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: * Following up on yesterday’s Q1 fundraising reports, John McCain’s campaign announced yesterday that it had collected $12.5 million in the first quarter of 2007, giving him the third best tally among the […]
Glenn Beck’s victim complex
There’s just something amazing to me about hearing a wealthy, Christian, white guy Republican whine incessantly about his place in American society. On the April 2 broadcast of his nationally syndicated radio show, Glenn Beck claimed that “[c]onservatives get no respect” and asserted that he “can’t win” because he is “American[],” “white,” “Christian,” and “conservative.” […]
Conservatives debate whether character still counts
Bill Kristol made a comment on Fox News the other day that foreshadows what may eventually drive the GOP presidential primaries. “I think [the personal lives of Republican presidential candidates are] not a big problem,” Kristol said. “Generally speaking, the American people discount private lives quite rigorously, actually, and they try to pick someone who […]
Abstinence advocate abandons administration
I’ve long believed that the high-profile Bush administration officials who amaze and disturb us — Rumsfeld, Gonzales, Ashcroft, et al — are matched by lower-profile officials who are just as outrageous. Take, for example, Wade Horn, who is finally on his way out of government service. [tag]Wade Horn[/tag], the Bush Administration’s point man for welfare […]
A credibility-killing moment
When it comes to John McCain’s assessment of conditions in Baghdad, the military knows he’s wrong, reporters in Iraq know he’s wrong, and now Iraqis themselves want to tell us that they know he’s wrong, too. It was bad enough last week when McCain said parts of Baghdad are safe for Americans to go for […]
Monday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Good news from the Supreme Court today: “The Supreme Court ordered the federal government on Monday to take a fresh look at regulating carbon dioxide emissions from cars, a rebuke to Bush administration policy on global warming. In a 5-4 decision, the court said the Clean Air Act gives […]
The Bush gang smears a friend — delicately
Following up on a couple of earlier items, we knew the Bush White House would respond to Matthew Dowd’s epiphany by undermining his name and credibility, we just didn’t know how. Call him “disgruntled”? Accuse him of partisanship? Start spreading rumors about him personally? The Rove Playbook is thick; Bush aides have a lot of […]
Adventures in poll-question wording
No one knows how to stack a national poll with loaded questions like Fox News does. It’s almost impressive — most news outlets go out of their way to ask neutral questions, but the Republicans’ network artfully does the opposite. FNC is practically offering professors of quantitative analysis case studies in what not to do […]
‘How the Holy-Rollers and the Neo-Cons Destroyed the GOP’
Yesterday, the big story was Matthew Dowd, the first member of Bush’s inner circle to break ranks and denounce the president. Today, it’s Vic Gold. He’s not exactly a West Wing insider, but he’s close. Vic Gold heard from Lynne Cheney a few weeks before George W. Bush was sworn in as president in January […]
The right finds a new media villain
CNN’s Michael Ware has been providing excellent reports on the war in Iraq for four years, but now that he’s taken on far-right talking points directly, the far-right community has decided to take him on directly. It started last week. John McCain made a series of ridiculous claims about conditions in Baghdad, including the notion […]