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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: American Spirit who wrote (21299)	6/30/2003 2:36:17 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

Bush Fundraising: Post-Tax Cut Payback From The Rich? _____________________ by Helen Thomas Syndicated Columnist Published on Friday, June 27, 2003 by the Hearst Newspapers President George W. Bush is trying to scoop up an historic $200 million at political fundraising events to kick off his reelection campaign -- even though he has no challengers in the Republican primaries. But it's not all self-serving. His Republican strategists indicate the president has larger ambitions this time around. He wants to transform the GOP into the majority party by capturing traditional Democrats and swing voters. Bush will be aiming for Latinos, white union workers, and "soccer moms" who have been re-dubbed "security moms" since 9-11. He has the conservatives and Christian right solidly in his corner. Marc Racicot -- moving from chairman of the Republican National Committee, to head the Bush reelection committee -- hopes to recruit candidates who share the president's conservative agenda. He also has set an ambitious goal of registering three million new Republicans by the end of the year and is willing to spend $1 million to achieve that goal. But I wonder if Bush's popularity can offset the unpredictable economy and loss of nearly three million jobs since he took office. There is also the unfinished business of two wars, in Afghanistan and Iraq. Bush's fundraising goal is twice the amount for his first presidential race. All he has to do is show up at about 10 lunches, dinners and receptions over the next five weeks and the money will flow. Deep-pocket Republican guests will pay $2,000 to attend most of the events. It looks like payback time for those big-wad corporate chieftains who hit the jackpot with his new tax-cut-for-the-rich law. Nor has he given up on another carrot for the wealthy contributors -- repeal of the federal estate tax. Why does he need all that money? Well, his spokesman, Ari Fleischer explains that Bush has nine Democratic opponents at the moment taking political swipes at him. Answering them will take some time and money. Besides, he said, "the president wants to get his message out." The Bush war chest is expected to finance television commercials that will play up the president's image as the military's commander-in-chief conducting the war on terrorism. He also may tout congressional passage of his confusing prescription drug plan for Medicare patients. This will amount to the president's theft of a key Democratic issue. Aides said the president also would use his TV ads to attack his Democratic opponents as being captive of liberal interest groups, presumably a reference to the union support they receive. Last week, Bush raised $3.5 million at a casual get-together over hot dogs, cheeseburgers and nachos. There, the president told the gathering that "your support is laying the groundwork for a strong nationwide effort next year." He added -- probably with tongue in cheek: "The political season will come in its own time. Right now, this administration is focused on the people's business." Last Friday, Bush he flew to Greensboro, Ga., for another get-together with the GOP faithful who chipped in a cool $2.2 million. On Monday he attended another fundraiser in New York City and raked in $4 million. More presidential stops are slated for San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and Tampa before the end of July. Under federal law, Bush has to use the millions collected before the GOP nomination convention wraps up work in early September 2004. Although Bush didn't check off the $3 public funding fee on his income tax return, he will accept public funding in the general election, but not in the primaries. When reporters asked Fleischer whether there was "a dash of hypocrisy" or a "disconnect" between accepting federal matching funds but not contributing to the fund, he danced around the issue. He replied that Bush is in "pretty good company" because only 12 percent or down to 8 percent of the American people check the box. "That's the way our system works," he said. All of the Democratic presidential aspirants have indicated that they will accept federal matching funds -- up to $44 million -- in the primaries. They lack the clout to tap into the big donors as Bush is doing. Bush has two crowd-drawing pinch hitters already fanning out to back him up. His wife Laura has a couple of dozen fundraising appearances on tap before the end of the summer. Vice President Cheney is also making appearances on the high-stakes fundraising circuit. Bush has told his affluent supporters that he has the "wind" at his back, an Irish expression of good luck. In Bush's case, the wind takes the form of Republican friends who are rolling in dough and willing to shell out to help his reelection campaign. © 2003 Hearst Newspapers commondreams.org

To: American Spirit who wrote (21299)	6/30/2003 3:02:46 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

McCain gives nod to Kerry campaign ___________________________ by Andrew Miga The Boston Herald Monday, June 30, 2003 www2.bostonherald.com WASHINGTON - GOP maverick Sen. John McCain, whose breezy straight-talking style ignited the 2000 White House race, predicts Sen. John Kerry could rekindle the same campaign magic this time around. ``He certainly can,'' McCain (R-Ariz.) said in a telephone interview with the Herald from Arizona. ``He's smart, he's tough and he's experienced. He has the capability.'' McCain, meanwhile, was skeptical that upstart Democrat Howard Dean, who considers himself the McCain of the 2004 race, could ultimately show wide political appeal. ``He is coming out of a kind of antiestablishment role that clearly resonates with some voters,'' said McCain. ``But I don't know if that can play with the broader electorate, the American public.'' Dean's appeal to hard-core liberals has undercut Kerry, particularly in New Hampshire, the leadoff primary state that Kerry can't afford to lose. McCain defended Kerry from Dean's recent attacks charging the Bay State senator lacks ``courage'' on such issues as tax cuts, the war with Iraq and education. ``I do not believe that's a fair criticism,'' said McCain. ``Governor Dean has spent some time apologizing to people recently for some of the things he's said.'' Kerry and McCain, both decorated Vietnam veterans, forged a friendship working on the POW-MIA issue several years ago. Asked if Kerry was the Democratic candidate most closely resembling him, McCain demurred. ``I don't know,'' he said. ``He and I are very good personal friends, so my objectivity is probably skewed.'' McCain said he would not be surprised if political foes and the press try to pick apart or distort Kerry's combat record. ``Primaries are awful nasty,'' McCain said. ``But I would be surprised if there's anything in John Kerry's military background that would hurt him.'' McCain was victimized by a vicious whispering campaign during the 2000 South Carolina primary alleging he was brainwashed as a POW. McCain also recalled a Senate hearing on POW-MIAs where a man accused him of being a ``Manchurian Candidate'' manipulated by his Viet Cong captors. ``I was about to lose my temper,'' McCain recalled. ``I felt (Kerry's) hand on my shoulder, and he said, `John, don't dignify it with a response.' He had a cool head.' '' Kerry wants to borrow a page from the political playbook of McCain, whose war-hero status helped propel his underdog campaign in a string of early presidential primary contests against George Bush. ``People will appreciate your service to the country,'' McCain said. ``It's a good credential to have, but people want more. ``They want to know what you are going to do for them now.'' While painfully aware that Kerry lacks McCain's personal charisma, the Kerry camp nonetheless is modeling much of its primary campaign after the Straight Talk Express, McCain's novel presidential bid that featured guerrilla-style tactics and populist rhetoric. Other Democratic presidential hopefuls are also scrambling to inherit McCain's campaign mantle. Kerry calls McCain ``one of the joys of my service in the Senate.'' McCain's words of praise for Kerry, however, came with a caveat about gauging the mood of voters as the 2004 presidential race unfolds. The Arizona Republican said the popularity of such war books and films as ``The Greatest Generation'' and ``Saving Private Ryan'' lifted his campaign, but he warned pop culture may have since shifted. ``It's hard to know what the atmosphere is out there, but I'm confident John Kerry can connect with people in the same way,'' he said. ``We were fortunate to have a volatile mixture that we put a match to.''

To: American Spirit who wrote (21299)	7/1/2003 12:41:55 AM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 89467

Better Presidential Campaigns for Only $2 More By SCOTT E. THOMAS Editorial The New York Times July 1, 2003 WASHINGTON - Today many Democratic presidential candidates are expected to report how much money they have raised in the last three months. Meanwhile, President Bush's campaign has raised about $20 million in the last two weeks. The focus on these numbers and what they say about each candidate's prospects distracts attention from the much-needed reform of America's public financing system for presidential campaigns. More than three decades ago, Congress devised a pretty good way to insulate whomever gets elected president from the influence of wealthy special interests. After the ravages of Watergate, the law was amended to create the program we have today. The Presidential Election Campaign Fund matches donations up to $250 in the primary elections, pays for the parties' political conventions, finances the campaigns of the major-party candidates in the general election and sets spending limits for both the primary and general elections. The fund, collected from millions of Americans who agree to designate three dollars of their taxes each year, was devised to supplant the money raised by well-connected donors who might come calling for favors. Until recently, almost all serious candidates for president accepted money from the fund. But in 2000, George W. Bush opted not to participate in the matching-fund program for his campaign for the Republican nomination for president. In 2004, Mr. Bush is reported to have chosen to forgo public financing in the nomination phase of his campaign. Thus he will be able to spend more than he would be allowed if he accepted money from the fund. Some Democrats are also said to be considering not accepting matching funds. One explanation for this situation is the low spending ceiling set in the law: candidates who agree to participate can spend only about $45 million during the period before the party convention. This is hardly enough to cover the modern 18-month presidential nomination process. Congress can easily repair this flaw by updating the law. In a bipartisan effort, Commissioner Michael Toner and I — he is a Republican, I am a Democrat — have set forth proposals to entice major candidates back into the program. The first step is to raise the spending ceiling for primaries to about $75 million. This figure corresponds to the spending limit for candidates for the general election. Because of this higher limit, the amount of matching funds available to a candidate in the nomination phase of the campaign should also be increased, to about $37.5 million (up from the present limit of about $19 million). The government should match the first $500 of any person's donation, instead of the current $250 it matches now. These changes would provide a candidate enough money to get through the entire nomination period — including the lull between the early primary spending binge and the late-summer conventions. And it would give a participating candidate a fighting chance against a well-heeled candidate. The program would be large enough to persuade virtually all candidates to accept public financing in the primary as well as the general election. Would it cost more? Of course — a whopping $2 more for each taxpayer who now agrees to give $3 of his or her taxes to the program. Right now, about 20 million taxpayers check the Presidential Election Campaign Fund box. If these taxpayers directed $5 to the fund, it would be large enough to entice everyone running for president to participate in the matching program — and these candidates would be beholden to the citizens. This money could replace the more than $375 million that candidates would otherwise have to raise from special interests. It may be too late for Congress to amend the law for the 2004 election. But it should convene hearings to gauge the problem and the financial commitment needed to solve it. The fix is relatively simple, and Republicans and Democrats should work together to get the job done. ______________________________________ Scott E. Thomas is a commissioner on the Federal Election Commission. nytimes.com

To: American Spirit who wrote (21299)	7/1/2003 1:10:48 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

Dem Candidates Scramble to Catch Up With Dean's Fund-Raising Monday, June 30, 2003 WASHINGTON — Joe Lieberman (search) made a dramatic plea for last-minute money Monday as rival Democratic presidential candidates scrambled to catch up with solid second-quarter fund raising by Howard Dean (search), whose drive for Internet donations helped lift him to roughly $7 million. "There are only 12 hours left before the critical June 30 fund-raising deadline," Lieberman, a Connecticut senator, wrote in an e-mail. "Before 12 midnight (Central time), please visit my Web site and make a contribution to my campaign." Lieberman, who collected $3 million in the first three months of the year, was hoping for $4 million in the second quarter as the White House hopefuls made their final push, fully aware of Dean's surge and the millions President Bush (search) has collected in a short period. Bush was raising $3 million for his re-election effort at fund-raisers in Miami and Tampa, Fla., while Vice President Dick Cheney helped the campaign collect at least $500,000 in Grand Rapids, Mich., and $600,000 in Akron, Ohio. The Bush campaign expected to raise around $30 million by the close of the second quarter at midnight Monday after six weeks of fund raising. Bush entered the race in mid-May. Besides their practical value in financing campaign activities, the quarterly campaign finance totals are important politically. They are closely watched by party and campaign strategists, prospective supporters and political observers as a marker of campaigns' strength or weakness. Dean, the former Vermont governor, was updating his second-quarter total every half-hour on the Internet, urging donors to "hit a grand slam for Dean." He had collected at least $674,000 online Monday as of mid-evening, pushing his Web donations to the $4 million range this year. Though Dean had yet to surpass the 24-hour record of $1 million over the Internet set in 2000 by Republican candidate John McCain, his online total was the highest announced so far by any campaign. Dean's overall total of about $7 million collected from April through June topped early estimates from other Democratic candidates. His campaign was the only one to release a real-time total Monday. "We've been building this organization for months," Dean campaign manager Joe Trippi said. The campaign has used a Web site called meetup.com to encourage supporters to get together in cities and plan campaign activities, including fund-raising drives. It also is holding traditional fund-raisers, including some with $250 to $500 ticket prices. Factoring in expenses such as food, promotion and a venue, such events typically carry much higher overhead for campaigns than Internet fund raising; raising money over the Web can cost just pennies for every dollar collected. The presidential campaigns will file detailed finance reports with the Federal Election Commission in mid-July. Dean's most recent fund raising puts him firmly among the money leaders for the quarter. He trailed several others in the nine-candidate Democratic field in the first quarter, raising about $2.6 million. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina raised $7.4 million and Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts collected $7 million from January through March. Officials with the Kerry and Edwards campaigns said they expected second-quarter totals of about $5 million. Combined with their first-quarter totals, they could still lead the early Democratic money race overall. "With just a few hours left before our campaign's financial deadline with the FEC, I am asking all of my supporters to show their commitment one more time by making a contribution," Edwards wrote in a fund-raising e-mail sent Monday, adding that, "Like it or not, money is critical to winning." Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri was aiming for $5 million in the second quarter, and Sen. Bob Graham of Florida expected to report $2 million to $3 million in contributions, officials with those campaigns said. Former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun said she raised about $150,000 during the quarter. Al Sharpton and Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio did not provide estimates. URL:http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,90804,00.html