Less than a week ago, Time magazine’s Mark Halperin raised a quite a few eyebrows in the world of political journalism with a startling NYT op-ed. Halperin, best known for his work at ABC News (“The Note” was his creation) before becoming a senior political analyst for Time, argued that there are fundamental problems with […]
The misplaced hysterics over YouTube debate questions
Early on at Wednesday night’s CNN debate for Republican presidential candidates, a young woman in Huntsville, Ala., asked the field what they would do “to repair the image of America in the eyes of the Muslim world?” Given the current of state of international diplomacy, it seemed like a reasonable question. But last night, far-right […]
Giuliani scandal fueled by contradictions, unanswered questions
As the “Shag Fund” scandal continues to unfold, more reporters at more outlets are beginning to recognize the seriousness of Rudy Giuliani’s latest scandal. Worse, the former mayor’s presidential campaign has struggled to come up with coherent explanations, offering contradictory accounts. Worse, it’s insisting that Ben Smith’s original report is “false,” but it can’t say […]
Generals, admirals push back against ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
At Wednesday’s debate for Republican presidential hopefuls, several candidates said they’d turn to military leaders when it comes to allowing gays to serve in the armed forces. Mitt Romney said, “I’m going to listen to the people who run the military.” John McCain said he would rely on “designated leaders with the responsibility of the […]
Thursday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Good lord, it gets worse: “Well before it was publicly known he was seeing her, then-married New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani provided a police driver and city car for his mistress Judith Nathan, former senior city officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com. ‘She used the PD as her personal […]
Giuliani’s national-security halo takes another serious hit
Over the last 24 hours, much of the political world has been pondering Rudy Giuliani’s misuse of resources to help cover-up his taxpayer-financed excursions with his mistress. In light of all the lingering questions, perhaps it’s best to pause for a moment — and shift our attention to another Giuliani scandal that’s just starting to […]
Romney’s favorite torture advisor
Mitt Romney had a few uncomfortable, deer-in-the-headlights moments in last night’s CNN/YouTube debate, but perhaps the most memorable was in response to a question from a young man in Seattle: “Recently, Senator McCain has come strongly against using waterboarding as an instrument of interrogation. My question for the rest of you is, considering that Mr. […]
Leahy moves forward with contempt citations for Bush aides
If you’d given up following the Senate Judiciary Committee weighing its next move against White House aides who blew off its subpoena, you’re not alone. There was some sporadic movement on this over the summer, and then a few other issues — namely the confirmation process for a new Attorney General — put the matter […]
Giuliani gave his mistress taxpayer-financed security detail
While criticizing the apparent improprieties associated with the “Shag Fund” scandal, for New York City Mayor Ed Koch alluded to a point that hasn’t drawn much attention. “I found it strange that his lady friend was given protection,” said the long-time New York politico. “That was bizarre. She’s not the city’s responsibility. Rudy is the […]
GOP is fine with some immigration
John Edwards will no doubt draw the intense ire of the Republican Party and its base after announcing yesterday that he believes as many Mexican immigrants who want to come to the United States should be welcome. As Edwards explained it, Mexican Americans are exemplary citizens who have brought “great vitality, skills and energy to […]