Taegan Goddard's Political Wire

March 23, 2004

Clarke's Insider Status Puts Bush On Defensive

"At the worst possible moment," the charges made by Richard Clarke in Against All Enemies : Inside the White House's War on Terror--What Really Happened "undercuts" President Bush "on the issue that he has made the unapologetic centerpiece of his administration and a linchpin of his re-election campaign: his handling of the global war on terror," the New York Times reports.

"Just as Mr. Bush appeared to be gaining the upper hand over Mr. Kerry in the fledgling general election campaign after weeks on the defensive over the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Mr. Clarke has put the White House squarely on the defensive again."

The Washington Post notes Bush's top aides "launched a ferocious assault" on Clarke's credibility.

Political Animal makes the obvious, but important, observation: "There's no telling if Richard Clarke's charges will end up making much difference in the long run, but the White House is sure acting like they have the potential to do some serious damage."
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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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