|
 Wesley
Clark
excerpts
from
the Iowa Daily Report
November 15-30, 2003
Clark in depth
The
Boston Globe is running an in depth profile on
Wesley Clark in its Sunday edition:
Clark made a crucial decision midway through his
West Point education. He quit the swim team to
join the debate team, which offered him not only
an intellectual avenue he craved but also a way to
get off campus on many weekends. His debate coach,
William Taylor, vividly recalls receiving a
complaint one day from Captain Norman Schwarzkopf,
then a West Point instructor who would go on to
command the first Gulf War.
"I don't like what you are doing with cadet Wes
Clark," Schwarzkopf said, according to Taylor. "He
is not competing with varsity athletics. He is not
socializing with the rest of his classmates. He is
off doing debate tournaments. You are undermining
the professionalism of this young man."
"I don't know who you are," Taylor told
Schwarzkopf, and after defending the virtues of
debate, hung up the phone. Schwarzkopf could not
be reached for comment, but Taylor said the
incident illustrates the tensions that would
follow Clark throughout his career. (11/16/2003)
Debate Dec. 9
ABC News and ABC affiliate
WMUR (Manchester, NH) are announcing this morning
that we will produce a live, 90-minute debate
among the Democratic candidates for president in
Durham, New Hampshire on Tuesday, December 9,
2003. The debate is facilitated by the Democratic
National Committee on behalf of the Democratic
candidates. The debate is scheduled to begin at
7:00 pm ET. ABC News Nightline anchor Ted Koppel
will moderate the debate and WMUR anchor Scott
Spradling will join him in questioning the
candidates.
Clark will miss
“I hope the people of New Hampshire will
understand," Wesley Clark told reporters Friday.
"I certainly mean no disrespect. You make
obligations. You can't move them. You can't get
out of them. People have to respect that."
Clark has a previously
scheduled fund-raiser. Several candidates,
including Joe Lieberman, John Kerry and Howard
Dean, shifted fund-raisers to attend the debate,
aides said. (11/17/2003)
Clark to testify
Wesley Clark will testify in
Hague war crimes trial:
"The chief prosecutor in the trial of Slobodan
Milosevic has asked me to testify against
Milosevic on December 15th and 16th at The Hague
in the Netherlands. Because of the historic
importance of this proceeding - the first trial of
a head of state before a war crimes tribunal - I
have agreed to appear. The U.S. Government has
authorized my participation in the trial.
"As Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, I led the
alliance in its military campaign to stop the
brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing by Serbian
forces and prevent the possibility of a million
and a half Albanians facing death or further
persecution. That victorious military campaign set
in motion the events that brought the rule of
Slobodan Milosevic to an end in Serbia and
ultimately his transfer to The Hague for
prosecution.
"This historic trial is important not only for the
justice I hope it will bring to Milosevic's
victims but also for the powerful message it will
send to other leaders in other nations: that the
international community will not stand by in the
face of war crimes, crimes against humanity and
genocide," said Clark. (11/17/2003)
Who is this guy?
The Boston Globe has an
in-depth story on Wesley Clark. If you read
yesterday’s story about Clark, you have to begin
to wonder about the serendipity of Clark:
When Wesley Clark arrived at Georgetown University
in November 1965 for a conference on international
affairs, a woman at the registration desk noticed
that the West Point cadet hailed from Arkansas.
“Arkansas?" she said. "Well, you have to meet our
class president. He's from Arkansas."
"What's his name?" Clark asked.
"Bill Clinton."
"Never heard of him," the 20-year-old Clark said.
"Are you sure he's from Arkansas?"
"Oh, yes, he talked about watermelons and things."
"OK, well, sure. I'd like to meet him."
(11/17/2003)
Catch Saddam
Retired general Wesley Clark
warned Sunday that the failure to capture Saddam
Hussein was likely to undermine any new Iraqi
government. And he said it was important to
capture Saddam alive so he could be tried for war
crimes.
Clark didn’t make it to Iowa
but his campaign scored big on Meet the Press and
in an interview with
USA Today with the above quote. The only
question mark is the lost stepbrother.
Clark’s best performance
clearly came on
Meet the Press with Tim Russert. He gave
cogent answers and did not stumble as was the
hallmark of earlier campaign appearances:
MR. RUSSERT: In one word, how would you describe
the current situation in Iraq?
GEN. CLARK: It’s a mess.
MR. RUSSERT: How would you describe the Bush
administration’s policy?
GEN. CLARK: They have not had a strategy for
success. I don’t think they have one yet.
(11/17/2003)
Clark's stepbrother
Kennard Clark learned to his
surprise that he has a stepbrother, and the guy's
running for president. The 71-year-old surgeon in
Arlington, Texas, said his father disappeared
shortly after Kennard graduated high school in
1950. Unbeknownst to Kennard, Victor Clark was
married again by 1954 and living with his wife and
her son, Wesley, in Little Rock, where Kennard
went to school until 10th grade.
Wesley Clark, former NATO
supreme commander and current Democratic candidate
for president, said he knew that his stepfather,
whose name he took and who adopted him, had had a
previous family that had included a son. The
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported yesterday that
Kennard didn't know about his stepbrother until
the paper told him.
The men say they want to meet
but haven't set a time or place. "I wouldn't want
it to be a public thing, but I would like to talk
to him about Dad," Kennard Clark said.
"I'd like to meet him, too," Wesley Clark said.
(11/17/2003)
Clark Rocks as he goes Hollywood
The
LA Times reported on Wesley Clark’s pilgrimage
to the liberal holy land of dollars Hollywood. The
Eagles played a concert to help the dollars fly
his way as 350 guests (at up to $2,000 a person)
attended the event:
Ben Affleck, politely waving off a photographer,
and Jennifer Lopez were there. So were Ted Danson
and his wife, Mary Steenburgen, who grew up with
Clark in Little Rock, Ark., and introduced him
from the stage. But most in the crowd were
industry executives with deep pockets — like the
evening's sponsors, music executive Irving Azoff,
producers Jordan Kerner and Norman Lear, and Hard
Rock Cafe founder Peter Morton — routinely a
source of cash for liberal candidates.
"I didn't come to trash George Bush. I came to
replace him," Clark told his audience. A critic of
the current administration's policy in Iraq, the
four-star general got the loudest applause when he
pledged the use of force "only, only as a last
resort." (11/18/2003)
Clark opposes bi-partisan drug bill and energy
Wesley Clark argued for
bipartisan debate on drug bills and energy policy
and said that the drug bill violated the rule of
doing no harm. His harshest attack came on the
energy bill.
"America needs leadership that debates priorities
like energy policy in a transparent and bipartisan
manner-not behind closed doors.
“The energy bill that emerged from the Republican
conference was crafted in the dark of the night,
with not a single Democrat at the table. The final
bill was cobbled together by special interests and
a handful of Republican legislators. In fact, Vice
President Cheney started the policy-making process
by holding secret meetings with unnamed energy
industry associates.
“Congress should reject this compromise. We are
only beginning to understand the details of the
legislation, but it is clear that the bill
provides billions of dollars in giveaways to
special interests while doing little to reduce
America's dependence on foreign oil and failing to
address global warming.
We need a policy that strengthens the energy and
environmental security of all Americans. To get
this type of balanced policy, we first need to get
the oil industry out of the Oval Office," Clark
said. (11/18/2003)
Full faith and credit
Gay marriages
Leading Democrat presidential
candidates are bringing back a new states’ rights
issue concerning gay marriages. The U.S.
Constitution requires states to give full faith
and credit in recognizing the actions of other
states, corporations and individuals. There is the
rub, for if the candidates back gay marriages
rather than gay unions granting equal rights to
gay couples, then states would have to recognize
under the U.S. Constitution the gay marriages of
other states. This is why the Democrat candidates
are running away from yesterday’s ruling after
courting the gay and lesbian community for all
these many months.
"As a society we should be looking for ways to
bring us together and as someone who supports the
legal rights of all Americans regardless of sexual
orientation, I appreciate today's decision. As
president, I would support giving gays and
lesbians the legal rights that married couples
get," said Wesley Clark.
However, Clark doesn’t seem to get it in the
following statement,
“If the Massachusetts legislature decides to
legalize same-sex marriages, it will be up to each
state to decide whether those marriages will be
valid in their state-- and that is a choice each
state, not the courts, will have to make.”
The
trial lawyer John Edwards leaves us confused he
says he opposes gay marriages and then says he
will oppose a U.S. Constitutional Amendment:
“As I have long said, I believe gay and lesbian
Americans are entitled to equal respect and
dignity under our laws. While I personally do not
support gay marriage, I recognize that different
states will address this in different ways, and I
will oppose any effort to pass an amendment to the
United States Constitution in response to the
Massachusetts decision.
"We are a nation comprised of men and women from
all walks of life. It is in our national character
to provide equal opportunity to all, and this is
what unites our country, in laws and in shared
purpose. That is why today, we must also reach out
to those individuals who will try to exploit this
decision to further divide our nation, and ask
them to refrain from that effort," said Edwards.
John
Kerry, a Massachusetts senator, said:
“I have long believed that gay men and lesbians
should be assured equal protection and the same
benefits – from health to survivor benefits to
hospital visitation - that all families deserve.
While I continue to oppose gay marriage, I believe
that today’s decision calls on the Massachusetts
state legislature to take action to ensure equal
protection for gay couples. These protections are
long over due.”
Dick
Gephardt’s response:
"While I support civil unions for same-sex
couples, I also support the right of states to
make decisions regarding the protections afforded
same-sex couples. I do not support gay marriage,
but I hope the Massachusetts State Legislature
will act in a manner that is consistent with
today's Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
ruling.
"As we move forward, it is my hope that we don't
get side-tracked by the right-wing into a debate
over a phony constitutional amendment banning gay
marriage. I strongly oppose such an effort as
purely political and unnecessarily divisive at the
expense of those who already suffer from
discrimination."
Joe
Lieberman’s response:
"Although I am opposed to gay marriage, I have
also long believed that states have the right to
adopt for themselves laws that allow same-sex
unions. I will oppose any attempts by the right
wing to change the Constitution in response to
today's ruling, which would be unnecessary and
divisive," said Joe Lieberman
"It
takes 40 to tango, and I'm not sure we're there
yet," said Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg referring to
the number needed to filibuster the Medicare bill.
(11/19/2003)
Play fair
Wesley Clark made an appeal that
went unanswered for Dean and Kerry to abide by the
spending limits in New Hampshire.
“The issue is not just how much money you raise,
but how much money you spend. All Democratic
presidential candidates ought to abide by the
spending caps in New Hampshire," said Clark.
"Those who have more money should use it at the
end of the nominating process against George W.
Bush, not against their fellow Democrats who are
playing by the rules. This nomination should be
decided based on leadership, issues, and character
-- not money," said Clark. (11/19/2003)
Clark on foreign policy
Wesley Clark took the
opportunity of President Bush’s visit to England
to criticize the President before the prestigious
NY Council Foreign Affairs. He said, “We must be a
country that listens and leads again.” The
Associated Press is reporting that Clark took the
opportunity to cover a wide range of issues:
Clark, a retired four-star Army general, said the
military must be adapted for peacekeeping and
post-conflict operations besides fighting wars. He
said the United States should take up Secretary
General Kofi Annan’s call to reform the United
Nations so it can respond to the threats of terror
and weapons of mass destruction.
In Asia, Clark called a regional strategy to deal
with North Korea’s potential emergence as a
full-fledged nuclear power and the threat of war
between China and Taiwan. He also called for
corporation to address AIDS and democratic
development in Africa and threats to the rise of
democracy in Latin America. (11/20/2003)
Clark would do more
Wesley Clark released a
statement concerning the Bush administration
restriction on China’s textiles.
“Limiting a surge in imports from three narrowly
defined categories of textiles is too little and
too late for America’s struggling textile firms.
It is inexplicable that this Administration waited
so long to use their explicit legal authority to
protect America’s workers from exactly the type of
import surges that the rules were designed to
prevent. I would review and enforce the rules for
all textiles that face large surges in imports
from China.
“Free trade can benefit all Americans, but only if
we ensure that other countries play by the rules
so that America’s businesses and workers can
compete on a level playing field. As President, I
would show the leadership to make the right
choices by implementing a comprehensive
Manufacturing Security Plan to jump-start job
creation today and create the manufacturing
industry of the future,” said Clark. (11/20/2003)
Clark’s switch
Wesley Clark’s statement that he
could not change his schedule to participate in
the Manchester, NH debate carried by ABC seems to
not be true. The fund-raiser in New York, where he
was expected to raise $1.5 million has been moved
to Dec. 10 -- the day after the debate.
(11/20/2003)
Clark’s War Crime testimony
Wesley Clark’s testimony in The
Hague of Slobodan Milosevic will be available
after 48 hours according to the international
court. The testimony will first be redacted by U.
S. officials screening the testimony for security
matters. (11/20/2003)
Cash Flow
Candidates Bush, Dean and Kerry
are helping to speed up the cash flow to their
opponents’ campaigns from the Federal Election
Commission. The FEC initially estimated candidates
would only get 40 cents to 50 cents of every
dollar they were entitled to when the first checks
are sent in January. Now they are likely to
receive 75 cents to 80 cents on the dollar, based
on an Associated Press analysis of FEC and
campaign estimates.
Wesley Clark is expected to get
one of the biggest initial payments — roughly $5.5
million if donations eligible for matching funds
continue coming in at the pace they have been. The
Clark campaign estimate raising $15.5 million by
year’s end, roughly 44 percent of it eligible for
matching funds.
Estimates from other campaigns
are: Dick Gephardt receiving $5 million; Joe
Lieberman, $4 million; Dennis Kucinich, $3.3
million; and Lyndon LaRouche, $850,000.
Al Sharpton and Carol Moseley
Braun are expected to receive few hundred thousand
dollars from the fund initially. (11/20/2003)
Clark performs on Letterman
Last night Wesley Clark put in a
sterling performance on Late Night with David
Letterman. Letterman threw softballs that had
Clark telling about his service record, and then
threw him the question about Gen. Hugh Shelton's
assertion in September that Clark was relieved as
NATO's supreme commander in 1999 because of
"integrity and character issues."
"It's a smear, that's all it is," Clark told
Letterman in an interview taped for broadcast on
CBS Thursday night. "And it doesn't have anything
to do with the military. It's the kind of stuff of
politics."
The challenge back at Shelton
was strong enough that there could be a response.
It is questionable as to whether that would be
good for Clark’s candidacy. (11/21/2003)
Clark on education
Wesley Clark joins the other
candidates in commenting on No Child Left Behind
during Education Week, stating, "I was troubled to
learn today New Hampshire schools have to reduce
special education grants and other educational
funding to pay for federally-mandated tests under
the No Child Left Behind Act. This measure
demonstrates the way that No Child Left Behind
elevates form over substance. The Bush
Administration has focused too much on narrow
tests and punishments, and too little on ensuring
that every child can learn and succeed. No Child
Left Behind imposes a tremendous new mandate on
states and local communities and then deprives
them of the resources they need to succeed. And
now New Hampshire students are suffering the
consequences of this administration's hollow
promises." (11/21/2003)
Clark & Clinton
The
Associated Press has a story on the uncanny
similarities between Wesley Clark and Bill
Clinton. The resemblance is more than being from
Arkansas, Rhodes Scholars, adopted, married
Northern women, modest origins. You get the
picture… and to get more, use the link.
(11/22/2003)
Job loss real
Wesley Clark took on Commerce
Secretary Lane Evans article in the Wall Street
Journal:
According to the Wall Street Journal, Commerce
Secretary Evans said it's "one of the great myths"
that anything is wrong with the U.S. manufacturing
sector.
General
Wesley Clark disagrees:
"Mr. Secretary, manufacturing job loss is no myth.
Under the Bush administration, 2.6 million
manufacturing jobs have been lost. New Hampshire
lost 1 in 5 factory jobs. South Carolina lost
55,000. The Bush administration hasn't done
anything to help the manufacturing sector, and now
we know why-they don't even think it's a problem."
(11/22/2003)
NY Times in depth on Clark
The NY Times has a lengthy
5-page online story on Wesley Clark. Most of it is
familiar by now. However, you have to have
something new in 5 pages:
Always, he thought unconventionally. General
Scales, his classmate, offered this: "They say in
the military that you bring to your boss three
solutions: one that's too hot, one that's too cold
and one that's just right. That's called the
Goldilocks solution. You have an answer and you
steer him to it.
"Wes doesn't recognize the Goldilocks solution.
He'll say: `Well maybe we shouldn't eat any
porridge. And why are there bears in here? And who
is this Goldilocks character wandering around? And
by the way, what is the whole purpose of fairy
tales?' And this drives some people nuts."
(11/23/2003)
Clark not on
Wesley Clark has made big
comebacks on national shows from Meet the Press to
Late Night with Dave Letterman but when he showed
up on Face the Nation Sunday he did not pass
muster. He started out fine but fell down when
host Bob Schieffer began asking him about his
differing statements before he began to run for
office and after. Clark bumbled around on how he
could praise President Bush as brilliant for
selecting Donald Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defense
and then recently say he would not have hired
Rumsfeld. His best excuse was that he would have
figured out when he interviewed Rumsfeld that he
would not hire him. On a campaign visit to Iowa,
Clark then came up with a fourth reason why
that he was unclear about his position on whether
he would support going to war in Iraq. It was not
a good showing for Clark… (11/23/2003)
Clark can’t win?
Lee Enterprises Iowa papers are running a
story that analyzes whether Clark made a fatal
mistake in not competing in Iowa. Iowa Sen. Tom
Harkin, who competed against Bill Clinton for the
nomination, believes that it is fatal for Clark:
"I think it was not only a big mistake to skip
Iowa, I think it dooms his campaign," Harkin said.
"It's that serious. I think he made a terrible,
terrible decision, and I told him so."
"Iowa would have been a good testing ground for
him to get out and get his views more
crystallized, more clearly enunciated, and get a
message out there that is consistently strong, and
that won't happen now," Harkin said. "I mean,
there are a lot of questions about Clark and these
flip-flops, the things he's said. There are a lot
of questions."
"If Dean wins Iowa, and Dean wins New Hampshire,
it's over with," Harkin said. "Clark doesn't
understand that."
Clark’s response seems to show
his naïve understanding of Presidential politics.
His response was that the Democrat party had the
opportunity to nominate a national candidate
instead of one who won regional support.
(11/23/2003)
It’s a roadtrip
A Washington Post story tells
about the new wacky idea the Clark campaign has
dreamed up. The new campaign idea is a cross
between the Campbell soup guy ads and reality TV.
How this wins delegates to the National Convention
it is hard to tell. Here is an excerpt from the
story:
The Clark campaign is starting to look a bit like
a reality show.
The campaign has kicked off a contest in which two
teams of supporters and staffers race across the
country in recreational vehicles. One team, the
Northern team, left Washington's Union Station on
Friday, heading for New Hampshire. The Southern
team, meanwhile, left the campaign's Little Rock
headquarters for South Carolina.
Along the way, the teams will perform a series of
tasks, including handing out 2,004 Clark candy
bars in each of the 12 states they'll visit.
Staffers also will file reports and video clips
from the road for the campaign's Web site -- where
online viewers will get to vote on which team they
like better. (11/24/2003)
Clark hires campaign manager
Wesley Clark continues to pick
up former personnel from Bob Graham’s campaign,
hiring Paul Johnson the former campaign manager of
Bob Graham's unsuccessful presidential bid. He was
hired Monday for the same position in Democrat
Wesley Clark's campaign. Clark spokesman Matt
Bennett said Johnson was hired by campaign
chairman Eli Segal and will start next Monday.
Johnson is a Minnesota native
and a veteran of several Democratic campaigns for
the Senate. He also worked on the presidential
campaigns of former Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey in
1992 and Walter Mondale in 1984. (11/25/2003)
Debate quotes:
"The real issue in front of us
is that this president misled the American people
and the Congress into war. It's wrong. If you
wrote this script in a movie, it would be rejected
as being outrageous," said Wesley Clark.
"I think this party's making a
great mistake by trying to make a litmus test on
who would have or did or didn't vote for that
resolution last October," said Clark, who has been
criticized for sending mixed signals on whether he
would have backed it. "The real issue in front of
us is that this president misled the American
people and the Congress into war. This
administration took us to war recklessly and
without need to do so and it was wrong. And that
is the issue … we should be taking to the American
people."
"I warned that we were going to
war without a real plan of what to do next and
without adequate resources," Clark said. "Now we
see the consequences." (11/25/2003)
Clark’s manufacturing security plan
Wesley Clark visited the
University of Wisconsin at Green Bay to bring
attention to his Manufacturing Security Plan.
While it is not the best photo opportunity to talk
about manufacturing jobs, Green Bay is a
manufacturing town in a manufacturing state. It is
certain that many of the student’s families are
employed in manufacturing jobs.
Clark’s plan covers 15 points.
Three proposals that will catch attention are: the
$10,000 job creation tax credit; the mandatory
reporting of number of jobs cut in the US and
number of jobs transferred oversees; and
manufacturers who move oversees for tax purposes
can’t sell to the government. Here is his proposal
in its entirety:
·
$10,000 Job Creation Tax Credit
for manufacturing and other industries harmed by
outsourcing. Wes Clark would create a Job
Creation Tax Credit, which would provide up to a
$10,000 tax credit for each new full-time employee
hired in manufacturing or other industries
negatively affected by outsourcing (e.g. customer
call centers) in 2004 and 2005. This tax credit is
part of Wes Clark's overall two-year, $100 billion
Job Creation Plan.
·
Stop China's currency
manipulation. Wes Clark will push for what the
G-7 has already supported: market-based exchange
rates. No large country, including China, should
be allowed to manipulate currency markets to keep
its currency at artificially low levels. The
reason is simple: China's undervalued currency
gives Chinese manufacturers a significant price
advantage over U.S. manufacturers.
·
Let trade benefit American
manufacturers by insisting that all nations play
by the rules. Americans must not shy away from
global competition. Trade can increase growth and
raising living standards for everyone, but only if
all countries play by the rules. Wes Clark also
believes we should review all of our existing
trade agreements to ensure that our trading
partners are living up to the provisions requiring
other countries to open their markets to U.S.
products, including elimination of non-tariff
barriers. We must also ensure that China is
complying with World Trade Organization (WTO)
rules. Finally, Wes Clark believes that
environmental and internationally recognized core
labor standards should be an integral part of all
future trade agreements. Wes Clark will protect
American jobs and workers by enforcing America's
trade laws and increasing funding for trade
enforcement, not cutting it as the Bush
Administration has done.
2. STOP REWARDING COMPANIES THAT MOVE JOBS
OVERSEAS AND START REWARDING COMPANIES THAT
PRODUCE IN AMERICA
·
Require companies to disclose
layoffs in America and job increases overseas.
Consumer, investors, and workers all have the
right to know which companies are moving which
jobs overseas. As President, Wes Clark would work
to develop a system of timely reporting to ensure
that we have timely and accurate information on
companies that export jobs.
·
Stop rewarding companies that
shift jobs overseas. As President, Wes Clark
would eliminate government incentives for
companies to shift jobs overseas.
o
Stop tax breaks for companies
that move overseas for tax reasons. Wes Clark
would close outrageous loopholes in the tax code,
like the ones that allow companies to avoid taxes
by shifting income to Bermuda. In addition, Wes
Clark would institute a 90-day review of all tax
and spending provisions affecting large
manufacturing firms. The review will focus on
eliminating tax and spending provisions that give
manufacturing firms incentives to move jobs
overseas.
o
"Buy American": As President,
Wes Clark would strengthen America's manufacturing
base by developing "Buy American" guidelines for
defense and other government procurement.
o
Deny government contracts to
firms that move headquarters overseas for tax
reasons or shift substantial numbers of U.S. jobs
overseas. Wes Clark believes that companies
should not be rewarded for moving their
headquarters to overseas tax havens or shift
substantial numbers of U.S. jobs abroad. As
President, he will look for ways to make certain
these companies are not rewarded with government
contracts.
·
Start rewarding companies that
create jobs in America. As President, Wes
Clark would seek to implement tax and spending
initiatives - above and beyond the $10,000 job
creation tax credit - that provide manufacturing
firms the incentive to keep existing manufacturing
jobs in the United States.
·
Work to raise standards globally,
creating a win-win for America's workers and for
international development. Wes Clark would
work with other countries to help raise their
labor and environmental standards, transforming a
race to the bottom into improvements benefit for
America's workers and encourage international
development. This will eliminate the rush of
manufacturers to open factories in countries with
hazardous factory conditions, forced labor, child
labor, and suppression of freedom of association.
3. CREATE THE CONDITIONS FOR THE MANUFACTURING
SECTOR OF THE FUTURE
·
Reduce labor costs by making
healthcare more affordable. The National
Association of Manufacturers has stated that "the
rising cost of health care coverage is one of the
biggest impediments to sustained recovery in the
manufacturing sector." The AFL-CIO's manufacturing
agenda features health care reform as a central
element. Wes Clark's health care plan would
establish universal access to more affordable
health care, while ensuring that America's
families and employers get better value for their
health dollars. Wes Clark also supports a
comprehensive, meaningful, and affordable
prescription drug benefit for Medicare.
·
Promote Pension Reforms. Wes
Clark will fight for pension reform to strengthen
"defined benefit" pension plans. He will also
explore ways to relieve companies of some pension
burdens that make American companies less able to
compete with the foreign manufacturers.
·
Lower the cost of capital through
deficit reduction and tax reform. Wes Clark's
"Saving for America's Future" plan reduces the
budget deficit every year, lowering interest
rates. Lowering the cost of capital will allow
America's companies to invest and grow. In
addition, Wes Clark favors tax reform that makes
the tax system simpler, fairer, more progressive,
and more pro-growth.
·
Implement regulatory reforms that
are pro-market and pro-consumer. Too often,
the Bush Administration has used regulatory reform
to bail out corporations rather than promote true
competition. As a result, regulations are standing
in the way of efficiency improvements in many
industries that would benefit consumers and
businesses. Wes Clark would implement regulatory
reforms that use market-based incentives while
protecting the environment and consumers against
abuses.
·
Increase exports by consolidating
and improving trade promotion. According to
the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, ten
federal agencies help U.S. firms export their
products abroad. As President, Wes Clark would
consolidate the trade promotion activities of the
U.S. government into fewer agencies, which will
save money and simplify government, helping
manufacturing firms get what they need from their
government and enabling more effective promotion
of U.S. manufacturing exports.
·
Invest in education and training.
Wes Clark will soon release a detailed plan to
improve education from cradle to grave. It will
address improving the quality high schools and
expanded access to college. It will also focus on
improving job training programs and expanding
continuing education for workers.
·
Invest in innovations to keep
U.S. manufacturing competitive. New
technologies represent the future of American
manufacturing. Wes Clark believes that America
needs a new and more ambitious technology policy
to encourage research and development to produce
the next generation of breakthrough innovations.
·
Expand the Manufacturing
Extension Program (MEP). Wes Clark will
reverse the Bush Administration's budget cuts for
the Manufacturing Extension Program (MEP). This
program is proven to help small and medium-sized
manufacturers get the help they need in business
planning and low-cost loans to be successful.
(11/26/2003)
Clark’s Southern strategy
By Roger Hughes, IPW
Today’s Democrat candidates seem
to be trying to achieve a strategy that would deny
Howard Dean the nomination outright. Foremost
among these candidates is Welsey Clark.
The matter of winning the
Presidential nomination is to get one vote over
half of the delegates to the Democrat National
Convention in Boston. You do not receive the
nomination unless you have a majority (50% plus
1). For decades now, candidates have won the
nomination outright. The last really good battle
was between Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan in
Kansas City in 1976 when Reagan’s campaign manager
John Sears convinced Reagan to name the liberal
Pennsylvania Sen. Richard Schweiker as his running
mate. The naming of Schweiker to the ticket was a
gamble to gain some undecided Pennsylvania
delegates to their side, thereby winning the
nomination. What happened was the reverse: A
handful of undecideds went for Ford, feeling that
Reagan sold out conservatives with the Schweiker
pick.
Wes Clark believes that he can
take the South away from Howard Dean. However, it
will take more than Clark wrapping up the south.
Someone else has to win something big to stop Dean
-- states like Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan,
Ohio, or something big like New York, Texas or
California.
There still remain questions as
to whether, when the rapid-fire elections take
place, Dean supporters’ enthusiasm will translate
into the election of delegates that will add up to
the necessary numbers. And, there is always the
additional problem of the super delegates who are
appointed to appease the old power brokers who
lost their power to this new process.
For the Clark camp, there is
also the problem that Dick Gephardt may stop Dean
in Iowa and roll through the Midwest the way Clark
hopes to do in the South. There is also the
problem of Border state Gephardt (from Missouri)
and another true Southerner John Edwards (S.
Carolina) nibbling at the South’s delegates.
Clark’s strategy has many difficulties to
overcome.
However, if anyone has a shot at
breaking up the “Dean Mean Machine’s” win power
play into a brokered convention it is the Clark
campaign with all it’s veteran Bill Clinton
advisors.
Here is a story by
AFP concerning Clark’s wooing of the voters
with his Southern charm and four stars:
A recent Time-CNN survey found that if
presidential elections were held now, Clark would
fare best among the Democrat's top five contenders
against Bush, although he would still lose by a
49-42 percent margin.
Former Vermont governor Howard Dean front-runner
in the Democratic pack who opposed the Iraq war
from the outset and who is favored to win the New
Hampshire primary, came in second in the poll
against Bush with 52-39 percent. Clark's goal is
to take Dean's vote among middle-of-the-road
Democrats who consider the former governor too
left wing to beat Bush, the former general's
advisers said.
To achieve this, his campaign team is focusing on
primary races in the conservative south as the
main battleground.
We believe we'll do very well in the South in a
match up with Dean. Voters are looking for
leadership and they are looking for someone who
can win a general election," said Clark adviser
Chris Lehane, former spokesman to ex vice
president Al Gore (11/27/2003)
Clark off message
Wesley Clark became roasted like
a Thanksgiving turkey after demonstrating, once
again, that he does not know how to maintain
continuity of message. Wesley Clark, campaigning
in New Hampshire, got off a zinger on a radio
station there when a radio interviewer jokingly
asked if he’d be interested in a ski competition
between candidates. "I didn't have as much
practice skiing as the governor did. He was out
there skiing when I was recovering from my wounds
in Vietnam," Clark told WNTK radio.
This comment was in direct
conflict with what Clark is reported to have said
at a VFW hall in New Hampshire according to the
Manchester
Union Leader:
Trying to distance himself from Democratic rivals
bent on “carving each other up,” Wesley Clark said
yesterday he’d limit his slicing to his
Thanksgiving turkey.
Dean's campaign condemned Clark
for the comment made as the former Vermont
governor was in Hawaii for the return of the
remains of an American, missing since the war,
whom Dean believes was his brother.
"This personal attack, especially on a day like
today for Governor Dean, is disturbingly
ruthless," said his spokeswoman, Tricia Enright.
The Union Leader reports that
Clark didn’t mean the comments to be critical of
Dean:
“If anybody’s spent a year skiing, they’ve spent a
lot more time on the slopes than I have,” he said,
adding that it would be up to veterans to decide
what to make of Dean’s actions. (11/27/2003)
Praise and criticism
The following are quotes from
the Democrat candidates concerning Bush’s visit to
Baghdad as reported in the
NY Times:
“It's nice that he made it over there today, but
this visit won't change the fact that those brave
men and women should never have been fighting in
Iraq in the first place," said Jay Carson, a
spokesman for Howard Dean.
“The right thing to do for our country. When
Thanksgiving is over, I hope the president will
take the time to correct his failed policy in Iraq
that has placed our soldiers in a shooting
gallery," said John Kerry.
"Daring move and great politics. I think these
kids need more. I'm sure they were buoyed by his
coming, but they need more," commented a spokesman
for John Edwards.
Matt Bennett, the communications director for Gen.
Wesley K. Clark, said: "We're not going to throw
stones at the guy for trying to do a nice thing
for the troops. When the president goes and spends
time with the troops, that's a good thing." … They
made their bed with that `Mission Accomplished'
trip, and that's going to be around for a long
time," he said. "That's not the last ad you will
see with that. I will guarantee you that whoever
the nominee is will have that image up."
Jano Cabrera, a spokesman for Senator Joseph I.
Lieberman of Connecticut, said: "In fairness,
visiting with the troops is exactly what a
commander in chief should do. That said, we hope
that he's also reassuring them that the
administration will eventually have a plan to win
the peace and bring our troops home soon."
(11/28/2003)
Clark’s WACO help
Wesley Clark’s campaign flatly
denies that he had a planning role in Waco. An
investigation by a Justice Department special
counsel, former Senator John Danforth, Republican
of Missouri, backs that claim
An Army division commanded by
retired General Wesley K. Clark supplied some of
the military equipment for the government's
standoff with a religious sect in Waco, Texas, and
Clark's deputy, now the Army chief of staff, took
part in a crucial Justice Department meeting
before the siege ended in disaster, according to
military records. Clark's involvement in support
of the Waco operation a decade ago was indirect
and fleeting, according to his former commanding
officer. But the assistance to civilian law
enforcement agencies by military officers around
Clark and soldiers under his command has prompted
a flurry of questions to the Democrat's
presidential campaign. (11/29/2003)
Clark says U.S. losing war
Wesley Clark told CNN's "Late
Edition” that not only is the U.S. losing the war
on terror but that Democrats would lose the 2004
presidential election if they didn’t nominate him:
"I think the country has to understand: we're not
winning the war on terror. We are not winning the
war on terror," Clark said. "This administration
took us into Iraq. It's a world-class bait and
switch."
“The day has passed when the Democratic Party can
run as a domestic policy issues-only party. You
have to be able to handle foreign policy and
international security in an election," said
Clark.
"I'm the only one who's got hands-on practical
experience in doing it."
"This is going to be ... a referendum on the war
on terror," he told CNN's "Late Edition."
(11/30/2003)
Clark’s service record
Wesley Clark in a Boston Globe
story is gaining veterans over his rival contender
for the group -- Sen. John Kerry. Both of these
candidates’ military service provides them with
the legitimate means to appeal to these voters.
The other aspect that seems to be in their favor
is that some veterans do not believe the Bush
administration is doing all it should for veterans
and those currently active in the military.
Recently, when MSNBC's Chris
Matthews asked Kerry if Clark was a "headquarters
guy and you're a field guy," Kerry agreed. "He has
generally been. No, he was in the field at one
point, but very little in his career."
Clark, recently campaigning in
New Hampshire at a Veterans Hall, answered the
accusation of not being a field soldier. Clark’s
response according to the Globe was:
Clark's campaign shot back with a news release
titled, "Clark Communications Director to Kerry:
`Huh?' " and touting Clark's seven months in
Vietnam and his rise to the military's highest
ranks. Clark, talking to reporters in Manchester
on Wednesday, made the case for his own
experience: "I think my record speaks for itself.
I stayed with the US armed forces after I came
home in a stretcher, after a lot of people left."
(11/30/2003)
Star firepower
The Telegraph News UK is posted
on Drudge Report relating how Wesley Clark is
wooing Hollywood for his campaign. The News
reports that Clark is winning amongst the notable
stars of political interest:
In an unlikely attempt to gain star backing for a
slow-burning campaign, the Democratic presidential
candidate, General Wesley Clark, is spending late
nights talking politics with Madonna and wooing
sympathetic super-groups such as The Eagles, with
whom he recently shared the stage during a
rendition of Hotel California.
He sells well, according to the
story:
A lunch with Mr. Spielberg has also taken place.
According to Mr. Spielberg's spokesman, Andrew
Spahn: "Gen Clark was a very bright articulate
guy. We talked about Iraq, North Korea, foreign
policy and tax cuts."
Mr. Dean may be winning the early battles in Iowa
and New Hampshire, but Gen Clark has taken the
lead in Hollywood's unofficial "primary". In a
Democratic race constantly criticized as
lacklustre, an injection of star quality on the
side of the General may yet prove a tactical
masterstroke. (11/30/2003)
Clark
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