After the 2004 election, the religious right took credit for Republican gains and was ready to cash in their chips. Especially in light of the GOP’s 55-45 majority in the Senate, 2005 was going to be the watershed year in which they could finally score the legislative victories they’ve wanted for years. James Dobson and […]
Around this time of year, it’s pretty common for pundits and writers to look ahead and make predictions about what to expect in the year to come. Fortunately, Pat Robertson doesn’t need to speculate about what 2006 has in store for the world — God personally tells him what’s going to happen. TV preacher Pat […]
When the president put his signature on a bill that included a prohibition on torture, it seemed like a serious concession by the Bush White House. After all, this was a provision Bush had threatened to veto just a couple of weeks prior. Unfortunately, a “signing statement” suggested that the president left himself some wiggle […]
Late last week, the Justice Department announced that it was launching a criminal investigation, not into Bush’s warrantless-search program, but into the leak that exposed the program. The president’s allies raised a predictable refrain: Dems wanted a leak investigation when it came to Valerie Plame, so what’s wrong with a leak investigation now? I wrote […]
I hate to criticize Scott McClellan two posts in a row — oh, who am I kidding — but there was another exchange in today’s briefing that’s important. Indeed, it gave us a hint as to how the White House will deal with questions surrounding Bush’s warrantless-search program whenever queries get uncomfortable. Q: A number […]
Sidestepping questions about polls isn’t just a habit for Scott McClellan, it’s a pastime. Every question that references a poll is just another opportunity for the White House press secretary to talk about how insignificant the entire polling industry is to him, the president, and his administration colleagues. In November, the day after Dems scored […]
Kudos of the Day to syndicated columnist Norman Solomon for having the nerve to call out Bill O’Reilly in a big way in this week’s column, titled “Media New Year’s Resolutions for 2006.” Solomon advised O’Reilly: “Carefully listen to the archival footage in [the movie] ‘Good Night, and Good Luck.’ If you don’t notice your […]
Maybe he needs to rally the far-right base in advance of a very tough re-election fight, or maybe he’s trying to atone for criticizing intelligent-design creationism, but whatever the motivation, even Rick Santorum should know better than to appear at Justice Sunday III. [Santorum] was just added to the program of Justice Sunday III, a […]
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: * Two weeks ago, Texas Comptroller and gubernatorial candidate Carole Keeton Strayhorn dropped hints that she’d consider leaving a GOP primary against incumbent Gov. Rick Perry (R) to ran as an independent. Yesterday, […]
The Washington Times ran an item today on Dems drafting a campaign strategy that will emphasize privacy issues over the next year. The article explains, of course, that the theme will underscore fights of warrantless-searches, the Alito nomination, and the Patriot Act. Apparently, Republicans are planning to rely on the tricks used during the last […]