With the exception of posts on Hillary Clinton and Bobby Jindal, I haven't really waded into the Veepstakes game. I don't see much point to it unless you have access to insider campaign information, or are a conduit for leaks, but that's not to say that I haven't been paying close attention to it. The choice of running mate, after all, may not make or break a presidential bid … [Read more...] about Veepstakes: Rankings and Predictions
Live Blog Special Event
I'm live-blogging a forum on the McCain and Obama campaign's tax policies here (it's in progress right now). Both campaigns have representatives present, and analysis is being done by the Tax Policy Center. UPDATE: Okay, live-blog done. Hope you enjoyed (and were more enlightened than poor me!). … [Read more...] about Live Blog Special Event
Drivers in the South hardest hit by gas prices
So says a new report: Drivers in the South have been hit hardest by soaring U.S. gasoline costs and state governments there should take more steps to help cut fuel consumption, said a report released on Tuesday. Average motorists in Mississippi spent nearly 8 percent of their incomes on gasoline in 2007 and drivers in South Carolina and Georgia spent more than 7 percent, … [Read more...] about Drivers in the South hardest hit by gas prices
Civil Rights Roundup: 07/23/08
Your daily dose of civil rights and related news The HIV/AIDS infection rate for American Latinos is skyrocketing. In some urban cities, the proportion of gay Latinos who are HIV positive rivals that of sub-Saharan Africa. Being handicapped in one's ability to have sexual relations constitutes a major life impairment under the ADA. The DC Circuit Court of Appeals ruling … [Read more...] about Civil Rights Roundup: 07/23/08
News From the Israeli and Palestinian Front: July 23rd
A regular feature of news and opinion pieces from the Israeli and Palestinian press. 1.) General James Jones, a high-level American envoy to Israel-Palestine, is preparing to release a report that is extremely critical of Israel's activities in the West Bank. According to Haaretz, Jones was appointed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice after the Annapolis Conference in … [Read more...] about News From the Israeli and Palestinian Front: July 23rd
Beat the Press
This just in from the Department of Credit Where Credit Is Due, it's nice to see the presidential candidates maintain a sense of humor during hard times, and John McCain seems to be keeping hold of his. The image to the left is a fake press pass that the McCain team was handing out to reporters who were "left behind to report in America" and referring to them as the junior … [Read more...] about Beat the Press
About-Face
Another indication that Washington is reconsidering the wisdom of its don't-talk-to-your-enemies policy: For the second time this week, a senior American official will meet with representatives of a Middle Eastern country that the US has sought to isolate diplomatically. David Welch, US assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, is set to speak with Riad Daoudi, … [Read more...] about About-Face
Good Golly, Miss Dolly
LOOKIN' BAD. … [Read more...] about Good Golly, Miss Dolly
Procrastination Nation: Hi-tech makes us time-wasters?
Color me skeptical... Yet another new study with yet another new tech affliction: According to new research, one person in five now suffers from the problem so badly that their careers, relationships and health are threatened. Many researchers blame computers and mobile phones for providing too many distractions for people. 'The subject is seen as joke,' said Professor … [Read more...] about Procrastination Nation: Hi-tech makes us time-wasters?
Why Isn’t This Mainstream Media News?
JUST ASKING. … [Read more...] about Why Isn’t This Mainstream Media News?
What McCain Needs To Do To Win
A list of dos and don'ts. … [Read more...] about What McCain Needs To Do To Win
Obama’s Race
It's not as if John McCain has become irrelevant, but in the main ring of the '08 electoral circus, all eyes are now on Barack Obama's solo high-wire act as he walks a racial, political and cultural tightrope toward the White House. The questions are less about the two candidates' policies and personalities than about the larger meaning of it all: "Could an Obama Presidency … [Read more...] about Obama’s Race
(Updated) An Unhappy McCain Discovers That The Law of Gravity Has Not Been Repealed
Some pundits are referring to events this week in Iraq as John McCain's "Waterloo." That may or may not be true, but it misses a larger point: While the Bush administration has done plenty of end runs around the Constitution, it was unable to repeal the law of gravity and the consequences of its excesses were bound to come crashing down sooner or later. As the president's … [Read more...] about (Updated) An Unhappy McCain Discovers That The Law of Gravity Has Not Been Repealed
What Do You Want to Know from Obama’s German Fans?
Berlin is abuzz about Senator Obama's upcoming speech on Thursday 7:00 PM local time. How many folks will come to see the messiah as he has been called by some journalists over here? Many press outlets quoted a city government official's estimate of 10,000 to one million people. Wow, that is so precise! It seems that nobody else dares to publish an estimate. It could be a … [Read more...] about What Do You Want to Know from Obama’s German Fans?
Karadzic’s Arrest: Triumph of European Soft Power?
Finally, Serbia is back in Europe. Stephen Castle and Steven Erlanger write in the NY Times: Europe on Tuesday welcomed the arrest of Radovan Karadzic not just as a victory for international justice, but as a vindication of the Continent's favored political doctrine: soft power. (...) In the last few months the European Union has helped bring a pro-Western political party to … [Read more...] about Karadzic’s Arrest: Triumph of European Soft Power?
From Germany’s Frankfurter Rundschau: On Obama’s Speech, and the Nazi Past of the Victory Column …
The controversy over Barack Obama's upcoming speech in Berlin just keeps on going. Now that the decision has been made not to hold the speech near the Brandenburg Gate, moving it instead down the road from the Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column, some German politicians argue that because the Tower was moved to its present location by Hitler, it, too, is the wrong … [Read more...] about From Germany’s Frankfurter Rundschau: On Obama’s Speech, and the Nazi Past of the Victory Column …
Bush on Wall Street: The Diagnosis
President Bush thought the cameras were off. He was at a fund-raiser and he'd asked them to be switched off. So he said: Transcript and commentary here. … [Read more...] about Bush on Wall Street: The Diagnosis
Kicking Oil Addiction: Europe Looks At Sahara Sun
Britain and France are among European Union nations "discussing ambitious plans to harvest the energy of the Saharan sun, connecting a vast network of solar panels to electricity grids across the continent." According to The Guardian, "the project, estimated to cost up to £35.7 billion, is backed by Gordon Brown and President Sarkozy of France." More here... In 2006 … [Read more...] about Kicking Oil Addiction: Europe Looks At Sahara Sun
McCain’s Desperation and the Return of the Politics of Rove
These must be desperate times in the McCain camp because the old maverick politics have given way to the full Rove. Here's what John McCain had to say today: This is a clear choice that the American people have. I had the courage and the judgment to say I would rather lose a political campaign than lose a war. It seems to me that Obama would rather lose a war in order to win … [Read more...] about McCain’s Desperation and the Return of the Politics of Rove
On “Mavericks,” “Change,” and Centrists
In a recent post, Donklephant's Alan Stewart Carl's correctly takes down the McCain campaign for their latest ad which blames Senator Obama for high gas prices. I don't have a problem with going after McCain for an ad that was grossly unfair. What piqued my interest was his last point: Increasing domestic drilling is definitely an issue we need to debate and McCain … [Read more...] about On “Mavericks,” “Change,” and Centrists