John Schmidt, associate attorney general of the United States under President Clinton from 1994 to 1997, writes in the Chicago Tribune that President George W. Bush did have the authority to do the controversial warrantless wiretaps:President Bush's post- Sept. 11, 2001, authorization to the National Security Agency to carry out electronic surveillance into private phone calls … [Read more...] about Former Clinton Justice Official: Bush Did Have Authorization For Taps

An NPR report on OxyContin abuse by Upper-Class White Teenagers raises disturbing questions. Do they feel pressure to "act White"? How can we crack down on the rash of thefts and other petty crime that supports such habits? Should these children be taken into foster care, given their parents' obvious neglect? And most importantly, why is it that these questions are only asked … [Read more...] about White Upper-Class Drug Abuse

For those of you who just can't get enough of it, I've got a round-up of some of the best blogospheric commentary on the domestic spying controversy (a.k.a. Snoopgate) over at The Reaction. There's a lot of good, provocative reading out there. Enjoy. … [Read more...] about Spies R Us — the Snoopgate story

Canada election update: Does Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper not love Canada? And does he have a secret agenda? If so, what is it? These questions and more are asked (and answered) here by one of my extremely talented co-bloggers at The Reaction. … [Read more...] about How much do you love Canada? (Or do you not?)

Forgive me if I get a bit defensive on this one. What makes Tucker Carlson tick? (Please send me your answers. It's an open question.) Several months ago, I called the bow-tied buffoon "MSNBC's new weenie" -- see here. Hard to believe that I once liked him, that I once thought he was one of the more thoughtful, less partisan conservatives of the punditocracy. He may still … [Read more...] about Anti-Canadianism on the American right

From The Washington Post: Sunni and secular political groups angrily claimed Tuesday that last week's Iraqi national election was rigged, demanded a new vote and threatened to leave a shambles the delicate plan to bring the country's wary factions together in a new government. Faced with preliminary vote counts that suggest a strong victory by the United Iraqi Alliance, a … [Read more...] about Allegations of fraud mar Iraqi elections

An Op-Ed in the Washington Post: The white Christmases that Irving Berlin dreamed of weren't the earliest ones he used to know. He spent his first five Christmases in czarist Russia, and his only recollection of that time, at least the only one he'd acknowledge as an adult, was that of watching his neighbors burn his family's house to the ground in a good old-fashioned, … [Read more...] about Harold Meyerson: The Christmas He Dreamed for All of Us

I wake up for a bit and what do I find? An email update from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz tells me that there's been an explosion at a Cincinnati OH mosque. I live in the City of Cincinnati. I quickly go to the Cincinnati Enquirer and find that, yes, a bomb went off outside the Clifton Mosque late yesterday evening. I drove by this mosque Monday afternoon, it's in a … [Read more...] about UPDATED: This Sort of Thing Usually Happens at Synagogues or Black Churches

The ripples over President George W. Bush's secret go-ahead for domestic spying, and his subsequent defense of it, have morphed into a bigger wave with the announcement that a federal spy court judge has quit in protest. The Washington Post reports:A federal judge has resigned from the court that oversees government surveillance in intelligence cases in protest of President … [Read more...] about Spy Court Judge Quits In Protest Over Bush Domestic Spying (UPDATED)

I attempted to discuss that question this past summer at my weblog Random Fate, and in light of Joe's post below discussing the founding of The Moderate Voice it seems appropriate to review my personal view of what constitutes a "moderate" and how that is not the same as a "centrist":What is a moderate? A short addendum to “What is a moderate?â€?You will not always see … [Read more...] about What is a “moderate”?

Over the past few months, this site (which turns two years old this month) has been visited by many new readers...so we want to again explain what the site is about and how it works. I did a dry-run in mid-December 2003, writing The Moderate Voice under a pen name for the first few days and then officially writing it under my own name about 10 days later. The first post … [Read more...] about Welcome New Readers

King Kong so far isn't killing 'em at the box office, but some experts say in the long run that can change...or can it? One problem is that the original came in at about 100 minutes; the new version came in at over three hours. Here's a review by Stephen Green aka Vodkapundit who wasn't too enthused by what he saw. TMV can't wait to see King Kong, since he loves the original. … [Read more...] about Could King Kong Have Used A Nice Film Editor?

Especially in light of the recent elections in Iraq, you'll want to visit the Carnival of the Liberated. … [Read more...] about Want To Read Iraqi And Afghani Bloggers?

Someone has just thrown a big, fat monkey wrench into NYC and that someone is the transit union...and a judge is not pleased:A Brooklyn judge slapped the transit workers union with a $1 million a day fine and exposed an internal rift, as a mediation session aimed at stopping the walkout was slated for this afternoon. But any prospects for a quick resolution were tempered by … [Read more...] about Transit Strike Hits New York As Judge Fines Union

Some thoughts from Centerfield.... … [Read more...] about Is Impeachment Talk Overblown And Premature?

...according to Roger Ebert (I can't wait to see King Kong...) … [Read more...] about The Year’s Ten Top Films

If you told me this story would be getting a positive mention from Powerline and Captain's Quarters, I wouldn't have believed it for a moment. It's about a Minnesota Army Medic and his commitment to saving lives--both of his Army colleagues, and the insurgents he may have been fighting just moments earlier. A truly inspiring tale. And I agree with Powerline's conclusion as … [Read more...] about War and Humanity

I never really thought about the hidden cost of torture, but recently I read an editorial that really opened my eyes to what those who do the torturing have to go through. More here. … [Read more...] about On Torturers

And so starts a rather weird meme about New Mexico's governor. … [Read more...] about Bill Richardson: In Touch

I take a look at a recent George Will column and some thoughts from current and former intelligence agents about this whole wiretap thing. More here. … [Read more...] about What Cost Freedom?