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Iowa primary precinct caucus and caucuses news">
Iowa 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.
PAGE 1
Sunday,
September 7, 2003
GENERAL
NEWS:
Among
the offerings in today's update:
New Zogby America poll:
Bush poll numbers hit new low (45%
positive/54% negative), Dean (16%) tops Dems
with Kerry (13%), Lieberman (12%), Gephardt
(8%), no others poll more than 3%
Slick Willie fans find a new icon: Slippery
Howie. Dean flipping and flopping on FEC
pledge, but
Kerry campaign contends Dean should not
be allowed to revoke his public financing
commitment
Boston Globe poll this morning:
Dean holds “strong” 12=point lead over Kerry
in New Hampshire, others fading
In Iowa, Graham says Iraq is a
quagmire and GWB must apologize to nation
during tonight’s address
Dean takes his anti-Bush message to CA to
stump for Davis, says the GOP is
“deliberately undermining the democratic
underpinnings of this country.”
She keeps saying “no,” but that doesn’t stop
a “Draft Hillary Now” movement
Washington Post editorial today says only
Lieberman is focused on the Iraq mission –
while others trying to outline exit
strategies
Kerry moves into lead over Lieberman in
CNN/Time poll, GWB can still top any of the
likely Dem nominees
Dean – subject of several news reports in
recent days about lack of diversity in his
campaign – targets backs in SC radio spots
In New Hampshire yesterday, Kerry charges
that other Dem candidates are following his
lead on key issues, casts himself as “first”
and “only” on top priorities
Washington Post: GOP faces possible
“uprising” by veterans…Hillary
accuses GWB of breaking a
“president-to-president” promise on
AmeriCorps situation
Howard “The Mouth” Dean offers another
reason why he’s unfit to be president:
Admits to AP’s Fournier that his
blunt-speaking ways may someday get him into
trouble. That’s certainly reassuring --
which potential nuclear power would “The
Mouth” alienate first as president: 1)
Russia, 2) North Korea, 3) Iran or 4)
Canada?
In Des Moines Register, Edwards says SC
poll numbers show that he’s gained the Big
Mo
Boston Globe highlights southern strategy as
key to ’04 outcome
Conservative group – Landmark Legal
Foundation – calls for investigation into
NEA’s election spending practices
In rural state (Iowa), Edwards – in hunt
for rural votes -- proposes “telemedicine”
plan
Iowaism: Authentic log cabin added for this
year’s Clay County Fair All these stories below and more.
… “Dean stumps for
Davis in California” – headline from
report posted last night on CNN.com. Dean
blames recall situation on Bush, Karl Rove and
right-wing Republicans. Excerpt: “Presidential
candidate Howard Dean Saturday urged
Californians to vote against the effort to
oust Gov. Gray Davis, calling it part of a
plan by right-wing Republicans to subvert
democracy.
‘I think this is the fourth attempt to
undermine democracy in this country by the
right wing of the Republican Party since the
2000 elections,’ said Dean. Other
examples, he said, were the refusal by the
‘conservative-dominated United States Supreme
Court’ to order a recount of the votes in
Florida during the 2000 presidential election
and separate GOP-led redistricting efforts in
Colorado and Texas that could result in a loss
of seats currently held by Democrats. ‘I
believe the right wing of the Republican Party
is deliberately undermining the democratic
underpinnings of this country,’ Dean told
a news conference. ‘I believe they do not
care what Americans think and they do not
accept the legitimacy of our elections and
have now, for the fourth time in the fourth
state, attempted to do what they can to remove
democracy from America.’ Davis expressed
optimism that the voters would allow him to
serve out his term…Although Davis expressed
gratitude for Dean's support, he did not
reciprocate when asked whether he would
support Dean's bid for the Democratic
nomination for president. ‘I'm taking one
election at a time,’ he said. Only after the
October 7 recall vote will he decide whom to
support for the Democratic presidential
nomination, Davis said. But, he added about
the former Vermont governor, ‘he has
precisely the right experience to be
president.’ The recall effort picked up
steam when, shortly after he was elected to a
second term as governor last year,
Californians were told they faced a $38
billion deficit. Dean said it would be
unfair to hold Davis wholly responsible for
the state's budget deficit, which has
since been pared to $8 billion. ‘The
deficit that was incurred last year is
directly traceable to the president of the
United States' extraordinary financial policy
in which he managed to turn the largest
surplus in the history of America into the
largest deficit in the history of America in
only two-and-a-half years,’ he said. Davis
said that since George W. Bush became
president, the country has lost 3.3 million
jobs, equivalent to 3,500 jobs per day. Asked
whether his presidential bid might be
adversely affected by his support for Davis,
Dean responded, ‘I don't
care. My trademark is I say what I think, for
better or for worse.’ He added, ‘I'm tired
of having this country run by the right wing.
That is not where most people are in this
country, and I think we ought not to put up
with this anymore.’ Asked whether he believed
the White House was involved in the effort to
unseat Davis, Dean said, ‘Absolutely. I
think [Bush chief political adviser] Karl Rove
and George Bush have their hand in this.’
The White House has said it is not involved in
the race. Although Dean is the first of the
nine Democratic presidential candidates to
stump for Davis, all have signed a letter
opposing the recall effort and others will
soon follow Dean's lead, Davis predicted.
In addition, former President Clinton will
travel to California in the next week to 10
days to speak in support of Davis, he said.”
… Zogby
America poll -- released yesterday -- shows
GWB numbers lowest since he took office, Dean
leading Dem wannabes, Gephardt slipping to
fourth – but nearly two-thirds of likely Dem
voters still expect Bush to be re-elected.
Excerpt from Zogby America news release: “President
George W. Bush’s job performance ratings have
reached the lowest point since his
pre-Inauguration days, continuing a steady
decline since a post-9/11 peak, according
to a new Zogby America poll of 1,013 likely
voters conducted September 3-5. Less than
half (45%) of the respondents said they rated
his job performance good or excellent, while a
majority (54%) said it was fair or poor.
In August Zogby International polling, his
rating was 52% positive, 48% negative.
Today’s results mark the first time a majority
of likely voters have given the president an
unfavorable job performance rating since he
took office. A majority (52%) said it’s
time for someone new in the White House, while
just two in five (40%) said the president
deserves to be re-elected. Last month,
45% said re-election was in order, and 48%
said it was time for someone new. A like
number (52%) said the country is heading in
the wrong direction, while 40% said it is the
right direction. Overall opinion of
President Bush has also slipped to 54%
favorable – 45% unfavorable, compared to
August polling which indicated 58% favorable,
40% unfavorable. Just two in five (40%) said
they would choose Bush if the election were
held today, while 47% said they would elect a
Democratic candidate. In August polling,
respondents were split (43% each) over
President Bush or any Democratic challenger.
In the same poll, likely Democratic primary
voters give a plurality of their support to
former Vermont Governor Dr. Howard Dean (16%),
whose campaign has been gathering support in
recent polling. He is followed by
Massachusetts Senator John Kerry (13%),
Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman (12%),
and Missouri Congressman Richard Gephardt
(8%). No other candidate polled more than 3%.
Nearly two-thirds (63%) of the likely
Democratic primary voters said it is somewhat
or very likely that President Bush will be
re-elected in November 2004, regardless of how
they intend to vote. The Zogby America poll
involved 1,013 likely voters selected randomly
from throughout the 48 contiguous states using
listed residential telephone numbers. Polling
was conducted from Zogby International’s Call
Center in Utica, NY. The poll has a margin of
sampling error of +/- 3.2%. The Democratic
candidates’ portion of the poll involved 507
respondents, and has a margin of error of +/-
4.5%.”
Bush
Job Performance
Positive %
Negative %
September 2003
45
54
August
2003
52
48
July
2003
53
46
March
2003
54
45
September 2002
64
36
September 2001
82
17
August
2001
50
49
January
2001
42
36
… “Dean
holds strong lead over Kerry in N. H. poll”
– headline from this morning’s Boston Globe.
Dean has a 12-point lead over Kerry,
Gephardt and Lieberman – former double-digit
wannabes in NH polls – each at 7%. Excerpt
from coverage by Globe’s Anne E. Kornblut: “Former
Vermont governor Howard Dean holds a strong
12-point lead over Senator John F. Kerry in
the New Hampshire primary race, but Democratic
primary voters are evenly divided over which
of the two men would better be able to defeat
President Bush, according to a new Boston
Globe and WBZ-TV poll. Underscoring his
front-runner status, Dean drew support from
38 percent of likely voters, compared with 26
percent for Kerry, who remains in second
place in the state. Potentially more
significant is Dean's appeal among voters who
backed Senator John S. McCain in 2000: 54
percent of those who supported McCain's
maverick candidacy -- and helped the Arizona
Republican soundly defeat George W. Bush in
the nation's first primary during the last
campaign cycle -- said they intend to vote for
Dean. Only 15 percent of McCain voters
said they were planning to support Kerry.
And in an increasingly polarized political
climate, Dean's supporters also showed
more enthusiasm for their candidate,
suggesting that the rage among Democratic
partisans has not subsided. While 32
percent of Dean backers say they will
‘definitely support’ him in the primary, 26
percent of Kerry's supporters say the same for
the Massachusetts senator…The poll of 400
likely Democratic primary voters, all of whom
said they were registered Democrats or
Independents, was conducted by KRC/Communications
Research of Newton on Tuesday and Wednesday,
just as the airwaves were filled with images
of Kerry officially declaring his
candidacy. It has a margin of error of plus or
minus 5 percentage points -- in other words,
Dean's level of support could be as high as
43 percent, or as low as 33 percent. Once
the presumed front-runner in a nine-way race
for the nomination, Kerry has struggled
to match Dean's pace in fund-raising
and his surge in the polls, although advisers
to Kerry's campaign and independent
analysts note that the Jan. 27 primary is
still months away…The other seven Democrats
in the race fell far behind the top two
candidates, failing to register in
double-digits in the state. Representative
Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri and Senator
Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut each
received 7 percent of the Democratic field,
while Senator John Edwards of North Carolina
received 6 percent. Nine percent of those
polled said they did not know who they would
support in the nomination race. But in an
unusually compressed nomination process that
has defied expectations so far, some of the
polling results suggested that the landscape
may shift again before the primary election.
Asked how they would vote if retired
General Wesley Clark entered the race, the
number of undecided voters jumped from 9
percent to 23 percent (and 5 percent said
they would probably vote for Clark, who
has said he will announce his intentions in
the coming weeks).”
… This
isn’t the first time Dean – known hereafter as
“Slippery Howie” – has attempted to evade
public finance commitment. Headline from
yesterday’s Boston Globe: “To Dean, finance
law if familiar dilemma” Coverage – an
excerpt – by the Globe’s Michael Kranish: “Six
years ago, then-Governor Howard Dean signed
legislation that he said would ‘change the way
campaigns are run’ in Vermont. The intent
of the law was to provide candidates for
governor who participated in a voluntary
system with a maximum of $300,000 in public
financing, and set a spending cap. Dean,
who at that time could attract donations more
readily than challengers for his job, said he
signed the law ‘even though I knew it was
going to be to my own disadvantage.’ But when
it came time for Dean to run for reelection in
2000, he rejected public financing and busted
the spending cap by 300 percent. The
governor cited several reasons for the
turnabout, including a court ruling that
enabled his Republican opponent, Ruth Dwyer,
to take large contributions from the national
party, as well as his need to offset money
funneled to Dwyer from what he called an
‘anti-homosexuality’ lobby intent on
unseating him because of his support for civil
unions. Whatever the reason for Dean's
change of mind, his reversal on campaign
spending in Vermont provides insights into
Dean's record on the issue at a time when he
is seriously considering reversing his
original decision to abide by a spending cap
in the Democratic presidential primaries. On
June 7, Dean wrote to the Federal Election
Commission that he will abide by spending
limitations in the primaries. The letter,
signed by Dean, said he ‘will not incur
qualified campaign expenditures in connection
with my campaign for nomination in excess of
the expenditure limitations.’ But Dean more
recently has said he might drop that pledge,
because he is concerned that President Bush is
not abiding by a spending limit and would be
able to financially ‘murder’ Dean next
summer should he secure the Democratic
nomination. Yesterday, Dean campaign
manager Joe Trippi said Dean's lawyers
have assured him that the FEC letter did not
put the campaign ‘past the point of no
return.’ He added that Dean will make a
final decision later this year. Some
opponents, including the campaign of Senator
John F. Kerry, question whether Dean should
be allowed to revoke his pledge. Kerry
campaign manager Jim Jordan said yesterday
that ‘Governor Dean's devotion to
campaign finance reform is only occasional and
only when it suits his political interests. We
would have to seriously consider our options
if Governor Dean decides to opt out and
the FEC allows him to.’ As governor, Dean
promised to enact campaign reform he called
‘the most far-reaching in the country.’
Funded by a tax on lobbyists, the law enabled
a candidate who collected a total of $35,000
from 1,500 people to get a campaign finance
grant bringing their total to $300,000.
According to the Vermont Secretary of State's
website, incumbents would get 85 percent of
that amount. In 2000, Dean said he would
participate in the system and qualified for it…Dean
became worried that Dwyer would try to surpass
him financially with large contributions from
the national Republican Party…Dean was
also quoted in an Aug. 13, 2000, Associated
Press report saying he had no doubt that the
"anti-homosexual lobby" would funnel money
through the GOP to Dwyer.”
… CNN/Time
poll analysis poses THE question of THE
campaign -- Can any Democrat beat
President Bush in 2004? Headline on
analysis by CNN’s Keating Holland: “Bush
election win no sure thing” – just 29%
now say they will “definitely” vote for GWB.
Excerpt: “Can any Democrat beat President Bush
in 2004? Only 38 percent of all Americans
think so, and Bush leads any of the active
presidential candidates in hypothetical
head-to-head match-ups. But don't write off
the 2004 election just yet. Some 41 percent of
all registered voters say they will definitely
vote against Bush; just 29 percent say they
will definitely vote for him. So Bush must
woo about seven in ten swing voters -- not a
difficult task for a popular incumbent, but
far from a certainty. Who will the Democrats
throw into the ring against Bush in 2004?
National polls are traditionally unreliable at
predicting the eventual nominee at this stage
of the game. It looks like Massachusetts
Senator John Kerry is benefiting from an
‘announcement bounce,’ gaining support as a
result of this week's carefully choreographed
appearance in front of an aircraft carrier in
South Carolina to announce, yet again, that he
is running for president. We have seen
these ‘announcement bounces’ before (and seen
how ephemeral they are); nonetheless, this
particular bounce is enough to put Kerry at
the top of the list with 16 percent of all
registered Democrats to 13 percent for Joe
Lieberman and 11 percent for Howard Dean.
Dick Gephardt has dropped back into
single digits with 7 percent, putting him in a
tie for fourth place with John Edwards.”
… “Democratic
Differences” – headline on editorial in this
morning’s Washington Post. Editorial says
only Lieberman focused on the Iraq mission –
while others concentrated on exit strategies.
Excerpt: “The Democratic presidential
candidates debate Thursday night was a rather
mild affair. The eight hopefuls who turned up
in Albuquerque -- a ninth, the Rev. Al
Sharpton, had plane troubles -- spent much
of their time agreeing with each other about
the shortcomings of President Bush's handling
of Iraq. On this score, Rep. Richard
Gephardt of Missouri had the quote of the
night when he termed President Bush ‘a
miserable failure,’ though he probably didn't
need to say it five times to get viewers'
attention. The candidates also devoted
less energy than a rapacious press corps had
hoped to try to take down the newly anointed
front-runner, former Vermont governor Howard
Dean, even as, out of camera range,
their staffs were busy bombarding reporters
with examples of Mr. Dean's supposed
inconsistencies. Underneath the aura of
agreement, however, the debate made clear some
important differences on a range of issues,
from Iraq to trade to the future of the Bush
tax cuts. The disagreement about Iraq has
moved from the ‘should we have/shouldn't we
have’ battles of the spring to: What should we
do now -- in particular, should additional
U.S. troops be deployed? Connecticut Sen.
Joseph Lieberman was the one candidate who
unequivocally supported sending more U.S.
troops. Several others, including
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, Mr.
Gephardt and Mr. Dean, took the
easy way out, saying that while additional
forces are required, they should come from
assembling a broader international coalition.
But at best, more international troops, which
Mr. Lieberman also favors, can
supplement, not supplant U.S. efforts. And
only Mr. Lieberman focused on the importance
of the mission, while most of the Democratic
field talked only about exit strategies.”
… “Kerry casts
himself as ‘first’ and ‘only’ on key issues” –
headline from this morning’s New Hampshire
Sunday News. But is he engaged in more
campaign trickery? Claims leadership on issue
that Kucinich also has addressed. Excerpt
from coverage – dateline: Salem – by AP’s
Holly Ramer: “Democratic presidential
hopeful John Kerry on Saturday accused his
rivals of following his lead on some key
issues and ignoring others that only he has
the ‘vision’ to recognize. In a speech laden
with the words ‘first’ and ‘only,’ Kerry cast
himself as a leader on the economy, health
care, foreign affairs and other issues. He
repeated his opposition to the Bush
administration's plan to design so-called
‘bunker buster’ nuclear bombs that could
destroy deeply buried targets, saying most
Americans aren't aware that the 2003 federal
budget includes money for the project. ‘I say
to this President and to the country -- and
I'm the only candidate who's had the vision to
talk about this and see this issue -- I don't
want a world in which we have more visible
nuclear weapons,’ Kerry told supporters at the
opening of his 10th New Hampshire campaign
office. But at least one of the nine
Democrats seeking the nomination has spoken
out against the project. U.S. Rep. Dennis
Kucinich of Ohio argues that American
officials will have little credibility in
asking North Korea to stop building nuclear
weapons if they're unwilling to do the same…Kerry
also touted his energy policy, which includes
fuel efficiency standards and creating a trust
to finance research into alternative energy.
His goal is to have 20 percent of the nation's
electricity produced by alternative fuels by
2020 and to end dependence on overseas fuel
within a decade. ‘Long before any of the
other candidates started talking about this
... I laid out an agenda for energy
independence,’ he said. ‘I see some of them
have even stolen my name for it, it's
fascinating.’ Asked later which candidate
had copied his plan, Kerry said, ‘I'm staying
generic.’ But he did name names when he
continued his criticism of Rep. Dick Gephardt
of Missouri and former Vermont Gov. Howard
Dean, both of whom support repealing all of
Bush's 2003 tax cuts to pay for health care
and other programs…Though Kerry
trails Dean in the latest New Hampshire
poll, a national poll released Friday showed
him bunched at the top of the pack with
Dean and Sen. Joe Lieberman of
Connecticut. ‘I've said it when polls are up,
I've said it when they're down: I don't pay
much attention to polls,’ Kerry said.
‘The polls aren't critical now... These next
months, it's still going to take time to move
in New Hampshire, it's still going to take
time to move in Iowa. But we're going to do
it.’”
… People Powered
Howard starts looking like he should be
hanging out on a pro wrestling tag team with
Jesse “The Body” Ventura – and now concedes
that he’s sometimes Howard “The Mouth” Dean.
Headline from yesterday’s The Union
Leader: “Dean says he has to watch
his mouth” Excerpt from report – dateline:
Phoenix – by AP political ace Ron Fournier: “Democratic
presidential candidate Howard Dean said Friday
he can be a bit too mouthy -- then went out
and proved his point The front-running
candidate in a field of nine said his
blunt-speaking ways may someday get him in
trouble. Rivals hope his campaign will
implode, and Dean said he knows one way that
could happen. ‘I do have a mouth on me,’ the
former Vermont governor said aboard a small
charter plane taking him here from
Albuquerque, N.M., site of the first major
debate of the 2004 race. ‘That is, I
generally say what I think so I get in
trouble,’ Dean said. Could he hurt
himself? ‘If I blew up in a debate or
something like that, yes,’ Dean said.
‘But I haven't done that in 16 years of
debates.’ Dean said he is learning to let
irksome questions from reporters roll off his
back, adding that it's actually easier to keep
his cool with the national media than it was
in Vermont, where reporters had greater access
to him. ‘I can get snippy,’ he said, ‘no
doubt about it.’ Less than an hour later,
Dean was visiting his new campaign
headquarters where he fielded more than a
dozen questions at an impromptu news
conference. As aides pulled him inside, Dean
was asked whether he was surprised that rival
John Kerry did not criticize him in Thursday's
debate. ‘I wish he'd say to my face what
he says behind my back,’ Dean said
before disappearing behind the door, a grimace
on his face. Kerry had obviously gotten
under his skin. On a busy campaign day,
Dean had managed to underscore one of the
great dichotomies of his campaign: Blunt,
unscripted comments and a brash approach to
politics are drawing Democratic voters to
Dean, but those traits could also be his
undoing. He has already had to apologize
for at least two caustic comments leveled at
foes. In March, he accused Sen. John
Edwards of North Carolina of avoiding
talking about his support of the Iraq war
before an anti-war audience. In June, Dean
described Sen. Bob Graham of Florida as
‘not one of the top-tier candidates,’ a remark
he regretted. Watching his mouth is just one
of the ways Dean is trying to grow as a
candidate now that he is the front-runner, an
informal title that comes with greater
scrutiny, pressure and risks. He hopes to
cement his position atop the field by reaching
out to minorities and party leaders who have
been wary of his candidacy. With Kerry's stock
falling, Democratic leaders who had considered
the Massachusetts senator their front-runner
must now decide whether to side with Dean or
rally behind an alternative…Then
there's his mouth. Before leaving Arizona
for California, Dean realized he had
unintentionally created news with his crack
about Kerry. ‘I just wish he had given
me a chance to respond to all that stuff - the
zero experience on foreign affairs, the NRA
stuff, the tax cut stuff,’ Dean said.
In a television interview Sunday, Kerry
suggested Dean was not ready to be
commander in chief, linked him to the National
Rifle Association and criticized him for
wanting to repeal all of President Bush's tax
cuts. ‘I would have liked to have responded
to that in person,’ Dean said, relishing the
thought of getting mouthy with Kerry.”
… Graham starts
throwing around words like “quagmire” again
during Iowa public TV session, says GWB should
use tonight’s address to nation for apology to
Americans. Headline from yesterday’s Des
Moines Register: “Graham blasts Bush on
TV’s ‘Iowa Press’” Excerpt from report by
the Register’s wannabe-tender Thomas Beaumont:
“Florida Sen. Bob Graham said Friday the
U.S. occupation of Iraq has become a quagmire
for which President Bush must apologize to the
nation. Graham, one of nine Democratic
presidential candidates, spoke on Iowa Public
Television's ‘Iowa Press.’ He said Bush,
scheduled to address the nation Sunday night,
should have come before the public with
estimates of casualties and financial costs of
post-war Iraq before Sunday. ‘The president
ought to say this -- he ought to first start
with an apology -- I apologize for not having
given this speech before we went to war in
Iraq, to explain what the likely consequences
in the war in Iraq were likely to be,’ Graham
said. Bush also should move quickly to
seek help from other nations to send troops to
Iraq, Graham said. ‘I don't think we
have very much time to execute on that
policy,’ said Graham, who opposed the
war. ‘We better move as quickly as possible
because this quagmire is getting deeper and
deeper and we'll have less chance of getting
international support 30 days from now than we
will today.’ Graham, 66, has been
the leading critic among the Democrats running
for president of the Bush administration's
handling of the war on terrorism. Graham's
profile has risen since July, when the joint
inquiry into the terrorist attacks of Sept.
11, 2001, which he co-chaired, released its
findings, showing communication failures in
federal agencies leading up to the tragedy.
Still, the former Florida governor has had
little success building support in Iowa and
other early nominating states, where polls
show him trailing the other candidates. Graham
said he plans to focus on his strengths.
‘I think in life the things you have the most
gratification from are not necessarily those
things from which you get rewards,’ Graham
said after the program. Graham dismissed
the idea that he was in the race to be
considered a candidate for vice president.
Graham, who has never lost an election in
his more than 30 years in Florida politics,
could give Democrats an edge in the state that
cost the party the 2000 presidential election.
‘I am running for president of the United
States of America,’ Graham said.
‘The president is the one who has
responsibilities for our international
relations. It is in that position that I am in
the best position to be the next president.’”
… Edwards
continues to rely on rural roots – and issues”
during Iowa campaign visit. His latest appeal:
Telemedicine. Excerpt from report by AP’s
IA caucus watcher. Mike Glover: “Democratic
presidential candidate John Edwards, seeking
crucial support in Iowa, is calling for
spending $10 million to improve a medical
system in which computer technology allows
doctors to virtually examine patients over
long distances. ‘Iowa has so many small
towns and rural areas,” the North Carolina
senator said. ‘This will allow people to live
in small towns and rural areas and still
access the highest quality health care.’
Edwards planned to discuss his proposal during
a nine-city swing through rural northwest Iowa,
the most sparsely populated corner of the
state. He previewed the proposal in an
interview with The Associated Press. Under
the plan, the money would be used to help
local hospitals purchase telemedicine computer
hardware, which can be too expensive for small
rural hospitals that need it most.
Edwards also would create 10 regional
telemedicine centers to aid inexperienced
providers. Large existing hospitals that offer
telemedicine could apply for the regional
center designation and seek federal funding.
The package also would cut through the red
tape that occasionally blocks access to
telemedicine. For example, Edwards
said, a patient in Iowa might not have access
to a doctor in another state because of
licensing requirements. Edwards pointed
out that Iowa already has a statewide
fiber-optic communications network that links
major hospitals on a communications network.
‘Small-town America should have the same care
that is available in big cities and if we use
new technology we can help make that happen,’
Edwards said.”
… Team Dean
– in an apparent attempt to drive opposing
campaigns planners crazy – raises stakes
again: Drops $50K on SC radio buy aimed at
black audiences. From report by AP’s Will
Lester in yesterday’s The Union Leader: “Democrat
Howard Dean is launching radio ads in South
Carolina Saturday aimed at attracting black
voters, who could make up almost half the
electorate in the state's Feb. 3 presidential
primary. So far, the former Vermont
governor has drawn much of his support from
whites, prompting the campaign to step up its
efforts to reach out to minorities. The
initial $50,000 ad buy will play on radio
stations with a black audience, introducing
Dean as ‘a presidential candidate not afraid
to stand up to the president on economy and
jobs, even if it means standing alone.’
Dean campaign manager Joe Trippi said the
ad may be introduced in other markets later. ‘We
will be going on the air soon in Latino and
African-American communities in key states,’
he said. In late August, Dean began airing
a television ad in selected markets in
Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina,
Washington state and Wisconsin. He also
has been running TV ads in Iowa, where he's
tied for the lead with Rep. Dick Gephardt
of Missouri, and in New Hampshire, where he
has holds a double-digit lead over Sen. John
Kerry of Massachusetts. He has run ads
in Austin, Texas, as well. Once the campaign
moves past January contests in Iowa and New
Hampshire, the ability of candidates to
attract support from minority voters will
become crucial, with several contests in
states with larger minority populations. The
60-second radio ad in South Carolina will run
for more than a week in all of the state's
major markets, said Tricia Enright, a campaign
spokeswoman.”
… Edwards in
Council Bluffs – Des Moines Register
coverage: Poll results show that he’s got the
Big Mo. Headline from yesterday’s Register
– “Edwards says S. C. poll shows his
momentum” Excerpt from report by the
Register’s Beaumont: “Democratic
presidential candidate John Edwards said
Friday a South Carolina poll showing him
narrowly leading in that early nominating
state demonstrates his candidacy has picked up
momentum after showing little movement this
summer. ‘I think I'm moving up and we will
continue to move up in South Carolina,’
Edwards, a North Carolina senator, said in
a telephone interview from Council Bluffs.
According to the South Carolina poll released
Thursday by independent polling company Zogby
International, Edwards received 10 percent
of support, a pick-up of five points since
July. Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean
finished a close second with 9 percent,
followed by Sen. John Kerry of
Massachusetts with 8 percent. The South
Carolina primary is Feb. 3, two weeks after
the Iowa caucuses and a week after the New
Hampshire primary…Making his third campaign
visit since May to a part of the state notably
less-Democratic than Republican is part of
Edwards' strategy to appeal to rural
Democrats. ‘The rural counties in western
Iowa present a lot of potential for me because
of my own background and my rural message,’ he
said. Edwards endeared himself to Iowa
Democratic activists last year with generous
financial contributions and by visiting
several times. But his decision to spend most
of the first quarter of 2003 raising money for
his presidential bid, instead of campaigning
in key states such as Iowa, allowed other
candidates to pick up momentum. Edwards
has since increased his time in Iowa. Recent
polls show him in fifth place with support in
the single digits. In his campaign, Edwards
spotlights his upbringing in small town in
North Carolina. He also unveiled a rural
economic proposal in Iowa in May.”
… Edwards
in Council Bluffs – Omaha World-Herald
coverage: NC Sen highlights health care plans.
Headline in yesterday’s World-Herald: “Edwards
pushes phased-in health plan” Excerpts
from coverage by the World-Herald’s Henry J.
Cordes: “Attempting to be heard amid the
din of Democratic presidential hopefuls
pledging health care reform, John Edwards said
Friday that he is the only candidate who
guarantees health insurance coverage for every
child. ‘I want to make health care a
birthright of every child in America,’ the
U.S. senator from North Carolina said,
lamenting the estimated 12 million Americans
18 and under who have no insurance coverage.
During a health care roundtable at a Bluffs
diner, Edwards also pledged improved
coverage for mental health and blasted drug
companies for policies that have sharply
driven up costs for consumers. As they
swing through western Iowa seeking supporters
in January's Iowa caucuses, all nine Democrats
seeking to unseat President Bush have talked
up improving health care. Most have
proposals for universal health insurance
coverage. All note Iowa's
lowest-in-the-nation reimbursement rate under
Medicare and pledge to work to change it.
It can make it hard to distinguish the
candidates on health care, said Barry
Miller, a Council Bluffs nursing home
manager who sat at the table with Edwards. ‘I
like what I heard, but I need to get a lot
more specifics,’ said Miller, who has not
picked a candidate to support. ‘I'm looking
for a candidate with a clear, comprehensive
plan.’ Pam Wilson, a Bluffs nurse who also
joined the roundtable, said she's leaning
toward supporting Edwards because she
thinks his plan for universal health care is
the most doable. The Edwards plan would
phase in universal coverage, first by
mandating coverage for all children.
Included is a requirement that all parents
make sure their children are covered. Edwards
next would cover the ‘most vulnerable adults’
and then help other families buy affordable
insurance through tax credits. Part of the
plan would be funded by repealing Bush's
recent tax cuts.”
… “Democrats’ battle
plans point South…Region is viewed as
decisive in ‘04” – headline from Friday’s
Boston Globe. Excerpt from coverage –
dateline: Charleston, SC – by Patrick Healy: “Only
three Democrats have won the White House since
1964 -- and Lyndon B. Johnson, Jimmy Carter,
and Bill Clinton were all from the South.
That's why state Senator Robert Ford, a
backslapping Democrat with little taste for
Yankee politicians, has begun delivering a
blunt message to other African-Americans in
South Carolina: Only a white Southerner will
bring back enough white Southerners to the
party to beat President Bush next year.
‘White voters in the South who are Democrats
tend not to vote for Northerners for
president,’ Ford argues in a campaign brochure
passed around at rallies last week for his
chosen candidate for the Democratic
nomination, Senator John Edwards of North
Carolina. ‘This was not only true for
Michael Dukakis, but we also lost the South
when John F. Kennedy ran for president.’
Edwards, who was born in South Carolina,
is counting on a native-son victory in the
state's Feb. 3 primary as part of his
campaign's calculus to pull votes from
moderates, blacks, and Southerners to win his
party's nomination. But the Northerners in
the race, who lead Edwards in most polls, are
hardly writing off the region. They are
busy devising strategies for the South, which
proved decisive for Bush in 2000 and Bill
Clinton in 1992, and might seal the Democratic
nomination next year. On Tuesday, Senator
John F. Kerry took the unusual step of
formally kicking off his presidential campaign
in Mount Pleasant, S.C., dockside with the USS
Yorktown. Howard Dean, the former
governor of Vermont, is pledging to fight for
Southern votes, recently began discussing race
relations in America, and broadcast his first
television ads in South Carolina last Friday.
Edwards went on the air in Charleston
two weeks ago. Senator Joseph I. Lieberman
of Connecticut went to a Spartanburg, S.C.,
gas station Aug. 27 to talk about high fuel
prices, then visited a textile mill where
hundreds of workers have lost jobs in recent
years. The Democratic contenders are
sounding similar notes with Southern voters,
mostly on the economy, decrying the loss of
manufacturing jobs and the hard times for
textile mills. Edwards has mentioned
being the son of a textile mill worker at
every campaign stop, sometimes two or three
times. The candidates also are promising
expanded health care coverage, a prescription
drug benefit, and cleaner air and coastlines.
As part of their heightening attention to
civil rights, Lieberman, Edwards, and
several other candidates issued ‘reflections’
recently on the 40th anniversary of the March
on Washington, and have courted Southern black
politicians to help reach African-American
voters. ‘We will run hard in South
Carolina and throughout the South, very hard.
We're not taking any region for granted,’ said
Tricia Enright, a spokeswoman for Dean,
who recently completed a nine-city tour that
went as far south as Falls Church, Va., near
the nation's capital. ‘Regardless of regions,
people are struggling over the same things:
Will you have a job tomorrow? Will your family
have health care?’ For now, down-home issues
are more appealing to voters than are the
conflicts in Iraq or the Middle East. ‘I'm
glad he's not just talking about Bush's war,’
said George Adams, a Charleston longshoreman
who came to hear Edwards at a local union hall
last week. ‘The working people of America are
getting the raw end of the deal right now.
This country's lost 2 million jobs under Bush.
We need a president who cares about that.’
A black Democrat, Adams said he is choosing
between Edwards and two rivals, Representative
Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri and the Rev.
Al Sharpton. ‘I like a Southerner -- Bill
Clinton is from the South -- but I'll probably
go with the guy who's winning,’ Adams said.”
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