White House Watch

With most eyes on the Republican primary race, the president tried hard to stay above the tree line this week, with several policy announcements and a lavish state dinner.

On Tuesday, with the raucous Democratic debate taking the bulk of the headlines and TV news, the president announced that he would take steps to reduce the number of medical mistakes at the nation's hospitals by 50 percent over five years. Like most presidential pronouncements, the measure has to go through Congress and with both the American Hospital and American Medical Associations against it, may have a difficult ride.

Mr. Clinton also announced measures this week to help people on food stamps obtain work, by changing the rules regarding car ownership. Food stamp recipients would be allowed to have a higher equity level in a vehicle without losing their food stamp eligibility.

The president on Wednesday played what Gore campaign spokesman Chris LeHane referred to as "point guard" this week, feeding the vice president a pass on another proposal for prescription drug coverage under Medicare. Mr. Clinton had proposed "catastrophic coverage" for Medicare recipients if their drug costs were excessive, but did not provide any details. The Veep filled in the gray areas on Wednesday, telling a group of seniors in Pompano Beach, Florida that if their personal outlays for drugs exceeded $4000, the government would pick up the rest. The measure would help people who need treatment for cancer and other catastrophic diseases and even those with conditions that require remarkable amounts of medication. For the record, Medicare does not currently cover prescription medication outside the hospital. Cost to the taxpayer will be $40 billion, bringing the total price tag of the Clinton/Gore prescription drug initiative to about $200 billon.

By the time Friday rolled around, it became apparent that the administration's discussions with America's OPEC allies were bearing fruit. Energy department officials had been counseling countries such as Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Venezuela that it was in everyone's best interest to have a stable supply of oil at stable prices. Behind the scenes, there were plenty of whispers that the issues of American economic and military aid were part of those discussions as well. But the price of oil didn't begin to drop until after the Administration was forced to spend every drop of its Low Income Heating Assistance Program (LIHEAP) money…and ask Congress for $600 billion in emergency funding for FY 2001.

John Roberts

One hundred and seventy guests, including this reporter, were invited to the affair. Whoopi Goldberg, Meg Ryan, Dennis Quaid, Diane Keaton, Placido Domingo and a host of ambassadors, fundraisers, pols and administration officials filled out the guest list.

Queen Sophia narrowly avoided personal injury and embarrassment when she caught her heel in her dress, leading to a rather chivalrous attempt by the first spotter to catch her before she fell.

Speaking before the crowd in the state dining room, the president recounted the times he had spent traveling through Spain as a graduate student in 1969 and his return 3 years ago as president, when the King and Queen hosted him for a yacht tour of Mallorca. "In a style slightly better than that which I enjoyed as a graduate student", quipped the president.

At dinner, Mr. Clinton talked politics for most of the night, sharing his encyclopedic knowledge of the primary process with your humble correspondent for an hour and a half.

The World Around Ussize> color>
It was a relatively quiet week on the foreign policy front. The administration was concerned, but not too much so about threats China made toward Taiwan on the issue of reunification. The National Security Council saw threats of Chinese military action against Taiwan if Taipei did not begin discussions on reunification as a "desire for dialogue. Of course, just in case, the administration reiterated its position that any military action against Taiwan would be a "matter of grave concern" to America. "Constructive ambiguity", the NSC refers to it as, a "policy that has served us well". The president also announced this week, a program with an impossible name aimed at providing emergency law enforcement to the world's hotspots. And Mr. Clinton continued to push for American approval of China's accession to the World Trade Organization, a process that appears inevitable, through promises to be a difficult fight.

There has been much gnashing of teeth over the issue of a possible presidential visit to Pakistan. The White House is considering whether it can be added to the president's upcoming trip to the India and Bangladesh, but there are two concerns, not the least of which is that Pakistan is currently under military rule following a coup last fall. Perhaps more importantly though, are security issues that the Secret Service is reportedly extremely nervous about.

Pakistan is pushing hard for the president to come there, saying it is working on the necessary reforms to return to democracy. Democratic members of the House have also appealed to the President to go. However, Pakistani officials say a presidential visit must be "substantial", not just a touch and go at Islamabad's airport.

Appeals For Peace In Northern Ireland Drowned Out size> color>
The impasse over the implementation of the Good Friday accords in Northern Ireland continues to occupy much of the NSC's time. Martin McGuinness, one of the leaders of Sinn Fein, the IRA's non-violent political wing met with National Security advisor Sandy Berger for an hour on Thursday. Following the meeting, McGuinness came out to the "stake out" area in front of the West Wing to speak with the press. At the same time, Marine 1, the presidential helicopter, was practicing landings on the South Lawn, leading to a sometimes deafening roar.

McGuinness began talking about the "serious dialogue" he had with Berger as the helicopter wound up for another take off. McGuinness broke a smile and laughed "you can't even hear me can you?"

After a minute waiting for the noise to abate he mused, "Is that a British helicopter?"

Sosnick Says 'Good-Bye'size> color>
The week at the White House ended with the entire press office staff dressed in blue jeans and gray sweatshirts. The significance? It was the final day in the Administration of Doug Sosnick, "advisor without portfolio", who is leaving to take a job with the NBA.

Sosnick has been at the president's side since 1995, a rare bird in that he has influenced everything from politics to foreign policy, but shuns the camera, preferring the anonymity of working behind the scenes.

Though he sometimes forces his athletic figure into the harsh confines of a business suit for official events, Sosnick is most often seen around the White House in his standard uniform of blue denim and gray sweats, hence the tribute from the White House staff.

Sosnick - the poster child for "Type A" personality - has often demonstrated his talents as a leader, not only in fashion, but most notably on the president's trip to New Zealand last fall when he was the first one off the bridge at the White House bungee jumping follies. So powerful was his influence that he inspired the president's chief economic advisor Gene Sperling to take the leap. Sperling, renowned for his reserved but in-depth analysis of all things economic was transformed by Sosnick's lead and is now rumored to wear jeans and a sweatshirt under his ever-present blue suits.