Republicans
From MSNBC's David ShusterClinton runs more than 1,200 pages in length.
According to these officials, the book includes "previously undisclosed information about Hillary Clinton's connections to the Whitewater scandal, travel office firings, and Democratic fundraising efforts." Given that the book has not been shared with us, we've been unable to confirm this assertion. Furthermore, the Republican officials would not describe the nature of the "new information."
However, I was not directed away from a front-page story in today's Washington Times about memos/documents from the estate of Sam Dash, Ken Starr's ethics adviser during the early stages of the Whitewater investigation. The Dash Whitewater memos and documents have been turned over to the Library of Congress (where they were presumably available to the Washington Times reporter/researcher). The documents reportedly show that prosecutors concluded that Hillary Clinton concealed information and misled a federal grand jury about her work for the Savings and Loan at the heart of the Whitewater investigation. The allegation that she concealed and misled is not new, and was sourced by reporters who covered the investigation in the 1990s (including me) to "attorneys close to Starr" or "sources in the office of the independent counsel."
The documents from Dash's estate, however, mark the first available "documentary evidence" that Ken Starr's office drafted a criminal indictment of Senator Clinton, also known as a "pros memo" and debated verbally and through written memos whether Clinton should actually face charges. The documents indicate, according to the Washington Times, that prosecutors in the end decided not to charge Sen. Clinton because of their concern about the strengths of their evidence and the likelihood of obtaining a conviction of a sitting first lady. But such memos, documents, and etc. about the internal debate in the office of the independent counsel could be a gold mine for negative ads, etc.
By the way, to put the RNC's opposition research effort into context, I'm told the dossier on Senator Obama is 1,000 pages in length and that Republican researchers spent a few weeks in Chicago recently collecting information on Obama's ties to the Weather Underground" and separately to Tony Rezko (who is currently on trial for federal corruption charges).
From NBC's Mark Murray Newt Gingrich sounds the alarm after Republicans lost a second-straight special election in a GOP-held seat. "The Republican loss in the special election for Louisiana's Sixth Congressional District last Saturday should be a sharp wake up call for Republicans: Either Congressional Republicans are going to chart a bold course of real change or they are going to suffer decisive losses this November."
"The facts are clear and compelling. Saturday's loss was in a district that President Bush carried by 19 percentage points in 2004 and that the Republicans have held since 1975. This defeat follows on the loss of Speaker Hastert's seat in Illinois. That seat had been held by a Republican for 76 years with the single exception of the 1974 Watergate election when the Democrats held it for one term. That same seat had been carried by President Bush 55-44% in 2004."
Gingrich offers some suggestions for the GOP leadership -- like repealing the gas tax and paying for it by cutting discretionary spending; overhauling the Census Bureau (?); establishing a one-year moratorium on earmarks; and making English the official language of the US government -- and he concludes:
"No Republicans should kid themselves. It's time to face up to a stark choice. Without change we could face a catastrophic election this fall. Without change the Republican Party in the House could revert to the permanent minority status it had from 1930 to 1994... It's time for real change to avoid a real disaster."
From NBC's Mark Murray Obama for not supporting a gas-tax holiday, while also noting that he supported a state one while in the Illinois legislature.
But it's worth pointing out that Obama -- while voting for that gas-tax holiday in Illinois -- later voted AGAINST a state measure extending it. As PolitiFact put it, "[I]t's not fair to call it a flip-flop when the very reason Obama opposes a suspension of the gas tax now is because he concluded that it didn't work when he supported one in the past."
From NBC's Ken Strickland Pete Domenici of New Mexico a "public letter of qualified admonition" for his involvement in the Justice Department's firing of several US Attorneys last year. It was a scandal that helped lead to the resignation of former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
In March of 2007, former US Attorney David Iglesias testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that Domenici had called him at home asking about an ongoing investigation of Democrats in the senator's home state of New Mexico. Iglesias said Domenici wanted to know the timing of indictments.
According to the transcript from the hearing, the US Attorney said the senator asked, "'Are these going to be filed before November?' And I said I didn't think so, to which [Domenici] replied, 'I'm very sorry to hear that.'" Iglesias then said, "the line went dead."
Domenici later apologized for the call, but said he did not pressure Iglesias to move on the case. The 75-year-old senator has since announced his retirement saying he was diagnosed with a dementia type brain ailment.
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro WRAL-TV tells the Raleigh News & Observer it has rejected the North Carolina Republican Party's Rev. Jeremiah Wright ad, linking Obama, Wright and, by extension, Democratic gubernatorial candidates Beverly Perdue and Richard Moore, who have endorsed Obama.
"A spokesman for another Triangle station, WTVD, said it had not been asked to air the ad but would have reservations about doing so," the News & Observer writes.
McCain and the Republican National Committee have asked the NC GOP not to air the ad.
Per NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann Obama to the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
"This is a legitimate question to be asked," said state party spokesman Brent Woodcox, who emphasized that the NC GOP has "a great relationship" with their national leadership. "We are not the only ones asking it."
VIDEO: April 23: MSNBC's Norah O'Donnell talks with North Carolina GOP chair Linda Daves about a controverisal new ad running in the state that calls Barack Obama too extreme. Woodcox says the party plans to air the ad Monday night at 6, but that the buy is "still being finalized." (That means there's still time for the party to balk, rendering the ad a trial balloon or a stunt.)
He said that the urging of party leadership will be "taken into consideration," but that they stand by the ad as of now. "We plan to go ahead with this," he said.
The Republican National Committee was aware of the ad last night, but a formal request for the ad to be aired was not made by the RNC until this morning.
CONTINUED >>
From NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann Update to NC Gop anti-Obama ad that references the Rev. Jeremiah Wright...
Per the RNC, the national leadership of the Republican Party has been in contact this morning with the North Carolina GOP, urging them to refrain from running the "Extreme" ad. The party says that the content of the anti-Obama ad, which references the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is "not appropriate" and "unhelpful."
The NC GOP is an independent organization not bound to the recommendations of the national party. A spokesman from the NC party declined to comment on any conversations between the RNC and the North Carolina team.
*** UPDATE *** McCain
Here's the letter:
Dear Chairman Daves,
This ad does not live up to the very high standards we should hold ourselves to in this campaign. We need to run a campaign that is worthy of the people we seek to serve. There is no doubt that we will draw sharp contrasts with the Democrats on fundamental issues critical to the future course of our country.
But we need not engage in political tactics that only seek to divide the American people.
Once again, it is imperative that you withdraw this offensive advertisement.
John McCain
From MSNBC.com’s Andy Merten Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter (R) discussed his battle with cancer with reporters on Capitol Hill today, after announcing Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with a recurrence of Hodgkin’s disease. He appeared upbeat and even joked with the press, likening his physical appearance change during chemotherapy to a case of identity theft.
“I consider it another bump in the road,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of bumps, and I’ve got good shock absorbers.”
VIDEO: See Specter's statement on his health. Specter, who is the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee and whose seat is up in 2010, said in a press release last night that he will continue with his official duties and his candidacy for re-election.
The New York Times uses the Pope's visit to the states to examine the battle for the Catholic vote. "Dismayed at losing so many Catholic and other religious voters to the Republicans in 2004, Democrats talk far more often, and more comfortably, about their values and the importance of their own faith these days. Essentially, they have tried to broaden the definition of ‘values’ issues beyond abortion rights, on which they disagree with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and many religious conservatives. Mrs. Clinton, for example, spoke recently about the economy and the needs of working families to a crowd of more than 2,000 at Mercyhurst, a Catholic college in Erie, Pa. The college and the candidate went ahead with the event despite the objections of the local bishop, who argued that a Catholic institution should reflect the church’s ‘pro-life stance’ on abortion."
With Democrats deciding to target the GOP-held Cuban-American seats in South Florida, the Wall Street Journal wonders if this is signaling a shift in the Cuban vote from the GOP to Dem.
So will McCain's immigration position help Republicans more with Hispanic voters than it does hurt with anti-immigration reform voters who stay home? That's what McCain's betting on, reports Bloomberg News . "McCain cites his standing with his state's Hispanics as proof that he is a different kind of Republican, distinct from the illegal-immigration foes who dominate the party. He vows to campaign in the barrios, gunning for the 70 percent Latino support he won in his last senatorial election. That's precisely what worries anti-immigration Republicans, who say the party's base will stay at home if it detects the kind of mariachi politics that President George W. Bush practiced to win more than 40 percent of Latino voters in 2004.”
Condi Rice didn't pull a "Sherman" on being McCain’s veep, but came close . “While praising Mr. McCain, Republican of Arizona, Ms. Rice said in an interview, ‘I don’t want to be, don’t intend to be, won’t be on the ticket.’”
Biden will give a speech at Georgetown University, in which he blasts McCain and the GOP on foreign policy. “When people say ‘this is the most important election in my lifetime,’ they’re right,” he will say, per excerpts released by his Senate office. “I start from a simple premise: we cannot afford another four years of Republican stewardship of our nation’s security… John McCain remains wedded to the Bush Administration’s myopic view of a world defined by terrorism. He would continue to allow a tiny minority to set the agenda for the overwhelming majority. It is time for a total change in Washington’s worldview. That will require more than a great soldier. It will require a wise leader.”
More: “When it comes to Iraq, there is no daylight between John McCain and George W. Bush. They are joined at the hip. When it comes to Iraq, there will be no change with a McCain administration… and so there is a real and profound choice for Americans in November… We should debate the consequences of drawing down in Iraq. But more importantly, we should talk about what both President Bush and Senator McCain refuse to acknowledge: the increasingly intolerable costs of staying.”
