On the Prowl
)N THE PROWl Political Mourning Washington Republicans are mourning the loss of a great conservative, Sen. Paul Coverdell, who died on July 18. Personal considerations aside, one...
...The Morals of a Poll Cat In mid-June, as part of a poll it took on Medicare prescription drug plans, the Vv%ite House threw in a couple of o questions to gauge what peoi ple thought about polls in general...
...That didn't stop Democratic Vghip David Bonior of Michigan, number two in the House behind Gephardt, from pushing his colleague's candidacy to the press and to fellow House members...
...Spencer Abraham, the Democratic caucus has remained largely intact and united behind Gephardt's goal of becoming the next speaker of the House...
...Personal considerations aside, one reason for their grief is that he was the sole conservative to have the ear of Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott...
...Now he's in a dogfight and trying to cover his rear," says the Club member...
...Ultimately, though, the caper appears to center on money...
...Gephardt pushes for solo TV time, won't let the whip run caucus or leadership meetings, nothing...
...If so, then why did he call Gore campaign chief and fellow Illinoisan Bill Daley to tell him to watch him "really take it to the enemy" in a recent spate of Sunday morning talk shows...
...With the exception of a few members like Michigan's Debbie Stabenow, who decided to run against Sen...
...With Lazio siphoning off much of Suffolk County's money in an effort to keep pace with Hillary Clinton's fundraising, even the Republican National Committee appears to have surrendered the seat...
...Because Bill Clinton is now ridiculing poll users...
...Democrats stand poised to win the seat now that Republicans have failed to woo any of five local GOP leaders to take a run...
...We have nothing to offer in way of a replacement for Coverdell...
...For all Gingrich's talk of strengthening the bench, he left his state's bench incredibly weak," says a House leadership source...
...In early 2000, Gephardt pleaded with House Democrats not to seek gubernatorial or U.S...
...Bonior took it as a personal affront that Gephardt's leadership PAC declined to give money to a list of ten Democratic House candidates that Bonior was backing...
...Zell Miller as Coverdell's replacement, and a run by Miller in the fall, Republicans are given no better than a z 5 percent chance of regaining the seat...
...Jeb Bush for insuring that current Rep...
...This might be the best news Reagan Republicans have had in a long time, given that Crane wants to ram through elimination of the death tax and marriage penalty, as well as proceed with serious cuts in basic tax rates...
...Clinton thought that was funny, but said that unlike Dole he didn't need Viagra to help him...
...Another Clinton lie...
...Bill MeCollum won the Republican nod for the state's open Senate race...
...Maybe a Gingrich candidacy wouldn't be a bad idea...
...Bouncer Bonior Just as George W. Bush held Sen...
...He's gearing up, hiring new staff, and looked to be in good shape and humor, better than he has in years, according to people at the breakfast...
...On several occasions in the past few months, former rivals Bob Dole and Bill Clinton have made joint appearances at fundraisers and charity events in Washington...
...Comeback Crane On July 2 7 the American Conservative Union organized a breakfast fundraiser for Phil Crane, who made it very obvious to everyone in the room that he has the chairmanship of Ways and Means locked up--assuming the COP holds on to the House this fall...
...Chuck Robb in a walk...
...Allen was terrible...
...He seemed to waffle on a ban on the Internet tax...
...Saxby Chambliss for the Senate run, which would leave his predominantly Democratic district up for grabs...
...The American Spectator _9 September 2ooo 13...
...Paul Coverdell in Georgia, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich placed a courtesy call to Trent Lott, passing along condolences and then offering to help the par~, any way he could to hold the seat-including running for it himself in the special election to be held November 7. "Trent laughed at first, and Newt got huffy about it," says a Gingrich associate...
...Just what we need--another weakkneed Republican...
...But Bonior, it seems, has had other plans for his colleague...
...He was running away from every conservative issue you could think of," says a Club member who heard his remarks...
...But hold on...
...Lott didn't think Newt wouId be seriously interested...
...While Republicans don't expect Jeb Bush to run for president for at least another four years, his support of MeCollum may come back to haunt him two years from now when he faces re-election...
...If we don't hold the Senate in November, it won't matter," says the Senate leader...
...Bill Thomas is no longer in the running to replace Bill Archer-- again, assuming the GOP holds on to the House...
...Florida Gripes Republican consultants and the RNC's Jim Nicholson are miffed at Florida Gov...
...He ran away from pushing tax cuts, including estate and marriage penalty cuts...
...Senate seat...
...That would be current Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, who's been a rival of his for years...
...He rarely took his advice, but Paul was always there trying to guide him literally down the right path...
...House of Representatives, blame should go, in part, to Rick Lazio, since it appears the GOP sacrificed his House seat in getting him to run for the U.S...
...The minority leader has minimized Bonior's role to almost nothing," a Bonior staffer complained...
...The Durbin of History Illinois loudmouth Senator Dick Durbin insisted for months that he wasn't interested in becoming AI Gore's running mate...
...He's Grown, All Right When the fiscally conservative Club for Growth invited Virginia Republican Senate candidate George Allen to speak at one of their Washington meetings in late July, members expected to hear a strong, Reaganesque economic speech from one of the Republican Party's rising stars...
...Durbin wants on the ticket," a Gore campaign source said in July, "if only to show up Bill Daley's brother...
...Solon Newt The day after a memorial service for Sen...
...This from the bizarre man who polIed Americans on where he should take his vacations, what they think of his gray hair, and whether he should come clean on Monica Lewinskv...
...We don't want to lose that House seat, and we will if he runs for the Senate...
...Lott listened to Coverdell," a member of the Senate leadership told the Prowler...
...The numbers apparently weren't good...
...Locker Roomies It's become a beautiful friendship...
...While McCollum raised Sz million, more than any of his primary competitors, his favorability numbers as of late July were terrible- it appears less than 4 ~ percent of likely voters like him...
...With the appointment of former Democratic Gov...
...How do =s we know...
...Lott is said to favor House Rep...
...Allen thought he was going to win Virginia in a landslide, but it looks like he underestimated Robb...
...Nicholson had asked Bush not to insert himself into the process and to let the state party come up with the strongest candidate...
...The rivalry turned decidedly ugly when the mayor rejected Durbin's attempts to lobby him and instead endorsed former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin as Gore's number two...
...At one recent event at the Mayflower Hotel, Dole introduced Clinton, telling the audience that he's been told by his doctor that taking too much Viagra makes your hair turn gray...
...Senate seats since that would hurt efforts to win back the House...
...He terms it "bizarre" that Republicans should poll to determine where to stand on an issue...
...Even if Gingrich were a viable candidate, he would have little chance of winning...
...Some might say he's fighting for his survival...
...Although at least one Club member scrambled to reassure his colleagues that Allen hadn't strayed from the reservation, they weren't convinced...
...Lazio Days If Republicans lose the U.S...
...This is more than a simple power grab by Bonior...
...As part of his antiRepublican stump speech, Clinton has been telling crowds, "They're so afraid of this prescription drug issue they have hired pollsters to tell them what words and phrases the?' should use to convince yon that they're for giving affordable prescription drugs to our seniors...
...I could not believe this was the man some of our members were comparing to a young Ronald Reagan...
...John McCain to his word that he did not want to be vice president, so A1 Gore chose to believe House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt when Gephardt insisted he doesn't want to be Gore's number two...
...Not only did the RNC not help recruit a candidate, it has so far declined to 12 S ep t e m b e r ~ o o o - The American Spectator provide financial aid to the local campaign...
...His office singlehandedly fanned the flames of Gephardt-for-Veep talk in front-page stories in the New York Times and the Washington Post...
...Now Senate conservatives wonder if there's anyone they can turn to for help in swaying Lott...
...During his four years as governor of Virginia, Allen built up such strong conservative credentials it was assumed that he'd beat incumbent Democratic Sen...
Vol. 33 • September 2000 • No. 7
