I won’t be watching (rehearsal) and I might not even TIVO it. Besides the State of the Union on the right hand column (which I’ll take down in a few days) is better. But by all accounts, including those of the Wall Street Journal (sumamrized here), Bush’s best bet — if he wants to be accountable to the American people … Read More
GOP Lynch Mob
You know, I think I am pretty tolerant of Michelle Malkin, the conservative blogger-whiner who has cornered the market in "outrage". With almost every post, as well as her book "Unhinged", Michelle is a cottage industry unto herself, pointing out every supposed rude behavior of Democrats and liberals, most of whom you have never heard of. Of course, she rarely … Read More
The Insularity Problem
This is what happens when you send a bunch of people to Washington, who act on their belief about how things are, rather than – you know – reality. They come off as "surprised" all the time. From The Left Coaster: "I’ve asked why nobody saw it coming. It does say something about us not having a good enough pulse."–Condi … Read More
Hmmmmm
The lead prosecutor in the Abramoff scandal is leaving the case because he’s been appointed to a federal bench by Bush: The investigation of Jack Abramoff, the disgraced Republican lobbyist, took a surprising new turn on Thursday when the Justice Department said the chief prosecutor in the inquiry would step down next week because he had been nominated to a … Read More
Delayed Learnin’
Bush Taking Bin Laden Threat Seriously reads the headline. Really. I’m not kidding. The fact that Bush is taking a bin Laden threat seriously . . . is news. So 9/11 did change something. Albeit belatedly. Recall in March 2002, Bush said this in response to a bin Laden-related question from the press: [T]he idea of focusing on one person … Read More
The Incompetent President
Focusing primarily on Bush’s disasterous Medicare program, WaPo’s editorialist Harold Meyerson has a few words to say: Incompetence is not one of the seven deadly sins, and it’s hardly the worst attribute that can be ascribed to George W. Bush. But it is this president’s defining attribute. Historians, looking back at the hash that his administration has made of his … Read More
The White House Loooooves That “Executive Privilege” Thing
Two days ago: The White House was told in the hours before Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans that the city would probably soon be inundated with floodwater, forcing the long-term relocation of hundreds of thousands of people, documents to be released Tuesday by Senate investigators show. A Homeland Security Department report submitted to the White House at 1:47 a.m. on … Read More
State Of Presidential Credibility
Think Progress has created a comprehensive document (PDF format) that catalogues the distortions, misrepresentations and broken promises in Bush’s four previous SOTUs. Download it here. Or simply watch the video (Quicktime required).
The Unbiased Media
I’ve been following the WaPo story with some interest, but haven’t commented on it. And now, when I’m prepared to comment, Legal Fiction steals my thunder. For those not up on it, it started with the Post’s Ombudsman, Deborah Howell, writing that Jack Abramoff gave money to Republicans and Democrats alike. This created a howl from the left blogosphere, simply … Read More
Dems Looking Better To America
The latest poll from the Pew Research Center (PDF) is out, and as always, it provides some interesting information. Kevin Drum notes that the public is evenly split (at 48%) on the question of whether to keep troops in Iraq until it is stable vs. bringing them home as soon as possible. I, however, was struck by the advances that … Read More
Fish. Barrel. Kapow.
Quote Of The Day: President Bush on Thursday categorically ruled out a run for office by his wife, Laura Bush. "She’s not interested in running for office. She’s interested in literacy," Bush said during an appearance at RK Moving & Storage here. There’s so many ways I can go with this, but sometimes the joke unsaid is the funniest.
Turnabout Is Fair Play
Some of you may have read about UCLA alumni Andrew Jones lately. If not, here’s the skinny: A fledgling alumni group headed by a former campus Republican leader is offering students payments of up to $100 per class to provide information on instructors who are "abusive, one-sided or off-topic" in advocating political ideologies. The year-old Bruin Alumni Assn. says its … Read More
Dems Roll Out Their Congressional Reform Package
WaPo: Congressional Democrats yesterday laid out a plan to change what they called a GOP "culture of corruption" in Washington, even as Republicans pointed to ethics lapses on their antagonists’ side of the aisle. Democratic leaders from the House and Senate endorsed proposals that closely mirror Republican plans unveiled this week to tighten regulations on lobbyists since the Jack Abramoff … Read More
You Call That “Reform”?!?
Hastert’s plan to reform Congress’ relation with lobbyists is kind of, well, sucky. As WaPo notes: According to lobbyists and ethics experts, even if Hastert’s proposal is enacted, members of Congress and their staffs could still travel the world on an interest group’s expense and eat steak on a lobbyist’s account at the priciest restaurants in Washington. The only requirement … Read More
Quote Of The Day
Love this: The political tactic of playing up the soldiers on the battlefield while tearing down the reputations of veterans who oppose them could eventually cost the Republicans dearly. It may be one reason that a preponderance of the Iraq war veterans who thus far have decided to run for office are doing so as Democrats. That’s James Webb, Secretary … Read More