I’ve mentioned, on several occasions, how much I like Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. On a variety of issues, he and I are not exactly on the same page, but when it comes to an aggressive, feisty attitude, Reid is my kind of guy. There’s a terrific profile on Reid in the current issue of […]
A couple of months ago, John Edwards had a stunning post at the TPM Café about the tragedy that leads poor people to pay more for nearly everything. In the same vein, I found this item from the current issue of The Atlantic disheartening. It’s a paradoxical fact that being poor frequently results in having […]
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers: * Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) may be under ridicule for her media conspiracy ideas, but not all the news was bad for her yesterday. Florida House Speaker Allan Bense (R), who had been […]
Election-starved political observers are diligently analyzing Ohio’s Paul Hackett-Jean Schmidt special election, looking for signs, trends, or even hints about what’s to come. There is a risk, of course, of reading too much into this either way. Dems are noting that a terrific Dem candidate nearly beat a Republican in one of the reddest congressional […]
For over a year, there was an odd, simmering fight between Congress and the president over the transportation bill. Bush told lawmakers, in no uncertain terms, that the legislation could cost no more than $284 billion. Lawmakers were prepared to risk, and possibly overturn, a White House veto on the issue. (Never get between a […]
In 1992, Colorado voters narrowly approved a truly outrageous, anti-gay ballot measure called “Amendment 2.” The initiative was written to prevent any municipality in the state from providing discrimination protections for gays, and nullified laws that had already been adopted in Aspen, Boulder, and Denver. It was obvious bigotry, plain and simple. Amendment 2 sparked […]
We’ve seen, on too many occasions, that the Bush administration will gladly reject, edit, or delete scientific evidence if it conflicts with the president’s agenda. Alas, the same problem exists on the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue too. We learned last month, for example, that Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), chairman of the House Energy and […]
I realize Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) is in a tough spot. Since announcing that she’s giving up her House seat to run for the Senate, she’s been encouraged by top GOP officials to drop out of the race, polls have shown her trailing Sen. Bill Nelson (D), and fundraising isn’t going nearly as well as […]
There’s a widespread concern that congressional hearings on the Plame scandal could, in theory, offer Republicans an opportunity to extend immunity to White House officials who may have broken the law. I’ve never been entirely clear on the legality of the strategy, but those who’ve been concerned might take solace in the fact that at […]
Based on his comments yesterday, I’m pretty sure the president is unaware of his own policy on stem-cell research. “There are ethical dilemmas when it comes to science, and I think it’s very important for a government to recognize those ethical dilemmas,” Bush told the reporters. “The dilemma I was faced with was do I […]