Today’s edition of quick hits. * In a pleasant surprise, after a promised stonewall, the CIA and the Justice Department agreed yesterday to start sharing documents with Congress regarding the destruction of the torture tapes. The CIA also agreed to let the agency’s top lawyer, John Rizzo, testify about the matter before the House Intelligence […]
Still more obstructionism — GOP blocks vote on FEC nominees
This may seem like inside-pool, but it’s an interesting example of how congressional Republicans chose to do business these days. There are currently four vacancies on the Federal Election Commission, two of which are to be filled with Republicans, two of which to be filled by Dems. For one of the GOP’s selections, Bush tapped […]
Tancredo quits, endorses Romney
As expected, Tom Tancredo ended his quixotic presidential campaign today. What was less expected was his announcement that he would support rival Mitt Romney’s candidacy. Republican Tom Tancredo announced Thursday that he is dropping out of the race for the GOP presidential nomination. Tancredo, a five-term congressman from Colorado, said he would endorse rival Mitt […]
I watch Bush press conferences, so you don’t have to
As he did last year, the president hosted a year-end press conference this morning; he even graciously gave White House reporters more than a few minutes beforehand. It was a fairly light-hearted affair, but there were some relatively substantive exchanges. Here are the highlights from my notes. * Retroactive immunity for telecoms: Before taking questions, […]
Abstinence-only fails, sex ed doesn’t
The WaPo reported the other day that at least 14 states have “either notified the federal government that they will no longer be requesting [sex education] funds or are not expected to apply,” because the Bush administration mandates abstinence-only lessons in public schools receiving the funding. “We’re concerned about this,” said Stan Koutstaal of the […]
A ‘present’ for Obama’s opponents? Probably not
A few weeks ago, the Clinton campaign started going after Barack Obama on a series of “present” votes he cast while serving the state Senate. Clinton herself even emphasized the issue in speech in Iowa: “Now, there’s been a lot of talk about yes or no answers to complex questions. But most people don’t know […]
Tall tale about MLK becomes a problem for Romney
I don’t want to belabor the point, but to follow up on an earlier item, Mitt Romney seems to be a little stuck on a controversy of his own making. To briefly recap, Romney has defended his position on civil rights, in multiple high-profile settings, by insisting that his father marched with Martin Luther King […]
Thursday’s political 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: * Rudy Giuliani was hospitalized overnight in St. Louis, suffering from what his campaign described as “flu-like symptoms.” The former mayor is reportedly fine now and will return to New York later today. […]
Bush’s politicized justice, Part MMCCXVII
For a five-year-old scandal, it’s amazing just how many important unanswered questions there are surrounding the Republicans’ New Hampshire phone-jamming scandal. For those just joining us, in 2002, New Hampshire was home to a very competitive U.S. Senate race between Jeanne Shaheen (D) and John Sununu (R). The morning voters headed to the polls, Democratic […]
Romney seizing the Bush mantle?
After a full year of Republican presidential candidates avoiding references to Bush and promising voters change, this past weekend featured an odd fight between Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee over who valued the incumbent president more. Apparently, this wasn’t accident. Romney, in particular, is searching for a strategy to help bolster his campaign, and has […]