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The Mother of All Surprises

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The Racism-Industry Lynch Mob

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The Post Shills for “Hate Crimes”

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Hollywood's Gender Apartheid

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No Rare Cosmic Pollutants Need Apply

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Litigation Lunacy in Florida

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A Strategic GOP Bungle

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On the Edge with JFK, Jr.

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More Much Ado About Nothing

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7/24/00 2:30 p.m.
The Mother of All Surprises
Powell may be Bush's VP after all.

By Joel C. Rosenberg, president of November Communications, Inc.

n a move that would stun the media, capture the nation's attention and imagination, and dramatically transform the 2000 presidential campaign, George W. Bush's choice for Vice President may actually be Colin Powell, despite all media convention wisdom to the contrary.

Events have been developing rapidly — and quietly — throughout the weekend.

On Friday, a very highly positioned and reputable GOP strategist — very involved in the 2000 campaign — told me that from what he's seeing and hearing, he's "convinced it's going to be Powell," though everyone is being very, very tight-lipped and super secretive.

I reported this news to reporters and GOP activists in an e-mail sent at 10:03 PM Saturday night. But throughout Sunday and until noon on Monday, all signs continued to point instead towards the selection of former Defense Secretary Dick Cheney. Indeed, producers for two television networks told me Monday morning that they had not even assigned camera crews to stake out Gen. Powell and his family.

But they will surely be doing so now.

At 12:09 PM on Monday, Rush Limbaugh led his radio show Monday by predicting that Gen. Colin Powell will be Gov. Bush's surprise choice for Vice President.

"I know this goes against what everyone else is saying," Limbaugh conceded, adding that he had no inside information. But he said he was struck by the comment I noted in my e-mail (see below) that Bush told a close adviser that his choice would excite people and bring a smile to their faces. That, Limbaugh said, leads him to believe it will not be Cheney, and can only be Powell.

Now Dan Rather is reporting on CBS Radio that two sources who are "close in on the negotiations" tell CBS News that both Gov. Bush and his father, the former president, "very recently" have been in touch with Gen. Powell to persuade the former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman to be on the Bush ticket. Gen. Powell's wife, Alma, has apparently dropped her objections, according to Rather. While it should be noted that a Powell spokesperson says nothing has changed in the general's position, there is now a growing sense that it could change.

In my Saturday night e-mail, I noted that my source told me that all the Cheney (and Danforth and Keating) leaks are "designed to distract and keep attention away from the ultimate surprise".

Indeed, word has it that the deal may have been "done for several weeks" — or in progress for weeks — privately, without anybody but Gov. Bush, his wife, and Cheney knowing about it. This would make sense, given that internal polling analysis suggested that while Bush was in the lead, the race will tighten (and already has) and Bush is really a bit more desperate for Powell's help than he and his team are letting on publicly.

Furthermore, the deal may have been sealed if Bush offered Powell the opportunity to be the Vice President and the Secretary of State simultaneously, something no one outside the campaign has yet raised as a potential deal sweetener.

By fully convincing everyone — particularly the media — that Powell is out of play and only interested in the Secretary of State position, the Bush team is beautifully setting the stage for the ultimate shocker. No one in the media has been hounding Powell of late because everyone is 100% convinced that whomever Bush chooses, it DEFINITELY won't be Powell. How wrong that assessment may be.

Bush himself said privately to an adviser the other day that his choice would energize people. That, and the fact that Cheney has had three heart attacks, a coronary bypass, and won't electrify anyone (despite being a strong conservative, a great defense secretary and a man of great integrity and wisdom) gives further credence to this new line of thought about "the Powell Option."

The press corps and pundit world is completely ready to pronounce any other Bush choice as "too safe," "too dull," and "too uneventful." The Bush team knows it. The question: Is the Bush team encouraging it?

Gov. Bush loves surprises. His father did — and we got Dan Quayle. W. does too, and he remembers the Quayle fiasco all too well.

But remember when Bush raised $30 million at one point early in the primary season, but David Beckwith et al. led the press corps to believe he'd only raised about $17-18 million? There were audible gasps in the press room when Bush made his announcement. And though there were later mild protests about Bush "misleading" the media, the truth is the media loved it. They love "the game," and they loved the fact that Bush knew how to play it. So did Bush.

We may be about to see it happen again.

Think about it this way. What's the case for Cheney?

1. Wisdom and gravitas

2. Foreign-policy experience

3. Prosecuted the Gulf War

4. National and international stature and reputation

5. Long-time close friend of the family

6. Long-time close friend of the father

7. Loyal and a team player

8. Doesn't want the job

9. Would certainly take it if his country and party needed him

That's the same case for Powell. With one major difference — naming Powell VP doesn't just add energy to this race, it creates critical mass for nuclear fusion, namely an explosion of support for Bush and a meltdown for Gore.

Earlier this year, the New York Times reported on Bush's big foreign- policy speech.

Here's an interesting excerpt in light of fast-breaking events: "In talking with reporters, Governor Bush said that he had consulted with Mr. Kissinger, Mr. Shultz and the others with him on the policy he was advocating. And he said that all had agreed to advise him in the future. But most attention focused on Mr. Powell, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the gulf war, and who many Republicans would like to see as a vice-presidential candidate. Mr. Powell has said he is not interested in the job. 'The answer's well known,' he said today. 'I won't take any time away from the governor to belabor you with' being nominated as vice president. Asked whether he had discussed with Mr. Powell the possibility of a Cabinet post like Secretary of state, Mr. Bush shot back to reporters, 'I'm not going to tell you what I talk to him about.'"

True, a Powell announcement will rankle some grassroots conservatives. He is pro-choice, opposes reform of the nation's laws concerning racial and gender quotas and set-asides, and reportedly opposed using the military option against Saddam Hussein when then-President Bush and then-Secretary of State Cheney were adamant that Iraq's invasion of Kuwait "will not stand." When Gen. Powell's name was floated as a possible GOP presidential contender in the fall of 1995, numerous heads of conservative grassroots groups in Washington, D.C. held a press conference threatening to oppose him vigorously.

At the same time, the General said at the 1996 GOP convention that he was proud to join the "pro-growth party" and could be expected to support Bush's tax-cut plan, Social Security reform plan and school-choice-centered education reforms. Indeed, powerful, positive, forward-looking speeches by Gen. Powell on a pro-growth/New Investor Class agenda could dramatically advance the conservative cause.

The Bush calculus appears to be that conservatives are focused like a laser on ending the Clinton-Gore years — have deep respect for Gen. Powell like all Americans — and would unify behind a Bush-Powell ticket. It is probably an accurate assessment of the political landscape — and would terrify the Gore camp.

The bottom line: Is George W. Bush about to reveal the "mother of all surprises" and transform not only the 2000 presidential campaign but American history by naming the first African-American to a major party ticket? We'll find out soon. But from what I'm hearing, that's exactly the case.

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