Post Politics Hour
washingtonpost.com's Daily Politics Discussion

Anne E. Kornblut
Washington Post National Political Reporter
Friday, July 6, 2007 11:15 AM

Don't want to miss out on the latest in politics? Start each day with The Post Politics Hour. Join in each weekday morning at 11 a.m. as a member of The Washington Post's team of White House and Congressional reporters answers questions about the latest in buzz in Washington and The Post's coverage of political news.

Washington Post national political reporter Anne E. Kornblut was online Friday, July 6, at 11:15 a.m. ET to discuss the latest news in politics.

Political analysis from Post reporters and interviews with top newsmakers. Listen live on Washington Post Radio or subscribe to a podcast of the show.

The transcript follows.

Archive: Post Politics Hour discussion transcripts

____________________

Anne E. Kornblut: Good morning, all! I'm just back from the campaign trail in Iowa and ready to converse. What's on everyone's minds?

_______________________

Washington: Here's my view on the Libby commutation: if you're connected, you get favors, regardless of whether you're connected to a Democrat or a Republic. If you're the president's half-brother (Roger Clinton), a friend (Susan McDougal), a hugely wealthy donor (Marc Rich) or your boss's boss is the president (Libby), you're likely to be in luck. So, I can't see much difference between Libby's commutation and the Rich/Clinton/McDougal, etc., etc. pardons. Partisans can parse this all they want, I just put it down to connections.

Anne E. Kornblut: I think this is going to turn out to be a pretty common view -- and it's another reason why you will see some of the presidential candidates, as well as congressional candidates, trying to run as "outsiders." It's also potentially problematic for Sen. Hillary Clinton, as you note.

_______________________

Los Angeles: My sense is that John McCain has become a Dead Man Walking. Do you agree? What options do you think are open to him to resuscitate his candidacy, and is there any chance to do that in light of his continuing support of a war that even conservative Republicans are now rushing to repudiate?

washingtonpost.com: McCain Again Falls Short of Cash Goals (Post, July 3)

Anne E. Kornblut: A lot of political professionals are wondering the same thing about McCain. It's hard to imagine the former frontrunner -- the only ever real political challenge to President Bush on the Republican side -- quitting the race before it's in voters' hands. But he has to deal with the cash issue, as well as his rate of spending, and hope for some shift in Iraq. At least for now, for him, the immigration debate is over.

_______________________

Rockville, Md.: Was anything in Iowa a surprise?

washingtonpost.com: Dodd Pins Hopes on Early-Vote Miracles; Trailing Badly, Senator Presses Hard in Iowa (Post, July 6)

Anne E. Kornblut: Thanks for the question! A lot of the Iowans I encountered were -- not necessarily surprisingly, but refreshingly -- really open-minded about the race, and said they would like to see more of the candidates. Their view is that they have a nice, long, six-month stretch to learn all they can about these folks before making a decision. At the Clinton events, a number of people said they were just there out of curiosity -- to see Bill Clinton in particular -- while at the smaller events, such as with Sen. Chris Dodd, they said they were open to the idea of him. So it felt far less set in stone than it sometimes looks from back here.

_______________________

Richmond, Va.: Can you try to explain why Obama's out-raising Clinton has not translated in to a move in the polls for him, in that all polls show him considerably behind?

Anne E. Kornblut: Fascinating question. A couple of thoughts on this. For one thing, the national polls do reflect name recognition, partly explaining why Clinton is ahead. She also has an extremely strong and meaningful lead among women, particularly downscale and lesser-educated ones.

But why hasn't Obama made up the difference among, say, independents? In Iowa, for example, it's a perplexing question; he has terrific name recognition among the caucus-goers who are polled (these are people who pay a lot of attention to everything). They just aren't sure about him yet; they also have some loyalty to John Edwards, who virtually has lived in Iowa in the past few years. At the national level, Obama seems to have not followed up his early entrance with a splash with a further attention-grabbing move; he's been relatively cautious in the debates. This is, by the way, a point the Clinton folks raise routinely to point out that she is truly ahead and that Obama is not going to pose a risk to her winning the nomination.

_______________________

Washington: So much has been said about how secretive the Clinton campaign camp is. Considering the present administration, isn't that the last thing we need?

Anne E. Kornblut: I do wonder if the level of control -- containment -- won't become an issue for the Clinton campaign. This isn't new for her; even as First Lady, you will recall, she abhorred the press, and her health care proposal was attacked in part because outsiders felt she had conducted it in secret (whether or not she did remains a point of contention). Still, there was a reason why McCain's "straight talk" express was so popular and why Obama's seeming openness has earned him points -- it's not just about accommodating us, the hungry press; it conveys a message about the whole campaign operation, and its level of comfort operating with transparency.

_______________________

Montgomery Village, Md.: Anne, are the " floodgates" now open with the Domenici announcement? Who are the next likely Senators to jump from the sinking Bush Iraq policy boat -- to mix metaphors?

Anne E. Kornblut: You are on to something -- the Domenici conversion does seem to suggest that something new is happening on the Hill. I would say that a good starting place would be the list of Republican senators up for re-election in 2008 (of whom Domenici is one). Some others are: Susan Collins, John Sununu, Lindsey Graham, Lamar Alexander, John Warner, Norm Coleman, Thad Cochran, Larry Craig, Wayne Allard, Jeff Sessions and Saxby Chambliss.

_______________________

Milwaukee: Anne, it's always nice to see you on "Hardball." In my opinion, the preservation of Libby's Fifth Amendment rights has been grossly underreported. That's why Bush "commuted" the sentence instead of pardoning him. Also, rule 6(e) exceptions to Grand Jury secrecy apply to House Judiciary investigations that lead to impeachment. I certainly hope that Rep. John Conyers subpoenas all of Fitzgerald's Grand Jury testimony. These are the kinds of questions that still need answering: Did Bush ask Libby to take the lead in responding to Wilson's allegations on June 9, 2003? Did Bush unilaterally declassify Valerie Plame's covert identity and the CIA report on Wilson's trip? Did Cheney ask Bush to do this? When and where did Libby tell Cheney that he was going to testify to the FBI that he had forgotten Plame's identity until he learned it anew from Tim Russert? Have Cheney and Libby ever discussed ensuring that Libby would avoid all jail time?

Anne E. Kornblut: These are all great questions. I am no constitutional lawyer (sorry!) so I'm afraid I have few answers at my fingertips, but I will pass these on to the reporters following this day-to-day. I will say: The way Bush maneuvered this does seem designed to prevent Libby from further cooperating; he can continue to say that he won't comment until his ongoing appeal process is complete. And it may yet happen that Bush fully pardons him at the end of his term in early 2009.

_______________________

New York: What are the latest polls in Iowa and New Hampshire? Will the results in these two early primaries throw off or "decide" races?

Anne E. Kornblut: The polls in Iowa have shown Edwards with a lead for some time now, but more recent surveys (the ones I trust) suggest it is becoming more of a dead heat now that Obama has put up a TV ad and Clinton is making a real push there. In New Hampshire, Clinton has been showing a lead, with Obama in second place more or less and Edwards in a reasonably close third, though dropping. My view is that these two states matter more than ever -- insofar as none of the candidates can survive coming in third place or worse. While Clinton and Obama look like they'll be able to afford to compete in the big, expensive states that follow -- California, Florida, New York, etc. -- they won't have that opportunity if they don't first emerge strong in Iowa and New Hampshire.

_______________________

Dallas: Why isn't anyone asking Snow, since he is bringing up Clinton as far as commutations and pardons are concerned: "Is the former President Clinton the standard for behavior for presidents? Is this the standard that President Bush wants to be held to?"

Anne E. Kornblut: That's a good point. I am sure everyone remembers that Bush's winning slogan in 2000 was to "restore honor and dignity to the Oval Office."

_______________________

Oklahoma City: The Clintons blasted the Libby commutation, which is a lot like a cathouse madam insisting that someone else be chaste. Libby wasn't the president's brother, a cabinet officer, a cocaine dealer or a child molester/former Democratic congressman, all of whom got Clinton pardons on January 20, 2001. I know that hypocrisy happens in Washington, but have you ever seen a political couple as shameless as these two?

Anne E. Kornblut: The Clintons obviously knew they were going to face those accusations when Sen. Clinton raised the issue on Tuesday, but it looks like they made a calculated risk -- better to criticize Bush/Libby and take the heat for it (while arguing that the two situations are different) than to let it lie, which would have infuriated Democratic activists, especially in Iowa where they were campaigning together on the day the Libby commutation occurred.

_______________________

Westwood, Mass.: Did the Clintons give the Bush administration a gift with their comments about the Libby commutation? It enabled Snow and others to change the subject to a comparison to the Marc Rich and other pardons at the end of the Clinton presidency instead of more difficult comparisons of justice like Rita or, taken to the embarrassing absurd, Paris Hilton.

washingtonpost.com: Clintons Accused Of Hypocrisy by The White House (Post, July 6)

Anne E. Kornblut: And I would add: The Obama campaign sees this as ultimately good news for them, because it lets them stand apart in the "forward-looking" category while the Bushes and Clintons argue about the past.

_______________________

Prescott, Ariz.: Does that story about Fred Thompson being Nixon's mole on the Watergate committee have legs? If so, does this explain why he signed up as the public face of the Libby Defense Fund?

washingtonpost.com: Not all would put a heroic sheen on Thompson's Watergate role (Boston Globe, July 4)

Anne E. Kornblut: I am not aware that it is a story going anywhere, but worth checking out. ... Thank you

_______________________

Portland, Ore.: Hi Anne -- has any polling data been released on Bush's commutation of Libby, and if so, could you share it with us? Thanks.

Anne E. Kornblut: I haven't seen any, but before the commutation, I asked several pollsters if Bush's numbers could drop further, and was told that theoretically, yes they could. We'll find out soon, I suspect.

_______________________

Anonymous: The White House seems to believe that anybody who works there can claim executive privilege from providing information. Could Monica Lewinsky have used that same executive privilege when she was first questioned by the FBI about her relationship with Clinton? What is the double standard there? Isn't Harriet Miers information more pertinent to the workings of the White House than Lewinsky's was?

Anne E. Kornblut: Good questions; I don't know what the rules and laws governing interns are, and whether they would have applied to Lewinsky. But I do think that we are going to see legal experts examining these questions in the immediate future; my sense is that the Libby issue is not going to go away as quickly as the White House would have hoped.

_______________________

Annandale, Va.: Thanks for having this discussion and taking this question. Given that the administration is criticizing the Clinton pardons, is President Bush saying that he is not going to issue very many pardons during the rest of his term? It doesn't seem to me that the strategy of defense by attack works very well.

Anne E. Kornblut: I'm not sure where this Clinton-Bush spat is headed. Bush already has said he wouldn't rule out pardoning Libby in the future, and he still has plenty of time left in his term to issue other pardons (usually it's done at the very end of the term, the way Clinton did).

_______________________

Atlanta: Anne, have you ever asked the Obama camp about their performance among blue-collar whites? Is it a concern of theirs?

Anne E. Kornblut: This is a really interesting subject. The Clinton folks are already talking about Obama's supporters as "latte Democrats" -- i.e. upscale Democrats -- as opposed to their own working-class backers. Obama's advisers have said that they are still in the process of introducing themselves to less-educated, less-involved voters, and that as soon as they're able to get those voters to know Obama his standing in that demographic will improve. My view, the jury is still out on this question. Side note here: Edwards has been proclaiming himself as the one candidate who can win among white blue-collar men, especially, in Southern states, implying that Obama and Clinton, will have trouble in that group.

_______________________

Minneapolis: I believe you (and you alone) reported that Robert Novak had testified before the grand jury once again very late in the investigation -- after Karl Rove's October 2005 appearance. Did you ever learn any more information about that? It's particularly intriguing in light of the fact that, contra Libby's own grand jury testimony, Novak and Libby did in fact discuss the whole controversy shortly before Novak published his column outing Valerie Plame as a covert CIA officer (on July 9, 2003, to be exact).

Anne E. Kornblut: I did not learn more -- but not for lack of interest, I just got moved over to the 2008 politics beat and stopped covering the controversy. Thank you for reminding me to follow up -- I can pass it on to my colleagues.

_______________________

Ogden, Utah: My son was asking me which of the Democratic candidates to favor, and I told him to look at their major donors to see how they can be expected to vote -- those people don't put money behind people who will vote "wrong," no matter what the candidates say in public, I told him. So, who are Clinton's and Obama's largest donors at this point?

Anne E. Kornblut: Thanks to the campaign finance laws, there are a lot of "top" donors -- the limit is $2,300 per person for the primary and $4,600 overall. To view the names of those donors, you can go to one of several Web sites, such as opensecrets.org, or fecinfo.com. More indicative, however, are the so-called "bundlers" -- like Bush's Rangers and Pioneers, who raised him $100,000 or $200,000 from other people. You can see lists of these bundlers on the campaigns' Web sites. Hillary's, for example, are called "Hill Raisers."

_______________________

Ron Paul's exclusion: Thanks for taking my question. In searching The Washington Post's coverage of last week's Republican discussion (debate) in Iowa, I could not find any reference to the fact that Rep. Ron Paul was excluded from this event. Did I just miss that? Because polls indicate that he has done fairly well in the past televised debates (perhaps even winning one), it seems his exclusion may be political. Thoughts?

Anne E. Kornblut: I cover the Democrats, so I don't have the answer, but I'll check it out.

_______________________

Detroit: In the article on Clinton hypocrisy today, we get the following nugget: "Clinton pardoned 140 people in the final day of his presidency, stirring a controversy that continues to reverberate."

Continues to reverberate with whom? Right-wing partisans, the right-wing talk radio circuit, and the corporate media? Or was there some sort of public outcry I missed? Bush, meanwhile, has used the pardon power exactly once: to pardon a guy who was directly implicated in a conspiracy from the West Wing, to protect him from any pressure to testify against his superiors -- namely Bush and Cheney. That's practically the definition of obstruction of justice. It seems pretty obvious why this is different from pardoning his brother for a minor drug violation, etc., etc....

Anne E. Kornblut: I think this will be up for debate for some time to come...

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: I have a question about Fred Thompson. Isn't it ironic that he would be trying to boost up his foreign policy experience by flying off to London, giving a speech and meeting with Margaret Thatcher? Isn't foreign policy experience more of a "hands-on" issue, like being on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee or helping to create policy in the White House like Albright, Powell or Rice? Or do you think the American citizens are so "starstruck" by Fred that they will give him a wide pass on a very serious issue?

Anne E. Kornblut: What I like about this is that Thatcher is an active figure in the 2008 presidential race: More than once I have heard Clinton officials draw comparisons between their candidate and Maggie, to illustrate that a woman candidate must exhibit strength.

_______________________

Re: Iowa and New Hampshire's importance: Anne: I respectfully disagree with this statement: "While Clinton and Obama look like they'll be able to afford to compete in the big, expensive states that follow -- California, Florida, New York, etc. -- they won't have that opportunity if they don't first emerge strong in Iowa and New Hampshire." They both have more than enough money to overcome whatever happens in Iowa and New Hampshire. Plus, the following states have so many more delegates to offer, they will wipe out any gains for the other candidates in the first two states.

Anne E. Kornblut: That may be true -- but history suggests that it's hard to overcome a fourth place showing in either Iowa or New Hampshire. So while they may not win, the momentum almost surely will have some effect. ... We'll just have to see how much.

_______________________

Justice for All: Minimum mandatory sentences imposed by Congress have ruined thousands of lives and are the bane of the Federal Judiciary. Can President Bush's strong, decisive action against these sentences in the Libby case help move us away from the 25-year-old trend towards legislatively imposed, harsh and unthinking sentences?

Anne E. Kornblut: We've already seen mandatory minimums raised as an issue by the Democratic presidential candidates, most recently at the Howard University debate. I wouldn't be surprised if the Libby commutation helps keep the question alive.

_______________________

Washington: Democrats have a terrible record in presidential politics over the past 40 years. Remarkably, only two made it to the White House, both under exceptional circumstances: Carter in the wake of Watergate and Clinton with the help of a strong third-party candidate in Perot. This history suggests that Bloomberg entering the race is critical to the Democrats' chances in 2008. Your thoughts?

washingtonpost.com: With Bloomberg on Stage, Harsher Light on Giuliani (Post, July 6)

Anne E. Kornblut: Some would argue the opposite: That Bloomberg (once a registered Democrat and liberal on many issues) would draw votes away from the Democratic nominee. There are also those, including Clinton himself, who believe he won despite Perot, not because of him. That said, you're right about the Democratic track record.

_______________________

Iowa: Have to agree with your comment about people still making up their minds here. Among my friends (all active Democratic caucus-goers) I can only think of one who is totally committed to one candidate at this point. The rest are still wary, and planning to do a lot of listening and observing in the months ahead.

Anne E. Kornblut: That's really interesting. It never ceases to amaze me how well-informed and thoughtful voters in Iowa (and New Hampshire, for that matter are) take the early contests so seriously.

_______________________

Bellingham, Wash.: Re: "My sense is that John McCain has become a Dead Man Walking." It is interesting that the Republican candidate who most clearly staked his fortunes to support for the Iraq War is going down in flames so early. But I don't think the press is connecting the dots. Are you guys missing something, or am I? If support for Bush's war is so strong among GOP primary voters why is McCain, tied to Bush's Iraq hip as he is, sinking like a stone?

Anne E. Kornblut: There's no question that McCain's support for the war is part of what is hurting him in the GOP primary, but there appear to be other factors as well -- his earlier opposition to Bush in 2000, for example, and his backing of the immigration legislation. So while you're right -- his sinking partly suggests that the GOP base isn't as in favor of the war as previously thought -- it's not just the war that is causing him problems.

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: Could you please explain why The Washington Post had another article about John Edwards and his haircuts? I don't care And how is interviewing the hairstylist relevant to anything? Just because John Solomon has some bee in his bonnet that a candidate can't be "authentic" because he's wealthy and cares for the poor at the same time? That's a waste of time and newsprint. And, of course, Solomon makes no comments on the grooming habits of any Republican candidate. I'm not asking for more fluff coverage of candidates, just real coverage, like discussing health care, taking care of the Gulf Coast, getting out of Iraq, etc. You know, reporting where there is no hidden gotcha moment.

washingtonpost.com: Splitting Hairs, Edwards's Stylist Tells His Side of Story (Post, July 5)

Anne E. Kornblut: I hear you; I think the answer to this is that we try to cover all aspects of the candidates' presentations, from substance to style, because at the end of the day voters do want to know what the contenders are like as people as well as politicians. One thing is for sure: the story has generated a lot of debate.

_______________________

Silver Spring, Md.: I vaguely remember a story in The Post (it was buried in a Friday late edition) that Grover Norquist was implicated as the middle man/money man for Abramoff scandal. No mention of it since. Any updates on this?

washingtonpost.com: GOP Environmentalist Linked to Abramoff to Plead Guilty (Post, June 7)

Anne E. Kornblut: I'm not aware of any new information on Grover, but he did have longstanding ties to Abramoff, with his organization working with Abramoff's clients.

_______________________

Kettering, Ohio: Hi Anne! When you are on the road as you were in Iowa, do you ever get a sense of how great a disconnect there often is between folks in the capital, journalists, politicians and bureaucrats alike, and those of us in fly-over land?

Anne E. Kornblut: There is a disconnect, isn't there? I find that many voters are really engaged in the substance of politics/policy, especially in Iowa and New Hampshire, far more than we give them credit for back inside the Beltway. And they are incredibly tough on the candidates. There is nothing better than watching a voter (as opposed to one of us reporters) grill someone running for president. But as to the disconnect -- it's one reason the Post sends us out into the country so often, so we can try to keep track of where the political pulse really is.

_______________________

Coppell, Texas: Have you heard anything about potential running mates for the Democratic candidates? It seems that Hillary would have to run with someone from the South, since she will have problems securing the red states.

Anne E. Kornblut: The candidates, of course, avoid talking about running mates this early -- they all see themselves as the ones at the top of the ticket. But there is a fair amount of speculation that Clinton could pick someone like former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (who was, as you recall, running for president earlier but dropped out and now is backing Clinton). Other names in the mix, for a Clinton nominee or anyone else: Mark Warner of Virginia; Evan Bayh of Indiana; you have any suggestions?

_______________________

Anne E. Kornblut: Thank you all for so many good questions today -- keep them coming, and I look forward to chatting again soon. Have a great weekend. Anne

_______________________

Editor's Note: washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions. washingtonpost.com is not responsible for any content posted by third parties.