Inside Washington: Murmurs
National Journal
Nov. 14, 2009
"Psst! In 2012, will three be company? At a New Orleans conference of political consultants this week organized by the Bipartisan Policy Center, leading strategists from both parties -- such as Steve Schmidt, John McCain's senior adviser in 2008, and Joe Trippi, campaign manager for Howard Dean in 2004 -- said that conditions in the next presidential election could be ideal for an outsider third-party candidate in the mold of Ross Perot. Veteran Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg said he saw a 'reasonable possibility' that a well-financed independent candidate focused on deficit reduction could win at least 20 percent of the vote and draw particular support among low-income men now disillusioned with both parties... A story on 60 Minutes last Sunday, which alleged that hackers caused blackouts in Brazil, got a lot of people's attention. But one big question remains unanswered: Who were the hackers? A source familiar with the events indicated that local extortionists might be the culprits. That could fit a pattern. In 2008, according to a senior Brazilian security official who confirmed the incident in that country's press, hackers based in Eastern Europe commandeered a server used by a government ministry, locked officials out by changing the password, and then demanded $300 million in ransom. The government didn't pay, the official said... A wall at the U.S. Agency for International Development in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center awaits the return of a 6-by-9-foot bronze plaque commemorating first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. It was installed in 1999 but was quietly removed in 2005 during the Bush administration and stashed in a government warehouse. Secretary of State Clinton wants the 800-pound slab put back up and is trying to raise private funds to do the job..."
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