We’ve all heard, of course, about the Bush administration’s warrantless-search program that included officials tapping phones and reviewing electronic communications without warrants. Moving the ball forward in a disturbing way, U.S. News published a very important story this week about an angle to warrantless searches that we hadn’t heard before: physical searches. In the dark […]
Retired Army Major General Paul D. Eaton may not have a household name, but as the military official in charge of training the Iraqi military from 2003 to 2004, he has an important perspective on the war and the Bush administration. And at this point, Eaton’s not impressed. In a New York Times op-ed, for […]
According to the most recent SurveyUSA poll, Bush’s approval rating in Ohio is a pitiful 34%. This from a state that backed Bush’s presidential campaigns, twice. So, when Bush visited Cleveland this morning to share his bizarre optimistic perspective on the war in Iraq, which of the state’s major GOP players were anxious to be […]
Because most political observers, including me, are far too impatient to wait until November for elections, they look for “signs” of what’s to come. Developments that may or may not have any bearing become key indicators. Which side has more retirements? Which national party raised more money? Who won the off-year races? My friend Hans […]
Following up on last week’s ARG poll that showed surprisingly strong support for Bush being censured, Newsweek conducted a similar poll gauging the public’s attitudes on the issue. The outright anger against Bush felt by many Americans was reflected in responses to questions about the effort of Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin to censure […]
Over the weekend, as the media focused on the third anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq, the White House played “blame the messenger.” Dick Cheney said, “There is a constant sort of perception, if you will, that’s created because what’s newsworthy is the car bomb in Baghdad.” (He didn’t say, “Look at […]
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: * A Quinnipiac poll released this morning shows Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) leading State Sen. Thomas Kean (R-N.J.) by four points in this year’s Senate campaign, 40% to 36%. The pollsters noted that […]
A year ago, asked why three law-abiding ticket holders were forcibly removed from a presidential event because of their bumper sticker, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said a “volunteer” was responsible. A few weeks later, after McClellan had a chance to glean more information about the incident, he added, “Now, in terms of this […]
Rep. Katherine Harris’ (R-Fla.) Senate campaign is clearly facing serious trouble — down in the polls, lagging fundraising, zero institutional support, a scandal or two hanging overhead — but like too many Republican candidates, she has one tactic to fall back on: the God card. More than 800 conservative Christians were attending a two-day annual […]
The Washington Post ran a front-page item today suggesting that congressional Republicans are “struggling to define” their 2006 campaign strategy. As it happens, that’s not quite true. As the Weekly Standard’s Fred Barnes explained, they have a plan, it’s just not a very good one. This spring and summer, Republican leaders in the Senate and […]