In 2008, John McCain works hard to convince people he’s not just like George W. Bush. In 2005, John McCain worked hard to convince people of the exact opposite. Looking over the transcript from the June 19, 2005, episode of “Meet the Press,” the context of the video is actually slightly worse for McCain. Tim […]
I’m reasonably confident that Barack Obama is going to win the presidency in November, but I should admit, as foolish as it may sound, my biggest fear is the vicious rumor mill, where nonsense spreads quickly, and far too many decent people struggle to differentiate between fact and right-wing fiction. One of my cousins emailed […]
The Bush administration keeps insisting it can ignore the law when it comes to detainees at Guantanamo Bay. And the Supreme Court keeps saying the Bush administration is wrong. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay have rights under the Constitution to challenge their detention in U.S. civilian courts. […]
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: * More encouraging steps towards unity: “The other day, EMILY’s List president Ellen Malcolm revealed that she’s not over her ‘anger and grief’ at Hillary’s loss, but that hasn’t stopped her from coming […]
There’s been quite a bit of talk the past few days about a handful of House Democrats who’ve announced that they won’t endorse Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Most notably, Rep. Dan Boren, a right-wing Dem from Oklahoma said he’ll vote for Obama in November, but he won’t endorse him beforehand, calling Obama “the most liberal […]
Newsweek has an item in its current issue about John McCain’s search for a running mate, and how the Republican senator will likely put personal interaction at the top of his list of priorities. Washington lobbyist Ken Duberstein told Newsweek, “He is not going to pick a clone or a crazy.” It depends, I suppose, […]
One of the enduring rhetorical devices used by supporters of the president’s Iraq policy is that every development, no matter how discouraging, is great news. Violence is up? That means the dead-enders know their time is running out. Violence is down? That means our policy is working. No news is bad news. Every catastrophe is […]
This week, Fox News’ E.D. Hill was forced to apologize for her on-air assessment that a fist-bump between Barack and Michelle Obama might have been a “terrorist fist jab.” A few weeks ago, Fox News’ Liz Trotta suggested on the air that someone should “knock off” the Democratic presidential candidate. I’m thinking it might be […]
All of the usual caveats apply — we’re still five months away from the general election, and the landscape will change; national polls offer minimal predictive value this far out; and a presidential race is a state-by-state contest. With all of that in mind, though, it’s nevertheless helpful to consider national polls for their general […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Oh my: “U.S.-led forces killed Pakistani troops in an airstrike along the volatile Afghan border that Pakistan’s army condemned on Wednesday as ‘completely unprovoked and cowardly.’ U.S. officials confirmed that three aircraft launched about a dozen bombs following a clash between Taliban militants and Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces […]