Limbaugh, Obama, and the NFL
Joseph Ashby argues that something fishy is being ignored in the matter of Rush Limbaugh's failed bid to buy the Rams. NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith served as counsel to Attorney General Eric Holder and was a member of Barack Obama’s transition team. [...] Despite the fact that Smith’s opposition was based on Limbaugh’s political commentary, the report failed to mention ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on October 16, 2009 12:57
Nepotism Nation?
The "trend toward dynasty politics" is getting out of hand, Charles Mahtesian argues in Politico. [Obama's] secretary of state will be Hillary Clinton, the wife of the former president. The Senate seat she’ll vacate is being pursued by Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of a president and the niece of two senators. Joe Biden’s Senate seat may go to his son Beau. ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 17, 2008 11:40
Jesse Jackson Jr. ‘Senate Candidate No. 5′
Jesse Jackson Jr. is the infamous "Senate Candidate No. 5," ABC's Brian Ross reports. Chicago Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., is the anonymous "Senate Candidate No. 5" whose emissaries Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich reportedly offered up to $1 million to name him to the U.S. Senate, federal law enforcement sources tell ABC News. According to the FBI affidavit in the case, ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 10, 2008 13:44
Jesse Jackson and Barack Obama’s Cohones
Jesse Jackson's statement that Barack Obama's "talking down to black people" makes him so angry that he "wants to cut his nuts out" has caused quite the stir. Charles Hurt of the NY Post has the most concise report: In a vulgar tirade caught on tape by Fox News, the Rev. Jesse Jackson said he wanted to "cut his [Barack Obama's] nuts ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on July 10, 2008 07:14
Ralph Nader: Obama Not Black Enough
Ralph Nader says that Barack Obama "talks white" and ignores "black issues." "There's only one thing different about Barack Obama when it comes to being a Democratic presidential candidate. He's half African-American," Nader said. "Whether that will make any difference, I don't know. I haven't heard him have a strong crackdown on economic exploitation in the ghettos. Payday loans, predatory ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 25, 2008 12:38
Obama’s ‘More Perfect Union’ Speech
Barack Obama gave his big race speech today. I haven't heard it, just read the transcripts of the pre-release text and the as-delivered version. My colleague Dave Schuler observes, "I’ll wait for the overnight polls. Otherwise my remarks would just be a Rorschach test which is what the commentaries I’ve heard so far have been." I'll take ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 18, 2008 12:49
Obama as Racial Litmus Test
Andrew Sullivan argues that America's reaction to Barack Obama's speech on race relations later today will tell us a lot about ourselves. Today will be a crucial day. It will be a day when we will discover if America's racial environment - and the emotions and feelings and anger and fears that it entails - can allow for a ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 18, 2008 06:58
Ferraro, Limbaugh, and Racial Politics
Geraldine Ferraro has generated an amazing amount of controversy with her remarks that, “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position.” And, no, it wasn't for her improper use of the subjunctive but rather because it's "racist." I'd ignored the controversy until now because, well, it's Geraldine Ferraro. (About whom, incidentally, ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 12, 2008 13:18
Florida and Michigan Do-Overs
The Democratic National Committee is trying to work out a means for Florida and Michigan to stage delegate selection contests within the rules but there has thus far been no plan that's acceptable to the states and both campaigns. Meanwhile, some supporters of Hillary Clinton are arguing that the DNC should simply seat the delegates from the previous round of ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 10, 2008 10:11
Super Tuesday Results
Well, the polls are closing in parts of the country and results will be flowing in all night. Drudge has some leaked exit poll results showing Obama doing better than expected in Alabama and a couple of other states. How reliable they will turn out is anyone's guess. My strong expectation is that I'll have gone to bed ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on February 5, 2008 20:17
Presidential Race Dividing Families
The 2008 primaries are dividing political parties, with significant numbers of Republicans saying they won't support John McCain and many Democrats saying they can't bring themselves to vote for Hillary Clinton. With this weekend's endorsement of McCain and Barack Obama by California first couple Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, respectively, we see splits within families as well. Maria Shriver ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on February 4, 2008 09:01
South Carolina Post-Mortem, Democrat Edition
As Chris Lawrence posted last night, Barack Obama handily won the South Carolina Democratic primary and native son John Edwards came in third. The results, with a record turnout, were stunning: Obama has long been projected to win, of course, but the RealClearPolitics average of the recent polls had it much closer: 38.4 to 26.8 to 19.2 As ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 27, 2008 07:52
Blacks Turning on Clintons?
Several prominent black leaders are assailing Bill and Hillary Clinton for their use of racially insensitive language in their campaign against Barack Obama, Ben Smith reports for The Politico. A series of comments from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, her husband and her supporters are spurring a racial backlash and adding a divisive edge to the presidential primary as ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 12, 2008 08:36
Crossover Mischief in Michigan
Markos Moulitsas Zúniga has issued a call for Democrats to come out in droves to influence the Republican primary in Michigan: In 1972, Republican voters in Michigan decided to make a little mischief, crossing over to vote in the open Democratic primary and voting for segregationist Democrat George Wallace, seriously embarrassing the state's Democrats. In fact, a third of the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 11, 2008 13:37
Clinton – Warner Ticket
Bob Novak reports that some Democrats are looking past the primaries and arguing that Hillary Clinton should bypass Barack Obama for Mark Warner as her running mate. Anticipating that Sen. Hillary Clinton will clinch the Democratic presidential nomination, some supporters are beginning to argue against her choosing her principal rival -- Sen. Barack Obama -- for vice president. They maintain ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 20, 2007 07:37
