From The Hotline Latest Edition for Friday, May 9,2008

THE FIELD

Aiming Higher?

Fri. May 9, 2008


Al Gore said 5/8 that he "won't accept" a cabinet post "regardless of which of the three candidates wins the presidency." More: "I am looking for a way to bring about change in other ways" (Bloomberg News, 5/9).

Mortal Combat

Speaker Nancy Pelosi isn't among those Dems who "want to see the party's presidential primary brought to an end." Pelosi: "Me? I like combat."

More Pelosi: "You know, I think the best training for campaigning is campaigning. So I think that as they have campaigned, the support in our country has grown for our Democratic message. ... So this is all very healthy." During a press conf., Pelosi again declined to endorse one of the WH Dems, saying that "either one of them will be a great president" (Brown, "The Swamp," Chicago Tribune, 5/9).

Still Here ... Still Not Endorsing

John Edwards was on "Today" and "Morning Joe" this a.m. Some highlights:

Asked who has the best chance of defeating John McCain: "I think they both would beat him. I know you don't like that answer. ... I think right now, Barack Obama has a better chance 'cause it looks like he's going to be the nominee."

NBC's Lauer: "North Carolina primary was held on Tuesday. You had to go into the voting booth and make a choice."

Edwards: "I did. ... I voted and I'm going to keep that between me and the polling booth right now."

Lauer: "If it looks like we have a presumptive nominee, and you said it looks like Barack Obama, then why wait to make your endorsement?"

Edwards: "First of all, I think the value of these endorsements, including mine, are greatly inflated. ... I really think it's important to allow voters and this democratic process to work. ... I might add, Barack Obama's done pretty well without any endorsement from John Edwards" ("Today," NBC, 5/9).

MSNBC's Brzezinski: "You talked to Matt Lauer. He said to you, 'Did you vote?' You said, 'I did vote and I will keep that with me.' So who you voted for is who you will endorse?"

Edwards: "I'd say highly likely, yes."

Asked if he and his wife voted for the same person: "Oh, I'm not answering that."

Asked if he thinks Clinton believes Obama cannot win the presidency because he is black: "No, I don't think she believes that. I know she doesn't believe that based on what she said to me. ... She contends in this interview she is a stronger candidate in the general election" ("Morning Joe," MSNBC, 5/9).