On the Prowl
E PROWL. The Spirit of St. Louis The White House was annoyed with Vatican officials who declined to involve Pope John Paul II in a higher-profile meeting with President Clinton than the one...
...We asked for better photo opportunities than that and haven't gotten any...
...He was mad that the House went into adjournment, and how that would appear to the public," says a Lott staffer...
...Bauer Power Presidential hopeful Gary Bauer didn't waste his opportunity at the recent Conservative Political Action Committee meeting in Arlington, Virginia...
...Even if Shays decides to stay in the House, she's running," says an Eagle source...
...In the end, it didn't matter...
...As far as she's concerned, he's a Democrat and she's running unopposed...
...She doesn't think any other way would properly ensure he is embarrassed for the rest of his career," says a Feinstein staffer...
...The giveaway was the White House lineup for the defense team, which included not only sycophantic Clintonites John Conyers, Barney Frank, Robert Wexler, and Sheila Jackson Lee, but Virginia moderate Rick Boucher—who declined to be involved...
...Lott's move put Republican House members running for the Senate at a distinct disadvantage...
...The thinking appeared to be that Boucher was moderate enough that he might swing some Republicans his way...
...He's charging $50,000 per speech on the rubber-chicken circuit, and requesting three first-class plane tickets to and from each appearance...
...In a call to Hastert, Lott expressed rage at what he considered to be a breach of protocol...
...That campaign could be expensive, politically as well as financially, unless Gingrich's in-state approval numbers improve or moderate Democratic Gov...
...When Clinton invited s Catholic staffers to greet the 3 Holy Father, Paul Begala took full advantage, asking <6 the Pope to bless a handful of rosaries for family and friends...
...That would have been equivalent to being forgiven for his sins...
...George W. Bush by 28 to 24 percent in a straw poll organized by Fabrizio, McLaughlin & Associates...
...Lott never bothered to call Newt when he sent all his people home in October...
...While the president is announcing tax breaks and saving Social Security, the vice president is there talking about big spending increases for Head Start and other programs that have 'Big Government' written all over them," says a staffer in Gore's office...
...Hastert knew what he was doing...
...Roy Barnes falls on his face...
...Some initial press reports said Coulter's decision would hinge on whether Shays runs for Connecticut governor...
...But Coulter isn't hesitating...
...He wanted to give everyone an opportunity to jump on-board another campaign if they wanted to," says one of the consultants Gingrich dealt with...
...John McCain, who will move his campaign to the center, where Murphy thinks he has a better chance to win...
...Murphy is committing himself to Sen...
...First, according to Chamber sources, president Thomas Donohue made a play to hire Senate Majority Whip Don Nickles for a senior position...
...Feinstein is especially eager to require Clinton to face some form of public shaming and a financial penalty...
...While Clinton wasn't granted absolution, some of his staffers came away with a great deal...
...It was payback for last October, when the House was forced to stay in session and negotiate a budget deal with the White House while Lott adjourned the Senate," says an assistant to Hastert...
...It's not full-time and no one is sure what he'll be doing," says the source...
...So far the new, non-Speaker speaking rates haven't had many takers, according to the Gingrich consultant...
...He bused in more than ioo college-age supporters to the CPAC affair, gave a barn-burner of a speech, and bested Texas Gov...
...Big Al Government While President Clinton may think he's helping Al Gore for 2000, some on Gore's staff aren't so sure...
...Having launched the Hillary for New York Senator in 2000 campaign, Torricelli in mid-January sidled up to former New York Gov...
...Robert Byrd objected to the idea of House Democrats defending Clinton before the Senate, a job more properly suited to Clinton's lawyers...
...One indication came when minority leader Torn Daschle agreed to a White House request early in the Senate trial that House Judiciary Committee Democrats be allowed to argue the president's case before the Senate...
...A strong showing from Bauer and Steve Forbes will force him out, even though Alexander is presumed to have a hammerlock on the Iowa race due to his organization there...
...As it stands, we're going to have to deal with that issue in the campaign...
...The president isn't Catholic, but he can play like one on TV, and look like one in the morning papers...
...Louis on January 26...
...Robert Torricelli cheating on Hillary Clinton...
...In this case, it's not clear whether Fein-stein's ire is caused by belief or disbelief...
...Lott may have thus cost Republicans Senate seats in South Carolina, Wisconsin, and Washington...
...They remained stuck in D.C...
...Daschle withdrew the defense proposal after Sen...
...But after 2000, the consultant adds, Gingrich may look at the 2002 gubernatorial race in Georgia...
...Human Commerce The U.S...
...For the Defense White House fingerprints were all over the opposition congressional Democrats mounted during the House impeachment and Senate eviction trial of President Clinton...
...But Gore wasn't there, and it makes him look out of the loop...
...Finding Feinstein While Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe talked up "findings" as an alternative to outright conviction of President Clinton, colleagues Dianne Feinstein and Robert Bennett had their staffs working together on drafting some form of super-censure...
...Boucher ultimately was put off by the White House defense team's presentation before the Judiciary Committee, says the source, and informed the White House that he wanted his name removed from the prospective defense team...
...He's informed his money men and direct-mail consultants he's planning no major fundraising push in the next 12 months...
...Not only did it make a high-cost raid of key Senate and House staffers for its legislative affairs office, it also tried to attract some high-profile leadership...
...He won't even have an office...
...Mario Cuomo at a Waldorf Astoria fundraiser and encouraged him to run for the same seat...
...Oit-4 The American Spectator March 1999 15...
...McCurry is making good money alter14 March 1999 • The American Spectator nately bad-mouthing and talking-up his former boss on the speaking circuit, and is thought to be mulling teaching offers from Georgetown University and from George Washington University—where CNN White House correspondent Wolf Blitzer is said to have given him a high recommendation...
...There's Something About Hillary Is Sen...
...Chamber of Commerce has been pushing hard to upgrade its image and place in Washington...
...But he won't be lobbying or speaking for the Chamber...
...Bauer's rise may already be having an effect...
...Gingrich is focusing instead on building up his retirement account...
...Nickles chose to remain in the Senate...
...Longtime Lamar Alexander political aide Mike Murphy is said to be convinced that Alexander won't last long in the moo race...
...No Horsing Around Regardless of what Connecticut Republican Christopher Shays decides, pundit Ann Coulter has told colleagues at Eagle Publishing, which publishes her column in Human Events, that she intends to run for his House seat next year...
...The White House press office had tried to persuade the Vatican to allow for more than simple "pool" photographs and reports of the meeting...
...Despite White House denials, "the censure draft definitely came out of the White House," says a Judiciary Committee staffer who worked with Boucher's staff during the hearings...
...Louis The White House was annoyed with Vatican officials who declined to involve Pope John Paul II in a higher-profile meeting with President Clinton than the one that took place inside the Air National Guard Hangar in St...
...He would have been the face of the Chamber on TV and in print," says a Chamber source...
...But Donohue has signed up former Clinton shill Mike McCurry—sort of...
...Also upsetting to Gore boys was their man's exclusion from a recent briefing by the Joint Chiefs on the troubles in Kosovo...
...while their Democratic opponents were home campaigning...
...The White House had expected more from him, given it was Boucher who had proposed a censure alternative during last December's House impeachment hearings— in language said to have been written by Clinton aides Sidney Blumenthal and Paul Begala...
...Speaker Hastert did it for the Republicans who were taken advantage of by Lott before the election," says the Hastert staffer...
...Perhaps the biggest surprise was the showing of Rep...
...But he was madder that Hastert hadn't called him to consult with him before he did it...
...The DNC still thinks he has enough juice to make a Senate run, Torricelli told him...
...Peter Knight, who will head Gore's presidential drive, went to White House Chief of Staff John Podesta complaining that the budget announcements Gore was getting would hurt him for the campaign...
...John Kasich, who brought in few supporters, but had the audience cheering his tough talk on tax cuts and smaller government...
...We wanted wall-to-wall coverage of the Pope leaning against the president for help, of the Pope thanking the president," says a press office aide...
...On top of that, she's irked by Clinton's claim that he hasn't watched a minute of the House or Senate proceedings, nor read any of the transcripts...
...The New Newt Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has dismissed any notion that he might seek the presidency in 2000...
...Payback Time Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott was furious at new Speaker Dennis Hastert for adjourning the House until early February while the Senate was busy with the Clinton trial...
Vol. 32 • March 1999 • No. 3
