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Kennedy crashes
Rep. Patrick Kennedy crashed his car into a barricade near the Capitol early
Thursday. A police official said he appeared intoxicated. Kennedy said he
had taken sleep medication and a prescription anti-nausea drug that can
cause drowsiness.
In a hastily held press conference Friday afternoon, Kennedy announced he
was checking into a rehab clinic (Mayo Clinic, in Rochester), which is the
same rehab he utilized during the holidays: [LINK
to Reuters article]
"This afternoon I am traveling to Minnesota to seek treatment at the Mayo
Clinic to insure that I can continue on my road to recovery," Kennedy, a
Rhode Island Democrat, told reporters.
Kennedy said he was a patient last winter at the clinic, receiving care for
an addiction to prescription pain medicine.
His announcement came shortly after a U.S. Capitol Police report showed
Kennedy, 38, was charged with three driving violations after he crashed his
car into a Capitol Hill security barrier early Thursday.
In a chilling admission, Kennedy stated the following:
"I simply do not remember getting out of bed, being pulled over by the
police or being cited for three driving infractions."
Rumsfield heckled
USA Today reports on Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld being heckled
while giving a speech:
Protesters repeatedly interrupted Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld during a
speech Thursday and one man, a former CIA analyst, accused him of lying
about Iraq prewar intelligence in an unusually vociferous display of
anti-war sentiment.
"Why did you lie to get us into a war that caused these kind of casualties
and was not necessary?" asked Ray McGovern, the former analyst, during a
question-and-answer session.
"I did not lie," shot back Rumsfeld, who waved off security guards ready to
remove McGovern from the hall at the Southern Center for International
Studies.
With Iraq war support remaining low, it is not unusual for top Bush
administration officials to encounter protests and hostile questions. But
the outbursts Rumsfeld confronted on Thursday seemed beyond the usual.
Three protesters were escorted away by security as each interrupted
Rumsfeld's speech by jumping up and shouting anti-war messages. Throughout
the speech, a fourth protester stood in the middle of the room with his back
to Rumsfeld in silent protest. Officials reported no arrests.
Frist slammed
The
NY Times offers a damning story on Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and
his recent $100 rebate gas relief proposal:
The rise and fall of the Republican $100 rebate offers a window on how
Washington sometimes works in a slapdash way, featuring in this case
Congressional aides who misread the political climate and lawmakers
desperate to hang onto their jobs. It is a story, as well, of how concepts
and plans can be reduced to sound bites that make them seem absurd.
And it is yet another example of how Senator Frist, who is contemplating a
bid for the White House in 2008, has stumbled at the pinnacle of Senate
power.
Guilani fundraising
The
NY Times reports that Rudy Giuliani is gearing up his fundraising
efforts:
Ramping up his political operation, former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani has
hired a former director of President Bush's six-figure donation programs to
raise money for his political action committee.
An adviser to Mr. Giuliani, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said
that the fund-raiser, Anne Dickerson, is focused on helping Republican
candidates in the 2006 election. Yet given her donor lists, Ms. Dickerson
will also expand Mr. Giuliani's own fund-raising base if he chooses to run
for president in 2008.
Mr. Giuliani confirmed Monday, during a trip to help candidates in Iowa,
that he was weighing a presidential bid and wondering if he stands a chance
of victory, given that his support for abortion rights, gay rights and gun
control is considered detestable to many Republican voters. He said he would
decide after the November elections.
U.N. slammed
The
Washington Times "Inside the Beltway" reports on a book signing that
takes aim at the failed United Nations:
The New York City gathering was in celebration of senior Fox News Channel
correspondent Eric Shawn's blistering new book, "The U.N. Exposed: How the
United Nations Sabotages America's Security and Fails the World."
But at Wednesday evening's book party at the Upper East Side restaurant
Elaine's, John R. Bolton, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, actually
took to signing several copies of Mr. Shawn's stab at the U.N. — obviously
giving his seal of approval to the content.
Fox News Channel founder Roger Ailes and host Bill O'Reilly, and former New
York City Mayor Ed Koch, each made an appearance.
2008 race
The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza’s "The Fix" offers a look at the 2008
handicapping of the presidential races:
Sens. John
McCain (Ariz.) and
George Allen
(Va.), along with Massachusetts Gov.
Mitt Romney,
are the three Republicans who are constructing the organization, raising the
money and attracting the early buzz necessary to win the Republican nod.
While it's impossible to predict what the field will look like a year or two
from now, we are extremely surprised that there aren't more top-tier
Republicans in the running -- especially since the nomination is wide open.
Mississippi Gov.
Haley Barbour
would likely have earned a top-tier slot, but he removed himself from the
2008 race earlier this year. All-but-declared candidates like Senate
Majority Leader
Bill Frist (Tenn.), Arkansas Gov.
Mike Huckabee,
Sen. Sam
Brownback, Sen.
Chuck Hagel,
New York Gov.
George Pataki and South Carolina Gov.
Mark Sanford
have potential, but for one reason or another haven't emerged yet as serious
contenders for the nomination.
One potential entrant into the rarified air of frontrunners is former New
York City Mayor
Rudy Giuliani, who of late has been acting a lot more like a
candidate than many people -- The Fix included -- ever thought he would.
Even with Giuliani in the race, however, room remains for a socially
conservative candidate (we're looking at you Huckabee and Brownback) to step
up….
For anyone wondering about the Democrats, it is Hillary followed by...
everyone else.
Poll watching
Two headlines today tell different stories. One says that President Bush
hits all time low and another says Bush improves slightly.
Fox News poll that was conducted for them states:
The new poll finds that President Bush has regained a bit of ground this
week. Two weeks ago his approval rating hit a record low of 33 percent. His
current 38 percent approval is almost identical to his 2006 average, which
is 39 percent approve and 52 percent disapprove.
Opinion Dynamics Corporation conducted the national telephone poll of 900
registered voters for FOX News on May 2 and May 3.
The poll also confirmed that currently Democrats are slightly more
interested in the November elections than Republicans. About a third of
Democrats (34 percent) say they are "extremely" interested compared to 27
percent of Republicans.
The
Associated Press reports that Bush has sunk to new lows:
The AP-Ipsos poll also suggests that Democratic voters are far more
motivated than Republicans. Elections in the middle of a president's term
traditionally favor the party whose core supporters are the most energized.
This week's survey of 1,000 adults, including 865 registered voters, found:
• Just 33 percent of the public approves of Bush's job performance, the
lowest of his presidency. That compares with 36 percent approval in early
April. Forty-five percent of self-described conservatives now disapprove of
the president.
Impeach Bush warning
Sen. Elizabeth Dole in a fundraising letter stated that a Democrat Congress
would impeach President Bush. She also warned that a Democratic controlled
Congress would "put the war on terrorism on the back-burner."
Hillary Now
Hillary Now is an organization dedicated to electing Sen. Hillary Clinton
president. The have announced their national kickoff will be a May 23. The
event will include a fund-raiser for Hillarynow.com at a Germantown, Tenn.,
coffee shop, Enchanted Gingerbread. About 200 of the state’s residents are
expected to attend, the group's organizer Bob Kunst told Tennessee reporter
Bonna de la Cruz.
Hillarynow.com bills itself as the oldest and most active organization
in support of electing Hillary to the presidency. Another group,
votehillary.org, is based in Chester, Va.
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