The Larry Kane Report

A moment of reason has arrived.

Former President Jimmy Carter has admitted that his comments on the Bush administration were “careless.” He added that his comments (SEE STORY BELOW) were not aimed at any one President.

This is smart and compassionate on the part of Mr. Carter, who has every right to speak out, but who needs, like all ex-Presidents, to measure his words.

My remarks (SEE STORY BELOW) were echoed across the natiom by liberals, conservatives and independents.

Once again: President Carter was probably correct in his assessments, but his own record and his position of responsibility, dictate that he must be careful.

I’m happy that he realized his miscalculation was “careless” and that he fessed up to it.

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President Jimmy Carter needs to do some self-examination before he starts lashing out at the current President. Maybe the Nobel Peace prize is going to his head.
Mr. Carter is quoted as saying that George W. Bush’s administration is the worst in history when it comes to international relations, and that the current White House has ruined our reputation around the world.

The former President is probably right on both points, but who is he to point fingers?
President Carter was a man ill-prepared for the job who led this country through a period of malaise , economic uncertainty, and abject surrender to the forces of extreme Islam in Iran.

His complacency in the hostage crisis began the vicious cycle of Anti-Americanism in the Middle East. He negotiated a peace agreement with Israel and Egypt , but since then, has tilted against Israel, favoring instead the hard-line Hamas and other militants who won’t accept a peace, He negotiated the Panama Canal deal with a government in Panama run by druglords and murderers. His administration hired the biggesr bunch of political hacks in the nation’s history. Mr. Carter has been a hard working ex-President, but I’m tired of his pot shots, some of which he took at President Bill Clinton during Mr. Clinton’s hours of crises.

For those of you too young to remember, Carter was a President with little talent to inspire the nation, although his instincts on human rights were excellent.

I’m tired of people rewriting history.

Jimmy Carter has every right to speak his mind. But he should look in the mirror before he attacks Presidents, because his four years were neither memorable or impactful.

I feel very strongly about the arrogance of the Bush White House, but I also feel that fair is fair.

Consider the source.

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As confidence wanes in Attorney General Alberto
Gonzalez, there is a new angle in this developing
story that has a local connection, and it could lead to the end of the Attorney General’s tenure.

Newly released information shows that in addition to the eight U.S. attorneys that were fired, 26 more were on the hit list. Several former Justice Department officials reported that the list included
respected New Jersey U.S. attorney Chris Christie. At
the time his name was suggested for firing, he was
investigating Democratic Senator Robert Menendez but
no charges were ever filed.

Christie, who was also a major Republic Fund raiser,
was livid when the report came out and said no one
ever said anything but that he was doing a great job.

Meanwhile Republican insiders in New Jersey are
furious that the Gonzalez Justice department had
targeted Christie, who is considered a future
Republican candidate for higher office in NJ. There is a
possibility that that this latest revelation will force
Gonzalez to finally quit. He had testified under oath that
there only eight Attorneys scheduled for dismissal. Now,
we learn that there were 26.

Christie was the U.S. Attorney whose office supervised the probe of the alleged terrorist cell in South Jersey last week. He is well respected in New Jersey , even by the Democrats.

Watch this aspect of the case carefully. If Christie was targeted because he didn’t indict Democrats, this could be the episode that blows the case wide open.

The big question is whether Karl Rove and the White House was involved in efforts to go after political opponents through the justice system.

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Michael Nutter’s impressive victory as the Democratic nominee for Mayor of Philadelphia was an epic moment in this community’s history. Nutter’s win over four other well-funded candidates was widespread. While he crushed the competition in the Center and Northwest, he held his own impressively in South and Northeast Philadelphia.

How did he do it?

Being an outsider on the inside can impress voters. It was Nutter who persistently fought for the smoking ban. It was Nutter who got the ethcs bills passed. It was Nutter who stood up to a defiant Mayor time and time again.

The most exciting part of the Nutter victory is that it gives the city an opportunity to really feel united. There will be a Mayor who can fight hard for efficiency, and who has the guts to really crackdown on suspected criminals.

Is he perfect? Hardly not. But for the first time in eight years , Philadelphians stood behind a candidate who offered to unite, rather than entrench himself in City Hall.

A lot of credit must go in this campaign to Bob Brady. Few of the voters got to know the real Bob Brady, a terrific human being who is one of the city’s unsung heroes. Brady is one of the nicest men in the political business. He refused to let his campaign attack Tom Knox, and then when he said it was allright, it was too late. Brady is one of the real gentlemen of local government. He knew the odds were tough, but he fought till the end.

Tom Knox did a great service to Philadelphians by highlighting the ethics issues. Dwight Evans is a great legislator.

Chaka Fattah expected, I believe, an overwhelming mandate, but he needed to offer a citywide message. And his failure to at least act tough about crime cost him dearly.

It was an exciting race. But in the end, issues, more than money or ambition, did the talking.

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Turnout is always a key, but even more  in a five way race. A lighter turnout, say below 30 percent, could produce a surprise winner. A 36 percent turnout or
higher may prove the recent polls correct. The other factor is how the four TV debates and the Breakfast With the Candidates LIVE debate on KYW Newsradio, may haved actually nuetralized the 15 million dollars in commercials. A total of about 700 thousand viewers and listeners were tuned in — a high amount. It appeared that, after the first debate,  the the momentum of some candidates was increased or stopped.

The other issue is race. Minority and non minority voting patterns have been shattered this year. The old politics seems to be vanishing.

For reform minded Michael Nutter, the passion of his followers is key. Can they motivate the voters to vote. Bob Brady claims 10-thousand election workers. Chaka Fattah says he has several thousand along with Dwight Evans, and Tom Knox, as we know has plenty of money to pay staff and poll workers.But the bottom line to all of this, the unpredictability of all of this is  the divided loyalties of Democratic regulars and one largely ingored fact — 7 thousand Republicans were recruited to register Democrat so they could vote for their favorite in this election. How they vote may determine the winner.

The city’s large labor unions are splintered. As an non united force, they could turn this election one way or another. If they don’t, even in a 5 person race, their future as an electoral power may be in question. The city’s ward leaders are also split. If independent minded Democrats provethe majority in this election, the Democratic organization as we know it may be weakened.The third question is the role of money. With new spending limits, it will be interesting to see if a self-funded candidate will prevail, or whether in the end, money will actually be the deciding factor.If a llesser funded candidate wins, it may change the way campaigns are financed in the future. Maybe less WILL be more.Finally, there are two sixth men on the court tonight. Mayor Street — will his standing impact the outcome? And crusading anti-corruption US attorney
Patrick Meehan. Will his pay for play investigations actually play a role in altering the outcome? They already have by forcing ethics as an issue.

The time is now. Make your vote count.

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