Following up on yesterday’s discussion, Sen. Edward Kennedy endorsed Barack Obama at an event in DC about an hour ago. It was apparently a well-attended event — Salon’s Tim Grieve reported, “After standing outdoors for more than two hours in a line that stretched along several blocks — and eventually getting within 20 feet of […]
Pentecostal preacher pledges holy war against GOP senator
It hasn’t generated a lot of headlines, but in the world of religion and politics, it’s a pretty big deal. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, recently asked six high-profile, hyper-wealthy Pentecostal televangelists for their financial records, under the suspicion that they’re using their ministries for personal gain. (Imagine […]
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: * Florida’s Republican presidential primary, which is tomorrow, is going down to the wire and John McCain and Mitt Romney are battling it out for first place. McCain may have gained a slight […]
Kansas’ Sebelius to back Obama — a red-state trend?
There are 28 Democratic governors in the country, and about half of them have made presidential endorsements. In a couple of days, one of the more sought-after governors is going to back Barack Obama. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) will deliver the Democratic response to the State of the Union on Monday. And then Tuesday or […]
McCain’s ‘secret plan’ to get bin Laden
I realize that Republicans and campaign reporters continue to perceive John McCain as a credible person when it comes to matters of national security and military affairs — but that doesn’t make it sensible. John McCain says in almost every stump speech that he knows how to capture Osama bin Laden and that he’d follow […]
Kristol columns continue to confound
Clark Hoyt, the NYT’s public editor, recently explored the paper’s decision to hire Bill Kristol as a columnist, a move Hoyt described as a “mistake.” For his part, Kristol seems to be intent on proving Hoyt right. Kristol’s inaugural column, four weeks ago, went a long way in making his critics’ concerns look well grounded. […]
Keeping the Big Dog on the porch?
On Friday, the day before Barack Obama’s easy victory in South Carolina’s presidential primary, the NYT noted that the Clinton campaign had every intention to keep Bill Clinton in “attack mode.” Advisers to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton say they have concluded that Bill Clinton’s aggressive politicking against Senator Barack Obama is resonating with voters, and […]
McCain goes negative, makes up bogus attack on Romney
For a variety of reasons, it looks like the political world is far more interested in disputes surrounding Democratic presidential candidates, most notably Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It’s not too big a mystery — the Dems are better candidates, with more interesting arguments, and with broader questions about race and gender that the media […]
Is the torch being passed to a new generation?
When looking at the Democratic Party’s informal leadership, there are a handful of powerhouses whose endorsements every presidential candidate would love to have: Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, and Howard Dean come to mind. Clinton, of course, is clearly spoken for, and Dean, as chairman of the DNC, is committed to staying […]
When anti-war voters back a pro-war candidate
Outside the White House, few have been as supportive of the Bush policy in Iraq as John McCain. He helped sell the war before the invasion; he was an enthusiastic supporter of “staying the course” for several years; he heralded the so-called “surge” policy a year ago, and he’s now talking openly about leaving U.S. […]