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Toy Soldiers By / TCS — Permalink 19 January 2005: The Slinky betrayed us. I should have known. I never trusted him. He was an unstable character, always going back and forth, back and forth, never showing a shred of backbone. "Come, senor, I know the way to the insurgents' headquarters," he rasped. | |
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Chad The Elder: In Good Company — A diary of a hostage at TCS: 31 January 2005: Today my captors took my picture outside, in front of... Judith Weiss: Assymetrical warfare. A dangerous escalation in the latest round of hostage taking. The comments pleading for her life are heartbreaking. Damian Penny: A plastic army of one — The inside story about that captured action figure can be found here. (Best line: "Damn Wiccans.") |
Jan Haugland: The making of a terrorist PR disaster — Very funny: The diary of John "Cody" Adam, captured action figure with the Iraqi toy terrorists. Joanne Jacobs: 'Elmo is death' — Of all the posts on the capture of a U.S. action figure by Iraqi terrorists, the diary of hostage John "Cody" Adam is my favorite. Smash: (Hat tip: Glenn) DOUGLAS KERN has the last word. |
| Also: Pejman Yousefzadeh, Glenn Reynolds, Steven Taylor, Jeff Goldstein, Orrin Judd | |
Taking Kos Seriously By / Weekly Standard — Permalink WHEN DISCUSSING Markos Moulitsas and the eponymous left wing blog that he runs, The Daily Kos, it's helpful to start with a few facts. The Daily Kos (rhymes with rose, based on Moulitsas' old army nickname) is far and away the most popular blog on the Internet: Kos averages over 400,000 page views a day. | |
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Avedon Carol: Meanwhile, at The Weekly Standard, a surprisingly respectful article about the Daily Kos notes that Kos' hit-rate is now... James Joyner: While all that's true, Dean Barnett argues at the Weekly Standard that, "by almost any measure" The Daily Kos' Markos Moulitsas is "the most successful blogger in the business." Jeralyn Merritt: Best Article Yet on the Phenomenon that is Daily Kos — Don't miss this article in the Weekly Standard on Markos and the Daily Kos, and why politicans need to take him seriously. |
Charles Johnson: Taking Kos Seriously — At the Daily Standard, Dean Barnett says Markos "Screw Them" Zuniga is the most popular and important force in the blogosphere: Taking Kos Seriously. James Frederick Dwight: I have a piece published on the Weekly Standard's website this morning that documents the rise of the Daily Kos. Kos @DailyKos: BTW and OT - F Salazar. Today, the Weekly Standard published an oddly complimentary piece about Daily Kos. |
| Also: Mitch Berg, Ramesh Ponnuru | |
Transcript: 2005 State of the Union Address WaPo — Permalink Following is a complete transcript of the 2005 State of the Union address. BUSH: Mr. Speaker, Vice President Cheney, members of Congress, fellow citizens: As a new Congress gathers, all of us in the elected branches of government share a great privilege: We've been placed in office by the votes of the people we serve. | |
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Cori Dauber: The first wasn't technically a Skutnick, or, rather, served to expand the category. Jeanne D'Arc: UPDATE: Sure enough, I didn't mishear him: The government of Saudi Arabia can demonstrate its leadership in the region... |
Kevin Drum: A full transcript of the speech is here. 10:02 — Another FDR reference? Daniel Drezner: Feel free to comment on President Bush's State of the Union address here. |
Full text of 2005 State of the Union speech MSNBC — Permalink The following is the full text of President Bush's State of the Union speech, as delivered Feb. 2: Mr. Speaker, Vice President Cheney, Members of Congress, fellow citizens: | |
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Kevin Aylward: Text Of State of the Union — Here's the full text, as delivered, of the 2005 State of the Union address. Via Instapundit Glenn Reynolds: FULL TEXT of the speech, here. |
Steven Taylor: SOTU: The Speech Itself — Read ahead if you like: Full text of 2005 State of the Union speech |
State of the Union Address White House — Permalink STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH Chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives The United States Capitol Washington, D.C. THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Speaker, Vice President Cheney, members of Congress, fellow citizens: | |
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Patrick Ruffini: Likewise, this speech made clear that personal accounts are the sine qua non of Social Security reform. - 10:54 p.m... K. J. Lopez: FULL TEXT, BTW is here. |
Orrin Judd: STATE OF THE UNION THOUGHTS—PLEASE ADD YOURS: State of the Union Address (STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT... |
Eason Jordan CNN — Permalink Eason Jordan is executive vice president and chief news executive of CNN. He chairs the CNN Editorial Board, is a member of the CNN Executive Committee and provides strategic advice to CNN's senior management team. | |
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Smash: Memo to Eason Jordan — We don't target journalists A BLOGSWARM is forming around some remarks made by CNN executive Eason Jordan at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Hugh Hewitt: The paper ought to have asked is Eason Jordan a journalist? |
Captain Ed: Eason Jordan wants to bet the future of CNN on outlasting his critics with smokescreens and arguments about context. Steve Bainbridge: The Eason Jordan Flap — Hugh Hewitt is leading the charge against CNN's Eason Jordan on both his blog and radio show. |
Naysayers tight-lipped since success of Iraq vote By / Washington Times — Permalink Skeptics of President Bush's attempt to bring democracy to Iraq have been largely silent since Iraqis enthusiastically turned out for Sunday's elections. Billionaire Bush-basher George Soros and left-wing filmmaker Michael Moore were among critics of the... | |
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Avedon Carol: Right-wing media — So, we still don't have poll results from Iraq, where the ballots are being counted in secret, and... Ed Driscoll: Naysayers Silent After Iraqis Vote — Betsy Newmark links to this Washington Times article, which begins: "Skeptics of... Glenn Reynolds: THE SILENCE OF THE NAYSAYERS: [snipped quote] Heh. (Via the Democracy Project). UPDATE: On the other hand, here's news from Fallujah. |
Jon Henke: Brave Sir Carter... James Lakely writes... [snipped quote] Well, at least Kofi Annan wasn't alone in talking down the elections. Hindrocket: Administration Critics Keeping Mum — The Washington Times notes that some of the most prominent critics of the... Pejman Yousefzadeh: CAT'S GOT THEIR TONGUES — A little volubility would be interesting: "Skeptics of President Bush's attempt to bring... |
| Also: Betsy Newmark | |
White House-friendly reporter under scrutiny Boston Globe — Permalink WASHINGTON — The Bush administration has provided White House media credentials to a man who has virtually no journalistic background, asks softball questions to the president and his spokesman in the midst of contentious news conferences, and routinely reprints long passages verbatim from official press releases as original news articles on his website. | |
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Patrick Ruffini: The Left Wing Noise Machine — The Boston Globe is questioning the political agenda of White House reporters: [snipped quote] Oh, sorry. Giblets: Blogging goes mainstream — The Bush administration has given White House media credentials to a guy with a GOP fan site... Laura Rozen: The Boston Globe investigates Talon News here. |
Jesse Taylor: A Day In The Life Of... The Boston Globe does an investigative piece on Jeff "Igor" Gannon. Tom Maguire: That said, the Boston Globe has taken notice. Ed Cone: Ministry of Propaganda update from the Boston Globe: "The Bush administration has provided White House media credentials... |
KOPPEL'S POSSIBLE A.M. SHIFT By / New York Post — Permalink TED Koppel could be- come an early riser if certain camps within ABC have their way. There is talk that the venerable host of "Nightline," whose contract with ABC News expires next year, is being considered as the new host of the Sunday morning public affairs show, "This Week," according to published reports. | |
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James Joyner: KOPPEL'S POSSIBLE A.M. SHIFT ( NY Post) [snipped quote] This would be a rather odd move, although nothing comparable to, say, having Katie Couric replace Dan Rather. Taegan Goddard: The New York Post notes "there is talk" that Nightline host Ted Koppel, "whose contract with ABC News expires next year,... |
Steven Taylor: May it be so: New York Post Online Edition: entertainment [snipped quote] Back before Stephanopoulos took over This Week... Jonah Goldberg: TED & GEORGE SWITCHEROO — The NY Post reports that Ted Koppel may takeover "This Week" and Stephanopolous might get "Nightline." |
Dominance on GOP Agenda LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — As the nation's trial lawyers again funneled tens of millions of dollars to Democrats and their causes in the last election, Republicans were crafting a strategy to choke off that money for future campaigns. | |
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James Joyner: Shocker: Republicans Want to Win — Dominance on GOP Agenda (Peter Wallsten and Warren Vieth, LAT) "As the nation's... Kos @DailyKos: Nah, it's about power. The GOP agenda is not designed to help America, it's designed to cement their hold on power. Orrin Judd: REALIGNER IN CHIEF: Dominance on GOP Agenda: Depriving Democrats of voters and money is among White House policies' other aims. |
Taegan Goddard: A Strategy for Republican Dominance — Though there will be a laundry list of policy proposals in President Bush's State... Steve Bainbridge: Republicans are Finally Playing Politics to Win — The LA Times is shocked. So is Kos. After all, the Democrat Party never plays politics. |
Congressman Vows to Salute to Iraq Voters AP — Permalink WASHINGTON — Rep. Bobby Jindal is planning to demonstrate solidarity with Iraqi voters by dipping a finger in purple ink before President Bush's State of the Union speech Wednesday. Iraqis who participated in Sunday's elections had a finger stained with purple ink to prove they had voted. | |
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Ann Althouse: I'll be interested to see how it turns out. I bet Hillary dips! Here's a link to an L.A. Times story on the subject. Smash: UPDATE — AP confirms the rumor: [snipped quote] I wonder how many will take him up on it? |
Kevin Aylward: The Color Purple — Purple is the color of the night for President Bush's State Of The Union address.WASHINGTON (AP) -... |
Iraq hero joins hallowed group By / St. Petersburg Times — Permalink Birgit Smith sits with her children David, 10, and Jessica, 18, at her home in Holiday after learning her husband will receive the Medal of Honor. For a multimedia report on the story of Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith, published as a special section in the Times last year, click here. | |
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Phillip Carter: An American hero — The St. Petersburg Times reports on an imminent announcement by the Pentagon, presaged by a phone... Donald Sensing: Army NCO to be awarded Medal of Honor — An Army sergeant first class who sacrificed his life to save his soldiers... |
Clayton Cramer: For example, the first Congressional Medal of Honor issued since 1993: "Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith, who spent his... |
Ayn Rand at 100 By / Reason — Permalink A hundred years after her birth and nearly 25 years after her death, Ayn Rand remains a fascinating and enigmatic presence. She has been "mainstreamed" enough to have been honored by a U.S. Postal Service stamp in 1999 and to have been featured on C-SPAN's American Writers series in 2002. | |
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Fontana Labs: Atlas yawned — Apparently it's Ayn Rand's birthday. Party favors available here, here, here, here. Scott Sala: But I do have Rand philosophy running in my veins. There's a great tribute at Reason. And more at CATO. Happy birthday Ayn. |
Tyler Cowen: Try Alex also, directly above. Here is Steve Chapman on whether Rand has gone mainstream. Reason magazine weighs in too. |
Yalies celebrate Iraqi democracy By / Yale Daily News — Permalink Students removed their gloves on a wintry Tuesday to dip their fingers in blue ink and show their support for the Iraqi people who bear a similar purple ink stain on their right index finger after voting in Iraq's first democratic election in 50 years. | |
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Glenn Reynolds: IDEALISM ON CAMPUS hasn't died, after all. The Big Trunk: Man bites dog at Yale — Today's Yale Daily News carries Kat Huang's story reporting that 200 students joined the Yale... |
Tom Smith: Blue ink at Yale — Now here's a nice story. No word on whether any Yale law students got ink on their fingers. |
Daniel Okrent NYT — Permalink On Jan. 18, an article on the front page of the Arts section bore this provocative headline: "Pro-American Iraqi Blog Provokes Intrigue and Vitriol." The article by Sarah Boxer, began, "When I telephoned a man named Ali Fadhil in Baghdad last week, I wondered who might answer. | |
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Jeff Jarvis: The Times responds : Dan Okrent put up a response to my complaint about Sarah Boxer's story on the Iraq The Model bloggers. |
Ed Cone: NYT's Daniel Okrent responds to criticism of Iraqi blog article. Not exactly rigorous self-criticism, except when compared to culture editor Jonathan Landman's contribution. |
Maybe Anyone Can Be President By / LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — Blame Austria. In 1772, Austria joined Prussia and Russia in dividing up Poland, which had been weakened by the election of a foreign-born head of state. | |
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Chris Lawrence: Amending for Arnold back in the news — Steven Taylor notes a lengthy piece in today's Los Angeles Times looking at... |
Steven Taylor: Via the LAT: Maybe Anyone Can Be President "In 1772, Austria joined Prussia and Russia in dividing up Poland, which had... |
Ayn Rand (1905–1982) Cato Institute — Permalink A week before her 21st birthday, Alissa Zinovievna Rosenbaum left the Soviet Union, never to return. Officially, she had come only to visit family in Chicago — but Rosenbaum had other plans. | |
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Scott Sala: Ayn Rand's 100th — Today marks the 100th birthday anniversary for Ayn Rand. Julian Sanchez: If you're wondering what all the fuss is about and aren't ready to commit to slogging through 60-page philosophical speeches just yet, you might start here. |
Radley Balko: Reason's roundup of Rand and pop culture. Cato's tribute. 25 Most Inappropriate Things to Say to an Objectivist During Sex. |
Labor's Neutrality Pact Comes Under Attack By / Newhouse News — Permalink CLEVELAND — A labor struggle is brewing in a row of nondescript offices on the 16th floor of the Federal Office Building in downtown Cleveland. The case before Region 8 of the National Labor Relations Board is about the kind of dusty technicality that... | |
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Nathan Newman: The Legal Fight over Neutrality Agreements — This article is a good in-depth discussion of the legal fight over the... Susan Madrak: Apparently the wingnut Right to Work foundation wants to force management to take an adversial stance to union organizing - even when it doesn't want to. |
Kevin Drum: But no. This time it's a group of conservatives, and they're complaining about companies that decide to cooperate with... |
Egypt Reins In Opponents of Longtime Leader By / WaPo — Permalink CAIRO, Feb. 1 — Egyptian authorities have cracked down on opposition groups in recent days during a time of increasingly active efforts to stop President Hosni Mubarak from extending his 24-year rule in a referendum later this year. | |
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Gene @HarrysPlace: But there is more Bush could do to make his displeasure known to President Hosni Mubarak, as democracy campainger Saad... |
Jeanne D'Arc: Egypt? Democracy? Is this man completely delusional? I think I'll go do the dishes now. At least something will be clean. |
Hypocrites' Oath By / American Prospect — Permalink The closing "God bless America, and good night" of George W. Bush's State of the Union address this week will signal not just the official ending of his speech but also the end of the debate surrounding Bush's last major pronouncement, his second inaugural address. | |
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Laura Rozen: Ken Baer and Matt are of course right that crying "hypocrisy" can be a bit pointless and shrill, but hypocrisy at this... |
Matthew Yglesias: Beyond Hypocrisy — Let me highly recommend Kenny Baer's article in TAP online about the trouble with crying "hypocrisy!" at every turn: [snipped quote] Indeed. |
University faculty defends controversial professor AP — Permalink BOULDER, Colorado (AP) — As pressure mounts on a University of Colorado professor who ignited a furor by comparing the World Trade Center victims to Nazis, colleagues have come to his defense — on free speech grounds. | |
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Bigwig: Some Pigs Are More Diverse Than Others — Compiled from wire reports. |
Ed Cone: I loved my friends like brothers. They died at the hands of terrorists. Their memory is insulted by this guy. |
National Security's Hard Men By / Slate — Permalink Condoleezza Rice flies off to Europe this week, presumably to mend rifts in the Atlantic alliance. She seems to be staffing her State Department with pragmatists and diplomats, as opposed to ideologues and obstructionists. | |
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Laura Rozen: Slate's Fred Kaplan reports that Condoleezza Rice's sensible picks at State divert attention from the real action:... |
Ellen Dana Nagler: Fred Kaplan reports at Slate that J.D. Crouch, currently our ambaddador to Romania, will become Deputy National Security Advisor. |
Infighting Cited at Homeland Security By / WaPo — Permalink As its leadership changes for the first time, the Department of Homeland Security remains hampered by personality conflicts, bureaucratic bottlenecks and an atmosphere of demoralization, undermining its ability to protect the nation against terrorist attack, according to current and former administration officials and independent experts. | |
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Andy McCarthy: JOHN MINTZ'S DECONSTRUCTION OF DHS THIS MORNING — It's a pretty bleak picture, but screams out that they badly need someone like Judge Chertoff. Betsy Newmark: This article today in the Washington Post points out several problems that have not been resolved. |
Glenn Reynolds: But Homeland Security is still a joke, and the Bush Administration needs to do something about it. Steven Taylor: There's a Shock — Via WaPo: Infighting Cited at Homeland Security. |
Hide Your IPod, Here Comes Bill By / Wired News — Permalink Microsoft's leafy corporate campus in Redmond, Washington, is beginning to look like the streets of New York, London and just about everywhere else: Wherever you go, white headphones dangle from peoples' ears. | |
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Vanderleun: Martin Rees, Our Cosmic Habitat — HIDE YOUR IPOD, HERE COMES BILL "About 80 percent of Microsoft employees who have... |
Cookie Jill: Posted by Hello microsoft's leafy corporate campus in redmond, washington, is beginning to look like the streets of new... |
Gonzales Nomination Won't Be Voted on Before State of the Union By / AP — Permalink WASHINGTON (AP) - Confirming Alberto Gonzales as the new attorney general "will resonate throughout the Hispanic community" despite Democratic complaints that he is connected to the Bush administration's policies on foreign detainees, Republicans said Wednesday. | |
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Lambert @Corrente: [quote] Democratic opposition to Gonzales derives "from the nominee's" [end quote] ... [drone] ... "involvement in the formulation" ... |
Orrin Judd: GEE, HOLDING OFF ON CONDI 'TIL AFTER THE INAUGURATION PROVED SO DEVASTATING... Gonzales Nomination Won't Be Voted on... |
European Economies: German Jobless Rise to Record (Update3) Bloomberg — Permalink Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) — German unemployment jumped to the highest since World War II as new rules added welfare recipients to the jobless register, clouding the outlook for Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in elections this month. | |
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Stephen Green: Not Working — More news from the supercompetitive European Union: [snipped quote] Meanwhile, wishful thinking persists... |
Steve Antler: For those who admire Europe... Unemployment rates are setting new records in Germany. |
If Hutchison goes, legislator will run By / Houston Chronicle — Permalink AUSTIN - U.S. Rep. Henry Bonilla announced Tuesday that he is laying the groundwork for a Senate run, increasing speculation that Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison will challenge Gov. Rick Perry next year and prompting Perry to urge Texas' congressional delegation to keep their current jobs. | |
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Charles Kuffner: And I'd still like to see State Rep. Richard Raymond take a shot at it. The Chron picks up the story today. Taegan Goddard: Bonilla Preps Senate Bid — Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-TX) announced "that he is laying the groundwork for a Senate run,... |
Kos @DailyKos: TX, PA-Sen: Bonilla and Casey eye Senate runs — Rep. Henry Bonilla (R) is eyeing a Senate run if Kay Bailey Hutchinson retires to run for governor, as expected. |
North Korea May Have Sent Libya Nuclear Material, U.S. Tells Allies By / WaPo — Permalink North Korea has reprocessed 8,000 spent fuel rods into weapons-grade plutonium and appears to have exported nuclear material to Libya, U.S. officials informed Asian allies this week. | |
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Charles Johnson: NK Sent Nuclear Material to Libya — Here's a disturbing report that indicates the nuclear black market is alive and... |
Kevin Drum: That's disturbing news, but so is this tidbit farther down in the Washington Post's account: [snipped quote] It's pretty... |
Bush Speech to Focus on Budget By / WaPo — Permalink President Bush plans to further his case for remaking Social Security during his State of the Union address tonight, in a speech also expected to touch on the need for strict budget discipline and to celebrate the spread of democracy in the elections in Afghanistan, Ukraine, the Palestinian territories and, most recently, Iraq. | |
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New Donkey: In today's Post we learned that the speech has gone through 17 drafts, and that Bush had practiced it twice as of yesterday. Max B. Sawicky: WASHINGTON POST CORRECTION DEPT Today: [snipped quote] $412 billion. The deficit for FY2004. 412. Not 521. |
DeLong: Why Oh Why Can't We Have a Press Corps? (Was the Post Ever a Newspaper? |
Tests Said to Tie Deal on Uranium to North Korea NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 - Scientific tests have led American intelligence agencies and government scientists to conclude with near certainty that North Korea sold processed uranium to Libya, bolstering earlier indications that the reclusive state exported sensitive fuel for atomic weapons, according to officials with access to the intelligence. | |
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Stanley Kurtz: But I am talking about today's front page story in The New York Times confirming the likelihood that Libya received materials for its nuclear program from North Korea. |
Eugene Oregon: He Didn't - But He Could Have — Over in The Corner, Stanley Kurtz links to this NYT article about North Korea... |
MoveOn.org Social Security Ad FactCheck.org — Permalink MoveOn.org launched a false TV ad in the districts of several House members, claiming through images and words that President Bush plans to cut Social Security benefits nearly in half. | |
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Max B. Sawicky: Here they accuse MoveOn of unfactuality because the latter claims that the White House is scheming to reduce Social Security benefits. |
Frederick Maryland: Just as it did during the presidential campaign, FactCheck.org is analyzing the statements being made by both sides in the debate over Social Security reform. |
Grams considers Senate run against Dayton Minneapolis Star Tribune — Permalink Former U.S. Sen. Rod Grams is exploring a rematch in 2006 against U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton, who defeated him in 2000. Grams said Tuesday that he's had about a dozen conversations with Republicans and former supporters who have asked him to consider a run for the party's nomination, so he intends to begin talking to other activists and party leaders. | |
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Mitch Berg: Down, Boy — The Strib says former Senator Rod Grams is thinking about running against Mark Dayton in '06:... |
Orrin Judd: Grams considers Senate run against Dayton (Dane Smith, February 2, 2005, Minneapolis Star Tribune) "Former U.S. Sen... |
Dean Emerging as Likely Chief for Democrats NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 - Howard Dean emerged Tuesday as the almost assured new leader of the Democratic National Committee, as one of his main rivals quit the race and Democrats streamed to announce their support of a man whose presidential campaign collapsed one year ago. | |
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Charles Johnson: The man who blew up in the midst of the presidential campaign with the most bizarre, histrionic political performance... Howard Kurtz: I guess, despite our experience a year ago, we can now safely call Dean the front-runner: "Howard Dean emerged Tuesday... Matthew Yglesias: Chairman Dean — It looks like Howard Dean's the man. |
Chris Nolan: Who shows up on the front page of today's New York Times as the only viable alternative to Howard Dean taking the... Damian Penny: Somewhere, Karl Rove is screaming with joy — Howard Dean is all but certain to become chairman of the Democratic... Taegan Goddard: It Looks Like Dean — Howard Dean emerged "as the almost assured new leader of the Democratic National Committee, as one... |
| Also: Ezra Klein, Orrin Judd, Kevin Drum, Bill @INDCJournal, PoliPundit, Glenn Reynolds | |
Rice: U.S. Could Help Train, Equip Palestinian Forces By / Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday held out the possibility of U.S. support to train and equip Palestinian forces as she seeks to promote Middle East peace on a visit to the region next week. | |
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Roger L. Simon: Not a News Service — The following paragraph appeared in this Reuters dispatch on statements made by Condoleeza Rice... |
K. J. Lopez: RE: TRAINING THE PALESTINIANS — Actually, Andrew, the story might be bad Reuters coverage. |
Much of President's Address to Focus on Social Security By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 - President Bush will use his State of the Union address on Wednesday night to begin setting out details of his plan for overhauling Social Security, but will stick largely to generalities when it comes to the politically painful subject of... | |
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Jesse Taylor: Scotty Bo Botty Fo Fotty's last idiocy: "The White House official who briefed reporters on the speech said Mr. Bush... |
Atrios: Wankers of the Day — The Press: The White House official who briefed reporters on the speech said Mr. Bush would take... |
Bush speech to press agenda By / Washington Times — Permalink In his State of the Union address at 9 tonight, President Bush will press his plan to overhaul Social Security, call for a near-freeze in nondefense spending and reiterate his proposal to relax immigration laws, a senior administration official said yesterday. | |
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Howard Kurtz: Washington Times: "In his State of the Union address at 9 tonight, President Bush will press his plan to overhaul Social... |
Hindrocket: State of the Union Preview — The Washington Times previews tonight's State of the Union address. |
For Frist, Tough Agenda and Conflicting Pressure By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 - The fate of President Bush's domestic agenda rests, in many ways, with Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader, a man confronted on a typical day with anger on the left, demands on the right and a general anxiety attack in the Republican center over Social Security. | |
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Zoe Kentucky: Now this is the kind of talk I like to hear from a man who is both a medical doctor and the Senate majority leader as... Ezra Klein: Doctor Said What? Do we really need a Senate majority Leader saying things like this? [snipped quote] Weirdo. Oliver @LiquidList: Politics: One Creepy Bastard — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist: [snipped quote] You might be thinking, 'Well that's just political rhetoric. |
Matthew Yglesias: The Trouble With Bipartisanship — Something I'd like to highlight from Robin Toner's Bill Frist profile (my emphasis):... Oliver Willis: The Frist Charm Offensive Continues — Right-Wing Stupidity Bill Frist (R, TN) proves once again that he's as cold as a fish. Taegan Goddard: Bonus Quote of the Day — [snipped quote] — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), a former heart surgeon, quoted by the New York Times. |
| Also: Josh Marshall | |
Pretty Please NRO — Permalink Howard Dean, the DNC's leading man. Maybe we didn't ask nicely enough the first time around. When Howard Dean seemed to be hurtling toward the Democratic nomination in late 2003, we joined the bandwagon, running a cover emblazoned, "Please, Nominate This Man." | |
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Scott Sala: So far the coverage of the Dean hate comment is growing, but largely from only the Right or on editorial pages: Rush... |
Mitch Berg: On Dean — The editors of NRO have a fantastic editorial about the ascent of Mad How: [snipped quote] So what does the lefty blogosphere think about Mad How? |
Schieffer set to fill Rather's CBS seat By / USA Today — Permalink Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer is all but certain to be named interim anchor on The CBS Evening News when Dan Rather steps down next month, sources within CBS News say. Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer is expected to take the reins of CBS Evening News when Dan Rather steps down March 9. | |
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Brian Stelter: Schieffer "All But Certain" To Be Named Interim Anchor Of CBS Evening News — USA Today reports: "Washington... James Joyner: Bob Schieffer to Replace Dan Rather as CBS Anchor — Schieffer set to fill Rather's CBS seat (USA Today) Kevin Aylward: Schieffer set to fill Rather's CBS seat — USATODAY reports:Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer is all but certain to... |
Tom Biro: USA Today: Schieffer to fill anchor chair — On Tuesday evening, USA Today's Peter Johnson reported that CBS News... Susan Madrak: FAMILY TIES — So the brother of Bush's former business partner (who's now an ambassador), a man who socializes with his... |
Iraqis Who Died While Daring to Vote Are Mourned as Martyrs By / NYT — Permalink NAJAF, Iraq, Feb. 1 - Salim Yacoubi bent over to kiss the purple ink stain on his twin brother's right index finger, gone cold with death. "You can see the finger with which he voted," Shukur Jasim, a friend of the dead man, said as he cast a tearful gaze on the body, sprawled across a washer's concrete slab. | |
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Neil Shah: Pro-democracy martyrs were created, and apparently, the GOP wants some of that booty. [snipped quote] How, classy? Jan Haugland: His family and friends mourn him as a martyr: The victims of election day violence are being hailed by many Iraqis as... Steve M.: In case you're not keeping up, the Iraqi body count on Election Day is now being reported as "at least 50," according to Edward Wong of The New York Times, reporting from Najaf. |
Jeremy Brown: Reclaiming the Word 'Martyr' "Salim Yacoubi bent over to kiss the purple ink stain on his twin brother's right index finger, gone cold with death. Orrin Judd: PATRICK HENRY'S CHILDREN: Iraqis Who Died While Daring to Vote Are Mourned as Martyrs (EDWARD WONG, 2/02/05, NY Times)... |
Casey mulls run against Santorum Philadelphia Inquirer — Permalink State Treasurer Robert P. Casey Jr. met with national Democratic leaders in Washington yesterday to discuss a possible run for the U.S. Senate next year against Republican Sen. Rick Santorum. The meeting with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D. | |
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Kos @DailyKos: Meanwhile, the DSCC's and Ed Rendell's top choice to challenge Santorum next year, Bob Casey Jr., met with party leaders in DC to discuss the race. |
Taegan Goddard: Casey Discusses Possible Senate Bid — Pennsylvania state Treasurer Robert Casey (D) [snipped quote] the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. |
Honor Thy Father -- Or Else By / TCS — Permalink Western women have long wryly accepted that their mates rarely notice new outfits and new hairdos. Muslim males, by contrast, take a more intense interest in what female family members wear on their heads, what they put on their faces, how they wrap their... | |
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Steve Antler: This article — which must be read — hints during the past three generations a collective, sociopathological, cultural domination of women has superceded Lawrence's "tribalism". |
Glenn Reynolds: HONOR THY FATHER — OR ELSE! Europe needs to pay more attention to this kind of thing. Sadly, the paralysis seems to continue. |
Church Groups Turn to Sonogram to Turn Women From Abortions By / NYT — Permalink BOWIE, Md., Jan. 26 - Sixteen months ago, Andrea Brown, 24 years old and unmarried, was desperate for an abortion, fearing the disappointment of her parents and the humiliation she might face. | |
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Steve M.: Today's New York Times has an article about religious groups that are using sonogram machines at anti-abortion pregnancy centers, as a way of talking women out of having abortions. |
Susan Madrak: So why are non-medical personnel being permitted to use it for non-medical indications to talk women out of abortions? |
Aging Population Poses Global Challenges By / WaPo — Permalink When President Bush delivers his State of the Union address tonight, his prescriptions for Social Security are likely to vault that issue to the front of the nation's political agenda. But Social Security's financial problems are a relatively small sliver of the far larger challenges posed by an aging population, economists say. | |
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Roger L. Simon: Forget Global Warming — According to this article in this morning's Washington Post, the real problem is global aging. |
K. J. Lopez: COULD IT BE...A COMING CRISIS? Washington Post chronicles some very bad problems in the Social Security system. |
Some sites show huge vote gaps By / JSOnline — Permalink Record-keeping surrounding the Nov. 2 presidential election in Milwaukee is so flawed that in 17 wards there were at least 100 more votes recorded than people listed by the city as voting there. | |
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Ann Althouse: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel continues its investigation into possible fraud in last fall's election. |
Captain Ed: Milwaukee Had 17 Precincts With 100+ More Votes Than Voters — Greg Borowski reports in today's Milwaukee... |
Are bloggers journalists? Do they deserve press protections? By / Christian Science Monitor — Permalink In the small universe of powerful bloggers, Joshua Micah Marshall and John Hinderaker are separated by 900 miles and an even wider political divide. Mr. Marshall leans to the left from Washington D.C., while Mr. Hinderaker, a Minneapolis attorney, sits firmly in the conservative camp. | |
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Hugh Hewitt: "Are bloggers journalists?" That's the headline on a Christian Science Monitor piece that mentions Powewrline's John Hinderaker and TalkingpointsMemo's Joshua Micah Marshall. The Big Trunk: Rocket Man is paired with Joshua Micah Marshall in the Christian Science Monitor story by Randy Dotinga: "Are bloggers journalists? |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: This article raises the question, and my initial answer would be that unless one is blogging as a profession, the answer... |
Iraq's Shiites Plan a Humble Rise to Power By / WaPo — Permalink NAJAF, Iraq — The police chief, a former army colonel who still wears a uniform with eagles on its epaulets, sat in an official's office, flanked by men in dark suits, all awaiting an audience. Behind the desk, the official leaned back. | |
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Betsy Newmark: The Shiites have shown a remarkable self control as they take over control of the government in Iraq. |
Cori Dauber: For example, there's the fact that the Shia parties continue to say — as they've been saying for weeks — that they... |
Howard the Chair By / American Prospect — Permalink If the anecdotal evidence I've been collecting from Democratic National Committee (DNC) delegates over the last couple of weeks proves to be any sort of indicator, Howard Dean is poised to become the next party chairman. | |
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Howard Kurtz: The American Prospect's Mark Leon Goldberg jumps on the Dean bandwagon: "Lest the guy who represents (as the... |
Ezra Klein: Also, Tapped has a roundtable on the Doctor's potential chairmanship, and they bring the optimism. |
Bedside Manager By / American Prospect — Permalink In Madison, Wisconsin, on the night before Howard Dean pulled out of the Democratic presidential primary, I met a man selling beanbags at a Dean rally. The bags, each about 6 inches tall, bore the likeness of Dean in three different versions: "Doctor Dean"... | |
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Matthew Yglesias: The other is to work as an organizational maestro behind the scenes, and if Garance is right he's not going to be very good at this. Kevin Drum: From all reports, he's also going to need to find a top notch manager he trusts who can do the organizational and management tasks that he's apparently not very good at. |
Ezra Klein: Garance Franke-Ruta, however, brings the reporting, and underscores Dean's need for a good manager behind him. |
A Spoonful of Sugar NYT — Permalink In tomorrow's State of the Union speech, President Bush will no doubt escalate his campaign to replace Social Security with private retirement accounts. We don't know exactly what he'll say, but we're willing to bet that he won't say "private accounts," even... | |
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Faisal @ShrillBlog: Here's an example of the thinking: [snipped quote] Whatever happens, we're fairly confident the SotU will use the... |
Josh Marshall: Kudos to the — Times editorial page for Tuesday's editorial poke at the president's new Social Security speech code. |
Al-Qa'eda men killed in Kuwait By / Telegraph — Permalink Kuwait passed emergency anti-terrorism laws yesterday that granted police wider search powers after foiling a plot to bomb an American residential complex and breaking up an al-Qa'eda cell. | |
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Captain Ed: Kuwait Kills AQ Operatives As Terror Focus Shifts Off Saudis — Kuwait killed five al-Qaeda operatives and captured... Scott Sala: Al Qaeda in Kuwait — Al Qaeda is targeting American homes in Kuwait, but a plot was foiled (5 terrorists killed, 3... |
James Joyner: Five Al-Qa'eda Terrorists Killed in Kuwait — Al-Qa'eda men killed in Kuwait (Telegraph) [snipped quote] Interesting. |
Insurgents say they are holding US soldier Guardian — Permalink A militant group in Iraq claimed last night to have kidnapped an American soldier and threatened to kill him if Iraqi prisoners were not released within 72 hours. The group posted on the internet what appeared to be a photograph of a soldier sitting in front of a black banner with a gun pointed at his head. | |
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Glenn Reynolds: LAST UPDATE TO THIS POST: Behind the curve, The Guardian is sucked in, repeating the bogus story with a dateline of 2/2. Smash: (Hat tip: Greyhawk) UPDATE: Will someone please tell The Guardian that this was a hoax? (Hat tip: Glenn) DOUGLAS KERN has the last word. |
Hindrocket: Tomorrow's Guardian, amazingly enough, reports the story of the captured toy, straight: [snipped quote] Well, actually it... |
Web Site Claims GI Captured in Iraq AP — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq Feb 1, 2005 — Iraqi militants claimed in a Web statement Tuesday to have taken an American soldier hostage and threatened to behead him in 72 hours unless the Americans release Iraqi prisoners. | |
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Susan Q. Stranahan: Bloggers had a bit of fun with the Associated Press, which yesterday reported that Iraqi militants claimed to have taken... James Joyner: Iraq Group Claims U.S. Soldier Hostage — Web Site Claims GI Captured in Iraq (AP) "Iraqi militants claimed in a Web... Jeff Quinton: Website claiming GI capture appears to be hoax AP "Iraqi militants claimed in a Web statement Tuesday to have taken an... |
Steve M.: The current Web posting, according to AP's story, is at ansarnet.ws — which is here. Judging from the English-language text, it's a discussion forum. Jan Haugland: Jihadists kidnap action figure — ReutersTerrorists in Iraq claims to have kidnapped a US soldier and threatens to... Joe Gandelman: The AP reports that an American G.I. has allegedly been captured by "insurgents" — which means terrorists — who... |
| Also: Stefan Beck, Scott Sala, Roger L. Simon, Ed Driscoll, Charles Johnson, Ace, McQ, Andrew Cochran, Tully @Centerfield, David T | |
So-called U.S. hostage appears to be toy CNN — Permalink (CNN) — A photograph posted on an Islamist Web site appears to be that of an action figure and not a U.S. soldier being held hostage. Liam Cusack, the marketing coordinator for Dragon Models USA, said the figure pictured on the Web site is believed to be "Special Ops Cody," a military action figure the company manufactured in late 2003. | |
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Susan Q. Stranahan: Turns out, the photo was of a toy known as "Special Ops Cody." Jan Haugland: In fact, the face looks like that of a doll, or, as we say when boys play with dolls, an action figure. Clayton Cramer: CNN finally got with the story. |
Steve M.: Well, we're all having a chuckle over the story of the Iraqi insurgents who claim to have taken a U.S. soldier hostage... Vanderleun: By 5:37 EST they had almost liquidated their entire holdings in the Hostage GI story, keeping just a few shares for... Jim Treacher: "Fake But Articulated" — That's what the AP's excuse should be for what nobody is calling Hasbrogate. What headlines can you think of? |
| Also: Tbogg, McQ, Jeralyn Merritt, David T, Jim Henley, Joe Gandelman, Tom Tomorrow | |
What if Bush has been right about Iraq all along? By / Chicago Sun Times — Permalink Maybe you're like me and have opposed the Iraq war since before the shooting started — not to the point of joining any peace protests, but at least letting people know where you stood. | |
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Frederick Maryland: That's the headline over yesterday's column by the Chicago Sun-Times' Mark Brown: [snipped quote] But I would pose a... C. D. Harris: There is at least one American liberal left who actually possesses some degree of broad-mindedness and capacity for... Betsy Newmark: Mark Brown, a Chicago Sun Times columnist who opposed the war in Iraq and voted against Bush both times, is honest... |
Clayton Cramer: Mark Brown's column in the Chicago Sun-Times asks a question: "Maybe you're like me and have opposed the Iraq war... Roger L. Simon: We all fear change mightily. (hat tip: Catherine) UPDATE: Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown is having second... Norm Geras: What if... ? 'What if it turns out Bush was right? ' Indeed. The thought had occurred. |
| Also: Ace, Glenn Reynolds, Lorie Byrd, Kevin Aylward, Orrin Judd, Roger Kimball, Tom Maguire, Pejman Yousefzadeh, K. J. Lopez | |
Iraq Group Says Holds U.S. Soldier - Web Reuters — Permalink DUBAI (Reuters) - A little-known Iraqi insurgent group said on Tuesday it was holding a U.S. soldier and threatened to kill him within 72 hours if Iraqi prisoners were not released, according to an Internet statement. | |
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Jeff Quinton: 14:05 EST UPDATE Reuters "A little-known Iraqi insurgent group said on Tuesday it was holding a U.S. soldier and... Cori Dauber: Burned Again — By the time of the network news shows, the fact that this was an internet hoax was the story, but the... |
Will Collier: The only people dense enough to fall for that picture are Reuters reporters, and that's a Rather low standard for credibility, isn't it? Andrew Cochran: Updated AP story names www.ansarnet.ws as the site.Reuters: 'Our mujahideen ... have managed to capture the American... |
Train wreck of an election By / Boston Globe — Permalink IN THINKING about the election in Iraq, my mind keeps jumping back to last week's train wreck in California. A deranged man, intending suicide, drove his Jeep Cherokee onto the railroad tracks, where it got stuck. The onrushing train drew near. | |
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James Frederick Dwight: Regardless, Carroll still deserves some sort of honorable mention for the kind of drivel he puts out in today's Globe: "Iraq is a train wreck," Carroll wails. Kevin Aylward: James Carroll (Boston Globe) - Train wreck of an election You can probably guess which fellow has Juan "I'm Just Appalled" Cole in his Rolodex... Peter Burnet: NO "BUTS" ABOUT IT — Train wreck of an election (James Carroll, Boston Globe, February 1st, 2005) [snipped quote] They really are very angry at the Iraqis, aren't they? |
Glenn Reynolds: UPDATE: But on the other hand, the reliably wrong James Carroll writes: "IN THINKING about the election in Iraq, my mind... John Cole: People who have viewpoints like this need to be attacked, vilified, and humiliated, and there is nothing wrong with sane... |
U.S. military: No soldier missing in Iraq AP — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — The U.S. military said Tuesday that no American soldiers have been reported missing in Iraq after a Web statement claimed that an American soldier had been taken hostage. | |
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Jeff Quinton: 16:00 EST Associated Press "The U.S. military said Tuesday that no American soldiers have been reported missing in Iraq... |
Vanderleun: And then CNN began to sell their position off at 4:02 PM EST: "CNN.com - U.S. military: No soldier missing in Iraq -... |
Islamist group claims to hold U.S. soldier CNN — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — A group calling itself the Al Mujahedin Brigade claimed Tuesday it captured a U.S. soldier in Iraq and threatened to behead him unless prisoners are released. The claim and a photo — neither of which have been authenticated — were posted on an Islamist Web site. | |
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Vanderleun: UPDATE: CNN bought it at 1:51 PM EST: "CNN.com - Islamist group claims to hold U.S. soldier - Feb 1, 2005 BAGHDAD,... Tully @Centerfield: Web Site Claims GI Captured in Iraq Islamist group claims to hold U.S. soldier Report unconfirmed by U.S. military When... |
Jeff Quinton: 15:15 EST: CNN (via Conservative Friends) also is now casting doubts on the photo's authenticity. |
Claims of GI Hostage in Iraq Raises Doubt AP — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq - A Web site posted a photograph of what it claimed was a kidnapped U.S. soldier, but doubts were quickly raised about its authenticity and the U.S. military said no soldiers were missing. | |
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Tom Biro: You can see the AP's latest here or here. |
Glenn Reynolds: MORE: A big-media report on the hoax. STILL MORE: Cool, Charles-Johnson-style animated graphic overlay here. |
The Vietnam turnout was good as well Guardian — Permalink On September 4 1967 the New York Times published an upbeat story on presidential elections held by the South Vietnamese puppet regime at the height of the Vietnam war. | |
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Armed Liberal: He mirrors Sami Ramadani's argument in the Guardian that the results of the election Sunday are meaningless, because... Barbara O'Brien: Sami Ramadani writes in The Guardian, "With the past few days' avalanche of spin, you could be forgiven for thinking... McQ: Hitchens: Iraq is not Vietnam — Christopher Hitchens very easily deals the tired "Iraq/Vietnam" comparison, which the left continues to try to make, a death blow. |
Charles Bird: The Guardian and New York Times picked up on the meme as well. Harry @HarrysPlace: Sami Ramadani in this morning's Guardian compares the "propaganda about Iraq's elections" to the vote held in South Vietnam in 1967. Jeralyn Merritt: Election and Voter Turnout — Not to beat a dead horse, but it 's worth pondering that in 1967, the U.S. crowed about the good turnout in the Vietnam election. |
| Also: RDF @Corrente | |
Rewriting the Laws of War for a New Enemy LAT — Permalink The Geneva Convention isn't the last word. John C. Yoo, a law professor at UC Berkeley, is a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. They w | |
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Digby: But, the administration is listening to ideologues like Robert J. Delahunty and John C. Yoo, who should be cast into the... Matthew Yglesias: John Yoo of torture memo fame tries to cloud the issues with the tired right-wing argument that the Geneva Conventions are outdated in the age of assymetrical warfare. |
Hindrocket: This morning, Robert J. Delahunty and John C. Yoo, the authors of Justice Department memos concluding that the Geneva... Avedon Carol: The long and the short of it — Leah has a long, comprehensive post at Corrente called When Did A Free Press Become The... |
State Dems get into dispute with DNC as chairman's race heats up AP — Permalink LANSING, Mich. (AP) — As Democrats continue to wrangle over what the party should look like to ensure victory in 2008, a fight has broken out between the Democratic National Committee and state Democratic officials over how DNC money was spent on John Kerry's 2004 race in Michigan. | |
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Kos @DailyKos: Audit Michigan's books — The DNC is right. Brewer and the Michigan Democratic Party are wrong. Jeralyn Merritt: Donnie Fowler got some bad press related to the Michigan Kerry campaign (he was its Director.) |
Karl-Thomas Musselman: I doubt Fowler will stay in with the whole Michigan debacle now hitting the mainstream press in that state as of right now. |
Bush to Call for Near-Freeze in Spending: Aide By / Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush will call for a near-freeze in the overall growth of government spending not connected to national defense to try to rein in record deficits, a senior administration official said on Tuesday. | |
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Jesse Taylor: Shorter State Of The Union — Except for all the increased spending we're going to do, we're going to cut spending. Greg @TheTalentShow: How Cute... Isn't it adorable when Junior pretends to be a fiscal conservative? |
Kos @DailyKos: Bush's budget plan — Bush's efforts to restrain the deficit don't seem, at first blush, to be up to the task:... |
CIA Corrects Itself on Arms By / LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — In what may be a formal acknowledgment of the obvious, the CIA has issued a classified report revising its prewar assessments on Iraq and concluding that Baghdad abandoned its chemical weapons programs in 1991, intelligence officials familiar with the document said. | |
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Laura Rozen: CIA issues a correction: "In what may be a formal acknowledgment of the obvious, the CIA has issued a classified report... Eugene Oregon: Better Late Than Never — Not really "In what may be a formal acknowledgment of the obvious, the CIA has issued a... Kos @DailyKos: CIA: 'Our bad! ' CIA says: [snipped quote] What's all this talk about "chemical weapons programs"? |
Jan Haugland: The CIA has formally acknowledged that the pre-war intelligence (to use the term broadly) about Saddam's weapons of mass destruction was bunk. Taegan Goddard: CIA Issues Correction — "In what may be a formal acknowledgment of the obvious, the CIA has issued a classified report... Kevin Drum: Its conclusion: there wasn't any. Final reports on bioweapons and nukes are coming up next. Stay tuned. |
Brain immaturity can be deadly By / MSNBC — Permalink By most physical measures, teenagers should be the world's best drivers. Their muscles are supple, their reflexes quick, their senses at a lifetime peak. Yet car crashes kill more of them than any other cause — a problem, some researchers believe, that is rooted in the adolescent brain. | |
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Clayton Cramer: So I found this article about recent brain research on age and risk-taking quite interesting, because it suggests a... Pejman Yousefzadeh: THE RECKLESSNESS OF YOUTH — Now explained with an anatomical basis: [snipped quote] If true, I find this bizarre. |
James Joyner: Brain Develops Risk Aversion Late — Brain immaturity can be deadly (MSNBC) [snipped quote] It's not surprising that... K. J. Lopez: BRAIN IMMATURITY — Another reason for abstinence education! |
AFL-CIO won't endorse anyone in race for Democratic post By / AP — Permalink (02-01) 09:38 PST WASHINGTON (AP) — AFL-CIO leaders decided Tuesday not to make an endorsement in the race for Democratic National Committee chairman, a move that could make it harder for any of Howard Dean's rivals to stop his push for the party leadership. | |
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Byron LaMasters: The San Francisco Chronicle reports: "AFL-CIO leaders decided Tuesday not to make an endorsement in the race for... ByronUT: The San Francisco Chronicle reports: [snipped quote] Diaries :: ByronUT's diary :: Tue Feb 1st, 2005 at 01:55:05 PM EST :: 34 Comments |
Kos @DailyKos: AFL-CIO sits out DNC race — Frost's last big chance — a big labor endorsement — has gone up in smoke. |
What got so many counties to go red from blue in '04? USA Today — Permalink When President Bush delivers his State of the Union address Wednesday, he'll survey a Capitol Hill landscape that reflects the heartland he won on Election Day. (Chat: USA TODAY's Susan Page, Tuesday, 11 a.m.) | |
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Betsy Newmark: USA Today looks at why some counties went from being blue in 2000 to red in 2004. [snipped quote] They cite five reasons that caused the change. Patrick Ruffini: How America Got Redder — Jill Lawrence and Susan Page show us how good electoral postmortems are done, honing on the 153 counties that switched from blue to red in 2004. Taegan Goddard: Why the Map Turned Red — A USA Today analysis suggests the surge towards Bush and the GOP in the presidential election... |
Avedon Carol: USA Today has a story which purports to answer the question, What got so many counties to shift from blue to red? and more or less comes out saying mainly it was 9/11 and the war. Steve Bainbridge: "(Link with theories)" Orrin Judd: MOVEIN.GOP: What got so many counties to shift from blue to red? (Jill Lawrence and Susan Page, 2/01/05, USA TODAY) [snipped quote] Who will tell Tancredo... |
Kerry's Mich. chief behind in party race By / Detroit Free Press — Permalink As Howard Dean's campaign for chairman of the Democratic National Committee got a boost Monday, one of Dean's strongest opponents faced allegations that his leadership of the Michigan Kerry for President campaign was in disarray days before the election. | |
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Kos @DailyKos: Michigan, the Kerry Campaign, Fowler, and the big mess — The Democratic Party's open secret is out Taegan Goddard: Fowler Charged With Mismanaging Campaign — The Detroit Free Press runs an article based on information clearly intended to derail Donnie Fowler's candidacy for DNC Chairman. |
Ttagaris: We've moved from a losing party of the 20th centurty to a losing party of the 21st century. by Matt Stoller on Sat Dec... |
How Bush's vodka thwarted Putin's thugs WorldNetDaily — Permalink Dr. Jack Wheeler, creator of a unique intelligence website dubbed "the oasis for rational conservatives," shares how a gift of vodka and a little ingenuity helped Ukraine's Orange Revolution succeed, bringing the former Russian satellite onto President Bush's list of new democracies. | |
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Jan Haugland: This story, though from a dubious source, indicates that I was right: "Eastern Ukraine is heavily ethnic Russian. Glenn Reynolds: DEMOCRACY, VODKA, SEXY? [quote] "Eastern Ukraine is heavily ethnic Russian. The main industry is coal.[end quote] |
Shannon Love: Aztecs and Arabs — A very interesting observation via Instapundit. |
PAC backing Romney pumps cash in key states Boston Globe — Permalink Friends and supporters of Governor Mitt Romney have established a political action committee that has lavished more than $250,000 on Republican candidates and county GOP organizations across the nation since July, apparently laying the groundwork for a potential presidential run for the Massachusetts politician in 2008. | |
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Hugh Hewitt: Debate? She's running in '08, and she's not the only one, as this Globe story on Mitt Romney underscores. Shawn @LiquidList: According to this Globe article, evidence to support these claims continues to mount. Taegan Goddard: Romney's Gifts May Signal 2008 Bid — Supporters of Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) [snipped quote] the Boston Globe reports. |
Joe Gandelman: A top GOPer seems to be systematically laying the groundwork for a 2008 Presidential run — the son of a famous... Oliver Willis: Heads Up — Republicans Mass. governor Mitt Romney is buying friends in an apparent move towards running for President. |
Gorbachev calls Iraq elections fake Aljazeera — Permalink Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev has called the Iraqi parliamentary elections a desecration, according to Moscow News, an English-language sister publication of Gazeta.ru. | |
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Stephen Pollard: Chutzpah — Gorbachev calls Iraq elections fake. That's as opposed to the USSR's ballots, eh, Mikhail? |
K. J. Lopez: DISAPPOINTING — Mikhail Gorbachev calls Iraqi elections "fake." |
Colorado Professor's Future on the Line Fox News — Permalink DENVER — A panel discussion at Hamilton College (search) in New York featuring a Colorado professor was canceled after hundreds of death threats poured in because of an inflammatory essay he wrote comparing some of the Sept. 11 victims to Nazis and calling President Bush a terrorist. | |
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Ace: Go. Just Go Already. 1. Eason Jordan. |
K. J. Lopez: "BUSH...THE WORLD'S LEADING TERRORIST" — More Professor Churchill on W. |
Who Gets the Credit in Iraq? By / WaPo — Permalink Who deserves credit for the first free election in Iraq in 50 years? That's the question driving a lot of the international online commentary about the Iraqi elections Sunday. There is a good deal of positive reaction even from some critics of the United States. | |
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John Cole: Sheer Idiocy — Glenn links to this piece in the Washington Post arguing who gets credit for the Iraqi elections, but fails to mention the egregious final sentence of the story. |
Glenn Reynolds: "WHO GETS CREDIT IN IRAQ?" asks an article in the Washington Post. That people are fighting over credit tells you most of what you need to know about how things are going . |
A beacon is lit in Iraq. But not in your names, Robin, Douglas and the BBC By / Times of London — Permalink WHO WON the Iraqi elections? The formal counting won't be over for days. But the result's already clear. Iraq won. And who lost? Well, a full list would take up all this column, but, for starters, I would say that the people who seemed a little glum... | |
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Scott Burgess: Michael Gove of the Times offers a useful list: "I would say that the people who seemed a little glum yesterday morning... Orrin Judd: VICTORY LAP: A beacon is lit in Iraq. Greyhawk: [quote]"The real test is..." [end quote] Michael Gove in The London Times "WHO WON the Iraqi elections? The formal counting won't be over for days. |
Harry @HarrysPlace: Not in your name — Michael Gove's column in The Times today is, once again, right on the mark: Women in an Arab nation... Kevin Aylward: Quote Of The Day — [snipped quote] Michael Gove in The Times (UK) Via Scott Burgess, who notes that political knitting... |
AP: Videos Show Guantanamo Prisoner Abuse By / AP — Permalink SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Videotapes of riot squads subduing troublesome terror suspects at the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay show the guards punching some detainees, tying one to a gurney for questioning and forcing a dozen to strip from the waist down, according to a secret report. | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: Videos were released today of Guantanamo prisoner abuse that occurred at the hands of the "Immediate Reaction Forces." |
Max @Centerfield: Well, it seems someone has done just that. These videos, some of which show gratuitous abuse of prisoners, help build the case that torture is not unique to Baghdad. |
Medicare to cover Viagra, similar drugs By / AP — Permalink WASHINGTON — Sexual performance drugs such as Viagra will be covered in Medicare's new prescription drug program, a lifestyle rather than lifesaving benefit that conservatives and watchdog groups say the government shouldn't provide. | |
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Julian Sanchez: Well, via the Medicare prescription drug benefit, the federal government will now be giving men a hand getting it up by covering Viagra and other sexual performance drugs. |
Nathan Newman: All You Need is Love — Medicare to cover Viagra. Conservatives are protesting, but I'd love to see them vote to tell older folks that they don't have the right to get it on. |