Washington Wrap

Dotty Lynch, Douglas Kiker, Beth Lester, Clothilde Ewing and Katie Dyer of the CBS News Political Unit have the latest from the nation's capital.

Wednesday's Headlines

* Kerry goes on the Offensive

* Specter Wins Pa. GOP Senate Primary, But Barely

* Karen Hughes Sparks Controversy

* Laura Bush v. Teresa Heinz Kerry

* Arab Americans Skeptical of Bush

* Ted Kennedy's Vanishing Waistline

Kerry on the Offensive: After almost three weeks of questions about his military service, medical records and anti-war activities, John Kerry went on the offensive Monday, going after the very Republicans who have been questioning him. In Ohio, Kerry told the Dayton Daily News, "I think a lot of veterans are going to be very angry at a president who can't account for his own service in the National Guard, and a vice president who got every deferment in the world and decided he had better things to do, criticizing somebody who fought for their country and served."

And at the conclusion of his remarks during a fundraiser Monday night, Kerry went even further. CBS News' Steve Chaggaris reports that "when it seemed as if Kerry was going to wrap up his remarks, his demeanor shifted, as he sounded completely fed up with the Bush-Cheney attacks (and it's only April!). What resulted was Kerry unloading on them in a much harsher way (and defending himself in a much more forceful way) than he has to date."

Kerry said, "They want you to believe that John Kerry - who put the uniform of his country on voluntarily, who felt an obligation to go to Vietnam when so many others didn't, who stood up and fought for our country - they want you to believe that somehow I'm not strong for the defense of our nation. Well, I've defended our nation! And I'm prepared to stand up and defend it as president and forever!"

Until Monday, Kerry had steered clear of criticizing President Bush's military records and some of his campaign aides whispered that he was upset with DNC chair Terry McAuliffe for blasting Bush on his service. Bush served in the National Guard from 1968 through 1973, but there is some controversy about how he landed a pilot's job and his whereabouts during his last year of service. After Kerry's remarks, the Bush campaign hit back, with Nicolle Devenish, the Bush-Cheney campaign's communications director, saying in a statement: "Instead of explaining his record, John Kerry has turned to political attacks on the president." Referring to a 1992 Senate statement, Devenish continued, "John Kerry is doing exactly what he said he would never do, 'divide America over who served and how.'"

In the midst of the military outburst on Monday, Kerry found time to meet with former Vice President Al Gore. Gore, who endorsed Howard Dean during the primaries, met privately with Kerry at the Sheraton Cleveland City Center, reports Chaggaris.

Specter Wins: Four-term Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania scratched out a primary win over conservative challenger Rep. Pat Toomey on Tuesday. Specter's victory – by a 16,000 vote margin, 50.8 percent to 49.2 percent with 99.3 percent of precincts reporting – surely brought sighs of relief among the GOP establishment, including the White House, which had backed Specter despite a moderate voting record and history of straying from the party line from time to time.

Specter will face Democratic Rep. Joe Hoeffel in November. Political analysts agree that Hoeffel will have a much tougher time unseating Specter, a proven cross-party vote-getter, than he would have had against Toomey, whose ardent conservatism on issues like abortion and taxes could have alienated moderate voters. And, despite spending nearly $10 million to defeat Toomey, there's little doubt that Specter will be able to outspend Hoeffel by a wide margin as the general election approaches.

Toomey, despite the financial backing of outside groups like the Club for Growth in the primary campaign, would have been on far more even financial footing with Hoeffel.

The AP reports, "The primary, one of the GOP's most closely watched contests this year, tested the strength of the party's conservative wing. Specter's win was a victory for President Bush, who endorsed the senator and is counting on his supporters to help him win carry a state he narrowly lost to Democrat Al Gore in 2000."

Toomey and one of his main patrons, the anti-tax advocacy group Club for Growth, quickly jumped on the Specter bandwagon.

In a press release, Club for Growth president Stephen Moore said of Specter, who the group slammed in several ads as part of the $2 million it spent on Toomey's behalf: "Although we disagreed with Arlen Specter on a number of economic issues, there is no doubt that Senator Specter is far more likely to support tax cuts and other Bush economic policies than Rep. Hoeffel and deserves the support of all Republicans in the November election. We have no hesitation in endorsing Arlen Specter."

The long-term impact of Specter's narrow win remains to be seen.

Democrats say the primary fight has been good for their prospects, with a bloodied Specter forced to spend huge amounts of money and, on issues like Bush's 2003 tax cuts (which he backed, unlike the 2001 tax cuts), forced to move to the right on issues, which could alienate some moderate swing voters.

But the tight-as-a-tube-sock result could also have exactly the chilling effect on GOP moderates that Moore and the CFG hoped for. The group has made no secret of its displeasure for Senate moderates like George Voinovich of Ohio and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island. While moderates might not fear a primary fight like Specter did, the specter of having to spend time and money guarding their right flank could make moderation a less appealing political bent.

Ten Minutes to Controversy: The Washington Post reports that "Presidential adviser Karen Hughes responded yesterday to criticism that, in a television interview, she had compared participants in Sunday's abortion rights march in Washington to terrorists, calling that interpretation 'a gross distortion' of her remarks."

The controversy stems from comments Hughes made on CNN on Sunday, the same day that hundreds of thousands of pro-abortion rights advocates marched through Washington.

The Post reports that Hughes was asked "how big an issue she thought abortion would be in this year's presidential election, Hughes responded: "Well … it's always an issue. And I frankly think it's changing somewhat. I think after September 11th the American people are valuing life more and realizing that we need policies to value the dignity and worth of every life.'"

"The former White House counselor then noted that President Bush has urged Americans to 'be reasonable' about the issue and to encourage a reduction in the number of abortions performed each year in a variety of ways, including by encouraging more adoptions. 'And I think those are the kind of policies that the American people can support, particularly at a time when we're facing an enemy, and really the fundamental difference between us and the terror network we fight is that we value every life,'" she added. 'It's the founding conviction of our country, that we're endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights, the right to life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Unfortunately our enemies in the terror network, as we're seeing repeatedly in the headlines these days, don't value any life, not even the innocent and not even their own.'"

The Post reports that "Eleanor Smeal, president of the Feminist Majority, condemned the comments as 'cynical, ugly and mean-spirited' and urged Hughes to clarify or take back what she said. Rep. Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.) issued a statement expressing shock that Hughes 'compared the 9/11 terrorists to Americans who marched on the Mall' on Sunday."

Hughes sent an e-mail to the Post saying, "That is a gross distortion and I would never make such a comparison. Surely even the most strident of partisans, and reasonable people on both sides of the abortion issue, can agree that we have been reminded of the precious nature of human life and that we ought to work to reduce the number of abortions in America."

Bush Crushes Kerry: The presidential contest may be neck and neck but in the race for first lady it's Laura by a mile. In a head-to-head race for FLOTUS, Laura Bush would crush Teresa Heinz Kerry, according to the New York Post.

A Fox News poll found that if respondents were voting on first ladies, Laura Bush would draw 47 percent of the vote while Teresa Heinz Kerry would receive 23 percent. Those little devils at Fox also asked about disclosing tax returns, an issue which the Bush campaign has said they think is "traditional" for spouses to do. A majority of respondents (58 percent) including 57 percent of Democrats felt that candidates and spouses should release tax returns publicly. John Kerry has released his but, so far, the campaign says that the very wealthy Mrs. Kerry has not yet filed but when she does she plans to keep them private.

Laura Bush scored higher among independents and white voters while Teresa Heinz Kerry placed higher among nonwhites. Women preferred Bush to Kerry by 52-22 percent, indicating that Mrs. Bush could be an important campaign asset with women voters.

New Poll Shows Arab Americans Dislike Bush: Although most polls show President Bush is generally considered likeable, a key group of voters in four battleground states is not so sure. A new poll conducted by Zogby International for the Arab American Institute (conducted April 22 through 24) surveyed Arab Americans in Michigan, Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. According to the AAI, "The Arab American vote represents slightly more than 5% of the overall vote in Michigan, 2% in Florida, just under 2% in Ohio, and more than 1.5% of all Pennsylvania voters," enough to influence the presidential vote in each of those states.

The poll is the second in a six part series that began in February 2004. This month's data "shows that Arab American voters continue to show deep dissatisfaction with the President's job performance." Sixty-seven percent, the same as in February, rank the president's job performance as Fair/Poor. In a mock presidential election, Bush receives 30 percent (same as February), John Kerry receives 49 percent (down from 54) and 21 percent remain undecided.

With Ralph Nader, a Lebanese American, in the race, Kerry still holds a big lead. According to the AAI, "In 2000, our polling showed that Bush beat Gore among Arab American voters in these four states by a margin of 46 to 29 with Nader receiving 13 percent. At present Kerry is in a position to completely flip these results by beating the President 45 to 28, with Nader still at 13 percent. This represents a flip of more than 170,000 votes from the Republican to the Democratic column in these four states!" And that, undoubtedly, is welcome news to John Kerry.

Kennedy's Battle of The Bulge: Sen. Ted Kennedy's colleagues are seeing a lot less of the senator these days, and it's not just because he's been out on the road campaigning for John Kerry, the Boston Globe reports. According to aides, the senior senator from Massachusetts has shed more than 40 pounds. Staff members say Kennedy has been following a low-carbohydrate diet.

Colleagues have been known to tease Kennedy for his waistline in the past. At a tribute for Kennedy's 70th birthday two years ago, Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, a fit, 70-year-old, recalled the differences between himself and his good friend Kennedy. "I'm a conservative; he's a liberal. I'm a Westerner; he's an Easterner. I'm a physical fitness fanatic, and he's . . . well," Hatch concluded, throwing up his hands.

"In my family, I was the one born with the chunky genes," Kennedy said through a spokesman. But always on message, he went on to say, "I was also born with a good set of political genes. Because of my enthusiasm for John Kerry's campaign, the political genes are keeping the chunky genes in check."

Quote of the Day: "She's got the intelligence bona fides of Bob Graham. She's got the 9/11 bona fides of Bob Kerrey. She's got the gender of Hillary Clinton." – An unnamed Democrat on Rep. Jane Harman, D-Ca., who reportedly met with John Kerry veep vetter Jim Johnson. (New York Sun)