Giuliani gets diplomatic challenge in the Middle East backwards

Given that Rudy Giuliani has no experience or background in foreign policy, national security, or diplomacy, it stands to reason that he’ll occasionally offer incoherent remarks about the global stage. But his comments yesterday go beyond simple ignorance and point to a candidate who simply doesn’t understand current events. Republican Rudy Giuliani said Monday the […]

Assad sits at Rice’s table — will the right flip out?

Bret Stephens, a member of the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board, raises an interesting point in his column today. Remember Nancy Pelosi’s spring break in Damascus? Condoleezza Rice apparently does not. When the House Speaker paid Syrian strongman Bashar Assad a call back in April, President Bush denounced her for sending “mixed signals” that “lead […]

Is the Middle East peace conference the ‘mother of all photo ops’?

It’s obvious that the big news story of the day is the Middle East peace meeting at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, where delegations from 46 countries and international organizations will meet to discuss Arab-Israeli peace negotiations. What’s far less obvious is whether the gathering will make any difference at all. Even before […]

Romney endorses religious discrimination in government

Of all the presidential candidates, Mitt Romney should be the very last one to publicly endorse discrimination on the basis of religion. He’s a member of a religious minority, he’s been the target of discrimination, and he’s spent the better part of 2007 imploring Americans to judge public officials on their ideas and character. To […]

Monday’s Mini-Report

Today’s edition of quick hits. * The bear market continues to rear its ugly head: “Wall Street sold off sharply Monday as concerns about a weakening credit market wiped out investors’ enthusiasm about strong retails sales over the holiday weekend. The Dow Jones industrial average fell nearly 240 points. Investors were unnerved by another series […]

It looks like ‘blue’ skies ahead

In light of Congress’ low approval ratings, some have suggested that the wave that washed Republicans out of the congressional majority 12 months ago has already subsided, and both chambers will once again be up for grabs 12 months from now. CQ’s Bob Benenson and Jonathan Allen took a very thorough look at the landscape […]

Giuliani: Earmarks for me, but not for thee

This may come as a surprise to … absolutely no one, but what Rudy Giuliani says and what he does are frequently at odds with one another. In the latest example, Candidate Giuliani hates earmarks, but Businessman Giuliani loves ’em. On the campaign trail, Rudy Giuliani rails against congressional spending set aside for lawmakers’ pet […]

Cooking the books on returning Iraqi refugees

Among the many dejecting developments in Iraq in recent years are the millions of Iraqis who were forced to flee their homes and their country. As part of the broader effort to bolster the performance of the Maliki government, officials are touting impressive numbers allegedly showing these Iraqis finally coming home. On Nov. 7, Brig. […]

What is Lindsey Graham talking about?

Having just returned from a Thanksgiving trip to Iraq with John McCain and Joe Lieberman, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) appeared on Fox News yesterday to — you guessed it — hail Bush’s Iraq policy with unrestrained hyperbole. “[The existing policy is] working amazingly well, beyond my expectations. I think history will judge the surge as […]

Why is Lott resigning five years early?

Following up on this morning’s item, there are a variety of official and unofficial reasons for Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.), just one year after asking voters in Mississippi to give him another six-year term, giving up his seat before the end of the calendar year. Some are more plausible than others. * Explanation #1: “Spend […]