WASHINGTON, July 8 (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.
She ain't Ben Casey -- The administration's choice of Dr. Julie Gerberding as the new head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is not sitting well with a number of prominent conservatives whose early support was crucial to George W. Bush's successful effort to win the White House. Dr. James Dobson, the Colorado child psychologist who hosts radio's "Focus on the Family," and is a leading figure among social conservatives says he is baffled as to why Gerberding was chosen for the post.
"Dr. Gerberding," Dobson said, "has no apparent concern about the ineffectiveness of condom usage, nor any stated disagreement with the positions of the homosexual activist movement, or with the provision of free needles to drug users. To the contrary, her writings clearly show that she believes the 'safe sex' lie that has entrapped millions of our teenagers."
To further emphasize the point in a way that is certain to get the attention of the president's key political advisers, Dobson drew a comparison to the selection by the president's father of David Souter for a seat on the Supreme Court. "The president campaigned on a policy of morality and ethics in government, and yet he is now asking us to hope that Dr. Gerberding's policies will be consistent with those promises. We are reminded of the assurances given to conservatives that Justice David Souter would not lean radically to the left. But by the time the truth was disclosed, it was too late to oppose his confirmation for the Supreme Court."
Did they check Washington? -- A new Federal Highway Administration report "disproves the longstanding myth that the country suffers from a lack of parking for commercial vehicles," according to a trade association that works on the issue.
The National Association of Truck Stop Owners, representing truck stop and travel plaza operators, says the report shows that there is no nationwide shortage of places to park. "This comprehensive report validates our position that shortages exist only in isolated parts of the country where the private sector has been prevented from meeting the needs of its customers," NATSO Vice President of Government Affairs Scot Imus said.
The FHWA study concludes that three-fourths of the states have sufficient parking and that only eight states were found to have "a shortage of private truck stop spaces." The study says 79 percent of drivers prefer to get their long-term rest at privately owned truck stops, while only 6 percent preferred rest areas.
The groups says the report should be a clear indication that the federal government does not need to invest money in an effort to add to the number of rest stops available on federal highways. "States should continue to provide rest areas for the traveling public," Imus said, "but should not try to meet the long-term parking needs of commercial vehicles. That is and should remain the job of private industry."
A fight's a-brewing -- Congressional leadership races are usually messy and the race to succeed Rep. J.C. Watts, R-Okla., as chairman of the House Republican Conference looks like it won't be any different. The consensus is building that Rep. Debra Pryce, R-Ohio, and a GOP moderate is the candidate to beat because she has the support of several powerful members of the party's leadership. However, as a knowledgeable insider tells Capital Comment, being the frontrunner also makes you a target.
"Why in the world is a pro-abortion, anti-gun moderate who's done minimal campaigning for fellow GOP'ers and made virtually no television or radio appearances on behalf of the party's agenda being considered 'the frontrunner?' Because 'she's' a 'she,' that's why -- and for no other reason. And if 'she' doesn't wrap up the votes by the end of the coming week, 'she's" in real trouble," the veteran party operative tells us. If Pryce cannot wrap up the race by the end of next week, "listen for an implosion," our insider says.
Uncompassionate -- A buzz is beginning about when, exactly, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., will fulfill his public promise to President George Bush and put the "charity, aid, recovery and empowerment" legislation on the Senate floor for a vote.
Daschle warmly endorsed the CARE concept after being pummeled on South Dakota television for being an "obstructionist" by a Washington-based pro-economic growth organization. "The CARE Act isn't a Republican or Democratic plan. It is a bipartisan proposal that strikes the right balance between harnessing the best forces of faith in our public life without infringing on the First Amendment. ... Most importantly, it is representative of what we can accomplish in Washington when we put partisanship and politics aside and focus on what matters. I look forward to working with President Bush to get this proposal signed into law," Daschle wrote in an op-ed that appeared in the hometown press.
When the president recently called on Daschle to schedule the now-bipartisan CARE package for a vote before the August recess, a Daschle aide could only say the majority leader was in no hurry to bring up the bill. "Last I checked (Bush) wasn't the majority leader of the Senate," Daschle spokesman Ranit Schmelzer said, following on a theme of blaming the president for domestic policy inaction that Daschle himself fleshed out at the end of June.
"Almost on every one of the issues involving domestic policy, he has been a source of great disappointment," Daschle told the Washington Post, who described him as saying, "Bush has failed to fulfill some of his major campaign promises" on domestic issues while becoming the most-political chief executive in the nation's history.
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