I find it almost amusing to see reports about Rupert Murdoch’s takeover of the Wall Street Journal asking “whether” he’ll ruin the respected newspaper. It’s funny, of course, because the answer should be obvious — of course he’ll ruin it; it’s a matter of “when,” not “if.” He’s turned every newspaper he’s ever owned into […]
U.S. troop casualties in Iraq declined slightly in July, dropping to 2006 levels for the month. There’s also some evidence that sectarian violence in Iraqi neighborhoods was vaguely less brutal in July than it was in previous months. Obviously, both of these trends are good news. But let’s not forget the point of the current […]
On top of everything else that’s going on this week, the Senate is practically rushing through an overhaul of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), at the president’s behest. Under pressure from President Bush, Democratic leaders in Congress are scrambling to pass legislation this week to expand the government’s electronic wiretapping powers. Democratic leaders have […]
Two years ago, Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) raised more than a few eyebrows — here and around the world — when he publicly suggested bombing Mecca. On a talk show, the host asked Tancredo how the U.S. should respond to a domestic nuclear terrorist attack. “Well, what if you said something like – if this […]
I’m sure some of my colleagues who know more about healthcare policy than I do will weigh in, but in the meantime, I thought I’d mention that Rudy Giuliani’s healthcare proposal seems remarkably (and predictably) thin. Rudolph W. Giuliani on Tuesday called for transforming the way health care coverage is provided in the United States, […]
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: * I plan to offer a more detailed report later, but the big campaign-related news of the day is a major national security speech from Barack Obama: “In a strikingly bold speech about […]
After a while, between the lies, dissembling, and stone-walling, the details can get a little confusing. Asked initially about warrantless domestic spying, Alberto Gonzales said there wasn’t any disagreement about the legality of Bush’s so-called “Terrorist Surveillance Program” at the Justice Department. We later learned there was all kinds of disagreement and Gonzales was lying. […]
I often think that if Jonah Goldberg didn’t exist, we’d have to invent him. Last month, he wanted to eliminate public schools. This month, he wants to bring back Jim Crow-era poll tests. Well, he doesn’t jump to that conclusion right away, of course, he just works his way to it. In his latest LA […]
We know that throughout 2006, various U.S. Attorneys were considered for replacement, for reasons that appear to have almost nothing to do with merit. We also know that in several instances, prosecutors were considered for dismissal based on pure partisanship (either too willing to prosecute Republicans, or unwilling to file trumped up charges against Dems). […]
The Vice President seems to be on some kind of publicity tour, at least by Dick Cheney’s standards. On Monday, he chatted with CBS News for 14 minutes. Yesterday, he gave CNN’s Larry King a whole hour. I’m not sure what the point of the public-relations effort is, but the interviews offer us a reminder […]