Tony Blair has a useful new admirer in Washington called Jerry Lewis. No, not the wacky comedian beloved by French cineastes, but the craggy-jawed Californian lifeguard who has just become one of the three or four most powerful people in American government. Over the past 26 years, Lewis has crept slowly up the congressional seniority system, and has now emerged as the new chairman of the house appropriations committee, the place that decides how to spend taxpayers' money. For the government's $2 trillion budget, Jerry Lewis is God. He runs what is known as the college of cardinals, presiding over the small group of chairmen of the various subcommittees of the appropriations system. Until December, he was one of the cardinals, running the defence appropriations subcommittee. This is power. For example, the senate intelligence committee has for years been trying to kill off a massive programme for a new generation of "stealth" spy satellites as an overpriced and over-engineered leftover from the cold war era. Year after year, the committee voted the programme down. And every time, Jerry Lewis put the money back, and nobody could stop him. Lewis also personally arranged the funding for the unmanned Predator spyplane when the Pentagon wanted to kill it off. He's a sentimental chap, arranging a quick million bucks to rebuild the public swimming pool where he used to work as a lad, and a real bipartisan, even saving the life of former speaker of the house Jim Wright (a Democrat) in the Hawaii surf. And the new chairman of the college of cardinals is jolly proud to be on first-name terms with his "favourite foreigner"—one Tony Blair. Lewis was charmed by the prime minister after wangling his way on to the committee of congressmen assigned to escort Blair when he addressed the joint session of congress in July 2003. This relationship deserves careful nurturing; an invitation to Chequers, perhaps, or even some discreet murmurings about an eventual honorary knighthood?
…but will it bring influence?
The relationship with Lewis is going to be important, because one of Blair's priorities over the next two years is to save the $200bn joint strike fighter programme, for which Britain is a lead customer and on which the future strategy of the Royal Navy depends. But the $500bn US defence budget is under heavy strain. The US navy and air force want to cut back the JSF to save money they would rather spend on the F/A-22 Raptor fighter and on the new Virginia class nuclear subs. Donald Rumsfeld decided to cut back the Raptor programme instead, but ran into heavy opposition, and so called in the cavalry. We cannot cut the JSF programme, Rumsfeld told the White House, because Tony Blair needs it and the Brits bought into the programme from the beginning. So next time some saloon-bar bore blusters that Blair "has no influence in Washington," just smile and mention the joint strike fighter.
No third way
But Blair had better keep very quiet about that third way stuff he used to gas on about with Bill Clinton. Inspired by Clinton and Blair, the centrist Democratic Leadership Council set up a group for moderate Democrats in the US Senate called "third way." And they have just incurred the fearsome wrath of Bush and domestic politics chief Karl Rove. Reforming social security by moving towards private investment accounts rather than state pensions is the big ticket item for Bush's second term; so big he will need bipartisan Democratic support to get it through. When congress reconvened in January, house speaker Dennis Hastert told Bush at a White House meeting that Republican congressmen were very nervous about going into re-election campaigns next year with angry pensioners complaining that their social security cheques were being cut. And the Democratic moderates of the Third Way group and the DLC were the ones who pulled the rug from under Bush by saying that they would not back his plan.
Zoellick gets lucky
How did they persuade Bob Zoellick to give up his cabinet-level post of US trade representative to go to the state department as Condi Rice's deputy? Easy. They dangled the prospect of his succeeding Condi when she steps down early to run for the Senate. The other job Zoellick had his eye on, succeeding Jim Wolfensohn at the World Bank, suddenly seemed less alluring. As did another offer that would have made him a multi-zillionaire—taking over from Franklin Raines as head of the troubled Fannie-Mae.
Horrors of the year
For those who do not have to live with the vicious stridency of what passes for public debate among the American right, here are Tumbler's top three horrors for last year:
1. Radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh on the Abu Ghraib photos: "I'm talking about people having a good time, these people, you ever heard of emotional release? You ever heard of [the] need to blow some steam off?"
2. Oliver North (ex-US marine colonel who got the Reagan White House into the Iran-Contra mess, and now Fox News commentator and talk show host): "Every terrorist out there is hoping John Kerry is the next president of the United States."
3. Rev Pat Robertson (televangelist behind the moral majority and Christian coalition): "Homosexuals are self-absorbed hedonists that want to impose their particular sexuality on the rest of America."
