Washington Wrap
Dotty Lynch, Beth Lester, and Clothilde Ewing of the CBS News Political Unit have the latest from the nation's capital.
Friday's Headlines
Dotty Lynch, Beth Lester and Clothilde Ewing of the CBS News Political Unit have the latest from the nation's capital.
* New Jersey Bombshell
* Bush/Cheney Hits the Gym
* Bush Continues Western Swing
* Kerry in the Northwest
* Edwards Back on the Job
Governor Throws New Jersey a Bombshell: Governor Jim McGreevey of New Jersey threw the state's political situation into turmoil on Thursday, announcing that he is gay, engaged in an affair with another man and will step down on November 15, 2004. That date removes the gubernatorial question from the November 2004 ballot and ensures that a Democratic Governor will head the state through 2005.
But the AP reports that the New Jersey State Republicans are calling on McGreevey to step aside immediately. Joe Kyrillos, chairman of the New Jersey Republican State Committee, told the AP that McGreevey should "do the right thing" and step down immediately. If McGreevey stepped down now, that would trigger a special election this November.
If McGreevey's resignation does not become effective until November 15, there would be no special election. Instead, Democratic Senate President Richard J. Codey would become governor and serve until McGreevey's term expires in January 2006.
Hitting the Gym: In the spirit of the Olympics, the Bush/Cheney campaign has launched a new television ad, "Victory." The new ad will run on national cable during the Olympics and other sports programming, but in an interesting twist, it will also run in more than 250 fitness centers nationwide during the last two weeks of August.
Using file footage of an Olympics past, the footage switches to young women competing in a swim race as a commentator tells viewers that:
"In 1972...there were 40 democracies in the world. Today...120.
Freedom is spreading throughout the world like a sunrise. And this Olympics... there will be two more free nations And two fewer terrorist regimes. With strength, resolve and courage, democracy will triumph over terror. And, hope will defeat hatred."
According to the campaign, this marks the first time that a presidential candidate has advertised in health clubs. Although health clubs may be a first, it does seem to follow a previous strategy. Earlier in the year, the Bush campaign advertised on ESPN, FX and the Speed Channel, allowing him to target the so-called "NASCAR dads."
The health club TV Network, operated by ClubCom, Inc., runs on full size TVs and personal view screens in ClubCom's fitness club partners.
Bush Continues Western Swing: President Bush starts his day in L.A., then flies to Portland, Ore., for a small business summit; then heads to Media, Wash., for a closed Victory '04 dinner; and spends the night in Redmond. In Oregon, he is expected to promise $15 million to begin deepening the Columbia River shipping channel, delivering a controversial, if politically potent project to a region he hopes to win in November.
Thursday night on Larry King Live, Mr. Bush fielded questions from taxes to gay marriage. He continues to call a national sales tax an "interesting idea" but tried to reassure voters by saying that he was the guy who wanted to cut taxes. Earlier Thursday, John Kerry said a national sales tax would be an insult to financially struggling voters and would amount to "one of the largest tax increases on the middle class in American history."
CBS News Correspondent Mark Knoller filed this report from Los Angeles:
Knoller Nugget: It may strike some as wild-eyed wishful thinking, but President Bush says he thinks he can win California in November. Of course, he lost the state by over a million votes in 2000. And he's trailing badly in the latest polls.
The most recent Field Poll shows Mr. Bush behind John Kerry in California by 53% to 41%. But addressing a $3 million Republican fundraiser Thursday night in Santa Monica, candidate Bush essentially served notice on Kerry that California is up for grabs.
"I intend to compete in California," said the President. "I'm looking forward to coming to this great state. Nobody should take this state for granted in 2004."
Saying a supporter told him he's going to win the Golden State and its unrivaled prize of 55 electoral votes, Mr. Bush boldly declared "you know what - I think I am."
Unlike last time, Mr. Bush has California's Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on his side. At the Santa Monica fundraiser, the governor-- tongue in cheek -- offered assurances he's doing all he can to deliver.
"I've been organizing Austrian-born body-builders for Bush-Cheney," he said to howls of laughter. He said he's "even been organizing girlie-men for Bush-Cheney."
Schwarzenegger also kidded Mr. Bush saying he has it easy. "He only has to debate with a Kennedy Democrat a few times. I have to debate with one every morning when I have breakfast," said the governor, in an obvious reference to his wife Maria Shriver.
Mr. Bush countered that he has much in common with the Governor. "We both married above ourselves. We both have trouble with the English language. And we both have big biceps. Well, two out of three aren't bad."
Earlier, the President also won a formal endorsement from former First Lady Nancy Reagan. Mr. and Mrs. Bush paid a courtesy call on Mrs. Reagan at her Bel-Air home. She issued a written statement after the visit saying the President had her "full support for re-election."
Though she thinks Mr. Bush should be doing more to encourage embryonic stem cell research, a spokesman said that issue never came up in the President's hour-long meeting with Mrs. Reagan.
Northwest Trail: On Friday, John Kerry completes his "Believe in America Tour" with a "front porch visit" in Eugene and a rally in Portland. This concludes a two-week plane-train-bus trip across the country (from sea to shining sea, as the campaign puts it) that began the day after the Democratic convention ended. Wrapping things up with Senator Kerry is CBS News' Steve Chaggaris who filed this from the road.
Trail Byte: Senator Kerry and his traveling cabal played the waiting game at the Long Beach, Calif., airport Thursday afternoon as the group spent over an hour frolicking on the tarmac while his wife Teresa wrapped up a series of personal meetings.
Kerry spent most of the time tossing a baseball and, later, a football around with staffers and reporters.
Realizing he had more time to kill, he headed over to the hangar and chatted with several California Highway Patrol motorcycle cops, telling them that he spoke on the phone with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday and ribbing them for riding BMW bikes instead of Harleys. The cops replied it was a contract issue and that the BMWs were the only motorcycles that had the kind of brakes stipulated in the contract.
Prior to Kerry's arrival at the airport, one of the VIPs standing by on the tarmac to greet him wound up breaking her leg as she stepped off the stairs to the jet.
Long Beach City Council member Bonnie Lowenthal was put in an ambulance and moved several hundred feet from the plane. When informed about Lowenthal's injury, Kerry ambled over to the ambulance in an effort to boost her spirits.
Spokesman David Wade, who always seems to be on message, explained the situation by playing off one of Kerry's slogans. "When John Kerry arrived at the airport," said Wade, "help really was on the way."
After finally taking off, Kerry flew to Oregon and spoke to a crowd of thousands at the Jackson County Fairgrounds just outside of Medford.
After introductions by his wife and Jim Rassman, the man Kerry pulled from a river in Vietnam, the senator delivered a standard stump speech to an audience the campaign bragged was the largest in the area since Nirvana played Medford in '94.
Regardless of the exact crowd count, the large turnout is notable considering this area in southwest Oregon consistently votes Republican.
On Saturday, Kerry said he plans to do some windsurfing, if the winds cooperate, in the Columbia River Gorge, conveniently creating a photo opportunity smack on the border between two battleground states, Oregon and Washington. He'll then spend a few days with his wife at her vacation home in Ketchum, Idaho before hitting the trail again next Tuesday night.
Edwards Back On the Job: John Edwards is in Flint Michigan Friday, then attends an Olympic opening ceremonies watch party at a high school in Rosemount, Minnesota.
CBS News' Bonney Kapp is back describing their breezy departure from the North Carolina coast.
Trail Byte: Senator Edwards emerged from his 3 ½ day vacation Friday morning to begin a tour across the country to promote the economic "path to prosperity."
While John Kerry has allowed photographers to document his extra curricular activities on vacation (kite surfing, bike riding, skiing), Edwards chose to remain out of the spotlight in his Figure Eight, NC home. Refusing Kennedy-esque photo-ops on the beach, the senator opted to spend his time with his family away from cameras--go figure!
When Edwards appeared Friday morning boarding his campaign's 727, he looked tan and well rested, indicating he was able to spend some time on the beach before the rain and wind from tropical weather moved in to the region late Thursday.
Just before the Edwards campaign headed north, a tornado caused by the affects of the tropical weather touched down in Rocky Point, some 30 minutes from the Wilmington airport, leveling 40 homes and killing at least one.
The day was not over for the police securing Edwards' plane on the tarmac. Several were asked to search for people missing from Friday morning's storms once the plane took off.
Quote of the Day: "Bon apetit." --Julia Child's signature sign-off. The famed chef and TV personality died on Thursday in California at the age of 91.