On several occasions, Slate has toyed with a fun little feature called the (fill in the blank)-o-meter. There was the Saddameter (tracking the likelihood of an Iraqi invasion), the Clintometer (gauging the likelihood of the Lewinsky scandal forcing Clinton from office), and the Miers-o-Meter (measuring the likelihood of Harriet Miers’ confirmation to the Supreme Court). […]
Reid and the Generals, Day Two
Following up on an item from yesterday afternoon, the interest in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s description of outgoing Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Gen. Peter Pace continues to far exceed its significance. There have been some developments, though, that shed additional light on what was, and wasn’t, said. Greg Sargent obtained a recording of […]
Thursday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Greg Sargent spoke with several bloggers who were on the Harry Reid conference call in which he allegedly called Gen. Peter Pace “incompetent.” None of them recall the senator describing the general that way. * Massachusetts state lawmakers considered a measure today to put a constitutional gay-marriage ban on […]
Doing the jobs Americans aren’t willing to do
Given the recent rhetoric in Republican circles about immigration policy, I found this story spectacularly amusing. The California Republican Party has decided no American is qualified to take one of its most crucial positions — state deputy political director — and has hired a Canadian for the job through a coveted H-1B visa, a program […]
Reid calls Gen. Pace ‘incompetent,’ causes far-right apoplexy
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid held a conference call with some liberal bloggers this week (I was not, for the record, on this call) and, according to a Politico report, the senator had some mild-but-unkind words for some high-profile U.S. generals. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called Marine Gen. Peter Pace, the outgoing chairman of […]
Gonzales under investigation (yes, again)
Back on April 19, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales testified, under oath, that he had not spoken with “witnesses” in the U.S. Attorney scandal about the events surrounding the purge because it would have been inappropriate. He told the Senate Judiciary Committee, “I haven’t talked to witnesses because of the fact that I haven’t wanted to […]
Libby to be imprisoned during appeal
U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton, a Bush appointee, was apparently receiving death threats while mulling whether to delay Scooter Libby’s 2 1/2-year sentence pending appeal. I guess he wasn’t intimidated. A federal judge said Thursday he will not delay a 2 1/2-year prison sentence for I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby in the CIA leak case, […]
Bush isn’t on the ‘frontlines’
February: Q: Do you believe it’s a civil war, sir? THE PRESIDENT: I can only tell you what people on the ground, whose judgment — it’s hard for me, living in this beautiful White House, to give you an assessment, firsthand assessment. I haven’t been there; you have, I haven’t. Today: Q: Are there any […]
Playing the race card
It’s rarely wise to jump to conclusions, but General Services Administration chief Lurita Alexis Doan certainly appears to have violated the Hatch Act. In fact, that’s what the Office of Special Counsel, headed by a Bush partisan, concluded after a thorough investigation. In January, Karl Rove’s office conducted a highly partisan political presentation for GSA […]
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: * CNN: “Arizona Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign issued a stinging attack on GOP presidential rival Mitt Romney’s stance on abortion Wednesday, claiming a new YouTube video indicates the former Massachusetts governor supported […]