Inside Politics

Reagan vs. Reagan

Michael Reagan, the conservative radio talk-show host and adopted son of the late president, says his brother, Ron, is a “typical liberal” who “hates George Bush.”

Mr. Reagan made the comment Tuesday night on the Fox News Channel’s “Hannity and Colmes” program before his brother spoke to the Democratic National Convention about embryonic stem-cell research and urged viewers to vote for John Kerry, who was a harsh critic of his father.

Michael Reagan, who pointed out that it was President Reagan who first placed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research, said he spoke to his brother about the convention appearance “before and during the week we spent together” at the time of their father’s death and funeral.

“My brother doesn’t like George Bush. He is the typical liberal,” Mr. Reagan said. “He hates George Bush. ’He stole the election in 2000,’ to quote my brother.”

Michael Reagan said he also was disappointed that Ron failed to show up for the recent home-porting ceremonies in San Diego for the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.

“To be honest with you, when I asked him to show up on the home port for the USS Ronald Reagan, he said to me, ’It’s a weapon of mass destruction. I’m a liberal. I don’t honor that.’ Well, I find that really unconscionable.”

Mr. Reagan added: “All I’m saying is, if you’re going to be used by the Democrats, as he’s being used tonight, then understand why you’re being used. You’re being used because you’re Ronald Reagan. You’ve got the same name as our father. And also honor your father and be with your mother at these important engagements she’s at. She needs to have her children with her. I can’t take the place of Ron or [sister] Patti at these events. I’m at them because I honor my father’s legacy. I’d just like to have Ron do the same.”

’Give it back’

“In his inimitable style, Bill Clinton assailed the Bush tax cuts Monday night by joking that he felt bad because he had finally made it into a tax bracket where he was rich enough to benefit,” the Wall Street Journal notes in an editorial.

“It was an effective line. But if the former president truly wants to soothe his conscience, we have a simple solution: Give it back,” the newspaper said.

“If Mr. Clinton and his senatorial spouse don’t believe it’s proper now that they are millionaires to pay taxes at the 35 percent top marginal rate, then they shouldn’t. They can always pay instead at the Clinton-era rate of 39.6 percent, since the IRS isn’t known for rejecting donations.

“As it happens, Massachusetts, where Mr. Clinton delivered his attack on ’concentrated wealth,’ has a tax provision allowing just such extra payments. The state cut its top marginal income-tax rate in 2001 to 5.3 percent, but it expressly allows taxpayers to pay at the old 5.8 percent rate if they choose. As of last week, for 2003 some 1,330 Commonwealth filers (out of 3.03 million total) had voluntarily paid the higher rate, yielding $177,897 in extra state revenue. No word if John Kerry or actor and Boston-area native Ben Affleck are on the list.

“An alternative would be for the Clintons to calculate their tax liability at both rates and send the difference to charity. Their generosity would be applauded. And it would be a lot fairer than raising taxes on millions of other hard-working Americans so that rich and famous liberals don’t feel guilty.”

Dean’s slur

Apparently former Vermont governor and failed presidential candidate Howard Dean didn’t get the memo about toning down the hate speech during the Democratic National Convention, or perhaps that only applies to speakers on the podium.

Mr. Dean, during a “Take Back America” event Tuesday, accused the Bush administration of being “book burners,” in an apparent effort to compare Republicans to Nazis.

Marc Morano of CNSNews.com reports that Mr. Dean urged liberal activists to run for office at all levels of government to stem the tide of conservative governance, and he explained why he campaigned for someone who was running for the position of library trustee.

“I think the library trustee is pretty important in an administration where they like book-burning better than reading books,” he said to applause.

Moore lies

A half-brother of Osama bin Laden says he enjoyed most of Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11,” except for what he called “inaccuracies” about his family.

“It’s a moving film,” Yeslam Binladin, a Geneva-based tycoon and one of the al Qaeda leader’s 54 siblings, said in an interview with the French magazine VSD.

“I even laughed at times,” said Mr. Binladin, adding, “but a lot less when he states errors or inaccuracies about my family, knowing perfectly well that he’s deceiving the public.”

In the film, Mr. Moore says President Bush tried to cover up his family’s longtime business and personal ties to the family of Osama bin Laden and other prominent Saudis because many of the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.

One of his main points is that the Bush administration helped 142 Saudis — including two dozen members of bin Laden’s family — fly out of the United States two days after the September 11 attacks, even though commercial air space was closed.

“That’s false and can be verified by anyone,” said the Saudi-born Mr. Binladin, who intentionally spells his name differently from Osama, who has admitted responsibility for the September 11 attacks. “They benefited from no exceptional authorization to leave American territory.”

A recent September 11 panel report states that the chartered flights took place starting Sept. 14, once airspace had reopened, the Associated Press reports.

A Nader charge

Ralph Nader supporters in Illinois charge that employees of a leading state Democrat scrutinized ballot-access petitions last month, a violation of state law that prohibits state employees from doing political work.

The petitions contained signatures that would gain Mr. Nader access to November’s presidential ballot, said Christina Tobin, ballot-access coordinator for the campaign in Illinois.

She claims that 10 employees from the office of Democratic state Rep. Michael Madigan inspected the petitions in late June during a period in which the public can examine the documents.

“We have already proved that these employees from Mike Madigan’s office were there through sign-in sheets during the period these petitions were available for public scrutiny,” Miss Tobin said. “This we learned through a public records request to the Chicago Board of Elections.”

Mr. Madigan’s office refused her ensuing records request under the Freedom of Information Act, asking for the time sheets for that day for those employees shown to be viewing the petitions. Mr. Madigan’s office cited personnel confidentiality.

A spokesman for Mr. Madigan said the staffers involved were not on state time, but acting as private individuals.

• Greg Pierce can be reached at 202/636-3285 or gpierce@washingtontimes.com.