A lot of people forget this, but in 2005, the Center for American Progress was way ahead of the curve on shaping a responsible Iraq policy. They mapped out something called “Strategic Redeployment,” through which U.S. forces would begin a phased withdrawal, keeping forces on the periphery, while redirecting the focus of a smaller special-operations […]
The far-right Washington Times noted the ongoing hostility between the White House and congressional Republicans over immigration policy today, and touched on a point that I haven’t seen elsewhere. Conservative leaders among House Republicans say that President Bush’s upcoming showdown with them on immigration could threaten support for the Iraq war as well as for […]
I know I’ve been picking on David Broder quite a bit — perhaps too much — the past several months, but part of me singles him out because I expect better from him. I could pick on Sean Hannity, but what would be the point? Hannity commands no respect and isn’t taken seriously; Broder is […]
As part of its cover story on “what you need to know now,” Newsweek conducted a broad poll on a variety of political and cultural affairs. There were plenty of interesting results, but one section was particularly noteworthy. Even today, more than four years into the war in Iraq, as many as four in ten […]
Kevin Drum offers a challenge: “Today’s op-ed in the Washington Post by Emily Yoffe is literally so inane I’m speechless. The last sentence, in particular, deserves an award of some kind. Can someone please give it the mockery it so richly deserves?” Well, mockery isn’t exactly my specialty, but I’m more than happy to point […]
This is a disappointing setback, but some of the reports about the Supreme Court’s ruling have been misleading. The Supreme Court on Monday said ordinary taxpayers don’t have the legal standing to challenge a White House initiative helping religious charities get a share of federal money. The 5-4 decision dealt with a suit by 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: * Fred Thompson will unveil his presidential campaign headquarters tomorrow in Nashville, followed by quick trips to South Carolina and New Hampshire. Maybe now ABC will stop paying him to broadcast his political […]
One of the key rhetorical struggles surrounding the war in Iraq is war supporters’ efforts to define the enemy. Listen to any debate long enough — on the Hill, on TV, etc. — and you’ll soon hear a conservative suggest we’re “fighting al Qaeda” in Iraq. Pesky reality-based reports note that less than 10% of […]
Last week, we talked about former U.S. Attorney Tim Griffin and his role in a 2004 “vote-caging” scheme in Florida. To briefly review, “caging” is an illegal voter-suppression scheme created by Republicans to disenfranchise likely Democrats. It’s a straight-forward trick: the GOP sends hundreds of thousands of letters marked “Do not forward” to targeted voters’ […]
Dick Cheney’s office was required by executive order to report to the National Archives on how it safeguards classified materials. When Cheney refused, the Information Security Oversight Office within the National Archives requested an on-site inspection of the Office of the Vice President. Cheney refused again, arguing it’s not part of the executive branch. The […]