One-liner Award

By Jennifer J. Foster

David Gergen is the winner of tonight’s one-liner award.

On CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 tonight, Gergen, a former adviser to four presidents, participated in a panel with “Primary Colors” author Joe Klein and radio talk show host Joe Madison. Cooper wrapped the segment on Hillary Clinton’s future in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination by asking panelists whether they thought Clinton would pursue the vice presidency.

Klein said he didn’t consider it out of the question, going on to talk about how Clinton has drawn millions of women to her historic candidacy and how her “domestic policy expertise” would strengthen Obama’s administration.

Cooper tossed to Gergen: “What do you think, David?“

“I think the people around him would think he would need some food tasters if that was the case,“ Gergen deadpanned.

Move over, Stewart and Colbert. Gergen’s just as funny—and he does it with class.

Huckabee to endorse Grimes?

By Jennifer J. Foster

An anonymous reader delivered a tip yesterday that former GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is set to endorse State Rep. David Grimes in the Republican primary for the 2nd Congressional District.

According to the source, Grimes missed the House vote on a Democratic proposal to overturn a ban on “double-dipping” last week because he was in meetings about the endorsement.

Reached today at his office, Grimes didn’t comment directly on the possibility of an impending endorsement, but he did nothing to tamp down the rumor.

“I have been in contact with him,“ Grimes said. “I have had communication with Mike Huckabee, and he has indicated that he is very much in favor of my views and what I do in the political arena. I have not been told by Huckabee that I’m going to get his endorsement, but I hope to get some positive feedback in coming days.“

Although he supported Mitt Romney in the primary and doesn’t agree with Huckabee on illegal immigration, “I would love the endorsement of Mike Huckabee,“ Grimes said.

Huckabee won Alabama’s Republican primary on Super Tuesday, garnering 41 percent of the vote to John McCain’s 37 percent. Romney finished third with 18 percent. 

As for Thursday, Grimes said that he had been at the House in the morning and that his “plans were not immovable when I went in for the morning session.“ He checked the afternoon schedule before deciding to go ahead with his meetings out of town. HB 787 was added to the calendar only after the afternoon session began, Grimes said; by then, he was too far out of town to make it back in time to vote, and although he would have voted against the bill, “one vote wouldn’t have mattered” because it passed 57-36.

So, what about those meetings? 

“I had some personal business, I had some meetings in the afternoon,“ Grimes said. “And, you know, I meet with a lot of people. Huckabee would be a great one to meet with; so would Romney.

“I would seek the endorsement of anybody with a name that two people know about,“ he said. “I’m in the nickel seats on this whole thing because I don’t have the personal cash to spend on the campaign. Everyone else is spending their own money.“

An assistant at the offices of Huck PAC would say only that Huckabee had not endorsed a candidate in Alabama. He referred questions about Grimes to the PAC’s director, who has not yet returned my call.

Huckabee split the 16 counties in the 2nd Congressional District evenly with McCain. See the breakdown here.

Check back for updates to this story and the rest of Grimes’ comments about the congressional race. 

Clinton’s money woes

By Jennifer J. Foster

It’s now obvious why Hillary Clinton made sure her fundraising pitch made the first 60 seconds of her speech last night:

From the Drudge Report:

Senator Clinton has made another multi-million dollar loan to her campaign. She gave $6.4M in the past month and will be giving more.

I noted last night that campaign staffers will be watching the web site carefully to see whether it turns up the kind of funds—$10 million in the first 24 hours, according to the campaign—that it did following the Pennsylvania primary on April 22.

Clinton will meet with superdelegates today:

... Tthe Clinton campaign showed no signs of letting up even as it fought rumors that it was holding a “crisis” meeting with superdelegates on Wednesday to keep them from jumping to Obama.

The campaign, which canceled Clinton’s Wednesday morning show appearances, confirmed it will meet superdelegates but said it’s not anything unusual. Aides say the outcome of Tuesday’s primaries changes nothing and the race moves on to the remaining six contests.

Will she or won’t she—go on to West Virginia? We should know within 24 hours, but Clinton probably already does.