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Why won't George W. Bush talk about AIDS?
Texas gays say their governor's "compassionate conservatism" doesn't include them.
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[11/19/99]

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[11/18/99]

Grisly precision
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[11/18/99]

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This meeting is more about shmoozing than bare-knuckled, back-room politicking, giving governors a chance to mingle easily with lobbyists and members of the media. One-on-one interviews are easy to arrange. Arizona Gov. Jane Hull, for example, is available to talk to anyone, unless they want to discuss Sen. John McCain's temper. The National Rifle Association offered to take conference participants out skeet shooting, and Toyota invited governors to drive its new hybrid gas and electric car.

Governors and lobbyists alike could be heard debating the merits of which golf course to play, and whether there was time for a beer by the pool before the evening session. Many of the companies that helped pay for the gathering were treated to private meals with the governors. "There's relatively easy access" to the governors, said Mike Phillips, representing RJR Reynolds Tobacco. "We'll be playing golf, and at the functions and business meetings, you have access."

But the event's most important political purpose is to spotlight what has been the most explosive and successful group of Republican elected officials in the country. The GOP now controls 31 of the nation's 50 statehouses, and they have overseen massive transformations of the nation's welfare programs on a state-by-state basis. They've also padded their budgets with millions from a massive tobacco settlement, and have reaped the benefits of mostly booming state economies throughout most of the 1990s.

Founded in 1963, the Republican Governor's Association has now become the driving policy force behind Republican hopes of retaking the White House and rebuilding the party's tarnished post-impeachment image. Just as the Democratic Leadership Council produced President Clinton in 1992 and dragged the party to the center, the Republican governors are regarded as the moderating force of their party, whose congressional leadership has been berated for being too conservative and too intolerant since seizing control of Congress in 1994.

However, unlike the DLC, the governors association has no formal ideological mission and many of its members are staunch conservatives. "What sets this group apart is that they are CEOs," said association spokeswoman Kirsten Fedewa. "They deal with the delivery of services on a daily basis, and that really puts them in touch with the needs of the people."

The group is also the power base for the presidential front-runner, Texas Gov. George W. Bush. Some of Bush's earliest and strongest supporters are from this group, including Michigan Gov. John Engler, and some of Bush's most coveted endorsements have come from governors as well.

In all, 25 of the 31 governors (plus Bush himself, presumably) have endorsed the Texas governor. The most recent high-profile gubernatorial nod to Bush came from Hull, who showed her own maverick streak in bucking hometown hero McCain in favor of the Texan.

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