White House Week
Political Plus: He's Just as Unpopular as Congress
Relieved White House officials say President Bush has finally broken the cycle of bad news and political setbacks he has endured for months. The bipartisan agreement on immigration, backed by Bush and now being considered by the Senate, did the trick, they say.
And even though that deal is fragile and under fierce attack from the left and the right, the fact that key Senate leaders of both parties approved it, including Democrat Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and Republican John Kyl of Arizona, is seen as a good sign for Bush. "Immigration cleared the air," said a White House official.
Bush advisers also point out that the Democratic-controlled Congress is just as unpopular as Bush is. (In a recent poll, both had a 35 percent job performance rating.) Said the senior White House aide: "People are tired of jarring partisanship."
Activists Talk, but It's Money That Walks
It isn't just the liberal activists who are upset with Democratic congressional leaders for backing away from a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq. Party insiders say that many Democratic donors have also been complaining bitterly about what they consider a surrender to President Bush in the Iraq funding bill passed by Congress last week.
The donors see the concession as a betrayal of the antiwar movement that many believe gave the Democrats control of the House and Senate in last November's elections. "There's a lot of anger among base Democrats that we didn't stand up to Bush," says a party insider.
Now some party leaders are worried that their fundraising will go into a tailspin—and, more broadly, that the Democrats will suffer from an image of failing to stand up for themselves on matters of principle.
Starting to Feel Like a Hot Tub Here
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has been taking a bath in appearances before Congress. But his water got a little hotter last week when a former senior aide told her story. Monica Goodling told the House Judiciary Committee of a meeting with her boss that made her "uncomfortable."
The attorney general, she said, gave her his version of the controversial firing of eight U.S. attorneys and then asked for her reaction. The reason for her discomfort: She knew she would be asked to testify before Congress—and witnesses are not supposed to coach each other.
Goodling also admitted she "crossed the line" in taking "inappropriate political considerations into account" for hiring career employees at Justice; she even checked the political donations of some applicants. Goodling said she intended to set up her own legal defense fund.
Ill Winds May Be Blowing Toward China
Watch for protectionists in both parties to join in pressing for trade legislation punishing China for running a $200 billion-plus surplus with the United States. Last week's high-level "strategic dialogue" between a Chinese trade delegation and officials from the White House and Congress did nothing to change that likelihood, insiders say.
The momentum comes from members who worry about the economic impact of a weak Chinese currency and from those who fret about China as a potential military threat. "It's going to be the perfect storm," said one Hill source. Already, a Senate committee is considering a measure to allow companies to petition for new duties on Chinese products.
PHOTO OP: 9:34 a.m., May 24, Eisenhower Executive Office Building
Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi seems to be enjoying herself as she tugs on President Bush's sleeve, while Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson (right) looks on. But trade talks in Washington last week between U.S. officials and a Chinese delegation were a little testy, as Wu accused the administration of politicizing trade issues with its anti-China sanctions.
With Kenneth T. Walsh, Paul Bedard and James Pethokoukis
This story appears in the June 4, 2007 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.
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