Hotline After Dark -- Best In Show

Journos had different interpretations of Pres.-elect Obama's meeting with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ):

Chicago Tribune's McCormick: "We're told that they met for about 90 minutes kind of mid-day here in Chicago in the Loop in downtown. ... We know sort of broadly that they talked about bipartisan and cooperation. This was sort of a no-lose situation for both men. ... We got about 90 seconds in the room just to kind of get some photos and shout a couple questions. McCain seemed even less responsive to questioning than President-elect Obama did" ("On the Record," FNC, 11/17).

Newsweek's Wolffe: "A lot of it is that symbolism. They are trying to be nice, magnanimous, generous after the election, but remember that McCain is the go-to guy for Democrats on the Hill anyway. And look at the people in that room. Lindsey Graham and Rahm Emanuel have a very good working relationship and friendship that is going to be crucial to making this thing work. So there are areas of common ground on the global warming, on the financial crisis, on national security, but, more importantly, the people around these principal players get on and know how to work together" ("1600," MSNBC, 11/17).

New York Daily News' Louis: "It didn't look like they were getting along all that well, they sort of put the best show on things but they have to create a relationship and not repair one" ("AC 360," CNN, 11/17).

After the jump, more Obama/McCain, HRC as sec/state and Huckabee's tell-all.

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MSNBC's Matthews: "That's the strangest body language I've ever seen on television. It looks like those Middle East photo ops where they sit along the walls in those straight-backed throne chairs. ... They're sitting like they're enthroned next to each, looking away to the cameras, not at each other. ... Not good chair diplomacy there" ("Hardball," 11/17).

New York Daily News' Bazinet: "It seemed like there had been some light conversation before we walked in. They were certainly ready for us. ... It seemed like they had been old friends and they were quite ready for this meeting. ... When Senator McCain was asked whether he was ready to step up and help the president-elect with his administration, his answer was, 'Obviously.' So I think we can take a lot from that" ("Situation Room," CNN, 11/17).

UNCHARTED WATERS

Coverage of Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) being considered for sec/state continued, with most of the the talk focusing on Bill Clinton's finances and what happens if Obama does not end up picking her.

CNN's Henry: "Two officials close to the Obama transition are confirming that they have begun looking at the finances and the post-presidential activities of former President Bill Clinton to try and ascertain whether or not there's any sort of negative information out there that should wave President-elect Barack Obama from even considering Senator Hillary Clinton to be Secretary of State. ... These officials are trying to shoot down a report earlier today on the Politico Web site saying that there was exasperation in the Obama camp with the slow pace from the Clintons in terms of turning over information. Obama officials are insisting that they're not exasperated. They're not specifying how quickly these records are being turned over, however, but ... they're not upset" ("Situation Room," 11/17).

Chicago Sun-Times' Sweet: "If the Obama administration ... can't think of a way to contain Bill Clinton and his fundraising, but still give a useful, important mission to the former president and Senator Clinton, then how can he possibly deal with far more complex world crises? ... This is a problem that has a solution. I'm not sure in the back and forth. But part of it is transparency and disclosure. ... If you don't demand a lot of past disclosure, and the deal is, from now on, you disclose everything, that's the kind of compromise I think the Obama team can work out with the Clintons to make it work" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 11/17).

Washington Post's Rucker: "This is really unprecedented to have a secretary of state whose spouse is sort of doing his own kind of foreign policy as a philanthropist, and so this is something they're going to have to navigate. ... He's shown resistance certainly in the past, in terms of making those documents public through news reporters. All indications are that they're cooperating with the Obama team, but the Obama team hasn't said so yet" ("On the Record," FNC, 11/17).

Dem strategist Hilary Rosen: "This constant commenting how Bill Clinton might hurt his wife's chances I think is nonsense. Bill Clinton is in many respects the most vetted person in this country. ... This is a vetted family. And I think that the fact that it is taking a couple of days for this all to sink in for Hillary Clinton to talk to her husband who had been out of the country, I think that people are sort of making too much out of this" ("Situation Room," CNN, 11/17).

Pat Buchanan: "Barack Obama has ... already discounted the Bill problem down the road, and he's accepted it. I think he's made a very good decision. ... She's a more impressive figure than the others who have been suggested for the job. However, I do agree that Barack Obama's up on that high dive now. And if he doesn't get Hillary Rodham Clinton as his secretary of state, it's going to be a long way climbing down that ladder with everybody watching and talking about it. ... I think this thing has gone so far, it's got to be concluded positively or it's going to be a pretty bad mess" ("1600," MSNBC, 11/17).

Ex-AR Gov. Mike Huckabee (R): "If he doesn't pick her up now, oh, boy. Oh boy. ... He's rejected her once as the VP. Now if he floats her name out there and toys with her yet again, it's like knocking on the door twice and never taking her to the dance" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 11/17).

PAYBACK'S A B-OOK

During an appearance on "Hannity & Colmes," Huckabee was asked about his new book, "Do The Right Thing: Inside the Movement That's Bringing Common Sense Back to America."

FNC's Colmes: "Some people have said you've gone to town against some of your former opponents here?"

Huckabee: "No. If you look at 240 pages of the book ... there's probably a page or two in which I try to be as honest because I think people came to know that during the campaign the credibility I had with people was that I was plain spoken and I told people what I really believed, and I didn't filter it."

Colmes: "What's the deal with [Mitt] Romney?"

Huckabee: "It's not a deal with Romney. I talked about some specific instances, sort of behind the scenes stuff at debates. Talked about the Iowa caucuses. ... This isn't a beat up Mitt Romney book. ... This is a book about the future of the Republican Party."

Colmes, on Romney: "The statement he points out, is beneath Mike Huckabee. If we're going to move the party offer we need to offer more than personal incriminations. Unfortunately, he says in this book, Mike Huckabee is consumed with presumed slights. He seems more interested in settling scores than bring people together."

Huckabee: "That was his spokesman. I'm pretty sure that he has not read the book. ... The book doesn't come out until tomorrow. So I'm pretty sure he hasn't read the book."

More Huckabee: "If people read this book, here's what they're going to see. This is not a book about what was. This is a book about what ought to be. This is a book on why the Republican Party has got to hit the reset button, move forward."

Colmes: "Again Mitt Romney -- what was your issue with him? What's your issue with him?"

Huckabee: "A lot of it had to do with misrepresentation of my record both in paid ads and in efforts done in Iowa, in South Carolina very specifically, when I was painted to be some economic liberal, which is nonsense. I'm not. ... What I pointed out was that on every major position, whether it was the sanctity of life or the Second Amendment, or whether it was taxes, whether it's the Bush tax cuts, same-sex marriage, [Romney] had had a dramatic conversion to every one of those issues. And that was my point. And then he attacked John McCain on immigration, he attacked Rudy Giuliani on immigration and I can't remember what else, but there was a sense in which we all wanted to say, Mitt, run on your platform, don't attack the rest of us. ... I didn't bring this up during the course of the primary. I didn't bring it up even in the course of the general election because had he been the vice presidential nominee, I wouldn't want to."

Colmes: "You say about Fred Thompson he never grasped the dynamics of race or the country and his lackluster campaign reflected just how
disconnected he was to people that has Fred Thompson reacted to."

Huckabee: "I don't think so. I doubt he will. ... I never saw Fred's heart in this thing. I mean, I just didn't. You never saw him out there showing the kind of energy that a person ought to be showing when they're running for president. Look, I like Fred personally. Fred was another guy that called me a liberal."

Huckabee, asked if he's going to run for POTUS again: "You know, honestly, and this is the truth, I have no idea. I'm busy with my FOX show. I've got a contract with ABC Radio Network and I'll be doing commentaries. ... Roll the clock four years back, and you know who we were talking about as the presidential contenders, Bill Frist, George Allen. They didn't even run. So anybody we talk about now, I'd almost say, if you hear that somebody is absolutely running, they probably won't even be in the race" (FNC, 11/17).