“[Clark] is a good guy, but I truly believe he's a Republican," said Howard Dean.  (1/16/2004)

There’s an old Southern saying about hunkering down when you are being attacked. It seems that term may be appropriate for the Wesley Clark campaign. They are about to receive the onslaught of everyone flooding into New Hampshire. The U.S. News & World Report suggests that Clark’s lobbying efforts will undoubtedly be one of the areas of attack on Clark:

With the Iowa caucus fast approaching Monday, advisers to Wes Clark – who is not in the Iowa vote–are bracing for an attack campaign next week aimed at stopping the retired Army general’s surge in the New Hampshire primary set for January 27. One expected assault: that Clark, after leaving the military, lobbied for an Arkansas firm that mines data and personal information of consumers. (1/17/2004)

Wesley Clark has been pushing for openness and has released his income records. The Washington Post covers the story:

Clark said he would establish an "openness doctrine" that would restrict the assertion of executive privilege, eliminate secret task forces, disclose all meetings with special interests, require lobbyists to reveal more, and use the Internet to make government transparent.  (1/17/2004)

The NY Times offers coverage on the differences between the Democrat candidates on national security issues:

In a campaign where national security issues have loomed large in every debate and pancake breakfast here and in Iowa, the major Democratic candidates agree on only a handful of points: that President Bush failed to prepare for the reconstruction of Iraq, that they would rapidly replace American troops with some kind of international force, and that the White House has needlessly alienated much of the rest of the world.

By the way, speaking fees and serving as a military analyst for CNN provided Clark more than $1 million in income in 2002. He received $25,000 to $30,000 per appearance in speaking fees. As a military analyst, commenting mostly on the conflict with Iraq, he earned between $10,000 and $38,000 a month from CNN.  (1/17/2004)

The Manchester Union Leader had twenty tough questions most Republican conservatives would like to ask Democrats. Wesley Clark responded to the questions and they are on the Union Leader’s website. Clark’s answers were not really answers – they’re more like sidesteps:

19. In every other nation in which health care is paid for by the national government, that care is rationed and citizens must wait months, even years, for treatment. How would you avoid this outcome in the United States?

CLARK: We must reform the health care system in the United States. My plan is the only plan that improves care while expanding coverage and makes it more affordable for American families. I will provide health insurance for 31.8 million Americans who are currently uninsured, including all 13.1 million children and college-age Americans who are uninsured. My plan also gives tax credits to reduce premiums for millions of Americans who currently have health insurance but are struggling to pay their premiums. My emphasis on improving quality and constraining cost growth would provide better medical outcomes at a lower cost for all Americans. (1/17/2004)

• Clark responding on the failure to release his medical records along with other documents said, "I'm a disabled vet. I've had my tonsils out, I've had my appendix out, I had radiation therapy when I was a child on tonsils that caused my thyroid to fail. I had my thyroid out and... I've been shot... I'm a pretty experienced consumer of health care."

• "I'm Karl Rove's biggest nightmare," Wesley Clark said.   (1/17/2004)

Wesley Clark has been keeping some interesting company in New Hampshire. Roger Moore the liberal film producer of such movies as ‘Bowling for Columbine’ offered that Clark was the most progressive candidate except for Dennis Kucinich. However, Clark’s comments were even more damning with faint praise of Moore, "I am very grateful for the people he [Moore] has brought over to us. I think he is a man of conscience, he is a man of courage and a tremendously talented person who has done a lot for this country... I've heard those charges, I don't know if they're established or not, he was never prosecuted for it. And the issue in this election is can we bring a higher standard of leadership to America?"

Clark also received the endorsement of 1972 Democrat presidential candidate George McGovern. McGovern only carried Massachusetts in his campaign against Richard Nixon.

So, why McGovern? The Boston Globe can explain it for you:

Just as opponents have started renewing questions about his opposition to the Iraq war and his Democratic credentials, retired Army General Wesley K. Clark has been collecting endorsements from some of the most partisan, antiwar Democrats in the book.

Clark fares best among older voters in the latest SurveyUSA poll, which asked only people who were certain they'd vote in the New Hampshire primary. Clark garnered 28 percent of voters in the 55-and-older age group, while he garnered only 21 percent among voters younger than 35, the poll said. In contrast, 40 percent of primary voters younger than 35 backed former Howard Dean, the poll said. So, the age factor is beginning to show up in New Hampshire as well.

There is also a story in the NY Times regarding Clark’s “black ops” communication staff, Chris Lehane. Lehane practiced his black arts defending Bill Clinton and worked in Gore’s campaign:

"He can spread both joy and pain," said Donna Brazile, who managed Mr. Gore's campaign and calls herself a fan of Mr. Lehane. "It's important to know what side you're on when Chris Lehane is coming at you."

Clark once again demonstrated that he needs a guy like Lehane. Clark said Saturday that one reason New Hampshire property taxes are high is the state has no income or general sales tax... In a brief interview after his appearance, Clark said he did not intend his remarks as criticism of New Hampshire's tax system, which he said is the responsibility of the state's lawmakers and voters.  (1/19/2004)

Who's next?

The nomination process will turn to the real focus of ‘who gets knocked off next?’ It is a foregone conclusion that Sen. Joe Lieberman’s campaign is the walking dead. The fight will be between Kerry, Edwards and Clark. Clark will, by the very nature of Kerry and Edwards’ support, have to fight a two-front campaign. Clark has the advantage of timing -- New Hampshire is Jan. 27 and South Carolina is Feb. 3. This will enable him to hold off on South Carolina until after New Hampshire, where Kerry has the regional advantage. But timing will also enable Edwards to concentrate on South Carolina -- his must win state -- more heavily. It is a deadly triangle that will witness the eventual demise of one of the three.

Look for Clark’s black ops communication director Chris Lehane to begin to put out dirt on Kerry and Edwards around Thursday and Friday of this week. The purpose is to put some drag on their Iowa boost… even more than the President’s State of the Union Message tonight. Nothing like putting a campaign on the defensive…   (1/20/2004)

Kerry & Edwards riding rockets into NH

Kerry and Edwards didn’t get a tail wind out of Iowa. Instead, they are riding rockets into New Hampshire. The question will be whether they can control the direction of their campaign boost in order to get the most good from their Iowa boost.

Kerry acknowledged that he has come back from the abyss in his victory speech last night: “Not so long ago, this campaign was written off… You stood with me," Kerry told supporters, "so that we can take on George Bush and the special interests and literally give America back its future and its soul."

Wesley Clark was quick to challenge Kerry and fired the first shot before Kerry arrived in New Hampshire. "He's got military background, but nobody in this race has got the kind of background I've got," said Clark.

Edwards’ campaign is energized and for the first time is being taken seriously. Upon landing in New Hampshire last night Edwards was greeted by a jubilant crowd. "Can you feel it? The people of New Hampshire are going to feel it a week from tonight. We're going to sweep across the country and we're going to do it without the negative politics of cynicism," said Edwards.

The Associated Press offers this analysis:

Ultimately, however, Iowans backed a candidate who voted in favor of Bush's decision to go to war — but criticizes the president's prosecution of it — and who wants to eliminate the Bush tax cuts going to the richest Americans, but keep the rest of the tax-cut package.

The other key factor that spurred Kerry and Edwards ahead was the belief that they have a good chance of beating President Bush. The poll numbers of those who thought Dean could beat Bush were much lower than those who thought Kerry or Edwards could.

Look for Edwards to emphasize that the South is his backyard and that no Democrat has won the White House without winning five Southern states. This, of course, puts him in a big showdown with Wesley Clark in South Carolina on Feb. 3.

Speaking of defensive, Clark’s many missteps and contradictions are bound to come out much more during the run-up to the New Hampshire Primary.

The balance of time, organization and message between the Jan. 27th New Hampshire race and the Feb. 3rd round of states will be especially critical to these three. Dean’s money and radical movement can keep him in the race, but of these three the only thing that will suffice is that they are the Dean alternative. That cannot be all three of them. In the end, there can be only one.  (1/20/2004)

• "He promised us a humble foreign policy. Instead, he's alienated our allies, lost the respect of the world community, and cost 500 brave young men and women their lives," said Wesley Clark.  (1/21/2004)

One day after the Iowa Caucuses President Bush had his say to the nation in the traditional State of the Union Message. The divided and partisan nature of this campaign year was evident in the split between Democrats’ and Republicans’ reactions to the speech -- Democrats were frequently visible in their lack of applause to the President’s speech.

In New Hampshire according to New Hampshire Politics.com the Democrats were unanimous in their Bush bashing.

Clark watched the State of the Union with about 850 people at the Palace Theater.

Many in the audience booed at the first camera shots of Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. They remained silent during President Bush's entrance, though hissed at Bush's call to renew the USA Patriot Act.

Following the President’s speech, Clark was interviewed by Tom Brokaw. When Clark went into a tirade about the war in Iraq, Brokaw asked about Clark’s initial support for the war. Clark then interrupted Brokaw several times, insisting he never supported the war – even though last midterm election Clark campaigned for a Democrat Congressional candidate and urged her to support the war resolution that was then before congress.

Clark said, "The sad fact is that today, two years after he coined the term, we've got a new axis of evil. It's one our President himself has created. It's an axis of fiscal policies that threaten our future... foreign policies that threaten our security... and domestic policies that put families dead last. Call it the Bush axis of evil."  (1/21/2004)

Wesley Clark called on Congress to block a proposed Bush Administration rule that would deny overtime pay to more than 8 million workers.

"President Bush should not deny overtime pay to millions of workers at a time when more and more workers are struggling to get by on shrinking pay checks. I think it is particularly wrong that Bush is turning his back on our veterans, many of whom stand to lose their right to overtime pay simply because of their military training. Congress should stand up for veterans and workers and block the Bush decision," Clark said in a written statement. (1/21/2004)

A New Hampshire television poll shows:

Released at 6p.m. Tuesday the poll was taken from Jan. 17-19. It has a margin of error of +/-5 percent.

Dean 33

Kerry 24

Clark 18

Edwards 8

Lieberman 5

Kucinich 3

Gephardt 3

Sharpton 0

Undecided 6

Check out the Washington Posts’ breakdown of Iowa Caucus attendees.  (1/21/2004)

The State offers a view of the various campaigns organizational strength in S. Carolina. Sen. John Kerry is in a mad dash to bring his staff back from Iowa to S. Carolina:

WESLEY CLARK

• Volunteers — 2,000

• Paid staff — 40

• Offices — Columbia, Orangeburg, Charleston, Greenville, Florence

• Endorsements — More than 40

HOWARD DEAN

• Volunteers — More than 350

• Paid staff — More than 50

• Offices — Columbia (2), Charleston, Greenville, Orangeburg, Florence

• Endorsements — 25

JOHN EDWARDS

• Volunteers — 400

• Paid staff — 9

• Offices — Columbia, North Charleston, Greenville, Florence

• Endorsements — More than 75

JOHN KERRY

• Volunteers — 321

• Paid staff — 7

• Offices — Columbia, Charleston

• Endorsements — More than 30

DENNIS KUCINICH

• Volunteers — 210

• Paid staff — None

• Offices — Columbia

• Endorsements — About 10

JOE LIEBERMAN

• Volunteers — 500

• Paid staff — 8

• Offices — Columbia, Charleston, Greenville

• Endorsements — About 60

AL SHARPTON

• Volunteers — About 200

• Paid staff — 4

• Offices — Columbia, Spartanburg, Florence (2)

• Endorsements — Campaign could not provide   (1/21/2004)

• "I'm not drawing any distinction in rank," he said. "I'm drawing what I've done," said Wesley Clark about calling Sen. John Kerry a junior officer.  (1/23/2004)

"Thirty-one years ago the Supreme Court ruled that the guarantee of liberty in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution extends the right of privacy to encompass a woman's decisions related to pregnancy and child bearing in Roe v. Wade. Time and again, during the last three decades, that right has been threatened. The Court's ruling has been tried and tested and reaffirmed - but it will be tested again. So we must continue to defend it.

I am pro-choice. I stand with the United States Constitution, the United States Supreme Court, and the majority of the American people in believing that our government has no right to come between a woman, her family, and her doctor in making such a personal and private decision. A woman, of any age, should never be forced to endanger her life. I opposed the ban on late term abortion enacted by President Bush and Republicans in Congress last year because it didn't provide an exception for the health of the woman. And I have opposed parental notification laws that don't allow judicial bypass or notification of another responsible adult, because, while parental involvement is always preferable, it isn't always possible. Our goal should be to make abortion safe, legal and rare.

We should not stand for attempts to return this country to the dark days before Roe v. Wade. We, as a nation, have embraced several simple important constitutional values, such as one-person, one-vote and the right to privacy that are now matters of settled law. I am committed to appointing people from all backgrounds, with the highest qualifications, who are committed to upholding the law and enforcing fundamental constitutional guarantees-- including the rights of privacy and equality," said Wesley Clark.   (1/23/2004)

The Wesley Clark Campaign announced the addition of twenty-five former Gephardt staffers. They will be sent immediately to join established Clark campaign offices across the country.

"I am pleased to welcome these hardworking Gephardt staffers into our campaign. Congressman Gephardt ran a good race and he is a great American leader. Congressman Gephardt has been a lifelong champion for working families. I share his commitment to working families and I am pleased these talented individuals have joined my campaign to champion the causes of working families across the country," said Clark. (1/23/2004)

The latest MSNBC, Reuters, Zogby poll shows: Kerry 30%; Dean 22%; Clark 14%; Edwards 7%; and Lieberman 7%.  (1/23/2004)

Peter Jennings tried to get Joe Lieberman to criticize Howard Dean and John Kerry, to which Lieberman replied, ‘nice try.’ Everyone was gun shy from the fallout from the negative campaigning in Iowa. Edwards is also riding a popular perception of being Mr. Nice. The American public cannot expect that negative campaigning will suddenly vanish from the political scene after Iowa. The reason is: negative campaigning works.

It has long been understood that not only does the recipient of negative campaigning go down in support, but those delivering the negative message about the opponent lose support as well. Howard Dean was attacked relentlessly by Rep. Dick Gephardt prior to the Iowa Caucuses. Both of these candidates watched their support erode as Senators John Kerry and John Edwards went up in support and eventually came in number one and two in Iowa.

The key to running in a multiple field is to stop your attacks with enough time to rebuild your positives -- something Gephardt failed to do.

The NY Times covers how the campaigns have changed their TV ads to not be the one who fails to switch in time to a positive ad.  (1/23/2004)

The Manchester Union Leader has as part of its New Hampshire debate coverage a fact-check concerning some of the things that were said by the Democratic presidential candidates. And low and behold… some of the statements made during the debate do not line up with the facts. One of those mis-statements was made by Sen. John Edwards, complaining about President Clinton’s signing of the defense of family act:

Sen. John Edwards, voicing his objections to the Defense of Marriage Act signed by President Clinton in 1996, said it "took away the power of states ... to be able to do what they chose to do" about gay civil unions." He said, "I think these are decisions that the states should have the power to make."

States have that option under the law. The act allows states to refuse to honor same-sex unions performed outside their boundaries, but also lets them legalize the unions if they want. It specifies that such unions would not be recognized by the federal government.

Another mis-statement was made by Wesley Clark, when asked when it was that he knew he was a Democrat:

"I voted for Bill Clinton and Al Gore," the retired general said in a Democratic presidential debate Thursday, then stopped there. He also has said previously that he voted for Republicans including Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and the first George Bush.

Clark was also asked about being a superhuman President who would stop all future 9-11 attacks:

"…I never used the word 'guarantee,’" he said.

However, here’s the actual quote of Clark on the subject:

"If I'm president of the United States, I'm going to take care of the American people," Clark was quoted by the Concord Monitor in New Hampshire earlier this month. "We are not going to have one of these incidents."

Maybe Clark just sort of means it… kind of…

The Leader also accuses Sen. John Kerry of demagogism on the issue of senior health care:

Kerry flatly accused President Bush of "pushing seniors off of Medicare into HMOs."

The new prescription drug program subsidizes costs for low-income patients and encourages private insurance companies to offer coverage for the elderly willing to opt out of traditional Medicare. Nothing in the law forces seniors off of Medicare.

Overall, the debate was notable for its lack of attacks upon each other and its focus of attacks on President Bush. One of the funniest moments came in an exchange from Al Sharpton commenting on Howard Dean’s statement about his hollering screaming speech in Iowa:

“I’m not a perfect person,” Dean said. “I think a lot of people have had fun at my expense over the Iowa hooting and hollering.”

“I wanted to say to Gov. Dean, don’t be hard on yourself about the hootering and hollering,” Sharpton said. “If I spent the money you did and got 18 percent, I’d still be hollering to Iowa. Don’t worry about it, Howard.”

“Thanks, reverend,” Dean replied.

Kerry is still having trouble with some New Hampshire voters regarding his vote to go to war. He has consistently offered the following statement to get voters to support him:

“If anybody in New Hampshire believes that John Kerry would have gone to war as President Bush had done, then they shouldn’t vote for me,” Kerry said.

There were no break-away performances by any of the candidates. Sen. Joe Lieberman offered a convincing performance that kept him outside of the rest of the liberal candidates seeking the nomination. There still are no convincing events that suggest that he will survive Tuesday’s election.

Clark failed to ignite the crowd and looks to be sagging in New Hampshire voters’ minds when pitted against John Kerry. In addition, Edwards might get a boost for just being himself.

"I think it's conceivable that Edwards might go up in the polls beyond Clark in a couple days as a result of his performance," Dean Spiliotes, visiting politics professor at St. Anselm College said. "Kerry seemed pretty even, and I think it's going to be reasonably tight between him and Dean," Spiliotes said.

In the spin room afterwards, the Kerry campaign tried to turn down expectations for Kerry according to New Hampshire Politics.com:

Billy Shaheen downplayed expectations for Sen. John Kerry in the debate spin room. Shaheen, the state chair of Kerry's campaign, said that he thinks Kerry is still an underdog, despite Kerry's Iowa victory and surge in the polls.

"Gov. Dean still has a great organization," Shaheen said. "He has a lot of people that committed to him and have not abandoned, and I think he'll be a tough competitor."

[For transcripts of the debate, use this link.]   (1/23/2004)

• "That [confederate] flag belongs in a museum," Clark, a former NATO commander, told the crowd. "It is a flag of the past. The American flag is our flag, and that is the flag of the future.”  (1/24/2004)

Wesley Clark’s campaign continues to demonstrate that it’s helpful to have a candidate who knows what they are supposed to do and when. Clark has spent precious time continuing to explain whether he was, or ever was, for the war. He is also having trouble explaining how he became a born-again Democrat after voting for Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. It seems there was no road to Damascus conversion. He just didn’t want to be a lonely Republican… his words.

The Washington Post details Clark’s basic plan is not working, and in fact there may be no plan at all. Even Clark’s campaign spokesman Matt Bennet is showing signs of the campaign’s lack of direction and stability:

"Had anyone considered that John Kerry would win?" Bennett asked. "Kerry's got a lot of momentum here."

Where was Bennet when Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin warned Clark not to skip the Iowa Caucuses because he might not be able to stop Iowa’s momentum in a shortened nominating process?

The Post also covers Clark’s ever-changing positions. Clark emphatically said in an interview with the Times of London that he would not restrict abortion in any way. Clark emphasized no restrictions. Later this week, he made a ‘clarifying’ (translation: change of position) statement, according to the Post:

But at a news conference Thursday, the general embraced some limitations. "I support Roe v. Wade as modified by Casey," he said, referring to two controlling Supreme Court decisions. "I am not going to go into detail," he added when reporters pressed for more.

Clark doesn’t seem to be able to stand on his own in questioning. He even challenged FoxNews Brit Hume’s integrity concerning his Democrat credentials and poor performance in the New Hampshire debate, according to an Associated Press story:

Brit Hume of Fox News Channel, who worked as both moderator and questioner during the two-hour debate with the seven candidates, pressed Clark about when he had first realized he was a Democrat.

Clark told reporters Friday, "I looked at who was asking the questions, and I think that was part of the Republican agenda in the debate."  (1/24/2004)