Generals, admirals push back against ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

At Wednesday’s debate for Republican presidential hopefuls, several candidates said they’d turn to military leaders when it comes to allowing gays to serve in the armed forces. Mitt Romney said, “I’m going to listen to the people who run the military.” John McCain said he would rely on “designated leaders with the responsibility of the […]

Thursday’s Mini-Report

Today’s edition of quick hits. * Good lord, it gets worse: “Well before it was publicly known he was seeing her, then-married New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani provided a police driver and city car for his mistress Judith Nathan, former senior city officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com. ‘She used the PD as her personal […]

Giuliani’s national-security halo takes another serious hit

Over the last 24 hours, much of the political world has been pondering Rudy Giuliani’s misuse of resources to help cover-up his taxpayer-financed excursions with his mistress. In light of all the lingering questions, perhaps it’s best to pause for a moment — and shift our attention to another Giuliani scandal that’s just starting to […]

Romney’s favorite torture advisor

Mitt Romney had a few uncomfortable, deer-in-the-headlights moments in last night’s CNN/YouTube debate, but perhaps the most memorable was in response to a question from a young man in Seattle: “Recently, Senator McCain has come strongly against using waterboarding as an instrument of interrogation. My question for the rest of you is, considering that Mr. […]

Leahy moves forward with contempt citations for Bush aides

If you’d given up following the Senate Judiciary Committee weighing its next move against White House aides who blew off its subpoena, you’re not alone. There was some sporadic movement on this over the summer, and then a few other issues — namely the confirmation process for a new Attorney General — put the matter […]

Giuliani gave his mistress taxpayer-financed security detail

While criticizing the apparent improprieties associated with the “Shag Fund” scandal, for New York City Mayor Ed Koch alluded to a point that hasn’t drawn much attention. “I found it strange that his lady friend was given protection,” said the long-time New York politico. “That was bizarre. She’s not the city’s responsibility. Rudy is the […]

GOP is fine with some immigration

John Edwards will no doubt draw the intense ire of the Republican Party and its base after announcing yesterday that he believes as many Mexican immigrants who want to come to the United States should be welcome. As Edwards explained it, Mexican Americans are exemplary citizens who have brought “great vitality, skills and energy to […]

Giuliani and the ‘Shag Fund’ controversy

Following up on an item from yesterday, Ben Smith had a blockbuster when he reported, “As New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani billed obscure city agencies for tens of thousands of dollars in security expenses amassed during the time when he was beginning an extramarital relationship with future wife Judith Nathan in the Hamptons, according to […]

Thursday’s political round-up

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: * The Democratic presidential race is starting to get very interesting in South Carolina. A new Clemson University Palmetto Poll shows Hillary Clinton holding onto her lead, but by a small margin — […]

WaPo lends credence to ridiculous Obama-Muslim nonsense

As the presidential campaign has unfolded, there have been a handful of Washington Post articles about Democratic candidates that were so awful, I felt genuinely sorry for the newspaper. An odd front-page piece on John Edwards selling his house, a bizarre front-page expose on Hillary Clinton’s charitable donations, and the 1,300-word hit-job on the “controversy” […]