The American Spectator

Washington Prowler

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Al Gore squirm due to lackadaisical book sales and policy gaffes. /p>

"We all loved his line that George Stephanopoulos put words in his mouth," says a Lieberman adviser in Washington.

The reference is to Gore's comments last Sunday on ABC's "This Week," where in response to questioning from Stephanopoulos, the show's host, Gore said he'd probably have to raise taxes if his single-payer health-care program were put into place. The next day, Gore claimed he hadn't really said it, that words were put in his mouth.

"Lieberman is going to do everything right. He's not going to break his promise and challenge Gore, but he's not going to just do nothing in the meantime," says the adviser. "Gore seems put off by that, but what can he do? If he'd make up his mind, we'd make up our minds."

p> MODERATE HOOKY br> House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi must not have made it clear to her caucus that the two-day meeting she held this week wasn't voluntary. But apparently some House Democrats didn't care enough to show up. An attendance roster listed 129 (about two-thirds of the full caucus) Dems meeting in Washington behind closed doors to map out a party economic strategy for the congressional season in January. More important, to Pelosi's way of thinking, were the sessions held on Tuesday to discuss the party's failures in 2002. /p>

"If the meeting was mandatory, I didn't see it on the agenda," says a Democrat not in attendance. "We do enough of these things as it is, I didn't think it was necessary to make the effort. We'll have at least one retreat after the January session opens up."

In fact, some Democrats might want to go back to the minutes -- if such things are kept -- of the caucus retreat that was held last year. There they'd find Pelosi in her wisdom not only upbraiding colleagues for shoddy campaigning in 2000 and leading into 2002 races, but bringing in ethically challenged Gray Davis political advisers to lecture them on proper fundraising techniques. It was this performance that angered many of the moderates of the party and, perhaps out of fear they would hear more of the same, caused them to stay away from their new leader's first meeting.

topics:
Taxes, Nancy Pelosi