Christian Science Monitor: I asked Mr. Romney whether he would consider including qualified Americans of the Islamic faith in his cabinet as advisers on national security matters, given his position that "jihadism" is the principal foreign policy threat facing America today. He answered, "…based on the numbers of American Muslims [as a percentage] in our population, I cannot see that … Read More
Plame Responds To McLennan’s Assertion That “Bush Knew”
Valerie Plame released the following statement in response to this new story: Nov. 20, 2007 10pm EST Santa Fe, New Mexico–I am outraged to learn that former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan confirms that he was sent out to lie to the press corps and the American public about two senior White House officials, Karl Rove and I. Lewis … Read More
Clinton “Inevitability”?
New ABC News/Washington Post poll shows Obama with lead in Iowa.
Bush Implicated In Plame Scandal
…by none other than Scotty McLellan, in his new book, which contains the following excerpt: "The most powerful leader in the world had called upon me to speak on his behalf and help restore credibility he lost amid the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. So I stood at the White house briefing room podium in front … Read More
TPM’S Highlight Reel Of Last Night’s Debate
A shortish video: My problem with debates, particularly at this stage in the game, is that the media tries to make them all about "gotchas" and "one-liners". There was a time when the media used to look down on that kind of thing; now their questions to the candidates encourage that. Sure, a debate about differences in policy issues is … Read More
A Bridge Tournament Too Far
At the World Bridge Championship last month held in Shanghai, a team of women who represented the United States won the Venice Cup Award, and made a little protest at the awards dinner. Here’s the picture — There was no Dixie Chicks-like speech or anything like that. Just a crude hand-drawn sign on the back of a menu saying "We … Read More
Pat Robertson Endorses Rudy Guiliani
Rudy is running on 9/11. And he recently received an endorsement from Pat Robertson. Recall that on 9/13/01, Pat and his buddy Jerry were saying that America "deserved" to be attacked. Watch it: James Dobson’s Family Research Council, a religious conservative group with whom I never agree, actually asks a good question: In an interview with Election Central, a top … Read More
Don’t Pay Attention To Politics? Don’t Know Who You Favor?
The Smartselect website will ask you a series of questions relating to your views on various issues, as well as how strongly you feel about that issue (for example, you may be opposed to gun control, but you don’t care about that issue as strongly as you do, say, the Iraq War issue). It then matches your positions with those … Read More
Bush Breaks Nixon’s Record
Latest Gallup poll: For the first time in the history of the Gallup Poll, 50% say they "strongly disapprove" of the president. Richard Nixon had reached the previous high, 48%, just before an impeachment inquiry was launched in 1974.
When It Hits Home
It seems that Rudy Guiliani was against universal health care in his early political career. Then he was in favor of universal health care once he was stricken with prostate cancer. But once that cancer went in to remission, he was against universal health care again. Read more.
Kentucky To Become As Gay As San Francisco
That’s what Pat Boone is worried about. Seriously. With the Democrat ahead in the governer’s race in that state, and with election day being tomorrow, the GOP is playing the "gay paranoia" card that worked in 2004. Pat Boone has been solicited to make robo-phone calls to Kentucky voters. Full story (and the Pat Boone recording) here.
The Imperial Presidency
Good NY Times review of two new books: DEAD CERTAIN: The Presidency of George W. Bush, by Robert Draper and THE TERROR PRESIDENCY: Law and Judgment Inside the Bush Administration by Jack Goldsmith. The first book, "Dead Certain" is probably the more interesting in that the author, Robert Draper, had a lot of access to President Bush and his aides, … Read More
Here We Go Again….
The rightosphere is pushing the meme that Hillary is a lesbian. I remember hearing that one as far back as 1992. This time though the lesbian in question is a Muslim!! (More rumor-mongering here) Ten bucks says it will be on Fox News within a week. They won’t report it as fact. That’s not how it works. Instead, they’ll just … Read More
Yet Another Republican Sex Scandal
This one comes from Washington State. It involves GOP State Rep. Richard Curtis, a lawmaker who voted against domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian couples and opposed an anti-discrimination law to cover sexual orientation. So, if you been following the GOP follies lately (as reported here and elsewhere), you can probably guess what comes next. Yup, the anti-gay Curtis apparently … Read More
Kucinich Gets The UFO Question
Damn. I wish I’d seen the Democratic debate last night — just for that.