Democratic rivals rap Clinton in debate

Democratic presidential hopefuls Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., left, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., take the stage before a debate at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer 7 minutes ago

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief Democratic rivals, concerned about her growing lead in the polls, criticized her candor and consistency Tuesday in a televised debate that promised more fireworks than earlier presidential forums.

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama began immediately, saying Clinton has changed her positions on the NAFTA trade pact, torture policies and the Iraq war. Leadership, he said, does not mean "changing positions whenever it's politically convenient."

Former Sen. John Edwards chimed in, saying Clinton "defends a broken system that's corrupt in Washington, D.C." He stood by his earlier claim that she has engaged in "doubletalk."

Clinton shrugged off the remarks, saying she has been the focus of Republican candidates' "conversations and consternation" because she is leading in the polls.

She said she has specific plans on Social Security, diplomacy and health care.

"I have been standing against the Republicans, George Bush and Dick Cheney," she said, "and I will continue to do so, and I think Democrats know that."

Regarding Iran, Clinton said, "I want to prevent a rush to war."

It was the Democrats' first debate in a month, and during that time Clinton has solidified her position as the front-runner, gaining in polls, taking the lead in fundraising and dominating the agenda.

Obama has criticized her for failing to explain how she would save Social Security and for a vote on Iran. Edwards has turned to questions of honesty and integrity, areas where polling shows voters are divided on Clinton.

The Clinton campaign on Tuesday posted videos of Obama and Edwards in the past saying they would campaign on hope, not tearing down their opponents, next to news reports of their criticisms of her.

Candidates participating in the debate were Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich. Debate organizers excluded former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel on grounds that he did not meet fundraising and polling thresholds.

Before the debate, the senators in the race said they would oppose Michael Mukasey's confirmation as attorney general because he would not say that an interrogation technique called waterboarding amounts to torture.

A LITTLE BIT OF THIS....AND SOME MORE OF THAT

I am glad to see a convicted felon is having his moment of fame with Clinton foes score new YouTube hit
....................the "swift boat" liars are back at it again too helping with this production........hopefully this time Americans will not be fooled by this republican trash..........it is amazing how much time and effort these idiots are spending on anti-Hillary stuff........what are they really for??? and here is some bad news for Obama Similarities to Clinton land Obama in a tough spot they share alot of the same views....despite the Obama campagin rhetoric......

"Part of Obama's problem, analysts say, is that despite how hard his campaign is working to highlight its differences - he is vowing again this week to take her on more directly - he and Clinton are simply not far apart on major issues.

"It's Wal-Mart and Kmart - they're occupying the same space," said Benjamin Ginsberg, a political science professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore." .......meanwhile Bill is on the road again................

Bill Clinton Rallies SC Crowd he still has it....and bill is Hillary's number one campaign weapon against the republicans......................and out of the mouth of babe's ..comes this.... Romney Says Giuliani's Support Will Fade ...........

"At some point, the former Massachusetts governor said, the party's conservative base will coalesce around a single candidate, making it tougher for Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City.

"Those of us who represent that base will find that we can get that support and ultimately face up one-to-one with Mayor Giuliani," Romney said. "At that point he'll have a more challenging time because I do not believe the Republican Party is going to keep Hillary Clinton out of the White House by acting like Hillary Clinton." perfect!!!!!!!!!! because America has just about had enough of this right wing theocracy....putting the mantle of God and religion on a very conservative right wing agenda................and finally.....the republicans have to literally raise the dead to attack the Clintons....what total trash...........

Ford's words from the grave to haunt 'sex-addict' Clinton

it must be Halloween......another republican trick.....................andy

Desperate times...call for desperate speeches......both campaigns are in trouble and they know it....they sound like it.....democrats are famous for this...ripping each other apart...too bad....andy

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October 30, 2007 NY TIMES

Rivals Go After Clinton Over Social Security and Donations

By CHRISTINE HAUSER

CONCORD, N.H., Oct. 29 — Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton came under pointed attack Monday by her two main rivals for the Democratic nomination, who said she was not being direct on Social Security and also suggested she was too cozy with Washington lobbyists.

The rivals, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, in campaign appearances in Iowa and here, took on Mrs. Clinton by name, escalating their attacks on her a day before they were to share a stage at the Democratic debate in Philadelphia.

Mr. Obama, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, said Mrs. Clinton had evaded a direct answer on the politically delicate question of how to strengthen Social Security.

“You might remember this came up at the last presidential debate,” Mr. Obama said. “And when Senator Clinton was asked about it, she wouldn’t say what she thinks we should do. And the other day, here in Iowa, she skipped another chance to give a direct answer on this.”

Mr. Obama has said the issue of the long-term solvency of Social Security needs to be addressed, and he has proposed having high-income earners pay more in taxes to the program.

“She’s not alone in ducking the issue, of course,” Mr. Obama said, according to a transcript of his remarks included in a campaign statement. “Because conventional thinking in Washington says Social Security is the third rail of American politics. It says you should hedge, dodge and spin, but at all costs, don’t answer.”

Mr. Obama said in a recent interview with The New York Times that he would start confronting Mrs. Clinton more forcefully, after concerns from supporters that he was not challenging her assertively enough.

A spokesman for the Clinton campaign, Phil Singer, said, “Senator Clinton has been clear about her position on Social Security.” She opposes privatizing it, Mr. Singer said, and if elected will work with Congress to develop long-term solutions.

Mrs. Clinton also found herself in the cross hairs of Mr. Edwards, who, fresh from registering in the New Hampshire primary, cited her fund-raising as reflective of a poisoned ethical culture of a Washington dominated by lobbyists.

Pointing to a $1,000-a-plate fund-raiser in Washington that Mrs. Clinton had with domestic security lobbyists and contractors, he said, “Senator Clinton’s road to the middle class takes a major detour right through the deep canyon of corporate lobbyists and the hidden bidding of K Street in Washington.”

“When I asked Hillary Clinton to join me in not taking money from Washington lobbyists — she refused,” he said, “not only did she say that she would continue to take their money, she defended them.”

Mr. Singer, the Clinton spokesman, said, “If John Edwards is so concerned about the influence of special interests, he should give back the hundreds of thousands of dollars he’s taken from health care, securities and insurance companies.”

Mr. Edwards was in New Hampshire registering for the primary along with several other candidates, including former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, who announced his endorsement by Senator Judd Gregg, Republican of New Hampshire.

Fred D. Thompson also registered for the primary and tried to dispel suggestions that he was not focused on winning the state. Mr. Thompson said the demands of a national campaign had prevented him from spending more time here. “You have to travel around the country a lot,” he said “But we are doing that. It’s all a part of the big picture. The name of the game is to win the primaries. And New Hampshire is a very important part of that.”

FOX News Poll: Large Democratic Base Lifts Perceptions of Clinton

Thursday , October 25, 2007

By Dana Blanto

Democratic hopeful Hillary Clinton is at the top of voters’ minds. More people are familiar with Clinton and her positions on the issues than any other candidate, she is the most mentioned when people are asked who they would want in the White House in the event of a national crisis and she is also the candidate seen as having the most passion and enthusiasm to be president.

In addition, Clinton and Rudy Giuliani maintain their front-runner status, and both are seen as the best spokesperson for their respective parties.

In the Democratic contest, Clinton has a 17-percentage point advantage over Obama, leading 42 percent to 25 percent; Edwards comes in third with 13 percent.

Click here to view the full results of the poll. (pdf)

Earlier in the month, Clinton had a 32-point edge over Obama (Oct. 9-10); the current results are more in line with where the race stood last month when Clinton was up by 19 points (Sept. 11-12).

“All the talk of Clinton’s ‘inevitability’ over the past few weeks may have pushed some Democrats away,” comments Opinion Dynamics CEO John Gorman. “With the first voting still more than two months away, voters want to have a say in the choice. They may end up voting for Clinton, but they don’t like hearing that she’s already won.”

The top three candidates remain the same on Republican side: Giuliani leads with 31 percent, followed by Fred Thompson at 17 percent and John McCain at 12 percent. Mitt Romney is currently at 7 percent and Mike Huckabee who captures 5 percent.

“The Huckabee ‘boomlet’ is still small,” comments Gorman. “But is significant that he is statistically tied with Romney who has spent oceans of money — much of it from his personal fortune — and doesn’t seem to be getting much traction.”

The national telephone poll was conducted for FOX News by Opinion Dynamics Corp. among 900 registered voters from Oct. 23-24. The poll has a 3-point error margin.

The candidates have been sparring about which one best speaks for their party, spurred, at least in part, by Romney’s recent comment that his experience and values represented the “Republican wing of the Republican Party.”

What do Republicans think? They say Giuliani (24 percent), McCain (18 percent) and Thompson (12 percent) are the top three candidates who speak “most clearly” for what their party believes, although 25 percent of Republicans are unsure. Romney (8 percent) comes in fourth ahead of Mike Huckabee (6 percent).

For Democrats, 43 percent Clinton best represents their party -- more than twice as many as think one of the other candidates does; one of five Democrats says Obama (20 percent) speaks most clearly for the party, followed by Edwards with 11 percent.

Fire in the Belly

More people think Clinton (35 percent) has “the most passion and enthusiasm for wanting to be president” than any other candidate from either party; she’s followed by Obama (18 percent) and Giuliani comes in third (10 percent). No other candidate receives mentions in the double digits.

Among Democrats, more see Clinton as having fire in the belly, as 44 percent say they think she has the most passion to be president, which is nearly twice as many as think Obama does (24 percent). Republicans also think Clinton (28 percent) has the most enthusiasm for the presidency, followed by Giuliani (18 percent) and then Obama (10 percent).

Handling a Crisis

If the United States were in a crisis, a 23 percent plurality of voters say they would want Clinton in the White House, followed by Giuliani at 19 percent, McCain at 11 percent and Obama at 9 percent.

Not surprisingly, Democrats are most likely to pick their front-runner and say they would want Clinton as president and Republicans are equally likely to pick their front-runner Giuliani. What about swing voters? Among self-described independents, 22 percent would want Clinton in the White House, 17 percent McCain and 12 percent Giuliani.

Candidate Attributes

In the upcoming presidential election, voters say the top attributes in deciding their vote will be for the candidate to be “a strong leader” (24 percent), someone who “can bring about change” (22 percent) and someone who “shares my values” (11 percent).

For Republicans, voting for a strong leader (26 percent) is the most important trait, although several other qualities are also important in making a selection, including for the candidate to “share my values” (15 percent), “be personally moral” (15 percent), have “clear stands on the issues” (13 percent) and have the ability to “bring about change” (12 percent).

The priorities for Democrats are slightly different: “can bring about change” (25 percent) is first, narrowly edging “strong leader” (24 percent). These are followed by followed by “shares my values” (10 percent) and “has the right experience” (9 percent).

THE NOTE: A Kinder, Gentler Hillary

THE NOTE: A Kinder, Gentler Hillary

Tongue-Tied: On a day filled with gaffes and flubs, a remade Hillary Clinton continues to emerge

By RICK KLEIN with NANCY FLORES

October 24, 2007 —

Sometimes politicians say things that sound like gaffes and are. (Ask Mitt Romney.)

Sometimes they say things that sound like gaffes but aren't. (Right, John McCain?)

Sometimes they send things out with typos that are hyped into being gaffes. (Was Barack Obama's mailing was a rush rush job job?)

Sometimes candidates shamelessly pander and hope that Yankee fans chalk it up to a gaffe. (Now you're an American League fan? Seriously, Rudy, how could you?)

And sometimes their spouses do the talking for them -- and there may or may not be gaffes involved when you get them going. (Let's let Elizabeth Edwards speak) for the entire political class: "If it ended up on the front page of Drudge, I didn't say it right."

But when you get a candidate talking about his or her spouse, some things that sound like possible gaffes aren't. In the case of the scripted candidacy of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., where little is left for chance, the actual gaffes are few and far between. So when Clinton told Essence magazine that her husband is "so romantic" -- "He's always bringing me back things from his trips" -- it's a good bet that a larger strategy was at work.

Bill Clinton bought her a Chanel watch because the white cubes reminded him of her teeth? That's just weird enough to actually happen in a real-life marriage. And this is Clinton as we've rarely seen her before: "I never doubted that it was a marriage worth investing in even in the midst of those challenges and I'm really happy that I made that decision. Again, not a decision for everybody. And I think it's so important for women to stand up for the right of women to make a decision that is best for them."

It's another step in the great softening of Hillary Clinton. She has never been the touch-feely emotional type, and she isn't now, either. But she's reaching out to female voters, and marveling at how much attention a 60-year-old woman (OK, 50-something for two more days) is getting from all these men. Her pollster is predicting a seismic shift in voting patterns if a woman is nominated. She talked recently about her struggles as a young working mother, as she learned to master the basics of parenting while pursuing her legal career.

Clinton has her gaffes, too. As ABC's Jake Tapper asks, did she really intend to dis Mississippi? (Some in Mississippi think so.)

But this kinder, gentler Clinton on the trail appears to be having an impact on perceptions many thought were too baked in by 15 years of the public spotlight to melt during a campaign. "Clinton has neutralized the political fallout from some of the most difficult moments of her eight years as first lady, with Democratic voters looking favorably on her failed effort to revamp healthcare and either supporting or having no opinion of her decision to remain loyal to an unfaithful husband," Peter Wallsten and Janet Hook write in the Los Angeles Times.

She's up 15 points since June in the Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll, while Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has dropped 5. That's another 30-point advantage in a national poll for Clinton, who is running up scores like the old Chicago Bulls.

"Nearly two-thirds of Democrats and nearly half of all voters say Hillary Clinton's famously unsuccessful effort in the 1990s to provide health coverage for all Americans makes her better able now to deal with healthcare as president," Wallsten and Hook write. "And 42% of Democrats agreed it was the 'right thing' for Hillary Clinton to stick with her husband after his affair with a White House intern, compared with 5% who said it was the wrong choice."

Clinton is relying on her husband's old team every step of the way. Newsweek's Howard Fineman reports that she's set to receive the endorsement of the 1.4 million-member American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

"And so the Clinton Family Machine grinds on," Fineman writes. "Lord knows Hillary's campaign could still implode . . . but with each passing day the evidence mounts of just how methodical her campaign is, and just how much it is built on the legacy and contacts of her husband's career."

And her fund-raising advantage is in red states as well as blue -- sorry, former senator John Edwards, D-N.C. "Clinton expanded her donor pool during the summer into states that previously favored Obama -- like Iowa, Colorado and Connecticut -- to beat his third-quarter cash haul, $27.3 million to $20.6 million," Michael McAuliff writes for the New York Daily News. "Other early Obama states that flipped to Clinton in the latest quarter include Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Carolina -- states many experts would consider tough for Clinton to win in a general election, but where party faithful are apparently now more willing to put their money on her."

As for Obama, he's pressuring Clinton on Iran to get at her over Iraq, and last night he celebrated an endorsement of a prominent former Clinton administration official who lives awfully close to New Hampshire.

At a massive rally last night on Boston Common, Gov. Deval Patrick, D-Mass., "offered a forceful argument for Obama, casting the presidential election as one of historic proportions in which merely a change in party would be insufficient," Scott Helman reports in The Boston Globe. Said Patrick: "You see, this election is not just about who we want. It's about who we are."

Helman writes, "Last night's event underscored the potential value of Patrick's support. Before Patrick and Obama spoke, field workers on Obama's campaign were recruiting people from the crowd to canvass in New Hampshire, even as early as this weekend. And in a measure of Obama's organizational strength, his Boston-area supporters have been receiving text messages, e-mails, and personal phone calls over the past several days urging them to come to the rally."

But it was Obama's interaction with Patrick's predecessor -- or, at least, his predecessor's tangled tongue -- that drew the biggest headlines yesterday. Former governor Mitt Romney, R-Mass., unfurled a classic clunker in South Carolina: "Just look at what Osam . . . Barack Obama said just yesterday. Barack Obama calling on, on radicals, Jihadists of all different types to come together in Iraq."

He's not the first politician to make that mistake, and he won't be the last. Obama said he didn't really care, but his campaign denounced the "fear-mongering" it claims is "at the heart" of Romney's campaign, ABC's Matt Stuart, Teddy Davis, and Sunlen Miller report. "Apparently, Mitt Romney can switch names just as casually as he switches positions, but what's wrongheaded is continuing a misguided war in Iraq that has left America less safe," said Obama spokesman Bill Burton.

"Mitt Romney might have still been a bit bleary-eyed on Tuesday morning," The New York Times' Michael Luo reports. "The comment set off some confusion among reporters, with at least one going online to search frantically for comments made by Mr. Obama, another Democratic presidential contender, about Iraq."

Romney's problems may be deeper than a slip of the tongue, The Washington Post's Dan Balz writes. "He has had many messages throughout the year -- competence, freshness, conservatism, a three-legged stool. Lately, because of the jumbled nature of the Republican race, he has been focused on persuading Republicans he is the true conservative," Balz writes. "But it is difficult to sum up exactly what his candidacy is based upon and exactly who he is. . . . So the issue raised about whether Romney wears well may be the critical question for the candidate and his advisers at this stage of the race."

Another whoops in Romney land: The endorsement of pastor Don Wilton, a former president of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, was a "personal error," Wilton said yesterday, per the Baptist Press Website. "While I did give my consent to the local campaign to use my affirmation of the Governor's stance on family values in my capacity as an individual citizen, I made the mistake of not realizing the extent to which it would be used on a national basis."

Romney has a new ad up in South Carolina, this one featuring Business Man Mitt. "I come from the business world -- where turning around companies taught me how to manage budgets. That's what I did at the Olympics and as governor," Romney says in the ad. "As president, I'll audit Washington -- top to bottom -- and cut spending."

Elsewhere in the race, could former senator Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., be stirring? He's talking substance on the trail, and he rolled out a get-tough immigration plan yesterday -- a topical topic with the Senate taking up the DREAM Act today.

Thompson at least one some much-needed active verbs. "Thompson sharpened the mood of the Republican presidential debate when he unveiled his anti-immigration policy in Collier County, Fla., yesterday, flashing a rare glint of steel at his closest rivals," Nicholas Wapshott writes for the New York Sun. "The former Tennessee senator's proposed measures to curtail illegal immigration exploited a perceived weakness in his main opponents by drawing attention to their more generous approach to an issue that excites the Republican base like no other."

"The former Tennessee senator's plan is meant to appease the conservative wing of the party, which lashed out earlier this year against legislation to steer illegal immigrants toward citizenship," Beth Reinhard and Alfonso Chardy write in the Miami Herald. This is Thompson using down-home phrases to actual effect: "My opponents would like to focus in on a minnow and avoid looking at the whale, and the whale is that some of them have supported sanctuary cities, and as far as I know, still do."

Thompson appears to be deemphasizing New Hampshire, at least according to a former aide who defected to Sen. John McCain's campaign yesterday. "I didn't want to be the token chairman of a token campaign," Dan Hughes, who joined McCain's campaign yesterday as a statewide vice chair, told ABC's Bret Hovell.

McCain, R-Ariz., is gunning for Thompson (apologies for that verb). He filed for his crucial primary yesterday -- in New Hampshire -- he toured a gun factory, the Concord Monitor's Margot Sanger-Katz reports. "During a talk with more than 100 of the company's employees, the Republican presidential candidate promised to 'bring Osama bin Laden to the gates of hell and shoot him with one of your products.' The line got a big round of applause," Sanger-Katz writes. McCain added a caveat that wouldn't slip by the plugged-in ear: "But only after he receives justice," he said

It's former mayor Rudolph Giuliani, R-N.Y., in firm control of the GOP race, according to the Bloomberg/LA Times poll. He's 32-15 over Thompson, with McCain, Romney, and former governor Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., rounding out the top five. "The former New York mayor leads among his party's moderates, conservatives, most income groups and both men and women," Bloomberg's Heidi Przybyla and Ed Chen write. "Among self-described Christian conservative voters, who make up almost 30 percent of Republicans, he runs about even with Thompson and well ahead of the other contenders."

Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures

Front Row: Clinton might turn to Rove’s playbook

ahhhh...that evil genius...Karl Rove....who got a republican fraud elected president......I wonder how that man can sleep at night knowing he set this country back 100 years by getting bush elected...knowing he was a complete empty suit.......andy




y Michael Tackett BALTIMORESUN.COM

There’s a lot of pent up demand on the campus here, with candidates, consultants, staff and reporters all wondering when this presidential campaign will end, even though it really hasn’t begun.

That has led to several cases of premature prognostication and some odd instances of Republicans and Democrats seeming to wear the other party’s clothes.

It is, after all, the Republican Party that has a tradition of anointing the candidate who has stood in line the longest to be the party nominee. Democrats prefer the messy process in which they train fire on each other. Now it is the Democrats, with Sen. Hillary Clinton playing the role of quasi incumbent, seen as invincible, while the Republicans are spending a lot of time violating Ronald Reagan’s 11th Commandment.

But the election of 2008 also presents another question: Will it be 1968 again, or 2004?

The 1968 election of Richard Nixon was among the first when a candidate consciously catered to the party base during the primary, then ran to the middle in the General Election to capture the coveted swing voter. From at least that time, most winning candidates have adopted that playbook. Perhaps none did it as skillfully as Bill Clinton in 1992, with a campaign that was surgically tailored to appeal to the middle.

And it worked. Until that is, when Karl Rove rewrote the strategy and delivered a winner for George W. Bush in 2004. Rove’s thinking was essentially that for every concession Bush made to the middle, he was in danger of losing support at the party base. And through brilliant microtargeting of GOP voters, Rove’s strategy wrung vote after vote out of his party, cementing Bush’s re-election.

This was particularly effective in Ohio, arguably the most pivotal state of the 2004 campaign.

Which brings us to this campaign. On the Republican side, at least one of the leading contenders, former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, would like to return to the Nixon strategy. His positions favoring abortion rights and gay rights--anathema to party faithful--just happen to play well in megastates like California, New York and even Florida.

Giuliani’s dismal showing at last weekend’s straw poll among religious conservatives gathered in Washington was a powerful demonstration of why the Book of Rove would not work for him. The GOP base also seems highly skeptical of Sen. John McCain of Arizona, and some have misgivings about Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts. In fact, only former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee can lay any real claim to the hearts and minds of a lot of social conservatives.

The question, though, is how many of those same conservatives are willing to compromise, particularly if the alternative would be to cast a vote for Hillary Clinton.

And that’s one reason why Clinton might be looking to the Rove model should she be the Democratic nominee. You can be assured that no other candidate so animates the animus of the Republicans than the junior senator from New York. At the same time, there is no reason that her campaign can’t do for her what Rove did for Bush, which is to make sure you have had a fierce debate during the campaign, made few accommodations to the other side, and stoked the enthusiasm of your own core supporters.

That would at least give the country a clear choice, not a blurring of distinctions like Bill Clinton offered in 1992 or George Bush offered in 2000. And the irony would be that Hillary Clinton took a page from Bush to win, and Giuliani would need one from her husband.

Michael Tackett is the Washington Bureau Chief for the Chicago Tribune. He has covered every presidential election since 1988 and served as the Tribune's chief political writer during the 1996 and 2000 campaigns. He also served as National Editor for U.S. News and World Report. And, don't hold this against him, he has a law degree.

Posted by Rhonda Stewart on October 24, 2007

Clinton Considers Giving Up Some Powers

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks at the annual Washington state Democrats Warren G. Magnuson award ceremony Monday, Oct. 22, 2007, in Seattle. Clinton was launching her Washington state campaign Monday with the appearance at the state party's largest gathering before the February caucuses. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton reacts as she is introduced at the annual Washington state Democrats Warren G. Magnuson award ceremony Monday, Oct. 22, 2007, in Seattle. Clinton was launching her Washington state campaign Monday with the appearance at the state party's largest gathering before the February caucuses. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

Leave it to the Republicans to defend their own..by attacking Hillary.....funny there was no denial that Bush and Company acted more like a dictatorship than a democracy all in the name of national defense and security.....hell no...let's ignore that....in fact..Hillary will do the same thing once she gets in..right??? errrrrrrrrrrr not...........andy

NEW YORK (AP) — If elected president in 2008, Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton would consider giving up some of the executive powers President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have assumed since taking office.

In an interview published Tuesday in Guardian America, a Web site run by the London-based Guardian newspaper, Clinton denounced the Bush Administration's push to concentrate more power in the White House as a "power grab" not supported by the Constitution.

Asked if she would consider giving up some of those powers if she were president, Clinton replied, "Oh, absolutely ... I mean, that has to be part of the review that I undertake when I get to the White House, and I intend to do that."

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Bush and Cheney have taken steps to expand presidential authority and diminish the role of Congress and the federal judiciary. Among other things, they have pushed for warrantless wiretapping of terrorist suspects and the use of "signing statements" to justify ignoring or defying laws enacted by Congress.

In the interview, Clinton noted that other presidents, including Abraham Lincoln, had taken on new presidential powers but had gone back to Congress later to ratify their actions.

Bush and Cheney had taken a different course, she said.

"There were a lot of actions which they took that were clearly beyond any power the Congress would have granted, or that in my view was inherent in the Constitution," Clinton said. "There were other actions they've taken which could have obtained Congressional authorization but they deliberately chose not to pursue it as a matter of principle."

Republican National Committee spokesman Danny Diaz doubted Clinton would give up any power.

"The reality is that Hillary Clinton, much like Bill, will say and do anything to win political office and will conveniently forget their promises in short order," he said.