In December, when then-HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson was announcing his retirement from the Bush cabinet, he said there’s only one fear that keeps him up at night. “For the life of me, I cannot understand why the terrorists have not attacked our food supply because it is so easy to do,” Thompson said as announced […]
As expected, the White House has picked yet another fight over judges with Senate Dems. Following through on a promise he has made repeatedly since his victory in November, President Bush yesterday renominated 12 candidates for federal appeals court seats whose confirmations were blocked by Senate Democrats during his first term. The renomination of the […]
Last week, during a lengthy gaggle, Scott McClellan responded to a few questions about when, exactly, he learned that James Guckert was using a fake name. Q: Were you aware that he had another name? McClellan: Was I aware? I had heard that. I had heard that, yes, recently. Q: But did you know during […]
The fact that wealthy political donors can buy their way into an ambassadorship is perhaps the worst kept secret in Washington. It’s bi-partisan, entirely commonplace, and the kind of casual corruption that hardly raises an eyebrow. That said, we rarely get a look at exactly how the process unfolds. Fortunately, one of Bush’s more enthusiastic […]
Following up on the New York Times’ revelation that Wal-Mart benefited from a secret, sweetheart deal with the Labor Department, widespread talk of investigating the arrangement has already begun. Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) and the Education & the Workforce Committee Dems have already contacted the Labor Department about the need for an internal review of […]
Last week, when the James Guckert story reached national exposure, Scott McClellan was hit with a series of questions about why Guckert was given the opportunity to “play reporter” in the White House. McClellan, true to form, passed the buck, said it wasn’t his job to manage access to the briefing room, and offered reporters […]
Following pundit payola has become quite the cottage industry of late, from Armstrong Williams, to Maggie Gallagher, to Michael McManus, to word from Howard Kurtz today that Eric Wesson, a columnist for an African American newspaper in Kansas City, got paid by a Dem House candidate. I have my own submission to the list. Bill […]
I was naive enough to believe that massive deficits created by massive tax cuts would make it impossible for any serious person to ever argue again that tax cuts can pay for themselves. Alas, the Bush’s budget director is not a serious person. Bush advisers argue that he is tackling problems long ducked by other […]
Updates with regards to the Plame Game scandal are far and few between — yes, you never hear about it, but the Bush White House is still under a criminal investigation — but it was encouraging to learn that Alberto Gonzales will not be involved with the investigation. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales has stepped […]
Stop me if you’ve heard this one… A test of the national missile defense system failed Monday when an interceptor missile did not launch from its island base in the Pacific Ocean, the military said. It was the second failure in months for the experimental program. A statement from the Missile Defense Agency said the […]