Ordinarily, presidential endorsements from two former red-state senators, neither of whom are especially high-profile right now, wouldn’t be especially newsworthy, but I think today’s announcement that Sam Nunn and David Boren are backing Barack Obama is a little more interesting than most. The Obama campaign sent out a press release, noting the endorsement, and adding […]
McCain releases tax returns — at least, some of them
For all the talk in recent weeks about Hillary Clinton’s initial reluctance to release her tax returns, John McCain’s identical reluctance has gone largely ignored. The difference is that the media devoted considerable attention to Clinton’s returns, and gave McCain a pass on his. The good news is, McCain finally released his tax materials today. […]
Making the transition from one loyal Bushie to another
Bush’s Department of Housing and Urban Development has been almost comically corrupt and incompetent for years, but with Alphonso Jackson resigning in disgrace, the president has an opportunity to at least marginally salvage HUD’s reputation with a qualified nominee who can use the next eight months to get the agency back on track. It’s a […]
Friday’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: * Rasmussen, which seems to have been hit or miss this year, shows the race in Pennsylvania tightening. Hillary Clinton now leads Barack Obama by three, 47% to 44%. On Monday, Rasmussen showed […]
Rove willing to testify — except when he’s not
It finally looked like we were getting somewhere. A couple of weeks ago, in a startling “60 Minutes” report, the nation saw the ways in which former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman had been railroaded and sent to prison under the most dubious of circumstances. Based on a variety of elements, Siegelman has argued that Karl […]
Keep the Courthouse Doors Open and Our Wages at Home
Guest Post by Deborah J. Vagins, ACLU Policy Counsel for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties [Editor’s Note: There were quite a few troubling Supreme Court rulings last year, but one of the more striking decisions was in Ledbetter v. Goodyear, in which the court ruled 5 to 4 that workers who face wage discrimination only […]
McCain’s earmark pledge continues to dog him
Following up on an item from yesterday, John McCain seems to seriously believe he can a) eliminate congressional earmarks; and b) use the savings to pay for hundreds of billions of dollars in tax cuts. The first claim is dubious; the second relies on poor arithmetic. (Note to McCain: $18 billion is less than $400 […]
Dean looking for superdelegates to decide ‘now’
There are competing tallies showing how Democratic superdelegates are planning to vote — it’s not an exact science, and some of these party leaders are still changing their minds — but by one updated count, Hillary Clinton now has the support of 252 superdelegates, 24 more than Barack Obama’s 228. That leaves 314 uncommitted, sought-after […]
About that flag-pin question…
OK, one more thing about Wednesday night’s Democratic debate and then I’ll let it go. Determining which of the discussion topics was the most inane is tricky, but I’d have to go with the flag lapel-pin question. Early on in the debate, Charlie Gibson said he wanted to offer a question that “goes to the […]
Thursday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Suicide bombing in Iraq: “A suicide bomber struck the funeral of two Sunni tribesmen who joined forces against al-Qaida in Iraq, killing at least 50 people Thursday and reinforcing fears that insurgents are hitting back after American-led crackdowns. The sudden spike in bloodshed this week adds to the other […]