Spin Cycle

A new Gallup poll has a triple dose of bad results for Hillary Clinton.

A large majority of Democrats (59-30) believes Obama is more electable vs. McCain. A large majority of Republicans (64-22) believes Hillary is more beatable vs. McCain. And 56 percent of Dems say the continuing battle is doing more harm than good, while only 35 percent say it is doing more good than harm.

For a fairly funny read, take a look at this story about the war being waged in cyber-space over the Wikipedia entry on Hillary and the Wikipedia entry on Obama:

"After you see what happens when two warring Democratic candidates are thrown to the mercy of the Wikipedians, you kind of yearn for the 1911 Britannica. There was the day in February when an editor replaced a photo of Hillary on her Wikipedia page with a picture of a walrus. Then there was the day this month when a Hillary supporter changed Obama's bio so that it referred to him as 'a Kenyan-American politician.' "

Also, little mini-biographies of the self-appointed guardians of the wiki-pages, who spend inordinate amounts of time editing out things they see as distortions. Hillary's guardian is a 53-year-old software developer named Jonathan Schilling:

" 'You constantly have to police [the page],' he says, recalling the way Rudy Giuliani's Wikipedia article declined in quality after its protectors lost interest. 'Otherwise, it diverts into a state of nature.' "

Albany County DA David Soares, in a TV interview airing tonight, apparently rips Newsday's editorial board, which called him either "afraid of Spitzer" or "incompetent" for not targeting Eliot Spitzer in his first report on the Troopergate affair last year, and then concluding last week (after Spitzer had resigned in a prostitution scandal) that the ex-gov was behind Troopergate and lied about it.

In an interview on NY One News, which will air the interview with Dominic Carter tonight:

"I don't think I've ever met anyone in that editorial staff, and anyone on that editorial staff who questions my integrity, they should probably come to Albany and do it in my office, staring at me in the eye. They certainly have a right to their opinion, but they do not have a right to alter the facts to suit their opinions."

Soares notes that he granted immunity to Spitzer aide Darren Dopp to get evidence on the governor on Feb. 5, long before the prostitution scandal that would drive Spitzer out broke:

"There is no truth to the statements that have been made the editorial in that particular paper. It's the same process, the same courage the same conviction that we exercised in the investigation and subsequent prosecution of the former comptroller.”

A point he didn't make: While castigating Soares, the editorial didn't even mention AG Andrew Cuomo -- who also ignored/missed Spitzer's role in his report on Troopergate last year... And Soares also defends his probe as apolitical:

“I stand by my people, I stand by our work and I'm here to do my job. I am not here to manufacture evidence, I am not here to steer an investigation away that satisfies the media or satisfies any one part of the house, be it Democrat or Republican. This was a highly charged investigation, this was a highly charged political issue and we do our work in the court of law, we do not do work in the political field."

-- Dan Janison and John Riley

The LoHud blog does a nice job of number crunching to figure out why the state budget is keeping all our prisons open, despite a loss of 9000 prisoners over the last decade, but is refusing to give judges a pay raise, despite the fact that they haven't gotten one for a decade:

"Just taking a wild guess, it may be significant that there are more than 31,000 people who work in the state prison system, and just over 1,300 judges.

"So today Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno sided with the prison workers on whether to close some prisons (he said no) and against the judges who want a raise for the first time in 10 years (he said no again). And the last time anyone checked, a prison worker’s vote counted as much as that of a judge."

In other words, our illustrious governor and legislature can count. But sometimes, the math is not quite so simple. Consider this:

The new budget includes an enforcement mechanism to make sure that everyone who buys a book, DVD or lawn mower blade from Amazon or any other online retailer has to pay a sales tax. But the new budget does not include an income tax surcharge on people who make more than $1 million a year. So, what gives?

It is true that lot more people buy online than make $1 million a year, and their votes count the same. But in Albany, the power, money and influence of rich people almost always count for more than votes.

All the agitation for judicial raises leads us back to another budget-time lobbying effort. Click on the continue bar below and you will see that once again, the state bar association is out there calling on the governor and the Legislature to "include a long overdue pay raise for judges as part of the final state budget." Attempts to link a hike for the folks in the robes to a legislative pay raise have been part of the politics at the Capitol. Former U.S. Sen. Alfonse D'Amato has been conspicuously pushing for the judges' raises -- will he and allies get to declare victory at any point on this one?

Dan Janison

Continue reading "State fisc: Here come the judges, again..." »

Here is a story that turns familiar political categories on their heads a little: downstate social-services advocates demanding a budget CUT that upstate Republicans are resisting.

Children’s advocates who favor funding alternative programs with state money that they say is now wasted on a half-dozen juvenile residential facilities expressed anger today at word that new Gov. David Paterson had “sold them out,” as a source put it, in budget talks with the state Senate.

Such complaints come and go. But what’s unusual about this development is that the Spitzer-Paterson administration itself – as represented by the state’s Office of Children & Family Services – called for closing the underutilized residential facililties, as the office phrased it, “as part of an ongoing restructuring to significantly improve services to troubled children.”

Whatever the merits, however, upstate representatives want to retain the jobs that juvenile jails, prisons and other correction facilities put in their districts, whether the residents are downstaters or not.

Yes, sometimes even Republicans will endorse Kremlin-style socialism -- if it means local employment.

The intended closings had been announced by the office's commissioner, Gladys Carrion (above).

A few minutes ago, as word spread ...

Dan Janison

Continue reading "State fisc: Juicing those jobs at the juvie jails" »

Wearing a New York Yankee's club jacket, Mayor Michael Bloomberg continued to harp on the importance of his congestion pricing plan before boarding a No. 4 train on the way to the Yanks' first home game in the Bronx.

Just outside the turnstiles of the subway stop at City Hall Park, Bloomberg pretty much stuck with tried and true talking points on the plan -- saying it would spur more jobs, more efficient bus routes and subway lines while helping to snap chronic gridlock and reduce smog.

But there may be more action later, and looking at the weather it may come before the ifrst pitch. Shortly after Bloomberg boarded the train, word came down that City Council will vote on the plan today at 3:30 p.m. The plan has to pass the council before it heads to Albany for legislative approval -- and the margin could affect its chances in Albany, so stay tuned.

Before the brief press conference underground, Bloomberg had an hour-long visit with former Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair left without commenting, but in keeping with the theme of the day, Bloomberg said the two discussed the impact of congestion pricing in Europe.

-- Michael Frazier in NYC

Obama, it turns out, is a southpaw:

A tale of two candidates:

Coming out of the weekend, Obama gets the endorsement of Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar. He now leads among sitting senators, 14-12:

"In a statement provided to the Associated Press, Klobuchar said Obama 'has inspired an enthusiasm and idealism that we have not seen in this country in a long time.'

"Klobuchar, a freshman Democrat, said Obama speaks 'with a different voice, bringing a new perspective and inspiring a real excitement from the American people.' She compared him to the late Hubert Humphrey, who served as a senator from Minnesota and as vice president....

" 'My endorsement reflects both Barack's strong support in my state and my own independent judgment about his abilities,' Klobuchar said."

He also is on the verge of an endorsement from North Carolina's entire 7-person Democratic Congressional delegation, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, and has taken a lead in Texas delegates based on the results of weekend caucuses there.

Clinton, meanwhile, spent the weekend fighting off pressure to withdraw, and got some possibly unwanted publicity when Richard Mellon Scaife, avatar of the right-wing anti-Clinton movement in the 1990s, said many kind things about her after she stopped by for an interview last week at his Pittsburgh Tribune-Review newspaper:

"Her meeting and her remarks during it changed my mind about her.

"Walking into our conference room, not knowing what to expect (or even, perhaps, expecting the worst), took courage and confidence. Not many politicians have political or personal courage today, so it was refreshing to see her exhibit both.

"Sen. Clinton also exhibited an impressive command of many of today's most pressing domestic and international issues."

He cited her hardnosed views on foreign policy, shared desire to pull troops out of Iraq and shared disgust for the government's response to Katrina. Maybe her enthusiastic praise for a border fence and her enthusiastic bashing of Obama's plan to require the rich to pay a little more in Social Security helped too.

In any event, the turnabout from a guy who was a prime Clinton basher in the 1990s was enough of a surprise to prompt a NYT story. But does praise from a committed foe of Democrats really help her with her party and superdelegates? Or does it do mmore harm than good?

We noted over the weekend speculation about Hillary coming back to NY to run for governor under some exotic scenario of resignation and special election that would lead her to want to burnish her excecutive credentials in preparation fo 2012. Now, there's a YouTube:

Via Daily Politics.

Which was the most fevered lunge for self-promotion by a power player?

1. Sen. Hillary Clinton calling her account of dodging sniper fire in Bosnia mistaken — after videotapes showed it to be totally fictitious.

2. Sen. John McCain shifting emphasis after saying of borrowers as well as bankers: "It is not the duty of government to bail out and reward those who act irresponsibly.”

3. Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Sen. Barack Obama’s pastor, saying: “The Italians for the most part looked down their garlic noses at the Galileans.”

In the week since the story of Sen. Clinton's false claim about facing sniper fire in Bosnia broke, she has gone from tied to ten points behind in Gallup's national tracking poll -- and today, it's still alive and well in some quarters.

The NYPost finds the little girl who Hillary met in a greeting ceremony on the tarmac, Emma Bicakcic. She's all grown up now, studying to be a doctor, and pretty careful not to criticize other than to say she was "surprised" when she heard Clinton's claim: "I'm staying neutral. I have very mixed emotions about it. It's a difficult situation for me."

The ever-resourceful Post, however, finds other Bosnians to weigh in.

Sema Markovic, identified as a student: "It is an ugly thing for a politician to tell lies. We had problems for years, and I don't like when someone lies about them. It makes us look bad."

And Sead Nemanovic, the editor of Bosnia's biggest paper, explaining that he hasn't even covered the story: "My first thought was, she must be kidding. When someone threatens your life, you don't make a mistake. ...We don't have space for someone's lies. Why is she so stupid? It doesn't portray her as a real leader."

So: In addition to Hillary acknowledging there wasn't sniper fire, we've heard from the little girl who greeted her, Sinbad, the pilot that flew her and various Bosnians -- all saying yes, there wasn't sniper fire. What about Sheryl Crow? Anyone interview her yet?

A shaky economy threatens to deepen political pain in the fiscal year that begins tomorrow. As a result, the size and shape of New York State’s massive health-care system carries especially huge stakes.

So Gov. David Paterson’s appointment of Jon R. Cohen — former chief medical officer and VP of the sprawling North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System — as his new $160,500 senior advisor, drew big interest in Nassau and beyond when announced late last week.

Some expected Cohen, 53, of Great Neck, to become health commissioner once Eliot Spitzer was elected, especially after the vascular surgeon served on his transition team. But Spitzer selected Richard Daines last year for that post — and kept on George Pataki appointee Dennis Whelan as his own deputy secretary for health care.

With these appointees still in place, it remains to be seen where Cohen — most recently a managing director at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP — will fit on Paterson’s team. “His biggest problem could be that he’ll be part of a puzzle that has no missing pieces,” a government insider said.

In 2002 Cohen advised....

Dan Janison

Continue reading "Gov. hires ex-LG rival from LI -- but in what role?" »

Mineola Mayor Jack Martins, a Republican who lives within a mile of Democratic Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, plans to challenge the six-term incumbent this fall, say high-ranking Republican officials.

Tony Santino, GOP spokesman, said Martins “has the fire in the belly” and a proven track record, and that because of his local popularity, he could well cut into McCarthy’s hometown base. “He’s the complete package and we’re delighted he’s stepped forward,” Santino said.

Martins said he is still considering it, and expects to take weeks to reach a final decision. If he runs, Martins said, he’d seek to “avoid polarization and remain above board.”

Even Republicans acknowledge Martins faces an uphill fight. McCarthy, first elected in 1996 as a champion of gun control in the aftermath of the Long Island Railroad massacre in which her husband was killed and her son wounded, has won by wide margins, and has $516,000 in her campaign coffers. Martins, mayor since 2003, suffered a major defeat two years ago when voters in a referendum rejected his bid to form a local police department. But he rebounded last March to win re-election.

“There is real dissatisfaction with Congress right now, their ratings are lower than the president,” said Rory Whelan, a GOP consultant advising Martins. Noting that the war and the trouble economy have made people uncertain, he added, “When people are unnerved they look for real leadership capability and Jack is a real leader.”

Ray Zacarro, McCarthy’s spokesman, said, “We take everything seriously, take nothing for granted, and we look for a healthy conversation on the issues.”

Rick Brand

Sen. Clinton, according to this report in Politico, is apparently becoming a notorious slow-pay as she struggles to wage a presidential campaign without as much money as her opponent:

"Hillary Rodham Clinton’s cash-strapped presidential campaign has been putting off paying hundreds of bills for months — freeing up cash for critical media buys but also earning the campaign a reputation as something of a deadbeat in some small-business circles."

Stiffing small businesses. A really interesting way to show you're "ready to lead". ... But the latest Gallup three-day tracking poll has her 10 points behind, Obama's largest lead to date:

Islip town board member Christopher Bodkin, a Republican turned Democrat, has withdrawn from the race to take on 34-year State Senate veteran Caesar Trunzo (R-Brentwood), pictured above.

“I’m out, and that is all I want to say,” said the 14-year town board member who last year defected from the Republican to Democratic.

Sources say Richard Schaffer, Suffolk Democratic chairman, asked Bodkin to withdraw about two weeks ago.

Initially, Bodkin was reluctant. But that was before the departure of Gov. Eliot Spitzer who was engineering a major push to take over the Senate. Sources say Bodkin had hoped the governor might intervene to force out Democrat Jimmy Dahroug, who has already lost twice but wants to take on Trunzo, 81, again. With Spitzer gone in scandal, those hopes were dashed.

Rick Brand

Democratic Gov. Paterson walks on eggs with regard to releasing potentially nuclear e-mails from the Spitzer administration.

As Newsday reported earlier this month, Michele Paige Paterson, the governor's spouse, lobbied for a Harlem hospital that got state aid. The Times' McIntyre takes a closer look at the ins and outs of the ethics of the interactions.

The Post angles a story on Albany DA Soares' inconsistency in first finding no plot by Spitzer to get at Bruno with a red-hot poker and then -- post Spitzer administration -- showing that to be very much the case.

With New York state a battered entity, the talk of statehood for Long Island draws different takes from Rick Brand and Ellis Henican.

Other member-item expenses once doled out at Sen. Paterson's urging reflect an unsurprisingly cozy arrangement with their reciptients, according to this roundup.

Dan Janison

Given the charged responses by Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and his Investigations Chairman George Winner to Albany District Attorney David Soares’ explosive “Troopergate” report, you can bet Republicans are looking to squeeze the disgraced Eliot Spitzer’s misdeeds for an electoral edge.

But nobody seems to have pinned down how much the Spitzer administration may have helped advertise the ongoing federal probe of Bruno’s business affairs. One insider suggested Spitzer’s office kept close contact with U.S. officials, but another noted the investigation started by 2004. By all accounts, Bruno loyalists remain nervous.

Dan Janison

People with Web access should be able to view the bimonthly meetings of the Nassau County Legislature and its committees online by May 1, the presiding officer, Legis. Diane Yatauro (D-Glen Cove), said earlier this month.

“It’ll be about as exciting as watching paint dry,” Yatauro said just two days after the legislature held its first meeting in the renovated Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building in Mineola.

The new hearing room has the legislators on an elevated platform far removed from the audience. But the room is stocked with the latest gizmos — including flat-panel monitors at the seats of the 19 legislators, and four large screens hanging from the ceilings and facing the audience.

Each legislator will also be able to vote electronically, and that should begin in about a month, Yatauro said.

The webcasts can be seen on the Nassau County Web site at no added cost to the county, she said.

Bill Murphy

Apparently Mario Cuomo has decided to practice diplomacy in his post-gubernatorial days.

He has an op-ed in the Boston Globe today. He seems worried that the Dems are going to self-destruct. His proposal is that Hillary and Obama announce a ticket immediately, one for president and one for vice-president, with the v-p targeted for victory in 2016.

He doesn't suggest which one should accept the second spot -- they didn't call him the great equivocator for nothing!! -- but he says that if they can't agree, they can alternatively fight it out until June, and then the winner gets to be the presidential nominee and the loser the v-p spot.

The suggestion that a knock-down, drag-out fight might not be healthy is not "on message" for true Hillary believers, who pretend that it'll make the eventual winner stronger. The suggestion that some mix of Florida/Michigan and big state wins and a "virtual tie" in polls makes the race deadlocked is kind of a pro-Hillary fantasy. Gallup is at 50-43 Obama -- is that a virtual tie? Or, a 150 pledged delegate advantage?

So, he splits the baby. But he ends with a serious warning:

"If, on the other hand, the candidates refuse to work out a way to keep both constituencies firmly in the Democratic camp for the general election, the 2008 primary may be the story of a painfully botched grand opportunity to return our nation to the upward path, and leave us mired in Iraq and government mediocrity."

Newsweek's Jonathan Alter floats a fun rumor totally from fantasyland:

People trying to pave the way for Hillary to stop a fight for the presidency that might damage the party are supposedly suggesting to her that Paterson may have to resign because of new revelations about sex, drugs and public money.

Then, maybe there would be a special election in November.

Hillary could run, and win -- maybe in a match-up with Giuliani.

Then, McCain would defeat Obama.

Then McCain would be 75 in 2012, while Hillary would have added the executive experience of being governor to her resume.

So she would win the presidency.

Bill Clinton has supposedly dismissed the whole idea, but Hillary has not. An unnamed aide, however, seems to think it's all made up and she's still focused on 2008:

"Every time the punditocracy says otherwise, she happens to win. Hillary believes, and so do I, that she'll be president this year. It may be an alternative universe, but it's the one they [the Clintons] live in."

At the beginning of Troopergate AG Andrew Cuomo issued a big report without bothering to put people under oath which managed to miss the fact that Eliot Spitzer was behind it, and at the end issued a legal opinion which prevented Soares from airing some evidence while taking Paterson off the hook for the decision.

In a statement, he defends both. As to his report, he says "had we possessed subpoena power to compel the testimony.... the full facts would likely have come out much sooner." There are, of course, those who say Cuomo could have gotten subpoena power through the state IG, and could have threatened to embarass Spitzer if he wouldn't cooperate with investigators.

Cuomo also denounces the behavior: "Those who sought to minimize this incident, or isolate the conduct to one or two mid-level staff, were wrong. A political plot involving State Police by senior state officials is a toxic brew. In government, even a legitimate goal does not justify unscrupulous means. This situation also proves the old adage, 'The cover-up is worse than the crime.' ”

He also released his legal opinion finding that Paterson could not waive privileges asserted by Spitzer or grand jury secrecy, but urged Spitzer to let Soares release all the materials voluntarily:

"My personal opinion is that given the unique circumstances presented in this matter, it is in the public interest that the former Governor withdraw his privilege claims for the sake of the public's right to full disclosure and transparency."

Joe Bruno has issued a statement. He's still milking it -- Democrat Soares should prosecute, Democrat Paterson should fire some people, and it illustrates the importance of two-party rule. In other words -- Spitzer may be gone, but November still beckons:

"The report released today by the Albany County District Attorney’s Office confirms what I have been saying all along, that former Governor Eliot Spitzer lied to the people of this State about his direct knowledge and involvement in the Troopergate scandal; that he was obsessed with conducting a political “hit job” to damage me personally and politically; and that the administration enlisted favored members of the news media, principally the Albany Times Union to carry out their plot.

"The report represents a turnaround from the District Attorney’s report issued last September that cleared the Governor of any wrongdoing. That report was done after a so-called “investigation” in which the DA did not place anyone under oath and was clearly issued as cover for then-Governor Spitzer and his administration.

"I feel it was a serious mistake not to present this information to a grand jury and proceed with a prosecution, as there is clearly evidence of criminal conduct.

"I urge Governor Paterson to take appropriate action against those involved in the plot and cover-up, and who should not continue to represent him and the Executive Chamber.

"This scandal was a blatant abuse of government power. This time it was aimed at me. However, these abuses should present a concern to all New Yorkers. It also illustrates the importance of having checks and balances in State government and avoiding one-party rule and power.

"While we will continue to move forward with measures to address some of the legislative issues raised by this scandal, this report sheds more light on a sad and disgraceful chapter in New York State history and on a Governor who clearly had his priorities wrong and, as I said so often, lacked the temperament to govern."

Chelsea Clinton, on who she thought would be a better president -- Bill or Hillary:

‘Do I think my mother will be a better president than my father...Well, again, I don’t take anything for granted, but hopefully with Pennsylvania’s help, she will be our next president, and yes, I do think she’ll be a better president.”

Here's the Q and A with Spitzer described in Soares' report.

Apparently it wasn't under oath, because Soares was going to seek a report recommending removal -- but not a perjury indictment -- from a grand jury. Given the other evidence, and testimony from Darren Dopp, it seems like there was a pretty compelling case that Spitzer did order the release of records on Bruno.:

“Q: Okay. Did you direct the gathering of any documents concerning Senator Bruno’s use of state transportation at any time?
A: No.
Q: Did you direct the release of any documents at any time to the media concerning Senator Bruno’s use of state transportation?
A: No, other than to the extent that the overarching directive that in response to the media would be fulfilled. So if you asked me did I specifically ever address this issue the answer is no. Had I said, as per our conversation about transparency, respond to the media, yes. I don’t want the ‘no’ to be interpreted to mean that I did not back in January or December say, respond to the media when they asked general questions.”

Although he still hasn't gotten clearance from Gov. Paterson to release e-mails and materials received from Spitzer's office through grand jury subpoenas, Albany DA Soares put out a new report on Troopergate this afternoon.

The report says Spitzer contradicted his aides and other evidence by denying that he directed the gathering or release of records on Bruno, statements Soares suggested were "not truthful." Soares planned to present a case against Spitzer to a grand jury under a statute that permits grand juries to compile reports recommending removal of public servants for "misconduct, nonfeasance or neglect in public office by a public servant, whether criminal or otherwise.”

Spitzer's resignation over a prostitution scandal, he said, made that law inapplicable because Spitzer was no longer a public servant:

"To the extent that there may be 'misconduct, non-feasance or neglect,' considering the recent, unforeseeable resignation of Governor Spitzer and other senior aides, the DA does not have a statutory vehicle to address the matter. Let us be clear, political plotting and games are not in the best interest of New York State."

The report also said three Spitzer aides he was investigating -- David Nocenti, Peter Pope and Sean Patrick Maloney -- did not coerce a fourth aide, Darren Dopp, into providing a false statement to AG Cuomo when this was first investigated. Dopp was spared prosecution so he would spill the beans on Spitzer.

As expected in the wake of leaks earlier this week, he says Spitzer had a bigger role than the governor admitted, and ordered the release of travel records on GOP Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno in "salty language" after becoming angry over legislative gridlock.

It also quotes an advisor to Dopp -- who was immunized -- as saying that Dopp fingered Spitzer for repeated lies about his role after the release of travel records on Joe Bruno became a scandal: "Weinraub stated that Dopp began the meeting by 'noting that the Governor lied three times.' Specifically, Weinraub stated, Dopp claimed that the Governor lied when he said he: didn’t 'know' about the Bruno matter, was 'misled' about the Bruno matter, and was 'cooperating fully' in the Bruno matter."

Full report is here.

The latest hot commodity on YouTube. Brace yourself before clicking:

Via Techpresident.

In the wake of questions about Gov. Paterson's use of campaign funds for hotel stays, flowers etc., a couple of good stories today exploring the rather flexible practices that prevail -- this story in Newsday by Erik German, and this AP piece.

Personal use is prohibited. But it's come to have a fairly flexible definition. Golf outings for our man Dean Skelos? Tiffany's for Kemp Hannon? Buffalo Bills tickets? Trips to Ireland? XM Satellite Radio and pool covers for Joe Bruno?

Now, some good government groups have sent a letter to the Albany leaders, saying it's gotten too loose: “Unless you out-and-out stick it in your pocket and walk away, everything’s legal.” They're pushing to give the restriction some teeth with new legislation.

Full text after the jump.

Continue reading "Albany campaign cash: A modest proposal" »

The backstory to Sen. Bob Casey Jr.'s endorsement of Obama today: Feuding between his father, former pro-life Pa. Gov. Bob Casey, and Bill Clinton that defined one of the Democratic Party fracture lines in the 1990s.

Read a good summary here at the Globe's blog, Political Intelligence. Below: Casey Jr. (left) and Casey Sr. (right)

The first McCain general election ad is released. Predictably, a biographical spot...

With its usual attention to detail and investigative rigor, the Clinton campaign press shop put out a memo this week trying to beat back criticism of Hillary's phony story about Bosnian snipers by pointing out Obama's rampant embellishments and exaggerations.

It was titled "Just Embellished Words: Senator Obama’s Record of Exaggerations & Misstatements." First on the list: "Sen. Obama consistently and falsely claims that he was a law professor." Based on a Chicago Sun-Times story, the Clinton campaign noted that he was, in fact, a mere senior lecturer.

Except it turns out that, in fact, Obama is a law professor -- just like he said he was. The University of Chicago, where he has taught, posted a message to the media today in response to numerous calls:

"From 1992 until his election to the U.S. Senate in 2004, Barack Obama served as a professor in the Law School.... Senior Lecturers are considered to be members of the Law School faculty and are regarded as professors, although not full-time or tenure-track."

Everybody makes mistakes. But when you're doing fussy, picky criticism of other people for making mistakes, it's generally a good idea to check things out. Now: Will they correct and apologize, like ordinary people do when they say something untrue about somebody else?

Not so far. The original, incorrect press release is still posted.

Here's video of the joint presser last night, announcing the budget framework. Ever see these guys look this comfortable when Spitzer was in charge?

Best line is from Paterson at the very end: "You know what I've learned? That you just can't get everything done on Day One."

Throughout the presidential campaign, both sides have tried to convert negatives into positives by using them to energize supporters. The latest in this string comes from Sen. Clinton -- converting calls for her to give up and withdraw (Sen. Pat Leahy today) into a fundraising appeal, geared to put up some numbers before the March report closes:

"Have you noticed the pattern?

"Every time our campaign demonstrates its strength and resilience, people start to suggest we should end our pursuit of the Democratic nomination.

"Those anxious to force us to the sidelines aren't doing it because they think we're going to lose the upcoming primaries. The fact is, they're reading the same polls we are, and they know we are in a position to win."

Actually, though, that's only partly true. Obama supporters, with some reason, know she can still win. The bigger concern for everyone else in the Democratic Party is that her only path to victory seems to be to make Obama unelectable through a couple months of attacks, and then to argue that superdelegates have no choice but to turn to her. If Obama responds in kind, the Democrats would have two candidates who had been rendered unelectable by each other.

Negative tactics -- that's the real concern of those who want to force her to the sidelines instead of let the process play itself out.

Full e-mail after the jump.

Continue reading "Fundraising: More jiu-jitsu from Hillary" »

The NYPost's claim yesterday that ex-Gov. Eliot Spitzer was linked to a second call-girl ring didn't fare well.

Newsday's sources described it as the product of "wild exaggerations."

The Daily News says law enforcement officials "shot down" the report.

Jealous? Maybe. But a day after using the story to support a buxom-babe cover, even the Post seemed a little unsure, reporting that DA Bob Morgenthau said they had no evidence of a Spitzer role.

That, however, was the second-to-last graf. The lede: They're going to ask the latest madam about Spitzer.

In primary news this morning:

Vermont Democratic Sen. Pat Leahy calls on Clinton to quit -- the first prominent Democrat to do so.

Obama will be endorsed by moderate Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, a surprise and a boost -- esp. among Roman Catholics -- in a state where he trails. He's also a superdelegate. Casey will join bus tour -- says his daughters like Obama.

On the View this morning at 11 am, Obama creeps a few more inches away from Jeremiah Wright: "Had the reverend not retired, and had he not acknowledged that what he had said had deeply offended people and were inappropriate and mischaracterized what I believe is the greatness of this country -- for all its flaws -- then I wouldn't have felt comfortable staying there at the church."

One of the men accused of spying for Saddam apparently met with Hillary at the WH in 1996 (before the spying covered in the recent indictment) and had some success getting her to weigh in on easing sanctions and pushing the oil-for-food program, according to this story in the NYSun.

A long new AP story questions, again, whether Clinton has exagerrated her contact with the Northern Ireland peace process.... There's also more complaining that she has inaccurately claimed credit for the Family and Medical Leave Act, this time from the House Dem who shepherded the bill.... Will these stories get more traction in the wake of Bosnia?

We're in the camp that says this is way premature, and Obama is one big momentum shift away from not being the Democratic nominee.

But elsewhere, there's a congealing feeling that Hillary Clinton has only a slim and shrinking chance. Slate has even started a new feature -- "The Hillary Deathwatch:"

"Hillary Clinton is as good as dead. This became the consensus over the past week, when the media awoke en masse to the dual reality that 1) Clinton can't close the pledged-delegate gap and 2) Obama has her beat in the popular vote. But the Clinton campaign shows no signs of slowing...So the question now is not just 'How dead is she?' but 'When will she realize it?' "

The logo, as you can see, is colorful.

But, boy, will these guys regret it if it turns around.

And, here's an alternative to depending on Slate: An online spreadsheet at Real Clear Politics where you can plug in your own predictions on delegates and popular vote in upcoming states, choose various scenarios on Michigan and Florida -- and come up with your own prediction.

A new Obama ad, for Indiana. Everyone loves the workin' man.

Former Assembly Speaker Mel Miller, among others, raved about the abilities of his former counsel James Yates (at left in photo below with attorney Josh Dratel) who’s stepping down as state Supreme Court justice to become Gov. David Paterson’s new counsel.

Yates, who’s been on the bench since the early 1990’s and has repeatedly been recommended for vacancies on the state’s highest court, replaces former Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s counsel David Nocenti in the post, as expected.

Miller cited the many working relationships Yates developed with lawmakers in both parties, starting with his role as counsel to the Assembly Codes Committee from 1979 to 1987 through his role as legislative counsel to the Assembly from 1989 to 1992.

Miller said Paterson “has appointed a brilliant counsel.”

“He’s pleasant, he’s smart, and he’s a good negotiator,” said Miller, now a consultant and lobbyist. “When it comes to the law there are few in his league statewide.”

Dan Janison