When talking about vouchers in public policy, I, like most people, think of funding for private school tuition. These vouchers are at the heart of one of the most divisive, emotional, and controversial education policies in recent memory. Since the Supreme Court ruled last year that public funds can be diverted to religious ministries through […]
Chances are, most Americans aren’t familiar with Mary Jacoby. She’s been a great journalist for the St. Petersburg Times, covering Congress and political news for the paper in Washington for years. I’ve had a chance to talk with her on several occasions, and I can say with confidence, she belonged at a paper with a […]
You’d think with all the time Republicans in the Texas Legislature had to just wait around for the Democrats to come back from New Mexico, they would have figured out exactly how they wanted to proceed on their absurd plan to re-redistrict. Much to my surprise (and glee), they haven’t. After months of intense partisan […]
In March 2002, the Bush White House made perhaps its boldest flip-flop ever. After years of praising free trade orthodoxy, Bush let Karl Rove convince him it would be politically wise to impose heavy new tariffs on imported steel, so as to help Bush’s chances in ’04 in swing states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West […]
It was an interesting choice. Where would Wesley Clark go for his first campaign stop after declaring his candidacy? Certainly, Iowa and New Hampshire would be logical choices, as would South Carolina. But the Clark campaign bypassed the predictable locales, at least in its first day, and headed to the political belly of the beast […]
Once again we return to the question of Hillary Clinton’s interest in the 2004 campaign. When we last left this adventure, in late August, speculation was rampant that the junior senator from New York was giving it serious thought. Fortunately, HRC quickly doused the fire. After hours of media conjecture, Sen. Clinton was categorical. “I […]
The other day, I dismissed out of hand the idea that it’s too late for Wesley Clark to enter the presidential race. I noted that there’s a full five months before a single Democrat heads to the polls — and five months, in a political campaign, is an eternity. While I continue to believe this, […]
As you no doubt know by now, President Bush, who at one time supported a constitutional amendment to prohibit deficit spending, has racked up more debt than any president in U.S. history. Upon taking office, Bush enjoyed the fruits of Clinton’s labor. Bush was handed a $236 billion surplus, the largest surplus in the nation’s […]
I spend so much time and energy focusing on the 2004 elections, it’s sometimes easy to overlook the fact that there are three important statewide races this year. (If you include the circus in California, it could be four statewide races, but who knows when that election will happen?) In Kentucky, a very competitive gubernatorial […]
When Dick Cheney was on Meet the Press on Sunday suggesting that there may have been a connection between Saddam Hussein’s regime and the attacks of 9/11, I found it outrageous. Of course, I find a lot of things outrageous. That’s never meant anyone would follow-up on Cheney’s duplicity. Turns out, however, that some others […]