Today’s edition of quick hits. * Nearly one in five U.S. college students believe Martin Luther King was advocating the abolition of slavery in his historic “I Have a Dream” speech. * Over the weekend, there were rumors that Bush would finally come to his senses on climate change, possibly even making a bold pronouncement […]
In recognition of the holiday honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., I thought I’d note a terrific column from Rick Perlstein about how and why the right still doesn’t get the civil rights icon. Not too long ago, conservatives considered King an enemy, or at the very least, a leader of a misguided movement […]
Last week, I was willing to cut congressional Dems quite a bit of slack when it came to how best to check the president’s power on escalating the war in Iraq. A non-binding resolution, which seemed to make the GOP uncomfortable, is on the table, and as Barack Obama noted yesterday on Face the Nation, […]
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has spent the better part of two years abandoning every principle he used to care about, reversing course on policies he used to take seriously, and generally kissing up to any far-right activist/group he could find. It was all part of a shameless effort whereby McCain would convince the GOP base […]
We noted earlier that Bush’s “new way forward” in Iraq is drawing criticisms from Shiites, who don’t care for the administration’s orders, and the Sunnis, who believe they’ll receive the brunt of the crackdown on Iraqi violence. Fareed Zakaria noted this week that it’s the Sunnis who have the most to lose right now. (via […]
In almost every instance, whenever an energy company drills for oil or gas on federal property, it’s supposed to pay a royalty or tax to the government. Last month, CBS News reported that the Interior Department’s diligence in collecting those royalties is little more than a bad joke. As the investigative report explained, the Interior […]
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: * Barack Obama may announce his presidential plans as early as this week, according to several published reports. Bob Novak reported that Obama “informed a major Democratic financial contributor that he probably will […]
After Saddam Hussein’s execution went so well, it was time for a return trip to the gallows today. How’d it go? Don’t ask. Iraq hanged two of Saddam Hussein’s aides early Monday, and one of the condemned was accidentally decapitated. The official video of the hangings shows Hussein’s half-brother lying headless below the gallows, his […]
Based on the White House’s description of the president’s “new way forward,” the bulk of the initiative is dependent on Iraqi officials following through on Bush’s policy agenda. The New York Times had a good item today highlighting a small flaw in the plan: Iraqi officials don’t seem to care for Bush’s policy agenda at […]
Kudos to McClatchy’s Mark Seibel for writing a terrific piece about exaggerations and omissions that continue to plague the White House’s case for an escalation. As Seibel explained today, “President Bush and his aides, explaining their reasons for sending more American troops to Iraq, are offering an incomplete, oversimplified and possibly untrue version of events […]