It looks like the CIA’s torture-tape scandal has hit the big time. Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed an outside prosecutor Wednesday to lead a criminal investigation into the destruction of CIA interrogation videotapes. The CIA acknowledged last month that it destroyed videos of officers using tough interrogation methods while questioning two al-Qaida suspects. The acknowledgment […]
I suspect Josh Marshall speaks for many (including me) when he notes that now is an “appropriate moment to give thanks for something we can all be thankful for, even across our political divisions and support for contending candidates — that’s right, the collapsing campaign of Rudy Giuliani.” In Iowa, where admittedly Rudy hasn’t made […]
I was talking recently to a friend of mine who resented the fact that far too many presidential candidates, on both sides of the aisle, emphasize religion in their campaigns. They are running for president, my friend insisted, not preacher. It’s a secular office, in a secular government; all the religious rhetoric is excessive. I’m […]
In “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” King Arthur and his knights come across Camelot, and at least initially, couldn’t be more pleased. After thinking it over, and considering exactly what goes on inside Camelot, Arthur concludes, “On second thought, let’s not go to Camelot. It is a silly place.” I’ve come to think of […]
It’s likely my standards are low, but I’ve been relatively pleased that the presidential race has featured very little talk about the Lewinsky scandal. Going into the race, I was a little worried the media would be preoccupied with this nonsense, and Republican candidates, anxious to score cheap points, would make hay of the decade-old […]
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: * NYT notices John Edwards’ Iraq policy: “John Edwards says that if elected president he would withdraw the American troops who are training the Iraqi army and police as part of a broader […]
It’s been brewing for quite a while, but over the last couple of days, a lot of prominent Democratic bloggers have been hammering Barack Obama for using “conservative frames” to advance his candidacy. It’s counter-intuitive, of course, given the circumstances — Obama is a top challenger for the Democratic nomination, so one assumes he’d be […]
After a year of presidential politics, it’s hardly a secret that the Republican Party is burdened with a none-of-the-above problem — the GOP has, at various times, had about a dozen candidates seeking the party’s nomination, and none of them can draw support from all the various Republican constituencies. It seems hard to believe, but […]
Yesterday, the wives of two of the leading Democratic candidates sparred over the limits of the federal matching-funds system. It’s a point I’ve been wondering about for months. …Elizabeth Edwards isn’t happy with what Michelle Obama is saying on the campaign trail about the effects of John Edwards’ decision to accept federal matching funds for […]
I’m a little skeptical that high-profile endorsements matter much to voters, but there were two pretty surprising announcements yesterday that certainly raised eyebrows. Ralph Nader, for example, who is still pondering his 716th presidential bid as an independent, urged supporters to back John Edwards. Ralph Nader unleashed on Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton Monday — criticizing […]