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Commerce Secretary John Bryson Investigated in California Hit and Run: UPDATED Is Said to Have Had Seizure
[NOTE: Due to being offline all day, this is being dated late.] There's now an explanation for why Commerce Secretary John Bryson got into several accidents in California, in one of the more bizarre stories of the year involving a political figure: he apparently had a seizure: It began Saturday afternoon at a railroad crossing in a run-down commercial neighborhood in … [Read more...] about Commerce Secretary John Bryson Investigated in California Hit and Run: UPDATED Is Said to Have Had Seizure
‘Report From 20 Paws Ranch’ Back Next Week
Lots going on, but you won't read or hear about it in The New York Times or on CNN. Nesting season is nearly over at the mountain retreat, aka 20 Paws Ranch, and we have a slew of goldfinch, bluebird, catbird, robin and crow fledglings. And the hummingbirds are back with a vengeance, going through a pint of sugar water every couple of days. All the bird activity means … [Read more...] about ‘Report From 20 Paws Ranch’ Back Next Week
Government Is the Solution
WASHINGTON -- Why don't Democrats just say it? They really believe in active government and think it does good and valuable things. One of those valuable things is that government creates jobs -- yes, really -- and also the conditions under which more jobs can be created. You probably read that and thought: But don't Democrats and liberals say this all the time? … [Read more...] about Government Is the Solution
Spanish Rescue Package Will Further Bleed Taxpayers
Spain’s hapless tax payers, already bleeding from rising unemployment and falling economic growth, had another burden thrust upon them today when their government acquiesced under duress to a €100 billion rescue package for Spanish banks. The money will come from funds set up by its Eurozone partners and the European Central Bank (ECB) in exchange for first preference for … [Read more...] about Spanish Rescue Package Will Further Bleed Taxpayers
Defense Update
What some of our troops were doing last week: Airmen with the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing prepare a U.S. Air Force C-130H Hercules assigned to the 774th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron for an airlift mission at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Bagram provides tactical airlift support every day to ground forces operating in Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Raymond … [Read more...] about Defense Update
Obama’s Problem: Week Revealed His Weaknesses
Earlier in the week I wrote this column that contrasts 2008 and with 2012. ABC's World News notes how this week revealed Obama's 2012 weaknesses and contrasts with 2008. The key question will be: will this be a turning point for Obama's re-election campaign or the kind of rough patch that he faced in his nomination battle with Hillary Clinton where he seemed on the descent but … [Read more...] about Obama’s Problem: Week Revealed His Weaknesses
Campaign Ad Video: Romney Campaign Uses Obama’s “The Private Sector Is Doing Fine” Bungle in Ad
On Friday President Barack Obama handed the Romney campaign an early Chistmas gift by saying "the private sector is doing fine" in a press conference. Some have compared this to George W. Bush's "Mission Accomplished" banner on the Iraq war (let the "false equivalency" wars begin). But one thing is for sure: it was a major campaign stumble and gave Republicans a sound bite they … [Read more...] about Campaign Ad Video: Romney Campaign Uses Obama’s “The Private Sector Is Doing Fine” Bungle in Ad
Obama Campaign Asks Its Supporters to Grade It
In terms of a serious question, you'd call it a loaded question. In comedy, you call it a set up line. But, call it what you will, after a truly disastrous political week, the Obama campaign has really...truly...honestly..not joking...asked its supporters to grade it. They're asking for an overall grade, not just for the past week or two (when the grade would have to be F or … [Read more...] about Obama Campaign Asks Its Supporters to Grade It
Where the Polls Are
Two polls given top billing at The Hill yesterday -- Fox and Gallup -- show Obama and Romney to be even -- uh, deadlocked. Not really deadlocked though. Romney maybe, but Obama's popularity continues to give him an advantage. Obama continues to be seen more favorably than his Republican challenger, with 54 percent of those surveyed saying they have a positive … [Read more...] about Where the Polls Are
Another Take On Wisconsin
Scott Walker's victory in Wisconsin was not good for unions -- in the United States, or here in Canada. And, as Canadian journalist Tony Burman writes: This was a campaign that was bought and sold like a piece of meat, the latest shameful unraveling of once-proud American democratic traditions. In fabled, progressive Wisconsin, this election was ultimate proof that … [Read more...] about Another Take On Wisconsin
Five Pivotal Moments from Incumbent Campaigns (Guest Voice)
[Editor's Note: I've just finished reading Samuel L. Popkin's must-read new book The Candidate: What It Takes to Win – and Hold – the White House -- which will reviewed on TMV at a later date. If you read what Popkin has said about what it takes incumbents to hold on to the White House, Obama is not on track, which he also noted recently to The Daily Beast's Eleanor Clift. … [Read more...] about Five Pivotal Moments from Incumbent Campaigns (Guest Voice)
Better Place
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Trying to Tune Out on 2012
Unawareness would be a gift in times like these--a blessing to rinse the mind of Mitt Romney, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell and their content-free daily kneejerks as well as pathetic it-could-be-worse defenses of Barack Obama and Joe Biden. If old age is a shipwreck, an inner voice wheedles, just sit on the sand and stop sending messages in a bottle. On a Netflix life raft, … [Read more...] about Trying to Tune Out on 2012
Syria – There Are No Good Guys
John Rosenthal of NRO reports that the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung is reporting that anti-Assad Sunni rebels are responsible for the Houla massacre. According to the article’s sources, the massacre occurred after rebel forces attacked three army-controlled roadblocks outside of Houla. The roadblocks had been set up to protect nearby Alawi majority villages from … [Read more...] about Syria – There Are No Good Guys
American Cyberwar on Iran
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The Civil War Border States and the Purple States of 2012
Nowhere was the Civil War more hotly contested - militarily, culturally and politically - than the northernmost tier of slave states that remained loyal to the Union, especially Kentucky and Missouri. President Lincoln famously remarked "I think to lose Kentucky is nearly the same as to lose the whole game. Kentucky gone, we can not hold Missouri, nor, as I think, Maryland. … [Read more...] about The Civil War Border States and the Purple States of 2012
Pirates, Puritans and U.S. Immigration (La Jornada, Mexico)
Is there something so unjust about the way the U.S. benefits from undocumented immigrants, and at the same time demonizes them mercilessly, that the average American should be red-faced embarrassed? Writing for Mexico's La Jornada, Dr. Jorge Durand of the University of Guadalajara'S Department for the Study of Social Movements, lays out the hypocrisy and inherent inhumanity of … [Read more...] about Pirates, Puritans and U.S. Immigration (La Jornada, Mexico)
Some Great Music to Start Off Your Weekend
Here's some great music to start off your weekend. A Lover's Concerto as performed by the immortal Mrs. Miller: … [Read more...] about Some Great Music to Start Off Your Weekend
Fat City
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