by The Editors

Monday, April 12, 1999 -- New York/Washington -- Wow! Suddenly Clinton's Kosovo policy is no longer a failure -- but everyone is begging for ground troops! And a couple of the shows tried to spin "Chinagate" yet again.

Here's how it played...

Fox News Sunday

"Bullseyes in Belgrade! Do we really have to hit the ground to win the war?... What will it take to defeat Slobodan?" And, predictably, Tony Snow previewed the China "scandal."

Tony sounded as if he and the entire Fox News operation were spoiling for war, war and more war -- while continuing the slanted assault on Clinton using any Chinese "dirt" they could throw at him.

Tony went immediately to his first two guests -- Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ). Kerry said he strongly supports ground troops and that "no option should be taken off the table." In other words, wake up and smell the cluster bombs, Slobodan.

McCain: "I don't expect those in uniform to question [Clinton], and they're not!" McCain's wholehearted support of the NATO mission came with that comment -- an attempt to undo the damage done by some GOPers who have gone "dovish" -- but in a seditious manner, sometimes "suggesting" that our men in uniform question the Commander-in-Chief with some of their swipes at Clinton.

Kerry said that the Rambouillet accords were pretty much "out the door" -- and that ground troops would in fact pull all parties back to the peace table.

Tony asked McCain about the "idea" that "only one person should be giving the orders" on Kosovo, and McCain briefly addressed that -- then said that he feels it unrealistic to put Albanian Kosovars under Serb supervision. To say the least, we say. Tony asked if there was "the political will to sustain months of bombing," and McCain did agree that there may not be the will without additional actions. Kerry then mentioned how difficult it was to get a vote on ground troops.

Should Congress authorize ground troops even though they have not been sought? McCain said that the President is authorized to seek victory "by any means... do not foreclose any option."

Tony asked Kerry about calling up reserves -- are our forces inadequate? Oh, please, Tony, Bush called up reserves in Desert Storm! Kerry said that our forces are adequate, but that certain parts of the service are "strained." but then, we would point out, the same was true during Desert Storm -- it's just that the "liberal" press kept a lid on it. McCain cited air logistics as an area where the military is "underpersonned". Underpersonned! Holy cow -- a politically correct GOP contender for the White House. The hard righters will be appalled. Good, we say -- if McCain manages to chase them from the GOP, he'll be a national hero.

McCain also said that "there is plenty of time after this is all over to blame everyone..." Huh? McCain implies that a show of unity will be followed by politics as usual.

But then, we wouldn't expect less in today's international politics.

Tony then turned to Gen. Wesley Clark, who emphasized that the air campaign is a NATO mission. He recapped the goals: target logistical and military targets in the air campaign. Tony asked a lot of questions designed to put Clark on the defensive -- including whether NATO had not anticipated Slobodan's moves in Kosovo. And Clark said that NATO had anticipated the forced exodus -- to which Tony asked "why weren't the Apaches ready?" -- as if it were Clark's personal fault and as if 18 other nations being involved in the logistics weren't a factor.

Tony brought up Robert "Prince of Darkness" Novak's ridiculous column in which he claimed that he was privy to an intelligence report saying that Serbia planned to kidnap Americans. Clark said that he had heard reports that Serbia wanted to "create another Somalia" to embarrass and humiliate the U.S. -- but Clark should have pointed out the fact that any nation ready to duke it out with the U.S. would plan to pull a stunt like this in an effort to influence public sentiment.

Spots: ADM (novasoy isoflavones), Invesco (Invesco knows), IBM ("who called this meeting") and The Simpsons/Family Guy (the latter rumored to be insufferably bad).

"Should we now deploy ground forces?" Tony welcomed General George Joulwan to discuss the alternatives we now have. Joulwan wants to see NATO do something to stop Milosevic's campaign, including "setting up a sanctuary."

Fred "the Weasel" Barnes, filling in for Brit Hume, tried to make it look as if it were a scandal that the Apaches would "take a month" to get to Yugoslavia -- and Joulwan blew that point into more small parts than your average Belgrade TV tower by reviewing the fact that the pilots need to be trained on combat in the Yugoslav theater. But Joulwan did say that we should have foreseen Milosevic's conduct in Kosovo.

Hold it, General -- who says NATO didn't?

Yet the general did a great job of cluster-bombing the ridiculous claims that American military resources in the Yugoslav region are inadequate by repeatedly pointing out that NATO troop numbers are high and that the U.S. military presence is robust -- and he credited Clinton for taking the lead in the present conflict. He also pointed to Milosevic's goal of destabilizing Montenegro and Albania using refugees -- a point little discussed in the press.

What about deposing Milosevic, said Tony? Joulwan dodged the obvious "kill Slobo" query, recommending that Belgrade be isolated and cut off. How essential is it for Congress to speak out? Joulwan called it essential to the alliance and to victory -- "We have to send him a clear message" and divisive rhetoric shows weakness.

Spots: Compaq, C-SPAN, Oce, Oppenheimer Funds.

Tony then played the China card -- citing the one-sided New York Times articles tracing campaign contributions to Chinese military leaders. Funny how Tony did not mention that the campaign contributions were returned -- and that the GOP has their own little Chinagate problem presently bubbling under.

Has the Administration been naive regarding China? The guest, Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN), who had failed so miserably in his own quest to invent a Chinagate scandal to tie to Clinton, said "at least" -- clearly trying to imply complicity, even though he denied it. It was almost embarrassing. We hope he's been paying his Screen Actors' Guild dues, because after today's performance we're sure the folks in Tennessee may kick ol' Fred back into the private sector.

Juan Williams pointed out the failure of Thompson to prove complicity on the part of the Administration in the matter of campaign contributions, and Thompson claimed that the "new information" was "cause for concern." Probably for his -- and Dan Burton's -- careers.

"What we have relied on for years and years is a special counsel... the real scandal emanates from the Justice Department... [on the IC] I'm going to hold my fire.... the Justice Department gives me cause for concern." Thompson has already been on the losing end of a war of words with the Department of Justice and Janet Reno in the matter of his last China hearings.

In fact, he blamed Justice and the press for the probability that there would not be any explosive congressional hearings along the lines of Watergate: "Nowadays, the ability of Congress to really find out anything substantive in congressional hearings has been very, very limited.'' Of course, he should be looking at his own agenda, his staff, and his cowardice at not investigating questionable Republican campaign conduct to explain the inability to run a bells-and-whistles investigation. Instead, he blamed "the media's short attention span, the partisanship that we have and all of that [which] makes it so that you can kind of lay out and demonstrate what you already have."

But hold it, Fred -- you've used this excuse before. You COULDN'T lay out all you had without bringing down top Republicans too.

Fred Barnes asked, given "the spying which I think is proven... should China pay a penalty?" Thompson said that we should not keep them out of WTO but we should not be "treated as patsies" or "put the best face on this." Juan broke in saying that the New York Times claimed that China had stolen neutron bomb info -- is this directly tied to the general who gave money to Johnny Chung? Thompson essentially said no, and immediately went into his campaign cash "targeting the United States... to have influence on policy matters" song-and-dance -- which had us rolling on the floor, considering the money was returned, and had no influence.

How bad is the security breach, asked Tony? "It's very, very bad... we don't know what they have, really... WT88 technology... I don't know much beyond that." Might there be more "spying scandals?" Yes, said Thompson, citing supercomputers, "they've been taking a little here, a little there." Of course, he didn't even bother to point out that the Crays are nearly obsolete and anyone with a few hundred Intel processors can literally build a supercomputer from off-the-shelf components!

He also failed to say a thing about the underlying event that seems to have triggered an assault on defense labs by a number of foreign powers -- the Reagan Administration that mandated privatization of their security forces.

"We cannot subdue [Slobodan] from the air" but "airstrikes might change his mind... we should not take ground troops off the table" but "I want some questions answered... What is our goal?"

Jeez, Thompson, who says our goal will be the same a month from now? But we'll give you a clue: take a look at Mac's Kosovo Diary and get back to us if you can't come up with one pretty obvious goal.

Spots: First Union, ADM ("someday this will all be yours"), Futurama, a local spot for Sunjet.

Tony started panel time by mentioning to Fred that "fingers pointed at former CIA director Deutsch" in the Chinagate matter, and Fred (naturally) said fingers would be pointed at the White House, then followed it up with a typically Barnesian anti-China rant. Tony showed a ridiculous Fox Opinion Dynamics "wag the dog" poll, and Juan tried to imply that everyone is asking "What is Clinton up to?" But Fred said that Clinton was not "wagging the dog" -- and that while nobody seems to be asking for ground troops, Joulwan pointed out that there is a large deployment of NATO troops already and they may not have to ask for ground troops. Juan tweaked the GOP leadership for being "missing in action" on Kosovo, but suggested that an air campaign alone is being viewed as "dubious." Fred said Democrats were MIA also,

Juan, Fred -- they're only "missing in action" because Fox News Channel, MSNBC and CNN are so damn busy talking to their reporters in the field about the latest Serb targets we've reduced to a flaming ruin. Tell you what -- pack up Trent Lott and Joe Lieberman, send the two of 'em to Pristina, and then they sure won't be "missing in action."

Tony then declared Clinton a failure at meeting his goals and Slobodan a success -- flashing a "report card" on the screen for each man. It was such a cheap shot that we were laughing out loud -- although it irks us that Tony was indirectly praising Milosevic in a manner irksomely similar to some hard-right sites that applaud Slobo for "defeating" President Clinton.

Fred tried to spin the failure to deploy Apache helicopters as a major failure -- a dishonest ploy which had already been proven ridiculous by Joulwan. You almost got the feeling he'd been planning to say it anyway, and didn't have a suitably pithy sound bite ready in its place.

Juan raised the specter of an "occupying force staying there for years." Gee, Juan -- given America's record in Bosnia and Berlin, it doesn't sound like such a bad idea.

More spots: ADM (novasoy isoflavones again), Compaq.

Tony's last word -- on the beavers that attacked DC's prized cherry trees.

This Weak

"NATO continues to pound Yugoslavia," said Cokie. "What is acceptable and what are our military options?"

Good news -- Sam Donaldson was off. Bad news -- the rest of the Gang of Five was there.

First guests: Defense Secretary Bill Cohen and General Shelton. Shelton: "W are carrying out our campaign according to plan... it is effective." Shelton detailed yesterday's attacks in Kosovo, complete with maps and photos, and said that we have done massive damage to Serb capabilities in Kosovo. He went into particular detail over a photo of the destroyed Serb Police headquarters in Pristina -- surrounded by fully intact buildings. Shelton mentioned that the Serb "special police" are being aided by Serb regulars -- a fact that seems to have escaped the "liberal" press.

George Will asked if the Serb forces were so deprived of fuel that they may be forced to retreat; Shelton looked at it as a real possibility. Will also asked about the Apaches -- is 48 sufficient, and has Serb anti-aircraft capability been sufficiently degraded? Cohen said that attacks on Serb anti-aircraft installations continue and that Apaches would be effective in the theater of battle. Cohen refused to discuss targeting when Will asked him about taking out Serb TV facilities.

Will and Shelton briefly touched on Serbia mining the borders of Kosovo. How long might it take to deploy ground forces, asked Will? Shelton said that the must be a plan and a force apportionment, plus a plan of deployment which he refused to discuss. Cohen was likewise closed-mouthed on details of the overall NATO plan. None of them stated the obvious -- that you can bet it's going to be one of the primary topics at Monday's NATO meeting, though.

Spots: GE, Microsoft.

Cokie asked Cohen about evidence of mass graves in Kosovo -- could he confirm it? Cohen said that he would not confirm it but would not be surprised. There are signs of Slobodan budging, said Cokie -- can we sit down with him? Cohen said that his abusive conduct raised questions about whether this would even be possible -- and that there is a likelihood that war crimes charges may be lodged against top Serb military and government officials. He didn't name Slobodan, of course -- nobody is doing so in order to prevent him from suing for peace. Cokie talked about independence or partitioning for Kosovo, but Cohen categorically ruled out partitioning in light of the ethnic cleansing. But we think it might not be such a bad idea -- one underlying cause of the near-century of tensions in the region were the almost arbitrary borders drawn by Woodrow Wilson and his European allies.

Cokie asked about the report that 25,000 refugees were removed from a camp at night, and Shelton said that there was evidence that they were removed to places with more food or shelter.

Will asked Shelton if NATO might be too worried about collateral damage. Shelton said that NATO does not want to kill civilians and that Will could see how effective precision weapons are.

Will also quoted Margaret Thatcher (he's not the type who'd be caught dead quoting, say, Tony Blair) calling anything short of victory in the Falklands "unthinkable." Is anything short of withdrawal of Serb forces and return of Kosovars under protection unthinkable? Cohen quite deftly implied that goals change -- leaving Will looking a bit foolish not only in spelling out such restrictive goals but using such a lame comparison as the Falklands. You didn't exactly see the armed forces of Argentina involved in ethnic cleansing.

Shelton spent a minute praising the U.S. military, whose "morale is sky-high" and who are fully prepared to fight on two fronts if necessary.

Spots: First Union, Xerox, ABC shows.

Cokie then welcomed Senators Fred Thompson (not again!) and Joe Lieberman (fake D-CT), asking them first about Cohen's statement that a congressional resolution would help. Thompson said he wanted to see a "full debate.... If we can get some questions answered" (like how Thompson can avoid looking like a fool the way he did during his hearings on campaign cash, we can only presume). He said that America was "not fully informed of our goals." Huh? Wasn't he listening to the previous segment? Doesn't he watch the daily press briefings from the DOD and NATO? "Are we stretched too thin?" Again, didn't he hear Shelton's comments on readiness? He must have been asleep -- this obviously pre-planned sound bite made Fred look like he was once again suffering from foot-in-mouth disease. If there is a debate, the military and Clinton administration will make Senator Thompson look like an even bigger fool than he is already.

Lieberman said he was "inspired" by the seriousness and dedication of the military. We should "not let ethnic slaughter [and] rape stand in the heart of Europe," saying that nothing less than withdrawal of Serb forces is acceptable. He did say there was a need for congressional debate -- but sounded mostly supportive. Lieberman added that talking to military leaders left him with the impression that "this is an air campaign with a plan," but he still wonders -- will it stop Slobodan? He sort of answered his own question when he mentioned that every move he made has tried to create a greater Serbia -- but has led to a lesser Serbia.

Will called "the unanimity of NATO" a "marvel." Is he on drugs? "Do we have the capacity to fight two regional conflicts?" Thompson: "I'm not in a position to contradict the general." Wow -- Fred sidestepped looking like an idiot -- guess his brain must have kicked in! He said that some military leaders feel that we are not ready. Name names, Thompson -- do you mean Oliver North?

There was some blathering about the "China scandal." Thompson claimed that the Administration is "dragging its feet" over security breaches at Defense labs. What a lie -- he knows that some intelligence officials have been stonewalling and playing politics to "pin" security breaches on Clinton.

Spots: IBM (I am Superman), Texaco, and some boring local spots.

Since This Weak has expanded its round table to a full half hour -- most likely because primo politicians are avoiding the unctuous Donaldson, snooty Roberts and whacked-out Will, we have found it a near-complete waste of time. So here's a quick run-down of the "points" they bored us with or had us laughing over:

whether Congress would debate the Serbia incursion

the "Lieberman assertion" that getting 40,000 Serbs out of Kosovo is the definition of victory
"we are underestimating the groundswell for ground troops" (George Stephanopoulos -- probably talking about media moguls who want a boost in circulation and ratings from war coverage)
Clinton's main job is campaign manager for Al Gore (Cokie)
there are more incursion points into Serbia than Kosovo -- particularly from the north
we've deployed Apaches (Kristol); "They're not there yet" (Cokie, sounding contemptuous and contemptible)
everyone running for President has spoken out about Kosovo
Al Gore does not want to have anything to do with ground troops (Cokie)
a clip of Pat Buchanan saying it's not "our" fight
a clip of Bush Baby saying that stopping genocide is in our national interest and he supports ground troops
Rep. Heather Wilson implied there is no U.S. interest in Kosovo and Reagan called the USSR the "Evil Empire" (Bill Kristol)
the Reagan mantle may be fluttering down on Senator McCain (baloney, Will -- Reagan avoided combat duty)
there is not a real anti-China feeling (Cokie -- as if there should be)
America blames the Clinton Administration for not stopping China spying
this is a debate about the human rights of textile workers in the Carolinas (Will)
Robert Rubin has said that the basis of WTO membership is economic and China does not qualify (Cokie)
Hollywood pushed Clinton into a corner on trade (Stephanopoulos)
both parties are happy with a morally bankrupt foreign policy (new moralist Kristol, his weekly "sermon")
the 2000 presidential race had a few tidbits this week, including Bradley's "big ideas" (Cokie)
it'll be attractive to Dems but Bradley does not have a lot of people behind him (Cokie)
Liddy Dole deflected the abortion issue by saying she's pro-life but a ban on abortions would never be put into the Constitution (Will)

Cokie said "You've met him -- can he be dealt with or must he be removed?" Wiesel said he met him only once -- but he lied about Banja Luca during the Bosnia crisis, and that NATO must deal with him -- and that his record paints him as a war criminal.

If the producers of This Weak had half a brain, they would have sacked Kristol and Stephanopoulos and spent the entire half hour with Wiesel.

Face the Nation

Bob Schieffer's and Gloria Borger's questions this Sunday focused mostly on the issue of ground troops.

Schieffer asked the first guest, General Wesley Clark, NATO's Supreme Commander, if the Serbian military is cracking. General Clark said these rumors are heard from time to time and a little more frequently now. But he can't add any details. What he can say is that the weight of the air campaign is starting to make itself felt.

Schieffer asked what Milosevic's capability is today, compared to what it was when this campaign began. General Clark said he couldn't give the exact percentage of degradation -- only a third or less of Milosevic's forces is committed in Kosovo -- and NATO is attacking throughout Yugoslavia, hitting lines of communications, hitting his air defense system, hitting his replenishment capabilities and making it much tougher for him to draw other assets into the battle. NATO is also striking his forces on the battlefields in Kosovo, during the day and at night and during bad weather, relentlessly. The mission is proceeding on course and is being systematic and progressive. NATO is keeping the pressure on until ultimately, if he doesn't comply with the demands of the international community, he will lose his forces there and elsewhere.

Gloria asked him to comment on a report that came out in the Sunday Telegraph of London saying that a squadron of British soldiers have been sent deep into Kosovo to target the Serbian special police. General Clark can't confirm that and doesn't have any information on that article.

But believe us, this is one of the biggest stories of the week -- de facto deployment of NATO troops inside Kosovo.

Gloria asked him if there are any contingency plans right now for a ground war. He answered: "NATO went through a process last summer when all of this trouble became apparent in Kosovo. We looked at what the various air options would be, we looked at what some ground options would be. But I wouldn't describe those as contingency plans. We had just looked at options. And the alliance's decision from 16 sovereign nations has been that the air option was the preferable way to go."

Gloria asked, if needed "would you be able to get that up and ready quickly?" General Clark said he doesn't want to speculate on this and said he hasn't called for ground troops -- the air campaign is in the process of being intensified, it's starting to take a bite at this time, and that's his sole point of concentration at this time.

Schieffer asked him if he has doubts whether air power alone could do the job, as he seemed to have intimated in his interview with Dan Rather on Friday. General Clark said that what needs to be done is to put together the most effective possible air campaign; and this is now being intensified. Milosevic is the one who knows what his threshold of pain and loss is -- we can't answer those questions. Right now NATO is looking at every aspect of the air campaign in order to intensify it. Those, he said, are the opinions he was referring to when he talked with Dan Rather.

The second guest was Strobe Talbott, Deputy Secretary of State, who was just back from the region. Schieffer said that it is not a very encouraging sign that, as Wesley Clark said, only one third of Milosevic's troops are involved in Kosovo and that NATO can't know how much of it has been destroyed. Talbott said: "I heard it differently and I listened pretty closely to Wes, as I always do, Bob, and I heard the highest degree of military determination there. I think Wes made very clear that NATO is going to prevail and it is going to prevail on its terms."

Schieffer: But "military determination is different from winning a battle or making progress..."

Talbott: "Not necessarily."

Schieffer: "...[like] Vietnam."

Talbott: "The lack of appropriateness of analogies to Vietnam here is a whole show, which we can spend time on if you want."

Good going, Talbott!

He went on to say that "14 months ago when Milosevic started this crisis, the foreign policy was one of diplomacy backed by force. We tried diplomacy until it was clear that Milosevic not only was not going to accept a diplomatic solution, but was going to use diplomacy as a cover for carrying out the worst atrocities we've seen in Europe since the end of World War II. That's when NATO pulled the trigger. Now we have force backed by diplomacy. And what I mean by that is that... you are going to see the highest degree of political resolve behind the military resolve that you just heard from Wes. That means that NATO is going to win this thing on our terms."

How many times does this have to be repeated? The development of this situation is so obvious that it boggles the mind that the press insists on questioning the legitimacy of this campaign.

Gloria asked him to comment on the statement made by NATO's Secretary General on Sunday morning that, "within the next few days we'll see some movements on the diplomatic front." And he said he hopes that will be positive. "What do you expect to get out of this?"

Talbott: "The essence of it goes back to what victory and success mean and the answer to your question is the highest degree of consensus within the international community, including beyond NATO itself, on what constitutes success. [And] that is what Milosevic must do in order to bring the military phase of this to an end." He said this could be looked at in terms of four categories of people: "one category has to come out of Kosovo, three categories have to go in. Serb forces have to... get out of Kosovo -- and, by the way, some of the officers and others associated with that, I think, are going to end up in The Hague in front of a war crimes tribune. The three categories that have to come in are first and foremost the hundreds of thousands of refugees, who are being used incidentally as a weapon for destabilizing neighboring states -- I saw that firsthand. Second, the humanitarian organizations to attend to the miseries and needs of these people. And third, more crucially, is an international security presence, with NATO centrally part of that. And that will be our definition of success and victory."

Schieffer asked him if he still feels that this can be done without sending ground forces.

Talbott: "Yes, I do. And to be out in the region is to feel the thing turning in the right direction.... It's also to be deeply moved by, not only by the plight of the Albanian refugees... but also by their gratitude for what NATO is doing. It's to be impressed by the bravery of the front line states; and that means Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Rumania, who are standing by NATO at an extraordinary risk and cost; and they are doing that because they have confidence in this alliance."

Gloria asked about the end game, "does Mr. Milosevic now have to go?"

Talbott: "Mr. Milosevic knows what he has to do for the bombing to end. If he were to accept and implement the demands that NATO is making, then the bombing would end and we could enter into the next phase of this. As for what happens to Mr. Milosevic, he is going to be held responsible by the international community; in the first instance that means the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague."

Gloria: "You can't negotiate with somebody who you consider a war criminal."

Talbott: "We are not negotiating with Milosevic. We are bombing him."

One would imagine this was self-evident! But, again, the press continues to spin and to ignore facts, logic and common sense, as Dave Gonzo so eloquently reported in his article here on Friday.

Gloria asked if we would accept some kind of partitioning of Kosovo.

Talbott: "Partition is a very dangerous idea. Among other things, part of what we are fighting against, particularly in that part of Europe, is the idea that statehood, citizenship, nationhood should be defined in terms of ethnicity or religion. That insidious concept has caused an unbelievable amount of bloodshed and misery and war, including in recent months. Essentially if there is a positive way to put it, one of the values that is championed by the international community in Europe is the idea of multiethnic democracy. And of course Milosevic has now unleashed four wars in the last eight years basically by trying to make ethnicity the basis of statehood. I would even say five wars. He's unleashed war in Slovenia, in Croatia, in Bosnia and now in Kosovo, and what I saw with my own eyes is that in addition to the misery he's imposing upon these refugees, he is also using them to try to undermine neighboring states. Five wars. Enough already!"

Schieffer said that even those who are not in favor of ground forces have criticized the Administration saying that we should have never taken the option of using ground forces off the table. Has the President taken that option off the table?

Talbott: "What you just heard from the Supreme Allied Commander is that last year even there were careful assessments done of a whole range of options. Those are on the shelf. They could be taken down off the shelf, updated at any time "if it is decided that is necessary. "But for the time being we have a set of objectives which I have outlined and an air campaign which is to continue and intensify and we think is sufficient to achieve those objectives."

Schieffer again asked "that means that option has not been taken off the table?"

Talbott: "I said what I said."

The press continues with its obsession about ground troops, either by trying unsuccessfully to elicit contradictions on whether ground troops are needed, or by continuing in their relentless attempt to try to portray the Administration and NATO as a group of mindless idiots as if they didn't know what they are doing and didn't have the military training to know what options to consider and when. Who buys into this nonsense? Only the press and media themselves, who want a boost to ratings and circulation -- another action-packed "Desert Storm" is what they want.

The next two guests were Senators Bob Kerrey (D-NE), of the Select Intelligence Committee, and Chuck Hagel (R-NE), who is in the Foreign Relations Committee and who went to the region with Secretary Cohen.

Schieffer asked Sen. Hagel -- you guessed it -- if he thinks ground troops will be needed. Sen. Hagel said we should at least plan for contingencies and that the superiority of our NATO forces consists of all the options.

Tell us something we don't know, Chuck!

He added that he always wondered why we would arbitrarily take options off the table, which he thinks is "very dangerous and irresponsible."

He made all of us yawn.

Gloria of course asked Sen. Kerrey what he thinks of this and if he thinks it would be productive for Congress, when it returns this week, to have a vote authorizing ground troops if necessary. Sen. Kerrey said that in a way it's a false choice as we have already used ground troops in the area. He believes that "Congress would be well advised to demonstrate that we are resolved and that we are going to be patient and... pursue this objective all the way to the end." He said that it's not his view at this stage of the game that we can do anything other than to continue to be patient and do what is necessary to achieve victory. "It would be a big mistake for Congress to indicate that we are going to be a part of sort of a rear guard effort to undercut what is going on in the region."

Schieffer asked Sen. Kerrey if Democrats would support ground troops. Sen. Kerrey said that the answer is likely to be yes. It's not so much the Democrats, but it's whether or not the President can persuade the American people that he has the resolve to finish this job, that he knows what it is that is necessary to achieve this victory.

Schieffer asked Sen. Hagel what the Republicans' position is. Sen. Hagel said that Congress has to play a role regarding ground troops and this effort should not be held hostage by partisan politics; "the blame game that is played in Washington all too often must be minimized." The President does not have now the support of the majority of Republicans in Congress for ground troops, but if the President makes the case that it is in the interest of America's national security, he believes the Congress and the American public will follow.

Schieffer's final word was about Russia. When President Yeltsin talked about "re-targeting nuclear missiles at the NATO countries if they didn't back off in Kosovo, his people quickly... assured the West it was just bluster, at least for now." Schieffer is bothered by the fact that even though Russia is no longer a superpower, it may pose an even greater danger. "Its aging leader is increasingly erratic, the country is on the verge of economic chaos... since the enlargement of NATO, its leaders have felt more and more isolated and cut off from the West. The war in Kosovo has exacerbated the alienation." Schieffer believes that what the West is "overlooking is that the conditions in Russia today are precisely the conditions that left the German people receptive to Hitler's promises to restore their broken nation's pride and place in the world." And that "it is in our own interest to find a way to bring them back into the process to find peace" in Kosovo. "These are perilous times in Russia and we should help them through it. Hitler came to power in a Germany with virtually no army. If a new Hitler somehow comes to power in Russia, he will start with 7,000 nuclear weapons."

The McLaugh-In Group

John McLaughlin started off, naturally, with a group "gang bang" on President Clinton and the Chinese Premier. "Who is stealing from whom" seemed to be the topic.

However, we must point out that no one on the panel was willing to say that the Chinese purchased secrets from the President. We got a good laugh out of that. Well, of course not. But the innuendo raged with only Eleanor Clift, a wise woman, showing common sense among fools.

The next topic, Kosovo, was another Clinton-bashing-fest, but public polls supporting Clinton checked their wrath -- all except ex-Readers Digest editor Michael Barone, who still doesn't have a permanent job. Tony Blankley said he thinks this Kosovo action is a "reversible blunder." Some weirdo called "Fareed," new to the panel and just another McLaughlin puppet with an accent, said something pointless. Blankley said he believed the Russians will enter the war on the Serb side.

Sure, and Dorothy is the Wizard.

McLaughlin then brought up the Russian internal crises. Russian dispatched 120 big trucks to Serbia with 34 million tons of product. "Are they carrying more than food and clothing?" Some fascists in Russia are saying she should ship arms to Serbia. McLaughlin wanted to know whether we will be at war -- hot or cold -- over Kosovo. The answer, of course, is no. But, three of the four panelists think "maybe." Clift rightfully points out that Russians don't like pogroms either and will do the minimum for the Serbs, if anything.

McLaughlin wanted to know the probability of the war spinning out of control . Clift: 0, Barone: 0, Fareed: 1.3, McLaughlin 3. He, of course, hopes so.

The third of ten mandatory GE commercials began. GE is McLaughlin's ONLY sponsor. What does that tell you?

Predictions worth noting: Fareed said NATO will be negotiating on Yugoslavia in two weeks. McLaughlin said victims of Hurricane Mitch will not see a penny in aid because of Kosovo funding.

We say "BS," McLaughlin. As usual.

This show should be knocked off the air in exchange for a liberal-hosted show -- perhaps by Eleanor Clift!

Meet the De-Press

"Day 19... the bombing of Serbia.. what's next? Is this a bungle or does the President deserve credit for facing the crisis? Dan Quayle is interviewed on China, abortion and more. Al D'Amato and Paul Begala are also invited as two new George Magazine columnists." Talk about lame excuses for booking guests!

Russert began by interviewing his only "A" list guest, NATO General Wesley Clark. "Hasn't Milosevic won the war?" asked Russert incredibly. The General said no, of course, adding that we are hitting his forces, killing his communications and destroying his fuel. He will pay an ever-mounting price for his policies, said Clark. Russert asked if the war will last for months or weeks. The General said it could go on as long as it needs to.

Russert stupidly asked what Milosevic has to do to stop the bombing. Hey, Tim: it's (1) he has to stop his aggression; (2) remove his troops from Kosovo, and; (3) admit all the Kosovars back with NATO or UN peace keepers. General Clark had no comment on partition.

Russert asked what he must have presumed a trick question: "Would ground troops help you?" We were laughing. Of course, Clark said no. Russert pressed on: "Don't you have to start preparing them now -- just in case?" Clark said no. Russert then asked about the Apache helicopters. It seems the first of them have arrived, but the deployment is slowed by humanitarian planes on the runways.

John Podesta, White House chief of staff, was welcomed by Tim, who asked the same stupid question about what Milosevic must do to stop the war. Podesta parroted Clark. On partition, Podesta said it is not on the table (Milosevic wants the mineral-rich north areas of Kosovo) and that we are not negotiating these terms. Then Russert tried to get Podesta to say Milosevic himself must be eliminated. Podesta did not. However, he said he does think that the Serbs need a new leader.

Then Russert attacked Maddy Albright for saying the war would not be long-lived.

The Podesta discussion was a boring rehash of the same pap that Russert was pushing last week.

John McCain, said Russert, wrote a letter to NATO urging the planning of the use of ground troops in Serbia. Knowing that the President fears hurting too many of our boys, Podesta stuck to the air war scenario. NATO commanders are also sticking to this. McCain now looks like a hawk along with the two Democrats who signed this letter!

The President will meet with the leaders of the House and Senate tonight, said Podesta, and an expanded group on Monday morning.

Russert then said the operation has now cost $2 billion. "How will we pay for it?" We were rolling on the floor -- with a trillions-dollar budget, I don't think we have to worry, Tim.

He keep asking "How much will you request? Will that mean no tax cut?" Hilarious -- anything to make Clinton look bad.

Russert is truly pathetic. The President already opposes tax cuts until Social Security and Medicare are taken care of.

"Are you now ready to declare Milosevic a war criminal?" Podesta said that is not the President's responsibility -- but that it is clear that war crimes are going on.

Russert then showed a tape of Clinton saying that he has no report that espionage has occurred at our nuclear laboratories. Russert pretended that this is a semantic dodge -- and now we "know" that the Chinese got secrets out of the labs on the neutron bomb. Podesta explains that there is a single report, but that his answers were accurate. "But there may have been Chinese espionage on his watch?"

Russert never, ever stops, does he? Next, he'll be saying that the President planned the injection of Chinese Commie spies into Los Alamos and then personally escorted them to the top secret Eyes-Only files!

The mandatory ADM commercial ran. Then a slew of GE commercials. ADM/GE - controlling the Congress.

John McCain was next, saying that he would like to see a joint resolution in the Senate and House to authorize the President to use all force needed to defeat the Serbs -- including ground troops -- and co-guest Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) agreed.

The hawks merge as one!

"The definition of victory is the meeting of our demands," said McCain. We agree -- let's go!

McCain pointed out that our troops are working 110 hours a week in the area of Serbia. McCain feels the Administration must change and go for ground troops.

But the President, who cares more about our boys then whether or not he flattens Serbia, is the one to watch. He is the military leader of the future. He refuses to risk lives of our boys on the ground merely to speed a resolution to this problem. Mr. President -- stand fast. Our immediate objective is to WIN, but without a lot of American casualties -- not, as McCain said, to win, and win as quickly as possible.

Russert was excited, of course, because he knows that as the body bags come home in greater and greater number, the President's F-Scores will fall. What a rat.

Biden seemed to be saying that the President stuck to an air-only action because he could not engage ground troops at the time, but he knew that the people would go along with ground troops later on.

We say horse hockey -- and we know what we're talking about. The President does not want -- at any cost -- to use ground troops. These old veterans think that if they could risk their lives, then our current men and women in uniform should, as well. We agree -- but only under one circumstance -- if and when we are directly threatened. Period.

Biden said there was nothing the President could have done to stop Milosevic from storming through Kosovo. McCain thinks we could have by carpet bombing the 40,000 Serb troops on the Kosovar border. McCain is a candidate for president, but is not announcing formally until after the war is over.

Then Tim welcomed boy wonder Dan Quayle. Quayle said he wouldn't have gotten us into Kosovo in the first place. He wants a settlement as soon as possible with Russian help.

What an hilarious moron! He thinks the President should be demanding more options from the Congress rather than the Congress GIVING him more. We were practically rolling on the floor. He just doesn't get it. He said that putting ground troops in the desert is easier than putting them in Serbia. Huh??? If it were true, then so what? WE DO NOT WANT OUR BOYS KILLED ON THE GROUND IN SERBIA, YOU IDIOT!

Russert fired him up by calling him "Mister President Quayle" -- it was a riot. It appears to Quayle that the President changed the "definition" of the mission. "This didn't have to happen."

Yes it did -- as it should whenever the logistics or situation change and better solutions are available. But Quayle would have allowed Milosevic to kill 2 million Kosovars.

Russert then nailed him, quoting Larry Eagleburger telling the truth: that Bush did not want to use ground troops. Even Dole criticized Bush!!!! You should have seen Dan's face! He was red as a beet.

He said, "Well... eh... uh... I was there, I know what we were doing, we told Milosevic 'Don't go there!'" This segment begged for a laugh track -- so we provided it. He claimed "this was in secret." and that Bush's "credible" foreign policy was what kept Milosevic in check.

Sure -- just like his successes with Saddam!

Quayle said he wants to rescind the executive order banning assassinations of foreign leaders. But then he backpedaled and said that he would target leaders publicly and announce we were going to assassinate him! We almost got a hernia, we were laughing so hard. "What are we going to win? Win what? Win what?," Quayle said. Here's an idea, Dan -- go ask that to the hundreds of thousands of Kosovar refugees. they might give you a clue.

Russert then talked about the shot Quayle took at Bush baby for being a "liberal" Republican. He was talking about the phrase "compassionate conservatism." Quayle said it was because conservatives ARE compassionate. He said, "We are working day and night helping the religious right, the Salvation army." Ha, ha, ha, haha! Quayle said he thinks he would be a much better nominee than Bush. He spits out his platform like a crazed teen. "If Al Gore invented the Internet, Dan Quayle invented SpellCheck."

But the joke was on him - not with him.

GE commercials followed -- about their million hours of volunteers, backed by a choral group humming Godlike songs. Dean Witter/Morgan Stanley -- after your Social Security funds, was up next, followed by Xerox trying to be a computer company.

Al D'Amato, former stormtrooper Senator, was the next guest, along with Paul Begala. D'Amato and Begala are now yocking buddies?

D'Amato talked about John Kennedy Jr. running for Mayor of New York. Begala advised Bush Baby to stand up for gay rights and keep the Brady Bill. Begala knows the GOP must stand up to the radical right, and he is correct. "Pull this nation back to the center," said Begala.

D'Amato then went goofy, claiming that Hillary Clinton will make her decision on running for Senate based on her long range future with the President. If she stays with him, she will not run. The logistics of the race while she is in the White House would be a nightmare. He said he thinks that Hillary will support Nita Lowey and that Giuliani will announce. "It will be a war." And D'Amato will not close the door on running himself. He mentioned Vic Lazio as another potential GOP candidate. Begala said "who needs it" -- re Hillary Clinton. Begala said she is looking at it hard, but has not made up her mind.

D'Amato said that Gore would be easier to beat than Bradley. What a joke! He said he thinks Gore is boring, dull and easy to beat. Begala said it is good that Gore is stiff and boring. He's been there and done that. He knows where he wants to take the country. "We want him," said D'Amato. D'Amato also said he thinks McCain would be a great candidate. He even mentions Liddy Dole. D'Amato is hawking Italian wine these days. Begala said he will be taking a journalistic look at the "permanent prosecutor state."

Russert ended Meet the De-Press with a scoop -- that a second beaver has been caught in DC chewing down the cherry trees! Shock! Horror!

And that was it for Russert.

-- The Editors