Mark today as the day when Vice President Joe Biden made many conservative Republicans', NRA officials', and no-on-any-gun-regulation NRA members' (who don't reflect the opinion of many other NRA members) heads explode: he said that President Barack Obama is considering using executive orders to stem mass shootings in America. The police better get ready for a host of calls … [Read more...] about Some Heads Explode: Biden Says Obama Exploring Executive Orders to Combat Gun Violence
Chris Christie More Popular with Democrats Nationally than Republicans, Poll Says
Chris Christie more popular with Democrats nationally than Republicans, poll says (via NJ.com) A new poll finds Gov. Chris Christie, pictured here delivering the State of the State address Tuesday, is more popular with Democrats nationally than with members of his own Republican party. Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledger TRENTON — Republican Gov. Chris Christie is more … [Read more...] about Chris Christie More Popular with Democrats Nationally than Republicans, Poll Says
Does America Need a Tourism Czar?
President Barack Obama last year signed an executive order creating a task force to design a National Travel & Tourism Strategy. It was a follow-up to his 2010 signing of the Travel Promotion Act of 2009. Believe it or not, it's the first time in our history that the US government has set promoting foreign travel to America as a national priority, something that most of … [Read more...] about Does America Need a Tourism Czar?
Obama Will Reportedly Name Jack Lew to Replace Geithner at Treasury
President Barack Obama has reportedly has decided who he'll name to replace Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner: President Barack Obama plans to name White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew tomorrow as his choice for Treasury secretary, replacing Timothy F. Geithner, a person familiar with the process said. Lew, 57, who also has served as director of the Office of … [Read more...] about Obama Will Reportedly Name Jack Lew to Replace Geithner at Treasury
Gallup Poll: Democrats Re-Take Lead in Party Indentification
At a time when pollsters are finding more and more Americans want to declare themselves independents, a new Gallup Poll finds that Democratic Party has re-taken the Republican Party in terms of voter party identification: An average of 47% of Americans identified as Democrats or said they were independents who leaned Democratic in 2012, compared with 42% who identified … [Read more...] about Gallup Poll: Democrats Re-Take Lead in Party Indentification
Why the GOP Won’t Get Hagel’s Scalp
The campaign to embarrass the President over his Defense nomination is weighed down by GOP history. How can a party that erased George W. Bush from its 2012 campaign re-litigate his foreign policy legacy to bring down Chuck Hagel? After Obama’s deft introduction Monday, the battle lines are clear. With Republican military-diplomatic heavyweights like Robert Gates, Colin … [Read more...] about Why the GOP Won’t Get Hagel’s Scalp
On Chuck Hagel’s Courage — With a Small ‘But’ and a Lot of ‘Digressing’
In a rapid-fire, double-down, follow-up to his first hit piece on Chuck Hagel’s alleged “Jewish Problem,” Wall Street Journal’s Bret Stephens praises Hagel’s honorable and courageous military service in somewhat of a qualified manner. In “Chuck Hagel’s Courage,” Stephens immediately follows his comments on Hagel’s personal courage with “This fact…will now be trotted out … [Read more...] about On Chuck Hagel’s Courage — With a Small ‘But’ and a Lot of ‘Digressing’
Does Fox News Have a New Competitor?
Does Fox News have a new competitor? And this time is it a competitor that isn't liberal, a competitor that offers an alternative to the often official GOP voice coming across loud and clear. Quite possibly, yes... … [Read more...] about Does Fox News Have a New Competitor?
2012 Warmest on Record for US
2012 warmest on record for US (via AFP) 2012 marked the warmest year on record for the United States and was also the second most extreme ever, the US government agency charged with monitoring weather events said. The hot weather contributed to a record drought which, at its peak, parched 61 percent of the nation, destroyed crops worth billions… … [Read more...] about 2012 Warmest on Record for US
Quote of the Day: Campaign against Hagel Losing Steam
Our political Quote of the Day comes from Talking Point Memo's Josh Marshall who says the campaign against former Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel's nomination to be the Obama administration's new Secretary of Defense is losing team: Nominations lose steam or gain steam. Campaigns against nominations lose steam or gain steam. And at the moment, the campaign against Chuck … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: Campaign against Hagel Losing Steam
The Third Apparition and Independent Voters
Amid the dwindling attention in the media to independent voters after President Obama's re-election in November (below see who won independents' votes in 2012), I'm drawn to re-read Jacqueline Salit's Obama and Independents: The Micro, the Macro and the Forest -- A Post Election Independent Analysis addressed in memo form on IndependentVoting.org's website to The … [Read more...] about The Third Apparition and Independent Voters
White House Considering Removing All Troops from Afghanistan After 2014
It truly sounds as if President Barack Obama is looking for ways to tie up a lot of loose ends by the time he leaves office in 2016. And one of them is clearly Afghanistan: the White House is indicating it's seriously considering getting all troops out of Afghanistan by 2014: The Obama administration is considering the possibility of removing all U.S. troops in Afghanistan … [Read more...] about White House Considering Removing All Troops from Afghanistan After 2014
Comedy Voice: A GREAT, Loose, Vaudeville Comedy Team Act
A GREAT vaudeville act. If you thought SNL invented the zany, loose style of comedy, think again. My fellow performers and all comedy fans NEED to watch this incredible act. Vaudeville folks did the same act over and over from city to city, perfecting their timing. Note how loose this is -- yet smooth, perfectly timed. MUST VIEWING (before my time so this is NOT nostalgia but … [Read more...] about Comedy Voice: A GREAT, Loose, Vaudeville Comedy Team Act
Gun Ownership and ‘We Did It Because We Could’ Journalism (Guest Voice)
Gun Ownership and 'We Did It Because We Could' Journalism by Carl Golden In the mid-1950's, I began my career in the newspaper business on the daily paper in my hometown in Pennsylvania and, as the new kid in the newsroom, my assignments often required unearthing information that others wished to remain secret. I was instructed by my city editor to be vigilant in … [Read more...] about Gun Ownership and ‘We Did It Because We Could’ Journalism (Guest Voice)
The Political Implications of America’s Oil & Gas Boom – James Kwak Interview (Guest Voice)
The Political Implications of America's Oil & Gas Boom – James Kwak Interview by James Stafford As we begin a new year we wanted to take a look at the current energy landscape and see what the future holds for the global economy, America's oil and gas boom, whether renewables will continue to be a favourite amongst investors and whether we should be focusing more attention … [Read more...] about The Political Implications of America’s Oil & Gas Boom – James Kwak Interview (Guest Voice)
The Republican Race for Non-Compassionate Conservatism
Will the Republican Party's 2012 national rout have an impact? Will it become more a moderate (excuse the "dirty" word) conservative party that tries to inch back to George W. Bush's stated goal of a more "compassionate conservatism" that would appeal to growing, Democratic-inclined demographics? As Tony Soprano said: "Fuhgeddaboudit!" Amid signs of looming Republican … [Read more...] about The Republican Race for Non-Compassionate Conservatism
Hagel, Kerry on Last mission for Vietnam Generation
Hagel, Kerry on last mission for Vietnam generation (via AFP) America's Vietnam War generation has one, unlikely, final run at power, after President Barack Obama turned to his elders Chuck Hagel and John Kerry to run second-term national security policy. The societal poison stirred by Vietnam embittered almost every US election between 1968 and 2004, but … [Read more...] about Hagel, Kerry on Last mission for Vietnam Generation
Hagel Nomination: Israelis Ask ‘What’s the Big Deal?’
Hagel nomination: Israelis ask 'what's the big deal?' (via The Christian Science Monitor) President Obama’s choice of Chuck Hagel for secretary of Defense, hotly contested by the American Jewish community, has received a muted response in Israel. While some echo concerns that the former Republican senator is dangerous or anti-Semitic, others here … [Read more...] about Hagel Nomination: Israelis Ask ‘What’s the Big Deal?’
Moderate Power? Moderate Republican Group to Remove ‘Republican’ from Name and Welcome Democrats
They say for every action there's a reaction. The Tea Party, many contend, was at first a reaction to the big government policies of George W. Bush and the then-new President Barack Obama. Then GOPers came in and largely co-pted the movement, which became a potent force within the party after the 2010 elections. And now you have this: the moderate Republican group … [Read more...] about Moderate Power? Moderate Republican Group to Remove ‘Republican’ from Name and Welcome Democrats
David Brooks Takes A Sip Of Reality
David Brooks is usually clueless but he at least dips a toe in the cold sea of reality today. He rightly observes that voters like Medicare and Medicaid and that any serious cuts are unlikely. Americans don’t particularly like government, but they do want government to subsidize their health care. They believe that health care spending improves their lives more than any other … [Read more...] about David Brooks Takes A Sip Of Reality