Let’s face it, the White House scandal over the Bush gang’s leaking the identity of an undercover CIA agent needs a good name. I’ve been calling it the “Plame Game” for a long while, but only because I like bad puns. All the great political scandals have simple, straightforward, easy-to-remember names. Watergate, Iran-Contra, Teapot Dome, […]
Guest Post by Morbo It is fashionable, among certain segments of the right-wing religiously orthodox intelligentsia, to bash the concept of secularism. Such attacks form the basis of a new book by conservative Catholic writer George Weigel, The Cube and the Cathedral: Europe, America and Politics without God. I have not read the book — […]
Guest Post by Morbo Like hundreds of thousands of Americans all over the land, I had a friendly postal worker knock on my door Saturday afternoon and hand me a box containing Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. My 11-year-old daughter grabbed the package, dashed upstairs to her room and was not seen for the […]
Guest Post by Morbo I’m a big fan of the Constitution. Especially at this time, with President George W. Bush trying to shred it, our country’s foundational document has never been more relevant. Every American should own a copy and be at least generally familiar with it. But having said that, I’m no fan of […]
Guest Post by Morbo Last week I speculated that President George W. Bush would nominate Attila the Hun to the Supreme Court — meaning a nominee progressives would find hard to tolerate. My money was riding on federal appeals court Judge Edith Jones. Bush threw us a curve and nominated another appeals court judge, John […]
This afternoon on Capitol Hill, the Democratic Policy Committee hosted a hearing to examine the national security implications of disclosing the identity of a covert intelligence officer. The DPC, in other words, was willing to do what the majority party was not — take a serious look at the consequences of the Plame scandal and […]
As the details of Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham’s (R-Calif.) corruption became clear, it was an odd sort of scandal. Cunningham’s malfeasance was as bold as it was embarrassing. His defenders hardly tried to spin the details, instead pointing to vague pleasantries about the lawmaker’s personality and background. By the time federal marshals raided Cunningham’s home, […]
The president hit the campaign trail today, visiting Atlanta to, as Bush likes to put it, “catapult the propaganda.” Naturally, Bubble Boy policies will be in effect and the president will only see and hear from pre-screened sycophants. What’s the issue this time? We’re back to Social Security. With several other political developments in the […]
Five years ago, during the 2000 presidential campaign, the Los Angeles Times obtained Governor George W. Bush’s daily schedule, and found some interesting patterns about a guy who really doesn’t like to work very hard. [Bush] focused on a few issues, preferred short meetings and insisted on a two-hour midday break centered on a rejuvenating […]
Slowly but surely, a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning continues to gather support in the Senate. As of today, the measure is up to 57 co-sponsors. If passed and ratified, the amendment would, obviously, be the first time in American history that the Constitution’s Bill of Rights has been undermined. It’s not uncommon for […]