A few days ago, in light of John McCain’s embrace of radical evangelist John Hagee, Time’s Joe Klein argued that McCain has a choice to make: “A McCain rejection of Hagee’s support would be seen as another sign of weakness by Rush and such. An acceptance of Hagee’s support would spell trouble for McCain with […]
The question seems to have been percolating, just below the surface, for a while now. When Barack Obama won 11 consecutive contests in February, he built up a noticeable lead in the race for delegates. Given that the competition is for delegates, not states, it created the impression that Obama was the frontrunner for the […]
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: * Rush Limbaugh’s efforts to help Hillary Clinton became rather explicit yesterday on the air, when the right-wing loudmouth urged his Texas listeners to cross over and vote for Clinton, because it would, […]
It would certainly be an exaggeration to describe today as a “Super Tuesday,” but with four primaries and 370 pledged delegates at stake, today is the biggest day on the Democratic nominating calendar since the actual Super Tuesday a month ago. Gaming out the various scenarios is tricky, not only because the results are unpredictable, […]
Given that lobbyists are already running practically his entire campaign operation, John McCain probably didn’t need yet another corporate lobbyist taking on a key campaign role. And yet, he has a new one anyway. Presumptive Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain has engaged a leading GOP lobbyist to coordinate his message and travel schedule with […]
Back in December, we learned the painful story of Jamie Leigh Jones, who says she was gang-raped by Halliburton/KBR coworkers in Baghdad. Jones filed a lawsuit, arguing that she had been raped by “several attackers who first drugged her, then repeatedly raped and injured her, both physically and emotionally.” Jones told ABCNews.com that an examination […]
The Intelligence Oversight Board probably isn’t one of the better known executive branch agencies, but that’s largely because it has an important job that’s done almost exclusively in secret — the IOB helps police the government’s surveillance activities. If the White House goes too far, the IOB is responsible for reining the president back. So, […]
I can appreciate, when the pressure’s on in a competitive primary, there must be a temptation for a presidential candidate to say literally anything to stop a rival. But if for no other reason than the strength of the party, that temptation has to be kept in check. I’m afraid Hillary Clinton may have forgotten […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Discouraging: “Billionaire Warren Buffett said Monday that the U.S. economy is essentially in a recession even if it hasn’t met the technical definition of one yet. Buffett said in an interview with cable network CNBC the reports he gets from the retail businesses his holding company owns show a […]
I can appreciate presidential candidates trying to establish a friendly rapport with political reporters, but this kind of charm offensive, for those who apparently have already been charmed, seems a little excessive. Instead of appealing for votes on the campaign trail, Sen. John McCain spent the weekend playing host at his rustic Arizona home — […]