April 12, 2004

QUOTABLES:

"Now, the 9/11 commission hearings are going to analyze that which went on and hopefully bring recommendations forward to help this administration and future administrations do our solemn duty to protect the American people," he said. "And that's why I think the hearings are a good thing, particularly when they address any weaknesses in the system," said President Bush. (4/12/2004)

"Don't make me the person to go tell Condi Rice and Karen Hughes that they were just mouthpieces and didn't contribute to policy," Karl Rove. "They're very smart able leaders. Frankly, I think the suggestion that they are token representation is offensive, or ignorant, or both." (4/12/2004)

"But like no president since John F. Kennedy, I'm going to ask young people to give something back. I'm going to ask you to serve your country to go out into your communities and teach children, be mentors, build homes and protect America," John Kerry said. (4/12/2004)

JUST POLITICS

Uniqueness of Iraq

In his book, "Against All Enemies," Clarke argues that any American president would have invaded Afghanistan after Sept. 11, but what made Bush "unique" was his decision to attack Iraq as the next step.

That's one point from Clarke on which Bush supporters and critics probably could agree. The failures before Sept. 11 have many fathers. But the war in Iraq belongs to Bush alone. It is the centerpiece of his short-term strategy for suppressing terrorism. It is the cornerstone of his long-term vision of curbing anti-American extremism by encouraging democracy in the Islamic world.  

Don’t blame Bush

Ron Brownstein of the LA Times reports that Democrats have not softened Bush up enough to blame him for not doing enough to prevent 9-11.

All indications suggest the report will also criticize Bill Clinton's administration. That means the Commission is likely to reinforce a central strand in public opinion: Though polls show most Americans don't think Bush had a clear plan for combating al Qaeda before Sept. 11, they don't think Clinton — or almost any other relevant leader or institution — did enough either.

That widespread belief has two major implications for the 2004 campaign. First, it means that based on the information available so far, most Americans recoil from efforts to blame Bush for the attacks. One leading Democratic interest group recently asked a focus group in Florida to respond to a potential television ad accusing Bush of negligence in failing to stop the attacks. The result was volcanic — against the ad.

"They were so angry I thought they were going to turn the tables over," said a Democratic operative who watched the session. "It was a very polarizing ad, and it pushed people who were on the fence decidedly away from us."   

Kerry’s misery index

The Kerry campaign conducted a misery index study of America’s middle class. The study was conducted by the campaign's economic advisors, which included former Clinton economic advisor Gene Sperling and former Clinton Treasury official Roger C. Altman. The team studied Commerce and Treasury information on median household incomes, college tuition, healthcare, gasoline and other factors, and concluded that, under President Bush, the middle-class misery index has worsened by 13 points.

A decline in family income, increase in college tuition and a hike in health insurance premiums contributed the most to the crunch, the group says. 

During the primary season we often heard Sen. Joe Lieberman’s refrain of the Democrat candidates’ need to gain ground among the middle class. His response was a middle class tax cut. Now, Kerry says he has a middle class tax cut, and that he will provide aid to the middle class through insurance coverage and free tuition to college and preschool. This from someone who voted to raise taxes over 350 times.

Kerry’s friends hurting him?

The Associated Press has a story about whether Sen. John Kerry is being hurt by his friends who are running TV ads through uncoordinated federal PACs. All of the ads are critical of President Bush. The two big groups running ads are MoveOn.org and the Media Fund. They have kept Kerry even with Bush in ad buys in the battle ground states.

The question is the different ads are not coordinated and send different messages. Media is most effective because repetitive messages leave a lasting image. The Media Fund’s latest ad takes on the $87 billion reconstruction money for Iraq. MoveOn.org has been pushing the war in Iraq as well. Kerry meanwhile has been running the jobs overseas ad.

"Obviously since we can't talk (to Kerry's campaign), we can't be absolutely sure of being on the same page. But we're confident over here that we're on the right track in terms of message," said Jim Jordan, a Media Fund spokesman.

MoveOn founder Wes Boyd said his group's primary objective is not to sound the Kerry campaign's lines but to press its members' concerns about Bush's administration — even if doing so doesn't help Kerry. "We let the chips fall where they may," Boyd said.

There was no analysis of the concentration of the ad buy in the targeted states to determine if the repetition of the ad was enough to leave a lasting impression on the viewers.

Teresa Heinz Kerry would remain a philanthropist

The 65-year-old heir to the Heinz ketchup fortune oversees three charitable organizations with combined assets of $1.3 billion and as many as 10 private trusts that may hold an additional half a billion dollars.

Philanthropy is Heinz-Kerry’s life. She supports environmental causes, women's issues, community development in Pennsylvania, education programs and the arts. The Heinz name looms large over downtown Pittsburgh, having funded parks, concert halls and other civic projects. She hands out awards to scientists, politicians, environmentalists and others, sometimes giving large sums of money, as well.

According to the LA Times, Heinz supports groups that like to sue the federal government:

Among the key environmental groups that Heinz Kerry supports is the Clean Air Task Force, a low-profile Boston group that gets 10% of its funding from her. It has half a dozen scientists on staff capable of "going toe-to-toe" with utility industry experts in emission disputes, according to executive director Armond Cohen.

The task force targets Midwestern utility emissions, some of which eventually blow over Pittsburgh and contribute to dirty air and acid rain. Among its many activities, the group recently sued the federal Environmental Protection Agency for its failure to identify counties that are not meeting federal smog standards.

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