About that terrorist warning…

John Ashcroft told the nation about a month ago that the U.S. is facing a new, serious threat from al Queda. “Credible intelligence from multiple sources indicates that al Qaeda plans to attempt an attack on the United States in the next few months,” Ashcroft said. “This disturbing intelligence indicates al Qaeda’s specific intention to […]

The madness of King George

In case you missed it over the weekend, the New York Times’ Barbara Ehrenreich (a tremendous new addition to the op-ed page) had a terrific column comparing King George III in 1776 to President George in 2004. Well, perhaps “comparing” is too strong a word. Let’s just say Ehrenreich noted some fascinating correlations between the […]

That rationale sure sounds familiar

What’s his name was on Meet the Press yesterday and was asked to explain why he is running for president. I found the answer pretty interesting. Andrea Mitchell: “You announced your candidacy back in February right here on this program with Tim [Russert]. A lot of Democrats have been very negative in their response. What […]

Dionne is taking the gloves off

One of the unintended side-benefits of the Bush presidency is the return of Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne, Jr. I realize that he never actually left, but during the Clinton era, I started to find Dionne as a split-the-difference moderate, afraid to take bold positions. Bush seems to have brought back Dionne’s fire. It couldn’t […]

Howard Kurtz covers up for Limbaugh

Howard Kurtz hasn’t been shy about his conservative ideology, but today was truly ridiculous. In an item about Bill Clinton challenging his right-wing media critics in his best-selling memoir, Kurtz defended Rush Limbaugh. The 42nd president also lambastes Rush Limbaugh, one of his most vociferous critics. In 1993, writes Clinton, the radio host claimed that […]

Happy 4th of July

Here’s the kind of story that warms the heart on Independence Day (via Atrios). Defending the war in Iraq, President Bush said on Independence Day that America is safer because Saddam Hussein is in a prison cell. […] Two Bush opponents, taken out of the crowd in restraints by police, said they were told they […]

Poll Day

If you’ve been reading this site for a while, you know it’s time for Poll Day. If you’re new, welcome; we do this every Friday afternoon. It’s my weekly round-up of statewide presidential polls released over the last seven days. Arizona (10 electoral votes) KAET — Bush 47, Kerry 35, Nader 2 Comment: We can […]

The lesson for the day: Stalling sometimes works

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner (R-Va.), to his credit, bucked GOP pressure and initiated a congressional investigation into the Abu Ghraib prison scandal a couple of months ago. Almost immediately, Rumsfeld and the Pentagon seemed to decide on a strategy to get them out their mess — stall and see if the storm […]

Cheney is still making things up as he goes along

Has there ever been a high-ranking White House official as hopelessly, uncontrollably dishonest as Dick “Go F— Yourself” Cheney? Nixon, maybe, but I maintain that the scales tip in Cheney’s favor. I read Cheney’s speech to the D-Day Museum in New Orleans yesterday and initially deleted my post about it. His mendacity was just overwhelming; […]

Focus on the Personal Intimidation

Several major bloggers, including Ted Barlow, Jesse Taylor, and Atrios, noted yesterday that Focus on the Family, one of the religious right’s biggest powerhouses, sent out an alert to its (very large) membership this week that included Michael Moore’s home address. I wanted to note that this is not only true, it’s scary. Here’s the […]