I’d assumed that one of the few side benefits of the Jeremiah Wright controversy is that no one, anywhere, could still possibly believe that Barack Obama is a Muslim. After all, everyone in the country got to see a whole lot of Obama’s Christian pastor and his Christian church. It’s hard to imagine anyone still […]
I guess it’s an instance of “better late than never.” Way back in February, after an extensive outreach effort, John McCain secured the endorsement of pastor John Hagee, a right-wing megachurch televangelist, best known for his bizarre anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic, anti-woman, anti-Muslim and anti-gay views. McCain campaigned alongside his new buddy in advance of the Texas […]
I’m going to assume that the focus groups put oil prices at the very top of voters’ priority lists. Energy policy has gone from something of an afterthought — remember when Iraq dominated the Democratic race? — to the singular focus of the Clinton campaign. Clinton’s attacks on oil prices as artificially inflated, Enron-style, keep […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * The devastation in Burma is just staggering: “The death toll from the Myanmar cyclone is more than 10,000 people, Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry said Monday. Survivors were facing their third night without electricity in the aftermath of the historic cyclone that also clogged roads with thousands of downed trees. Diplomats […]
Bill Clinton raised a few eyebrows over the weekend — and even drew quite a bit of criticism — for giving himself a little pat on the back for a job well done while campaigning in Lebanon, Indiana. Just in case you were wondering how Bill Clinton feels about his tenure as president, he said […]
Over the last several weeks, we’ve seen a few items explaining just how difficult it would be for Hillary Clinton to catch up to Barack Obama, but Ezra reminds us today that “the math is harder for Clinton to make up with every passing day.” There simply aren’t enough contests remaining for Clinton to close […]
Following up on an earlier item, a couple of pieces that ran over the weekend have drawn considerable buzz in Democratic circles — Steve Chapman’s piece noting John McCain’s relationship with G. Gordon Liddy (contrasting it with Obama knowing Bill Ayers), and Frank Rich’s piece noting McCain’s relationship with John Hagee (contrasting it with Obama […]
TNR’s Jonathan Cohn noted a story today from University of Chicago professor Harold Pollack, who volunteered for the Obama campaign over the weekend. I spent today canvassing in Schererville, Indiana, with my 11-year-old. We were trolling neighborhood garage sales talking with people as we went door to door. In Indiana, people sell hot dogs, coffee, […]
The headline on Bill Kristol’s NYT column today reads, “McCain-Jindal?” It suggests to the reader that the column is about John McCain considering Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal for the Republican presidential ticket, as has been rumored elsewhere. As it turns out, the first three-fourths of Kristol’s column was actually about Jeremiah Wright and Barack Obama’s […]
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: * The Clinton campaign seems to be raising expectations regarding North Carolina, where Obama has been considered the favorite. Clinton said on Friday, “This primary election on Tuesday is a game changer. This […]