The [tag]president[/tag] sat down with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer yesterday and addressed the subject of sending troops to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. Unfortunately, the response was a little flawed. BLITZER: If you had good, actionable intelligence in Pakistan where [Osama [tag]bin Laden[/tag], Ayman al- Zawahiri, Mullah Muhammad Omar] were, would you give the order […]
Because the president’s popularity (or lack thereof) is linked so closely to the midterm elections, it’s probably worth taking a moment to consider whether Bush is currently on the upswing. Greg Sargent has seen the reports indicating that the president’s national support is “rising,” and that “the real beneficiary of that could be House Republicans,” […]
Dan Froomkin noted today that the White House is in the midst of a “full-on PR blitz” for one of its own. Oddly enough, it’s not the President or the Vice President; it’s the [tag]First Lady[/tag], who apparently is beginning to take on some policy responsibilities. What’s more, the public relations efforts are apparently paying […]
Just a few weeks ago, USA Today ran a very disconcerting story about predatory lenders who target our nation’s military servicemembers, and which have “sprung up by the thousands around military bases.” The results have been awful — one in five servicemembers have become victims of ridiculous interest rates (sometimes higher than 400%) and many […]
On Sunday, the Washington Post ran a stunning, must-read item by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, excerpted from his new book, “Imperial Life in the Emerald City.” As we discussed on Monday, Chandrasekaran explained, among other things, how the Bush gang chose Americans to fill key government posts in Iraq (by applying a rigid ideological test, and discarding […]
Chances are, the nation will wake up on Nov. 8 and know whether Democrats or Republicans control Congress, most notably the House. If Dems get a net gain of 15 seats or more, Nancy Pelosi becomes Speaker. That is, as long as no one starts switching sides unexpectedly. With House Democrats expecting to narrow their […]
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: * In Ohio, Dems are leading in both of the state’s two big statewide races. In the closely-watched Senate race, Rep. [tag]Sherrod Brown[/tag] (D) now leads incumbent Sen. [tag]Mike DeWine[/tag] (R) by four […]
I was reading RedState this morning for one of my other gigs, and noticed some reluctant praise for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). “I’m not a Bill Frist fan,” streiff said. “[But as] the clock winds down on his tenure in the Senate Bill Frist has finally taken decisive action on a vital issue.” […]
Back in July, we learned about Bleu Copas, a decorated sergeant and Arabic language specialist who was thrown out of the military under the Army’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. Copas, who joined the Army after the 9/11 attacks out of a sense of duty, was responsible for helping translate intercepted messages from possible terrorists, […]
The LAT ran a painfully poignant column today from a 54-year-old [tag]Iraq[/tag]i reporter in The Times’ Baghdad Bureau. His name was withheld in order to protect his safety, but after reading the column, one wonders whether anyone in Baghdad has any realistic shot at safety anyway. On a recent Sunday, I was buying groceries in […]