Today’s edition of quick hits. * Another contentious day in Pakistan: “Pakistan quickly ended house arrest for opposition leader Benazir Bhutto on Friday as President Gen. Pervez Musharraf came under new U.S. pressure to end a crackdown that Washington fears is hurting the fight against Islamic extremism. Earlier in the day, police threw up barbed […]
As if Bernie Kerik’s 14-count indictment wasn’t devastating enough to Rudy Giuliani’s presidential campaign, John McCain piled on today with an angle that hasn’t gotten much attention. Bernard Kerik did an irresponsible job training police in Iraq, presidential contender John McCain said Friday, adding to criticism of Kerik as Rudy Giuliani’s former police commissioner surrendered […]
Karl Rove may no longer be wreaking havoc in the West Wing, but he’s still managing to make provocative political comments. Yesterday, for example, during a speech about politics and the web in DC, the man the president affectionately calls “Turd Blossom” lamented the “angry and vitriolic people” who now have “a voice in public […]
In September, PBS hosted a Republican presidential candidates’ debate at historically black college in Baltimore — and all of the top four GOP candidates decided to skip it. This followed close on the heels of a Univision-hosted Republican debate in Miami on Latino issues — which was cancelled when all but one candidate declined invitations. […]
MSNBC, allegedly the network that’s interested in moving to the left, reported this morning on the 16-count indictment brought against Bernie Kerik, Rudy Giuliani’s close associate. The network showed viewers this on-screen headline: “9/11 Hero Indicted” Look, there were a lot of heroes in New York City on 9/11, but if there’s any evidence at […]
Given the circumstances, it’s not surprising that various presidential candidates are going to insist that they, and they alone, are uniquely suited to combat global terrorism. Some of the arguments are coherent but unpersuasive (John McCain emphasizes that he’s the only candidate who served in the military), while other arguments are plainly ridiculous (Rudy Giuliani […]
Conservatives have offered a wide variety of inane and offensive arguments in support of torture, but Chuck Colson, the Watergate felon turned prominent Christian-right activist, is the first to characterize torture as a noble act of civil disobedience. (via Steve M.) Inflicting bodily or psychological harm on a helpless captive would be inconsistent with 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: * In an interview with the WaPo, Barack Obama explained his approach to negative campaigning. “I want to campaign the same way I govern, which is to respond directly and forcefully with the […]
As recently as a few weeks ago, it looked like the religious right’s leading groups and activists were coalescing around Mitt Romney, the one candidate they think is both credible and capable of beating Giuliani in the primaries. Bob Jones III and Mark DeMoss threw their support to the former governor; James Dobson seemed to […]
Three weeks ago, the president raised eyebrows around the world when he alluded to “World War III” during a press conference in response to a question about Iran. A reporter asked whether he believes Iran wants to build a nuclear weapon, leading Bush to say, “[I]f you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems […]