March 14, 2006

3/14: Places, Everyone!

If anyone thought the failure of the Dubai ports deal marked a paradigm shift in the natl security debate, yesterday's developments in the Senate set up the left-moderate-right script we've seen in similar debates. Liberals reacted with great satisfaction at an officeholder having the courage of his convictions. Conservatives are disgusted with the obstructionism and even treasonous tactics that "give comfort to our enemies." And skittish Dems/mods wonder if those to their left aren't playing right into the hands of their enem ... er, rivals. Today, the role of leading Dem is played by Sen. Russ Feingold (WI). Supporting cast: Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist, VP Cheney, Sens. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) and Arlen Specter (R-PA), with a few thousand bloggers as extras.

Otherwise, one of the lighter days of late. As his poll numbers continue to slide, Bush lays out a timetable (or ... does he?); Lieberman's primary opponent makes his debut in CT. And, a new twist on the TPS report.

EAVESDROPPING: (Cen)Sure This Was A Good Idea?

Shortly after 4 pm, Feingold introduced a resolution to censure Pres. Bush over the wiretap issue. The GOP leadership quickly tried to force a vote, but Dems used procedural tactics to block one. Before he made the motion, Feingold wrote at Daily Kos: "Censuring the President is not something that should be taken lightly. But the President has BROKEN the law and there needs to be action and accountability."

Today's coverage, mostly from AP via the Drudge-favored Breitbart, seemed to indicate that other Dems tried to distance themselves from Feingold. A frustrated Creature: "Senator Feingold's censure resolution is not even a day old and the debate has already been framed. The Democrats are overreaching. The Democrats are weak on national security. Will anybody mention that the president broke the law?" Daily Kos' Georgia10: "The press is once again manufacturing a self-fulfilling prophecy to make this scandal go away. It hasn't even been 48 hours since Feingold announced his motion. We're in for the long haul." Carpetbagger Report: "It's one thing for a maverick Dem to stick his neck out, but couldn't the party approach this in a slightly more organized fashion?" California Conservative starts a post: "Just when Democrats looked like they were sorta getting their stuff together ..." Flopping Aces calls his post "The Gift's [sic] Keep Coming." He updates: "I have to say the more I think about it the more I'm amazed that two pretty weak leaders (Specter & Frist) on the Republican side stood up without hesitation and showed the country that they actually have a pair." Hugh Hewitt thanks Arlen Specter for "deftly exposing the poser for what he is."

Mark Noonan is among those on the right trying to rally like-minded individuals behind a "Censure Russ Feingold" movement. Noonan writes: "What Feingold did was to damage the unity of the United States in face of armed enemies merely to curry personal political favor. This is a despicable act." Skippy, for one, is tired of hearing the "wartime president" argument from conservatives, and lays out why it's not valid in Bush's case. American Street agrees: "Properly chastened, a wartime president might become more effective. There's no evidence at all that censure would harm the war effort or the country. And the irony is that if the people protecting Bush put the same energy out to protect the country, the war would likely already be over."

Differing views of Feingold's motiviation. The Political Pit Bull: "I give Feingold some credit -- not because I think Bush broke the law, I certainly don't -- but because this resolution is to some extent, anyway, a matter of principle for Feingold and he is willing to fight for it." Protein Wisdom: "I'd write more about this, but why bother? It is self-important grandstanding meant to drive the news cycle and help Feingold among the liberal left Democrats as he prepares a run for the presidency."

So how will this play out? Iowa Voice: "Dems like to complain that Republicans can't govern, and they have a point. It's nearly impossible for Republicans to run the country on important matters because, quite simply, the Dems have done nothing in the last five years but thrown up roadblocks." Democratic Daily Blog: "It seems that the Republicans who were quick to decry Bush over the Dubai port deal are not ready to go the full measure and admit that he's a miserable failure as some Republicans have recently." Busy Busy Busy cites Sen. Dianne Feinstein's (D-CA) censure resolution against then-Pres. Clinton, and calls on her to support Feingold's. Anonymous Liberal: "When was the last time the Republican party let fear of appearing 'extreme' stop them from doing anything? And they now control every branch of government. GOP strategists long ago realized that, in politics, the only difference between an 'extreme' idea and a "reasonable" one is the number of politicians willing to endorse it." Rowhouse Logic: "At one point or another today, seemingly every elected Democrat, with a national profile, said something along the lines of 'Russ Feingold? Never heard of him. Censure? You speak with a forked tongue crazy journalist,' to the national press." James Joyner notes: "One gathers from the coverage that Hillary Clinton remained silent on the matter, as her name is not mentioned. She has been remarkably canny in guaging the mood of the public on issues, even as she alienates the netroots." Captain's Quarters: "If anyone expected the Democrats to make significant gains against the GOP, which has seen its popularity buffeted by scandals the past few weeks, that analysis obviously excluded the capacity for Democrats to shoot themselves in the foot. Only an idiot would attempt to make a president the enemy during wartime, especially for an action that he performed in defense of the country." Jeremy Dibbell at The Moderate Voice: Lieberman "got it about right this afternoon; he told the AP: 'I'd prefer to see us solve the problem,' rather than simply slapping the president on the wrist with a politicized censure resolution. A nasty debate over a censure resolution will not solve any problems, nor will it change the way the president does business; it will only make things worse." More on Lieberman's reaction in the In the States section.

Left Wing = Hate praises Cheney for his remarks in Feingold's home state. The veep said: "Do they support the extreme and counterproductive antics of a few or do they support a lawful program vital to the security of this nation? The American people already made their decision. They agree with the president."

BUSH: Down. To The Ground. To Get Out Of The Rain.

The latest CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll shows Bush with a 36% approval rating, tying his lowest previous mark in that poll. Dems have a 16-point generic Congressional ballot lead. And, according to the poll, 51% of Americans now see Bush as a "weak" pres. Carpetbagger Report: "'Weak' is perhaps the one word Karl Rove fears most. The Bush gang can live with 'unpopular.' They're only mildly troubled by 'incompetent.' But when a majority of the country believes the president is 'weak,' it suggests Bush really has given up every advantage he's enjoyed for over four years." Conservative PunditGuy: "It seems that CNN feels it's necessary to do a story every time a CNN/USATODAY/Gallup poll comes out showing Bush's approval rating going lower than the previous poll. Yet, when his rating goes up, they take a pass." Lefty Pam Spaulding, on GOPers spinning the poll: "The Kool-Aid is s-t-r-o-n-g." Democratic Daily's Ron Chusid spins left: "Yet another poll shows what all the others are showing -- this time reported by that notorious left wing publication, The Wall Street Journal." Below The Beltway: "There is one issue, and one issue alone, that appears to be responsible for the current political climate. Iraq. ... The Right can complain that the media is biased. They can complain that that the true story of what's happening in Iraq isn't being portrayed. They can complain, but it doesn't matter. In politics, perception is reality and, for the moment at least, the public clearly perceives the current conditions in Iraq to be abysmal."

IRAQ: What Are You Benching?

Washington Post reports that Bush "set a specific benchmark" for withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. It was the first in a "series of speeches intended to lay out his strategy for victory." Gene Cowan: "Does anyone buy this transparent ploy? With elections in November, he's claiming that he'll be 'transitioning' Iraq just after the vote? And does the White House think that malleable American minds will think that 'transition' means the same thing as 'withdrawl?'" Carpetbagger Report: "Benchmarks and target dates have been a Bush anathema for years now. Did the president suddenly join the cut-and-run caucus?" But Penraker calls the Post account "an exercise in twisting words so they can be thrown back at the President."

BUSH ADMIN: Confessions Of A Target Addict

The New York Times and Washington Post each follow up on ex-WH advisor Claude Allen's arrest and (according to WaPo) confession (see 3/13 Blogometer). TPM Cafe's Josh Marshall notes that Allen has an identical twin brother. Marshall: "I have to tell you this new story seems so insane and ridiculous that I have suspect it's actually true." Lefty/non-FNC exec. Roger Ailes notes reaction to the story: "The most amusing part of the story is all the wingnuts, from Bush down to the idiot bloggers, moaning about how sad the Allen story is. Apparently Claude is the archetypal 'good man who did a bad thing.' If you're a bad person who does a bad thing, you deserve prosecution, ridicule and hellfire. However, if you espouse righteousness and damn others for their moral failings, it's merely a bummer if you don't act accordingly."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Don't Call It A Comeback

After reading the New York Times Magazine profile of ex-VA Gov. Mark Warner (D), DLCer Marshall Wittmann writes in support of ex-VP Al Gore: "There is a huge vacuum in the Democratic Party and only the former Veep can fill it. The donkey has a big itch and only Al can scratch it." Warner is an "able politician who could probably do quite well" in the general, but he's "admirably repelled by knee-jerk liberalism. That positive trait is likely a show stopper for the hard core donor and activist class of the party who yearns for the real deal." Gore "opposed both the war from the start and the Patriot Act. Yes, Feingold took the same stances, but he never won a Presidential popular vote."

MIDTERMS: Meet Joe's Foe

Jane Hamsher posted often about Lieberman 3/13, and, noting the timing of his reaction to Feingold's censure resolution with Telecom Exec Ned Lamont's entry to the SEN primary, urges donations on Lamont's behalf. DownWithTyranny! reviews the Lamont event, and closes with this take: "Lieberman is too dial-up and culturally, too pre-9-11 for a progressive, educated state like Connecticut. I wish there were Ned Lamonts willing to get involved in politics all over the country!"

New Republic's Crowley blogs at The Plank about persistent speculation that Rep. Katherine Harris' (R-FL) is dropping out of the SEN race: "My advice is not to leap to conclusions. The woman is strangely driven."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Straight From The Source's Mouth

When speculating on the impact of the blogosphere in '08, it's often a good idea to head straight to the source. Extreme Mortman asks Peter Glenshaw of Democracy for New Hampshire which candidates will have best netroots support: "Feingold will go over well. ... If he runs, Gore will, too. Maybe Warner. I don't see [NM Gov. Bill] Richardson, Clinton, or [DE Sen. Joe] Biden breaking thru to this constituency." On the GOP: "[Sen. John] McCain, just because his brand says 'maverick.' Forget Frist, [NY Gov. George] Pataki, or [MA Gov. Mitt] Romney. They will have their thing, but it will be empty. Wildcard: [Sen.] Chuck H[a]gel of Nebraska."

LEST WE FORGET: I Believe You Have My Stapler

It isn't quite as smooth as some of the others we've seen, but Gorilla Mask provides the latest in the series of trailer spoofs. Today's offering: "Office Space" as a thriller.

Posted by at March 14, 2006 12:40 PM