One of the awkward realities of the Democratic presidential race is that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama really don’t disagree on much. Their platforms are not identical, but in several key areas, the two Dems are generally on the same page. This, as much as anything, leads the campaign to focus on trivia, mini-scandals, personalities, […]
Monday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Barack Obama’s appearance on Fox News still isn’t going over well. Adam Green, a spokesperson for MoveOn.org, which has endorsed Obama, said today, “It was a mistake for Obama to go on FOX’s Sunday show and treat the experience as if it was a real news interview. Democratic politicians […]
Right on cue, Republican whining commences on ‘100 years’ ad
It was as predictable as the sunrise. The Democratic National Committee launched a very good ad hitting John McCain — in an entirely fair and accurate way — for his comments about keeping U.S. troops in Iraq for another century. Given that whenever anyone, anywhere, mentions the words “John McCain” and “100 years” in the […]
Putting the Pentagon Pundits on pause
The New York Times had quite a front-page scoop eight days ago, when it reported on a Pentagon program that recruited retired military officers, who’ve since become lobbyists or consultants for military contractors, to become propaganda agents of the Bush administration. Throughout the war in Iraq, these retired officers — or “message multipliers,” as they […]
Reporters get a closer look at the Wright stuff
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright has been steadily increasing his public profile of late, and it’s not hard to understand why. The pastor has become Public Enemy #1 in some circles, and some of his more notorious sermons from his Trinity United Church of Christ pulpit in Chicago have become such a fixture of the media’s […]
McCain and Russia and China … oh my
When John McCain delivered his high-profile speech on his foreign policy vision about a month ago, the usual suspects swooned. The NYT’s David Brooks said it was “as personal, nuanced and ambitious a speech as any made by a presidential candidate this year.” He was especially impressed with McCain’s perspective on how best to treat […]
Supreme Court approves Republican voter ID scheme
When Indiana passed a voter I.D. law, it was ostensibly to protect the integrity of the voting process. What better way to prevent voter fraud than to require those participating in an election to produce identification? Was there any evidence of a voter-fraud scourge in Indiana? No. Would the law make it harder for “certain […]
Monday’s campaign round-up
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: * Before the Wisconsin primary in February, Hillary Clinton made debates a central point of her campaign. She appears to be following a similar strategy now, telling audiences over the weekend that she […]
John McCain, alleged champion of the poor
Once in a while, American politics will get so detached from reality, one wonders if news articles are part of an elaborate practical joke, meant to drive the reality-based community batty. Take, for example, John McCain’s assertion yesterday that he cares more about the needs of poor people than Barack Obama. The GOP nominee-in-waiting rapped […]
The kind of candidate (and character) we can expect to see
John McCain said he wouldn’t make Jeremiah Wright a campaign issue. Yesterday, he changed his mind. Senator John McCain delved on Sunday into remarks made by Senator Barack Obama’s former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., saying it was “beyond belief” that Mr. Wright had likened the Romans at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion […]