyi confronted Jiang Zemin, then China’s president, while he was in Malta. In an incident recounted today on the Austin-based Stratfor.com website, a respected review of international affairs and public policy, the woman berated Jiang about harassment and oppression of practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual movement banned in China. Wang is a Falun Gong practitioner.
“Wang’s previous encounter with Jiang, and her participation as a key speaker at (a Falun Gong) March 27 rally in Washington should have been enough to top off the White House that she might cause trouble at Hu’s arrival ceremony,” Stratfor.com noted. “Either White House security totally missed these prior events in security reviews before approving Wang’s press pass, or they overlooked them. It would not, at first, seem plausible that her history could have been overlooked — since one of the mandates of the security services is to protect the president from such embarrassments — but on close review, it appears to be the more likely of the two scenarios.”
The White House said Wang, a New York pathologist, was granted credentials as a journalist for Epoch Times, a Falun Gong-associated publication. Stephen Gregory, a spokesman for the paper, said Wang was to act as a journalist, not an activist, for the Hu visit. She has been charged with disorderly conduct and could face more serious charges for interrupting a foreign dignitary.
Because she was amid a tangle of reporters and camera operators on a press platform on the South Lawn, it took about three minutes for Secret Service officers to get to Wang and haul her away. Before they did, she shrieked at Bush to get Hu to stop harassing Falun Gong devotees. And she told Hu that his days are “numbered.”
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Chinese President Hu Jintao Visits White House
It was pomp and protest at the White House today as Chinese President Hu Jintao visited for a day of activities that the Bush administration refused to call a state visit. There was full military welcome on the South Lawn as well as a 21-gun salute for Hu, who reviewed the troops prior to heading into the Oval Office for a meeting with Bush. After the session, both talked about their frank exchange and acknowledged ongoing differences on some issues, including Bush’s call on Hu to revalue Chinese currency as a way to reduce the massive trade imbalance between the nations.
In comments to reporters, Bush managed to bring up Houston Rockets basketball player Yao Ming in response to a question about cultural exchange programs. “I mean, he’s a perpetual exchange. He’s a great player and he’s here all the time,” said Bush.
The South Lawn welcome ceremony was marked by a shrieking protester who stood amid reporters on a riser. The woman screamed at Hu, criticizing his record on human rights. The woman was associated with Falun Gong, a banned spiritiual movement that has been subjected to harassment in China. Many more Falun Gong supporters marched outside the White House to protest Hu’s visit.
The last event on Hu’s White House schedule was a “social lunch” in the East Room.
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White House Morning Update
Ever trying to control the spin of the news, the White House communications operation, in its “Morning Update,” today made sparing mention of yesterday’s major staff changes in which Press Secretary Scott McClellan announced his resignation and Karl Rove’s job description was changed.
The “Morning Update,” e-mailed to White House reporters and others, was topped by highlights of a Los Angeles Times article on Bush’s Wednesday speech in Tuskegee, Alabama, an event that was greatly overshadowed by Wednesday’s staff changes.
The second item on the “Morning Update” included the only mention of the changes, quoting Dan Bartlett, counselor to the president, from a radio interview in which he said “this president wants to accomplish a lot in the last 1,000 days of his presidency” and wants to make sure “he has the staff and the team and the lines of responsibility in a way that he feels that can be most successful for this president.”
Next up on the update were highlights from: - A Washington Post interview in which Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen talked about how valuable the Coast Guard is. - A CBS story about of life expectancy for Americans is increasing. - An AP story about Bush and four governors talking about how well the war is going. - A Kansas City Star story about the enthusiastic response Vice President Cheney got from troops at Fort Riley. - An AP story quoting Secretary of State Rice saying peace will come to Iraq. - A Washington Post column calling for congressional approval of the Bush-backed U.S.-India civilian nuclear agreement.
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Marine One Grounded
President Bush’s Wednesday trip to Alabama was delayed when Marine One, the helicopter that usually takes him from the White House South Lawn to Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, was grounded by radio problems.
“We had a helicopter issue. Everybody is safe,” Bush said after he climbed out of the aircraft.
Bush and his top aides had climbed in and were on board as the rotors cranked up for take off. After a minute or so, it became obvious something was wrong. The engines were cut and Bush climbed out and gave a hands-up what-happened motion as he looked at the invited guests on hand for the take-off.
Bush then worked the crowd, shaking hands and posing for photos, as a motorcade was arranged for the drive to Andrews.
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McClellan Resigns
White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, a longtime aide to President Bush, today announced his resignation.
“The White House is going through a period of transition. Change can be helpful. And this is a good time and good position to help bring about change,” McClellan said at the White House with Bush at his side.
In another change, Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove will be dropping his policy responsibilities and concentrating on politics as the crucial mid-term elections approach.
No date was announced for the McClellan’s departure after two years as Bush’s top spokesman. No replacement was immediately announced.
The change will come as the White House, under new Chief of Staff Josh Bolten, moves to reshape an administration plagued by persistently low approval ratings.
“I have given it my all, sir, and I have given you my all,” McClellan told Bush.
McClellan has worked for Bush for more than seven years.
The president said McClellan “handled his assignment with class, integrity.”
“It’s going to be hard to replace Scott,” Bush said. “But nevertheless, he’s made the decision and I accept it.”
There was no immediate word on whether the decision was totally voluntary.
Bush and McClellan appeared together outside the White House as they headed to the Marine One helicopter for a trip to Alabama. The helicopter never got off the ground, falling victim to radio problems, according to Deputy Chief of Staff Joe Hagin.
“I tried to leave,” McClellan joked as he got off the helicopter to await the motorcade to Andrews Air Force Base for the flight to Alabama.
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Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day
“This has been standard Chinese practice if you look back at the visits. They are not as comfortable as we are with press events,” said a Bush administration official, refusing to comment on the record during a Monday briefing with reporters, about why Chinese President Hu Jintao will not take reporters’ questions when he visits the White House on Thursday.
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Scenes from an Egg Roll
Some morning-after reflections on a great White House tradition:
Gay and lesbian parents, with their kids, made the biggest news by attending Monday’s annual Easter egg roll on the White House South Lawn. But their decision to let pictures of them wearing rainbow leis do the talking - instead of inflammatory rhetoric - made for something of a lower-key event than it could have been.
Though that still was the news of the chilly, damp day from the egg roll, there were other moments that left lasting memories, topped perhaps by chilly, damp “Katrina Kids” who waited to sing to first lady Laura Bush in the East Garden.
“We’re used to the rain, but it’s usually 80 degrees,” one parent said as the 100 or so kids, again, had to gut it out during bad weather. They waited in the rain - most wearing only their “Katrina Kids” t-shirts (though some moms intervened with sweaters and sweatshirts) - for a half hour or so as Mrs. Bush retreated to the White House after her turn reading “Will You Be My Friend: A Bunny and Bird Story” to kids on the South Lawn.
“I’m freezing,” said one of the Katrina Kids from Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana who made the 23-hour bus trip to DC on Sunday, arriving at about 12:30 a.m. and awakening at 5:30 a.m. on Monday for a whirlwind tour of the capital, including lunch at the Four Seasons, a trip to the National Zoo and $25 each in spending money donated by a financial services corporation.
Mrs. Bush offered a warm greeting when she arrived in the garden, eliciting smiles from the kids as they prepared to sing a song they had rehearsed. The words were written on poster boards held up by one of the parents. In one verse, the Katrina Kids sang the praises of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, target of much criticism for its handling of the recovery effort:
“Our country’s stood beside us
People have sent us aid.
Katrina could not stop us, our hopes will never fade.
Congress, Bush and FEMA
People across our land
Together have come to rebuild us and we join them hand-in-hand!”
The woman holding the poster let it slip to the wet ground as the kids moved to the next verse.
Absent a call for an encore as the rain continued, Mrs. Bush posed for pictures with the kids.
“Can we go to our parents now?” said one.
Mrs. Bush’s participation was far more extensive than that of President Bush, who was on hand to blow the whistle that got the eggs rolling. He hung around for some meet and greet with rollers before heading to nearby Springfield, Virginia for a tax speech. Bush, who came and went long before any of the gay couples got in, was at his friendliest as he chatted up the crowd. “Herman, you a grandfather yet?” he said with a smile as he spotted a reporter who has covered him for many years. “No sir,” replied the reporter, who has a daughter the same age as the Bush twins. “How about you, Mr. President?” “First things first,” said Bush, a longtime supporter of traditional family values.
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Coming and Going at the White House
Bush picked Susan Schwab, Portman’s deputy, to replace him as the nation’s top trade negotiator.
And while Bush has filled the top budget job at the White House, he now has to look for somebody to handle the faith-based side. Jim Towey, director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, today will announce his resignation and his acceptance of the presidency of Saint Vincent University in Latrobe, Pa.
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FOX’S FIX ON HARRIS
Just when Rep. Katherine Harris was trying to put her campaign turmoil behind her, conservative-leaning Fox News recounted her problems with conservatives and Republicans.
Fox reporter Steve Brown said Harris has encountered “political friendly fire,� including: recent calls by the The National Review for her to drop out; Gov. Jeb Bush’s concerns about her focus; telephone surveys for state House Speaker Allan G. Bense; and polls showing her trailing Sen. Bill Nelson.
“Right now the Nelson campaign has no interest in interrupting Republicans and conservatives roughing up one of their own,� Brown said.
Harris dismissed the concerns. “Clearly, nationally, we’re having a … few hiccups and bumps in the roads, but we’ll get there.�
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Bush Serves as Commencement Speaker at Multiple Schools
President Bush, a Yalie, has four commencement speeches on his agenda for the upcoming graduation season. This year, it’s a community college, a Big 12 school, a military school and a merchant marine academy. On May 6, he’ll be in Stillwater, Oklahoma to talk to graduates at Oklahoma State University. On May 11, Bush will speak at the graduation ceremony at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. On May 27, he’ll speak at West Point, and on June 19 Bush will be the featured speaker at graduation at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York.
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Now THAT’S a campaign commercial
It’s nothing new for a political candidate to compare himself to Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy and other notable statesmen. But in what may be a political first, Indian-American Ohio Attorney General candidate Subodh Chandra, running in the May 2 Democrat primary against state Sen. Mark Dann, is comparing himself to Apu from The Simpsons.
That’s right. Check out this link: http://www.plunderbund.com/?p=545 and click on the second entry. It’s a political ad, where Chandra compares himself to that famed Simpson’s character (one works at Kwik-E-Mart, the other worked as a federal prosecutor and Cleveland Law Director, one has octuplets, the other has triplets, one occasionally claims he does not speak English, the other speaks English just fine, thank you.)
The political part comes in Chandra’s unfavorable comparison of Dann to Homer Simpson, comparing Homer’s being reprimanded by Mr. Burns to Dann’s being reprimanded by the Ohio Supreme Court for poorly representing a client, among other things.
“Separated by qualifications,” the ad concludes.
As a bonus, the link sends readers to a puppet show put on by Chandra attacking Ohio Gov. Bob Taft. Fun for the whole family?
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Not the spawn of famed columnist…
A description of Ohio Third District congressional candidate Stephanie Studebaker in a Clinton County Democratic publication raised a few eyebrows among Democratic wags when it claimed that Studebaker’s father was famed columnist Jimmy Breslin of Newsday.
Not so, insists Studebaker spokesman Jerid Kurtz, who says Studebaker’s father is the deceased Jimmy Breslin who worked at a small Centerville, Ohio sports gear store – NOT the columnist.
“No major journalists in the family,” Kurtz said. “We’ve actually told Clinton County, and others, several times that it’s not the same Breslin; but people keep getting it wrong,” he said.
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In the “Making Lemonades out of Lemons” department
Ohio Democrat Charlie Wilson, a state senator running in Rep. Ted Strickland’s open congressional seat, fell short of the 50 necessary valid signatures to get on the May 2 primary ballot, much to the chagrin of the DCCC, which had touted him as the man to beat for Strickland’s old seat. Strickland is running for governor.
So Wilson decided to try to win the primary as a write-in, and he’s gotten the support of the DCCC in that bid.
Wednesday, the committee began radio ads with a catchy jingle, hoping that the gift of song will help Democratic voters remember to write Wilson’s name when they go to the ballot boxes in a few weeks. Here are the lyrics to the radio ad:
“The second of May, is election day Charlie Wilson wants to be our Congressman But a technicality is keeping Charlie off the ballot So now we’re going to have to write him in
Ted Strickland, is backing Charlie Wilson He’s the Democrat we need up in D.C. So Ted’s askin’, you to write Charlie in Cause Charlie Wilson will stand up for you and me
Republicans attacking left and right But Charlie won’t back down from a fight
George Bush will feel the pain when you write in Charlie’s name Charlie Wilson will fight for you and me”
A DCCC-sponsored TV ad, meanwhile, also touts the fact that Strickland supports Wilson.
Wilson faces John S. Luchansky of Poland and Bob Carr of Wellsville in the May primary.
Carr said many Democrats have lost faith in Wilson because of his petition fumbles.
“They’re backing a horse that can’t win in the general election,” he said. “If (Wilson) wins the primary, there will be a Republican in this district.”
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BUSH-QUOTE
Quote of the Day - April 10, 2006
“I’m glad my vice president is not running for president. Not that he would make a great president, but that it certainly changes the dynamics inside the White House,” President Bush, apparently misspeaking his feelings about how Vice President Cheney would do in the Oval Office.
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FLAGGING THE PROBLEM
Sen. Mel Martinez has some advice for Hispanic demonstrators protesting immigration legislation in Congress: leave the foreign flags at home.
“I think it’s terrible. I think it’s a very mixed message,” Martinez, R-Fla., the first Cuban-born member of the U.S. Senate, told reporters Friday when asked about demonstrations that have featured protestors carrying foreign flags, mostly Mexican but in some cases from Guatemala and other Latin American countries.
“I think it’s fine for people to express themselves, but if what this is about … is about the opportunity to be in America, to be a resident of America, to work in America, and ultimately to be a citizen of America, they need to be carrying American flags,” Martinez said.
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Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day
“It’s like a bad marriage.”
Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., commenting about what he called the “dysfunctional” relationship between Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
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A Leak and a Prayer
For President Bush, it’s a day to accentuate the positive and ignore the negative. While much of Washington was buzzing about the court filing indicating Bush authorized the leak of sensitive intelligence information, the president attended a prayer breakfast and then, back at the White House, touted upbeat economic news about job growth.
“My spirits are always uplifted when I’m in the presence of their excellencies,” Bush said in recognizing two cardinals at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast.
He also talked about the many people who tell him he is in their prayers.
“It’s really an amazing country where people walk up to you, say, Mr. President, I pray for you,” he said, adding he sometimes expects them to say, “I’d like a bridge. But instead, they say, I pray for you and your family. It uplifts us, and I want to thank you for that from the bottom of our hearts.”
After a short motorcade back to the White House, Bush headed to the Diplomatic Reception Room to discuss the new, positive economic numbers that showed the creation of 211,000 jobs in March. He added a pitch for congressional approval of tax cuts that now carry a deadline, and he vowed to veto any spending measure he believes would hurt the economy.
As he left the room, Bush ignored questions related to the federal court filing in which Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald revealed that indicted former White House aide Lewis Libby said Bush and Vice President Cheney authorized his leak of intelligence information to a New York Times reporter.
Minutes later, at a morning briefing, White House spokesman Scott McClellan used the “ongoing investigation” defense to decline to comment about Fitzgerald’s filing. But McClellan did not shy from making the point the White House wants to get out today: Portions of the National Intelligence Estimate (the document from which Bush reportedly authorized leaks) were declassified and released to the public 10 days after the leak.
Without directly saying it, McClellan used that information to bolster his case that anything that might have been leaked was not harmful to national security. He noted that leaks - specifically the ones that led to disclosure of the administration’s secret eavesdropping program - are harmful to national security.
“The president has been critical about the leaking of classified information,” McClellan said. “And that view has not changed. Leaking classified information could compromise our nation’s security. It’s a very serious matter. The president would never authorize disclosure of information that could compromise our nation’s security.”
After a contentious 10 minutes or so in the briefing room, McClellan said he had to get back to his office for meetings.
“But I’ll be back,” he said, referring to the scheduled afternoon briefing. “I know you all are looking forward to it like I am.”
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Deadeye Dick Lives On
For comedians and wise guys, it’s the gift that keeps on giving. And almost two months after it happened, even President Bush can’t seem to avoid jokes about Vice President Cheney’s accidental shooting of hunting buddy Harry Whittington. Cheney popped into Bush’s mind Thursday during a White House event honoring NCAA national championship teams, including Army’s rifle team. “Congratulations to you,” Bush told the marksmen. “If you happen to be walking around and run into the vice president, you might give him a few pointers.”
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Quote of the Day
“This has become much ado about hairdo.”
Rep. Cynthia McKinney of Georgia commenting on CNN about her security clearance problems at the Capitol last week.
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Washington Week in Preview
Highlights of what is happening this week in Washington.
BORDER WARS CONTINUE
Once again immigration reform will be front and center in the Senate with two competing proposals in play. A decisive vote is not expected until the end of the week. The floor fight could be fierce. On Thursday Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter attacked Majority Leader Bill Frist for saying that Specter’s committee’s bill would offer amnesty to the millions of illegal immigrants, vowing to “take the leader head on” in the week to come. Frist is the sponsor of a competing bill without a guest worker provision.
BUSH
It’s a week of the things nearest and dearest to the president’s heart, starting with baseball and continuing with key issues on which he hopes to make progress. President Bush heads from Crawford to Cincinnati on Monday to throw opening pitch at the Reds’ home opener at Great American Ball Park. Back in Washington on Tuesday, Bush has a White House meeting on health care initiatives, followed by an RNC finance luncheon. On Wednesday, Bush is on the road in Bridgeport, Connecticut for a panel discussion on health savings account, an issue near the top of his legislative agenda for this year. Thursday it’s more war talk as Bush goes to Charlotte, N.C. for remarks on that topic. Later Thursday, Bush greets NCAA champs in a variety of sports at White House. Friday he makes remarks to National Catholic Prayer Breakfast.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE
The House takes up next week a bill that could alter the campaigns of 2006 and 2008 by restricting the money-raising ability of nonprofit political groups. The bill would require these 527 groups to register as political committees and abide by contribution limits, and it will be opposed by Democrats, who in 2004 relied on 527s as a key source of financing. Republicans accuse Democrats of hypocrisy for supporting other reforms but not this; Democrats hurl the same charge at Republicans because this bill does not restrict trade associations and other business groups exempt from some rules applying to political committees.
HOMELAND SECURITY/ TERRORISM
On Tuesday, Yo-Yo Ma is among those who will testify at the House Government Reform Committee Oversight Hearing, “The Impact of Visa Processing Delays on the Arts, Education, and American Innovation.” On Thursday the House International Relations Committee will hear testimony from a whistle blower from DHS who will describe problems with security at the border.
LOBBY REFORM
The House begins Tuesday to hold hearings on its version of the “reform” bill. Also, the Center for Public Integrity is expected to release its massive study of congressional staff/member privately sponsored travels.
KATRINA
The Senate Katrina report has been delayed but is expected as early as this coming week. Also: On Wednesday the House Government Reform Committee holds a hearing on “Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth: A Post-Katrina Review of International Disaster Assistance.”
GOVERNMENT WASTE
Citizens against Government Waste release their 2006 “Congressional Pig Book” in Washington on Wednesday, with state-by-state breakdowns.
PENSION REFORM Hopes for a quick compromise may be fading according to House Majority Leader John A. Boehner. But others think an agreement may still be reached by the April 7, two-week recess.
TAXES
Tax issues could pop up at any time. President Bush’s proposals to extend dividend and capital-gains tax cuts now appear in doubt, and the report completed late last year by his Tax Reform Panel is gathering dust. Still, House Ways and Means Chairman Bill Thomas may want to do one last tax cut before retiring, so this could come up.
ENERGY ISSUES
The Environmental and Energy Study Institute holds a briefing Tuesday on “Flexible-Fuel Plug-in Hybrids: Taking Charge to Reduce U.S. Oil Consumption.” Participants include Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) and Roger Duncan of Austin Energy.
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