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Conservative TV Group to Air Anti-Kerry Film By / LAT — Permalink Sinclair, with reach into many of the nation's homes, will preempt prime-time shows. Experts call the move highly unusual. NEW YORK — The conservative-leaning Sinclair Broadcast Group, whose television outlets reach nearly a quarter of the nation's homes... | |
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Oliver Willis: I guess the subtle manipulation of the media message got to them - and since things have been shifting Kerry's way... Jeralyn Merritt: The Los Angeles Times reports the company has ordered its stations to air an Anti-Kerry Film on the eve of the election. Chris Bowers: Media Conglomerate Will Attempt to Swing Election For Bush — It what can only be described as an attempt by a large,... |
Xan @Corrente: The name is attached to a different kind of station these days, and the affection is wearing off fast. (via LATimes) "NEW YORK — The conservative-leaning [leaning?? Jay Rosen: The Politics of Broadcasting Takes a New Turn... and what should be the response? This is going to be huge, people. Harley: On the other hand, airing an anti-Kerry film on the eve of the election — 60 minutes produced by a former Washington... |
| Also: Ezra Klein, John Cole, Echidne @AmStreet, Kevin Drum, Mathew Gross, Steve M., Matthew Yglesias, Josh Marshall, Atrios | |
ABCNEWS POLITICAL DIRECTOR MEMO SPARKS CONTROVERSY: BOTH SIDES NOT 'EQUALLY ACCOUNTABLE' Drudge Report — Permalink An internal memo written by ABCNEWS Political Director Mark Halperin admonishes ABC staff: During coverage of Democrat Kerry and Republican Bush not to "reflexively and artificially hold both sides 'equally' accountable." | |
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Josh Marshall: Earlier this evening — I flipped by the Fox News media criticism show and noticed that they were talking about the Mark Halperin memo posted on Drudge. Mark Kleiman: That's the situation addressed in the remarkable Mark Halperin memo posted by Drudge today, and which is attracting so much simulated outrage from Right Blogistan. Matthew Yglesias: Good For Mark Halperin — Drudge is trying to turn it into a scandal, but Mark Haperin deserves plaudits and support for stating the obvious. |
Brent Andrewsen: What media bias? If this report is true, it is yet further evidence that the media cannot possibly be objective. Kevin Drum: SHADING THE TRUTH, PART 2....ABC News Political Director Mark Halperin explains the obvious to his troops on Friday: [snipped quote] Good for him. Avedon Carol: Liberal media — Drudge got hold of a badly-worded memo from Mark Halpern telling the news staff at ABC not to pretend... |
| Also: Porphyrogenitus, Ace, Whiskey, Hugh Hewitt, Pejman Yousefzadeh, Jesse Taylor, Barbara Comstock, Allah, Bill @INDCJournal, Ed Driscoll, Steve Dillard, John Cole, Charles Austin, Hindrocket, Christopher Kanis, Charles Johnson, Spoons, Betsy Newmark, Glenn Reynolds | |
Transcript: Second Presidential Debate WaPo — Permalink Text From FDCH E-Media, Inc. Following is a transcript of the second presidential debate between between President Bush (R) and Sen. John F. Kerry (D). The moderator of the nationally televised debate is Charles Gibson of ABC News. | |
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Chris Mooney: Let's go to the transcript: [snipped quote] First of all, I was astonished that this question got asked. DeLong: This is the lie that has driven the entire staff of the small-government Cato Institute into shrill unholy madness William J. Dyer: At least three in the room, but the wrong three — One of my emailers points out a possible inaccuracy in Sen. Kerry's... |
Joseph Alexander Norland: Bush's swift answer: "I own a timber company? That's news to me" (source WaPo's transcript). That exchange is a small but a characteristic lie. Pejman Yousefzadeh: WILLIAM SALETAN IS DEPRESSED — Writing his piece as if he were the debate coach for the Kerry-Edwards campaign—which... Brad @ShrillBlog: Kevin Drum and the Cato Institute Together Ascend to Higher Degrees of Shrillness!! Kevin Drum notes one of Bush's many, many lies from last night. |
| Also: Kevin Drum, Avedon Carol, Jan Haugland, Daniel Drezner, Mary @LeftCoaster, David Neiwert, Josh Marshall, Ken Masugi, Michelle Malkin, Tom Maguire, Dan Alban, Steve M., Joe Gandelman, David Allan Pell, Lambert @Corrente | |
Standoff in Second Debate By / Gallup — Permalink PRINCETON, NJ — Sen. John Kerry and President George W. Bush battled each other to a virtual tie in Friday night's presidential debate, according to a random sample of 515 registered voters who watched the event. Forty-seven percent of viewers said Kerry did the better job; 45% picked Bush. | |
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Oliver @LiquidList: Politics: Big Win — You might have already heard that the first post-debate Gallup insta-poll showed a razor-thin Kerry victory, 47%-45%, in last night's debate. Jerome Armstrong: Update (Chris):Gallup Who won? DeLong: Kerry Won the Second Debate The Gallup Organization reports that the independents it surveyed last night split 53% for Kerry, 37% for Bush. |
Kevin Drum: Today, via Mark Kleiman, I see that Gallup has broken down their results: among independents, Kerry won decisively, 53%-37%. Jeanne D'Arc: UPDATE: Gallup, which notes that men and women had virtually identical responses to the first debate, sees a significant gender gap in the response to this one. Andrew Sullivan: GALLUP ON THE DEBATE: Interesting stuff from a polling organization that has provided consistently good news for Bush. |
| Also: Steve Soto, DemFromCT, Mark Kleiman | |
Howard claims victory ABC News — Permalink Prime Minister John Howard has thanked the Australian people for his historic fourth federal election victory. Federal Labor leader Mark Latham conceded defeat after the Howard Government won an increased majority in the federal Parliament. | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: AUSTRALIA DOES NOT EQUAL SPAIN — As Will Collier notes, Australian Prime Minister John Howard not only won a fourth term in office, but also increased his parliamentary majority. Bill @INDCJournal: Yahoo A key ally in the war on terror wins re-election: Howard claims victory Prime Minister John Howard has thanked... Charles Austin: Today's Favorite Omen/Precursor/Touchstone |
FrancoAlemán: CONGRATULATIONS, AUSTRALIA, for, er, not pulling a Spain! Orrin Judd: THE WILLING ARE ABLE: Howard claims victory (ABC au, 10/09/04) "Prime Minister John Howard has thanked the Australian people for his historic fourth federal election victory. Will Collier: In Australia, Bush ally John Howard has not only won a fourth term, his party picked up seats in the Aussie parliament. |
| Also: Ginny @ChicagoBoyz, Glenn Reynolds, David Cohen | |
The Mystery of the Bulge in the Jacket By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 - What was that bulge in the back of President Bush's suit jacket at the presidential debate in Miami last week? According to rumors racing across the Internet this week, the rectangular bulge visible between Mr. Bush's shoulder blades... | |
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Betsy Newmark: The New York Times jumps in the rumor game talking about the bulge in Bush's jacket and the theories that he had a radio transmitter receiving messages from Karl Rove. Ace: Unbelievable: The New York Times Dutifully Reports Anti-Bush Interent Conspiracy Theories — Next time some liberal... DeLong: Things Have Gotten Really Weird Here... First the Bush administration says that it believes that photographs like this... |
Ken Layne: The Mystery of the Bulge in the Jacket — Jeebus. Now the "Bush was wearing a wire" story has reached the NYT. Charles Johnson: Lindorff's Mystery Bulge — The latest eruption from the fever swamp makes it into the New York Times: The Mystery of the Bulge in the Jacket. Josh Marshall: Even the — Times now is asking whether President Bush was wearing a wire in the first debate. |
| Also: David Allan Pell, Mark Kleiman | |
Are Bush and Cheney "Small Businesses?" Their Ad Counts Them As Such FactCheck.org — Permalink A Bush-Cheney '04 ad claims Kerry would raise taxes on 900,000 small businesses and "hurt jobs." But it counts every high-salaried person who has even $1 of outside business income as a "small business owner" — a definition so broad that even Bush and Cheney have qualified while in office. | |
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LQ @AmStreet: "(LAUGHTER)" From Dick Cheney's beloved Factcheck.ORG: [quote] President Bush himself would have qualified as a "small...[end quote] Fred Clark: Problem with Bush's joke: He was lying. See Cheney's favorite site on the Internets — Factcheck.org. Kriston @BeggingToDiffer: From the Vice President's own Factcheck.org (I think that's what Cheney meant), it would appear that Bush does, in fact, have an economic interest in a timber company. |
Mark Kleiman: But that's not the point. Factcheck.org — certified by Dick Cheney as a reliable arbiter — explains. Avedon Carol: Via Atrios, FactCheck.org on small business taxes and George Bush's $84 from a timber company. Andrew Sullivan: BUSH'S TIMBER COMPANY: Kerry was right. Money quote: [snipped quote] On this point, and many others, Bush simply didn't seem as well-informed as Kerry. |
| Also: Lambert @Corrente, Jim D, Skippy, Scott Rosenberg, David Allan Pell, Atrios, Kos, James Joyner | |
Plenty of Flaws Among the Facts WaPo — Permalink President Bush and Sen. John F. Kerry disagreed vigorously last night as they tossed out plenty of numbers, and both demonstrated a talent for relying on facts and assertions of questionable origin. | |
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Steve Soto: Ceci Connolly and Glenn Kessler, Washington Post, today Kerry is already capitalizing on the "Angry George" we saw... Stuart Buck: An oddity: While purporting to fact-check Kerry and Bush from the second debate, this Washington Post article makes an... |
Mark Kleiman: The Washington Post story follows the same pattern: most of the story consists of laying out Bush's systematic... Matt Welch: Some preliminary fact-checks from last night's tussle can be found at Cheney favorite FactCheck.org, CNN, The Associated... |
Strikeout By / Slate — Permalink In honor of the baseball playoffs, I've borrowed the metaphor of a ninth-inning rally to describe the Democrats' October comeback. In the first presidential debate, John Kerry got the lead-off hit. In the vice-presidential encounter Tuesday night, John Edwards singled him to third. | |
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PoliPundit: Quote of the Day — Slate's liberal William Saletan, who called the first two debates for Kedwards, is calling the third for President Bush. H.D. Miller: One exception is William Saletan writing this morning's in Slate. [snipped quote] Kerry's reply was classic Kerry, hedge, straddle, back-fill, waffle, and evade. Andrew Sullivan: KERRY BLEW IT: That's Saletan's take. He's very good on Kerry's awful blather about abortion. |
Orrin Judd: So other than being tall, he got his pumice stone handed to him. MORE: Strikeout: Kerry blows the second debate. McQ: Ah, saturday's in October ... UPDATE: William Saletin of Slate, who I frequently take to task about his comments was... Betsy Newmark: William Saletan, a liberal who doesn't like Bush, thinks that Bush won the debate because Kerry failed to respond to openings that Bush gave him. |
| Also: QD @SouthernAppeal | |
Nation puts its trust in Howard NEWS.com.au — Permalink PRIME Minister John Howard has claimed victory in the federal election that returned him to office for a fourth term in a vote that saw surprise gains for the Coalition across the country. Labor failed to make any significant gains and senior party figures were conceding defeat just hours into the counting tonight. | |
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Mrs Greyhawk: PRIME Minister John Howard has claimed victory in the federal election that returned him to office for a fourth term in... Tim Blair: I WAS WRONG — Never again will I doubt the wisdom of Australians. |
Andrew Sullivan: HOWARD'S LANDSLIDE: A big and unexpected fillip for the Bush campaign from down under. Tim Blair is in heaven. |
Networks persisted with façade of "balance" in post-debate fact checks Media Matters for America — Permalink After the October 8 presidential debate, TV networks followed the pattern of false equivalence that Media Matters for America documented after both the first presidential and the vice presidential debates (here, here, and here). | |
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Oliver Willis: That's not balance. That's idiotic reporting. > Networks persisted with faade of "balance" in post-debate fact checks Mark Kleiman: Kerry on Shinseki — Yes, it seems that Shinseki was punished by the White House — not, in fact, retired early, but... |
Chris Bowers: As Media Matters notes: [quote] Williams singled out as a distortion Kerry's true statement that Bush "didn't fund No Child Left Behind [NCLB]."[end quote] Matt Welch: Please suggest others in the comments, partisan or no. This kind of instantaneous B.S.-detecting is, of course, one of... |
The Report That Nails Saddam By / NYT — Permalink Saddam Hussein saw his life as an unfolding epic narrative, with retreats and advances, but always the same ending. He would go down in history as the glorious Arab leader, as the Saladin of his day. | |
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Joseph Alexander Norland: On the basis of the Duelfer Report, David Brooks writes about what would have transpired were it not for the decisive, principled leadership of George Bush Pejman Yousefzadeh: SHORTER DUELFER REPORT — Courtesy of David Brooks, who like other excellent media outlets shows that he has superb... Christopher Kanis: Deulfer — NYT Op Ed: David Brooks: [snipped quote] If you are the sort to ever have political arguments with your... |
C. D. Harris: On a related note, David Brooks and Michael Barone are doing journeymen's work correcting the media's misleading (IOW, pro-Kerry) spin on what the Duelfer report actually says. Glenn Reynolds: Elsewhere in the Times, though, David Brooks has it right. Spin in the news articles, facts in the opeds — it's bizarro-world over there. Betsy Newmark: David Brooks is excellent today on what the Duelfer report really shows. "The world lacked what Saddam had: the long perspective. |
| Also: Josh Marshall, Juan Non-Volokh, Orrin Judd | |
Kerry mocks rough and ready Bush, hours after debate AFP — Permalink ELRYIA, United States (AFP) - Democratic hopeful John Kerry depicted President George W. Bush as angry, wrongheaded and unfit to lead, hours after the two rivals slugged out their second televised debate. | |
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Mathew Gross: Zogby: Kerry Leads — Zogby shows Kerry with the forward momentum, but it's tight: 46-45: [snipped quote] Meanwhile, the... Charles Johnson: When Flipper Attacks — Kerry mocks rough and ready Bush. |
Atrios: Kerry Doing Fine — Poor little Furious George. |
The Duelfer report's case for war in Iraq By / US News — Permalink "U.S. 'Almost All Wrong' on Weapons" read the headline on the October 7 Washington Post. "Report on Iraq Contradicts Bush Administration Claims" read the subhead. But these headlines conceal the real news in the report of Iraq Survey Group head Charles Duelfer. | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: UPDATE: Michael Barone also shows that he has superb reading skills: "First of all, Saddam retained the capability to manufacture weapons of mass destruction. Juan Non-Volokh: Update: Michael Barone concurs. (Link via the Blogfather.) |
Glenn Reynolds: MICHAEL BARONE joins with David Brooks in writing that media headlines are underplaying the Duelfer report: [snipped quote] Indeed. |
Will boycott damage the Afghan vote? By / BBC — Permalink First things first - Afghanistan's first ever democratic elections were largely peaceful. This in a country still under the threat of violence from the Taleban, private militias and sparring warlords. And large numbers of Afghans turned out to cast their ballots including, in many areas, many women. | |
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Robert Garcia Tagorda: Lyse Doucet has the most appropriate conclusion: "This was an election which was supposed to have been undone by international terrorism. Allah: The shenanigans don't seem to be putting much of a damper on people's enthusiasm, though: "Despite the controversy,... |
Orrin Judd: TIME TO START ACTING LIKE dEMOCRATS, INSTEAD OF THE DEMOCRATS: Will boycott damage the Afghan vote? Bill @INDCJournal: Regardless, the Afghani people have displayed a strong will for Democracy - the ball is rolling downhill: Despite the... |
The Presidential Candidates' 2nd Debate: 'These Are the Differences' NYT — Permalink Following is a transcript of the presidential debate last night in St. Louis between President Bush and Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, as recorded by The New York Times. The moderator was Charles Gibson of ABC News. The questioners were potential voters who said they were undecided. | |
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Roger Ailes: But Bush shouting "TELL TONY BLAIR WE'RE GOING IT ALONE!!," interupting Charlie Gibson, an amiable doofus loved by... Atrios: Unf**kingbelievable: I remember sitting in the White House looking at those generals, saying do you have what you need in this war? Charles Johnson: Bush Wins Going Away — Reading the transcript of the second presidential debate is a revelation. |
Betsy Newmark: I missed this exchange from the debate last night. Echidne @AmStreet: If you don't believe me, note that Bush pretty much avoided referring to women at all, whereas Kerry spoke about the... Jack Balkin: The President Discloses His Real Strategy For Winning the Election JB From last night's debate: [snipped quote] Just like they did in 2000. |
| Also: SLZoll, Ann Althouse | |
New era dawns for an Australia in Howard's image Sydney Morning Herald — Permalink Australia entered a new era last night. Australians roundly rejected the once compelling appeal of 'a fair go', which must now be considered a relic of our past rather than an expression of our essence. They also may well have chosen to deliver John Howard effective control of the Senate. | |
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Tim Blair: Margo has lost all sense of history, as well as any ability to spell: "Can Latham survive? 2004 was certainly not a... Glenn Reynolds: UPDATE: Tim Blair: "Never again will I doubt the wisdom of Australians." Margo Kingston: "It was a landslide . . . |
Orrin Judd: MORE: -'By 8pm the word massacre was heard' (Miranda Devine, October 10, 2004, The Sun-Herald) -New era dawns for an... |
Hello, Gender Gap By / American Prospect — Permalink There's no point in doing a little political punditry in the October of an election year without going way out on a limb, so here goes: As I smelled it, the most important thing that happened in the second presidential debate is that George W. Bush lost a good chunk of the women's vote. | |
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Mathew Gross: Michael Tomasky describes it thus: "It was the manner: the schoolyard swagger, the left arm cocked like an itchy... Digby: I think it's time for divorce. Update: Michael Tomasky had a similar impression. |
Jeanne D'Arc: Bully Bush — Michael Tomasky thinks Bush lost women last night because he came across not as strong, but as a bully. |
Kopel: CBS peddling bogus draft fears Rocky Mountain News — Permalink Some people are so gullible that they believe the get-rich-quick e-mail that purportedly comes from relatives of deposed African dictators. Other people are so gullible that they've fallen for an e-mail hoax claiming that the military draft will be reinstated next spring. | |
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William J. Dyer: Thanks, Mr. Kopel, for the recognition — In addition to crediting blogger Bill of "INDC Journal, Snopes.com, and two... |
Dave Kopel: FYI — My latest media column examines the draft hoax. |
French philosopher Derrida, father of deconstruction, dies at 74 AFP — Permalink PARIS (AFP) - Jacques Derrida, one of France's best-known philosophers and the founder of the deconstructionist school, has died of cancer at the age of 74, his entourage said. He had been diagnosed with cancer of the pancreas in 2003. | |
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Michelle Malkin: DERRIDA IS DEAD Jacques Derrida, father of deconstructionism, is dead. Deconstructionism, alas, is still alive and thriving. Tbogg: Jacques Derrida, one of France's best-known philosophers and the founder of the deconstructionist school, has died of cancer at the age of 74, his entourage said. |
Michael DeBow: Jacques Derrida, R.I.P. According to Agency France Presse, Derrida, "one of France's best-known philosophers and the founder of the deconstructionist school," was 74. |
SEAN PENN RIPS 'TEAM AMERICA' CREATORS IN ANGRY MEMO Drudge Report — Permalink I remember a cordial hello when you guys were beginning to be famous guys around Hollywood at some party. I remember several times getting a few giggles out of your humor. I remember not being bothered as you traded on my name among others to appear witty, above it all, and likeable to your crowd. | |
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C. D. Harris: A Memo From Sean Penn... "...rather like being savaged by a dead sheep." Roger L. Simon: So when the makers of Team America wanted to have a little fun at his (and plenty of other's) expense, he screamed like... |
JD @SouthernAppeal: Courtesy of Drudge. [snipped quote] Penn seems to have a problem with the film, which from the reviews I've read savagely skewers the left and the right. Betsy Newmark: Drudge has another great tidbit up, this time a letter from Sean Penn to the creators of South Park. |
Debate Divide By / ABCNEWS — Permalink About equal numbers of partisans tuned in — 35 percent of viewers were Democrats, 32 percent Republicans and 29 percent independents. And few minds were changed: Viewers divided by 50 percent to 47 percent between Kerry and Bush before the debate, and by an almost identical 50 percent to 48 percent after it. | |
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Ann Althouse: "Almost no one on either side gave the win to the candidate they opposed," reports ABC News about its post-debate polling. EDM Staff: Kerry Edges Bush in ABC News, Gallup Post-Debate Polls; Wins Independents Easily — John Kerry beat George Bush 44-41... Orin Kerr: My Guy Definitely Won: I like how ABC broke down its post-debate poll numbers into results from Kerry supporters and results from Bush suppporters. |
DemFromCT: Whereas the polls (CNN/USAToday/Gallup, ABC, SUSA) and the overnight analysis (including ours) show (at worst) a small... Jan Haugland: ABC News has polled 515 registered voters (4.5 point error margin), and came up with a statistical tie: Among registered... |
The youthful criminal who turned into a terrorist killer Scotsman — Permalink ABU Musab al-Zarqawi has a history of terrorist acts and a reputation as a brutal, merciless killer. Rumoured to carry out the beheadings of captives personally, the Jordanian has strong links with al-Qaeda and is suspected of committing murders across the world. | |
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Jason Van Steenwyk: Portrait of the Terrorist as a Young Man — The Scotsman is running a short profile of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Hindrocket: UPDATE: For a good summary of Zarqawi's bloody career, see the Scotsman today: "The youthful criminal who turned into a terrorist killer". |
Tom Smith: More info on Allah's psycho-bat. AND appropriately enough, the SAS was used to hunt down and capture and kill escaping Nazi war criminals after WWII. |
Deconstruction icon Derrida dies BBC — Permalink Jacques Derrida, one of France's most famous philosophers, has died at the age of 74. Derrida, who suffered from cancer, died in a Paris hospital on Friday night. The Algerian-born philosopher is best known for his "deconstruction theory" - unpicking the way text is put together in order to reveal its hidden meanings. | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: "THE END OF AN EARACHE" — Jacques Derrida, remembered. David Carr: The End of an Earache — Avant-Garde French philosopher, Jacques Derrida, has finally been deconstructed: "Jacques... |
Charles Austin: Time To Get the Pomo Thread Started Again |
Dreaming in Kabul By / NYT — Permalink I'm sorry, President Bush. Although I searched all over Pakistan and Afghanistan, I couldn't find Osama bin Laden - except in my dreams: There I was, checking my e-mail at a Starbucks in Kandahar, when I spotted a slender 6-foot-5 figure in a burka, going this way and that, obviously lost. | |
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Orrin Judd: Dreaming in Kabul (NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF, 10/09/04, NY Times) "I'm sorry, President Bush. John Cole: Kristof's Wet Dream — I don't know what to say when I see things like this: [snipped quote] And Kevin Drum is upset... |
Mark Kleiman: And yet the Bush policies, including the invasion of Iraq, have made us furiously unpopular in the Islamic world, over... |
Bush Fights to Keep Emotions in Check By / AP — Permalink WASHINGTON - President Bush smirked and winked and chuckled to himself. He jumped from his stool, chopped at the air and interrupted the debate moderator. As he fought to keep his emotions in check in a testy, personal debate with Sen. John Kerry , the president asserted, "That answer almost made me scowl." | |
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Charles Johnson: But of course, mainstream media is doing everything possible to denigrate Bush and exalt Kerry; in just one out of... Jeralyn Merritt: Bush vs. His Emotions — This comes from an AP news article on the debate... not an op-ed piece or editorial. Mathew Gross: Bush Fights Emotion, Scowls in Debate — That's the AP headline from tonight's debate: "WASHINGTON - President Bush smirked and winked and chuckled to himself. |
Thirdparty: Ron Forunier, AP: "As he fought to keep his emotions in check in a testy, personal debate with Sen. John Kerry, the... Oliver Willis: By the way: Bush can't answer a damn thing, without resorting to "our plan is working" etc., etc., talk about... Joe Gandelman: George Bush did not put in a bad performance once again but he clearly struggled at times to keep his emotions in check. |
| Also: Lambert @Corrente | |
Kerry, Bush Beat Around the Truth in Debate LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — In President Bush's aggressive attack on Sen. John F. Kerry's 20-year Senate record during their debate Friday, the facts may have taken the worst beating of all. Kerry, for his part, also managed to shade the truth with some of his statements. | |
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Mark Kleiman: Consider three of today's newspapers: the LA Times, as Kevin Drum points out, has a fact-checking piece that shows Bush... |
Kevin Drum: SHADING THE TRUTH....I realize that we all have our complaints about the press, and that those complaints are heavily conditioned by our own partisan views. |
Transcript & Video: Debate #2 Fox News — Permalink ST. LOUIS — The second presidential debate followed a town-hall style where audience members asked questions of President Bush and Sen. John Kerry. Following is a transcript of the debate, moderated by Charlie Gibson of ABC. | |
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Jan Haugland: I have now read the debate, seen around half of it (video here). It looked like a good exchange of views, and both candidates handled it quite well. Bill Faith: Maybe Kerry was thinking of Theresa. Fox News has transcripts and video. Cross-posted from Small Town Veteran |
Steve Dillard: Here's the relevant text: "GIBSON: Mr. President, the next question is for you, and it comes from Jonathan Michaelson, over here. Glenn Reynolds: SUM UP: Overall, a pretty good performance by both guys, neither of whom is a stellar orator. |
John Howard Wins Australian Elections AP — Permalink SYDNEY, Australia Oct. 9, 2004 — Prime Minister John Howard scored a stunning victory in Australia's federal election Saturday in a vote ensuring the country keeps its troops in Iraq. | |
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William J. Dyer: Per the AP: "The outcome means Australia will make good on Howard's pledge to keep 900 troops in Iraq until Iraqi authorities say they are no longer needed. KJL: JOHN HOWARD WINS AUSTRALIAN PREZ ELECTION — It will be safe for president Bush to start thanking him again! |
Charles Johnson: Australians have sent socialist appeaser Mark Latham packing, and reelected John Howard: John Howard Wins Australian Elections. |
The Town Hall Debate NYT — Permalink Town hall meetings are one vestige of early American democracy that modern presidential candidates know very well. No one who has survived a New Hampshire primary season needs to be told what it's like to answer questions tossed out by a group of average citizens. | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: NY Times: Bush 'Utterly Incoherent' — From Saturday's New York Times editorial : [snipped quote] Going back to the first... Barbara O'Brien: Along with the temper and slips of factual accuracy, Bush's refusal to admit to mistakes continues to alarm. |
Orrin Judd: A NUANCED WAY OF SAYING CABANA BOY LOST: The Town Hall Debate (NY Times, 10/09/04) "Mr. Kerry demonstrated, at the very minimum, a stature that was equal to the president's." Mathew Gross: Bush Lost (It) NYT: "Last night's format was much more suited to George Bush's talents than the hard-edged debate last... |
Australia Re-Elects Howard Prime Minister By / AP — Permalink SYDNEY, Australia - Prime Minister John Howard scored a convincing victory in Australia's federal election Saturday, winning a historic fourth term in a vote ensuring the staunch U.S. ally keeps its troops in Iraq . | |
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McQ: Meanwhile in Australia ... Prime Minister Howard is reelected: [snipped quote] Not only was he reelected, the result... Cori Dauber: A REFERENDUM ON ALLIANCE — Australia's John Howard is reelected. Not clear yet by how much, but I'm not sure it matters all that much from our perspective. |
Michael DeBow: Great news from Down Under: Prime Minister John Howard's party did sufficiently well in yesterday's Parliamentary elections that he will return as PM for a fourth term. |
Distortions Galore at Second Presidential Debate FactCheck.org — Permalink Both candidates played loose with the facts at the second Presidential Debate in St. Louis Oct. 8. Bush claimed Kerry's health-care plan would lead to rationing and "ruin the quality of health care in America," a claim unsupported by neutral experts. | |
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Tom Tomorrow: Yes, Mr. President, it appears you do: [snipped quote] From the site Dick Cheney tried to refer viewers to a few days ago: factcheck.org. |
Jan Haugland: Update: According to FactCheck.Org, Cheney's favourite website (cough), both candidates were lying through their teeth economical with the truth. |
Lest We Forget NRO — Permalink Australia can claim to be our most reliable ally. Two months ago I was standing in front of the war memorial dedicated to the Royal Australian Regiment in Sydney. An RAR corporal had laid two wreaths, movingly inscribed with hand-written tributes, in memory of friends killed in action. | |
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Whiskey: According to NRO's John Sullivan, the election outcome would send a powerful message to the Islamic terrorists: "A... Ginny @ChicagoBoyz: Australia — Australian results. Jericho rejoices as does Chrenkoff. See O'Sullivan's warm regard for Australia. Orrin Judd: GEORGE BUSH'S ALLIES: Lest We Forget: Australia can claim to be our most reliable ally. |
Michael DeBow: For his remarks to the party faithful claiming victory, click here. For the official tally of the results in the House races click here. The Big Trunk: See also John O'Sullivan's NRO column "Lest we forget." |
Nail the bastards By / The Sun — Permalink AN SAS hit team was last night hunting down the barbaric killers of Ken Bigley. The troops and America's crack Delta Force were ordered: "Nail the bastards" after Ken, 62, was beheaded in Iraq. | |
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Orrin Judd: OCTOBERFEST: Nail the bastards (NICK PARKER and GARY O'SHEA, 10/09/04, The Sun) [snipped quote] Surprised? |
Hindrocket: Today's Sun claims that a special forces team including British SAS and American Delta Force are closing in on Zarqawi:... |
CNN Political Unit debate fact check CNN — Permalink (CNN) — Claim: Bush said Kerry cut the intelligence budget by $7.5 billion in the 1990s. CNN Fact Check: It is true that Kerry proposed or supported cutting several billion dollars from the intelligence budget in the 1990s, however this amounted to a... | |
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Jan Haugland: Because voters let them get away with it. CNN's factcheck is slightly more lenient to both candidates. Mark Kleiman: CNN hits Bush on "voted 98 times for tax increases," "75% of al-Qaeda," and "the most liberal senator." |
Natasha @PacificViews: CNN's fact check hits a number of other Bush mishaps, but misses the timber company point, the sort of 'easy and fun' thing most the media was all over Gore for in 2000. |
Woman is first to vote in Afghan poll By / Reuters — Permalink ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A 19-year-old Afghan woman living as a refugee in Pakistan has made history by casting the first vote in Afghanistan's first direct presidential election. | |
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Hugh Hewitt: Update at 11:45 AM, Saturday All over the web there are pictures and stories of Afghans voting in free elections! McQ: Meanwhile in Afghanistan ... ...an important event begins: [snipped quote] Nice. Or as a certain president might say, "let freedom reign". |
Greg Ransom: DEMOCRACY .. the voting begins. Orrin Judd: Woman is first to vote in Afghan poll (Zeeshan Haider, 10/09/04, Reuters) "A 19-year-old Afghan woman living as a... |
Australian PM Howard Wins Fourth Election By / Reuters — Permalink SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister John Howard, a key U.S. ally and supporter of the Iraq war, resoundingly beat center-left opposition Labor at a national election on Saturday to win a fourth straight term in office. | |
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Christopher Kanis: John Howard wins big in Australia. (Naturally, Tim Blair's pad is where you want to be today). |
B.C: The Auzzies Refuse To Bow Down Towards Mecca — Even with the Assatwoshits Anal Wart's sister running around trying to... |
Pundits: Bush Mad, Kerry Composed CBS News — Permalink Fierce from the outset, Sen. John Kerry and President Bush pulled few punches in their second debate Friday night in St. Louis. Experts interviewed immediately following the head-to-head contest spoke to the style, the nuance of character and the unspoken gestures that often sway voters. | |
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Barbara O'Brien: Bush's obvious anger is still tripping him up. James Poniewozik wrote in Time ("Round Two: Bush Versus Bush"): "In this... |
Thirdparty: UPDATED again: David Paul Kuhn, CBSNews.com: "BUSH MAD, KERRY COMPOSED... Though Mr. Bush was more composed than in last... |
Afghanistan Votes WaPo — Permalink AFTER ENDURING Soviet occupation, civil war and rule by a medieval-minded Islamic militia, millions of Afghans will go to polling stations today for the first free election in their country's history. | |
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Bill @INDCJournal: (Mian Khursheed/Reuters)- Yahoo And more importantly, another ally plants an important seed of Democracy in the Muslim... |
Cori Dauber: A FIRST STEP — The Post's editorial board welcomes the progress made in Afghanistan to date, writing: Yet it also would... |
Debate Did Little to Solidify Votes of Participants By / WaPo — Permalink ST. LOUIS, Oct. 8 — They were sitting on the fence before the debate, and after 90 minutes of lively and detailed discussion, they were moved. But only a little. | |
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DemFromCT: It is becoming CW that the debate did little to change votes, and that's bad for the incumbent (polling as low as 45% in the TIME poll) and now behind in the Zogby tracking poll. |
Kevin Hayden: Try us — Undecideds at the debate were impressed, but found little that shifted their opinion. I still think it's the vision thing. |
Huge Afghan poll attack 'foiled' BBC — Permalink Security forces in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar say they have thwarted an attack that could have killed hundreds of people. A tanker carrying 40,000 litres of fuel and packed with explosives was intercepted on the eve of the country's first direct presidential elections. | |
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Jan Haugland: The election commission, however, said the election should go ahead. Steve Gilliard: Afghan elections in turmoil — The ink rubs off Afghan vote boycott creates turmoil [snipped quote] The ink? Allah: Jihadi Hail Mary Falls Incomplete In End Zone |
Jesse Taylor: Well, there's a reason why. Casey Tompkins: A rather appropriate aegis, I think, for the first democratic election in Afghanistan. |
Paul Begala's Debate Blog: Round 3 CNN — Permalink Good debate. The press will say it's a draw, but I think Kerry bested Bush — or rather Bush made a few errors. Two words for President Bush: anger management. He spent much of the debate nearly yelling at the audience. | |
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Thirdparty: UPDATED with more: Paul Begala, CNN: "Good debate. The press will say it's a draw, but I think Kerry bested Bush — or rather Bush made a few errors. |
Avedon Carol: But this is how Paul Begala saw it: "Charlie Gibson tried to ask Bush a follow-up question, but Bush jumped him, almost yelling. |
Slugfest In St. Louis CBS News — Permalink (CBS/AP) In a heated debate rematch Friday, Sen. John Kerry derided President Bush as the first leader to preside over job losses in 72 years and said he had transformed huge budget surpluses into massive deficits with wartime tax cuts for the rich. | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: MSNBC Ongoing Poll Results Kerry: 78% Bush: 22% * CNN (Scroll Down to 'Quick Vote') Ongoing Poll Results Kerry: 83%... Joe Gandelman: If you scored this wide ranging debate that touched on everything from foreign policy, to the environment, to taxes John... |
Steve Soto: CNN Fox MSNBC CBS News Los Angeles Times Update: Update: Some reactions from some unexpected places. |
Bush-Kerry II: This Time, It's Personal By / Weekly Standard — Permalink At the end of his rebuttal Kerry mentions that America is going it alone and Bush practically jumps out of his seat and begins talking over Charlie Gibson. "You tell Tony Blair we're going alone. Tell Tony Blair we're going alone," he shouts. | |
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QD @SouthernAppeal: Talking Points: In his review of last night's debate, Jonathan Last notices something interesting: Whenever he speaks... |
Greg Ransom: John Kerry did not. UPDATE: Here's an entertaining scorecard of the debate from the Weekly Standard. |
Press Release: TIME Campaign 2004 Poll By / Time — Permalink George Bush and John Kerry are again deadlocked, 45% Bush - 45% Kerry, among likely voters in the three-way race, as they head into tonight's town hall meeting, according to a TIME Poll taken Oct. 6-7. Nader is down to 3%. | |
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DemFromCT: The strengths for Bush were supposed to be: Foreign policy/C-in-C (but Kerry win that debate hands down, that view now... Matthew Yglesias: High Tie, Low Tie — I think Guy Molyneux was overstating his case a bit in his morale-boosting article from back before... Zoe Kentucky: It's BA-ACK — The gender gap, oh how we've missed you... Before: "Pre-debate, the TIME Poll found women split evenly, 44% Kerry, 43% Bush." |
Kevin Drum: POLL UPDATE....Time magazine reports that their latest poll has Bush and Kerry deadlocked, 45%-45%. Steve Soto: Time Poll Says Kerry Now More Likeable Than Bush (Courtesy of Atrios) The latest Time Magazine/CNN poll (not done by... Atrios: Kerry More Likeable Than Bush — So STOP SAYING THAT HE ISN'T. CNN/Time poll. |
| Also: Taegan Goddard | |
Complete Transcript of the Second Presidential Debate NYT — Permalink SECOND PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES DEBATE WITH PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH AND SENATOR JOHN KERRY MR. GIBSON: Good evening from the Field House at Washington University in St. Louis. I'm Charles Gibson of ABC News and "Good Morning America." | |
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Greg Ransom: UPDATE: PoliPundit has already called it .. not only the debate but the 2004 election. Read the debate transcript here. |
Orrin Judd: DEBATE THOUGHTS—PLEASE ADD YOURS: Transcript of the Second Presidential Debate (October 8, 2004) * The President has... |
McAuliffe to College Dems: Bush Will Reinstitute Draft By / CNSNews — Permalink St. Louis (CNSNews.com) - Republicans had no sooner shot down rumors of a military draft when Democratic Party Chairman Terry McAuliffe warned a group of College Democrats on Friday that President Bush would call them up for duty if re-elected. | |
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Orrin Judd: SO MUCH FOR THE WHISPERING CAMPAIGN: McAuliffe to College Dems: Bush Will Reinstitute Draft (Robert B. Bluey, October... KJL: DRAFT SCARE — Terry McAuliffe tells College Dems today: Bush is gonna draft ya. |
Betsy Newmark: Terry McAuliffe is still fear-mongering about the draft. He is such a sleaze. Can't they win honestly? I guess not. |
Disks found in Iraq show info on U.S. schools CNN — Permalink WASHINGTON (CNN) — The U.S. military in Iraq has discovered two computer disks containing photographs, layouts and other material pertaining to American schools in six states, U.S. government officials said. | |
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Mark Kleiman: The "insurgent" turns out to be a member of an Iraqi group planning a new school system. Josh Marshall: But this CNN report from late this morning says that Department of Homeland Security officials say "the material was... McQ: But before we all go into panic mode and/or "see I told you so" mode, let's heed the following two paragraphs from the CNN story. |
Steve Gilliard: Disks in Iraq hold details about U.S. schools Military finds computer disks but FBI dismisses terror plot or link... Kevin Raybould: The Administration that Cried Wolf — Jesus: [snipped quote] So, an alert issued the day of a presidential debate in a... Tim Kelly: From CNN: "The FBI is examining the materials, but a Department of Homeland Security official said the intelligence community determined there was no threat. |
| Also: Nick Confessore, Charles Johnson, Atrios, Joanne Jacobs, Steve M. | |
Sounding Desperate By / Newsweek — Permalink Oct. 7 - George Bush's real political enemy now isn't so much John Kerry as it is the flow of the news. Not long ago, Kerry's decision to attack the president as commander in chief (remember all those Swift Boat vets in Boston?) was dismissed by analysts (including me) as naive at best, folly at worst. | |
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Jesse Taylor: Always Consistent — Matt's a shrill, French flip-flopper. And Howard Fineman is slow. Like job creation from Bush's tax cuts slow. Matthew Yglesias: A Message To Howard Fineman — In case Noam's post over here isn't clear enough, here's a hint for folks writing about John Kerry's Iraq policy. Noam Scheiber: WHAT IS HOWARD FINEMAN TALKING ABOUT? : Howard Fineman writes: [snipped quote] How is that a contradiction? |
James Joyner: Flip Flopping May Save Kerry — Howard Fineman makes an obvious point in a somewhat unusual way: "George Bush's real... Mark Kleiman: His column yesterday seems prescient in its description of the campaign: It's the president desperately trying to tear down Kerry as the news tears down the president. Z.R.: Go to comments — October 08, 2004 Distortion Newsweak Consider this passage from Howard Fineman's latest online... |
Poll: Youth Tie Bush, Draft Reinstatement AP — Permalink WASHINGTON - In spite of denials by the Bush administration, half of young Americans believe President Bush wants to reinstate the military draft, a national poll suggests. The National Annenberg Election Survey found that 51 percent of adults age 18 to 29 believe Bush wants to reinstate the draft. | |
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Lambert @Corrente: (And anyone but filthy-minded me catch the pr0n innuendo in "Need some wood"?) Feel a draft? Dave Johnson: Draft Poll — Poll: Youth Tie Bush, Draft Reinstatement: [snipped quote] It's not about who WANTS a draft. |
Matthew Yglesias: Draft Time? The AP reports that 51 percent of 18-29 year olds think Bush wants to re-instate the draft. |
Cheney Once Pushed to Lift Iran Sanctions AP — Permalink WASHINGTON Oct. 8, 2004 — Vice President Dick Cheney, who has called Iran "the world's leading exporter of terror," pushed to lift U.S. trade sanctions against Tehran while chairman of Halliburton Co. in the 1990s. And his company's offshore subsidiaries also expanded business in Iran. | |
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Kevin Hayden: Why are they silent on the lies, on the war profiteering of Dick Cheney and Halliburton and Custer Battles (begun by two... David Allan Pell: Actually, there's really nothing that confusing about the Cheney record on Iran and its relationship to his gig at the... |
Digby: [quote] Vice President Dick Cheney, who has called Iran "the world's leading exporter of terror," pushed to lift U.S. trade...[end quote] |
U.S. Said to Develop Strategy for Iraq By / AP — Permalink WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has developed a formal written strategy for Iraq that envisions using a mix of diplomacy and military force to try to wrest control of dozens of key cities from insurgents before planned January elections, a senior administration official said Friday. | |
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Mathew Gross: It's About Time — U.S. Said to Develop Strategy for Iraq (AP) Probably just another Internet rumor. Tim Kelly: You Knew They'd Get Around To It — It's here! It's here! The October Surprise! Check out this headline! |
Josh Marshall: Headlines that simply say it all. AP:"U.S. Said to Develop Strategy for Iraq." |
Cheney says WMD report justifies war on Iraq Seattle Post-Intelligencer — Permalink MIAMI — Vice President Dick Cheney asserted yesterday that a finding by the chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq that Saddam Hussein's government produced no weapons of mass destruction after 1991 justifies rather than undermines President Bush's decision to go to war. | |
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Jeanne D'Arc: If these people aren't evil, they're delusional. That doesn't mean we have to sign on to things that make no sense. |
Digby: Sanctioned Liar [quote] The vice president said he found other parts of the report "more intriguing," including the finding...[end quote] |
Kenyan Environmental Activist Wins Nobel Peace Prize WaPo — Permalink Wangari Maathai, the Kenyan firebrand who mobilized the women of Africa in a powerful crusade against deforestation called the "Green Belt Movement," will receive the Nobel Peace Prize for 2004. | |
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QD @SouthernAppeal: Nobel Watch: I really don't know anything about this year's recipient of the Nobel peace prize, but it marks another... Sam Rosenfeld: There's all sorts of sordid stuff in our domestic political scene to wallow in today, but I do recommend taking a moment... |
Leah A: The Nobel Peace Prize has just been awarded to Wangari Maathai, whom the Wa Po characterizes as "the Kenyan firebrand... |
He's So Bad, He Might Be Perfect By / LAT — Permalink Under an odd logic, Bush deserves another term. Shouldn't he suffer for his blunders? An editor at the paper suggested that I use this week's column to try to make the most honest and persuasive case I could for President Bush's reelection. At first I was skeptical. | |
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John Cole: When you read this piece in the LA Times by Jonathon Chait, which is supposed to be a barnburner, and it seems rather... Andrew @ShrillBlog: Jonathan Chait Is So Insanely Shrill That Everybody Can Just Go Home — In the L.A. Times: [snipped quote] Well, I guess that's about it, then. Atrios: But, even given that, statements like this drive me crazy: [snipped quote] Um, no. No they haven't. |
The Poor Man: The "W" Stands For ... Worst. President. Ever. [snipped quote] I heard that. Mathew Gross: Illogic — [snipped quote] — Jonathon Chait, in the LA Times today. |
Booklet That Upset Mrs. Cheney Is History LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — The Education Department this summer destroyed more than 300,000 copies of a booklet designed for parents to help their children learn history after the office of Vice President Dick Cheney's wife complained that it mentioned the National Standards for History, which she has long opposed. | |
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Skippy: thanks to cursor.org, we find this latimes piece about the booklet "helping your child learn history" which upset lynne cheney. Brian Weatherson: American History X — I hope Lynne Cheney is being misreported by the Los Angeles Times At the time, Lynne Cheney, the... Matthew Yglesias: What If...it came out that Hillary Clinton (in her pre-elected office days) was ordering book burnings or whatever... |
Lambert @Corrente: Feel a draft? Control the past, control the future (registration required). It couldn't happen to a nicer whore. Barbara O'Brien: [Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Jean Merl, "Booklet that Upset Mrs. Cheney Is History," The Los Angeles Times, October 8,... Mathew Gross: Waste, Arrogance: The Cheneys — LA Times: [snipped quote] Those who burn books will later burn people, as Msr. Bragg says. |
Sizing Up Iraq NRO — Permalink Things are coming to a head in the Middle East. From the various insurgencies of the Peloponnesian War to the British victory over Communist guerrillas in Malaya, there remain constants across 2,500 years of time and space that presage victory or defeat. | |
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Stefan Beck: Consider this piece by VDH (who has been scorned, as I noted above, as a peddler of false hope): [snipped quote] He acknowledges error and "death and destruction." H.D. Miller: Hanson on Kerry — Witness, as an adult, Victor Davis Hanson, takes Senator von Munchausen to the woodshed. Ted Belman: Sizing Up Iraq — By Victor Davis Hanson, NRO Things are coming to a head in the Middle East. |
Dale Franks: Read VDH — Read Victor Davis Hanson's piece on Iraq today. Read all of it. read it now. Vox Day: VDH meditates on Iraq: [snipped quote] I don't take any great exception to the learned VDH's conclusions, especially the... Charles Johnson: VDH: Sizing Up Iraq — Let's start this Friday off with the latest thoughtful column by Victor Davis Hanson, looking at the situation in Iraq: Sizing Up Iraq. |
U.S. Added 96,000 Jobs in September, Fewer Than Expected Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. businesses added 96,000 jobs to payrolls in September, the government reported on Friday, a weaker-than-expected total that was expected to sharpen a presidential debate later in the day over the economy's direction. | |
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Greg Ransom: A STEADY 5.4% UNEMPLOYMENT RATE remains below it's 30-year average. Here's how Reuters is spinning the story. Von @ObsidianWings: Not great news. 96,000 new jobs in September — less than the 148,000 economists had expected. The unemployment rate is steady at 5.4%. |
Matthew Yglesias: For expert analysis of this morning's jobs report, let me refer you to this post by Max Sawicky and these two from Kash at the Angry Bear site. |
What I Really Said About Iraq NYT — Permalink In recent days, attention has been focused on some remarks I've made about Iraq. The coverage of these remarks has elicited far more heat than light, so I believe it's important to put my remarks in the correct context. | |
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Avedon Carol: Friday, 08 October 2004 "Stuff from the NYT Paul Bremer tries to dig himself out. Greyhawk: Meanwhile Paul Bremer says he was selectively quoted (much as the ISG report was selectively quoted): "In recent days,... Glenn Reynolds: PAUL BREMER CORRECTS THE RECORD: [snipped quote] I don't find the press's reluctance here especially "curious." |
Jeanne D'Arc: Troops and Humanitarian Aid — Josh Marshall is certainly right to point out the obvious mendacity in Paul Bremer's... Armies of Liberation: What I Really Said About Iraq (Jane Novak) an oped by Paul Bremmer: [snipped quote] From an Oped in the NYTimes. Noam Scheiber: PAUL BREMER, MEDIA CRITIC: Spencer Ackerman and Josh Marshall have both ably deconstructed Paul Bremer's ridiculous walk-back in today's New York Times. |
| Also: Charles Johnson, Ace, Jesse Taylor, Matthew Yglesias, McQ, Joe Gandelman, Deacon, Juan Non-Volokh, Phillip Carter, Faisal @ShrillBlog, Wind Rider, Betsy Newmark, Stephen Judd, KJL, Josh Marshall, David Allan Pell, Greg Ransom | |
Bush's mystery bulge By / Salon — Permalink Was President Bush literally channeling Karl Rove in his first debate with John Kerry? That's the latest rumor flooding the Internet, unleashed last week in the wake of an image caught by a television camera during the Miami debate. | |
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Charles Johnson: The source of the "Bush had something in his clothes" rumor is Dave Lindorff, who wrote about it for Salon: Bush's mystery bulge. Chris Bowers: However, when the first debate, where Rove could not control the script even with a voice in Bush's ear, revealed that Bush was nothing of the sort, the media ran with it. Matthew Yglesias: All the hidden communications devices in the world don't change the poor macroeconomic outlook or the worse fiscal picture. |
Lambert @Corrente: [quote]"The Democrats weren't doing that at their convention." (via Salon (at least get the day pass!)) [end quote] Well well. Kos: Salon examines the evidence, and it's pretty compelling. Note, the debate rules, at the Bush campaign's urging, specifically forbid shots of the candidates' backs. Jesse Walker: If you don't know what I'm talking about, there's a story about it in Salon today. I don't actually have anything to say about those allegations. |
| Also: Susan Madrak, Tom Tomorrow, Byron York, Taegan Goddard, Barbara O'Brien, Jeralyn Merritt | |
Bush's Isolation From Reporters Could Be a Hindrance By / WaPo — Permalink During a campaign forum in the Cleveland suburbs last month, President Bush was asked whether he likes broccoli, to disclose his "most important legacy to the American people" and to reveal what supporters can do "to make sure that you win Ohio and get reelected." | |
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Steve Gilliard: Bush's Isolation From Reporters Could Be a Hindrance Some Presidential Advisers Worry That He Could Pay Price During... Digby: Observers have known about his childish imperiousness forever and and it has been easily discerned by those in the... Taegan Goddard: Meanwhile, the Washington Post shows the Bush campaign spinning expecations: "Several Bush advisers said the president... |
Steve Soto: This is a nice lead-in to a debate that will focus more on domestic issues and will require Bush to reconnect with the... Kos: Bush is overprotected, desperate — Ironic, but Bush's overprotected ways may cost him the election. Cori Dauber: The second piece argues that by isolating the President from tough or negative questions, in particular by not regularly... |
Terrorists' Candidates? By / WaPo — Permalink Do the bad guys — the terrorists in their Afghan caves and Iraqi redoubts — want George Bush defeated in this election? Bush critics, among them the editors of the New York Times, have worked themselves into a lather over the mere suggestion that this might be so. | |
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Charles Johnson: Terrorists' Candidates — Charles Krauthammer cuts through the spin with the simple truth—that Al Qaeda and their... The Big Trunk: Charles Krauthammer provides a great example in his Washington Post column this morning: "Terrorists' candidates?" Joe Gandelman: I Can Make Up My OWN MIND Mr. Krauthammer — It's incredible how this administration's supporters continue harping on... |
Dale Franks: As Charles Krauthammer points out, if they didn't, we wouldn't be worried about a pre-election terror attack like the one in Spain. Rice Grad: Al Qaeda for Kerry: Krauthammer: "Do the bad guys — the terrorists in their Afghan caves and Iraqi redoubts — want George Bush defeated in this election? Stephen Green: Required Reading — Krauthammer: [snipped quote] Meanwhile, Kerry already promises we'll be out of Iraq in 2008, if he's elected. |
| Also: Ken Masugi | |
Too Close for Kerry's Comfort By / Weekly Standard — Permalink IN THE LAST FOUR presidential elections Republican candidates have wasted little time and money campaigning for Maryland's 10 electoral votes. The state hasn't gone in the Republican column since George H.W. Bush's 1988 landslide. Al Gore carried Maryland by 17 points in 2000. | |
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Orrin Judd: MD 50-50: Too Close for Kerry's Comfort: What's Going on In Maryland? Bush is surprisingly close in the Old Line State. Josh Chafetz: THE LOVELY AND ALWAYS INTERESTING RACHEL DICARLO looks at why the polls are surprisingly close in her home state of Maryland. |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: Rachel DiCarlo points out that Maryland—normally a reliably Democratic state—is now a swing state for this election. PoliPundit: Maryland and New Jersey — Rachel DiCarlo list some of the reasons for those polls showing Maryland and New Jersey in play this year. |
Saddam's Sugar Daddy NRO — Permalink The facts about the U.N.'s corrupt Oil-for-Food relationship with the deposed Iraqi tyrant are further exposed. CIA chief weapons inspector Charles Duelfer may not have found weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but he sure found information enough to blow the lid off the simmering scandal of the United Nations Oil-for-Food program. | |
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Charles Johnson: Saddam's Sugar Daddy — John Kerry would have the United States defer to the United Nations on matters of national... Ted Belman: Saddam's Sugar Daddy — The facts about the U.N.'s corrupt Oil-for-Food relationship with the deposed Iraqi tyrant are... Betsy Newmark: Claudia Rossett, who deserves, but won't get, a Pulitzer for her dogged reporting on the Oil for Bribes programs, looks at some of the information in the Duelfer program. |
Hugh Hewitt: Claudia Rosett weighs in as well on the story she has and continues to own. Mickey Kaus gives this assessment of the ISG report: "Kausfiles is Stupid! The Big Trunk: Oil-for-WMD — NRO has posted Claudia Rosett's column on the ISG report: "Saddam's sugar daddy." Greg Ransom: U.N.'s 'OIL-FOR-FOOD' scam "pretty much was Saddam Hussein's weapons program." See also this. |
School Warning By / ABCNEWS — Permalink Oct. 7, 2004 — Schools in six states in particular are being watched closely based on information uncovered by the U.S. military in Baghdad this summer, law enforcement and education officials told ABC News. | |
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Jan Haugland: Threat against US schools uncovered in Iraq — The US military in Baghdad uncovered floor plans and security information... Michelle Malkin: "Crisis therapy..." More here, with information on how to help. Update: On a related note, see this. Clayton Cramer: School Security — After what happened in Russia, this is not a comforting piece of news: [snipped quote] Here's your... |
Armies of Liberation: I'm all for that. Update: ABC News reports the source was an Iraqi insurgent. Joanne Jacobs: Terror warning — I don't know what to make of this school terror alert story. [snipped quote] Why would a terrorist single out these small and medium-sized towns? Lorie Byrd: This Is Dead Serious — This story should scare you into doing something to help in the fight against terrorism. |
| Also: Steve M., Whiskey | |
Muslim get-out-vote unit pushes deadline By / Palm Beach Post — Permalink Theresa LePore vowed to close the Palm Beach County elections office at 5 p.m. Monday, the final day to register to vote in the Nov. 2 election, but a young man who arrived about 15 minutes after the deadline managed to drop off 550 applications on behalf of a group of Muslims determined to oust President Bush. | |
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James Joyner: Florida Voter Registration Fraud — Muslim get-out-vote unit pushes deadline (Palm Beach Post) "Theresa LePore vowed to... Bill Hobbs: Today's Palm Beach Post reports on how an activist from a pro-John Kerry Muslim organization called Voting is Power... |
Acidman: walk like an egyptian — But vote like a muslim. |