Progress on most major policy initiatives has been difficult in the Senate this year, due entirely to the fact that the chamber’s Republicans have decided to filibuster everything that moves. Indeed, the Senate GOP caucus is on track to block more legislation in the 110th Congress than any in the history of the country — […]
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: * Yesterday afternoon, Hillary Clinton picked up one of her biggest union endorsements yet, winning the support of the American Federation of Teachers, which has 1.4 million members nationwide. * The fight between […]
The president held one of his longest public events of the year in Lancaster, Pa., yesterday, appearing on stage for nearly an hour and a half, about two-thirds of which was devoted to Q & A (with a largely sympathetic audience). Bush seemed anxious to explain his opposition to expanding the S-CHIP program for kids […]
After attendees to the Council for National Policy’s meeting dished about their willingness to abandon the GOP if Rudy Giuliani gets the Republican presidential nomination, there was some talk that the religious right leaders were bluffing. There’s simply no way, the theory goes, that these far-right leaders would help elect a Democrat by withholding support […]
Historically, when a party’s incumbents start retiring en masse, it’s indicative of a party in serious trouble. With that in mind, the Republican Party’s chances for congressional gains in 2008 will grow even bleaker today when Sen. Pete Domenini (R-N.M.) will announce his retirement. Mr. Domenici has battled a series of health problems and was […]
It seems almost amusing to think that as recently as, say, August, a significant portion of the Republican Party was absolutely convinced that actor-lobbyist-politician Fred Thompson was going to ride into the presidential forum on a white horse and save the party from electoral ruin. Sure, Thompson backers said, there’s a learning curve for anyone […]
In December 2004, Bush’s Justice Department issued a statement insisting that “torture is abhorrent.” It was an encouraging step from administration officials who were willing to concede that there were limits to presidential authority when it came to brutal interrogations. But it was a lie — shortly thereafter, then-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales signed off on […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * I sure am glad Bush came around to accepting Clinton’s policy on North Korea: “North Korea pledged Wednesday to detail its nuclear programs and disable all activities at its main reactor complex by the end of the year, its firmest commitment to disarm after decades seeking to develop the […]
One of the most common elements of a day in Congress are votes on non-binding, symbolic resolutions that honor some person or event. They’re harmless votes, which are generally ignored. Yesterday, however, the House took up a resolution recognizing the commencement of Ramadan and “demonstrat[ing] solidarity with and support for members of the community of […]
Given all the attention on the latest Washington Post poll on the state of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, it’s only fair to note that the WaPo polled on the race for the Republican nomination, too. There hasn’t been too much fluctuation in the race of late. Rudy Giuliani still leads the field […]