Guest Post by Morbo A hate-crimes bill is winding its way through Congress, and the Religious Right is furious. The Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, that ramblin’, gamblin’ high minister of homophobia from California, flew to Washington April 17 to hold a press conference denouncing the bill. Sheldon asserted that if it passes, ministers will be […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * As if Alberto Gonzales didn’t have enough problems, Rep. Adam Putnam (R-Fla.), the Chairman of the Republican Conference and the number three in the House Republican leadership, today called on the AG to resign. CNN quotes him as saying that “[Gonzales] did not distinguish himself in the hearing… there […]
Given that I devoted several posts to highlighting far-right, blame-the-victim lunacy in response to the massacre at Virginia Tech, I thought it only fair to underscore a high-profile conservative who doesn’t share in his colleagues’ crass stupidity. The National Review’s John Derbyshire, as we all know by now, got this ball rolling on Tuesday, the […]
I’ve never been able to predict what will make the right apoplectic. For example, this seems to have sent conservatives into quite a tizzy. A top Democratic lawmaker declared on Thursday that the war in Iraq “is lost,” pointing to the sustained bloodshed there even as President George W. Bush urged patience with his strategy. […]
Late in the day yesterday, after hours of hearings, Alberto Gonzales faced some fascinating questions from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.). It’s a shame it was largely lost in the shuffle, because one of their exchanges was of particular interest. Whitehouse began by finding some common ground with Gonzales. “I assume that we can agree with […]
To my surprise, John McCain’s little song about bombing Iran actually turned into a real news story. What do you know. Sen. John McCain has a message for any critics who thought his musical joke about bombing Iran wasn’t funny: Get a life. While campaigning for president in South Carolina on Wednesday, McCain responded to […]
Reader H.B. alerted me to some interesting comments Defense Secretary Robert Gates made in Baghdad yesterday, as part of a direct challenge to the Maliki government to step up and do more — quickly. “Frankly, I would like to see faster progress,” Gates said, moments before boarding a military aircraft to travel to Iraq. Continued […]
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: * Joe Trippi, best known for his work as one of Howard Dean’s campaign managers in 2004, didn’t expect to work for any of the 2008 aspirants, but announced yesterday that he is […]
Yesterday afternoon, two unnamed senior White House aides told CNN that Alberto Gonzales’ testimony was a disaster. One described him as “going down in flames.” Another said he was “not doing himself any favors.” Political norms tell us there is simply no way Gonzales can stay on the job. I’d just remind everyone that political […]
The president gave a fairly long speech yesterday in Tipp City, Ohio, and for the first time in nearly a year, opened the floor to a Q&A with the audience. Now, there wasn’t too much of a risk for Bush — this was a very friendly audience, with tickets distributed exclusively through the local chamber […]