Homeland Insecurity.
President Bush's first nominee to be the secretary of Homeland Security, former New York City cop Bernie Kerik, met with Hillary's approval. But Kerik had to withdraw his name because of Clinton era-type allegations (nanny issues, sex scandals and shady financial deals), and now Hillary might have a problem with the President's second choice, former Justice Department lawyer and federal judge Michael Chertoff. From 1994 to 1996, Chertoff was a special counsel for the Senate's Whitewater Committee, which investigated the Clintons' financial dealings. Hillary's voting record reflects the fact that she didn't forget about Chertoff's past considering that one of the first major votes she cast in the Senate was against his nomination to be assistant attorney general for the Criminal Division. Hers was the only "no" vote. Everything's Coming Up Rosen.
The Justice Department has indicted Hillary's former campaign finance director, David Rosen. The four-count indictment said that Rosen understated the costs of an Aug. 12, 2000, fund-raising gala in Los Angeles by nearly $500,000. The event was billed as a "Hollywood Gala Salute to President William Jefferson Clinton," who was in attendance with Hillary and Chelsea. Rosen allegedly pulled off the scam by filing fraudulent documents with the FEC to increase the amount of funds available to Hillary's 2000 campaign. According to the FBI, Rosen allegedly lied about the true cost of the event in order to increase the amount of funds available to "New York Senate 2000," the Democratic Senate joint fundraising committee for federal campaign activities. Rosen is not the only character under legal suspicion for this fund-raiser, as two of the event's organizers are jailbirds. Hollywood producer Peter F. Paul and charity fund-raiser Aaron Tonken helped organize the event, but the former is a convicted felon now facing stock fraud charges in New York, while the latter pled guilty in 2003 to federal charges of diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars from donors of Hollywood events he organized, including the August 2000 gala. At this point, there is no indication whether Hillary-who was first lady at the time-is suspected of any wrongdoing, and her lawyer has claimed that the Senate campaign has been cooperating fully. But the best news so far for Hillary is that the day the story broke, CBS was the only network to mention the Rosen indictment. Certification Justification.
More than two months after President Bush soundly defeated John Kerry, Hillary joined with the Michael Moore-wing of her party to question the certification of the 2004 presidential electoral votes. Despite being in the minority in her own caucus and differing from her state's senior senator, she went on the Senate floor to condemn the election results: "As we look at our election system, I think it's fair to say that there are many legitimate questions about its accuracy, about its integrity, and they are not confined to the state of Ohio." But Sen. Charles Schumer would have none of that: "My view is that you don't hold up the election unless there is concrete real evidence of fraud. I haven't seen that." Of course, Hillary tried to have it both ways, as she ended up voting to certify the results. In so doing, she flip-flopped on a promise she apparently made to the Rev. Jesse Jackson, to whom she reportedly intimated that she would vote to block the certification. Said a dumbfounded Jesse: "She told me I was preaching to the choir." Looking Great for 2008.
Dick Morris listed some disturbing poll numbers to argue that Hillary could easily win in 2008. "Those who would stick their heads in the sand and maintain that Sen. Clinton could never be elected president are in for a rude shock, according to the latest data from the Fox News survey." The recent poll shows Americans feel Hillary is 'qualified to be president of the United States' by 59%-34%. In addition to her usual dominance among Democrats who were polled, Mrs. Clinton did pretty well among Republicans as well. The survey tested Hillary against several possible 2008 GOP contenders and found that she ran ahead of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush by 46%-35%, ahead of New York Gov. George Pataki by 41%-35% and ahead of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist by 40%-33%.
