It seemed like Attorney General Alberto Gonzales barely had two brain cells to rub together on the best of days, so his defense of the Bush torture regime was simple: Na-na-na-na-na! The president can do whatever he wants. Michael Mukasey, who prepped for the job in the federal judiciary while Gonzales was the president's lapdog, is a rocket scientist by comparison. … [Read more...] about Michael Mukasey’s Disingenuously Dangerous Defense of the Bush Torture Regime
UN Chief ‘Regrets’ Burmese Suppression Of Democracy
The Secretary General of the United Nations has said that he 'regrets' that the government of Burma (also known as the whims of Than Shwe) will continue to keep Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest. Kyi has attracted the wrath of the Burmese leaders for daring to support the radical notion that the people of Burma should have the right to choose their own leaders. Of course the … [Read more...] about UN Chief ‘Regrets’ Burmese Suppression Of Democracy
Clinton, Obama And McCain Campaigns All Feel The Heat
This hasn't been the best day for the campaigns of Democratic Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton or for Republican presumptive Presidential nominee Senator John McCain. The reason: all three are feeling political and media heat. Just follow the links. To wit: #1: Obama in a speech said that his great-uncle, Charlie Payne, was among those who liberated Auschwitz, … [Read more...] about Clinton, Obama And McCain Campaigns All Feel The Heat
Upcoming McClellan Memoir Blasts Bush, Rove, White House
When he was the Bush White House's press secretary, Scott McClellan took a lot heat and some analysts thought he showed every single sweat gland of it. Next week McClellan has a new memoir coming out, and according to reports President George Bush and the White House might begin sweating a bit -- because they're going to have to go into full damage/discredit control on this … [Read more...] about Upcoming McClellan Memoir Blasts Bush, Rove, White House
Obama a Jimmy Carter in the Making …
Barack Obama may be the most popular candidate for the U.S. presidency in most parts of the world - but certainly not in Colombia. In suggesting why the Colombian government shouldn't bother planning for an anticipated Obama victory, Hernan Gonzalez Rodriguez writes for El Espectador: "We still have a long way to go to the presidential elections in November, more than … [Read more...] about Obama a Jimmy Carter in the Making …
Indiana McCain
Nate Beeler, The Washington Examiner … [Read more...] about Indiana McCain
Trans-Racial Adoption
It's not as simple as being delightfully color-blind (is it ever?). … [Read more...] about Trans-Racial Adoption
Meet the ‘Pacaderms for Progress’
I don't know much about them beyond what I've outlined below, but I've submitted an interview request -- pending which, you might consider this post a placeholder or bookmark on a "group to watch." In a press release dated today, the Pacaderms bill themselves as "a new breed of 527." Their Web site provides some additional (though admittedly vague) background, for instance: … [Read more...] about Meet the ‘Pacaderms for Progress’
John McCain’s Growing George Bush Dilemma Seen In Fundraiser
One of presumptive GOP nominee Senator John McCain's most sensitive -- but important -- operations has just gotten a lot more delicate. How can he distance himself from President George Bush to show he isn't a political extension of Bush (which he needs to do) yet still take advantage of Bush's support among Republican rank-and-file and fundraising abilities (which he needs to … [Read more...] about John McCain’s Growing George Bush Dilemma Seen In Fundraiser
In Defense of Obama Passing on Public Campaign Funds
From the Election Law Blog: Senator Obama and the Decision to Opt Out of Public Financing. It's satisfying reading from people who know what they are talking about. … [Read more...] about In Defense of Obama Passing on Public Campaign Funds
Bi-partisan leaders on how to get it back
In "(Senator Warren) Rudman testimonial offers history and a lesson," Brad Cook writes about the lessons and wisdom of our recent, great bi-partisan leaders. Americans for Campaign Reform, the sponsor of the event, is an organization that was founded by New Hampshire political activist John Rauh and others. Its chairmen are former Democratic Sens. Bill Bradley and Bob … [Read more...] about Bi-partisan leaders on how to get it back
Romancing the POTUS
With his usual sesquipedalian flair, George Will today takes us on a tour of history, demonstrating the dangers of falling in love with our presidents and assigning too much importance to their position as cultural and societal icons. An occupational hazard of the inflated presidency is a hazard to the nation. It is what Healy (borrowing a term from psychiatry) calls … [Read more...] about Romancing the POTUS
(Updated) Why Is John McCain So Determined To Sell Out Our Iraq & Afghan War Veterans?
John McCain has showed himself to be a welter of contradictions, but nowhere is this more apparent – and troubling – in how he repeatedly invokes his prisoner of war past to validate his righteousness while at the same time selling out today's veterans. This sell-out has taken several forms: Voting against increased funding for health care and education benefits, being … [Read more...] about (Updated) Why Is John McCain So Determined To Sell Out Our Iraq & Afghan War Veterans?
Joe Lieberman Jumps the Shark. Again.
Richard Nixon was the last politician whom I hated, but I got over that not long after he slunk out of Washington when I figured out that hating someone -- especially a public figure -- was drag energy, to use the term of the day. But Joe Lieberman is causing me to reconsider. Where to begin? That this sniveling Uriah Heep of an obfuscating sack of excrement parading as … [Read more...] about Joe Lieberman Jumps the Shark. Again.
Is Barack Obama The First True Post-Reagan Democrat?
Are many analysts missing the true political story unfolding before our eyes? Is what we're really seeing the exit of the Kennedy and Clinton dynasties and the entrance on the national stage of Senator Barack Obama as the first "true post-Reagan Democrat?" Salon's Walter Shapiro (one of the country's best political columnists) thinks so - and he makes a good case that as the … [Read more...] about Is Barack Obama The First True Post-Reagan Democrat?
Cable TV: Information Highway Robbery
Their licenses to steal are paying off better each year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which reports Cable TV fees rising 77 percent since 1996, roughly double the rate of inflation. For most American TV viewers, unless they buy iffy satellite dishes, hooking up to the local Cable provider is the only game in town. No matter where they live, their community … [Read more...] about Cable TV: Information Highway Robbery
Nurture the GOP in case the Democrats tank
David Brooks writes today about Running Mates but drops in a very sobering warning: He (Obama) will find himself surrounded by highly partisan Democratic politicians, committee chairmen and interest groups thrilled to finally seize power. Some of them might have enjoyed his lofty rhetoric about change, but in practice, these organization types have no interest in changing … [Read more...] about Nurture the GOP in case the Democrats tank
Media Symbiosis: When the Host Dies
Joe Windish wrote earlier today about the "meltdown" of the broadcast TV industry. Elsewhere, the WaPo's Howard Kurtz turns in a pre-death obit for newspapers. Toward the end of his column, Kurtz offers this telling vignette: The ticking time bomb here is the wholesale abandonment of newspapers by younger people who grew up with a point-and-click mentality. When I was … [Read more...] about Media Symbiosis: When the Host Dies
The Armenian Genocide (Guest Voice)
In this Guest Voice post, blogger Kathy Kattenburg calls on Congress to again take up a controversial resolution on Armenian Genocide. This Guest Voice is cross posted at Comments from Left Field. Guest Voice posts do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Moderate Voice or its writers. The Armenian Genocide by Kathy Kattenburg Remember back in October when a … [Read more...] about The Armenian Genocide (Guest Voice)
Bar patrons hand Barack Obama a victory
From MediaPost's Online Media Daily: The interactive survey, which ran on TouchTunes jukeboxes in bars nationwide from April 28 through May 11, asked bar patrons about the presidential candidate and current social issues. It also allowed people to enter their email address to receive a voter registration form from Rock the Vote, which resulted in nearly 10,000 … [Read more...] about Bar patrons hand Barack Obama a victory