A daily dose of online news from beyond the Beltway.

By Ryan Thornburg
Washingtonpost.com Staff
Friday, March 5, 1999

At the close of the week that saw conservative commentator Pat Buchanan jump into the 2000 presidential race, Texas Gov. George W. Bush edge toward it and Democrats in New Jersey face off in a fund-raising showdown, the tip of the iceberg is barely showing. In the next 10 days, campaign watchers can expect Elizabeth Dole and Lamar Alexander to advance their candidacies, Bush to announce his exploratory committee again and Vice President Al Gore to set out on his first purely political trip of the campaign. And, oh yeah, John Kasich is going bowling in Iowa this weekend.

Friday Factoid Millions of American TV tuned in to the first airing of A&E biographies of ... John McCain: 1.61 Bob Dole: 1.05 Andre the Giant: 3.4 (The Arizona Republic, March 5)

Republicans
• Bush Fills Key Campaign Staff Job (Austin American-Statesman, March 5)
• Mississippi Republicans Back Bush (Foster's Daily Democrat, Dover, N.H., March 5)
• Upton Declares for (1) Bush and (2) Dole (Detroit Free Press, March 2)

• Buchanan Brings Campaign to Iowa (The Des Moines Register, March 5)
• Buchanan Stresses Point with Plant (The Advocate, Baton Rouge, March 5)

• Alexander: National Defense Will Be a Top Issue of Campaign (Foster's Daily Democrat, Dover, N.H., March 5)

Democrats
• Bradley Fund-Raiser Garners $1.5 Million for Presidential Bid (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J., March 5)
• Torricelli's the Cash Magnet (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J., March 5)

• DNC Hits Snag With Los Angeles Bid (The Boston Globe, March 5)

The Process
• Justices Uphold Blanket Primary (Los Angeles Times, March 5)
• Presidential Caucuses Mean Help if Not Cash for Iowa (The Des Moines Register, March 1)

Campaigns 2000: Menendez Drops Out, Gingrich Endorses
Rep. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) said he would seek to advance his position in the House leadership rather than pursue the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D).
• Menendez Abandons Plan to Run for Senate (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J., March 5)

Former Republican congressman Newt Gingrich went to Mississippi to endorse the gubernatorial bid of former Rep. Mike Parker (R).
• Gingrich Endorses Parker During Stop on Coast (The Sun-Herald, Biloxi, Miss., March 5)

Ryan Thornburg can be reached at ryan.thornburg@washingtonpost.com