We’ve been dealing with this kind of argument for a little too long now. When conditions in Iraq deteriorate, the Bush administration says, “We can’t withdraw U.S. troops now; this is when they’re needed most.” When violence wanes, those same officials say, “We can’t withdraw U.S. troops now; their presence is helping bring some stability […]
When it comes to personal characteristics and diversity, the 2008 presidential race has covered a lot of ground. Are Americans prepared to embrace an African-American candidate (Obama)? A woman (Clinton)? A Mormon (Romney)? A Latino (Richardson)? A thrice-married serial adulterer (Giuliani)? But the one question that no one seems anxious to talk about is the […]
Last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters that she believed the presidential candidate with the most pledged delegates should be the Democratic nominee. Pelosi added that the party would likely be damaged if “superdelegates overturn what happened in the elections.” It was noteworthy, in part because Pelosi has remained neutral in the Clinton-Obama competition, […]
The conventional wisdom held that the recent controversy surrounding Jeremiah Wright would help drag one Democratic presidential hopeful down, at least a little while helping push the other up. As it turns out, according to a new poll from NBC News/Wall Street Journal, that’s exactly what happened — though the candidate that was supposed to […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Iraq’s most intense fighting in several months: “Amid heavy clashes between government forces and Shiite Muslim militants in Baghdad and the southern port city of Basra, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki issued an ultimatum Wednesday demanding that the militias surrender their weapons within 72 hours. Radical cleric Muqtada […]
In case there was any doubt at all about Hillary Clinton’s intention to keep fighting for the Democratic nomination, as long as it takes, the senator made her objectives clear in an interview with Time’s Mark Halperin. When Halperin asked about her “most likely path to victory,” given the very high hurdles in front of […]
At this point, finding the good side of the Democrats’ prolonged nomination fight is awfully difficult. I imagine voters in Oregon and Kentucky, for example, are pleased that their votes will be sought after in late May, so for them this is marginally good news, but for the party overall, this has grown tiresome, frustrating, […]
It was probably the most-watched segment Fox News has aired in months. Last Friday, “Fox and Friends” host Steve Doocy, Brian Kilmeade, and Gretchen Carlson spent the better part of the morning demonizing Barack Obama over the “typical white person” flap, mainly by removing the quote from context. Enter “Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace. […]
If the typical question for a war supporter is, “How much longer do we stick with an ineffective policy in Iraq?” the typical response is, “Until we achieve victory.” War supporters labeled themselves the “Victory Caucus” a while back. When John McCain talks about his support for Bush’s Iraq policy, he insists we need to […]
Way back in March, Carpetbagger regular Jim Benton encouraged the Clinton campaign to “stop with the Tonya Harding tactics.” Apparently, it’s a comparison that’s catching on. Jake Tapper reports: I just spoke with a Democratic Party official, who asked for anonymity so as to speak candidly, who said we in the media are all missing […]