UPI's Capital Comment for Dec. 2, 2002

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Capital Comment -- Daily news notes, political rumors, and important events that shape politics and public policy in Washington and the world from United Press International.

A sound investment

A post-election poll of 600 actual voters in 19 states and Washington by John Zogby found investor-class voters actually provided strong support for incumbents in the 2002 election. These voters, whom pre-election polls identified as roughly two-thirds of the electorate, had been seen as a targeted bloc for Democrats trying to make political hay out of the collapse of the stock market and the corporate confidence crisis. According to Zogby, these voters, owners of 401k and IRA retirement plans, "were actually some of the most ardent supporters of incumbents in the just concluded Midterm elections."

"All signs prior to Nov. 5 pointed to dissatisfaction with incumbents by this group of investors," Zogby says. "While the economy was the most important issue, I guess they didn't see a realistic alternative presented by the challengers -- notably Democrats."

The survey shows that incumbent governors seeking re-election were supported by a majority of 401k owners in seven out of the eight states where Zogby polled. In the 10 states polled where incumbent U.S. senators sought re-election, "either a majority or a plurality of 401k holders supported the incumbent candidate in five (races), and the challenger in another five races." The spread does not indicate that partisan affiliation was much of a factor in either case.

Too many people, not enough time

On Tuesday the U.N. Population Fund will release its annual State of World Population Report. The theme of the 2002 edition -- People, Poverty and Possibilities: Making Development Work for the Poor -- is that, to overcome poverty, "countries must ensure women's reproductive health and rights and target development efforts to the poor." According to the UNFPA, a plan to address "population concerns" is critical to meeting the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals of halving global poverty and hunger by 2015, reducing maternal and child mortality, curbing HIV/AIDS, advancing gender equality and promoting environmentally sustainable development.

One man, one vote, one court

A small, north-central Montana county of 7,500 people is taking on the federal government over the way in which communities are required to draw local election districts. Blaine County has filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit challenging the constitutionality of federal laws that it says forced it to gerrymander its election districts "to guarantee election of an American Indian commissioner."

In its brief, the county contends it did not violate the federal Voting Rights Act by electing county commissioners at large from residential districts. "Every rural county in the country should be disturbed and offended by the filing of this lawsuit, the arguments made by federal and ACLU lawyers, and the implications for the U.S. Constitution," attorney William Perry Pendley of the Mountain States Legal Foundation said.

In November 1999, the Clinton administration sued Blaine County after it refused to meet demands that the country racially alter its commissioner districts. Pendley, whose group represents Blaine County in the suit, says, "There is no evidence that American Indians in Blaine County have ever been denied the right to register, to vote, or to run for office. In fact, American Indians have been elected to countywide office, including Sheriff and Justice of the Peace. But federal lawyers say that is not enough and that, under the law, they can and will tell states how their local governments are to be run."

Their house is a museum ...

On Monday President George W. Bush signed into law House Joint Resolution 117 authorizing the creation of a memorial for former President John Adams of Massachusetts, his wife, Abigail, and their descendents, to be built in the nation's capital. Though the language of the resolution prohibits the construction of such a monument within the cross-like area defined by the White House, the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials and the U.S. Capitol building, the honor is nevertheless a prestigious one. The first enduring American political dynasty, members of the family played significant roles in the development of American politics, diplomacy and culture into the 20th century.

America's new love affair with the Adamses is largely due to the enormously successful biography of the nation's second president by David McCullough published in 2001, now out in paperback after spending many weeks atop the best-seller list. The project will be supervised and funded by the Adams Memorial Foundation, a non-profit entity already established by Congress.

The gathering

Every year conservatives from around the United States come together at CPAC, an annual conservative political action conference now in its 30th year. This year's meeting, to be Jan. 30-Feb. 1 in Arlington. Va., will open with an address by Vice President Dick Cheney, a longtime conservative favorite.

CPAC has also announced that their annual presidential banquet will be held in honor of Phyllis Schlafly, the well-known conservative leader who almost singled-handedly led the drive to defeat the adoption of the equal rights amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The 2002 CPAC drew more than 3,800 attendees from across the country and around the world, and organizers expect it to draw still more this year as political activists plan the initiatives they will push during the coming two years.

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