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Hussein's Fall Leads Syrians to Test Government Limits ( / NYT) Permalink DAMASCUS, Syria, March 19 — A year ago, it would have been inconceivable for a citizen of Syria, run by the Baath Party of President Bashar al-Assad, to make a documentary film with the working title, "Fifteen Reasons Why I Hate the Baath." | |
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David Adesnik: SPEAKS FOR ITSELF: "A year ago, it would have been inconceivable for a citizen of Syria, run by the Baath Party of President Bashar al-Assad, to... Mike Rappaport: Is That Domino Teetering? The New York Times headline says it all: "Hussein's Fall Leads Syrians to Test Government Limits." The story continues:... Tacitus: Reverse domino theory — It's working: the clearest indication yet that the invasion of Iraq is having a ripple effect across the region. Now,... |
Mark Kleiman: Iraq, Syria, and Uncertainty — Today's New York Times reports that the fall of the Baathist regime in Iraq has given heart to dissidents in... Tim Blair: The New York Times reports: "A year ago, it would have been inconceivable for a citizen of Syria, run by the Baath Party of President Bashar... Cori Dauber: Well, on the one hand, this front page article sure makes it sound as if there are positive effects, as people begin to push against the regime... |
| Also: The Big Trunk | |
The Outsourcing Bogeyman (Foreign Affairs) Permalink Summary: According to the election-year bluster of politicians and pundits, the outsourcing of American jobs to other countries has become a problem of epic proportion. Fortunately, this alarmism is misguided. Outsourcing actually brings far more benefits than costs, both... | |
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James Joyner: The Outsourcing Bogeyman — Dan Drezner has published an article, “The Outsourcing Bogeyman” in the May/June issue of Foreign Affairs... Robert Garcia Tagorda: For a thorough discussion of the topic, see Dan's incisive Foreign Affairs essay, "The Outsourcing Bogeyman." |
Daniel Drezner: That's the abstract of my Foreign Affairs essay, "The Outsourcing Bogeyman," which will come out in the May/June issue of that journal, but is... |
90-Day Media Strategy by Bush's Aides to Define Kerry ( / NYT) Permalink WASHINGTON, March 19 — President Bush's campaign is following an aggressive and precise 90-day media strategy to define Senator John Kerry as indecisive and lacking conviction, with a coordinated blitz of advertisements, speeches and sound bites, senior campaign advisers... | |
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Jay Rosen: Among cases submitted for explanation I would try to have placed this morning's lead story in the New York Times. According to the editors, the... Gary Farber: HOW THE GOP PLANS TO DESTROY KERRY. Read The Rest Scale: 3 out of 5 if you're a politics junkie. Mickey Kaus: While the Times' Adam Nagourney conspired with The Note's Mark Halperin during a sinister Media Elite gathering at 'Cesca in New York, his eighth... |
Tom Maguire: Now, when John Kerry said "I don't fall down; the son of a bitch knocked me down", was he commenting on the latest polls and the Bush media... Betsy Newmark: The Bush campaign has a three month strategy to define Kerry the way they want and hit him with ads, speeches, internet ads, and whatever else... David Allan Pell: Second, remake him. (They can rebuild him. They can make him worse than he was.) So how's it going so far? The truth could be that there is... |
| Also: Taegan Goddard | |
Falling Down ( / NRO) Permalink It was September 19, 1996. I woke early, hurriedly dressed for a long day at the office during campaign season, walked out the front door of our townhouse, opened the Washington Post and beheld a vast, above-the-fold, picture of Bob Dole falling off a stage at a campaign... | |
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Tbogg: My name is Robert Moran...but it's pronounced "moron"... This column for NRO doesn't call for an editor so much as someone who has the common... Betsy Newmark: Robert Moran notes that the Washington Post ran a front page picture of Bob Dole falling off of a stage in 1996, but didn't run anything about... |
Edward Driscoll: FALLING DOWN: Robert Moran notes that "Not all spills are equal at the Washington Post". UPDATE: Powerline Blog looks at Kerry's shopping trip... |
Guantánamo Detainees Deliver Intelligence Gains ( / NYT) Permalink GUANTNAMO BAY, Cuba, March 19 — Military officials say prisoners at the detention center here have provided a stream of intelligence to interrogators during the past two years, including detailed information about Al Qaeda's recruitment of Muslim men in Europe. | |
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KJL: GITMO PAYS (Ok, now I'm really turning it off.) |
Phil Carter: Gitmo produces results: Neil Lewis has this report from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where American intelligence officers say they are collecting... |
Pakistan Changes the Subject (NYT) Permalink Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's military dictator, would deserve praise if his troops captured Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, whom they think they may have surrounded near the rugged border with Afghanistan. Short of capturing Osama bin Laden himself, there... | |
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Digby: The New York Times put it this way in an editorial today: "Washington failed to protest when General Musharraf cut short the prosecution of the... |
David Adesnik: NYT BLASTS MUSHARRAF: And he damn well deserves it. |
Statement from John Kerry on One Year Anniversary of Invasion of Iraq (Kerry for President Press Room) Permalink "Today marks the one year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. It is an important day to recognize the courage and enormous skill of the United States military. Our men and women in uniform are the best and the brightest the nation has to offer, and their efforts to defend... | |
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Steven Taylor: Here's an official Statement from John Kerry on One Year Anniversary of Invasion of Iraq. James Joyner notes the ongoing issue of defining... |
Mark Sundeen: Meanwhile, John Kerry had this to say about the one-year mark: "Before the war started, I repeatedly called on the President to build a genuine... |
How Long, How Long? (NRO) Permalink Vice President Cheney has a difficult time when required to outline the goals of our engagement in Iraq to the extent that they go further than simply removing a tyrant and disarming his regime. This is the problem he and of course the president will face this summer and... | |
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Jesse Taylor: Count On It — Atrios rightly excoriates William F. Buckley for using a fake e-mail to make...some sort of argument. I'm not really clear on the... |
Atrios: National Review Enquirer — William F. Buckley is spreading urban legends. |
Clinton Aides Plan to Tell Panel of Warning Bush Team on Qaeda ( / NYT) Permalink WASHINGTON, March 19 — Senior Clinton administration officials called to testify next week before the independent commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks say they are prepared to detail how they repeatedly warned their Bush administration counterparts in late 2000... | |
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Josh Marshall: Consider this passage from a piece in today's Times ... "They said the warnings were delivered in urgent post-election intelligence briefings in... Cori Dauber: TESTIMONY TO TAKE PLACE ON THE TRANSITION — I'll be honest with you, this story, that Clinton aides are about to testify to the 9/11 Commission... |
Matt Yglesias: Here It Is — Here's the good pre-9/11 stuff I've been looking for: "Senior Clinton administration officials called to testify next week before... Atrios: Operation Ignore — From the Clenisites: WASHINGTON, March 19 â" Senior Clinton administration officials called to testify next week before... |
Sept. 11: Before And After ( / CBS News) Permalink (CBS) Former White House terrorism advisor Richard Clarke tells Correspondent Lesley Stahl that on Sept. 11, 2001, and the day after - when it was clear al Qaeda had carried out the terrorist attacks - the Bush administration was considering bombing Iraq in retaliation. | |
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Cori Dauber: RICHARD CLARKE SAYS IRAQ WAS SUGGESTED THE FIRST WEEK — Richard Clarke apparently charges that the idea of putting Iraq in the bombing que was... Pejman Yousefzadeh: Former terrorism advisor Richard Clarke has written a new book alleging that—hold your breath!—people in the Bush Administration talked about... Brad DeLong: From all accounts, the national security side of the Bush administration is an even more disgraceful clown show than the domestic policy side as... |
David Adesnik: Ex-NSC counter-terrorism director Richard Clarke says that the Administration was already thinking about Iraq in the immediate aftermath of... Oliver Willis: So when he talks, it probably pays to listen Clarke was surprised that the attention of administration officials was turning toward Iraq when he... Kevin Drum: Today, via Josh Marshall, we learn that former White House terrorism advisor Richard Clarke has told 60 Minutes how it happened: [quote] "Rumsfeld was...[end quote] |
Bush Asks Allies for Unity on Iraq ( / WaPo) Permalink President Bush yesterday marked the anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq with an appeal for international unity after a year of division by warning that there can be "no separate peace" with the West's enemies. | |
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Kos: Bush spoke to dozens of diplomats yesterday, arguing that past disagreements should be glossed over and they should all send their sons and... |
Mark Sundeen: In Bush's speech yesterday he stuck to the hot-aired rhetoric of good vs. evil, life vs. death, "no neutral ground." Even though Bush and Cheney... |
KERRY CALLED SECRET SERVICE AGENT 'SON OF A B*TCH' AFTER SLOPE SPILL (Drudge Report) Permalink Dem presidential candidate John Kerry called his secret service agent a "son of a bitch" after the agent inadvertently moved into his path during a ski mishap in Idaho, sending Kerry falling into the snow. | |
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Tom Maguire: Mickey has more, with links to the Times and the ABC Note; here is Matt Drudge; Noam Scheiber has a gloom-inducing Kerry Motto Lotto update; and... Tom Smith: Drudge reports today that Kerry has been hiking up to the 9000 foot level on Baldy and snowboarding down, taking repeated falls. I guess I have... John Hawkins: John "F-ing" Kerry Gets Extreme On The Ski Slopes — I know you're not going to get this unless you're a Simpsons junkie, but here's the first... |
Roger L. Simon: Arrogance — With the caveat that it is being reported by DRUDGE and is therefore subject to revision, if accurate the following about Kerry is... Tim Blair: Drudge reports: [quote] Dem presidential candidate John Kerry called his secret service agent a "son of a bitch" after the agent inadvertently moved...[end quote] Edward Driscoll: On the other hand, it's not at all surprising to read John F'ing Kerry, while snow boarding in front of the press, called his agent a "son of a... |
| Also: Hindrocket, Charles Johnson, Bo Cowgill | |
Blunkett aide in row over race ( / Guardian) Permalink David Blunkett faced embarrassing questions last night after it emerged that the home secretary's special adviser on race believed the law should not stop white employers discriminating against black job applicants. | |
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David Bernstein: Modern Antidiscrimination Ideology, 'Nuff Said: From the Guardian: David Winnick, a member of the Commons home affairs select committee, said... |
John Quiggin: Since I’ve argued previously that there’s a lot of confusion in discussions about equality of opportunities and of outcomes, I was... |
Charges dropped against Muslim chaplain ( / AP) Permalink Capt. James Yee will be allowed to return to his previous duty station at Fort Lewis, near Tacoma, Wash., said the U.S. Southern Command, which oversees the detention center in Cuba. | |
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Charles Johnson: Charges Dropped Against Yee — It appears the Army has totally botched the case against Muslim chaplain James Yee; all charges have been dropped. Emperor Darth Misha I: Well, Beckett writes again and suggests that maybe now's the time, pointing to this article. "MIAMI - Citing national security concerns, the... |
Roger Ailes: "MIAMI (AP) — Citing national security concerns, the Army on Friday dropped all charges against a Muslim chaplain accused of mishandling... |
TV Networks Have Been Getting Ready ( / LAT) Permalink NEW YORK — With U.S. and Pakistani military forces stepping up their search for Osama bin Laden and other top Al Qaeda leaders, U.S. television networks have been quietly maneuvering to get people and equipment into Afghanistan and Pakistan in case the terrorist mastermind... | |
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Greyhawk: Amid Growing Fears of Failure, Networks "Soldier On" — According to reliable sources, television crews have Osama Bin Laden surrounded: "With... |
Josh Marshall: (Here's a good story from the LA Times about how all the nets are hurriedly prepositioning their foreign correspondents in Pakistan because they... |
Republican Don King ( / Townhall.com) Permalink WASHINGTON — The Republican National Committee will hold a big-ticket, exclusive fundraiser March 26 at the palatial mansion of boxing promoter Don King in Manalapan, Fla. The price: $25,000 per couple, with admission limited to the first 25 couples. | |
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Betsy Newmark: Who knew that Don King supported Republicans? |
Adam White: And now, according to Bob Novak, we have more reason for optimism: Specter's junior, conservative Rick Santorum, is catching hell for supporting... |
Hundreds Protest Iraq War in California (AP) Permalink SAN FRANCISCO - Hundreds of war protesters marched through the city Friday morning, flashing peace signs and wearing colorful masks on the one-year anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq . | |
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Edward Driscoll: Charles Johnson notes that yesterday, "Even in the dark heart of idiotarianism, San Francisco, mere "hundreds" turned out for today's... |
Charles Johnson: Even in the dark heart of idiotarianism, San Francisco, mere "hundreds" turned out for today's feeble-minded protests against the Iraq War:... |
Campaign Mantra Is Rapid Response ( / WaPo) Permalink Last Sunday, President Bush's campaign strategists met outside the office to plot a preemptive strike against John F. Kerry before he addressed a veterans' group in West Virginia. | |
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Betsy Newmark: Howard Kurtz describes the rapid-response tactics that the Kerry and Bush campaigns are using so that they can respond to each other in the same... |
Taegan Goddard: Meanwhile, the Washington Post runs a must read piece on how "technology and accelerated news coverage have produced a presidential campaign that... |
Army Drops Chaplain's Court-Martial ( / WaPo) Permalink The U.S. military last night dropped its court-martial proceedings against Army Capt. James Yee, the former Muslim chaplain at the Guantanamo Bay prison who once faced accusations of spying that nearly brought death penalty charges against him. | |
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Jeanne D'Arc: The material is so sensitive that the military wouldn't even let Yee's lawyer see it — until they accidentally mailed it to him a few months... |
James Joyner: Via Howard Bashman Update: WaPo has more: "The U.S. military announced last night* that it had dropped its court-martial proceedings against... |
Kerry outlines his military plan ( / Baltimore Sun) Permalink WASHINGTON - Condemning President Bush's military leadership, Sen. John Kerry outlined a plan yesterday that he said would modernize the military and bring new benefits to soldiers and veterans, even as he fended off Republican charges that he is unfit to be commander in... | |
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Steven Taylor: Kerry outlines his military plan "Among Kerry's proposals were providing more training and equipment to U.S. troops, improving military housing,... |
Liz Cox Barrett: Baltimore Sun readers got a different take. The headline on Julie Hirschfeld Davis's Sun story yesterday read: "Kerry Outlines His Military... |
Cheney Attacks Kerry's Record on the Military (NYT) Permalink SIMI VALLEY, Calif., March 17 — In a blistering critique of Senator John Kerry's record on military issues, Vice President Dick Cheney on Wednesday portrayed the Democratic presidential candidate as weak, inconsistent and a threat to the security of the nation. | |
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Steven Taylor: Indeed, I suspect that conservatives loved this speech: Cheney Attacks Kerry's Record on the Military. The whole speech can be found here and a... |
Liz Cox Barrett: But, as we learn eight paragraphs into the New York Times story on the speeches, "while Kerry opened with criticism of Mr. Bush's conduct of the... |
Optimists in Iraq (Opinion Journal) Permalink A paradox of the Iraq War that began a year ago today is that the Iraqis living through it are far more optimistic than the American elites who fret from afar. As predicted, and despite the car bombs and other violence that dominate the headlines, Iraqis really do believe... | |
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Cori Dauber: BIG PICTURE — Amid all the retrospectives on the first anniversary, it is worth taking at least a moment, as OpinionJournal.com points out, to... |
Edward Driscoll: The Wall Street Journal notes that "the natives must not be reading Reuters". And Stephen Green notes that "Germans are less optimistic about... |
'Reckless' and 'Irresponsible?' ( / ABCNEWS) Permalink March 19— In an interview several weeks before he voted against $87 billion in funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., seemed to argue that such a vote would be reckless,... | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: As for Kerry's consistency ... well ... consider this: "In an interview several weeks before he voted against $87 billion in funding for... Charles Johnson: They Call Him Flipper — On Face the Nation September 14, 2003, John Kerry said voting against the $87 billion funding bill would be... C. D. Harris: Just What We Want In A President — Reckless & Ir-responsible: "Asked if he would vote against the $87 billion if his amendment [offsetting the... |
Betsy Newmark: In September of 2003, John Kerry appeared on Face the Nation and was asked about the $87 billion dollar supplemental defense bill then being... Hugh Hewitt: And ABC News found the tape of Kerry's September 14, 2003 Face The Nation appearance in which Kerry was asked if he would vote against the $87... Josh Marshall: The piece is running today on ABC News and the premise is that Kerry said voting against the $87 billion Iraq supplemental would be "reckless"... |
President Bush Reaffirms Resolve to War on Terror, Iraq and Afghanistan (White House) Permalink THE PRESIDENT: Good morning and thanks for coming. Laura and I are pleased to welcome you all to the White House. Mr. Secretary, thank you for being here. Members of my National Security Council are here, members of the administration, members of our armed forces, members of... | |
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Matt Yglesias: Mind The Gap — The president said something a bit odd yesterday in his Iraq: Year One speech: "The murders in Madrid are a reminder that the... Brian Montopoli: Ready to see the sparks fly, we eagerly tuned into the Bush's speech today and waited to hear him go on the offensive. And then we waited some... Kevin Drum: Consider President Bush's words today at the White House: "The war on terror is not a figure of speech. It is an inescapable calling of our... |
Michael DeBow: The text of the President's speech today, marking the anniversary of the commencement of the war to liberate Iraq, is online here. Read the whole... David Allan Pell: Channeling Martha — Bush on Iraq One Year Later: "There have been disagreements in this matter, among old and valued friends. Those differences... KJL: "THE CIVILIZED WORLD IS AT WAR" President Bush's anniversary speech today should be read. |
From 9/11 to 3/11 ( / MSNBC) Permalink March 22 issue - Cell phones were vital components in the mass destruction that hit Spain last week, and they were symbols, too, of the horror that lingered afterward. Since 9/11, terrorists have known that the most ordinary things in modern life can be turned to apocalyptic... | |
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Cori Dauber: This week is a perfect example. Newsweek's cover last week was Martha Stewart. This week the cover is just what you'd imagine. Last week Time had... |
David Allan Pell: Shadow Boxing — With days such as 9-11 and 3-11 marked forever, it has become clear that democracies across the world face a common and deadly... |
Why the Qaeda Threat is Growing ( / Time) Permalink Terrorists reminded us last week in Madrid that the specter of al-Qaeda haunts the Western world today as much as it did on September 12, 2001 — if not more so. Even as Spain appears to have arrested those responsible, security analysts on both sides of the Atlantic are... | |
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Cori Dauber: This week the cover is just what you'd imagine. Last week Time had a cover story on Iraq. And so it's cover is this. Charming picture, but how is... |
David Allan Pell: So why does it seem like the threat is getting worse? |
Crowd Storms Restaurant Over Alcohol (Reuters) Permalink MANAMA (Reuters) - Some 100 Bahraini Islamists shouting "God is Greatest" stormed a French restaurant serving alcohol in the pro-Western Gulf Arab state and threatened diners with knives, witnesses said on Thursday. | |
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Tim Blair: QUESTION ASKED, ANSWERED — Reuters reports: [quote] Some 100 Bahraini Islamists shouting "God is Greatest" stormed a French restaurant serving alcohol...[end quote] |
Charles Johnson: Religion of Prohibition in Bahrain — In moderate, peaceful Bahrain, a hundred followers of the RoP burst into a French restaurant and threatened... |
USA Today Says Reporter Faked Stories (AP) Permalink ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) - USA Today said Friday that an examination of the work of journalist Jack Kelley found strong evidence that the newspaper's former star foreign correspondent had fabricated substantial portions of at least eight major stories. | |
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David Adesnik: HYPOCRISY TEST: Kevin Drum expects that the paladins of the right-wing punditocracy will ignore the Jack Kelley/USA Today scandal because it... Edward Driscoll: COOKING THE BOOKS CERTAINLY DIDN'T BEGIN WITH JAYSON BLAIR: Jack Kelly, 43, had a 21 year career with USA Today and was five times nominated for... James Joyner: Reporter Faked Stories — USA Today Says Reporter Faked Stories "USA Today said Friday that an examination of the work of journalist Jack Kelley... |
Nick Gillespie: Atrios Agonistes — Power blogger Atrios wonders where is the journalistic outrage over USA Today fraudster Jack Kelley, who apparently faked... Josh Chafetz: ANOTHER JAYSON BLAIR. This time at USA Today. |
The Price of Freedom in Iraq ( / NYT) Permalink As it happened, I had that day visited a Korean War memorial, which bears the names of every American soldier killed in the war. On it was the name of a close friend of mine from high school, a wrestling teammate, who was killed on the last day of the war. I said to the... | |
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Matt Yglesias: State-Centrism — Ezra Klein notes the odd, unargued, freedom-to-security transition between paragraphs four and five of yesterday's Rumsfeld... David Allan Pell: One Year Later: Rummy makes the case for war in Iraq (and Korea and WWII). Allah: Allah finds it hilarious that the Jew Rumsfeld's account of his exchange with a South Korean journalist appeared in newspapers on the same day as... |
Ezra Klein: Rumsfeld's Op-Ed — I highly recommend reading Donald Rumsfeld's NY Times Op-Ed on the anniversary of war in Iraq. After looking through it a... James Joyner: The Price of Freedom in Iraq — SecDef Donald Rumsfeld has an interesting op-ed in today’s NYT. "This week, as we mark the one-year... |
Gitmo' Better Blues ( / Slate) Permalink The rush to create the fig leaf of justice at Guantanamo Bay has begun. Next month, the Supreme Court will review the Bush administration's claim that no one at Guantanamo is entitled to civilian court adjudication of their detentions. On the eve of the Supreme Court... | |
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Dan Gillmor: Bush's Guantanamo Doctrine: The Law is What I Say it Is — Slate: The folly of the new Guantanamo trials. (T)hese military charges are... |
Phil Carter: Gitmo Blues: Neal Katyal, a Georgetown law professor who has been working with military defense attorneys assigned to detainees at Guantanamo... |
Foster: White House Had Role In Withholding Medicare Data ( / WaPo) Permalink Richard S. Foster, the government's chief analyst of Medicare costs who was threatened with firing last year if he disclosed too much information to Congress, said last night that he believes the White House participated in the decision to withhold analyses that Medicare... | |
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Steven Taylor: The issue of the Bush administration's withholding of evidence in the Medicare bill debate is likely to become a campaign issue (Foster: White... Brad DeLong: Here Amy Goldstein of the Washington Post tells the story in much more tentative and hypothetical a mode than my sources told it to me |
Ruy Teixeira: Richard Foster, the analyst whose estimates were suppressed, now says he believes the White House directly organized and encouraged the effort to... Nick Confessore: The Washington Post reports: "Richard S. Foster, the government's chief analyst of Medicare costs who was threatened with firing last year if he... |
French Official: War Made World Dangerous (AP) Permalink PARIS — The world is a more dangerous place because of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, which may have toppled Saddam Hussein but also unleashed postwar violence and an upswing in terrorism, the French foreign minister said. | |
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Emperor Darth Misha I: You're Certainly Making the World a More Dangerous Place for YOU, Frogwit! french foreign minister Dominique de Villepin [...who is, so we're... KJL: NEVER DISAPPOINTS — "Terrorism didn't exist in Iraq before," Dominique de Villepin said. |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: MEMORIES ARE SHORT — Thus sayeth Dominique de Villepin: [quote] "Terrorism didn't exist in Iraq before," de Villepin said. "Today, it is one of the...[end quote] |
TERROR IS LOSING ( / New York Post) Permalink AFTER the horrific March 2 bombing that killed 170 at Shi'a shrines in Baghdad and Karbala, one Iraqi had an answer for those in the West who wonder if such tactics can work. His words speak to the horror of the events in Spain last week and in Baghdad on Wednesday. | |
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Roger L. Simon: Last thought for the anniversary — If Iraq ends up a true democracy or even something close...this man deserves a statue in Baghdad, but don't... Jeff Jarvis: Iraqi bloggers speak to the world : Paul Wolfowitz quotes Iraqi blogger Ali today and notes the importance of this new means of free speech |
Charles Johnson: Terror Is Losing — At the New York Post, Paul Wolfowitz relates some facts about Iraq that need to be put front and center: Terror Is Losing. |
Job Losses and Trade ( / Cato Center for Trade Policy Studies) Permalink Fears about job losses and chronic job shortages are on the loose again. Over the past few years, millions of U.S. jobs have disappeared, and foreign competition is increasingly taking the blame. Manufacturing jobs are supposedly fleeing to China, while service-sector jobs... | |
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Ramesh Ponnuru: TRADE AND JOBS — Brink Lindsey has produced an extremely sober and sensible primer on the subject. Let me mention one question that he... Radley Balko: Lou's Blues — Cato trade guru Brink Lindsey obliterates common myths arrising from the offshoring debate in a new Briefing Paper. Handy fodder... |
Max Sawicky: Libertarian luminary Brink Lindsey has a new essay ballyhooed by his comrades in Blogodonia (the libertarian region of the blogosphere, in... |
Humble Folks Without Temptation ( / American Spectator) Permalink South Park launched its eighth season this week with an episode that parodied Japanese anime, mocked the crackdown on "indecency," and showed a kid getting a ninja throwing star stuck in his eye. At this point, Trey Parker and Matt Stone's cartoon is almost as old as its boy... | |
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Betsy Newmark: Jesse Walker pays tribute to South Park. "FORTUNATELY, THERE'S LITTLE chance that Parker and Stone are going to be asked to address any... |
Tim Cavanaugh: Remember the Turd — Reason writers around town: At The American Spectator, Jesse Walker lays odds on whether South Park can survive... |
Welcome to the Titanic ( / Guardian) Permalink So when London is bombed by al-Qaida will you blame Tony Blair? If we're to stay free, in a dangerous world, we need to think straighter than that. | |
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David Adesnik: That is the point made in an excellent essay by Timothy Garton Ash (link via TPM): "Rightwing American commentators charge Spanish voters with... |
Josh Marshall: But they each contain important food for thought. They're by Bob Kagan, Anne Applebaum, Jim Pinkerton and Timothy Garton Ash. It probably won't... |
Reactionary Prophet ( / The Atlantic Online) Permalink The sycophant—who in the pay of the English oligarchy played the romantic laudator temporis acti against the French Revolution just as, in the pay of the North American colonies at the beginning of the American troubles, he had played the liberal against the English... | |
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Michael DeBow: Edmund Burke as "Reactionary Prophet": Christopher Hitchens reflects on Reflections on the Revolution in France. |
Nick Gillespie: In a very interesting review essay from The Atlantic, Christopher Hitchens gives props to Edmund Burke over Thomas Paine, writing in part, "If... |
Kerry Capitalizing on Party Resources to Fill Coffers (WaPo) Permalink Sen. John F. Kerry is setting the stage to raise as much as $100 million for his presidential campaign by seizing control of his party's fundraising machinery, winning the support of top money people for vanquished rivals, and attracting thousands of new small donors via the... | |
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Steven Taylor: The clear benefits of being the presumptive nominee: Kerry Capitalizing on Party Resources to Fill Coffers "Sen. John F. Kerry is setting the... Atrios: Kerry Fundraising — Let's hope the optimism in this article about the ability of Kerry and the Dems to fundraise actually understates their... |
David Allan Pell: Guess that's just some blogs. + Since Iowa, the Kerry campaign has pulled in a cool $18 million on the net. Hesiod: MONEY TALKS: And John Kerry is raising a BOAT-load of it. So much of it, in fact, that it's scaring the bejesus out of the Republicans. So...KEEP... |
Bush campaign gear made in Burma ( / Newsday) Permalink The official merchandise Web site for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign has sold clothing made in Burma, whose goods were banned by Bush from the U.S. last year to punish its military dictatorship. | |
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Taegan Goddard: Bush Gear Made In Burma — President Bush's re-election campaign website "has sold clothing made in Burma, whose goods were banned by Bush from... Hesiod: BURMA SHAVE: LOL!! The Bush campaign is selling Bush/Cheney clothing made in Burma! If that's not bad enough, the Bush adminsitration BANNED... Jesse Taylor: Wrap Yourself In My Love — Yeah, this is just brilliant. The official merchandise Web site for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign... |
Nathan Newman: Bush Gear- Made in Burma — Apparently, some of Bush campaign jackets come straight from Burma (via Atrios) So order some Kerry gear— made in... Atrios: Oops — This is amusing: The official merchandise Web site for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign has sold clothing made in Burma,... |
Pipes Objects to Fox in the Henhouse ( / Insight) Permalink The congressionally funded United States Institute of Peace will host an event today in Washington on reforming Islam, with a guest panelist who has threatened the United States and openly supported terrorist groups, Insight has learned. | |
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Charles Johnson: Radical Muslims Still Have Access to US Gov't — Today in Washington the United States Institute of Peace is hosting an event on reforming... |
Fred Lapides: This article appears in Insight "The congressionally funded United States Institute of Peace will host an event today in Washington on... |
Kerry now rejects foreign endorsements (Washington Times) Permalink Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry yesterday renounced all endorsements of foreign leaders, after his campaign faced questions this week over his claim that world leaders told him face to face they want him to defeat President Bush. | |
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John Cole: Except now he doesn't want any help: "Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry yesterday renounced all endorsements of foreign leaders,... Allah: Yesterday, the Party of Allah renounced its endorsements from foreign leaders. What happened, kufr? Oh. Right. "Former Malaysian Prime Minister... |
Steven Taylor: A New "Iron Law" of Campaiging — The crux of the John Kerry "foreign leaders" meme, and why it is working against Kerry, can be summed up in a... |
We Are All Kurds (NRO) Permalink Sports news: According to an item in Thursday's Daily Telegraph, violence broke out at a soccer match when Kurdish fans began waving posters of President George W. Bush at Syrian fans who were waving pictures of Saddam Hussein. So the Syrians brought in the army and started... | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: "ANTI-SEMITISM SCARCELY EXISTS IN THE WEST" You would think that after saying what he said, John Humphrys would at least feel ashamed about it... |
Tim Blair: EUROSHRIEK — European appeasement is spreading everywhere, writes Denis Boyles: "Last night, British TV personality Jeremy Clarkson embarrassed... |
Discourse and Double Standards ( / TCS) Permalink Noam Chomsky is often accused of being eager to criticize the United States for its perceived and alleged misdeeds, while being unwilling to criticize the very real misdeeds of others. Chomsky's answer to this critique is typified by his statement in this online chat, where... | |
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Steve Bainbridge: Pejman and Chomsky — Pejman Yousefzadeh is again taking on Norm Chomsky:Chomsky has been equally willing in the past to construct tortured... |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: DOUBLE YOUR FUN — Behold this week's second Tech Central Station column, presented for your perusal. |
Europe at loggerheads over how to co-ordinate on terrorism ( / Financial Times) Permalink A turf war has broken out inside the European Union over who should be Europe's first counter-terrorism chief, a day before interior ministers hold an emergency meeting in Brussels to respond to last week's Madrid bombings that killed more than 200 people. | |
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Atrios: Who are the real appeasers? Germany was reminded of this last weekend. Its federal criminal bureau said the Spanish authorities intentionally... |
Kevin Drum: Here's what the Financial Times reports from German authorities: "Its federal criminal bureau said the Spanish authorities intentionally withheld... |
Amid Natural Splendor in Idaho, a Weary Kerry Gets Away From It All ( / NYT) Permalink KETCHUM, Idaho, March 18 — John Kerry was in the air, approaching the Continental Divide, and the candidate often ridiculed as straddling both sides of political divides was wrestling with the big matter at hand. | |
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Tom Smith: Kerry is a weiner — You may have missed this account of an incident in today's New York Times about Senator Kerry's vacation in Sun Valley,... Hugh Hewitt: The New York Times account: "When asked about the mishap a moment later, he said sharply 'I don't fall down,' then used an expletive to describe... Steven Taylor: Kerry Needs Some Better Advisors or at Least Some Self-Restraint — File this one in the "not helpful to Kerry's image" folder: Amid Natural... |
Tim Blair: KERRY KRASHES, KURSES — Now he's literally performing backflips: "Mr. Kerry awoke determined to hit the slopes of Mount Baldy. The... Noam Scheiber: (The New York Times has a similar account, which identifies the kamikaze skier as a member of Kerry's Secret Service detail.) I'm tempted to say... Ezra Klein: Being a Candidate — This is why I pity presidential candidates: On his first full day off, though, Mr. Kerry awoke determined to hit the slopes... |
| Also: Jonah Goldberg, Brian Montopoli, Hesiod, Steve Bainbridge, Betsy Newmark, Charles Johnson | |
Ex-USA TODAY reporter faked major stories ( / USA Today) Permalink Seven weeks into an examination of former USA TODAY reporter Jack Kelley's work, a team of journalists has found strong evidence that Kelley fabricated substantial portions of at least eight major stories, lifted nearly two dozen quotes or other material from competing... | |
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Jesse Taylor: Whereas Jayson Blair was a national scandal and a conservative cause du jour because he was black, Jack Kelley's sins, which make Jayson Blair... Nathan Hallford: A seven week intensive examination of former veteran USA Today reporter Jack Kelley has revealed several instances in which he fabricated entire... Atrios: USA Today Reporter Busted — Investigators say he fabricated parts of substantial numbers of stories. Why oh why do we have affirmative action... |
Roger Ailes: Putzie Buries The Lede — Reporter Jack Kelley stands accused by his former employer, USA Today, of making s**t up on a global basis. The paper... Howard Kurtz: The latest findings are in on former foreign correspondent Jack Kelley, and USA Today's internal probe isn't pretty: "Seven weeks into an... |
Bin Laden's right-hand man slips net (The Australian) Permalink A BULLETPROOF LandCruiser at high speed bursting out of a tribal compound in Pakistan's South Waziristan region was just the latest infuriating setback in the US's quest to bring down the top of the al-Qa'ida tree. | |
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Jim Henley: Dilatory News Blogging - If Ayman al-Zawahiri did escape, it's too goddam bad. It's pretty obvious that if he's not already running the show,... Hesiod: And, who knows? Maybe it's TOO MUCH of one? UPDATE: At least one report claims that Zawahri got away. If so, you wonder whether it was wise to... |
Brad DeLong: "The Australian: Bin Laden's right-hand man slips net [March 20, 2004]: A BULLETPROOF LandCruiser at high speed bursting out of a tribal... Atrios: Got Away? Oy. A BULLETPROOF LandCruiser at high speed bursting out of a tribal compound in Pakistan's South Waziristan region was just the latest... |
Off the Mark on Cost of War, Reception by Iraqis (WaPo) Permalink A year ago tonight, President Bush took the nation to war in Iraq with a grand vision for change in the Middle East and beyond. | |
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Mark Sundeen: 'Weeks Rather Than Months:' A Year of Misleading With yesterday's one-year mark of the war in Iraq, the Washington Post compares the actual... James Joyner: Off the Mark on Cost of War — Dana Milbank and Robin Wright offer a critical assessment of the war to date: "A year ago tonight, President Bush... |
David Allan Pell: From the cost of the war, to the reactions of the Iraqis, to the dashed expectations of the public to the missing WMDs, to the very appropriate... Cori Dauber: LETS GO THE VIDEOTAPE — The Post presents a review of progress in Iraq, something that surely many outlets will use the excuse of the first... |
One down, three to go? (Economist) Permalink IF YOU carry out a well planned atrocity, killing more than 200 people and injuring more than a thousand, and three days later the government that supported an invasion to which you object is unexpectedly defeated in a general election, you are entitled to consider the... | |
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Gregory Djerejian: And read the Economist's comment: "Would new governments, led by John Kerry, Mark Latham (in Australia) and Michael Howard (in Britain), do... |
Matt Yglesias: My Point Exactly — Greg Djerjian quotes the following from the Economist: "Would new governments, led by John Kerry, Mark Latham (in Australia)... |
Taiwan President Shot, Not in Critical Condition (Reuters) Permalink TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian was shot while campaigning Friday, a day before a presidential election, but was not in critical condition, his spokesman told Reuters. | |
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Steven Taylor: Attempted Assassination in Taiwan — Taiwan President Shot, Not in Critical Condition "Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian survived an assassination... KJL: TAIWAN'S PRES & VP SHOT on eve of election. neither wound is life threatening. |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: TURMOIL IN TAIWAN — It really shouldn't take this to concentrate minds on the issue of Taiwan, which is constantly in China's crosshairs. I have... |