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In Final NH Debate, GOP Candidates Try To Play Nice -- But Don't

2008-01-07T02:30:38Z

Manchester, N.H. -- Mitt Romney, desperate to pull out of a campaign nosedive, lashed out at his major competitors at a GOP debate Sunday, on issues ranging President Bush's tax cuts, social security, and foreign policy.

Despite what was seemingly a much stronger appearance for the former Massachusetts governor, by the end of the debate no blood was drawn and the performance appeared unlikely to change many votes.

The forum, sponsored by Fox News, is the former Massachusetts's governor's last chance to use a heavily covered event to undermine Mike Huckabee, who beat him decisively in the January 3 Iowa caucuses, and McCain, who has moved into the lead in the state where Romney had been on top and looked unbeatable for months.

A CNN/WMUR poll released this evening showed McCain ahead of Romney by six points, 32-26, with Huckabee at 14 and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani at 11. A USA Today/Gallup poll gave McCain a smaller, 4-point lead over Romney, 34-30, with Huckabee at 13 and Giuliani at 8.

Appearing at Saint Anslem College, Romney sought to turn the tables at a forum on Saturday night, in which he found himself on the receiving end of criticism, sometimes personal and harsh, from his fellow GOP competitors.

On the issue of taxation, Romney went after his chief competitor for the New Hampshire crown, Sen. John McCain, declaring that McCain "was one of two Republicans who voted against the Bush tax cuts... Sen. McCain continues to believe that, based on his appearance on Meet the Press this morning, that was the right vote to take."

After addressing McCain, Romney turned his attention to Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas Governor who bested him in the Iowa Caucus on Thursday.

"Mike you make up facts faster than you talk and that's saying something," Romney said after Huckabee challenged him on his tax record. To which Huckabee replied, "Someone raises a question and you say it's a personal attack and facts are stubborn things."

Reflecting the outcome of the Iowa caucus, each of the GOP candidates staked his claim to being the nominee who could best bring about change. McCain, who has served in the United States Senate since 1987, dismissed the notion that his time in Washington was a damper on his reform credentials.

"I know that I have been an agent of change," the Senator said. "I'm proud to have been one of those who played a key role in one of the most important changes in years, and that was in the strategy pursued by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld... This change has had enormous benefit to America, our security, and our future... I am very proud in the change in Iraq that as saved young American's lives."

Romney, seeking again to distinguish himself from his Republican rival, echoed remarks that have been made frequently in the Democratic primary by Sen. Barack Obama. "Just sending the same people to Washington but in different chairs is not going to result in a different outcome," he declared.

The reformist talk provided one of the few humorous lines of the night, delivered by former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson: "We had some folks polled in Iowa and everyone came out of there talking about change... I think what is more important is leadership. And what is an important part of leadership is telling the American people the truth."

The topic of Iraq came up infrequently during the proceedings, with much of the discussion spent praising the surge of troops by Lt. Gen. David Petraeus. The candidates, however, were pressed on their national security credentials. Huckabee was asked to explain a series of gaffes he had made on the campaign trail, in which he either did not know or was ill prepared to discuss topics such as U.S. policy to Pakistan and the National Intelligence Estimate on Iran.

"I don't think it's a pattern," he told the moderator Chris Wallace. "When you make lots of speeches there are lots of times when you will make a verbal slip. But I don't slip in my judgment..."

Rudy Giuliani, who had few defining moments during the forum, perked up when the topic switched to what is believed to be his policy strong suit.

"I am the only one here who has had to face an Islamic terrorist attack. I was right at the center of it," said the former New York City mayor of his leadership on 9/11, "and it gives a good indication that I know how to handle what the terrorist will be throwing at us... As the mayor of New York I have been involved in one way or another with just about every single foreign policy issue."

Dems, GOP Face Off In Key New Hampshire Debates

2008-01-06T00:03:47Z

Manchester, N.H. - Hillary Clinton went on the attack against Barack Obama at the Democratic presidential debate Saturday night, but she ran into a tough push back not only from the Illinois Senator but also John Edwards, who took Obama's side and lashed out at her as an agent of "the status quo."

For Clinton, the forum provided her only real chance to stall Barack Obama's momentum before the January 8 state primary. Initially she appeared very cautious, as all the candidates conducted a sober discussion of nuclear and terrorist threats in which there was much more agreement than conflict.

But then, when the discussion turned to domestic policy, Clinton shifted gears to accuse Obama of holding three different positions on federal health care, of voting for the Patriot Act after promising he would vote against it, and of failing to call for federal health insurance that would cover everyone with no exceptions.

Clinton cited a news story contending that Obama "could have three pretty good debates with himself" on health care. "You've changed positions within [the past] three years on a range of issues," Clinton said. In the second half of the debate, she tried to tarnish Obama's claim to be a candidate who will severely constrain the power of lobbyists, noting that Obama's New Hampshire co-chair, Jim Demers, lobbies the New Hampshire legislature in behalf of the pharmaceutical and financial services industries.

"You've changed positions within three years on, you know, a range of issues that you put forth when you ran for the Senate, and now you have changed....you said you would vote against the Patriot Act. You came to the Senate; you voted for it. You said that you would vote against funding for the Iraq war. You came to the Senate, and you voted for $300 billion of it," Clinton declared.

Obama did not appear ruffled by the Clinton assault, stronger than her past rhetoric, and tried to discuss in detail the rationale for his position on health care, but then Edwards stepped in to make a much more aggressive defense both of Obama and himself:

"We [Edwards and Obama] have a fundamental difference about the way you bring about change. But both of us are powerful voices for change. And if I might add, we finished first and second in the Iowa caucus, I think in part as a result of that. Now, what I would say this: Any time you speak out powerfully for change, the forces of status quo attack. That's exactly what happens," Edwards said, clearly identifying Clinton with the status quo.

In a second clear reference to Clinton, Edwards said, "I didn't hear these kinds of attacks when she was ahead."

"I want to make change, but I've already made change," Clinton countered forcefully. "I'm not just running on the promise of change, I'm running on 35 years of change."

As the tension rose, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, who was largely on the periphery of the debate, remarked, "Well, I've been in hostage negotiations that are a lot more civil than this."

Watch the exchange:

With just 20 minutes left in the Democratic debate, Clinton revived her attack on Obama, this time challenging his credentials as a reformer:

"You know, the energy bill that passed in 2005 was larded with all kinds of special interest breaks, giveaways to the oil companies. Senator Obama voted for it. I did not because I knew that it was going to be an absolute nightmare....So, you know, words are not actions. And as beautifully presented and passionately felt as they are, they are not action."

Clinton sought to contrast her record with Obama's. "I've been an agent of change. You know, you go back 35 years, you know, I worked to help make the case for the law that, thankfully, required that public schools give an education to children with special needs. I worked to reform education and health care in Arkansas against, you know, some pretty tough odds."

Obama did not directly address her accusations, and countered, instead, by asserting that words do matter: "I think we're in one of those moments right now. I think the American people are hungry for something different and can be mobilized around big changes; not incremental changes, not small changes.... the truth is, actually, words do inspire, words do help people get involved, words do help members of Congress get into power so that they can be part of a coalition to deliver health-care reform, to deliver a bold energy policy."

In a compliment that amounted to a backhanded slap, Obama said "I actually give Bill Clinton enormous credit for having balanced those budgets during those years. It did take political courage for him to do that. But we never built the majority and coalesced the American people around being able to get the other stuff done."

At the Republican debate that preceded the Democratic forum, Mitt Romney, who arrived determined to reverse John McCain's rise in recent polls of New Hampshire voters, found himself repeatedly on the defensive.

The former Massachusetts governor was ridiculed for his past changes of positions, forced to defend a Massachusetts program that requires people to buy health insurance -- the kind of government mandate anathema to many of the conservative Republicans Romney is trying to win over -- and accused of spending a fortune on negative ads "that are not true."

The stakes were high for Mitt Romney tonight, who, after getting walloped in Iowa, is struggling to slow McCain down. Romney will have a second shot at McCain during the FOX-sponsored debate Sunday.

Tonight did not go well for Romney.

First, after former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee charged that Romney has shifted back and forth between criticizing and supporting President Bush's policies in Iraq, Romney, seeking to take command, warned Huckabee, "Governor, don't try to characterize my position..." But before Romney could finish, Huckabee, famous for his one-liners, shot back, "which one?" as the audience and the rest of the Republicans on the debate panel burst out laughing.

Later on, Romney was put under cross examination by former Watergate counsel Fred Thompson, who questioned Romney repeatedly about the Massachusetts health care program enacted while Romney was governor.

"Will your federal plan mandate that people buy insurance?" Thompson asked, knowing that he had found a conservative weak spot in Romney's years in Massachusetts. Looking defensive, Romney said his federal play would "not require any state" to require people to buy health care, but, he said, he believes the only way to bring costs down is to make everyone who makes a lower middle class income or better to buy insurance.

When Romney tried to accuse McCain of providing amnesty to illegal immigrants, McCain shot back, "It (the McCain bill) was explained to you and you said it was reasonable and did not require amnesty....You can spend your whole fortune on these attack ads, and it still won't be true."

Then, when Romney contended that the Associated Press has misquoted him in a story describing him as supporting the McCain bill, McCain said "well, when you change from position to position from time to time, you will be misquoted."

Later, as Romney portrayed himself as a candidate of change, McCain told Romney, "We agree on one issue, you are the candidate of change."

An hour before the first of two debates was to begin at Saint Anselm College, CNN and WMUR of New Hampshire released a poll showing Clinton and Obama locked in a dead heat, 33-33, with John Edwards well behind at 20 percent. Despite the poll, at campaign events, the momentum appears to be overwhelmingly behind Obama, who is drawing huge crowds of highly enthusiastic supporters, while Clinton's events are far more modest in numbers and energy by comparison.

A Concord Monitor/Research 2000 poll released just before the debate had very similar results, Obama 34, Clinton 33.

One of the biggest shifts in the CNN/WMUR survey conducted Friday and Saturday was in the ratings of Clinton and Obama's electability in the general election next November 4. Thirty-six percent of New Hampshire Democratic primary voters said Hillary has the best chance of winning the general election in November, down nine points from her 45 percent score in a poll taken before the Iowa caucuses.

Obama virtually tied Clinton at 35 percent, but -- more significantly -- his electability rating had climbed 13 points from the pre-caucus survey.

On the Republican side, the CNN survey show McCain taking the lead, with 33 percent, and Romney, who for months had topped New Hampshire polls, now second, six points behind at 27 percent. The Concord Monitor poll was very similar, McCain 35, Romney 29.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani was third in the CNN survey, but far behind at 14 percent, followed by Mike Huckabee, the Iowa winner, with 11 percent, and Ron Paul at 9 percent. Fred Thompson, who was once considered the savior of the conservative movement in the GOP, got only 1 percent, tying Representative Duncan Hunter.

Check out HuffPost's comprehensive on-the-ground New Hampshire coverage here.

Protecting Hillary: Bill Clinton Severs Business Ties With Billionaire Buddy Burkle

2007-12-12T21:06:18Z

Bill Clinton has severed business ties with Los Angeles billionaire Ron Burkle, fearful that their deals could erupt into bad publicity damaging his wife's presidential bid, according to sources who know both men.

The break-up is a major development in the world of political fundraising, where Burkle has risen to the top ranks, credited with channeling $50 million or more into Democratic coffers over the past 15 years.

Burkle was one of Clinton's chief fundraisers while he was in the White House, a position that earned him a place on the Lincoln Bedroom guest list. After Clinton left the White House, Burkle brought the former president on board as a senior adviser at his investment firm, The Yucaipa Companies.

Now however, the relationship has apparently changed.

A source in Burkle's firm, who declined to speak for attribution, said: "When we are ready to announce the president's departure, we will announce his departure." The source contended there is no strain in the personal relationship between Burkle and Bill Clinton. He noted that if Hillary Clinton is elected president, Bill Clinton will have to divest himself of potential conflicts of interest.

Sources outside of Yucaipa independently confirmed the president's split with the company.

In an email, Clinton aide Douglas J. Band initially did not address the status of Clinton's investment in Burke's firm. Instead, Band wrote:

President Clinton and Ron are long-time friends and their relationship hasn't changed. President Clinton values his friendship with Ron as he has for almost 15 years.

Pressed for elaboration, Band then replied:

As President Clinton said this summer, he anticipates continuing his business relationships as long as they permit him to devote time to his highest priorities - the work of his foundation and supporting his wife's candidacy. He of course is taking steps now to ensure that should she receive the nomination, there will be an appropriate transition for those relationships.

Until recently, Burkle and Clinton have had a very close and mutually beneficial relationship. And the president has been a frequent houseguest at Burkle's Los Angeles estate, Green Acres, and a frequent passenger on Burkle's private Boeing 757.

Burkle made millions of dollars for both of them through Yucaipa, and served as Clinton's entry into the West Coast social world. Clinton, in turn, brought to their partnership his fame and allure as a popular president -- a powerful draw for prospective investors.

The crack-up of the Burkle-Clinton business relationship began over a series of controversial business deals that Yucaipa pursued, according to sources who know both men.

According to the terms of Clinton's deal with Yucaipa, he received a share of the profits from two domestic funds if their returns exceeded 9 percent over the fund's life. As reported by the New York Times, by 2005 one fund had reported a gain of 51.3 percent and the other 25.8 percent.

But it was how the funds earned their money - or, on occasion, lost it - that reportedly made Clinton skittish.

The crucial development, sources said, was the September 26 publication of a front page Wall Street Journal article detailing some of Yucaipa's questionable dealings. The story, which broke on the same day that heads of state and business leaders convened to discuss the Clinton Global Initiative, detailed how a young Italian businessman had convinced Burkle and a Clinton aide to invest millions of dollars in a poorly run church-property buying venture.

Clinton, according to sources, considered the piece a major embarrassment and decided to withdraw from Yucaipa.

Clinton was furious with Burkle after the WSJ story appeared, according to a source close to the former president. Burkle and Clinton exchanged heated words, the source said, adding, "their friendship will never be the same. There is now a real distance between Burkle and the Clintons."

According to the WSJ story, in May 2007, Burkle and Yucaipa filed a lawsuit accusing the Italian businessman, Raffaello Follieri, of "systematically misappropriating" at least $1.3 million to fund personal expenses and activities.

Follieri responded by accusing Burkle of blocking efforts to develop the purchased properties. Adding to the embarrassment was Follieri's reported promise to help deliver Catholic voters to Hillary Clinton, according to the Journal.

The lawsuit was settled in late November, according to court documents signed by a Delaware Chancery Court judge.

Prior to the failed church-property buying scheme, Yucapia found itself on the receiving end of a lawsuit. In April 2007, investors of Hawk Opportunity Fund sued Burkle over charges that Yucaipa's acquisition of Allied Holdings, Inc., North America's largest car-hauling company, gave it an unfair share of the market. The suit was dismissed.

But the transaction, not the lawsuit, forced Clinton to get involved. According to reports, the former president was brought on board to help persuade the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to take a 15 percent wage cut at Allied in exchange for bringing the company out of bankruptcy. The Teamsters agreed to accept the reduction.

Finally, according to USA Today, former Clinton aides helped secure a multi-million dollar federal contract for a Georgia-based company in which Yucaipa had 20% ownership. AmeriCold, one of the nation's largest cold-storage companies, was paid up to $85 million, to help with Katrina recovery efforts after James Lee Witt, who headed Federal Emergency Management Agency in the Clinton administration, lobbied on the company's behalf.

AmeriCold's job performance became the subject of controversy and bad publicity. As USA Today wrote: "truckers who were paid $800 a day [to help Katrina victims] hauled ice from state to state without unloading, then delivered their cargoes to AmeriCold and other storage facilities as far away from the Gulf Coast as Maine."

The president's relationship with Ron Burkle has been the subject of widespread speculation primarily concerning Bill Clinton's private life. Over a year ago, Patrick Healy wrote in the New York Times

Mr. Clinton is rarely without company in public, yet the company he keeps rarely includes his wife. Nights out find him zipping around Los Angeles with his bachelor buddy, Ronald W. Burkle, or hitting parties and fund-raisers in Manhattan.

With additional reporting by Huffington Post Staff Writer Max Follmer in Los Angeles.