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Saturday, January 5, 2008
In His Own Words
05 Jan 2008 09:29 pm
Around a year ago, when I was first struck by Barack Obama's oratory, I decided to use the Dish to record his speeches in full as they occurred. I did it because they are rare among contemporary political speeches in being readable and literary. But also because I had the sense I was witnessing history. Here are some links to those posts - and the full text of various speeches - for those of you who would like to hear Obama in less frenzied times over the last twelve months, as he laid out his concrete proposals and general ideas and approach to politics.
Here he is at DePaul, the moment when he reignited his fall campaign. And here's his address at Howard in the wake of the Jena 6 controversy. Here's a commencement address from last summer. Here he is on foreign policy. And here on poverty. There is a meme beginning to go around that he is vague and empty. If you do not know what Obama is proposing in many areas, it's only because you don't know how to use Google. If you want to know more, click the links. One section of his June Hampton University address resonates with JFK echoes:
The truth is, one man cannot make a movement. No single law can erase the prejudice in the heart of a child who hangs a noose on a tree. Or in the callousness of a prosecutor who bypasses justice in the pursuit of vengeance. No one leader, no matter how shrewd, or experienced, or inspirational, can prevent teenagers from killing other teenagers in the streets of our cities, or free our neighborhoods from the grip of homelessness, or make real the promise of opportunity and equality for every citizen.
Only a country can do those things. Only this country can do those things. That's why if you give me the chance to serve this nation, the most important thing I will do as your President is to ask you to serve this country, too. The most important thing I'll do is to call on you every day to take a risk, and do your part to carry this movement forward. Against deep odds and great cynicism I will ask you to believe that we can right the wrong we see in America. I say this particularly to the young people who are listening today. ...
I know that you believe it's possible too.
Face Of The Day
05 Jan 2008 08:38 pm
US presidential candidate John McCain is hugged by a supporter after an address in Peterborough, New Hampshire, 05 January 2008. By Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty.
GOP Versus Obama
05 Jan 2008 08:37 pm
For what it's worth, Huckabee was by far the most effective in responding to the question of how to go up against Obama. And he was also smart to be generous. The rest reverted to the ancient right-left playbook. I don't think that works so well against Obama.
Okay, I'm Done
05 Jan 2008 08:02 pm
I've been watching this GOP debate and need to get a life. It's 8 pm on a Saturday night. Some rough impressions after an hour: Huckabee is easily the most coherent and intelligible Republican. McCain seems very tired, which is understandable. I like the quietness of the format. When Romney stops pandering and starts explaining policy, he's much better. He's obviously a capable guy. He was a decent governor. But the ability to mortgage every part of his soul and past to the exigencies of the present really undermines him. I think of the Romney campaign that might have been. But in the end, character counts, I guess.
The Best Quip
05 Jan 2008 07:40 pm
From the NH Republican debate. Huckabee, as usual:
ROMNEY: "Don't mischaracterize my position."
HUCKABEE: "Which one?"
Huckabee also said: "I'm not running for George Bush's third term." He seems to understand the public mood better than anyone else.
The Iowa Effect
05 Jan 2008 07:00 pm
A reader writes:
I've been campaigning for Obama in California. Today (Saturday) I went to a training session for Precinct Captains. When I signed up on Tuesday, there were 12 people registered to attend. On Friday, after Iowa, there were 137.
Obama, Huckabee, Blacks and Evangelicals
05 Jan 2008 06:22 pm
A reader writes:
Beyond being agents of change, there is one obvious similarity between Obama and Huckbee. They both represent large voting blocks in their respective parties that are expected to get out the vote, then shut-up. It's fun watching these folks that have taken blacks and evangelicals for granted for years squirm.
Mike Murphy Shows Up In New Hampshire
05 Jan 2008 06:06 pm
"John called me up and asked me to come," Murphy told me. "I'm just here as a friend. I'm neutral in the presidential race."
Hmmm.
Mental Health Break
05 Jan 2008 05:48 pm
Go Robert! (The former webmaster and creator of www.andrewsullivan.com now works at Levi's. Can you tell?)
Now It's A 12 Point Lead!
05 Jan 2008 05:11 pm
Obama is crushing Clinton in the second post-Iowa New Hampshire poll: 38 to 26. How can she stop this?
The Core Of The Clintons
05 Jan 2008 05:09 pm
Crowley captures it:
The preternaturally jolly McAuliffe is a good man to have spinning for you in a pinch. But his good cheer dimmed when I asked him about Bill Richardson, who appears to have made an 11th-hour deal to throw his supporters to Obama.
“How many times did [Clinton] appoint him?” McAuliffe marveled. “Two? U.N. Ambassador and Energy Secretary?” He looked at me, half-glaring, awaiting confirmation. “I don’t know,” I joked, “but who’s counting?”
“I am,” McAuliffe said firmly.
The Clintons used every lever, every intimidating tactic, every legitimate threat to bully Democratic office-holders to back them ... or else. Many caved. But for others, the politics of fear and parsing and petty polling are over.
Ron Paul Is Third In New Hampshire?
05 Jan 2008 05:02 pm
It's Rasmussen, as was the Obama 10-point lead, and I've learned to be a little wary of them. But the latest NH data for the GOP is McCain 31, Romney 26 and Paul with 14 percent, ahead of Huckabee.
How can Fox News have a televised New Hampshire debate and exclude the guy in third place? We know why, of course: they're afraid. They should be. But his exclusion is an outrage.
(Photo: Gabriel Buoys/AFP/Getty.)
Clinton Trying To Coopt McCain?
05 Jan 2008 04:48 pm
Bill, that is. Good luck.
Paul & Obama: Change Mirrors
05 Jan 2008 04:45 pm
A reader writes:
The country, these past seven years in particular, has seemed built upon a foundation of arrogant exceptionalism. We're the damned best country in the world and we know it and it's going to be shoved in everyone else's face. Unilateralism. And the left has responded that we are most certainly NOT the best damned country in the world, look at this problem and that problem and everything's wrong.
Paul says, we may be the best damned country in the world but that doesn't mean we are morally required to export this excellence, and at what cost to us if we attempt it? And Obama says, we may be the best country in the world, but let's be thankful for that, let our nation's public face be one of humilty and magnanimity.
Both represent a restoration of faith, a clean break - though there's a danger in investing too much faith in the idea that politicians can bring about this kind of sea change in the national outlook. I think, rather, that they exemplify the change that has already taken place in many people's heads and hearts.
Romney As A Change Candidate?
05 Jan 2008 04:29 pm
Look: he can be for anything the polls show people want. Anything.
Romney's Woman Problem
05 Jan 2008 04:27 pm
No: no sexual scandals. Just some interesting data analysis from Iowa: women prefer Huckabee.
Bill O"Reilly: Elite Snob
05 Jan 2008 04:16 pm
Good to see his core identity exposed:
O'Reilly grabbed Nicholson's arm and shoved him, another eyewitness said. Nicholson, who is 6'8, said O'Reilly called him "low class."
Interfering in any way with Obama's security is unbelievably reckless.
The NH GOP Pulls Out Of Fox's Debate
05 Jan 2008 04:11 pm
Good for them:
Today, New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Fergus Cullen released the following statement regarding Sunday’s Republican forum on FOX:
“The first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary serves a national purpose by giving all candidates an equal opportunity on a level playing field. Only in New Hampshire do lesser known, lesser funded underdogs have a fighting chance to establish themselves as national figures. Consistent with that tradition, we believe all recognized major candidates should have an equal opportunity to participate in pre-primary debates and forums.
“This principle applies to tonight’s debates on ABC as well as Sunday’s planned forum on FOX. The New Hampshire Republican Party believes Congressmen Ron Paul and Duncan Hunter should be included in the FOX forum on Sunday evening. Our mutual efforts to resolve this difference have failed.”
“While we understand that FOX News continues to move forward it is with regret, the New Hampshire Republican Party hereby withdraws as a partner in this forum.”
Why should grass roots Republicans be yanked around by Hannity and O'Reilly's establishment agenda?
The Independents Will Decide
05 Jan 2008 04:08 pm
And in New Hampshire, that's grim news for Clinton:
In New Hampshire, Obama leads Clinton by five points among Democrats and by sixteen points among Independents. The survey indicates that 40% of the voters will be Independents.
This will surely hurt McCain some.
Facts Are Stupid Things
05 Jan 2008 04:03 pm
Clinton's own website has a page showing how better Obama fares against most of the Republicans than she would. I guess: kudos for transparency. (Re-posted with fixed link).
The Politics Of Fear
05 Jan 2008 04:02 pm
What else does she have left?
Bears For Ron Paul!
05 Jan 2008 03:51 pm
Time for a post that's total self-parody. Check this out:
I have seen the Paul campaign in action, and I can confirm that there are beards. Lots of them. Middle-aged electrician beards, gravitas-adding beards on thirtysomethings, thin hipper-than-thou beards on the youngest volunteers. Massachusetts grad student John Notley wears a massive, red Nordic mane that earns him the nickname Thor. It's reminiscent of a semi-famous photo from the 1972 presidential race, of a waddling businessman handing out Nixon literature right next to a skinny hippie handing out McGovern fliers. The difference is that the nameless McGovern flunky was campaigning for acid, amnesty, and abortion, while Paul's crew wants to bring back the paleoconservative sobriety of Sen. Robert Taft.
Groovy Medicine
05 Jan 2008 03:50 pm
Scientific American has a very informative piece up about new research into the uses of LSD, psilocybin and other psychedelic drugs for mental illness:
Much remains unclear about the precise neural mechanisms governing how these drugs produce their mind-bending results, but they often produce somewhat similar psychoactive effects that make them potential therapeutic tools. Though still in their preliminary stages, studies in humans suggest that the day when people can schedule a psychedelic session with their therapist to overcome a serious psychiatric problem may not be that far off.
Awesome illustrations as well. Hat tip: Mind Hacks.
Obamarama
05 Jan 2008 03:20 pm
A Dish round-up:
An African-American Awakening?
The Speech that changed everything.
Why a Burkean needn't panic.
Break-out In New Hampshire?
The secret of his supporters.
(Photo: Jeff Haynes/Getty.)
Gay Exiles
05 Jan 2008 03:08 pm
Another one:
I am American and my partner is Dutch. We have been living in the Netherlands for 12 years because it is nearly impossible to move to the US even though it would be better for my career since my employer is headquartered in the US. My partner is a full time stay-at-home father to our 16 month old son who we ironically adopted from the US. Due to current immigration policies, my partner could not get a visa to live in the US.
I could move back to the US (since I am a US citizen) and take our son with me (as he is a US citizen). I could even take our Golden Retriever (who was born and bred in the Netherlands) without any problems. But my son's other father (we are both recognized as legal parents under US law) is not welcome. There simply are no provisions in US law to deal with our family's situation.
Because, according to the US government, your family does not exist.
Obama's Burkean Temperament
05 Jan 2008 02:55 pm
As a further response to Bainbridge's questions, a reader reminds me of this passage in Larissa MacFarquhar's excellent profile of the guy earlier last year:
In his view of history, in his respect for tradition, in his skepticism that the world can be changed any way but very, very slowly, Obama is deeply conservative. There are moments when he sounds almost Burkean. He distrusts abstractions, generalizations, extrapolations, projections. It's not just that he thinks revolutions are unlikely: he values continuity and stability for their own sake, sometimes even more than he values change for the good.
And such a man, when he pushes for felt change, has more credibility and more of a chance to succeed. His candidacy is, to put it in Oakeshottian terms, an intimation to be pursued.
America Idol and Iowa
05 Jan 2008 02:54 pm
A reader writes:
The Iowa caucus reminded me of America Idol. Just like in the TV show, regardless of what the judges say, it's the public who gets to decide. Who knows: maybe over the past six years or so Simon Cowell, Ryan Seacrest and company have been spreading democratic impulses into the national psyche, which have now come to fruition.
Or maybe when voters look at the pundit class, they see Simon, Randy and Paula. And when they look to a represtentative for America, they find a young, racially ambiguous super-talent. I'm surprised we haven't yet seen a column on the Jordin Sparks-Barack Obama parallels.
Obama's Fiscal Conservatism
05 Jan 2008 02:49 pm
A reader writes:
In Reference to this question:
What specific changes in law, society, or polity, if any, that Obama supports do you also support?
Spending and borrow is also something that you have brought up in the past. Obama is the man who created this web site, with the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, so we the people can know where our tax money is going. Its not perfect but its a step towards transparency that no one else in the race has even begun to match.
I hate the government, as a good Ron Paul supporting classical liberal should, but if we must have one I at least want to keep a close eye on it, and this helps me do just that.
PS: Obama worked with Tom Coburn, far from an ideological equal, and pushed it over the 'secret hold' placed by Stevens and Byrd.
Dissent of the Day
05 Jan 2008 02:36 pm
A reader writes:
Bass players everywhere finally find their candidate, and you're going to deny us this? We knew Sid Vicious and Sting were foreign-born, and that Dee Dee Ramone was unelectable; Geddy Lee was terrible on the stump and Krist Novoselic was a one-issue pony on Bosnia.
But with Huckabee, finally an electable bass player. You and the MSM are conspiring to get this wrong and rob us of our time.
The Wider Appeal Of Huckabee
05 Jan 2008 01:44 pm
A helpful analysis from Michael Medved:
According to the exit polls used by major news networks, a majority of voters who described themselves as “evangelical” or “born again” Christians actually voted against Huckabee –with 54% splitting their support among Romney, McCain, Thompson and Ron Paul. Yes, Huckabee’s 46% of Evangelicals was a strong showing, but it was directly comparable to his commanding 40% of women, or 40% of all voters under the age of 30, or 41% of those earning less than $30,000 a year. His powerful appeal to females, the young and the poor make him a different kind of Republican, who connects with voting blocs the GOP needs to win back. He’s hardly the one-dimensional religious candidate of media caricature.
The Politics of Doctor Who
05 Jan 2008 01:37 pm
Well, I'm interested anyway:
In general, we noticed the Doctor is more likely to overthrow the government on alien planets, or in the distant future. When he visits present-day Earth or our history, he's an arch-conservative. (He ousts Harriet Jones as prime minister of England in "The Christmas Invasion," but that's not the same as destroying the whole government.) Also, the Doctor acted out way more during the Thatcher era than any other period. During the Blair/Gordon Brown eras, he's been quite well-behaved.
The View From Your Window
05 Jan 2008 01:20 pm
Manila, Philippines, 5.58 pm.
The Clintons' Mistake
05 Jan 2008 12:42 pm
They simply misjudged the mood. By focusing on the Penn-trees, they missed the Obama-forest:
Another adviser said Mr. Penn and Mr. Clinton were consumed with polling data for so long, they did not fully grasp the personality deficit that Mrs. Clinton had with voters.
Obama's victory over Clinton in Iowa reminds me ever-so-slightly of how Bill Clinton once beat George H. W. Bush. And that's got to hurt.
Clinton and African Americans
05 Jan 2008 12:36 pm
She has a very perilous path ahead. A reader writes:
I have been having some email exchanges with friends of mine about what happens next after Obama's win in Iowa. We are all 30-something, educated, professional, black men and the consensus seems to be that Obama is going to be smeared big time via surrogates and whisper campaigns in order to put Hillary Clinton back on top. I am not so sure, but everyone else believes it to be a forgone conclusion. But here is the kicker, if that does happen and it works, we have all said that Hillary can forget getting our vote in November. None of us are going to vote Republican. We'll all vote in our local, state, and congressional races, But the vote for president will either be left blank, third party, or better yet, we are talking about writing in Obama
Hillary smears Obama at her peril come November.
Obama Ten Points Ahead In NH?
05 Jan 2008 12:21 pm
Believe it. Even before Iowa had sunk in with voters, her lead was down to two percent.
(Photo: January 4, 2008, New Hampshire. By Emmanuel Dumond/AFP/Getty.)
Giuliani's Negatives
05 Jan 2008 12:07 pm
The turn-around among white voters is particularly spectacular.
Call And Response
05 Jan 2008 11:54 am
It isn't just Obama who is winning this campaign. It is the infectious conviction of his supporters:
Barack Obama's campaign won the organization battle at the 100 Club. They got signs into his supporters' hands, and must have issued instructions to not save the sign-waving for his speech. So visibility through the night was theirs. But the swell and crackle of energy in the room when he spoke? That was organic, and it was overwhelming. Every time Obama started to lose me with a line I've heard one time too many this long campaign season, the crowd would bring me back in.
Fox Barbie Or Porn Star?
05 Jan 2008 11:47 am
See if you can tell the difference.
The African-American Awakening
05 Jan 2008 11:32 am
There's a great piece in the NYT today on it. It's what Obama himself predicted privately and publicly in the fall: that his mixed showing among black voters was a function of their disbelief that white voters would ever back a black man for president. Now they see that this bkack man can do it, and you can feel the emotions well up:
“People across America, even in Iowa of all places, can look across the color line and see the person,” said Mr. Brown, 35, who was working at the reception desk at DK’s Hair Design near Ladera Heights, a wealthy Los Angeles suburb.
Describing himself as a “huge, huge supporter,” of Mr. Obama, Mr. Brown added: “So many times, our young people only have sports stars or musicians to look up to. But now, when we tell them to go to school, to aim high in life, they have a face to put with the ambition.”
Iowa was, as Obama saw ahead of time, the perfect catalyst for this dynamic. He was very candid about the ethnic make-up of Iowa and how it could prove what no words could argue. But what's really ground-breaking, it seems to me, is how many African-Americans, especially the next generation, are in favor of Obama for far more than racial reasons. Here's one typical email:
I'm a thirty-something African American voter here in South Carolina. Up until last night, reading and watching commentary from the MSM and pundit class talk about everything they knew nothing always sent me into a further depression. It is distressing to see so many supposedly intelligent people be totally clueless as to why Obama has succeeded the way he has.
A large percentage of the Americans just don't buy the 51/49% narrative that has been shoved down our throat throughout the Bush/Clinton years. Everyone is "shocked", except for the millions of voters who have simply been waiting for the leader willing to put his weapons down in the name of the common good.
Continue reading "The African-American Awakening" »
Romney Concedes His Home State
05 Jan 2008 11:19 am
And he blames - in part - his opposition to marriage equality.
Celine Dion Is Amazing
05 Jan 2008 11:17 am
No, really ... wait till Supporting Point Number 9:
Huckabee's Education
05 Jan 2008 10:33 am
A reader writes:
I’m a moderate-to-liberal Democrat who is no Mike Huckabee fan, but for what it’s worth, he wasn’t educated at a “Bible college”. Ouachita Baptist University is a Baptist institution in the same way that, say, Catholic University in Washington is a Catholic institution. The denominational footprint is undoubtedly heavier at the former than at the latter, but OBU’s curriculum isn’t all about careers in ministry or even about molding warriors for Jesus. There are a lot of similar schools in the heartland – Gordon College in Wenham also fits the bill – that, like Huckabee himself, wear their conservative denominational (or non-denominational Christian) heart on their sleeve but also seem a bit more at ease with the modern world than bubble-world schools like Bob Jones University or Oral Roberts. I suspect that they may provide a window into what his core support is all about.
The View From Your Window
05 Jan 2008 10:33 am
Cincinnati, Ohio, 8.05 pm.
After Right and Left
05 Jan 2008 09:32 am
A reader diagnoses American politics:
Conservatism and liberalism have little meaning in today’s politics. As has been pointed out so many times by you and others, the Republican party is a party held together by extremists, right wing Christianists, no-tax absolutists, royalists, xenophobes and others fearful of minorities, to name a few. This is a coalition spawned in the Reagan Administration but exposed in the Bush Administration. Independents cannot tolerate it. The extremists are at one another throats. The party is in chaos. Unless Hillary is elected or we experience another threat from the outside, the Republican Party is in an almost impossible situation. Perhaps we will see the creation of a third party. But today the struggle is between realism and extremism, not conservatism and liberalism.
Speaking of the latter, check this out.
Why He Won
05 Jan 2008 08:45 am
If you didn't take the time to listen to Obama's Jefferson-Jackson speech in Iowa - the one that, I believe, changed the campaign - here it is. Warning: he's persuasive:
Homosexuality and Evolution
05 Jan 2008 08:42 am
Some inferences from E.O. Wilson's latest work:
With all necessary caveats against reductionism and misappropriation, we can ask: should human societies conceive of themselves in terms of group-level selection? Have we already developed aspects of eusociality? And -- just to make matters really interesting -- could non-reproducing humans, such as (most) gays and lesbians, as well as heterosexuals who choose not to have kids, actually be a manifestation of this emergent eusociality?
Clinton Agonistes
05 Jan 2008 01:04 am
It's enough to make even a Clinton-phobe like me want to look away:
The first time [she was booed] was when she said she has always and will continue to work for "change for you." The audience, particularly from Obama supporters (they were waving Obama signs) let out a noise that sounded like a thousand people collectively groaning.
Yep: that sounds about right.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Fox's Barbies
04 Jan 2008 09:17 pm
A reader writes:
You just realized this? I swear, the giddy suburban cheerleader quality of the Fox girls has been an ongoing cause of vitriol in my household. They just seem to confirm that peculiarly misogynistic, "who's yah daddy?" sleaze exuded by all those pasty, wrinkled geezers. I've always imagined there must be some ingenious contraption hidden below the camera's gaze, a 'giggle prod" of sorts, that gives these teases' bottoms a good squeeze every time the pruned-dude shows those bedroom eyes.
Another adds:
The women anchors do not look like Barbie dolls. They look like ex-porn stars. I think it’s the look they’re cultivating.
"Maybe he does know what he's doing."
04 Jan 2008 08:27 pm
Atrios walks back a little on Obama.
Omens In Kenya
04 Jan 2008 07:28 pm
Not good. A reader writes:
While the strong reaction against the stolen election was not so surprising, the extremity of the violence has been shocking. Although Kibaki seems to be effectively utilizing the security forces to maintain a modicum of order in Nairobi, the situation upcountry is more questionable and the main trade route between Kenya and Uganda appears still to be blocked (prices of imported goods in Uganda are skyrocketing accordingly). This may indicate that Kibaki's hold on power is more tenuous outside of Nairobi. One particularly troubling development is that many members of Kenya's Asian popluation (which constitutes a sort of "merchant class" in Kenya and much of East Africa) have been fleeing to Uganda. The Asians tend to be pretty tapped into the local situation, and if they're making a run for it, there may be worse yet to come.
Continue reading "Omens In Kenya" »
Bainbridge Asks
04 Jan 2008 07:07 pm
Some good questions. I answered some of it here. But let me deal with them specifically:
How can a Tory like yourself embrace someone running as a change agent?
Because societies need to change, as Burke understood. The question is whether the change is organic, drawn from the traditions within the society, and responding to felt needs, rather than ideological abstractions. So a Tory could support Thatcher and Reagan - as radical change agents who sought to restore their societies to forgotten principles. It is the greatest canard that conservatives never seek change. They are cautious, yes, but sometimes the right kind of change is necessary.
What specific changes in law, society, or polity, if any, that Obama supports do you also support?
I support a fresh start in foreign policy, a willingness to negotiate where necessary, a new outreach to allies, and prudent, expeditious withdrawal from Iraq. I favor an end to poisonous partisan polarization. I favor strong measures to innovate new energy sources. I favor a restoration of the Geneva Conventions.
Why are those changes “necessary”?
Because the war is draining massive resources, and, despite recent tactical success, is clearly a historic mistake. Because the U.S. is extremely isolated and needs more support in the world, and especially a new appeal to moderate Muslims worldwide. Because the red-blue divide has poisoned our polity to the detriment of practical problem-solving. Because dependence on foreign oil is both environmentally fatal and dangerous for our future security. Because torture gives bad intelligence and is un-American.
What evidence is there, if any, that Obama would be prudent in effecting such changes?
Obama's legislative record, speeches, and the way he has run his campaign reveal, I think, a very even temperament, a very sound judgment, and an intelligent pragmatism. Prudence is a word that is not inappropriate to him.
Clinton In New Hampshire
04 Jan 2008 06:48 pm
Dan Balz explains why all the things that went in Obama's favor in Iowa are actually more prevalent in New Hampshire - especially the power of the Independent vote.
Is It About To Get Nastier?
04 Jan 2008 06:44 pm
"Nobody would be happier to see all this [negative campaigning] go away than us. But you can't ask somebody who is at a breathtaking disadvantage in the information coming to the voters to ignore that disadvantage and basically agree to put bullets in their brains," - Bill Clinton, blaming media bias for his wife's political woes.
The Illiteracy Of Wonkette
04 Jan 2008 06:25 pm
Here's a strange sentence:
Sullivan may try to explain just what was going on in this creepy Iowa fantasy he posted yesterday.
Er: it's from Lewis Carroll's Alice In Wonderland. That's a book. Quite well known, actually. And Sullivan has two "l"s.
McCain's Momentum Ad
04 Jan 2008 05:37 pm
The New Hampshire pitch:
In Defense Of Kristol
04 Jan 2008 05:05 pm
Jack Shafer spots some posturing on the left.
She's Toast
04 Jan 2008 04:50 pm
Jon Chait goes there.
The Transparency Of JPod
04 Jan 2008 04:39 pm
He's still spinning for Rudy:
The result in Iowa could not have been better for Giuliani tactically. Romney has been injured. Huckabee won, but did not apparently win by a huge margin, and there won't be many other states where evangelicals make up fully three-fifths of the primary electorate.
My italics. Huckabee beat Romney by nine points in a very crowded field. He got ten times the vote of Rudy. That was a huge margin of victory, however you look at it. The final polls showed a three-point lead. He tripled it. JPod may be right about the next few weeks in general, though I doubt it. But you can't spin away this victory as anything but huge. Benen comments:
I've seen blind optimism, but this is ridiculous.
A Blogger-Soldier Killed In Iraq
04 Jan 2008 04:37 pm
And he left a posthumous post to be remembered by:
I had a pretty good life, as I noted above. Sure, all things being equal I would have preferred to have more time, but I have no business complaining with all the good fortune I've enjoyed in my life. So if you're up for that, put on a little 80s music (preferably vintage 1980-1984), grab a Coke and have a drink with me. If you have it, throw 'Freedom Isn't Free' from the Team America soundtrack in; if you can't laugh at that song, I think you need to lighten up a little. I'm dead, but if you're reading this, you're not, so take a moment to enjoy that happy fact.
The Future Of Conservative Politics?
04 Jan 2008 04:20 pm
Rod Dreher on Huckabee. Here too. He is certainly the logical consequence of Bush. What that has to do with conservatism as such is another matter.
"The Most Innocent"?
04 Jan 2008 04:03 pm
Clinton's new line in New Hampshire. It sounds like a veiled reference to the cocaine stuff again.
Free At Last?
04 Jan 2008 03:44 pm
Deep in my psyche, in the place that kind of misses the toothache I've been prodding at with my tongue, I am having a tiny little pang of missing Hillary. Not her, but hating her. Hating Hillary has been such a central political impulse for so long now — 15 years — and I have had to work so hard to keep it up as she became more appealing looking, less shrill, more human — I don't really know what I will do with that newly freed strand of energy.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves, ok?
"Looking For A Bunker To Hide In"
04 Jan 2008 03:41 pm
Economists react to the unemployment news.
It's The Guitar, Stupid
04 Jan 2008 03:41 pm
Le Monde covers Huckabee:
The guitar is a fundamental element of his strategy. It permits him to reassure those who would never imagine voting for a Baptist from the Bible Belt (southern states where evangelical Protestants are very present).
A Harlem Blogger
04 Jan 2008 03:29 pm
A first-hand account of last night:
I was wrong. And it feels really good to be wrong. The rest is black history.
Face Of The Day
04 Jan 2008 03:22 pm
Democratic presidential hopeful and New York Senator Hillary Clinton gives an impromptu press conference at the Gala Cafe restaurant 04 January 2008 in Manchester, New Hampshire, four days the 08 January state primary. By Stan Honda/AFP/Getty.
"Ashen"
04 Jan 2008 03:07 pm
Fallows on Clinton's entourage last night:
And Bill Clinton!!! Who managed a wan smile but for seconds on end stood motionless, as if traumatized or stuffed.
Not Good For Clinton
04 Jan 2008 03:05 pm
Drum speaks for many:
I've been sort of fitfully supporting Hillary Clinton for the past few months, but I have to say that I don't feel any disappointment tonight over her loss. Just the opposite, in fact.
Revenge Of The Christianists
04 Jan 2008 03:05 pm
Governor Huckabee's win demonstrates that grass-roots conservatives have flatly rejected the candidacy of Mitt Romney. Mitt can stay in as long as he wishes to fund his own campaign, but he's essentially done. McCain is going to win New Hampshire, and either McCain or Huckabee is going to win South Carolina. So, if you been waiting to buy ol' Hugh's book (but didn't want to pay full price for it), just wait a week or so, and it will be on sale at your local Sam's Club in the dollar bin.
The Democrats And Patriotism
04 Jan 2008 02:35 pm
A reader writes:
Did you notice, that near the beginning of Obama's speech, the crowd started chanting USA! USA!! When is the last time you heard a group of lefty Dems doing that?! We love our country as much as anyone, but that particular chant has always seemed a little jingoistic/nationalistic. Not anymore.
Padilla Sues Yoo
04 Jan 2008 02:26 pm
Just filed:
Defendant John Yoo, along with other senior officials, deliberately removed Mr. Padilla from due process protections traditionally available to U.S. citizens detained by their government and barred all access to the outside world, including access to counsel. On information and belief, Defendant Yoo and other senior officials then personally formulated and/or approved and/or failed to act upon actual or constructive knowledge of, a systematic program of illegal detention and interrogation, which was specifically designed to inflict, and did inflict, severe physical and mental pain and suffering on Mr. Padilla for the purpose of extracting information from him and/or punishing him without due process of law, and which proximately caused the harms to Mr. Padilla alleged herein...
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Rhetoric Still Matters
04 Jan 2008 02:19 pm
One aspect of this race that has not been given enough notice so far: Obama and Huckabee and Edwards are easily the best public speakers in this race. They won last night in part because of their ability to connect with people in large settings. You hear in Obama and Huckabee the cadences of the churches they come from - "the holy places where the races meet" - but you also hear men who have honed their rhetorical skills over the years, and actually connect their own thoughts into words. Contrast these skills with Romney and Clinton, who are competent but programmed like a salesman and a focus group respectively.
In the television and internet age, old-style rhetoric is sometimes regarded as an anachronism. It isn't. Huckabee's brilliance in the debates gave him this opportunity. Obama's public speeches have been the best in a candidate since Reagan and Kennedy. As someone who was trained in and loves debate, it's good to see this old skill gain new salience. Lincoln would be proud.
(Photo: Stephanie Kuykendal/Getty.)
Obvious In Retrospect?
04 Jan 2008 02:01 pm
Politics is not rocket science. You have one party led by a deeply unpopular, unapologetic right-wing ideologue whom its presidential candidates nevertheless decided to embrace. You have another party that has spent most of the past quarter-century undergoing the painful but necessary process of taming its own ideological excesses and tacking to the center. As a result, it now boasts appealing, mainstream candidates with pragmatic policy proposals for addressing real problems. What, exactly, did people think was going to happen?
Advice For McCain
04 Jan 2008 01:47 pm
The root-canal option:
For the first step, I would recommend arranging an hour or three on Rush Limbaugh, then do the same on Hannity, Medved, Beck, Hewitt, Ingraham, Bennett, Prager, Levin, O'Reilly, Savage, Michael Reagan, Brian and the Judge, Dr. Laura, etc.
Mental Health Break
04 Jan 2008 01:46 pm
Pimp my bike in Japan:
Hat tip: Sonia Zjawinski.
Obama From Nigeria
04 Jan 2008 01:26 pm
Obama represents all that white America has been struggling to prevent. He grew up in Indonesia and Hawaii and his father was an African from Kenya. These are not the usual credentials for the candidacy of the Anglo-Saxon White House.
Hat tip: Moderate Voice.
The Dean Un-Scream?
04 Jan 2008 01:20 pm
Noam thinks Obama's victory speech will help.
The Defeat Of Rush Limbaugh
04 Jan 2008 01:02 pm
He took on Huckabee ... and lost.
The Other Moment Last Night
04 Jan 2008 12:53 pm
McCain - with admirable honesty - envisages US troops occupying Iraq in some measure for the next "hundred years." Bush had suggested fifty. This has legs:
Not Just An Abstraction
04 Jan 2008 12:39 pm
And not vague either. Charlie Peters on Obama's impressive legislative record in Illinois.