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Iowa 2004 presidential primary precinct caucus and caucuses news">
Iowa 2004 presidential primary precinct caucus and caucuses news, reports
and information on 2004 Democrat and Republican candidates, campaigns
and issues Iowa
Presidential Watch's
IOWA DAILY REPORT Holding
the Democrats accountable today, tomorrow...forever.
... QUOTABLE: "Dated Dean, Married
Kerry" is
printed on bumper stickers in New Hampshire. It
references people who were initially for Howard
Dean and are now for John Kerry. Barbour, used to run in
high circles" in Mississippi. "I guess in this
part of the world, you say he used to pick high
cotton,"
President Bush said while campaigning for Haley
Barbour for Governor of Mississippi. “Cafes in Iowa have a
special this time of year: A presidential
candidate, served with a firm handshake and
unlimited trips to the promises buffet,”
lead to a story
written by Des Moines Register staff writer Mike
Kilen. "These debates are a
waste of time and are not helping the Democratic
Party. They are a cacophony without any particular
message. They're messy. I've talked to a lot of
people around the country. Many feel the same
thing," said
Philip Johnston, the Massachusetts Democratic
chairman. "The mentality of this
administration seems to be 'everybody be damned,
we're going to do what we're going to do,' "
said Jeannie
Clarke, an Orlando mother of a 5-month-old,
worries about the economy and dislikes Bush's
leadership style in Washington Post-ABC News Poll. "I give him a triple-A in
leadership,"
said Jack Prevost, a corporate banker in Orlando.
"He's from Texas, and he's a take-charge,
get-out-and-make-a-decision, go-for-it kind of
guy." The quote
is from the Washington Post-ABC News Poll. "Families in the North
Country deserve better. They deserve high wage and
benefit standards, they deserve a guaranteed
retirement. It is wrong to have middle-class
families competing with workers in other countries
who are paid so little that they live in the same
cardboard boxes used to ship their products to
America,” said
Dick Gephardt regarding the Berlin-Gorham paper
plant closing. “I am going to win Iowa,”
said Dick
Gephardt on Face The Nation. He also declared,
“My health care plan is the best plan.” ''Writing a book is like
lying down on a psychiatrist's couch and inviting
the world to look in,''
said Barbara
Bush at a book fair in Florida about writing her
latest book.
[IPW note: the
former Democratic Georgia governor and now state’s
senator – has publicly endorsed Republican
President George W. Bush for re-election in 2004.
And he’s put it in his book, just released this
week] “Howard Dean knows
about as much about the South as a hog knows
about Sunday.” “There are a lot of
trucks [in the South] - You see a lot of
American flags on them. It [South] is probably
the most patriotic part of the country.”
--
regarding the flap with Dean over the truck &
Confederate flag gaffe. “He is no Old Hickory.”
-- on Wesley
Clark, with a reference to the only Southern
General to be elected President. “I am trying to throw
them a life preserver.”
-- on his
fellow Democrats’ criticisms.
… TODAY’S
OFFERINGS:
* CANDIDATES &
CAUCUSES: High placed Democrats want to
begin the culling of the field of candidates even
before the Iowa Caucuses on Jan. 19 according to a
Washington Times article. Much of the reason
for wanting the field shortened is that the
Democrat power brokers believe the Democrat
message in the debates is too cluttered and not
honed enough to promote victory in November 2004.
The Times quotes a statement made last week: "I
think the crowded field allows the most shrill,
conflict-oriented, confrontational voices to be
heard, and not necessarily the person who might
make the best candidate or the best president.
They're very superficial." Other top contenders have not
been so forthright in their comments concerning
the bottom tear of candidates. Part of the reason
may be from who is involved in the culling
process; Al Sharpton , Carol Moseley-Braun and
Dennis Kucinich. "One of the downsides of this
many debaters is that you have candidates who are
running on a debate strategy. This allows them,
without raising any money, to be on the stage with
the front-runners," said Simon Rosenberg,
president of the New Democrat Network. The Times
quotes: “There was a suggestion that the
participants in the debates be limited to those
who had raised a certain amount of money.” However
the Times reports that the Democrat National
Committee nixes that idea: “But the Democratic
National Committee rejected any such limits. "This
is not an option for us. That's not our job to
decide which Democrat deserves to be in the
debates or not," said DNC Communications Director
Debra DeShong.” The Washington Post-ABC
Poll shows the nation is once again in a
partisan schism. The poll also shows Bush’s
approval rating at 42 percent with 56 percent
disapproving and 2 percent undecided. The bitterly
fought Presidential Election of 2000 seems to be
lingering in close election states according to
the article: “Voter interviews suggest that Bush
has made few converts among those who voted
against him in 2000, while some of those who
backed him say they may not do so again unless
there is clear improvement in the jobs situation
and stabilization of the violence in Iraq.” There, however, seems to be
no reason for Democrats to celebrate according to
the Washington Post article: “Democrats, however,
are virtually invisible as an effective opposition
to a president who commands center stage. Even
many loyal Democrats complain that their party has
no strong leaders and no alternative vision to
Bush on either foreign or economic policy. The
nine Democratic presidential candidates have made
almost no impression on voters outside the few
states with early caucuses or primaries next year.
Most voters cannot name more than one or two of
the candidates.” The
Washington Post reports: “Democrats are
divided over the direction of their party and
sharply split over whether party leaders should be
more willing to confront President Bush or
compromise with him on the Iraq war, taxes and the
budget deficit, according to a Washington Post-ABC
News poll. Democrat’s reaction of how to deal with
President Bush is at the heart of the Democrat
divide. Six in 10 liberal Democrats want the party
to confront Bush on the key issues. However a
large majority of conservative Democrats are
critical of their leaders for not compromising
enough with the president. When it comes to the
question of whether their party is going in the
right direction Republicans are far more positive
than the Democrats about their party leadership.
Only 57 percent of Democrats are positive compared
to 74 percent of Republicans.” The
Boston Globe covers Dean’s foreign policy
advisor Danny Sebright, a defense specialist who
spent more than a decade as an intelligence and
policy official at the Pentagon. The story
profiles how Sebright and Dean had differences
over Bush disclosing secrets leading up to the War
in Iraq. Here is some of the profile of Sebright’s
credentials: As a special assistant for
the war on terrorism, Sebright had a front-row
seat as Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz
and Doug Feith, undersecretary of defense for
policy, made the case for attacking Saddam Hussein
"up close and personal, 24 hours a day, seven days
a week," giving him an unusual perspective now as
he advises Dean on the same subject. One of his
functions has been to expose him to some of the
leading luminaries in foreign policy according to
the Globe: “Although he works as a volunteer,
outside his full-time job, Sebright has tried to
help Dean get up to speed on the complexities of
international affairs through a series of policy
dinners with luminaries from previous
administrations, such as former secretary of state
Madeleine K. Albright and former national security
adviser Sandy Berger.” Wesley Clark’s campaign wants
to make him more computer savvy, if we are to
believe their recent moves on their website. Clark
is going to hold Wireside Chats on Monday at 5:30
ET. Borrowing from Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s
radio fireside chats, Clark is launching his own
‘tech’ version… Wireside Chats. Not only will we
be able to hear from him, he'll be able to hear
from us - in real time," said John Hlinko,
director of Internet Strategy. "So log on to
Clark04.com, throw a 'blog' on the fire, and help
build a better future for America - one keystroke
at a time." In addition, Meetup members
gathering Monday night around the country in
cafes, restaurants and other venues will be able
to download a video of a recent Clark speech to
watch together. "The video clip is a terrific
example of Clark addressing important issues that
affect everyday lives," said Cara Couch, volunteer
coordinator of Clark 2004 Meetup. "We've added
tools on the Clark04 website to help new members
learn about General Clark and his vision for a New
American Patriotism." Clark’s campaign has been
plagued by ineptitude since the firing of a top
staff person who argued that the campaign was not
doing enough to care and feed for the Draft Clark
volunteers. Dick Gephardt continues to
charge his Democrat opponents, Howard Dean, John
Kerry, Joe Lieberman and John Edwards for
supporting NAFTA and China’s most favored nation
trading status:
"The race to the bottom didn't just happen. It is
the product of unfair trade treaties that devalued
American workers, that didn't include labor or
environmental standards. Today there are
candidates running for president who will tell you
that they oppose the kind of weak trade treaties
that set the stage for the job-loss and
outsourcing we see now. But those same candidates,
Gov. Howard Dean, Senator John Kerry, Senator Joe
Lieberman, all either voted for or supported
NAFTA. All those candidates, including Senator
Edwards, supported permanent trade with China
without any standards to protect American jobs.” The Kerry campaign says it is
happy to have Monkey Business famed Gary Hart
campaigning for them in New Hampshire because Hart
won that state's Presidential Primary once upon a
time. “New Hampshire has loved Gary Hart since he
won the primary with a truly grassroots-based
campaign in 1984, so the Kerry team here is very
excited about his return to the Granite State
this Wednesday, November 5, at 12:30 p.m. at
Manchester's West Side Library - to campaign
on John Kerry's behalf!” -- according to the
campaign. John Edwards has been heard
from on Howard Dean’s comment about the
Confederate flag: "What Howard Dean said today was
nothing short of offensive. Democrats from every
wing of the party understand what that flag
symbolizes. And when a politician embraces one of
the most divisive symbols in America, it is
offensive to every American. Some of the greatest
Civil Rights leaders, white and black, have come
from the South. To assume that southerners who
drive trucks would embrace this symbol is
offensive.” Howard Dean with rapid
response has brought out Jesse Jackson Jr. to
defend him on the Confederate flag controversy.
Dean’s press link on his website is releasing a
statement by Jackson praising Dean for bringing an
economic agenda to the South:
"Democrats were not competitive in the South in
2000, and we have struggled to thrive, and in some
instances survive, since Richard Nixon and the
Republican Party began using their race-based
'southern strategy' in 1968. The use of race,
cultural and social issues have served to distract
voters by keeping the focus off of economic issues
has been the basic strategy of Bush and the
Republicans in the South. That's why they make
wedge issues out of prayer in school, the Ten
Commandments on public buildings, civil unions,
the false allegation that Democrats will take away
hunter's gun rights, choice for women, the
controversy of having the words 'under God' in the
Pledge of Allegiance, and the Confederate Flag.
Lest we forget, the Confederate Flag is the
Democratic Party's historic contribution to the
South, and current Democratic candidates have not
been able to figure out how to come to grips with
their own historic symbol.
"Normally, rather than directly confronting poor
and working class white southerners with a strong
economic agenda, Democrats have tried to imitate
Republicans on many of these social issues. It is
good that we have a candidate offering hope to the
South with an economic agenda. It is Dr. Dean who
is reminding us that the combination of poor and
working class blacks and whites, north and south,
united in coalition around a common economic
agenda of jobs, health care, education and housing
will constitute a winning strategy in 2004,"
concluded Cong. Jackson. The
NY Times has an article regarding the new
interest in the Internet as a tool of politics. It
also chronicles some of Dean’s methods of success:
Successful Internet solicitation means more than
just starting a Web page, as most politicians did
years ago. Rather, it is a tactic intended to keep
Internet supporters engaged. Fund-raising
challenges are blended with the candidates'
positions and information on relevant issues, a
calibration that requires the campaign to listen
closely. Dr. Dean seems to understand the
give-and-take with backers. "They would never
support you if you just sent e-mail and told them
what the daily message is," he said. His campaign
treats Internet supporters as an extended staff,
able to raise money and organize with little
external direction. At his headquarters in
Burlington, Vt., a cluster of technicians and
staffers a few feet away from the campaign manager
sends out a constant stream of electronic updates
— including challenges to raise money — that are
personal and informal. By meeting and beating a
series of these challenges, Dr. Dean's online
supporters became the backbone of an outfit that
raised more than $25 million through September. The NY Times reports in
Political Points from planet Kucinich: Now
Mr. Kucinich was laying out his own vision for a
campaign ad for someone on the other end of the
conversation. "The thing that occurs to me is
running that one sentence from my opponent and you
freeze frame it as I walk onto the screen," Mr.
Kucinich said, "and I say, `Wait a minute! This
isn't true! Don't we already have enough problems
with one president lying about the war?' " The Des Moines Register is
giving a thistle in its Thistle and Rose column to
Dean and Gephardt over their blasting away at each
other. The gay bashing incident is mentioned as
well. An
editorial by Waterloo Courier’s Charlotte Eby,
the papers political reporter, covers the issue of
Dean’s and Gephardt’s tax hikes and Kerry’s
attempt to point out that their tax increases are
harder on Americans than his opponents want to
admit.
* ON THE BUSH
BEAT: President Bush addressed the
terrorist attack in Iraq in his weekly radio
address. Since the taping of the address the
United States has lost more solders in an attack
on a helicopter. It may be the largest loss since
secession of formal military operations. The close
of his radio address is haunting in its meaning
and comfort toward this tragic incident: “The
terrorists and the Baathists hope to weaken our
will. Our will cannot be shaken. We're being
tested, and America and our allies will not fail.
We will honor the sacrifice of the fallen by
ensuring that the cause for which they fought and
died is completed. And we will make America safer
by helping to transform Iraq from an exporter of
violence and terror into a center of progress and
peace.”
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