National Journal articles from October 2000

National Journal archives from October 2000

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE YIN AND YANG OF AL GORE.
October 7, 2000... The tone for Tuesday night's presidential debate was set during the introduction of the two women who would be the next first lady. As Tipper Gore was presented to the crowd, three of George W. Bush's supporters who were seated near the rear of...

THE VAST TOBACCO ANTITRUST CONSPIRACY--AND HOW TO BREAK IT.
October 7, 2000... Imagine the nation's five biggest tobacco companies secretly arranging to milk consumers for billions in new profits by raising and fixing prices, colluding to maintain their respective market shares, and using carrots and sticks to get...

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE: KEN STARR GOES GLOBAL.
October 7, 2000... By now you have probably heard of two of the three central characters in the struggle for the Yugoslav presidency. Slobodan Milosevic, the authoritarian incumbent, came to power in the late 1980s and subsequently was responsible for two Balkan...

Militant Moderates.
October 7, 2000... AS IT TURNS OUT, BOTH AL GORE AND GEORGE W. BUSH BELIEVE THAT GOVERNMENT CAN BE A DO-GOODER. BUT SO, TOO, CAN MARKETS. IN THIS YEAR'S `VISION THING,' THE TEXAN AS WELL AS THE TENNESSEEAN STRIVE FOR THE VITAL CENTER. Here's what Al Gore,...

HOW THREE LOW-INCOME FAMILIES WOULD ... FARE UNDER NEW BUSH AND GORE POLICIES.
October 7, 2000... In the fight for the center, Al Gore and George W. Bush have spent a lot of time bickering over whose proposals would benefit middle-class families more. But what about lower-income and poor families? How would they fare under Bush's...

A Critical Courtship.
October 7, 2000... AS THE ENDGAME BEGINS, THE CANDIDATES FOCUS ON WOMEN'S VOTING HABITS WITH RENEWED INTENSITY. BUT DO THEY REALLY GET IT? "You will see [women] really determine the President and who controls the Congress," predicts Democratic pollster...

Thanks, But No Thanks.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 7, 2000... Become a teacher? Not likely. That's how most New York City teenagers responded to a recent poll asking them if they would be interested in a career as a city teacher. Although the majority of the young people, who included high school and...

Far Off and Forgotten.
October 7, 2000... SOME RURAL AMERICANS ARE DOING BETTER THAN EVER. OTHERS ARE LEFT BEHIND. BUT ALL SAY THAT THE VOICES OF RURAL AMERICA ARE BARELY HEARD IN WASHINGTON. OAKLAND, Md.--Spirits were high at the annual summer fair in Garrett County, Md., this...

SMOKING OUT THE DISABILITIES ACT.
October 7, 2000... Each summer for nearly 100 years, wheat farmers in northern Idaho and eastern Washington have burned the stubble in their harvested fields to rejuvenate the soil and to get rid of pests and weeds. Now two children in those agricultural...

A BUSH BOUNCE FOR NUCLEAR POWER.
October 7, 2000... In late September, George W. Bush had some good news and some bad news for the nuclear power industry. In his high-profile national energy blueprint, Republican presidential candidate Bush gave nuclear power a much needed vote of confidence....

AN INTERNET STARTUP, WASHINGTON-STYLE.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... There's a new niche in town, and the Internet Policy Institute is attempting to fill it. With plenty of start-up cash from Internet executives and a slew of prestigious names on its Web site, this think tank wants to start "building a consensus...

IN CROATIA, U.S. MARINES SEND MANY MESSAGES.
October 7, 2000... ABOARD USS AUSTIN off Split, Croatia--"Man overboard! Man overboard!" the ship's intercom blares into the quiet of an Adriatic midnight. It's the last thing that a sailor aboard a warship at sea on a black and moonless night wants to hear. The...

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS: THE STATE EXPERIENCE.
October 7, 2000... As presidential and congressional candidates argue about competing plans to provide a prescription drug benefit to the elderly, states are moving ahead with their own programs to help seniors struggling to pay high drug bills. Twenty-four...

UNDERCOVER AGENCY SHEDS ITS SECURITY BLANKET.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... Here's a happy oxymoron made possible by the West's victory in the Cold War: Family Day at the supersecret National Security Agency The great day came on Saturday, Sept. 23, after weeks of preparation, during which the [number classified]...

THE MEDIA GOT IT RIGHT!(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... As you know, the news media are taking us straight down the toilet, voters are vanishing, democracy is expiring on the vine, and it's all terribly sad. There's no disputing this, because it's been proved in studies and polls, and their...

THE ENVELOPES, PLEASE.
October 7, 2000... With the presidential election quickly approaching, it's not too early (well, we think it's not) to speculate about whom a President Bush or a President Gore might choose for his economic team. Sustaining the current domestic economic expansion...

A CHAIRMAN'S GAVEL FALLS, WITH REGRET.
October 7, 2000... Reflecting on his six years as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee as he prepares to retire from Congress, Bill Archer sees himself as a victim of circumstance. During a recent 80-minute interview, the Texas Republican...

A VISA TO THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... Pit two important constituencies against one another in an election year--the high-tech industry and Hispanics--and what do you get? A five-month feud between Republicans and Democrats. That's what happened this year when an effort to boost the...

PIVOTAL EVENTS IN CONGRESS.
October 7, 2000... OCTOBER 2-5 Session, Work on Spending Bills, Drag On Congress this week braced to bypass its target adjournment of Oct. 6 without much real expectation of completing its work anytime soon. With 11 of the fiscal 2001 appropriations...

Hill People.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... Senate "I guess I'll become one of those Republican strategists I [see] quoted all the time," said John Czwattacki, the departing press secretary to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss. Czwartacki will become a partner in the...

A RACE WITH NO LIMITS.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... Ready for a down-and-dirty political campaign? You know, a thoroughly nasty face-off with plenty of the "negative, personal attacks" decried by do-gooders? Well, check out the battle in the Spokane, Wash., area, where Republican Rep. George...

HOW OUR ROUNDTABLE SCORED THE DEBATE.
October 7, 2000... National Journal asked six experts in different fields to watch the Oct. 3 debate between Al Gore and George W. Bush and give us their assessments via email. The six were: * Karlyn Bowman, public opinion analyst and resident fellow,...

WHEN LOCAL TRUMPS NATIONAL.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... The notion that "all politics is local" isn't just a cliche this year. In many tight House races, the adage is as true as ever. Sure, George W. Bush and Al Gore emphasize national issues, from Medicare and prescription drug prices to gun...

By the Numbers.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... For once, perhaps, it is what you say and not how yon say it. In the first presidential debate. Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush imparted their message to voters with careful, and often repeated, word choice and phraseology....

At the Races.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... * That's Debatable In Agreement While George W. Bush and Al Gore agreed to disagree on plenty of issues, they graciously harmonized on a few specific topics: * Value of the low-income heating assistance program * New...

ONE WRONG MOVE, AND IT COULD BE ALL OVER.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... Anyone who was looking for a knockout punch in Tuesday night's presidential debate had to be disappointed. Pitted against a veteran debater, Gov. George W. Bush of Texas had much to lose, but he survived. Al Gore, not unexpectedly, demonstrated...

Hotline Extra.
October 7, 2000... A Debate of Gush and Bore You might call it the Boston Tie Party. In their closely watched first debate, neither George W. Bush nor Al Gore came out the clear winner, at least according to the analyses of the punditocracy. It was a "clash...

WHERE ISSUES MIGHT NOT MATTER.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... DETROIT--It's no surprise that the two major-party presidential nominees have been moving in and out of Michigan as if it were a revolving door. With the polls in the state remaining tight, Michigan voters--and particularly the men and women...

Issue Spotlight.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... President Clinton's move last week to hold down oil prices by releasing oil from the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve was met with approval by 54 percent of registered voters surveyed by Princeton Survey Research Associates for Newsweek....

Poll Track.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... The Presidential Debates ONE DOWN, TWO TO GO While most overnight polls gave Al Gore a slight edge in Tuesday's presidential debate, George W. Bush may have gained some credibility among voters concerned about his ability to serve as...

People.
October 7, 2000... Media People After 20 years in the media world, Emmy Award-winning journalist Charles Krause has taken his intimate knowledge of foreign affairs to the Washington-based public affairs firm of APCO Worldwide, where he is senior vice...

THE 1960 DEBATES' LONG SHADOW.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2000... After eight years in office, the Vice President touts his executive decision-making experience. His opponent is forced to defend himself from the charge that he is an inexperienced lightweight. Al Gore and George W. Bush? No. Richard Nixon and...

A DEBATE WITH HEFT, A DIALOGUE WORTH HAVING.
October 14, 2000... If American presidential candidates were elected on foreign policy expertise, Bill Clinton would never have won the presidency in 1992. This would have meant no Al Gore as Vice President, and, perhaps, no George W. Bush spending his second term...

HOW LIBERALS GOT TIRED OF THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
October 14, 2000... At the core of American freedom, wrote the late, great Justice William J. Brennan Jr. in 1964 in New York Times Co. vs. Sullivan, is "a profound national commitment to the principle that debate on public issues should be uninhibited, robust,...

DENMARK SPOKE, AND EUROPE SHOULD LISTEN.
October 14, 2000... A funny thing happened in a corner of Europe last month. It was interesting enough, and perhaps even important enough, to justify taking a short break from contemplating the many virtues of Al Gore and George W. Bush. The Danes, bless...

Going for the Gold.
October 14, 2000... THE CAMPAIGN COFFERS OF PARTY COMMITTEES ARE OVERFLOWING AS NEVER BEFORE. A LOOK AT WHAT'S BEHIND THE EXPLOSION OF MONEY. All of those records set by Olympic athletes in Australia may soon pale when compared with the slew of fund-raising...

Party Poopers.
October 14, 2000... SOME LAWMAKERS ARE CLASHING WITH THEIR PARTIES OVER HOW TO RAISE AND SPEND MONEY AND HOW TO RUN THEIR CAMPAIGNS. As a House member who does not accept political action committee money and whose costly primary campaign left him virtually...

Picking Deep Pockets.(Statistical Data Included)
October 14, 2000... CAVIAR CONSERVATIVES CONTRIBUTE TO GEORGE W. BUSH. PROGRESSIVES WITH PORSCHES GIVE TO AL GORE. Geography is destiny. "You are where you live," trumpets the promotional blurb from Claritas, the San Diego-based demographics and marketing...

Why Interest Groups Go Soft.(Statistical Data Included)
October 14, 2000... SPECIAL INTERESTS ARE PLACING THEIR BETS IN HOPES OF ADVANCING THEIR AGENDAS AFTER THE ELECTION. If Al Gore wins the presidency, or if the Democrats capture the House or the Senate, expect trial lawyers, union leaders, and entertainment...

Clicking on E-Dollars.
October 14, 2000... A SURGE IN ONLINE FUND RAISING IS PRODUCING HANDSOME PROFITS FOR SOME INTERNET FIRMS. Given the expense of television advertising, the rigors of fund raising, and the high stakes of a political campaign, political consultants are a pretty...

When Money Talks.
October 14, 2000... END-OF-THE-YEAR MAYHEM ON CAPITOL HILL CAN MEAN OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOBBYISTS AND CONTRIBUTORS. It happens every two years: Before Congress adjourns, members try to win favors for constituents and campaign contributors, and lobbyists rush to...

CHARITABLE CHOICE GROWS, BUT SO DO QUESTIONS.
October 14, 2000... CHURCH STATE RELATIONS The significance of the landmark 1996 welfare reform act goes beyond the obvious. Not only did it eliminate a permanent government entitlement to cash assistance for poor families and drastically reduce welfare...

BETTER PARKS REVIVE THE BIG APPLE'S CORE.
October 14, 2000... NEW YORK--There is no more vibrant symbol of New York City's recovery from the squalor of the 1970s and 1980s than the emerald splendor of Central Park. For a native New Yorker familiar with the park's darker years, a visit today is dazzling....

MILITARY LEADERS ASK TOO MUCH OF TOO FEW.
October 14, 2000... For Republican Sen. Christopher S. Bond of Missouri, military readiness is no longer simply a Washington political debate about money, spare parts, and increased demands on troops. In recent months, the issue for him took on a more human...

A GUSHER OF BLATHER.(Brief Article)
October 14, 2000... ONCE THE ELECTION SEASON ENDS, THE HEATED RHETORIC OVER ENERGY POLICIES WILL QUICKLY COOL. In the waning days of the presidential campaign, energy prices have emerged as a contentious issue. Republican nominee George W. Bush hammers Vice...

TRYING TO REINVENT A PR FIRM.
October 14, 2000... During its first decade of existence, the Widmeyer-Baker Group, a Washington public relations firm, grew to $7 million in billings. But over the past two years, its revenues flattened out, according to executives at the PR shop. So just over a...

From the K Street Corridor.(Brief Article)
October 14, 2000... A Bermuda Brouhaha for Insurers Move your corporate headquarters to Bermuda and eliminate all your federal and state taxes. Several insurance companies have done just that. Now their competitors in the insurance business want to close the...

People.
October 14, 2000... Image Makers After being on the front lines for the Justice Department's Immigration and Naturalization Service, Cathy St. Denis is ready to bask in the corporate life at Burson-Marsteller. St. Denis, 38, will be a director in the...

A LOST CAUSE FOR THE CONSERVATIVES?
October 14, 2000... House conservatives have become the Buffalo Bills of Congress. Like the NFL team in the early 1990s, members of the House Conservative Action Team frequently win in the regular season--during initial debate on the annual appropriations...

IS AMTRAK SPINNING MORE THAN ITS WHEELS?(Brief Article)
October 14, 2000... From its press releases, you'd think that Amtrak is finally headed on the fast track toward prosperity. The federally subsidized national passenger rail service says that in August, it reached a record high in monthly revenue and also hit its...

PIVOTAL EVENTS IN CONGRESS.
October 14, 2000... OCTOBER 10-12 Miles, Not `Inches,' from Adjournment? Optimism again gave way to reality this week, as congressional Republican leaders abandoned their attempt to adjourn by Oct. 14 and crafted another continuing resolution, this one to...

ROUND TWO: THE CRITIQUES ARE IN.
October 14, 2000... As was done last week, National Journal asked six experts in different fields to watch the Oct. 11 debate between George W. Bush and Al Gore and to give us their assessments. The six were: * Karlyn Bowman, public opinion analyst and...

Hotline Extra.
October 14, 2000... On the Offense It's safe to say that the presidential campaign has gone negative. From the Democratic National Committee's "Bush Light" campaign to "raise questions" about George W. Bush's "intellectual activity," to the Bush camp's...

GET READY FOR A LATE ELECTION NIGHT.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)
October 14, 2000... If the election were held today, a plausible outcome would be for Democrats to pick up six seats in the House and three seats in the Senate, and for either George W. Bush or Al Gore to win the presidency by a hair. A lot can change in the next...

BUSH'S PENNSYLVANIA PROBLEM.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)
October 14, 2000... HARRISBURG, Pa.--In 1988, the four counties around Philadelphia gave more than 60 percent of their votes to then-President Bush. But with the 2000 election less than a month away, his son George W. is apparently running even or behind Vice...

SUDDENLY, THE STAKES ARE HIGHER.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)
October 14, 2000... The Gallup tracking poll shows a complete turnaround in the presidential race this month. Going into the Oct. 3 presidential debate, Al Gore was the front-runner. After the debate, George W. Bush moved into the lead. What happened? Don't people...

YOU CAN GIVE GOO-GOOS THEIR DUE, AND STILL MIX IT UP.
October 21, 2000... In pursuit of women voters in swing states, or rather, in their effort not to offend the sensibilities of such voters, George W. Bush and Al Gore have been pulling their punches for months. Independent women are said to abhor bickering,...

THE ISSUE POLITICIANS ARE IGNORING: 2 MILLION PRISONERS.
October 21, 2000... The good news is that crime is no longer the divisive issue it used to be in national politics, which is why Al Gore and George W. Bush haven't been arguing about it. The bad news is the reason: Gore and most other Democrats have aped...

WHY ARAFAT COULDN'T DELIVER ON PEACE--AND STILL CAN'T.
October 21, 2000... The bishop of Ipswich was renowned for replying to all bad tidings by saying, "Well... it could have been worse." One day a deacon ran in with eyes bulging and face aghast. "Awful! Awful!" he shouted. "One of the parishioners came home last...

Running Toward the Middle.
October 21, 2000... WHY SO MANY REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS ARE SOUNDING LIKE CENTRISTS ALONG THE CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGN TRAIL. On Capitol Hill, partisan nastiness and ideological line-drawing have prevailed as lawmakers struggle to close down the 106th...

Beyond the Cole.
October 21, 2000... AFTER DESERT STORM AND KOSOVO, FEW ENEMIES WANT TO TAKE ON THE UNITED STATES DIRECTLY, BUT THEY STILL CAN INFLICT DAMAGE BY GOING AFTER OUR WEAKNESSES. THE ATTACK ON THE USS COLE IS ONLY ONE EXAMPLE. In 1991, the United States faced the...

PIVOTAL EVENTS IN CONGRESS.
October 21, 2000... OCTOBER 16-19 Congress Taking the Long Way Home Congress continued its remarkably low-key stroll toward adjournment this week: Most lawmakers did not return to Washington until Wednesday evening, and most were expected to head home on...

Hill People.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... House After 14 years on Capitol Hill, where he was instrumental in pushing welfare reform through Congress, Ron Haskins could write a book. And that's exactly what Haskins, 57, the staff director of the House Ways and Means Human Resources...

OF RATS AND RULES.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... Even lab rats have their lobbyists. But those lobbyists are having trouble getting through Washington's regulatory maze. Roughly 23 million rats, mice, and birds are consumed every year in research. Animal rights advocates won a legal battle on...

ADDING UP POLLUTION PROSECUTIONS.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... The Clinton Administration's record on prosecuting environmental crimes can be summed up best by the adage that "where you stand depends on where you sit." From his vantage point, Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader sees a decline in...

CASSIDY CAPTURES THE GOLD.
October 21, 2000... The early numbers are in, and 2000 looks like another banner year for Washington lobbying shops. From January through June, the top-10 firms in the nation's capital reported fees totaling $67 million, up 10 percent from the same period in 1999....

From the K Street Corridor.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... Cleaning Haus at Siemens The new head of Siemens Corp.'s Washington office is shaking things up. Hired in June after a stint here as senior vice president for government affairs at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Gregg Ward has decided...

A WINDOW INTO MICROSOFT'S STRATEGY.
October 21, 2000... TECHNOLOGY Microsoft is not a modest company. Despite its problems with the Justice Department's antitrust suit, it is pushing ahead with an ambitious corporate strategy that calls for major changes to global copyright law and U.S....

THE BRIDGES OF JEFFERSON COUNTY.
October 21, 2000... TRANSPORTATION LOUISVILLE, Ky.--If you have any doubt that lines on a map can speak volumes, look at an overhead view of Louisville. Kentucky's biggest city lies at the crossroads of three major interstate highways: I-64 (to St. Louis...

TAPPING INTO A `READING REVOLUTION'.
October 21, 2000... EDUCATION YONKERS, N.Y.--A sea of snaking arms surges in Michele Canzone's first-grade classroom at Enrico Fermi School. A few soft giggles bubble up from the cluster of children dressed in yellow and navy blue, sitting on the floor in...

THE COURAGE OF OUR CONVICTIONS.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... ON THE MEDIA Once a week, in a ritual that's becoming so regular you can almost set your watch by it, the media has a stunning new conviction about what is The Problem With American Politics. One week the problem is "soft money." The...

Poll Track.(Polling Data)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 21, 2000... Views on policy and politics * Foreign Affairs THE FEAR OF WAR As violence in the Middle East increased, President Clinton headed to Egypt for an emergency summit with the Israelis and Palestinians and left with an unexpected...

TIGHT SQUEEZE IN THE POLITICAL PORTAL.
October 21, 2000... Over the past year, a handful of for-profit Web sites devoted to political content have been competing for a share of the political-information market, estimated to be worth $35 billion. Voter.com, Grassroots.com, and SpeakOut.com have emerged...

AFTER THREE ROUNDS, THE WINNER IS ...(Statistical Data Included)
October 21, 2000... As it did the previous two weeks, National Journal asked six experts in different fields to watch the Oct. 17 debate between George W. Bush and Al Gore and give us their assessments. The six were: * Karlyn Bowman, public opinion analyst and...

PRESIDENT THURMOND? IT COULD HAPPEN.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... Talk about Election Day surprises. Consider this possibility: George W. Bush and Al Gore each win 269 electoral votes on Nov. 7, leaving each man one short of the 270 needed to win the presidency. It's a remote scenario, to be sure, but not...

TWO TIGHT BATTLES, AND ONE GOP WIN.(Polling Data)(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... With the debates now behind us, the presidential election looks to be the closest in 40 years. The fight for the House promises to be the tightest in 46 years. And Republicans will almost certainly have a smaller majority in the Senate than...

Hotline Extra.
October 21, 2000... Dakota Many Colors The question in North Dakota is, has news of a candidate's illness changed the dynamics of the gubernatorial race? Some Republicans have "grumbled" about a TV ad for state Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat, in...

Political Tragedies.
October 21, 2000... Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan was the latest in a long line of governors and members of Congress to die in airplane crashes in recent years. Here's a rundown: Oct. 16, 2000 Democratic Gov. Mel Carnahan of Missouri, 66, campaigning for the...

SPOT CHECK: AD OF THE WEEK.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... * Helping Hand in N.J. Republican Leadership Coalition Produced by Jamestown Associates 30-second ad Republican Rep. Bob Franks may be short on campaign cash when compared with big-moneyed Democratic rival Jon Corzine, but he's hoping...

WHERE THE DEBATE TOOK SECOND BILLING.(Brief Article)
October 21, 2000... ST. LOUIS--The tragic death of Democratic Gov. Mel Carnahan in a plane crash cast an immediate pall over Missouri politics even as the state was enjoying the national spotlight brought here by the third presidential campaign debate. In a way,...

People.
October 21, 2000... In the Tanks Vito Tanzi, 64, director of the fiscal affairs department at the International Monetary Fund, is leaving the IMF after nearly three decades. He's joining the Global Policy Program of the Carnegie Endowment for International...

BEWARE THE TWO-MINDED VOTERS.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)
October 21, 2000... There's something strange about the presidential campaign. Just look at the polls. In one week--Oct. 4-1--the Gallup tracking poll showed Democratic nominee Al Gore ahead. Then a dead heat. Then Republican nominee George W. Bush jumped into the...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
October 28, 2000... FEAR NOT Jonathan Rauch's strained effort to equate the International Criminal Court with Ken Starr ["Just When You Thought It Was Safe: Ken Starr Goes Global," 10/7/00, p. 3142] reveals a misunderstanding of both the court and the role of...

VOTING: IT'S NOT JUST THE ECONOMY, STUPID.(Polling Data)
October 28, 2000... Voting for President is unlike any other choice Americans make at the ballot box. Americans want a strong leader, but they also want someone who cares about them and understands their problems. They want to agree with a President's political...