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Today in Political History
June 12, 1630: Puritans land in New England. They had left England with 12 ships on April 10. The largest vessel, the 350-ton Arabella, carried about 1,000 passengers, many heads of cattle, and provisions. (Source: perspicuity)
June 12, 1935: Sen. Huey Long, D-La., makes a 15.5-hour, 150,000-word speech, the longest on Senate record. (Source: NBC5)
June 12, 1987: President Ronald Reagan, during a visit to the divided German city of Berlin, challenges Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall.” (Source: National Journal political calendar)
Wise Words
“No freeman shall be debarred the use of arms [within his own lands].” -- Thomas Jefferson, in the draft Constitution for the State of Virginia (Source: Patriot Post)
Communications Tip
Helpful Hints on Talking with Reporters
If you receive a call from a reporter, return it as soon as possible. Find out what he or she needs. Ask yourself if you're the best person to respond to the request. If the reporter asks for information over the phone and you're not prepared to respond, there's nothing wrong with asking for a few minutes to gather your thoughts and call back. Be sure to be prompt. Be aware of the reporter’s deadlines.
In some cases, a reporter may not know much about a particularly specialized subject. Some reporters are generalists, others are specialists. The reporter may be seeking background information or your expert commentary. In such cases, lay out the facts clearly and concisely. Avoid unfamiliar acronyms, jargon or technical talk. Use simple language. Focus on what is significant about the story.
Consider that reporters may not always ask the right question. Make sure you understand the question asked, what information they're after, and if possible, what their motivation is for asking. You may have to rephrase questions so reporters aren't misled or miss an important point. Most reporters are grateful for your assistance in this way.
Be sure to check your facts before giving them to reporters. If you aren't sure, don't guess. (Source: Tamu.edu)
National Politics
Best Stories From …
-- Los Angeles Times: "Close the prison at Guantanamo, or double its size? Raise or lower taxes? Let the free market or the federal government mend the healthcare system? With months still to go before the presidential primaries, the rough contours of the 2008 general election are already taking shape as Democrats and Republicans divide over those issues, Iraq and others. Come next year, voters could face choices similar to those in the polarized 2004 campaign."
-- USA Today: "Who's the preferred presidential pick for Republicans who say the Iraq war was a mistake? Answer: Arizona Sen. John McCain, the war's chief defender. Which candidate does disproportionately well among the wealthiest Democrats? Answer: Former North Carolina senator John Edwards, the populist who's focusing on poverty and promising, among other things, to roll back tax cuts for the affluent. A USA TODAY analysis of Americans' preferences in the 2008 presidential race -- based on more than 7,000 interviews in USA TODAY/Gallup Polls taken this year -- finds some surprising sides to the appeal of the four contenders in each party who top the polls. The study provides intriguing clues about whose messages are breaking through and what issues matter most."
-- Newsweek: Columnist George Will: "Tulip mania gripped Holland in the 1630s. Prices soared, speculation raged, bulbs promising especially exotic or intense colors became the objects of such frenzied bidding that some changed hands 10 times in a day. Then, suddenly, the spell was broken, the market crashed --prices plummeted in some cases to one one-hundredth of what they had been just days before. And when Reason was restored to her throne, no one could explain what the excitement had been about. Speaking of Fred Thompson..."
-- Washington Times: "More than 40 bills that call for pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq or otherwise trying to end the war are being kicked around Congress by Democrats eager to again challenge President Bush. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid say they will put troop-withdrawal timetables in upcoming defense-spending bills, despite backing down last month when Mr. Bush vetoed a war-funding bill over similar measures."
Blog Watch
-- At Redstate, Rep. Chris Cannon says: "Immigration has become the new 'third rail' of American politics, and as happened with social security, I fear that extremists and bumper sticker gurus will once again prevent us from achieving a reasonable solution. What is truly unfortunate is that every legitimate poll and focus group done on immigration in the past five years has show that the vast majority of citizens in this country agree on the basics: We must secure the borders; we must have a system of legal immigration that sustains a growing economy in a time of virtual full employment; and we probably cannot make 12-20 million illegal immigrants magically disappear, at least if we want to continue to eat and build houses. If almost all Americans agree on those basics, why can't our great political and legislative processes come up with reasonable solutions? It is because we have allowed this issue to be hijacked by the loudest voices, and those voices are not crying for solutions. They are just crying."
-- The Senate Site notes: "Love it or hate it, Margaret Dayton is a conservative. Now she has the numbers to prove it. Two conservative groups gave the freshman senator their highest ratings this year. She received a 100% from the Utah Taxpayers Association which evaluated legislators on 15 key tax and spending bills. Dayton also received the top senate score from Utah GrassRoots. ... GrassRoots evaluates the voting record of legislators on the basis of over 25 bills that focus on principles of the Constitution, limited government, free market economy, separation of powers, and the family."
-- At Out of Context, Glen Warchol reports: "In Deadwood (we refer to the town in South Dakota, of course, not our beloved Legislature), the Western Governors' Association unanimously approved a bold initiative to expedite development of clean energy. The bipartisan resolution calls for massive spending on energy research into everything from genetically engineered compost heaps to good old coal. Of course in true Western-style, the fiercely independent Western governors called on the federal government to provide all the money -- with no strings attached on how the states spend it. Did the resolution suggest the governors go back to their own legislatures and citizens and ask for them to cough up money for the risky technologies or to guarantee loans to energy entrepreneurs? No. It's the historic rule of manly politics of the West: No matter how dire the need, whenever possible, spend [other people's money]. ... Despite several panelists' attempts to call attention to ready-for-market renewable energy sources, such as solar energy farms and wind power -- the guvs seemed fixated on finding a way to burn coal without smoke. Memo to high-tech entrepreneurs: Solar may be sexy, but the West's got an entrenched coal lobby."
Lighter Side
Words Not to be Forgotten
“Stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau.”
-- Yale economist Irving Fisher, in 1929, just before the crash. |
