I guess this was inevitable. We’re engaged in a war, the Republican majority has expanded, so it’s only natural that we’ll have to deal with a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning. South Dakota’s new U.S. senator, who defeated a politician who didn’t think a flag-desecration amendment was needed in the Constitution, says he will […]
It probably didn’t generate the kind of attention it deserved, but the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office took a close look at Bush’s budget — the one the White House insists will start the government on the road to cutting the deficit in half — and couldn’t help but notice that it’s a disaster. The analysis […]
For all the conservative readers who’ve accused me of “elitism” because of my concerns about an uninformed electorate, I give you National Review’s Jonah Goldberg. As a matter of principle, I oppose voting by ex-cons because voting should be harder, not easier — for everybody…. If you are having an intelligent conversation with somebody, is […]
Newsweek had a great item this week on one of my favorite issues: the never-ending White House drive to host exclusive, sycophant-only gatherings for Bush. For example, there was an event in Tampa last month where Bush heard exactly what he wanted to hear. The White House likes to call them “regular folks” — people […]
Bush’s EPA has been an embarrassment for, well, pretty much since the president’s inauguration in 2001, but its handling of mercury pollution has to be a fiasco that is unique in its humiliation. A few months ago we learned, for example, that the Bush gang took coal industry language — word for word — and […]
The fact that congressional Dems are making increasingly-loud noises about taking up re-redistricting has apparently irked a couple of editorial boards. The Washington Post, for example, argued yesterday that Dems shouldn’t copy the Republicans’ underhanded tactics. An alternative exists to Republicans’ repeating their mischief and Democrats’ mimicking it. Both sides could agree on a national […]
My new daily feature about campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may nevertheless be of interest to political observers: * Doris Matsui, the widow of Rep. Robert Matsui (D-Calif.) is in a 12-way special election for her husband’s seat in Congress. She remains the odds-on favorite, but with 11 […]
We already know that Undersecretary of State John Bolton is a ridiculous choice to be the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. We know that his nomination is a slap in the face to the international community, that Bolton is the anti-diplomat, and that he has nothing but disgust for the institution in which […]
It may not be entirely fair, but when one holds himself or oneself out as Mr. Clean, it’s inevitable that he or she will be held to a higher standard. That’s why when we hear about a senator promoting a policy sought by a corporation donating to a group closely tied to the lawmaker, it […]
It seemed like a pretty big deal. Republican staffers on the Hill accessed Dem computer servers and stole over 4,000 memos and documents. It was, for a short while, front-page news. Almost 12 months ago, the Justice Department announced that it was launching a formal criminal probe into the scandal, including appointing a qualified U.S. […]