One of the first announcements about this week’s legislative agenda came late Monday when Bill Frist announced that a vote on a permanent repeal of the estate tax would be delayed indefinitely. And one of the second announcements was that Republicans on the Hill still wanted other tax cuts. House and Senate lawmakers said they […]
Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) is considered one of the Senate’s most vulnerable Republican incumbents, but several high-profile Dems have nevertheless withdrawn from consideration. Rumors swirled that Reps. Sherrod Brown and Tim Ryan were eyeing the race, but both announced in August that they have no intention of taking on DeWine. There is, however, one high-profile […]
A top aide to a Republican senator told Slate’s John Dickerson the other day that there are two primary tasks at hand in addressing the disaster on the Gulf Coast: “writing and figuring out who gets fired.” As for the second part, all signs are pointing to FEMA’s Mike Brown. In truth, Brown’s position has […]
Borrowing a page from the Harper’s Index, the Democratic Policy Committee issued this fascinating list of facts and data this morning. Iraq Approximate number of U.S. troops currently in Iraq: 139,000 Percent of coalition forces contributed by the U.S. 85.7 Weeks since the Pentagon developed a plan to draw down U.S. forces in Iraq to […]
Yesterday, California became the first state in the nation to pass a bill to legalize same-sex marriage without a court order. The California Assembly voted Tuesday to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry, making the state’s legislature the first in the nation to deliberately approve same-sex marriages and handing a political hot potato to […]
About 1,400 firefighters responded to the call from FEMA early last week. They were told to prepare for “austere conditions,” and bring backpacks, sleeping bags, first-aid kits and Meals Ready to Eat. The firefighters responded in kind, packing their gear and preparing to help deal with a disaster. Were they on their way to the […]
If you have a few minutes, you should definitely read the transcript of today’s White House press briefing. Remember a couple of months ago when the reporters smacked Scott McClellan around for an hour over the Plame scandal? It was about as bad today. There were too many heated exchanges to list them all, but […]
We’ve seen repeatedly over the last week that thousands of people on the Gulf Coast wanted to heed hurricane warnings, but lacked the resources to leave. They rely on public transportation, can’t afford a car, and couldn’t afford to pay for accommodations, even if they did evacuate. Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) has considered the circumstances […]
The “bubble,” unfortunately, never really bursts. [Bush’s second trip to the disaster zone] studiously avoided the hardest-hit areas of Katrina and the itinerary all but guaranteed that he’d be met with friendly audiences. The displaced persons he met at the Bethany World Church were well cared for and for the most part grateful for their […]
Roll Call ran an interesting item (sub. only) today, under the headline, “Bush’s Grip on GOP in Peril?” I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say “peril,” but, at a minimum, the piece makes a compelling case that the president’s standing is at its lowest point since, well, ever. President Bush’s command […]