March 2002

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Bloomberg Spends $76 Million in New York Race 3/31/2002 8:10 PM Billionaire Republican Michael Bloomberg spent more than $76 million of his own money to become mayor of New York City - a record for a non-presidential election in the United States. The final tally shows he spent $73.9 million during his race to defeat Democrat Mark Green and $2.5 million on his transition and inaugural ceremony, according to papers filed by his campaign staff on Friday. The total is up from the $74.7 million reported in January. Read the article Is Bloom Off Gephardt's Rose? 3/31/2002 8:08 PM Some call him the consummate politician, campaigning frenetically on behalf of his Democratic peers while keeping one eye on the presidency, the other on the House speakership. So, it is no surprise that House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt is spending his Easter recess campaigning for Democrats in hopes of helping the party win the six seats necessary to take back the House in 2002. Nestled in the heart of "Middle America," Gephardt’s district has always been a Democratic stronghold, but it has been trending somewhat Republican recently. Missouri State Rep. Catherine S. Enz is hoping to capitalize on the progress of Republican candidate William Federer, who in the last two elections lost to Gephardt by 18 percent and 14 percent respectively, but who kept Gephardt below 60 percent support. Though redistricting has actually strengthened Gephardt’s Democratic-leaning district in the southern St. Louis suburbs, Enz is trying to bank on Gephardt's twisting from a conservative Midwest Democrat to a left-wing labor hero, said one Enz supporter. "Certainly she’ll vote for working families, but she’ll do so in a much less extreme way," offered Scott Baker, communications director for the Missouri Republican Nationa Committee. Read the article Ohio Lawmaker Backing Dad's Opponent 3/31/2002 8:05 PM Eight years ago, Rex Damschroder won the Ohio House seat his father once held. Now that term limits are forcing him out, his father, Gene Damschroder, wants his old office back - but Rex Damschroder is backing his father's opponent in the Republican primary. Both say the decision hasn't stirred any hard feelings. "It's a free country," said Gene Damschroder, 80. "He can support whoever he wants." Rex Damschroder, 52, said he had already pledged his support to longtime political ally Jeff Wagner in the May 7 primary by the time his father decided to enter the race. Read the article Bush Scores Big on Fund-Raising Trip 3/28/2002 1:06 PM President Bush has no apologies about raising millions of dollars for Republican Senate candidates immediately after signing into law new curbs on the financing of campaigns for federal office. After a major money-raising effort for Republican Senate candidates in South Carolina and Georgia, Bush moved on to Dallas on Thursday to help boost the cash reserves of Texas Attorney General John Cornyn by about $1 million. Cornyn is seeking the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Phil Gramm. "I'm not going to lay down my arms," Bush told reporters as he began the two-day circuit on Wednesday in Greenville, S.C. "I'm going to participate in the rules of the system." Read the article Big Apple Hoping for Session in September 3/27/2002 4:44 PM Taking the first concrete step to convene a special session of Congress in New York City, the city's mayor, Michael Bloomberg (R), proposed Sept. 6 as a date for the one-day session, a suggestion endorsed by New York Gov. George E. Pataki (R). "As you know, Gov. Pataki and I enthusiastically support New York City's hosting of a one-day joint session of Congress to be held in New York City," Bloomberg wrote in a March 22 letter to House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.) and Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.). "We believe that Friday, Sept. 6, would be the best day for this important display of national solidarity. I cannot think of a better message to send in the days before we mark the one-year observance of the Sept. 11th attack." Read the article Record Number Seeking Elected Office in Missouri 3/27/2002 4:38 PM A record number of Missouri residents are running for state offices and Congress this year, encouraged by the forced departures of many incumbents because of term limits. When Missouri's monthlong filing period ended Tuesday, 619 people had filed for U.S. House and Senate, the state Legislature, state auditor and circuit judgeships. Some 90 percent are state legislative candidates. The total is up 10 from the record-setting 2000 elections, even though there were more races for statewide offices and judgeships two years ago. Election coordinators said term limits were the top reason. "I think the era of the eternal incumbent is coming to an end in Missouri," said Spence Jackson, a spokesman for the secretary of state. Read the article Bush Stumps for One-time McCain Backer Graham 3/26/2002 4:38 PM President Bush is big on loyalty in the White House, but bygones are bygones in his drive to help the GOP recapture the Senate. Bush is raising money on Wednesday for Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, who backed John McCain in the last presidential race. Graham crisscrossed South Carolina in McCain's "Straight Talk Express" campaign bus convoy that year, talking up the Arizona senator's bid in that state's bitterly contested primary. On Wednesday, Bush is headlining an event that will cost donors $1,000 each. Read the article Magic Johnson May Run for L.A. Mayor 3/26/2002 4:35 PM Magic Johnson says he could be a player in the 2005 mayor's race. The former basketball star endorsed Mayor James K. Hahn's candidacy last year. But he said Tuesday that Hahn's opposition to another term for Police Chief Bernard C. Parks was a huge mistake and cannot go unchallenged. Johnson said he will run in 2005 if there isn't change. Read the article GOP's Yob Won't Resign Over Comments 3/26/2002 4:33 PM Republican national committeeman Chuck Yob said he will not resign over his remark that women running for statewide elective office are best suited for secretary of state because "they like that kind of work." Two Republican candidates for Michigan governor, Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus and state Sen. John Schwarz of Battle Creek, called for Yob to step down. "Unfortunately, because of his role as national committeeman, his comments will serve only to distract from what is an otherwise compelling record by the GOP on behalf of women," Posthumus said Monday in a statement. "It is best for the party that we make this change and move on," Schwarz said. Read the article Huckabees Make History as Married Candidates 3/26/2002 4:29 PM Making national history, Gov. Mike Huckabee and his wife, Janet, both filed to run for statewide office on Tuesday. The Republican governor is seeking re-election, while his wife is running for secretary of state. She has never sought public office. As a 46-year-old mother of three, the first lady has gained attention in the state for her adventurous nature. She has gone bungee-jumping and accompanied soldiers on military exercises. Riding jet skis and kayaking are among her outdoor hobbies. Read the article GOP Targets Democratic Rift 3/25/2002 9:44 AM For the first time this election cycle, House Republican leaders are eyeing leadership divisions across the aisle, looking to exploit them as evidence that Democrats have fallen into disarray and drifted from their goal of winning the majority this November. "There is a multitiered conflict going on among national Democrat leaders. No one leader speaks for the party, and confusion has never been greater," Republican Conference Chairman J.C. Watts (Okla.) wrote in a memo distributed to GOP colleagues before they left for the spring recess last week. The strategy memo, also sent from Watts' American Renewal PAC, suggested that Democratic leaders in both chambers were no longer thinking in terms of 2002 but about 2004 and the impact of presidential politics. Leadership term limits and the likelihood that Minority Leader Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.) will run for president have given rise to a spate of leadership contests, each with its own subplots and distractions. Read the article Parties Use Internet As Money Tool 3/24/2002 7:02 PM As one major fund-raising route closes, political parties are fast developing another with great potential to raise lots of money at little cost: the Internet. A new congressional ban on unlimited "soft money" donations to the political parties, which takes effect after the fall election, will make it more important for campaign fund-raisers to collect large numbers of smaller checks. Direct mail and telephone solicitations are the traditional tools that Republicans and Democrats have relied on to solicit money in large-scale drives. But some candidates in 2000, such as Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., used the Internet to raise money quickly. Read the article Swift's Tenure Spotlights Struggle 3/24/2002 7:01 PM The question that dogged Jane Swift as she stepped into the corner office last year was the same question that haunted her as she made her stunning exit from the governor's race last week. Can a young mother balance the demands of a growing family with the staggering task of running a state of 6 million people? Swift, championed and pilloried for her decision to stay in office after giving birth to twins, said the answer is yes, and no. "At the end of the day, the fact of me doing my job well will demonstrate that women can take on important jobs, important positions," Swift said two days after tearfully bowing out. Read the article Texas Governor Unveils Campaign Plans 3/24/2002 7:00 PM His Democratic challenger calls him a "do-nothing governor" and a statewide magazine belittled his legislative program as "lighter than helium," so Republican Gov. Rick Perry is campaigning as the man with a plan. Many plans, in fact. Since Tony Sanchez won the Democratic gubernatorial primary almost two weeks ago, Perry has trekked across Texas unveiling proposals on science instruction and early childhood education. This week, it will be his plan to curb dropouts. Still to come: proposals for teacher mentoring and the use of technology for electronic textbooks and online diagnostics. Read the article Hill Aide Suffers Twin Neighborhood Blows 3/21/2002 8:34 PM For Sean Conway, the Ides of March have a new meaning. "It's a fine line between horror and humor," the 42-year-old press secretary for Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.), said after he was mugged at gunpoint near his apartment on Capitol Hill on March 15, then had his rental car stolen three days later. "These things generally happen in threes, so I'm waiting for the Fire Department to call and tell me my apartment is on fire," Conway said. Read the article A Starr Once More 3/21/2002 8:30 PM Returning to the Washington political scene for a command performance, Kenneth L. Starr, the former lead investigator in the Whitewater land deal and Monica Lewinsky case, will head up the legal challenge to the campaign finance reform law that passed the Senate Wednesday. Sen. Mitch McConnell, who claims the law on its way to President Bush's desk is unconstitutional, will be the lead plaintiff in the case. Other corporations, unions, and interest groups will also join the suit, McConnell said. "This is a mission to preserve the fundamental constitutional freedom of all Americans to fully participate in our democracy," said McConnell, R-Ky. Read the article Senate GOP Retaliates Over Judges 3/20/2002 4:47 PM Republicans shut down two Senate committees that were considering Enron-related legislation Wednesday, retaliating against Democrats who voted down a federal appeals court nominee. "Senate Republicans strongly believe that we should have an understanding on when President Bush's circuit court nominees, many of whom have been languishing in the Judiciary Committee for almost a year, will get hearings and be treated fairly," said Ron Bonjean, a spokesman for Republican Leader Trent Lott. "We will continue to call attention to this issue." Read the article Lazio Won't Bid for Return to House This Year 3/20/2002 2:20 PM Rick Lazio, who gave up his Long Island congressional seat to unsuccessfully run against Hillary Rodham Clinton in the 2000 Senate race, has told fellow Republicans he will not seek to reclaim that House seat this year, officials said Wednesday. Republican leaders in Washington and in New York had been encouraging Lazio to run for the seat that was subsequently taken by Democrat Steve Israel. Two top Republican officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Lazio called top Republicans on Wednesday to inform them he would not run for the congressional seat. Read the article Jim Ryan, Blagojevich to Vie for Illinois Governor 3/20/2002 2:19 PM Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan won the Republican nomination to succeed Gov. George Ryan last night as his party sought to retain control of the governorship it has held for more than two decades. On the Republican side, Ryan -- who is not related to the governor -- had 383,620 votes, or 45 percent; state Sen. Patrick O'Malley had 245,038 votes, or 29 percent; and Lt. Gov. Corinne Wood had 230,644 votes, or 27 percent. In her concession speech, Wood said the bitter primary was good for the party because it showed residents that there are Republicans who support abortion rights and oppose the way the state has handled death penalty cases. Read the article Ehrlich to Run for Maryland Governor 3/20/2002 2:17 PM Republican U.S. Rep. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. will announce Monday that he will run for governor of Maryland, presenting the first viable challenger to Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the leading Democratic contender. Ehrlich's announcement will make him the first major candidate to officially enter the race, ending speculation that Townsend would run without a strong challenger. Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley (D), who is also considering a run for governor, will hold a fundraiser for himself this weekend. Read the article McCain in Victory: Blunt, Dogged 3/20/2002 2:15 PM Click on Sen. John McCain's Web site and a pig appears, pushing a barrel with its snout, its tail tied to a banner that says "Pork Barreling." The lumbering swine is a slap at lawmakers who use their clout to win federal money for home-state spending projects, and it provides a glimpse into McCain's style -- blunt, dogged, sometimes humorous, willing to offend. "It does not concern him if he's not the most popular guy in the Republican" ranks of senators, says Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, one of only five GOP senators who supported the Arizonan in the 2000 presidential primaries. Read the article Swift Exits, Romney Joins Massachusetts Governor's Race 3/19/2002 5:40 PM Acting Massachusetts Gov. Jane Swift announced Tuesday she is dropping her bid to be elected to a full term. "I believe that this is in the best interest of our state, as it will allow the Republican Party's best chances of holding the governor's office in November," Swift said. The move came just hours before Salt Lake City, Utah, Olympic organizer Mitt Romney announced that he would seek the Republican nomination. Romney announced his candidacy Tuesday afternoon in Massachusetts. Read the article Major Union Endorses Pataki for New York Governor 3/19/2002 5:38 PM Republican New York Gov. George Pataki accepted the backing of one of the state's most powerful labor unions Tuesday morning, Local 1199 of the Service Employees International, before an enthusiastic crowd of hospital workers. "It became clear that this union had not had a relationship with any previous governor as strong in terms of policy," said Local 1199 President Dennis Rivera. The union has not supported a Republican for statewide office since the 1960s, but Rivera said the union's executive committee voted unanimously to endorse Pataki over two major Democrats seeking to challenge the governor in November -- former federal Housing Secretary Andrew Cuomo and state Comptroller H. Carl McCall. Read the article Cities to Bid for GOP Convention 3/19/2002 5:33 PM The Republican National Committee invited two dozen cities Tuesday to submit proposals to play host to the party's national convention in 2004. Cities invited to submit proposals are: Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, N.C., Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, Tenn., New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Fla., Phoenix, San Antonio, Seattle, St. Louis, St. Paul and Tampa, Fla. While Minneapolis and St. Paul received separate invitations, they have previously submitted joint proposals. The Republicans' site selection committee will hold individual meetings with representatives from all invited cities to discuss what they have available or can provide in the way of convention facilities, hotel rooms, security provisions, media work space and other attractions. All proposals must be submitted to the RNC by June 17. Read the article Cub Reporter Who was Snubbed in January Meets the President 3/19/2002 5:28 PM Alex Hagen is ready to let bygones be bygones. In January, the 14-year-old journalist from Missouri was ridiculed and sent away by Secret Service agents when he tried to cover President Bush's visit for his local newspaper. On Monday, the president offered the eighth-grader an apology -- and threw in a personal tour of Air Force One for good measure. When Bush stepped down from the plane, the Webster County Citizen's cub reporter was among the first in line to greet him. "He's like, 'I heard about what happened and I'm sorry,' and I'm like, 'Don't worry about that,"' Hagen said. "He said to make it up to me, he'd let me go on Air Force One." The story got the attention of Republican former congressman and Senate candidate Jim Talent, who called Hagen the next day. Talent promised to help him meet the president, who was visiting St. Louis on Monday to help raise money for Talent's Senate campaign. Read the article Nixon Daughters at Odds Over Father's Library 3/18/2002 10:06 PM The daughters of former President Richard M. Nixon have gone to court in a difference of opinion over the fate of a $12 million bequest to their father's library, the Los Angeles Times reported. The dispute has grown out of the sisters' differing views over whether the Nixon Library and Birthplace should be operated by the family or by an independent board of directors. Julie Nixon Eisenhower wants the library in Yorba Linda and its assets overseen by a 24-member board. Her older sister, Tricia Nixon Cox, believes the family should oversee the library. Read the article Swift to Get Primary Challenger 3/18/2002 10:03 PM Fewer than one in seven Massachusetts voters is a Republican, so you'd think the minority party would rally around its standard-bearer and top officeholder, acting Gov. Jane Swift. Think again. In the famously divided Massachusetts Republican Party, Salt Lake Olympic chief Mitt Romney's expected bid for governor has embarrassed Swift and divided a party that to begin with only claims 14 percent of the state's voters. And that's before Romney's campaign has even begun. Romney, whose father was governor of Michigan and who returned to Massachusetts on Sunday after three years in Utah, had previously said he wouldn't challenge an incumbent Massachusetts governor, but that changed after Swift's poll numbers plummeted. Read the article Gonzales Poised for Court Nomination 3/18/2002 9:57 AM When Texas state Sen. David Sibley was curious about the thinking inside then-Gov. George W. Bush's administration a few years ago, he would try to corner Alberto Gonzales, the governor's lawyer. "We good ol' boys 'ping' for information," says Sibley, a Republican from Waco, comparing his pursuit to using sonar. When a "ping" hits a target, it returns an echo -- or in Sibley's case, a clue as to which way the political winds are blowing. "But with Al, you'd ping and nothing would come back," Sibley says. "I'd say, 'Wow, Bush was really mad at that guy.' Al would say, 'Oh.' Or I'd say, 'I'm thinking of adding this to a bill,' and he'd say, 'Ah.' " Read the article Political Parties Are This Year's Fighting Illini 3/17/2002 7:19 PM For 26 years, Republicans have held the governorship of Illinois, longer than they have controlled any other state in the union. On the eve of Tuesday's primaries, in which both parties will choose their gubernatorial candidates, the GOP is "in chaos." That is not the opinion of any Democrat but of the Republican likeliest to carry his party's bid to extend the run to 30 years, state Attorney General Jim Ryan. What Ryan did not say -- but what some veteran Democrats privately acknowledge -- is that, bleak as the GOP situation may look, Democrats could boot their chances away once again, thanks to a field of challengers who perfectly mirror the divisions within their own party. Read the article Ray's Capitol Hill Connection 3/17/2002 7:14 PM Still looking for a beachhead of support in New Jersey, former Independent Counsel Robert Ray has found significant backing in the nation's capital for his nascent Senate bid. One day after resigning as a federal prosecutor, and therefore becoming legally eligible to wage a political campaign against Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.), Ray was ushered around the Senate on Wednesday by Minority Whip Don Nickles (R-Okla.). Nickles said Friday that his efforts to help Ray's Senate bid should not be viewed as an official endorsement - something Nickles doesn't provide in a contested primary - but the Whip made clear he helped recruit Ray for the race. Read the article DeLay Mum On Appropriations 3/17/2002 7:08 PM With House Majority Whip Tom DeLay's (Texas) move to the Republican Conference's No. 2 leadership post all but assured, speculation is mounting about whether he will relinquish his coveted seat on the Appropriations panel. Although current Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas) decided to divest himself of three committee assignments when he took the second spot in the GOP command structure in late 1994, DeLay indicated Friday that he has yet to decide if he will follow suit. "It's not a decision that's been made yet," said DeLay spokesman Stuart Roy. "We'll cross that bridge when we earmark it." Read the article Senate GOP Discuss Retaliation 3/17/2002 7:06 PM Senate Republicans will do "whatever is necessary" to ensure that majority Democrats hold confirmation hearings for President Bush's judicial nominees, a leading GOP lawmaker said Sunday. The comments from Sen. Don Nickles, the assistant minority leader, were the latest in the partisan bickering following the party-line defeat last week of a White House nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals. Nickles, R-Okla., said Democrats have been holding up the nomination process and 20 Bush nominees have not had hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Some nominees have been waiting almost a year, he said. Read the article Arkansas First Lady Announces Candidacy 3/16/2002 1:49 AM Arkansas first lady Janet Huckabee announced Saturday she will run for secretary of state in the same election in which her husband is seeking re-election. "I think this would enhance what I've been doing for the last 5½ years" as first lady, Mrs. Huckabee told a crowd of about 100 people assembled for the announcement on the steps of the state Capitol. Gov. Mike Huckabee introduced his wife, saying he was pleased to be standing up for her after the "many times Janet has been at my side when I was running, when I was losing, when I was winning. Read the article Judicial Candidate Draws Unusual Attention 3/15/2002 8:13 PM Judicial campaigns in Illinois are usually as drab as a judge's black robes. Most candidates speak in vague generalities, saying, for example, that they are tough on crime or that they believe judges should interpret the laws instead of writing them. But that's not Robert Steigmann's style. The 57-year-old candidate for the Illinois Supreme Court has weighed in on everything from guns and Taliban POWs to the University of Illinois' Indian mascot. Read the article Lott to Retaliate for Judge Defeat 3/15/2002 8:11 PM Senate Republican leader Trent Lott on Friday threatened to retaliate against Democrats for defeating the promotion of one of President Bush's nominees to a federal appeals court. "I'm not going to let go of it for a long time," said Lott, upset because the Senate Judiciary Committee killed the nomination of U.S. District Judge Charles Pickering of Mississippi to the U.S. Appeals Court in New Orleans. Lott also announced he will block an aide of Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle from getting on the Federal Communication Commission. Read the article Robert Ray to Seek GOP Nod in New Jersey 3/15/2002 8:10 PM Robert Ray, who resigned this week as the independent counsel investigating former President Clinton, said Friday he will seek the Republican nomination for Senate in New Jersey. A latecomer to a large field, Ray said he will pitch himself to voters as uniquely qualified to take on Democratic Sen. Robert Torricelli. "I hope to inspire a renewed commitment to the fact that public service is a public trust," Ray said. "I intend to make that, in part, a basis for my candidacy, and I believe I would uniquely offer that." Read the article Poll: Romney Leads Swift in Massachusetts 3/15/2002 8:09 PM Though not yet officially in the race, Salt Lake City Olympic chief Mitt Romney holds a commanding lead over acting Gov. Jane Swift for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, according to a poll released Thursday. Of the registered Republican or Republican-leaning respondents, 74 percent favored Romney, with 18 percent favoring Swift. The rest were undecided. The Suffolk University poll also showed Romney, who will announce next week whether he will run, favored over all Democratic candidates mentioned. Read the article Whitewater Independent Counsel Robert Ray Resigns 3/12/2002 10:52 PM Independent Counsel Robert Ray resigned Tuesday, handing the few remaining tasks of the long-running investigation of the Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky scandals to his deputy Julie Thomas. Ray issued a brief statement saying he planned to "return home to my family in New Jersey, and I look forward to new challenges ahead for me there." Ray made no mention of a possible run for public office, but CNN has been told Ray has met with state Republican Party officials to discuss a possible challenge to incumbent Democratic Sen. Robert Torricelli. Ray succeeded Kenneth Starr as independent counsel in October 1999 and oversaw the agreement with then-President Clinton that avoided a possible criminal trial. Read the article California GOP Rallies Behind Simon 3/12/2002 10:43 PM In a sign of unity, Republican lawmakers said Tuesday that they fully support gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon, a political newcomer going up against Gov. Gray Davis. Simon easily won last week's GOP primary over former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and Secretary of State Bill Jones. Most Republican lawmakers had backed Riordan, seeing him as the party's best candidate to take on Democrat Davis. "Our main goal is to replace Davis and we can do that any number of ways," said GOP Assemblywoman Lynn Daucher, a former Riordan supporter. "There is room in our party for all ideas." Read the article In Appointments, Administration Leaves No Family Behind 3/11/2002 11:16 PM In the Bush administration, governing is a family matter. Two weeks ago, the State Department announced that Elizabeth Cheney, the vice president's daughter, would become a deputy assistant secretary of state. Her husband, Philip Perry, last week left the Justice Department to become chief counsel for the Office of Management and Budget. There, Cheney's son-in-law will join OMB Director Mitchell E. Daniels Jr., whose sister, Deborah Daniels, is an assistant attorney general. That's just the beginning... Read the article Alexander Vies for Thompson's Senate Seat 3/11/2002 11:12 PM Former Tennessee governor Lamar Alexander, the two-time presidential candidate who campaigned in a flannel shirt, announced today he will run for the Senate seat his fellow Republican Fred D. Thompson is giving up. "This is an unexpected course of action for me," Alexander said. "I've been happy as a private citizen, represented by the country's two best senators. I regret Fred's decision, but I respect it." Read the article Thompson's Potential Replacements Line Up; Senator Says He's Ready to Move On 3/10/2002 6:28 PM Sen. Fred Thompson said Saturday he never intended to make politics the last career of his life, and believes now is the time to move on to whatever comes next. "As you go along in life some things become more important, some of it in the category of smelling the roses," he said at a Nashville news conference a day after announcing he would not seek re-election this fall. "We weren't meant to do one thing all our lives." Potential replacements began lining up Saturday with Republican Rep. Ed Bryant's announcement that he would seek the office. Four other Tennessee congressman were also weighing possible runs -- Republican Zach Wamp, and Democrats Harold Ford Jr., Bart Gordon and Bob Clement. Republican former governor and U.S. Secretary of Education Lamar Alexander planned a news conference Monday, but did not say what he would announce. Read the article Georgia Representatives Face Off in Primary 3/10/2002 6:25 PM It's virtually assured voters in Georgia's 7th Congressional District will re-elect a Republican, since no well-known Democrat is even running. The question is, will it be the outspoken impeachment manager who never met a camera he didn't like or the quiet policy wonk who never met one he did? Georgia Reps. Bob Barr and John Linder face each other in August's GOP primary due to redrawn congressional maps courtesy of the Democrat-controlled state Legislature. On the surface, the two are clones: conservative Republicans advocating tax cuts, gun rights and a ban on abortion. But these veteran lawmakers couldn't be more different in style. Read the article Thompson to Retire From Senate 3/8/2002 4:07 PM Republican Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee will retire from the Senate at the end of his term, he announced Friday. "I have decided not to run for re-election. I simply do not have the heart for another six-year term. Serving in the Senate has been a tremendous honor but I feel that I have other priorities that I need to attend to. I hope my friends and supporters who may be disappointed will understand and will believe that I have given them eight good years," Thompson said in a written statement. Thompson said he will work closely with the president and his colleagues for the remainder of his term, which expires next January. A Republican Senate official said the lawyer and former actor was resigning for personal reasons dealing with his family. Read the article 'Fight' Seen in California's Governor's Race 3/7/2002 6:20 PM In the wake of his unexpected, come-from-behind victory in the California GOP gubernatorial primary, conservative businessman Bill Simon disputed the notion that his win over a more moderate candidate hurts Republican prospects for unseating Democratic Gov. Gray Davis in November. "I think Gray Davis is in for the fight of his life. I think it's going to be a good, spirited campaign," Simon said in an interview Wednesday on CNN's "Inside Politics." Read the article Talent Files for U.S. Senate 3/7/2002 6:15 PM Republican Jim Talent, a former congressman who narrowly lost a bid for Missouri governor two years ago, officially filed Thursday as a candidate for the U.S. Senate. Talent already has been campaigning for months for his expected contest against Democratic Sen. Jean Carnahan, who has announced her candidacy but has not yet filed for office. Read the article Independent Prosecutor Had Enough to Prosecute Clinton 3/6/2002 10:30 PM President Clinton could have been indicted and probably would have been convicted in the scandal involving former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, Independent Counsel Robert Ray contended Wednesday in his final report. Writing his last chapter on the affair that damaged the former president's second term, Ray said Clinton lied in January 1998 testimony denying a sexual relationship with Lewinsky. Clinton also "impeded the due administration of justice" by drawing presidential secretary Betty Currie into his false account, Ray added. Read the article GOP Hones Attacks on Cardoza 3/6/2002 10:25 PM One day after he toppled scandal-tarred Rep. Gary Condit (D-Calif.) in the nation's most watched House primary, state Assemblyman Dennis Cardoza (D) braced for a general election race in whichRepublicans are already attacking him as an "out-of-step liberal"and Condit's backers have indicated they would not soon rally behind the victor. Elsewhere in California's first-in-the-nation primary, two young candidates with strong support from House Members but no experience in elective office were nominated for newly created open seats. Both nominees, attorney Linda Sanchez (D) and dairy farmer Devin Nunes (R), beat veteran politicians and will be strongly favored in November. Read the article Ray Scrambling For GOP Support 3/6/2002 10:24 PM Legally barred from running for office while still a federal prosecutor, Independent Counsel Robert Ray has been quietly taking steps for at least the past two months to mount a bid for the Republican nomination to challenge Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.). With his various investigations into the Clinton family now officially concluded, Ray could soon announce that he will be a contender for the GOPSenate nod. Read the article New York Congressman Goes for the Green 3/5/2002 5:25 PM Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds (R-N.Y.) is taking golf lessons. The lawmaker used to play golf, back when he was a real estate and insurance agent. But once he entered state politics, rapidly rising to the post of New York State Assembly minority leader, he didn't have the time. As Reynolds, 51, has amassed power in Congress during his two terms in office, however, he's rediscovered the game's political advantages. "It's a great opportunity to play a little golf, get to know some of your colleagues better and some of Washington better," he said in a recent interview. Read the article South Dakota Governor to Run for House 3/5/2002 5:23 PM Gov. Bill Janklow announced Tuesday that he will run for the state's only House seat, a move that will pit him against a fellow Republican who spent 22 years on Capitol Hill. Janklow, the state's longest serving governor, will face former Sen. Larry Pressler and four others in the June 4 primary. The incumbent, Republican John Thune, has his sights on a high-stakes Senate race against Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson that could help determine which party controls the Senate. Read the article