Banning the Birthers
Jon Henke thinks it's time for the Right to throw out the lunatics: In the 1960's, William F. Buckley denounced the John Birch Society leadership for being "so far removed from common sense" and later said "We cannot allow the emblem of irresponsibility to attach to the conservative banner." The Birthers are the Birchers of our time, and WorldNetDaily is their pamphlet. ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on September 1, 2009 09:33
Republican Party Needs More Votes if it is to Win
Bruce Bartlett explains why he's not a Republican anymore using a time-honored refrain: He didn't leave his party; his party left him. While he now considers himself an "independent," he's more than non-partisan; he's "anti-Republican." Why? I still consider myself to be a Reaganite. But I don’t see any others anywhere in the GOP these days, which is why I consider ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 31, 2009 11:58
A Tale of Two Murders
DrewM. passes on Michelle Malkin's post and column noting that the murder of abortion doctor George Tiller by a white "Christian" got scads more media commentary and more intense presidential attention than did the murder of Private William Long and maiming and attempted murder of Private Quinton Ezeagwula by a black "Muslim." It's a fair point and very much worth noting ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 3, 2009 15:20
The Mommy Slur
Hilary Bok is rather bent out of shape at a Washington Whispers poll which asks "If you had a choice of four daycare centers run separately by Michelle Obama, Sarah Palin, Hillary Clinton, and Nancy Pelosi, which would you choose for your kids?" She suggests some alternative poll questions: If you needed some yard work done, would you hire Mel Martinez, Henry ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on February 22, 2009 09:16
Military Service Demographics
Danielle Allen takes to the editorial pages of WaPo to decry the regional disparity of military service in a piece titled "Red-State Army?" [caption id="attachment_28761" align="alignright" width="274" caption="Veterans Day in Maysville, Ky. Photo Credit: By Terry Prather -- Associated Press"][/caption] Whereas in 1969 13 percent of Americans were veterans, in 2007 only 8 percent of us were. Even more important than these general ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 15, 2008 14:12
Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State?!
The big political news this morning is the buzz surrounding speculation that Hillary Clinton could be tabbed as Secretary of State. Politico's Mike Allen: Several Obama transition advisers are strongly advocating Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) for secretary of state, a move that would create the ultimate “Team of Rivals” Cabinet, according to officials involved in the discussions. President-elect Obama has narrowed the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 14, 2008 08:48
Whites Voted For Obama, Proving They’re Racist!
Larry Bartels examines the voting behavior of white Americans on Election Day and finds that, as he expected, we were very, very racist: According to the exit polls, Obama outpolled the previous Democratic nominee, John Kerry, among people from small towns and rural areas and among gun owners. He also did better than Kerry among white males, white Protestants, and white ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 12, 2008 15:44
Obama’s Landslide in Perspective
In the discussion on Obama's apparent 365-173 Electoral College victory, Rodney Dill asks, "How close is this, historically? The popular vote difference seems like it was pretty big by modern standards, but usually that would result in an even more lopsided electoral vote." It's an interesting question. Dave Leip's Atlas has the results for every election. In 1980, the first ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 8, 2008 11:22
2008 Election County-By-County
After George W. Bush won the 2000 election, despite having received substantially fewer votes nationwide than Al Gore, many of us took great comfort in this famous map, showing the election results county-by-county: [caption id="attachment_27108" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="2000 Election County-By-County Map"][/caption] In 2004, Bush won re-election by a majority -- but John Kerry nearly took it anyway because of a close call ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 5, 2008 15:54
McCain’s Final Stand
[caption id="attachment_26200" align="alignright" width="297" caption="RealClearPolitics summary for 15 OCT 08: Electoral College blowout?"][/caption] Tonight's third and final debate between John McCain and Barack Obama is the last scheduled opportunity for the candidates to make an impression on the voters. Election Day is less than three weeks away and, by the looks of things, McCain needs a miracle. According to the poll ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on October 15, 2008 09:46
Obama’s Acceptance Speech: The More Things CHANGE, The More They Remain the Same
I wrote a quick post before bed last night giving my off-the-cuff reaction to Barack Obama's nomination acceptance speech, arguing that, despite all the talk of "change," it was basically a speech that Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, or John Kerry could have given. The NYT has a six-page transcript of the speech as delivered. Let's ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 29, 2008 08:14
Best. Speeches. Ever.
I just haven't been able to muster the enthusiasm to watch much of the Democratic Convention coverage. It's a shame, too, as I understand John Kerry, Bill Clinton, and Joe Biden all gave the best speeches of their lives last night. Really, though, what were the odds? I'll watch Obama's performance at Mile High Stadium tonight, though. I understand it's ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 28, 2008 07:54
Obama as Jackie Robinson
Adam Serwer laments the fact that Barack and, particularly, Michelle Obama have to humanize themselves to the electorate and fight back against an elitist caricature. [T]he Obamas are still fighting Jackie Robinson Syndrome, the reflexive double standards and often small, sometimes large, but always public humiliations that come from being the first black person to do something. Ezra Klein thinks this "beautifully ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 27, 2008 14:07
Who’s Smearing Whom?
James Kirchich, recent nominee for an Yglesias Award for fairness, says that, while the Obama campaign is setting itself up to believe that "The only obstacle between Barack Obama and the presidency is the mountain of smears that will no doubt come his way," the truth of the matter is that most of the smears are coming from his side. Thus ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on July 2, 2008 09:33
Swift Boater on McCain’s Truth Squad
John McCain's Truth Squad, formed a few months ago in order to respond to charges by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth clone Vietnam Veterans Against John McCain, is prominently featuring an actual member of the Swifties as a spokesman, CNN's Rebecca Sinderbrand reports. One of the members of John McCain’s new Truth Squad — which his campaign says was launched ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 30, 2008 16:02
