Articles of Interest 7-17-07
477 Days until election day.
MORNING UPDATE:
Quote of the Day: "There is a rank due to the United States, among nations, which will be withheld, if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness. If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known that we are at all times ready for war."
-- George Washington (Fifth Annual Message, 3 December 1793)
Reference: George Washington: A Collection, W.B. Allen, ed. (488)
While there has been no shortage of political rhetoric regarding the budget deficit, there has been a significant shortage of accurate rhetoric when talking about the financial challenge we face as a government. House Republicans expose Granholm’s “pitch”.
John Edwards starts his “poverty tour”…he wants to be “one of us”, why doesn’t he stop into a local barbershop for a haircut?!? Oh my?
U.S. News & World Report has done a story about the growing “Global Economy Booms as Taxes Fall”. A lesson for Michigan??? See the article below:
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2007/7/13/global-economy-booms-as-taxes-fall.html
The Washington Post has a good chart that shows the money raised by various presidential campaigns:
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/2008-presidential-candidates/finance/2007/q2/comparison/
…and then a state by state breakdown, which shows how, Michigan is contributing:
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/2008-presidential-candidates/finance/states/mi/
TODAY…Democrat Chairman Mark Brewer and I, live on talk radio’s “The Big Show” with Michael Patrick Shiels every Tuesday morning…more info below.
Don’t Forget To Visit The Michigan Republican Party Online Store! Our secure, user-friendly site offers a variety of Republican items, including sweatshirts, t-shirts, hats, travel mugs, and more! Perfect for personal use, holiday presents, or volunteer gifts, our items will allow you to confidently display your Republican pride. Visit www.migop.org/store to view, purchase, or comment on our selection of unique Republican items.
THE REST OF THE STORY:
- House Republican Leader Craig DeRoche laid out the following facts about the budget:
“While there has been no shortage of political rhetoric regarding the budget deficit, there has been a significant shortage of accurate rhetoric when talking about the financial challenge we face as a government.
“We need to be honest with taxpayers. We do NOT face a $1.8 billion deficit. The budget deficit is what we decide to make it, and there is no reason Lansing can’t hold the line on spending and reduce our deficit.
“Here’s how. If we spend next year exactly what we are spending this year and still add in the additional money for welfare caseloads, state employee pay raises, higher education and restoring one-time monies, we will need $1.19 billion in cuts, reforms or taxes to balance the budget. $1.19 billion, not $1.8 billion.
“If we decide that double-digit tuition hikes free us from our obligation to refund universities the payment we delayed at the end of this fiscal year, then the deficit drops to $825 million.
“If we take that deficit, continue to hold the line on spending and ask each department to fund their own state employee pay hike instead of asking the taxpayers to do it, our deficit becomes $675 million.
“If we have the courage to truly reform our health care, prison and welfare systems, we can lower that deficit to only $567 million in cuts and government restructuring.
“The $1.8 billion figure comes from the governor and House Democrats and is based on their desire to use a tax increase to spend hundreds of millions more this coming year. The bigger they make the deficit number, the bigger the ‘crisis’ appears and the more they say we need a tax increase.
“The bottom line is the only way you get a deficit of $1.8 billion is to spend recklessly and with no regard for the taxpayers’ money. I’m not willing to help them do that.”
- John Edwards is traveling around the country to raise awareness in some of the more economically hard stricken areas. Since Michigan is in a single state recession, he maybe spending a lot of time visiting some of our cities.
While he’s at it…why not really be “one of us” and stop by a local barber shop and get a haircut? He’s on the road for over a month…clearly his locks will grow…go ahead, be “one of us” and get a haircut where the “other America” gets theirs cut???
Hypocrisy?
- Michigan legislators and ESPECIALLY the Governor should read this article. The country…the world is in an economic boom and taxes are going down EVERYWHERE except in Michigan.
Democrats and our Democrat Governor continue the fight to raise more taxes, more fees…you cannot tax yourself out of a recession.
There maybe some good lessons to learn from this article:
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2007/7/13/global-economy-booms-as-taxes-fall.html
- It takes TWO things to win an election…money and everything else…so the saying goes. Michigan is a major fundraising state and candidates have been coming here every cycle to help fill their coffers.
Quarterly reports were filed this week to show how the candidates fared since June 30th of this year. Much has changed in the political landscape since then, but fundraising continues to be an important benchmark for tracking a campaigns success.
The Washington Post has done a very interesting analysis of all the campaign reports filed, state by state analysis and commentary.
- Listen to our weekly debate/discussion between Democrat State Chairman Mark Brewer and myself every Tuesday morning, between 9:05am - 10:00am, as we discuss the issues of the day.
The show is available live on-line at www.wjimam.com, and you can listen to it live at the stations listed below.
"The Big Show with Michael Patrick Shiels" on the Michigan Talk Network:
WJIM 1240 Lansing
WJNL 1210 Traverse City
WTRX 1330 Flint/Saginaw
WMMI 830 Mt Pleasant
WKMI 1360 Kalamazoo
WSCG 1380 Greenville
WBCH 1220 Hastings
WODJ 1490 Muskegon
WWKK 750 Petoskey
WJML 1110 Petoskey
WDJM 1320 Marquette
WIAN 1240 Ishpeming
Past shows are recorded posted on our website at www.migop.org .
Saul Anuzis
STATE STORIES
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-24/118459743667620.xml&coll=7
Proposed changes
Monday, July 16, 2007
Gov. Jennifer Granholm's proposed changes to Michigan sentencing laws:
n Repealing 25 felonies that are rarely charged anymore: dueling, compelling a woman to marry, participating in a prize fight.
n Changing 142 felonies to misdemeanors, including filing false election statements, felonious driving and negligent homicide by snowmobile.
n Dropping the maximum penalty for 58 felonies, including selling a counterfeit state ID, voting both in person and by absentee ballot, and littering infectious waste.
n Decreasing dollar thresholds distinguishing felony from misdemeanor property crimes such as embezzlement, larceny and food-stamp fraud.
n Lightening penalties for drug offenses so possessing less than 5 grams of narcotics and 1 kilogram of marijuana would be misdemeanors and not felonies.
n Merging three grids in the sentencing guidelines resulting in less incarceration for less serious offenses.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/AUTO01/707170400&theme=Autos-UAW-talks
2007 UAW CONTRACT TALKS: Last in an occasional series
Seeking the right balance: Carmakers need cuts, union fights to preserve what it has
Bill Vlasic / The Detroit News
The future of the American auto industry is on the line as Detroit's once-mighty Big Three limp to the bargaining table this week for the start of contract talks with the United Auto Workers.
From the executive suite to the factory floor, a sense of urgency hangs over the upcoming negotiations between the UAW and General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and the Chrysler Group.
Since the last national contracts were signed in 2003, tens of thousands of U.S. auto jobs have disappeared amid mounting losses and shrinking market shares at GM, Ford and Chrysler.
Moreover, rising health care expenses have widened the considerable gap in labor costs between Detroit's automakers and their surging foreign rivals led by Toyota Motor Corp.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/OPINION01/707170336/1069
UAW health fund looks promising
July 17, 2007
This is the year that something's got to give on health care in the Detroit-based auto industry. The car companies and the United Auto Workers both know that as they prepare for the start this week of the most important contract talks of modern times.
The industry has to keep cutting costs to remain competitive; the UAW has to protect its members. The proverbial middle ground may be something called VEBA -- voluntary employee benefits association.
The UAW has some recent, smaller-scale experience with the concept, which GM is reported ready to lay on the table. In a VEBA, the company essentially pours money into a fund for the union to administer to cover its retirees' health care. For a one-time payment, the company sheds its obligation. On the upside for the UAW, such a fund could be maintained even in the event of a company bankruptcy. But the key will be coming to terms on the size of the initial company investment to ensure the fund's long-term solvency.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/METRO/707170365
Three SE Mich. towns make list of best places to live
Money Magazine ranks Farmington, Plymouth Twp., Saline among top 100 in U.S.
Doug Guthrie and Delores Flynn / The Detroit News
Despite the slow economy and troubles in the auto industry, Michigan is still home to three of the top 100 best places to live nationwide, according to a Money Magazine ranking released Monday.
Plymouth Township led the way at No. 37, Farmington was 55, and Saline, 59. All are in the hard-hit, economically ravaged southeast corner of the state.
"As businesses have moved out, others have moved in," said Plymouth Township Treasurer Ron Edwards.
"It's a time of change and we have continued to invest in quality-of-life issues."
Farmington City Manager Vincent Pastue called the announcement "tremendous news."
"Farmington is a very livable community," he said.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/NEWS06/707170319/1008
Knollenberg raking in the campaign cash
July 17, 2007
BY TODD SPANGLER
FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF
WASHINGTON -- Targeted for defeat next year by Democrats, Oakland County Republican Joe Knollenberg raised more money in the second quarter than any other Michigan member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
According to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, Knollenberg raised $443,376 during the April-to-June reporting period, lifting his total contributions during this election cycle to more than $700,000.
That's less than he raised by the same point in the last election cycle, but his campaign finance director chalked that up to an annual fund-raising dinner in Pontiac -- which rakes in about $200,000 -- being moved from June to August this year.
"Actually, the fund-raising's been really strong so far," finance director Bryce Sandler said Monday. He said he expected it to be worse given Michigan's economy.
http://www.mlive.com/news/statewide/index.ssf?/base/news-8/1184620210109100.xml&coll=1
Battle begins to save health care for low-income kids
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
By Sharon Emery
Lansing Bureau
LANSING -- With more Michigan workers earning less, now's not the time to cut back on helping low- and moderate-income families, say supporters of expanding the federal-state MIChild health insurance program.
They want Congress to not only renew the program, which has a $25-billion, five-year budget, but to boost funding. Known nationally as the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), it provides health insurance to 30,400 children and 64,000 childless adults in Michigan families making too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford insurance on their own.
Families of three can qualify if they earn up to $34,340 a year, or 200 percent of poverty; childless adults are eligible if they earn up to $3,600 annually, or 35 percent of poverty.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/AUTO01/707170331
Chrysler exceeds goal for job cuts
1,100 salaried, 6,000 hourly workers let go in phase one of three-year turnaround program.
Josee Valcourt / The Detroit News
The Chrysler Group beat its targets for hourly and salaried job reductions during phase one of its three-year turnaround plan, the company said in a memo sent to employees Monday.
Chrysler, which lost $680 million in 2006 and is shedding jobs and sharply cutting vehicle production as part of its restructuring, has pared its salaried ranks by 1,100 through buyouts and retirement packages, exceeding its 2007 target by 100 jobs.
On the blue-collar side, the automaker surpassed its target by 125 jobs, eliminating 6,000 positions at plants in the United States and Canada this year.
Mayor recommends 26 more neighborhoods for tax breaks
DETROIT (AP) -- Homeowners in 26 Detroit neighborhoods would be eligible for a property tax break of up to 35 percent if the City Council approves a proposal by Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
Under the program, known as Neighborhood Enterprise Zones, owners who purchased their homes after Jan. 1, 1997, would be eligible for a tax break of 18 to 35 percent, with the larger break going to homes with a higher value.
The break lasts up to 15 years and will vary depending on factors such as improvements to homes, city officials said.
To receive the tax break, residents must apply and perform $500 in home improvements. The 26 neighborhoods announced Monday include 28,652 households, the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News reported.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MI_LEAR_ICAHN_MIOL-?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Lear shareholders reject $2.9 billion Icahn deal
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- Lear Corp. shareholders rejected a $2.9 billion buyout offer Monday from a firm led by billionaire investor Carl Icahn, mounting enough opposition amid concerns that the proposal undervalued the auto supplier.
Icahn's American Real Estate Partners LP had improved its offer in the past week to $37.25 a share, but some shareholders said it was worth far more and questioned whether it was in their best interest.
"It's a clear message to the management that the company belongs to its shareholders, not to you," said Richard Pzena, the head of the second-largest shareholder who rallied opposition to the deal.
Lear Chief Executive Officer Robert Rossiter said the company's leaders felt "in our hearts that we did the absolute best job for our shareholders" but the decision had "not changed anything that Lear will do, has done or will ever do."
http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1184598910131390.xml&coll=4
The business of tax exemptions
Bay City, like most municipalities, gives breaks to companies for their investments
Monday, July 16, 2007
By SCOTT E. PACHECO
TIMES WRITER
Kerkau Manufacturing has received tax breaks on about $2.9 million of investment in its manufacturing operations since 2005.
The investment, which resulted in the addition of several jobs, received critical help in the form of industrial facilities tax exemptions, said Laura Horney, operations manager.
''We've bought a lot of equipment over the past three years and we've also built a new facility,'' she said. ''It would not have been possible without the exemptions. They are very important to our company.''
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/BIZ/707170342&theme=Biz-Casinos
MotorCity's revenue up 10% in June
Joel J. Smith / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- The opening of the MotorCity Casino's expanded and renovated gaming facility boosted June revenue by nearly $4 million, or 10 percent, compared with the same month last year.
According to figures released Monday by the Michigan Gaming Control Board, MotorCity took in $42.3 million in revenue, up $3.92 million from June 2006, leading Detroit's three casinos in revenue for the month.
Jacci Woods, a MotorCity spokeswoman, attributed the gain to the opening of the casino's improved 100,000-square-foot gaming facility on June 7.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070716/NEWS06/70716053/1008/NEWS06
EMU tuition and fees rise 8%
July 16, 2007
BY PEGGY WALSH-SARNECKI and LORI HIGGINS
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITERS
Eastern Michigan University students will pay an additional 8% in tuition and fees next year.
The Board of Regents approved the tuition increase without discussion on Monday.
The increase includes a 9.5% increase in tuition, but no increase in fees, putting the total increase for students at 8%.
The new rate will mean in-state undergraduates will pay an additional $557, bringing the annual cost for tuition and fees to $7,490.
The board also approved a $252 million budget, which is $5.9 million higher than last year's.
3 E. Mich. administrators, including president, forced out
YPSILANTI, Mich. (AP) -- For Eastern Michigan University's Board of Regents, restoring the trust of students and faculty took the form of removing the president and two others amid accusations that top officials covered up the rape and slaying of a student by publicly ruling out foul play.
President John Fallon was fired, and Vice President of Student Affairs Jim Vick and Public Safety Director Cindy Hall lost their jobs at the 23,500-student public university, board Chairman Thomas Sidlik said Monday.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/OPINION01/707170310/1008
Editorial
EMU must rebuild trust with state and students
The Detroit News
Now that Eastern Michigan University President John Fallon has been fired, the beleaguered public school has the opportunity to find a new leader who will help refocus and revitalize it after years of misguided management.
EMU's regents wisely voted unanimously to oust Fallon and two other leaders. They had presided over what must be the most humiliating year of the university's life as local and national press brought to light the administration's complete failure to alert its campus to the murder of one of its students.
Student Laura Dickinson, 22, was found dead in her dorm room in December. She was naked from the waist down and had a pillow over her face, but EMU announced there was no reason to suspect foul play.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-37/1184586925184180.xml&coll=6
County delegates' Hawaii trip costs $37K
Monday, July 16, 2007
By Jim Harger
The Grand Rapids Press
By all accounts, the beach at the Hilton Hawaiian Village was as beautiful as the convention brochure promised it would be.
But local public pension board members who spent $37,000 at the National Conference on Public Employee Retiree Systems in Honolulu said their members will reap the benefits from their tropical junket.
According to expense receipts submitted to pension funds for Grand Rapids city employees and Kent County employees, the 10 delegates who attended the May 18-24 conference spent an average of $3,769.20.
Three members of the Kent County delegation paid extra out of their own pockets to take their wives along.
While their expenses were covered by the pension funds, this year's convention in Hawaii raised eyebrows after it drew more than 80 registrants from Michigan.
Airfares to the conference ranged from $579 to $754, while some hotel bills and meal per diems approached $2,000. Registration fees added another $890 to each tab.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070716/NEWS06/70716032/1008/NEWS06
DeVos’ boat wins Chicago-Mackinac race; wind slowing others
July 16, 2007
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MACKINAC ISLAND — Light winds today slowed boats heading for the finish of the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac, a day after the lead boat reached the finish, organizers said.
The 86-foot-long Windquest, owned by Alticor Inc. President Doug DeVos, finished the course about 8 p.m. Sunday, according to the race Web site. This was the second year in a row that Windquest finished first.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070716/NEWS06/70716016/1008/NEWS06
Presidential hopefuls Romney, Clinton lead in Mich. fund-raising
July 16, 2007
By TODD SPANGLER
FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF
WASHINGTON – Oakland County native Mitt Romney continued his dominance among Republican presidential candidates when it comes to raising money in Michigan, though his total in the state was down significantly in the second quarter of the year compared with the first.
Romney, a former Massachusetts governor whose father was governor in Michigan, raised just over $620,000 in Michigan during the April through June reporting period, according to figures compiled by the Federal Election Commission.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/OPINION01/707170333/1069
IN OUR OPINION
Political 'charity' funds: A disgrace
July 17, 2007
Nothing in law says politicians have to reveal the names of donors to the various foundations they maintain to advance pet causes -- and themselves. That law needs changing.
Call it cynicism, but a lot of history suggests nobody puts money at politicians' disposal without an expectation of some return, even if it's just access. A five-figure check to the right foundation makes a nice retainer for future considerations.
The Free Press reported Sunday on the host of Michigan political leaders who have tax-free charities or "education funds," to which donors can give any amount and remain anonymous under federal tax codes. These differ from campaign contributions, which are limited and must be reported. The proliferation of these funds indicates politicians and the people who want to invest in them have hit on yet another way around campaign finance laws.
NATIONAL STORIES
Democrats Push All-Night Debate on Iraq
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans dismissed as political theater a Democratic plan for an all-night session of the Senate to debate President Bush's military strategy in Iraq amid bipartisan proposals to redeploy U.S. troops.
The round-the-clock debate Tuesday night through Wednesday morning was intended as a way of pressuring Republican senators as well as Bush to act sooner rather than later on a change of course in Iraq.
"How many sleepless nights have our soldiers and their families had?" Sen. Dick Durbin, No. 2 in the Democratic leadership, said Monday.
Bush, meanwhile, paid a surprise visit to a gathering of GOP congressional staffers and White House aides trying to determine an effective strategy for communications about war policies. One participant said the president told the staffers he would not rethink his Iraq policies until after a critical military assessment in September.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/POLITICS/707170355/1022
Iraq surge could grow
Top U.S. general says Joint Chiefs of Staff are considering higher troop levels, among other options.
Robert Burns / Associated Press
BAGHDAD -- The U.S. military is weighing new directions for Iraq, including an even bigger troop buildup if President Bush thinks his "surge" strategy needs a further boost, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace revealed that he and the chiefs of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force are developing their own assessment of the situation in Iraq, to be presented to Bush in September. That will be separate from the highly anticipated report to Congress that month by Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander for Iraq.
The Joint Chiefs are considering a range of actions, including another troop buildup, Pace said without making any predictions.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/POLITICS/707170349/1022
Bush offers aid to build Palestinian state
Paul Richter / Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON -- President Bush said Monday his administration will sponsor a fall meeting of Israeli, Palestinian and Arab leaders to try to revive Middle East peace efforts aimed at the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
Bush, seeking to build support for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in his power struggle with the militant Hamas movement, said the United States also is prodding other countries, including Arab states, to step up donations to Abbas' government. He said U.S. contributions this year will total $190 million, most of which has been committed and announced.
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2007/7/13/global-economy-booms-as-taxes-fall.html
Global Economy Booms as Taxes Fall
July 13, 2007 11:21 AM ET | Pethokoukis , James |
"This is far and away the strongest global economy I've seen in my business lifetime," is how U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson recently described the current global boom. Hyperbole? Actually, that dramatic declaration probably understates things. Let's refer back to this piece of analysis from Paulson's old firm, Goldman Sachs: "If we and the consensus are correct, then the period 2003-2008 will have been one of the most powerful periods of economic growth globally since accurate data [have] been collectible for much of the world."
Indeed, the global economy is growing at about a 5 percent annual pace, according to the International Monetary Fund, after growing 4.9 percent in 2005 and 5.4 percent last year. By contrast, the global economy grew at a 3 percent pace from 1980 to 2000 and at 4.7 percent from 1960 to 1980.
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2007/7/10/does-america-have-enough-skilled-workers.html
Does America Have Enough Skilled Workers?
July 10, 2007 02:40 PM ET | Pethokoukis , James
While much of the immigration debate has revolved around the economic impact of low-skilled workers heading north into the United States, the effect of high-skilled workers has been given less attention. But consider this:
1) The unemployment rate for college grads in June was 2 percent, compared with 6.7 percent for those who didn't finish high school and 4.5 percent overall.
2) According to new data from the Labor Department, America's job openings rate stayed constant last month at 2.9 percent, which is, according to economist Robert Brusca at Fact and Opinion Economics, "near its high for this economic expansion, and continues to signal that firms are having difficulty hiring enough qualified workers."
http://www.opinionjournal.com/diary/?id=110010343
Belabor the Point
Democrats find one government office they want to cut back. It's the one that exposes union corruption.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007 12:01 a.m. EDT
The new Democratic Congress has finally found a government agency whose budget It wants to cut: an obscure Labor Department office that monitors the compliance of unions with federal law.
In the past six years, the Office of Labor Management Standards, or OLMS, has helped secure the convictions of 775 corrupt union officials and court-ordered restitution to union members of over $70 million in dues. The House is set to vote Thursday on a proposal to chop 20% from the OLMS budget. Every other Labor Department enforcement agency is due for a budget increase, and overall the Congress has added $935 million to the Bush administration's budget request for Labor. The only office the Democrats want to cut back is the one engaged in union oversight.
AP Poll: GOP Pick Is 'None of the Above'
WASHINGTON (AP) -- And the leading Republican presidential candidate is ... none of the above.
The latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll found that nearly a quarter of Republicans are unwilling to back top-tier hopefuls Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, John McCain or Mitt Romney, and no one candidate has emerged as the clear front-runner among Christian evangelicals. Such dissatisfaction underscores the volatility of the 2008 GOP nomination fight.
In sharp contrast, the Democratic race remains static, with Hillary Rodham Clinton holding a sizable lead over Barack Obama. The New York senator, who is white, also outpaces her Illinois counterpart, who is black, among black and Hispanic Democrats, according to a combined sample of two months of polls.
Romney Spends It Faster Than He Gets It
BOSTON (AP) -- Mitt Romney's campaign found 9,732 ways to spend its money last quarter.
From a $15 service fee for its travel agent to $31,500 to rent the Boston Red Sox's Fenway Park for a celebratory barbecue, the Republican presidential contender was anything but fiscally conservative in spending money as fast as he raised it between April and June.
Based on the report Romney filed with the Federal Election Commission over the weekend, his spending was so prolific he had to lend his committee $6.5 million during the quarter, allowing him to cover the difference between $20.5 million he spent and the $14 million he raised.
That loan also means that, for all intents and purposes, Romney has personally paid for every second of the $4.9 million in television ads his campaign has aired since he formally declared his candidacy in February.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0707/4979.html
Bleeding coffers signal new McCain meltdown
Even as John McCain's presidential campaign struggled to streamline after disappointing fundraising in the first quarter, it continued to add payroll, rent and other expenses to what became a bloated operation that couldn't support itself.
During the past three months, McCain added $229,900 in rent payments, about 20 aides and $434,100 in salaries, according to a finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission just before Sunday's midnight deadline.
More Staff Depart From McCain Campaign
WASHINGTON (AP) -- John McCain's top communications aides and several staffers in Iowa and South Carolina quit on Monday, the latest departures to hit the Republican as he struggles to rebound from financial and political woes.
Brian Jones, McCain's communications director, and his two deputies, Matt David and Danny Diaz, stepped down but plan to stay on through the week. Two others in the communications shop at the campaign headquarters also are leaving, as are two staffers apiece in Iowa and South Carolina.
Jill Hazelbaker, McCain's current New Hampshire communications director, is expected to take over for Jones and head up a slimmed-down media operation.
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2007/07/its_official_mccains_press_sta.php
It's Official: McCain's Press Staff Resigns
Sen. John McCain's top three press aides resigned this morning, Republicans close to the campaign said and one of those aides confirmed.
The campaign's research director and two other press staffers also stepped down.
The departure of Brian Jones, the communications director, Danny Diaz, his deputy, and Matt David, another deputy, had been widely anticipated since last week's resignation of campaign manager Terry Nelson. All three were Nelson's proteges and worked closely with departed strategist John Weaver.
But all three showed up in New Hampshire last Friday to staff McCain's two-day trip through the state. Jones carefully attended to McCain at a press conference and Diaz staffed him on a blogger conference call. The Wall Street Journal reported that day that the three would resign Saturday. They did not. They did, in fact, share a farewell drink with the Senator.
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MDUxYjFmNzA5ODBlNTVhZDFkMTFmYWNmMzg4NTliMjM=
Rudy the Executive
An accomplished record to bank on.
By T. Boone Pickens
Every four years the American people are afforded the chance to declare our priorities to the world and shape the direction of our nation. When former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani recently presented his “12 Commitments to the American People,” we heard where he intends to lead America as we move further into the 21st century. It is the direction I believe America must take. Rudy is a forceful, proven leader — exactly what we need in our next president.
In Rudy Giuliani, a gracious and committed public servant I’ve known for many years, we see that rare blend of big-picture vision and proven track record of achieving the “impossible.” We see a forward-looking, accomplished executive eager to tackle the challenges of today’s America and ensure that tomorrow we wake up stronger, freer, and more united than ever before.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110010344
Libertarians and the War
Ron Paul doesn't speak for all of us.
BY RANDY E. BARNETT
Tuesday, July 17, 2007 12:01 a.m. EDT
While the number of Americans who self-identify as "libertarian" remains small, a substantial proportion agree with the core stances of limited constitutional government in both the economic and social spheres--what is sometimes called "economic conservatism" and "social liberalism." But if they watched the Republican presidential debate on May 15, many Americans might resist the libertarian label, because they now identify it with strident opposition to the war in Iraq, and perhaps even to the war against Islamic jihadists.
During that debate, the riveting exchange between Rudy Giuliani and Ron Paul about whether American foreign policy provoked the 9/11 attack raised the visibility of both candidates. When Mr. Paul, a libertarian, said that the 9/11 attack happened "because we've been over there. We've been bombing Iraq for 10 years," Mr. Giuliani's retort--that this was the first time he had heard that "we invited the attack because we were attacking Iraq. . . . and I've heard some pretty absurd explanations for September 11"--sparked a spontaneous ovation from the audience. It was an electrifying moment that allowed one to imagine Mr. Giuliani as a forceful, articulate president.
Edwards' Tour Highlights Poverty
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards called on supporters packed into a charity thrift store Monday to help start a citizens' movement to fight poverty across America.
"It would be a wonderful thing if the president of the United States could solve all these problems alone. It is not the truth. It is a fantasy," Edwards said. "If we want to bring about the bold change that can end poverty in this country, we need a movement."
Stopping at a thrift store run by the Memphis Metropolitan Interfaith Association, Edwards offered few specifics on fighting poverty but said demands for change must come from ordinary Americans.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0707/4957.html
Edwards has plan to diversify schools
NEW ORLEANS -- Sen. John Edwards plans to warn later this week that the nation’s schools have become segregated by race and income, and he will propose measures to diversify both inner-city and middle-class schools.
The plan calls for beefing up inner-city magnet schools to attract suburban kids, and providing extra money for schools in middle-class areas as a reward for enrolling more low-income students.
Edward lingered in the Big Easy this morning – admiring a 5-year-old Head Start pupil’s sneakers and hobnobbing in a wood-floored café -- before racing into Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee as part of a three-day poverty tour designed to shine a national spotlight on the plight of often-invisible groups like struggling home-health-care workers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/16/AR2007071600063.html?hpid=topnews
Obama Faces the Test Dean Failed: Broadening Support
By Anne E. Kornblut and Perry Bacon Jr.
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, July 17, 2007; Page A01
He raises tens of millions of dollars over a few months. His supporters are passionate, almost fanatical. And his grass-roots movement threatens a more established rival.
A description of Howard Dean in 2003 or Sen. Barack Obama today?
Obama campaign advisers -- many of them campaign veterans who watched Dean's slow rise and rapid descent at close range -- reject the comparison, arguing that their candidate and organization won't repeat the mistakes of the former Vermont governor.
But as Obama has shattered fundraising records over the past few months while continuing to trail Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) by double digits in polls, the challenge for the senator from Illinois has become clear: He must turn the intense devotion of his backers into a force that can win primaries, expanding his base of support beyond the narrow band of Democratic elites who backed Dean.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070712/EDITORIAL/107120007
CAIR's duplicitous ways
By Joel Mowbray
Published July 12, 2007
While the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has been busy attacking syndicated columnist Cal Thomas recently for supposedly "Islamophobic" comments, the media-hungry group did not condemn the foiled terrorist plots in London or the successful one in Glasgow, Scotland.
Though CAIR's Web site has a video clip of the Chicago chapter director lamenting the events in Britain and the group helped coordinate a St. Louis press conference of Muslim doctors who spoke out against the terrorists, CAIR itself did not condemn the actions of the Islamic terrorists in Britain.
