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The Hardball Briefing On MSNBC
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The Iraq intelligence flap continues to dominate the editorial landscape in Washington
as The White House plays defense and Dems go on the offense...Chris is particularly
interested in who knew what and when...Which staffer gave the green light for the
controversial line to be inserted in the SOTU...Was it a National Security Council
(NSC) person? Someone from the Veep's office?
Ari, on his last day on the job called the hoopla over the intelligence flap a 'bunch
of Bull'
Chris is out in San Francisco so don't be put off by the change of venue...He's fired
up about this story...We'll get the inside scoop from Howard and then talked to a
couple of Senators including Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)...
In the B block we'll talk to Peggy and get her take on how presidential speeches are
vetted for veracity and how The White House should spin its way out of this growing
problem...
Since Chris is out in California today we'll of course hit on the Davis Recall
movement and check in on how that's going...
In the Buzz we'll take a look at some of the polls out of the weekend (Newsweek & Wash
Post) which show a decline in confidence in the situation in Iraq as well as 50% who
believe the Bush administration "intentionally exaggerated" Iraq's weapons and 80% are
worried about the U.S. getting bogged down there....To be fair, 3/4 of Americans
approve of our presence there and 57% believe the war and costs have been worth
it...Can Dems gain any traction from these numbers?
Plus, Kweisi Mfume, head of the NAACP, is upset with some of the Dem candidates for
not showing up to his convention in Miami and lashed out today
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=703&e=2&u=/ap/20030714/ap_on_el_pr/democrats_2004
"Something tells me any potential adversary of the United States will take note when
word arrives that the USS Ronald Reagan has been sighted off shore," Cheney on the
commissioning of the USS Ronald Reagan
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030713/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/uss_reagan_14
Dominic Bellone wrote, compiled and edited The Briefing from Washington, DC
The White House sought to put to rest questions over President Bush's disputed claim
that Iraq sought African uranium, saying Monday that such fears were not a major
component in Bush's case for war. (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=544&ncid=703&e=1&u=/ap/20030714/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_intelligence
White House tries to quell dispute...Administration officials said Sunday that
President Bush's disputed statement about Iraqi uranium shopping in Africa was
accurate, even while conceding again it should have been deleted from his State of the
Union address.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/937524.asp
U.S. soldier killed in Iraq...A U.S. soldier was badly wounded on Monday morning when
his military vehicle was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in a Baghdad suburb,
witnesses said. http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/870749.asp
A group calling itself a wing of al Qaeda claimed responsibility Sunday for attacks on
U.S. troops in Iraq, as one U.S. soldier died and American forces killed five Iraqis
in raids aimed at preventing such violence during two Iraqi holidays this week. (LA
Times) http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/07/14/MN279198.DTL
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan nudged President Bush on Monday to send U.S. troops
to Liberia as he met with U.S. officials on conflicts in Africa and peace in the
Middle East. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=XTGIMPUPLIFK4CRBAEZSFEY?type=topNews&storyID=3085469
Public support for President Bush has dropped sharply amid growing concerns about U.S.
military casualties and doubts whether the war with Iraq was worth fighting, according
to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A45480-2003Jul11.html
Curry: The Democrats' Iraq opportunity...Presidential contenders wrestle with Iraq
occupation's impact on domestic priorities http://msnbc.com/news/938301.asp?0cv=CB10
Rep. Richard Gephardt, challenged on his backing for a resolution authorizing war in
Iraq, called Sunday for a "full, complete, bipartisan" investigation of the
circumstances surrounding Congress' decision to authorize the war. (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=703&e=5&u=/ap/20030714/ap_on_el_pr/gephardt_iowa
Time mag: A Question of Trust...The CIA's Tenet takes the fall for a flawed claim in
the State of the Union, but has Bush's credibility taken an even greater hit?
http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030721/story.html
A Quagmire for Bush?...Americans are increasingly skeptical about the war in Iraq and
the intelligence leading up to it (Newsweek)
http://www.msnbc.com/news/938073.asp?0cv=KB20
CIA Director George Tenet's hold on power, already weakened by the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks, has reached its most tenuous point now that he has been blamed for President
Bush's unsubstantiated charge in his State of the Union address that Iraq sought to
buy uranium for nuclear weapons from Africa (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-07-13-tenet-sotu_x.htm
Top aides to President Bush insisted on Sunday he did not hype Iraq's suspected
weapons of mass destruction as they sought to put out a political firestorm ignited by
a disputed statement he made in his case for war. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=3080926
Iraqi council declares new holiday...In its first public act, Iraq's newly formed
governing council declared April 9, the date of Saddam Hussein's fall from power, as a
national holiday. http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/900178.asp
Sens. John Kerry and John Edwards changed their minds and decided to appear with other
Democratic presidential candidates at the NAACP's presidential forum on Monday. (AP)
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/bw-elect/2003/jul/14/071401038.html
No More Mr. Nice Guy...While the major Democratic candidates insist that Howard Dean's
surge is hurting everyone else but them, they're all wrestling with when to go
negative on the good doctor.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53098-2003Jul14.html
Howard's latest: Feeling Dean's Pain...His straight talk and blunt, suffer-no-fools
style have helped make him the Democrat to watch in 2004. What makes Howard Dean tick?
http://www.msnbc.com/news/937672.asp?0cv=KB10
They have circled one another warily for months, a study in political contrasts. One
is the tall, cool Bostonian who exudes stature and experience in the world; the other
the short, intense Vermont transplant who projects energy, passion and a determination
to upend the politics of his own party. (The Washington Post)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1803&ncid=703&e=5&u=/washpost/20030713/pl_washpost/a48741_2003jul12
The highest ranking Hispanic ever in the U.S. Congress reached out on Saturday to
fellow members of the nation's biggest minority -- contending Democrats represent
their best political hope. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=3078836
Julian Bond sees GOP with 'dark underside'...Republicans appeal "to the dark underside
of American culture, to that minority of Americans who reject democracy and equality,"
NAACP Chairman Julian Bond said yesterday at the civil rights group's 94th annual
convention. (The Washington Times)
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20030714-121535-2713r.htm
All seem to agree recall vote is certain...Democrats prepare for battle as Davis foes
finish signature drive (SF Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/07/08/MN250671.DTL
Bush 'Bundlers' Key to Fundraising...Bundlers - people who find and encourage many
others to give to a political campaign - will play a critical role in President Bush's
effort to raise the largest amount of money ever for a presidential candidate (SF
Chronicle) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51558-2003Jul13.html
Opinion/Editorial
Joe's 'Real Deal' on Uranium-gate...Just the usual politics in Washington
http://www.msnbc.com/news/938624.asp
Novak: The mission to Niger http://www.suntimes.com/output/novak/cst-edt-novak14.html
Selective data...In economic policy even more than in war policy, the Bush
administration has suppressed, manipulated, and withheld evidence to serve their
policy purposes. By Russ Baker.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/937749.asp
Barnicle: Nothing beats E-mails from Iraq for integrity
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/col/story/100236p-90636c.html
Bartley: A 'Miranda' Warning for Saddam?...Democrats try to discredit America's
victory. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/rbartley/?id=110003743
Doonesbury http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/
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