Yesterday, we talked about a meeting then-National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice had, on July 10, 2001, with then-CIA Director George J. Tenet and his counterterrorism chief, J. Cofer Black. According to the CIA officials, Tenet and Black warned Rice that al Qaeda was planning an attack on American interests, possibly in the United States itself, […]
We’ve seen some odd responses to the Mark Foley sex scandal the last few days, but one of the most common is also the most bizarre. I believe it was Newt Gingrich who got the ball rolling on Sunday with this startling observation: “Well, you could have second thoughts about it, but I think had […]
The [tag]Washington Times[/tag] exists, by its own admission, to promote a conservative spin on the news. As far as objectivity is concerned, the Times is slightly to the right of Fox News — and it’s proud of it. And as of today, the paper’s far-right editorial believes House Speaker [tag]Dennis Hastert[/tag] needs to resign his […]
Let’s see, seven stand-alone posts in one day on the Foley scandal. How about some other, non-Foley stories that I didn’t get to today? * Wal-Mart: always awful business practices. Always. * Markos Moulitsas (you know, Kos) makes a compelling argument for “The Case for the Libertarian Democrat.” * I’m amazed reporters are still getting […]
House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and his leadership team have been working through the weekend to deal with the Foley scandal The result was a brief speech to reporters this afternoon. Hastert, not surprisingly, did not respond to questions from reporters. Most of the comments were fairly predictable, but we are starting to see an […]
Josh Marshall takes a step back from the Foley scandal to consider the big picture, particularly as it relates to the House GOP leadership. [I]n the final weeks before an election it’s critical for each side’s leaders to work together seamlessly. And what do you think the Hastert-Reynolds relationship is like at the moment? Or […]
Last week, the New York Daily News highlighted what appeared to be one of the most important revelations in [tag]Bob Woodward[/tag]’s new book, “[tag]State of Denial[/tag].” As the paper noted, on July 10, 2001, almost exactly two months before 9/11, CIA Director George Tenet and his counterterrorism head Cofer Black sought an urgent meeting with […]
Nearly all of the questions about neglect in the Mark Foley scandal relate to the House GOP leadership and what some are calling The Foley Five — House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), and Reps. Tom Reynolds (R-N.Y.), John Shimkus (R-Ill.), and Rodney Alexander (R-La.) — all of whom were […]
I realize that the Mark Foley scandal is a tough one to spin. If I’m a GOP communications aide this morning, I’m urging everyone in the party to condemn Foley’s conduct in the strongest possible terms. I would not, for example, dismiss Foley’s predatory notes to minors as “simply naughty emails.” And yet, that’s exactly […]
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: * Florida’s Republican leadership will meet in Orlando in about an hour to pick a replacement candidate for former Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.), but whomever they choose has to hope voters in Florida’s […]