Washington Journal

By JON BALZ

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 7, 2001

Gore supporter ruled out of order -- by Gore

Given the controversy and lengthiness of Election 2000, Rep. Peter Deutsch, D-Fort Lauderdale, thought his colleagues ought to at least make an appearance when Congress convened Saturday to officially accept the electoral results of the presidential race. That's why Deutsch raised an objection on the grounds that a quorum was not present for the joint session.

Deutsch, one of the most vocal Gore supporters during the post-election recount, said he did so not in hopes of overturning the results but simply because he wanted lawmakers' attendance on the record. Many members were planning to return home to their districts for the weekend.

Because a senator did not raise a similar objection, Deutsch's motion was ruled out of order by the President of the Senate, Vice President Al Gore.

What version of 'Key Largo' were Republicans watching?

That juicy Florida election quote in the movie Key Largo is, indeed, too good to be true.

A message being spread by Republicans over the Internet says the 1948 movie includes a scene in which the character played by Edward G. Robinson supposedly says, "Let me tell you about Florida politicians. I make them out of whole cloth, just like a tailor makes a suit. I get their name in the newspaper. I get them some publicity and get them on the ballot. Then after the election, we count the votes. And if they don't turn out right, we recount them. And recount them again until they do."

But that's not what he says in the movie.

Movie critic Roger Ebert calls it "a shameless rewrite tailored to fit the news. The words 'Florida,' 'recount' and 'politician' do not appear in the correct quote."

Illinois' Ryan, Daley lobby for help as state shivers

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., wasn't the only Washington legislator with a high profile cheering gallery witnessing a swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday.

On the House side of the Capitol, Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, received some bipartisan cheers from Illinois Gov. George Ryan, a Republican, and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, a Democrat, as he took his oath as Speaker of the House.

Hastert acknowledged the presence of the two men, who were seated side by side in the House chamber's upper deck gallery, and they got an ovation from Congressional members.

But Ryan and Daley were in town to do more than congratulate a colleague; they were here to flex some of their political muscle. The two spent Wednesday and Thursday meeting with Hastert, the rest of the Illinois delegation and Energy Secretary Bill Richardson to sound the alarm on rising natural gas prices.

Illinois residents have been hit particularly hard this winter because of nasty weather -- nearly 40 inches of snow falling in the Chicago area during the month of December -- and Daley said federal money for heating poor households is running short.

-- Washington staff writer Jon Balz contributed to this column.

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright