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Bush Campaign Tiptoed Into Arlington HQ
Charles Euchner, executive director of the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at Harvard University, a think tank that studies local political issues, said he would take the Bush campaign at its word that the headquarters decision was removed from local political considerations.
"If it's pointed out, I'm sure they would take a bit of relish in it," he added.
Euchner said the Arlington location makes sense for a White House operation known for keeping major decisions tightly held. Referring to Bush's top political adviser, he said, "Everyone knows the real campaign headquarters is in Karl Rove's brain. They probably consider it a bonus that people out in Arlington will not be distracted by the kind of insider games that go on in D.C. Their attitude about campaign workers is 'me boss, you not. I decide, you execute.' "
He added that Bush is also "in a small way sending a message that he is not of the Washington mindset. We're putting in Arlington for the convenience, but we are not of D.C."
Some of the people interviewed in Bush's mostly commercial neighborhood, which is surrounded by residential communities, said they appreciated the gesture. People in the building, most of whom declined to be quoted by name, said the campaign has generally been a good neighbor, and they expressed appreciation for not having to pony up their IDs or deal with oppressive security.
A minor fuss did erupt several months ago when the Bush people cordoned off a bunch of reserved spaces in the building's parking lot but couldn't use all of them because not enough workers had arrived yet. Someone alerted the media.
People in the building said there is little talk now about the parking incident, though one woman in the office complex, who would not give her name, expressed anger at the Bush campaign's presence.
"I don't think Bush is good for the United States," she said. "So how can he be good for the neighborhood?"
But Jean Westcott, manager of a nearby Olsson's Books & Records, said the headquarters "has been very good for business."
When she heard the Bush campaign had arrived, Westcott said, she realized she was prominently displaying several recently released political humor books, such as the one by comedian Al Franken, that make fun of the president. So she gave other books more prominent display instead.
"I just want to have a balance, some other options," she said.
Asked if any local watering holes or restaurants have emerged as campaign favorites -- such as the downtown McDonald's or the honky-tonk steakhouse called Doe's Eat Place that became a legendary hangout for Clinton campaign staffers in Little Rock in 1992 -- campaign officials said one possibility is the nearby Brooklyn Bagel Bakery.
Sure enough, owner Moe Houdaigui waxed effusive about the campaign, which he said has boosted business throughout the area. He said campaign workers often show up at 6:30 a.m. for bagels, freshly scrubbed and having already gone into the office.
"They're customers. What's not to like?" he said.
URL:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53038-2003Dec10_3.html |
