06/09/99 - NEWSDAY - James Pinkerton  AN UNAUTHORIZED WAR WITHOUT A NAME It's a cliche that the Kosovo conflict has made for strange bedfellows.    President Bill Clinton's bed is warmed by such conservatives as Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Weekly Standard editor William Kristol, while the opponents of the war include such unlikely snuggle-buddies as former President Jimmy Carter and would-be president Pat Buchanan. Now comes a bipartisan lawsuit against the war, filed by 29 members of Congress, which will be argued today in a U.S. District courtroom in Washington... Few Americans think that Clinton has been candid about Kosovo, but the normal reaction is a shrug of they-all-do-it cynicism. So it's refreshing that a cross-spectrum of politicians and lawyers have united in an effort to rein in the bomb-dropping grandiosity of the current imperial president. Indeed, Clinton seems to be in flat-out violation of the 1973 War Powers Act, which requires the president to terminate combat within 62 days unless he receives explicit authorization from Congress. That deadline came and went on May 25; Clinton's one bow to the law is that he avoids the use of the word "war" in regard to Kosovo. The suit was spearheaded by Rep. Tom Campbell, a moderate California Republican; his co-plaintiffs include Democratic leftists such as Pete Stark, also of California, and Republican rightists such as Bob Barr of Georgia. And the lead attorneys for the case are Michael Ratner and Jules Lobel, both of the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York City, a group once headed by the radical lawyer William Kunstler. It's concern for the law, not common ideology, that unites them, Ratner said in an interview. Not only has Clinton failed to get Congress to declare war-or even to authorize military action, as happened in Vietnam or Kuwait-but he has also failed to take the case to the United Nations, as the United States did in Korea. And so, Ratner laments, "Kosovo is the first U.S. war since World War II that has had the approval of neither the Congress nor the UN." Ratner doesn't think that a judge will stop the bombing. But maybe his strange-bedfellow lawsuit will alert Americans to the estrangement their presidents have felt toward constitutional checks and balances. Like his predecessors, Clinton is impatient with such niceties, but only if they are observed can another Vietnam-like quagmire-a half-hearted, half-supported endeavor, pursued by a president who is only half-trusted-be avoided. 06/09/99 - YAHOO - REUTERS - Thomas Ferraro  BUSH VOWS NO TAX HIKES BUT WON'T SIGN PLEDGE Republican presidential front-runner George W. Bush vowed Tuesday not to raise taxes if elected president, but declined to actually sign a pledge by Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) to oppose any tax hike.    "Governor Bush has a long-standing policy against signing (others') pledges," said Mindy Tucker, campaign press secretary for the Texas governor. "His own words are his own pledge."    Bush's father, President George Bush, was defeated for reelection in 1992 in part because he broke his own 1988 vow, "Read my lips, no new taxes." The Texas governor made his promise against a tax hike in an interview with New Hampshire reporters and in a letter to the anti-tax group after Tucker was quoted as saying Bush wouldn't sign the pledge ..."His refusal to sign is another indication we are not sure where he is on taxes," said Shelly Uscinski, New Hampshire campaign manager for Republican presidential candidate Pat Buchanan.   Buchanan has signed the pledge... 06/08/99 - HOTLINE   BUCHANAN: WILL BUSH BE A LEAD ZEPPELIN? Pat Buchanan, asked by ABC News pol. dir. Mark Halperin "How has your campaign gone so far and what gives you more promise this time than the other two?": "What we have going for us this time that we didn't then is we've started slightly earlier, we're better off financially, organizationally, in terms of people supporting us in the early states than we were in 1996. But clearly, you have a candidate, Mr. Bush, who has even more support, I think, than Senator Dole had. He has youth and he has freshness, and he has a touch of charisma which makes him stronger in that sense, but on the other hand, he has never run before, whereas Bob Dole had 30 years, he has never been tested in national politics, there are question marks over his knowledge of issues, and there's no one who knows exactly what his agendas and beliefs are. This is the NFL, this is not the Southern Conference that we're in here. So I think Mr. Bush will be tested. And... he can come out like the "Lone Eagle" Lindbergh and fly all the way to Paris on his first flight. Or, this could be the Hindenberg on its flight to Lakehurst. So we're gonna find that out. And if Mr. Bush is not a candidate of his press clippings, I don't know what the Establishment's fallback position is, and then it's wide open, and then I think I can run" ("Here's The Point," ABC radio, 6/3). Buchanan, on the GOP frontrunners: "What we need, if we're going to beat Clinton and Gore, I think, is a candidate who will go at Clinton and Gore on every single issue. We've had enough of these pattycake campaigns. You know, what'd we argue over last time, a little 15% tax cut? I mean, that really got you excited, didn't it?" More Buchanan, on his chances: "I beat nine out of ten of the Republicans last time, including three Senators and the governor of California, I won three of the first four races, one more and I would have beaten Dole. He's the only one that beat me, and I think he's off working for the Pfizer Corporation, so that leaves me. I'm the defending champion of New Hampshire" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 6/3). Buchanan on China: "I don't want a cold war with China, but I do want Mr. Clinton to look them in the eye and say, 'Cut it out or the benefits stop.' His constructive engagement has degenerated, I think, into craven appeasement" ("Today," NBC, 6/4). 06/08/99 - NANDO - ASSOCIATED PRESS - MIKE GLOVER   MCCAIN TO DROP OUT OF GOP STRAW POLL Arizona Sen. John McCain has notified state Republican Party leaders he won't compete in a high-profile straw poll being conducted by the party this summer.     The move prompted a party leader to question McCain's commitment to running in the state where precinct caucuses launch the nominating process. McCain aides rejected that suggestion, insisting "our campaign is moving at its own timetable." Meanwhile, aides to Texas Gov. George W. Bush said they were still mulling their tactics for the straw poll, as Bush prepared for his initial campaign swing this weekend.     "We are continuing to study our options," said Bush spokesman Eric Woolson. "Stay tuned."     Another Bush aide who spoke on condition of anonymity said Bush was being urged to compete at some level, because skipping the event entirely could lead to an embarrassingly low finish. Under that scenario, Bush would compete but in a muted fashion to keep expectations low. "People are arguing that we can't bypass the thing entirely," said the aide, who said no decision was imminent.     McCain's move was not surprising. He has no campaign organization in Iowa and has spent only three days in the state throughout the entire election cycle. By comparison, as of mid-May, former Tennessee Gov. Lamar Alexander had spent 47 days campaigning in Iowa. Republicans are planning the straw poll Aug. 14 and expect 12,000 activists to show up and cast ballots in a test of organizational strength likely to get heavy attention. McCain won't be among those competing for backing, said spokesman Howard Opinsky ...    But Iowa Republican Chairman Kayne Robinson said McCain's tactic isn't likely to sell well in state where organization is king. He noted that McCain does pretty well in national polling, but has done little to translate that to caucus support.     "People who have general support but don't organize that support generally don't do well in the caucuses," said Robinson. The exchange comes as many of the GOP campaigns begin to focus on the straw poll, hoping to use the event to demonstrate they've built the ability to deliver supporters.     The outcome is watched because the process is akin to delivering supporters to thousands of precinct-level gatherings next February, where the first votes that count are cast. "I think the straw poll will be a significant test of strength," said commentator Pat Buchanan. "It will measure not only the strength of organization, but who has done the best in a short period of time. The straw poll, while not decisive, is certainly important" ... 06/03/99 - NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO [5/28] - Transcript   NEW RULES WILL MAKE IT EASIER AND MORE PROFITABLE FOR CAMPAIGN FUND- RAISING ON THE INTERNET BOB EDWARDS, host: The Federal Elections Commission is preparing new presidential campaign rules for matching small credit card contributions, much as it does for contributions made by check. The move will be a big boost to those who raise funds on the Internet. NPR's Steven Rosenfeld reports. STEVE ROSENFELD reporting: The 2000 presidential race is the first one where campaigns and candidates are widely using the Internet. Take Republican hopeful Pat Buchanan. His Web site has comments on the news, information for volunteers and personal messages phoned in from the road, like this grainy-sounding call from Texas, where Buchanan says he's been raising money and raising hell. (Excerpt from phone call) Unidentified Woman: That's great, Pat. Now tomorrow are you heading up to Oklahoma? Mr. PAT BUCHANAN (Presidential Candidate): We're headed up to Oklahoma tomorrow. We're right here at Dallas right now. We're at Love Field. We're going over to a gathering to raise a few bucks. We're right out here in oil country. We're raising money and raising hell. Woman: Well, that sounds great, Pat. Give us another call and let us know the report from the trail. Mr. BUCHANAN: We sure will, and let me say to the folks out there on the Internet, the Buchanan Brigaders, we appreciate the loyalty and support. ROSENFELD: Currently, the Buchanan campaign is using the Internet to organize volunteers, but in a week or so, its Web site will start accepting credit card donations. The Federal Election Commission is putting the finishing touches on new rules, so these electronic contributions will be treated like old-fashioned checks. The first $ 250 given will be matched by the federal government. Linda Muller is the Buchanan campaign Web master. Ms. Linda Muller (Buchanan Campaign Web Master): We're going to offer everything from a basic contribution to help the campaign, to targeted fund-raising, where if a supporter would like to help us pay for a certain project they can send it in on the Net. We're going to try different ways of fund-raising on the Internet... ROSENFELD: Still, most candidates say they need to raise as much as $20 million to run in the primaries, so while Internet fund-raising can't be ignored, it will be some time before it replaces the mainstay of presidential fund-raising: the $ 1,000-a-plate dinner. [WebNote: Yep, the other campaigns do need those "$1,000 a plate dinners" and lots of them! Those darn campaign "necessities" can mount up into BIG BUCKS!. The "major" candidates must have their professional pollsters ("What do the voters want to hear?"); then there's the long line of consultants, issue advisers, and speech writers ("What's a good issue today and what should I say about it"); Add on all the rest of it -- limos, private jets, highly paid staffers in all key states, high-ticket Internet consulting firms -- and the list is endless! Yes, there is a massive amount of cash flow going in and out of the Establishment candidates campaign headquarters -- but you will be hard-pressed to find a true-blue supporter in the lot!       For further info read: BUCHANAN SPICES UP RACE WITH REAL IDEAS       Or send Pat Buchanan some serious   (or not so serious :-) bucks! MORE FROM THE INTERNET BRIGADE NEWSWIRE...

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