Guest Post by Morbo It’s a shame I wasn’t around last week and thus missed all of the fun surrounding one of my favorite right-wing nutcases, Pat Robertson. No one has ever managed to combine religious fundamentalism, kook-right politics and sheer insanity like Robertson. Far from being a burden to him, this potent cocktail has […]
Guest Post by Morbo Arizona Sen. John McCain has done it again. McCain has come out publicly with yet another bold idea that shows him to be the true political maverick that he is. Heedless of the political consequences, McCain recently aligned himself with President George W. Bush and Senator Majority Leader Bill Frist and […]
Fortunately, I haven’t seen too much of it, but there are still a few voices suggesting any criticism of the president and/or the federal government’s response to Katrina’s devastation is inappropriate. I think a reasonable case could be made that holding off on Tuesday made some sense — the storm, at that point, was just […]
The administration is facing intense criticism for not using the materials and resources necessary to address the crises in New Orleans and elsewhere. To address these concerns, the president had a photo-op this morning in an airplane hangar in which rescue workers and helicopters served as a backdrop instead of … I don’t know … […]
There was a time, just five years ago, that Bush saw the benefit of an effective FEMA. A month before the 2000 presidential election, then-Gov. Bush said, “I’ve got to pay the administration a compliment. James Lee Witt of FEMA has done a really good job of working with governors during times of crisis. But […]
I was tempted to scrap today’s edition in light of the ongoing calamities, but I had a few items to pass along. I know they hardly seem important today, but here’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 anyway: * […]
Usually the White House will pull its more outlandish stunts on Friday afternoons when they can count on their behavior getting lost in the weekend shuffle. Of course, pulling a stunt when the nation is engrossed in a calamity is practically the same thing. President Bush has used a constitutional provision to bypass the Senate […]
I have some friends on Capitol Hill who speak highly of Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff. Maybe it’s just because he’s a step up from his predecessor, and better than Bush’s original choice for the job (remember Bernie Kerik?), but even Dems tell me this guy is generally on the ball. That said, after about […]
Despite earlier reports that Congress would not reconvene to address emergency funding for the Gulf Coast, lawmakers are poised to pass a $10-billion bill today. Good. And while I’m pleased to see Congress respond, I can’t help but notice that Speaker Hastert’s office seems a little confused. Just 48 hours ago, Roll Call reported that […]
I realize that the devastation in the Gulf Coast has not brought the rest of the world, even the political world, to a stop. But in light of the ongoing, almost slow-motion calamity, you’d think the Republican National Committee would have better sense that to send this out to its list yesterday afternoon. For the […]