Karl Rove just left the White House, and he was saluted by 100 to 200 White House staffers who stood and cheered, some holding signs, as he got into his car and departed.
New York Times photographer Doug Mills was walking by the driveway between the West Wing and the Executive Office Building when he saw the departure, which had not been announced by the White House.
Today was Mr. Rove's last day at the White House, after having worked for President Bush for 14 years.
Some of the signs read "We'll miss you," said Mr. Mills, adding that Mr. Rove got into the passenger seat of his Jaguar, which was driven by an unidentified person.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
President Bush yesterday said he still has not named an envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), two months after announcing the move.
"We have not identified the person yet. We're working toward that end," Mr. Bush told a group of journalists from Australian and Asian news outlets during a preview of his trip to Australia next week.
Mr. Bush said he would be meet today with Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice on the issue.
On June 27, Mr. Bush announced the appointment during a speech at the Islamic Center of Washington.
The OIC comprises 57 member countries and is based in Saudi Arabia.
“This is an opportunity for Americans to demonstrate to Muslim communities our interest in respectful dialogue and continued friendship," Mr. Bush said in June at the mosque.
Mr. Bush yesterday said he decided to name an envoy because he is "concerned about the perceptions in the Muslim world that the United States views the war on terror as a war against a particular religion."
"This is a war of extremists and radicals, ideologues driven by a vision … that hijacks religion in order to justify their position," Mr. Bush said. “And any chance we have to dispel false notion and to reinforce the realities is helpful to the United States, and frankly others, as well."
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
White House press secretary Tony Snow will announce today he is resigning, the White House has confirmed to the Washington Times.
President Bush will make a statement at the top of the 12:45 p.m., regularly scheduled news briefing, after which Mr. Snow is expected to speak.
Mr. Snow's last day will be Sept. 14, according to the Associated Press. Deputy press secretary Dana Perino is expected to replace him.
Mr. Snow, who was named White House press secretary little more than a year ago, is undergoing his second bout with cancer.
After beating colon cancer in 2005, Mr. Snow announced he had been diagnosed again in late March, this time with cancer that had attached itself to his liver.
Mr. Snow underwent surgery, began chemotherapy, and returned to work in late April.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
UPDATE 3 P.M.: "The rumors of his resignation are greatly exagerated," a top aide to Sen. Larry E. Craig tells Steven A. Miller of The Washington Times.
Sen. Larry E. Craig was free-falling in Idaho opinion polls and getting excoriated on talk-radio shows as the state's largest paper yesterday called for his resignation over a sex scandal.
"He's in trouble," said an Idaho Republican Party official. "There is zero interest in his running for re-election and [Mr. Craig's previous supporters] want this over with now."
Idaho Sen. Larry Craig is considering resigning, Republican officials said Friday, after days of public and private pressure stemming from his arrest in June in a police undercover operation at an airport men's room.
Speculation and anticipation proliferate among bloggers, but there's not really much doubt how this story will end: Republican political careers don't survive this kind of sex scandal.
Sen. James M. Inhofe says terrorists' attempt to shoot down the C-130 military transport plane carrying him and other lawmakers in Iraq demonstrated the progress of the U.S. military campaign.
"Al Qaeda's unsuccessful attempt to shoot down this C-130 aircraft was a futile effort to influence its losing fight in Iraq, and served to underscore the reality that terrorism is still a threat and that there is still work to be done," the Oklahoma Republican said. "The crew’s impeccable training and flawless performance ensured the safety of the aircraft and all personnel on board."
Mr. Inhofe was aboard the aircraft with Republican Sens. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama and Mel Martinez of Florida and Rep. Robert E. "Bud" Cramer, Alabama Democrat, departing Baghdad en route to Amman, Jordan, when they came under fire.
The crew of the aircraft dispensed flares to defeat any potential heat-seeking missile threat and no one was harmed, Mr. Inhofe said.
"While this incident may have been harrowing, these are the kind of threats that our men and women in Iraq, Afghanistan, and around the world continue to face every day," he said. "They are the front line in the war on terror and are to be commended for their tireless service."
-- S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times
Q: So what are your outlook and hopes for U.S.-Malaysia relations, and especially with Malaysia being the 10th largest trading partner?
THE PRESIDENT: First of all, I do believe we ought to have -- take this notion of trade and have meaningful discussions with a potential free trade agreement with Malaysia. Secondly, I respect Prime Minister Badawi, admire his leadership. When his wife died I tried to call him early just to let him know I cared about him.
Q: He has remarried.
THE PRESIDENT: Has he? Good. I'll congratulate him. Thanks for giving me that heads-up. Don't put that in the article that you had to tell me that. You can put it in there if you want. (Laughter.) I'll be glad to -- I'm going to congratulate him. That's neat.
MR. WILDER: You did, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: What?
MR. WILDER: You did congratulate him.
THE PRESIDENT: Exactly. I'm going to congratulate him again. (Laughter.) I'll double the congratulations. (Laughter.) That's right, I did write him a note. I forgot. Did I call him or write him a note?
MR. WILDER: You wrote him a note.
THE PRESIDENT: That's right, yes. Sent him a couple flowers. Anyway, Malaysia is an interesting example of how a free society can deal with movements that could conceivably change and alter the nature of the free society.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
Q: Mr. President, what do you think you have achieved with regards to U.S. ties with Asia during your time in office? And what do you consider to be unfinished business?
THE PRESIDENT: Unfinished business is North Korea. It's -- let me just say, it is finishing. In other words, we're making progress. The six-party talks is working.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
Gerry Spence is one of the nation's most flamboyant lawyers, and now has as a client one of his few rivals for the title, Geoffrey Feiger, accused of violating campaign finance laws by using straw donors to funnel money to Sen. John Edwards' 2004 presidential campaign.
Spence and other members of Fieger's defense team attacked the indictment as a political prosecution at a news conference held at Fieger's law offices this morning.
Among those who spoke on Fieger's behalf was former assistant U.S. attorney in Delaware Jack Beam, who said he was a Republican appointee of former President Gerald Ford.
"This kind of politicization that we see here is a shame," Beam said. "I'm embarrassed that this is my old Justice Department.
"It is reminiscent, and I don't think I exaggerate, of Nazi Germany."
(H/T: Hot Air, where commenter "Dusty" notes that Beam has given more than $8,000 in campaign contributions to Democrats since 2000.)
That's two bad signs for Feiger.
First, when your lawyer starts holding press conferences -- seeking to try the case in the media -- you need a new lawyer. A federal indictment is not a P.R. problem.
Second, violating Godwin's Law is always an inauspicious omen. Comparing federal prosecutors to Nazis is not likely to help you either in a plea-bargain situation or at sentencing time, if you take the case to trial and lose.
-- Robert Stacy McCain, assistant national editor, The Washington Time
Chrysler's media blog got revved up today about Democratic presidential hopeful John Edward's recent musing that Americans should sacrifice their sport-utility vehicles for more fuel-efficient cars.
"Sacrifice? Would any president sacrifice their safety, or comfort, and give up the presidential motorcade, which includes many SUVs laden with heavy armor?" Jason Vines, Chrysler Group's longtime communications chief, said on the company's blog site TheFirehouse.biz.
"Obviously the Secret Service knows something that millions of other Americans already know — SUVs are great vehicles for transporting groups of people comfortably and safely, as well as hauling cargo," Mr. Vines wrote. "According to a recent Popular Mechanics article, large SUVs like the Dodge Durango and the Chevrolet Suburban have the lowest death rates of any vehicle on the road."
Perhaps Mr. Vines is a bit brand biased, but he says that's his choice — not the government's.
"Last time I checked, America is about choice," he said. "This kind of reminds me of book burnings of the past. Shouldn't a president try to preserve freedoms? So let's lay off any suggestions of 'vehicle choice by government committee.' Trabant anyone?"
The site featured a photograph of a Trabant, the late 1950s car produced in East Germany that came to symbolize communist bloc automobiles and austere communist style.
-- S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times
President Bush will wait until at least Sept. 10, after he has returned from a week-long trip to Australia, before he announces a nominee to replace Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, a senior White House official told The Washington Times.
"It's unlikely that there will be a chance for process to recommend to [Mr. Bush] some options before he leaves for Australia, and for him to talk to those points and come to a conclusion," said Ed Gillespie, counselor to the president and one of his closest advisers.
Mr. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush leave for Australia on Monday and return Sunday, Sept. 9.
"So probably when he gets back from Australia he'll be able to announce something," Mr. Gillespie said in an interview yesterday. For more from that interview, see The Washington Times tomorrow morning.
Mr. Gillespie said that the White House has been in close consultation with more than 25 members of Congress on "both sides of the aisle."
"We've picked up a lot of interesting input from the Hill in the course of the past couple days, talking to people, and that's been factored in," Mr. Gillespie said.
Mr. Gillespie, a former Republican National Committee Chairman who was instrumental in both of Mr. Bush's presidential campaigns, also worked for many years on Capitol Hill.
His hiring was thought to be a signal that the White House would step up its communication and cooperation with members of Congress.
Mr. Gillespie declined to name any potential attorney generals, but said that Mr. Bush is "looking for someone who shares his point of view and his view of important policies."
"It's a very important position. We are in a war on terror and the attorney general and the Department of Justice plays a very important role in that," Mr. Gillespie said.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
A new conservative organizing group that is running $15 million in national TV ads, in support of continuing the U.S. troop presence in Iraq, has been compared to the liberal group MoveOn.org.
Principals at Freedom's Watch, which is fronted by former Bush White House officials Ari Fleischer and Brad Blakeman and backed by several very wealthy donors, reject comparisons to MoveOn.
Freedom's Watch backers say they have real bite, in the form of a $15 million ad buy, compared to MoveOn, which they say claims clout but has done little advertising or organizing this summer.
MoveOn did organize local anti-war demonstrations around the country last weekend.
But MoveOn today sent out an e-mail request to supporters asking them to donate $25 each "to help us produce ads and put them on the air to counter the White House group."
In the e-mail, MoveOn organizer Nita Chaudhary calls Freedom's Watch a "shady White House-linked group" and says they are using "unethical tactics to keep the U.S. in Iraq for years or decades to come."
"They lie -- blurring the line between al Qaeda and Iraq. And they're emotional -- featuring injured troops and their families," Ms. Chaudhary says (you can watch the ads here to see if you agree with her).
"We've got to get on the air NOW, rebutting their lies and reminding Congress where the American people really stand," Miss Chaudhary says.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
Florida Democrats today flouted the national party's threat of retaliation if the state goes ahead with plans to move the presidential primary up to Jan. 29.
The state's 10 Democratic members of Congress, led by Sen. Bill Nelson, issued a joint statement to "strongly encourage all Democrats to vote for their preferred nominee in that primary, regardless of whatever penalties the DNC might enact."
"We cannot go along with anything but the state-run primary set for next January," they said. "The vote is going to matter -- period," the lawmakers said.
The lawmakers said they would sue the DNC to stop it from banning Florida delegates, if it comes to that.
The statement comes three days after the Democratic National Committee led by Howard Dean voted to expel Florida's delegates to the national convention if the state party does not hold its presidential caucus on Feb. 5 or later, instead of a binding primary set for Jan. 29.
The primary date was scheduled in a law passed by the Florida Legislature and signed by Gov. Charlie Crist, Republican.
"I hope we're going to be able to work this out," Mr. Nelson said. "The easy solution is for a few other states to move their primaries up before Florida's."
The Florida Democrats include Reps. Allen Boyd Jr., Corrine Brown, Kathy Castor, Alcee Hastings, Ron Klein, Tim Mahoney, Kendrick Meek, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Robert Wexler.
-- S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times
Sen. Orrin Hatch, Utah Republican, had been mentioned for months as a possible replacement for Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, if Mr. Gonzales resigned.
Mr. Gonzales announced his resignation this morning, and it came to this reporter's attention that Mr. Hatch's former spokesman, Peter Carr, left the senator's office just over a week ago to go work at the Justice Department, in the press office.
But a Hatch spokeswoman this afternoon ruled out the possibility of Mr. Hatch replacing Mr. Gonzales.
Heather Barney, Mr. Hatch's spokeswoman, was with Mr. Hatch in Utah and said she had talked to the senator this morning.
"He said he won't be the attorney general and he's confident that they'll be looking at some qualified candidates he can support," Ms. Barney said.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
"Gonzales leaves without about one political ally to his name, and now we'll hear another cloying Bush speech about how a guy no one really liked and who brought considerable problems upon the administration through his own bone-headedness was actually the greatest guy evuh."
This is a golden opportunity for Democrats to divorce themselves from the fringe left.
Following the departure of Karl Rove, this clears the deck for the Democratic Congress to drop its incessant investigations of the Bush administration — and legislate instead of investigate.
Not that they will. There is a bloodlust in the hearts of Democrats to punish George Bush and his staff. This goes beyond anger and is a way of intimidating people from joining a Republican administration.
"This resignation is not the end of the story," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat. "Congress must get to the bottom of this mess and follow the facts where they lead, into the White House."
Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said the resignation leaves a lingering "cloud of suspicion that the system of justice has been manipulated for political purposes."
"Unfortunately, the continued stonewalling of the White House in the U.S. attorney scandal has deprived the American people of the truth," the Michigan Democrat said. "If the power of the prosecutor has been misused in the name of partisanship, we deserve a full airing of the facts. The responsibility to uncover these facts is still on the Congress, and the Judiciary Committee in particular."
Melanie Sloan, executive director of the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), said the resignation was "overdue" and called for continued congressional hearings and an investigation by a special prosecutor.
"Questions of whether Justice Department officials lied to Congress, conducted criminal inquiries to further political ends, illegally fired U.S. attorneys and made hiring decisions based on political affiliation still merit investigation regardless of Mr. Gonzales' resignation," she said.
-- S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times
Florida Democrats said they blame the Republican-controlled state legislature for slipping the early primary into a new law that also creates a paper trail for electronic ballots.
"So they put it in there knowing full well that Democrats could not vote against a paper trail," Karen Thurman, the Florida Democratic Chair, said.
Translation:"We are so stupid, it's unfair to hold us responsible for our votes."
Which, if you think about it, was basically their argument in the 2000 recount fiasco.
When FL moved its primary to January 29, the vote in the FL legislature was 115:1 for doing so. Where I come from this is known as "strong bipartisan support" ...
Here's the press release from Gov. Crist's signing ceremony in West Palm Beach May 21.
He was joined at the bill signing ceremony by Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Arthur Anderson, Congressman Robert Wexler, bill sponsors Representatives David Rivera (R-Miami) and Dorothy Hukill (R-Port Orange) and Senators Lee Constantine (R-Altamonte Springs) and Jeremy Ring (D-Margate) and other legislators ...
So, no shortage of support by Florida Democrats when the bill was passed and signed into law, but now that Howard Dean's DNC has stripped the state of its delegates, somehow it's all the GOP's fault.
Before the DNC acted, as Donald Lambro reported, Florida Democrats were talking lawsuits:
Democratic lawmakers from Florida have threatened to sue the Democratic National Committee if it goes through with a plan to penalize the state party for participating in a Jan. 29 presidential primary.
"If the DNC strips Florida of all or some of its delegates to the national convention -- we would ask the appropriate legal officials to determine whether this could violate any state or federal laws governing and protecting individual voting rights," the lawmakers said in a letter to DNC Chairman Howard Dean.
But why bother suing fellow Democrats, when it's so much easier to blame everything on Republicans?
It will be interesting to see how independent "swing" voters in Florida react to this little intra-party spat.
-- Robert Stacy McCain, assistant national editor, The Washington Times
Attorney Geoffrey Fieger and one of his law partners have been indicted by the U.S. government, which accused the pair of making $127,000 in illegal campaign contributions to the 2004 presidential campaign of John Edwards.
The indictment was unsealed today at the U.S. District Court in Detroit and accuses Fieger and Vernon Johnson of violating the $2,000 per election federal limit on individual contributions to presidential candidates.
The indictment accuses them of soliciting 60 "straw donors" to also contribute the $2,000 maximum to Edwards and then reimbursing them for their contributions through funds from their Southfield-based Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Johnson PC firm.
Tab Turner, of Turner & Associates, Little Rock, Arkansas, agreed to raise a total of $200,000 for the Edwards campaign. ... FEC investigators found that Turner had "knowingly and willfully" contributed $12,000 to the Edwards campaign on behalf of his brother, his sister-in-law, and four Turner & Associates paralegals ... all cited with Federal Election Campaign Act violations for allowing Turner to make $2,000 contributions on their behalf. After reimbursing Turner for the $12,000 that he contributed illegally, and after paying a civil fine of $9,500, a mere slap on the wrist, the Edwards campaign came away with not $200,000, but $52,000.
Turner ... was fined $50,000 for illegally reimbursing his employees and for allowing them to work hundreds of hours on arrangements for the fundraisers while on company time.
Hollrah suggests that the mutual fingerpointing between Feiger and the Edwards campaign might prove interesting:
The indictment alleges that the Edwards campaign was unaware of Fieger and Johnson's actions ... and that Edwards and his campaign staff have "cooperated fully" with the investigation. Edwards has been campaigning full time for the presidency since he was defeated in his run for vice president in 2004. Is there any chance at all that, as a trial lawyer, he would not "roll over" on any fellow trial lawyer indicted in the massive fundraising scheme?
Meanwhile, Feiger -- the indicted lawyer, not the '70s rocker -- issued a statement (written in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS and online in PDF format) describing his indictment as part of a "political charade" masterminded by Karl Rove and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales:
Recent investigations by both the House and Senate have revealed that Alberto Gonzales is both corrupt and has repeatedly deceived Congress and the American people.
In 2005, Gonzales, with the encouragement of Karl Rove and others in the Bush administration, began a campaign to destroy the fund raising ability of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards by attempting to intimidate his supprt by trial lawyers. ...
The timing of these unprecedented charges ... is solely intended to intimidate Democratic supporters around the country.
In fact, Feiger's indictment is unlikely to have any real legal or political impact on John Edwards or his campaign. The history of campaign finance regulation shows that illegal contributions are more dangerous to the donor than to the recipient.
What to make of Feiger's contention that the indictment is politically-motivated? Well, none of Edwards' Democratic presidential rivals have complained about their campaign donors being targeted by Rove and Gonzales. Wonder if Feiger will suggest that Obama and Hillary are part of this conspiracy -- this mystery -- or is it just a game in my mind, Sharona?
-- Robert Stacy McCain, assistant national editor, The Washington Times
The Democratic National Committee on Saturday threatened to strip the Florida Democratic Party of its presidential delegates, after Florida moved up its primary to January, the Associated Press reports:
Florida Democrats would forfeit their votes in selecting a presidential nominee unless they delay their state election by at least a week, the national party said in a stern action Saturday meant to discourage others from leapfrogging ahead to earlier dates.
The Florida party has 30 days to submit an alternative to its planned Jan. 29 primary or lose its 210 delegates to the nominating convention in Denver next summer.
At Wake Up America, Susan Duclos sees the DNC move as part of a "death wish," demonstrating the Democratic Party's "self-destructive tendencies":
Now, I will be the first to admit this race of primaries is ridiculous, but since it seems to be happening with or without the Democratic National Committee's blessing, penalizing the Florida delegates is absurd.
At Open Left, Chris Bowers explains the likely consequence of the DNC's move:
Florida will have a delegation seated at the 2008 Democratic convention. However, that delegation will not be determined by the January 29th Florida "primary," at least until the nominee is already decided. Only ... when the nominee becomes a foregone conclusion, without the assistance of anyone from Florida included in their ongoing delegate counts, will the delegates from Florida be reinstated through the credentials committee in some manner.
In other words, Florida Democrats will vote on Jan. 29 -- but their votes won't have any real influence in deciding the nomination.
Allahpundit is also on the story at Hot Air, but most blogs hadn't picked up the news as of 6 p.m. Saturday -- most political bloggers don't do much posting on Saturday afternoon, especially in August.
Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, today blasted Democrats calling for the ouster of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
"Forced by facts on the ground to acknowledge the progress of the American and Iraqi militaries since the new surge strategy started, some of these opponents of the war are now turning their harshest criticism on our allies in Iraq instead of our enemies. This is a mistake," Mr. Lieberman said.
"Whatever the shortcomings of our friends in Iraq, they are not an excuse to retreat from the real enemies who threaten our vital national interests there."
His remarks come as Mr. Maliki and the Iraqi government is criticized by Democrats -- including presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, chairman of the Armed Services Committee -- to justify a speedy pullout of U.S. troops.
"Ironically, it was not so long ago that many in Congress criticized the Bush administration for what they described as its heavy-handed and patronizing treatment of our most important allies in the world," Mr. Lieberman said. "Now many of those very critics make the exact same mistake in their treatment of the Iraqis, whose citizens -- lest we forget -- are fighting and dying every day in the struggle against al Qaeda, and in far higher numbers than any other nationality."
"Ultimately, the choice we face in Iraq is not between the current Iraqi government and a perfect Iraqi government," he said. "Rather, it is a choice between a young, imperfect, struggling democracy that we have helped midwife into existence, and the totalitarian, terrorist regime that al Qaeda hopes to impose in its place, should we retreat."
-- S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times
MONTEBELLO, Quebec -- President Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper are sometimes referred to as close allies because they are both conservative, but signs of personal warmth between the two leaders were nonexistent today.
Mr. Bush, emerging onto a stage with Mr. Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon for a news conference after two days of meetings, was grim-faced and frowned through much of the hourlong event.
Mr. Bush's mood lightened as the news conference wore on, but during Mr. Harper's opening remarks, in which he spoke of disagreements he had presented to Mr. Bush, the two leaders pointedly avoided making eye contact.
When Mr. Harper said the talks between the U.S. and Canada were "as cordial as they were constructive" and glanced over at Mr. Bush, the president looked down and continued to frown.
The two-day summit produced no results in Canada's efforts to gain U.S. concessions on a few issues of concern. Canada wants the U.S. to ease rules requiring Canadians to show their passports at the border and to recognize Canadian sovereignty over the Northwest Passage in the Arctic.
A close aide to Mr. Bush who attended most of the meetings over the last two days said the president and Mr. Harper were "fine."
"I think people feel like it's been a good couple days," the aide said. "Everybody's got their concerns but ... I haven't sensed any tension at all."
Mr. Harper and Mr. Bush reaffirmed the friendship between their countries, but both leaders displayed only half-smiles, at best.
Mr. Bush's most energetic display during the talk occurred when he leaned forward and then toward Mr. Harper and said, “I think we made some good progress toward eliminating barriers and toward harmonizing regulations to a point where more prosperity will ... come to be.”
Mr. Harper was tight-lipped.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) says it is suffering from a decline in membership and fundraising and blames the Justice Department for listing it as an unindicted co-conspirator in a case involving a charity accused of terrorist ties.
CAIR is asking a federal judge to strike it as one of the more than 300 Muslim groups listed as unindicted co-conspirators in the government's case against the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, which is currently on trial in Dallas.
Scott Johnson at Power Line was the first to blog that the brief CAIR has filed in federal court basically confirmed The Washington Times report in June:
CAIR's brief verges on hysteria in asserting that the government has harmed it by identifying it as an unindicted co-conspirator. It repeatedly asserts that the government's identification of CAIR has reduced its membership and donations.
At the time of the publication of Hudson's story, CAIR vociferously disputed its accuracy.
OTTAWA -- I had the chance last night to catch the "Jon Stewart of Canada" (not really) on the Canadian Broadcasting Network.
George Stroumboulopoulos is a late-night interviewer who mixes news with humor aimed at 20- and 30-somethings.
But Stroumboulopoulos, 35, looks like an indie rock star and is far more earnest and less ironic than Mr. Stewart. His show, "The Hour," has some light moments but revolves around Stroumboulopoulos' interviews with various guests.
Toronto Life said: "The program is constructed around the magnetism of its host, and like Stroumboulopoulos, it’s dynamic, engaging, spontaneous, yet also sometimes tiring in its impatient velocity."
Last night Mr. Stroumboulopoulos interviewed Christian pastor and author Tony Campolo about religion and politics in the U.S.; documentary filmmaker Rob Stewart, whose film "Shark Water" nearly got him killed by humans; and Chris Gardner, whose story inspired the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness," starring Will Smith.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
OTTAWA -- Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper uttered the only noteworthy comments while greeting President Bush at Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello resort today, as a few hundred protesters chanted outside at such a distance that they could not be heard.
Asked about the protests, Mr. Harper said, "I've heard it's nothing. It's sad."
Amid a phalanx of bodyguards and aides, Mr. Bush arrived for the two-day summit wearing a gray sports jacket and blue shirt open at the collar. He shook hands with Mr. Harper and went inside a lodge, ignoring a reporter's question as he turned to go.
Two red-uniformed Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers stood at the door and saluted as the two leaders went inside.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
Here in Montebello, the press bus saw what looked like a group of about 100 or 200 protesters gathered about 100 yards from the front gate of the heavily wooded Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello resort.
About 20 riot police officers were getting into formation as we pulled up to the gate.
We pulled up just as Air Force One was landing at Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport, about a 90-minute drive away. President Bush is due here in about 90 minutes to begin a two-day summit with the leaders of Canada and Mexico.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
OTTAWA -- Two of the major issues that will be addressed during a two-day summit between President Bush and the leaders of Canada and Mexico were spotlighted in news outlets this morning -- the war on terror and illegal immigration.
Mr. Bush will thank Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper for his commitment of 2,500 Canadian troops to Afghanistan through February 2009. But antiwar protests by Canadians in the resort town of Montebello, 50 miles east of Ottawa, are expected to be large.
Mr. Bush and Mexican President Felipe Calderon are expected to discuss immigration issues. The U.S. president's immigration reform plan was defeated in Congress this summer.
<-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
Immigration officials quizzed incoming visitors with surprising intensity and specificity, especially when the summit was mentioned as the reason for the visit.
"You understand why we have to take it so seriously," said one immigration official in his early 20s, looking like a SWAT team member in all black, sans sidearm.
Of course, one of the main reasons for the summit is the Security and Prosperity Partnership, which is intended to boost trade and increase border security.
Also noted here, the morning TV news showed none other than comedian Rich Little performing last night in town. Mr. Little was the entertainer at this year's White House Correspondents Dinner, where he was roundly panned.
But Ottawa Mayor Larry O'Brien is apparently a huge fan of Mr. Little's, and said in the TV report the city had dubbed Aug. 19 as "Rich Little Day."
In addition, the Globe and Mail newspaper reports this morning that Mexican President Felipe Calderon is considering leaving the summit early to return home and help prepare his country for Hurricane Dean, which is headed for the Yucatan Peninsula.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
White House press secretary Tony Snow today said he will leave the Bush White House before the end of the president's term, joining a long and growing list of top officials streaming out of the administration.
Mr. Snow, 52, who has been battling cancer, said financial pressures likely will force him to move on before Jan. 20, 2009.
"I will not be able to make it to the end of this administration, just financially," Mr. Snow said. In a radio interview Wednesday, he said that he has "already made it clear I'm not going to be able to go the distance, but that's primarily for financial reasons."
"I've told people when my money runs out, then I've got to go, he said Wednesday on the Hugh Hewitt radio show.
Mr. Rove's top aide, Sara Taylor, also left this summer.
When Mr. Rove announced his resignation, he said that Chief of Staff Josh Bolten had asked that anyone who planned to leave before the end of President Bush's second term do so as soon as possible.
When Mr. Hewitt asked Mr. Snow about that Wednesday, the spokesman said: "I think that probably, as Josh said the other day, he thinks there are probably a couple coming up in the next month or so. I think the rule was, 'Let your intentions be known before Labor Day.' But I will let others make their announcements."
Mr. Snow said that Mr. Rove had kept his decision about resigning "pretty buttoned up. Only a small number of people really knew. And so my guess is that there may be some in the mix that we don't know about. There have been plenty to have been rumored over the years, can't tell you."
But when the radio talk show host asked Mr. Snow how long he planned to say, the usually affable spokesman said: "I'm not going to tell you."
At the end of the interview, Mr. Hewitt asked Mr. Snow if he planned to return to radio -- his job before taking the press secretary position -- after his White House days are over.
"Don't know what I'll do. But you know, I mean, a lot of my life story's going to be devoted to trying to help people with cancer and other stuff," Mr. Snow said.
Mr. Snow, the father of three children, earns $168,000 as an assistant to the president, but he made far more as a syndicated talk-show host on Fox News Radio. He was named press secretary on April 26, 2006.
Mr. Snow has been undergoing chemotherapy after doctors discovered a recurrence of colon cancer in March. He said the last of eight scheduled chemotherapy treatments would be on Friday. On Monday he will have a CAT scan to evaluate his progress.
-- Joseph Curl, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
White House press secretary Tony Snow, who has been battling cancer, will not serve until the end of President Bush's second term.
"I've already made it clear I'm not going to be able to go the distance, but that's primarily for financial reasons," Mr. Snow said Wednesday on the Hugh Hewitt radio show. "I've told people when my money runs out, then I've got to go."
During the show, he said senior presidential adviser Karl Rove kept his intention to step down at the end of this month "pretty buttoned up."
"Only a small number of people really knew. And so my guess is that there may be some in the mix that we don't know about. There have been plenty to have been rumored over the years, can't tell you," he said.
When the radio talk show host asked Mr. Snow when he planned to leave, he said: "I’m not going to tell you."
"Come on, make some news," Mr. Hewitt joked.
"No," Mr. Snow replied.
At the end of the interview, Mr. Hewitt asked the spokesman if he planned to return to radio -- his job before taking the press secretary position -- once his White House days are over.
"Don't know what I'll do. But you know, I mean, a lot of my life story's going to be devoted to trying to help people with cancer and other stuff," Mr. Snow said.
-- Joseph Curl, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
FBI Director Robert Mueller noted in 2004 that then-Attorney General John Ashcroft was "clearly stressed" after being visited in intensive care by then-White House Counsel Alberto R. Gonzales.
Mr. Mueller was called to the hospital by Deputy Attorney General Jim Comey, who told him that Mr. Gonzales and then-White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card were going to visit Mr. Ashcroft, who was recovering from emergency gall bladder surgery.
Mr. Comey had been designated acting attorney general and was worried that Mr. Gonzales and Mr. Card were going to pressure Mr. Ashcroft into authorizing a top-secret government surveillance program that Mr. Comey objected to on legal grounds.
Mr. Mueller's notes, which were released this afternoon by the House Judiciary Committee after being turned over in heavily redacted form by the FBI, add some small details, but no big revelations, to the story of what happened on March 10, 2004.
Mr. Comey called Mr. Mueller around 7:20 p.m. while the FBI director was at dinner with his wife and daughter and told him that the "AG is in no condition to see [Mr. Gonzales and Mr. Card], much less make decision to authorize continuation of the program."
At 7:40 p.m., Mr. Mueller's notes said he was at the hospital and that "Card and [Judge] Gonzales have gone."
Mr. Ashcroft told the two White House officials that Mr. Comey was in charge, but then "reviewed for them the legal concerns relating to the program."
"The AG also told them that he was barred from obtaining the advice he needed on the program by the strict compartmentalization rules of the [White House]."
Thirty minutes later, Mr. Mueller wrote that he had seen Mr. Ashcroft in his hospital room.
"Janet Ashcroft in the room. AG in chair; is feeble, barely articulate, clearly stressed," Mr. Mueller's notes say.
Much of the FBI director's notes, stored in his computer under the file name "Program," are blacked out, including his account of a meeting the next day with Mr. Card, "at his request," and a meeting with President Bush two days later.
"The President called me into the side office off the Oval Office after we had concluded our morning briefing of him," Mr. Mueller wrote.
Mr. Comey told Congress in May that Mr. Bush instructed Mr. Mueller and the Justice Department to "do the right thing."
"We had the president's direction to do ... what the Justice Department believed was necessary to put this matter on a footing where we could certify to its legality," Mr. Comey told Congress.
Yet, discussions between Mr. Mueller, Mr. Comey, and White House officials all the way up to Vice President Dick Cheney continued for the next two weeks, according to Mr. Mueller's notes.
Mr. Mueller made and received several phone calls from Mr. Comey and Mr. Gonzales, often on the same days, for the next week.
The FBI director's notes on the subject end with a noon meeting in Mr. Cheney's office on March 23, 2004, "at his request."
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
President Bush's 25-year old blond daughter said yes to her boyfriend Henry Hager yesterday, the White House announced today. The announcement came from first lady Laura Bush's office.
Mr. Hager, of Richmond, is the son of John H. Hager, former Virginia lieutenant governor and currently an assistant secretary at the Department of Education.
Mrs. Bush's office said that no date has been set for the wedding.
-- Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
The famous North Avenue establishment is adjacent to the campus of Georgia Tech and is legendary for its curbside service, TV dining rooms and the slogan "what'll ya have?" -- barked loudly from behind the stainless-steel counter by the clerks who serve as many as 30,000 customers on days when Tech's Yellow Jackets play home football games at nearby Grant Field:
Two miles of hot dogs, a ton of onions, 2500 pounds of potatoes, 5000 fried pies and 300 gallons of chili are made from scratch daily.
Being an Atlanta native myself, I offer this non-partisan advice to Team Romney:
1. Study the menu, and memorize your order before you get to the counter. When the man says, "What'll ya have?" you don't want to stammer and stutter. They've got to serve a lot of lunch in a hurry, and you don't want to hold up the line.
2. Have your cash ready. Again, it's rude to hold up the line, and they don't take credit cards.
3. Personally, my menu recommendations are the chili cheeseburger, onion rings, fried peach pie and an F.O. -- that's Varsity shorthand for Frosted Orange. An F.O. is kind of like an orange milkshake, and to my knowledge, is served nowhere else in the world.
4. Caps. Don't forget to ask for your very own red paper cap -- just like the ones worn by Varsity employees -- to take home as a souvenir.
A meal at the Varsity is an unforgettable experience. Trust me -- the heartburn alone will keep the memory alive for at least 24 to 36 hours.
-- Robert Stacy McCain, assistant national editor, The Washington Times
UPDATE 12:05 p.m.:Ruth Malhotra, a Georgia Tech College Republican volunteering at the event, reports a "packed crowd" at the Varsity awaiting the arrival of Mr. Romney. Ruth promises to update us later with further details. -- RSM
UPDATE 12:30 p.m.: No word yet on Mr. Romney's menu selections, but the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Jim Galloway notices that the governor leads all other 2008 presidential contenders (of both parties) in Georgia cash, with $756,661 so far. So, obviously, he's getting his share of greens to go with that greasy Varsity food. -- RSM
UPDATE 3 p.m.: Ruth reports that, despite the handicap of being a Yankee from Massachusetts, Mr. Romney demonstrated fluency in Varsity lingo, joking about a "naked dog," and even making a witticism about how nice it was to be in a place where "PC" doesn't stand for political correctness (order a "PC" at the Varsity and you'll get "plain chocolate," i.e., chocolate milk).
Alas, the governor didn't actually get to eat. "Close to 500 people" including "a ton of media" turned out for the event, Ruth reports, and "the crowd was so big, he never did make it to the counter." He sat next to campaign volunteer Lisa Bilz at the meet-and-greet, and gave "about a 15 or 20 minute speech," Mrs. Bilz said. Mr. Romney didn't stay long in Atlanta, immediately returning to Peachtree-DeKalb Airport to fly on to Florida. We'll update again if more details become available. -- RSM
On the issue of health insurance, he condemned Democrats for wanting to increase government involvement, but his comment also appeared directed at the current administration: "I don't want the guys who managed the [Hurricane] Katrina clean-up running my health care system."
Romney also kept up his running war with Giuliani on immigration, though he didn't mention his Republican rival by name.
For the last week, Romney has pointed to a New York City policy adopted by Mayor Ed Koch in 1989 but extended by Giuliani during his terms as mayor, in which city workers did not provide information about illegal immigrants they came in contact with federal authorities.
"Let's end this sanctuary city thing," Romney told the crowd. The Giuliani campaign has pointed out that three Massachusetts cities have similar policies -- and that Romney has expressed no objections about them.
At the Georgia all-politics blog Peach Pundit, commenter Craig White was at the Varsity and reports that Mr. Romney drew a crowd big enough to constitute a fire code violation:
I walked in the door (farthest from the counters/closest to the lot) and that's just about as far as I got. The large room off of the main corridor was jam packed, whatever maximum capacity was, multiply it by 2. ...
Total in attendance, I'd say right at or over 500. I have never, never seen the Varsity so full. I've been during the Olympics and during the Braves 1995 [National League playoffs]. It was surprising.
Final non-partisan advice to presidential campaign staffs everywhere: If your candidate goes to the Varsity, he or she should (a) avoid talking politics, (b) talk about the Braves' bullpen instead, and (c) be sure to try the onion rings and F.O.
Presidential adviser Karl Rove, who announced his resignation today, spoke with The Washington Times about how President Bush will be viewed historically and what he will remember from his 6 1/2 years at the White House.
"I think history will see [Mr. Bush] as a courageous leader who had the moral clarity to know that we were attacked and we faced a different kind of war that required America to change," Mr. Rove said.
"I think they'll see him as a transformational leader who was always looking, always looking, to change the game so at the end of the policy process, there would be fundamental reform that makes us better, stronger and more durable for the future," he said.
Mr. Rove said that Mr. Bush has a view of leadership that is "in the cynical world of Washington … naive."
"But I think [it is] a very important view, which is that leadership involves making key decisions and persuading people that it's the right thing to do," Mr. Rove said.
Reflecting on his most memorable moments, Mr. Rove said there were "too many to pick one out of the crowd."
"I was with him on 9/11, the first person to tell him about the first plane flying into the World Trade Center. I was with in New York on 9/14, with him on Election Day 2004," Mr. Rove said. "Time has moved so fast I haven't had time to stand back and reflect and say, 'Wow, that happened,' and I just happened to be the proverbial fly on the wall."
In all his travels with the leader of the free world, Mr. Rove said he was most struck by the "places that don't normally see presidents."
"You know, Troy, Ohio; Auburn, Alabama. I remember going to some small places, small-town America, and everybody turned out. I mean, you go to a little town of 12,000 people in Missouri for Labor Day and there'd be 40,000 people there," Mr. Rove said.
"Rural America was extraordinary. It showed to me that the American people may disagree with their president but they always respect the office of the presidency," he said.
-- Joseph Curl, White House correspondent, The Washington Times
President Bush's close adviser Karl Rove sat down for a wide-ranging, 20-minute interview with a small group of reporters aboard Air Force Once today after announcing he will resign at the end of this month.
You can read the entire interview transcript here. Here are a few highlights from the chat with the man who one Democratic strategist said will go down as “one of the most powerful political aides in history."
Mr. Bush, despite being a lame-duck president, is still the commander-in-chief, Mr. Rove said, and therefore he "plays a big role in shaping the nature of the debate, the policy debate, which in turn has a big impact on politics."
"And you can bet, being as competitive as he is, that he's going to use every lever he's got command over, every power that he controls to continue to drive the policy debate right up to noon on January 20, 2009," Mr. Rove said.
Mr. Rove said he first broached the subject of his departure with Mr. Bush in the Oval Office during the "late spring, early summer of last year."
"It was at the end of a day and we didn't have much else to talk about. He had a little bit of time on his hands and it just seemed like a good moment," Mr. Rove.
The two men, however, "mutually reinforced bad behavior by constantly finding excuses that we could postpone the discussion."
Mr. Rove said that he won't participate formally in the 2008 election, although he does "want to see this president succeeded by a Republican."
If he does end up joining a campaign, however, he said he would "shortly thereafter die."
"Check the whereabouts of my wife if I'm found dead," Mr. Rove said to laughs.
Mr. Rove called "completely inaccurate" the popular wisdom that Mr. Bush was elected twice by "playing to the base." Many people have blamed Mr. Rove for crafting such a strategy, saying it has divided the country.
Instead, Mr. Rove said, the GOP must continue to do what he said got Mr. Bush elected in 2000 and 2004.
"The Republican Party needs to mobilize a vast army of volunteers to expand the electorate by emphasizing an agenda that is prospective in nature, that looks to the future and says, 'This is what we intend to do for America,' and is bold and clear, but is focused on saying to people, 'We know you're not enthusiastic about politics, but if you love your country, if you care about the future, here's a message that hopefully will attract you to coming out and registering and voting,' " Mr. Rove said.
He also said the idea that he was "Bush's brain" is "an attack on the president."
"That is the critics of the president trying to be cute. This guy is a Yale undergraduate and history major, a Harvard MBA, and one of the best-read, most thoughtful people I know. Now, I know he likes to play sort of the Midland/West Texas -- but he is smart," Mr. Rove said.
