December 21, 2006

12/21: Battle Fatigue?

Since 11/7, there has been a marked divergence in right and left blog focus when it comes to '08. While plenty of pro and con Dem WH '08 posts can be found on lefty blogs, there has also been a noticeable and public effort to refrain from attacking the candidates. Instead, '08 concern has been concentrated on identifying which down ballot races the netroots want to be a factor in. The right side of the sphere is completely different. One can't glance at RedState with out reading some hit piece on a GOP WH '08 candidate. Meanwhile, there is nary a mention of which down ballot races the righties want to target. We speculate that having been around the block once, the netroots grey tooths don't want to relive the nasty fights they had in '04, while for the righty 'sphere this is their maiden contested primary.

IRAQ: It's Not ... Good

Pres. Bush did not get rave reviews from conservatives watching his 12/20 WH presser. The Corner's John Podhoretz wrote: "If You're At Work...be glad you're not at home watching the president's press conference. It's...not good." Kathryn Jean Lopez added: "It has the feel of Rocky V (Why did you bother?)."

In other Iraq news, TPMmuckraker, nailed down Dem leadership positions on Bush's "surge" for Iraq: "The Democrats' top leadership in the House and Senate are united against." Also at Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall notes Brookings Institute's "key role in building support for the Iraq War" and blegs readers for info on inner Brookings "controversy" over Fred Kagan's inclusion in an upcoming Brookings policy briefing.

GOP FIELD: What About Rudy?

Pollster.com's Charles Franklin has his first post on WH '08 up, with data on every person in the GOP field. Franklin identifies one notable result: "Former New York City Mayor Rudolf Giuliani continues to hold a small but reliable lead over Arizona Senator John McCain. Of 39 polls with both names in the list of candidates, Giuliani leads McCain in 30 with four more ties. McCain leads in only 5 polls. ... That doesn't seem to me to be the message I've been getting from the media."

RedState's Dan McLaughlin isn't happy with MSM coverage of the race either, and is particularly displeased with National Review's cover story narrowed the field "to two men: John McCain and Mitt Romney." McLaughlin argues that Romney wants the race to be framed as a two man contest and offers three more specific complaints:

• First, the article gives only short shrift to Rudy Giuliani, despite polling that consistently shows the former NY mayor leading the field or running about even with Senator McCain.
• Second, NR seems to be abandoning the possibility - which you would think a conservative magazine would at least entertain - that a conservative champion could yet emerge from the field.
• More disturbing is the idea that NR has accepted Romney's effort to portray himself as the authentic conservative in the race. ... But any realistic assessment of Romney has to begin in the same place as McCain and Giuliani - that is, with the fact that his past public statements make him out to be something other than a consistent conservative.

BROWNBACK: Tancredo, Go Home

An admitted "ardent Brownback supporter" RedState's Leon Wolf defends Sam Brownback's immigration record writing: "Sam Brownback is not a Tancredoite (or even nearly a Tancredoite) when it comes to immigration, and I'm not trying to claim that he is. However, the characterization of Brownback as someone who is "bad on immigration" is simply unfair, at least insofar as "bad on immigration" is not defined as any deviation from Tom Tancredo's platform."

GILMORE: Not A Pretend Conservative

While IA's Caucus Cooler may have been leading the Jim Gilmore-may-run coverage, eyeon08's Gilmore quote from the New York Times is the most widely included item on rigthy blogs: "I didn't run some place and pretend I was a liberal and run someplace else as a conservative. I just didn't do that." Other reax include:

• Townhall's Mary Katharine Ham: "Gilmore was before my time in Virginia, but from all I hear of him, he's a real conservative."
• Outside the Beltway's James Joyner: "While John McCain and Mitt Romney are both trying to position themselves as the main conservative candidate in the race, both face obstacles. ... He may not be well known to the public but he's well known to the party apparatus from which he must put together a team and do his initial fundraising. He's definitely a longshot, though, and isn't the most charismatic guy in the world.
• IA's Caucus Cooler: "For crying out loud somebody's got to get the Gary Bauer vote."

GIULIANI: You've Gotta Make It Here, Before You Can Make It Anywhere

RedState's California Yankee reports Rudy Giuliani's 12/18 $2,100-a-ticket Manhattan cocktail party "disappoint[ed]" since it fell short of the 500 tickets needed to raise $1 mil. according to attendees. CY adds: "Fellow presidential wannabe, John McCain, upstaged Giuliani's fundraising event by announcing a 57-member New York finance committee that includes Jets owner Woody Johnson; billionaire financier Henry Kravis; and Henry Kissinger."

The Corner's Jonathan Martin posts backstory to ex-Rep. Rick Lazio's non-endorsement of Giuliani: "People need to remember that Rick wanted to run for the Senate in 2000, but Rudy was toying with the idea and was effectively freezing everyone else out. ... While it was understandable that he would, at that point, not run for the Senate, a lot of people were upset that Rudy had strung the GOP along and left the party in a bad spot. ... Given all of the hurdles he faced and given that Bush lost NY to Gore by about 2.5 million votes and Rick lost by about half that many votes to HRC, I think people should recognize that Lazio ran a commendable race under tough circumstances. That being said, I think Lazio might still be angry with Rudy's behavior in early 2000.

Subbing for Andrew Sullivan, Alex Massie uses urges primary voters to evaluate the GOP field using a college football like "resume approach" as opposed to "power ranking" system. Massie thinks Giuliani has the best GOP resume: "The Mayor of New York must grapple - nay, fight! - a bewilderingly complex and byzantine bureaucracy plagued by turf wars, vested interests and a bloody-minded determination to thwart change or reform. Hmmm, isn't there a similar, but even larger and more powerful Hydra in Washington?"

ROMNEY: What The Right Angle Wants, The Right Angle Gets

A little over a week after The Right Angle's Matt Lewis advised Team Romney to hire a blogger, The Right Angle announced Romney hired Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN) aide Stephen Smith "to lead his online communications team."

Instapundit applauds the move: "I've dealt with Smith a fair amount in conjunction with Frist's appearances on The Glenn & Helen Show, etc., and found him smart and easy to work with. It's a good hire for the Romney campaign."

Smith will have his work cut out for him as plenty of anti-Romney posts are still floating around the righty 'sphere including Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) aide Patrick Hynes noting Romney's 1994 refusal to endorse ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich's Contract with America at Ankle Biting Pundits and RedState's Leon Wolf's impatience for a Romney explanation of his "absolute about face on abortion."

OBAMA: An Opportunity For Courage

Kausfiles cops to being "an old-fashioned Joe Kleinish Clintonian self-hating Dem" that is not going to swoon over Barack Obama until he hears "Obama tell Democrats something they maybe don't want to hear." So far all Kaus has heard from Obama is an "idiosyncratic veneer of reasonableness over a policy that is utterly party line and conventional, defended with arguments that are party line and conventional."

TPM Cafe's M.J. Rosenberg has a similar wish and a specific policy in mind: Israel. Rosenberg writes: "In his latest column in New York Observer, the fine author and columnist, Phil Weiss, raises the possibility that Obama is no different than the other mainstream Democrats in not questioning whether our current policies are good for America or Israel. ... Obama is just too smart and too honest to embrace the deadly status quo. Weiss also points out that the latest stirrings in the American Jewish community make it possible for candidates not to adopt the failed policies of the past. Staking out some new territory here will make Obama look like the leader I think he is. Eleanor Roosevelt mocked JFK in 1960 for showing too much profile and not enough courage. I want Obama to show us both."

LANDSCAPE: Just The Beginning

MyDD's ManfromMiddletown was concerned Charlie Cook's Partisan Voting Index was underestimating Dem voting strength so he designed his measure for OH using '06 results from "the Auditor, Secretary of State, and Treasurer's races." The result: "Overall, this measure shows Ohio to be far more Democratic than Presidential vote and the Cook PVI ,as a result, indicates."

Charlie Cook repsonds in the comments: "We invented the Partisan Voting Index in order to have a single-objective measurement of how a district votes in presidential elections compared to the rest of the country. One single number to look at, based on the average two-party vote in the last two presidential elections. It is the start of our analytical process, not the middle and certainly not the end.

CA 10: A Real Problem For Dems

Although Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) is not affiliated with Third Way, MyDD 's Matt Stoller, says "people like Tauscher" "empower[] Third Way style policy people." Stoller calls Tauscher "a real problem for Democrats" and says she "should face a serious challenge."

DEM CONVO: A Springboard For Labor?

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas is troubled the state of negotiations between the DNC and Denver, CO: "Negotiations are ongoing with Labor, which doesn't like Denver because of its lack of unionized facilities. Instead of sabotaging Democratic chances in 2008, perhaps Labor could use the convention as a springboard effort to kickstart unionization efforts in Denver?"

CO SEN: If Only The Buffaloes Could Get Into The Top Three

Kos notes Coloradoan reports that Rep. Mark Udall (D) may challenge Sen. Wayne Allard (R) and writes: "Rumor? It's no rumor. Udall is in, and whether Allard stays in or not, this will be a top-three race in 2008."

ME SEN: Shootin' The Moon

Daily Kos diarist RandyMI picks up on Hotline On Call reports that Rep. Tom Allen (D-01) has retained Rep. Mike Michaud (D-02) manager Heather Quinn "should Allen decide to run for SEN." RandyMI adds: "Collins has to be spooked at this point. She knows that she is not nearly as popular as Olympia Snowe and, if she runs, she has to explain away her pledge to serve only two terms." Kos adds: "You just know Schumer is promising Allen the sun and the moon if the runs."

QUESTION OF THE DAY: The Enemy Of My Enemy ...

The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum asks: "True or false: Persistent exposure to zealous lefty ideologues causes centrists to sympathize more strongly with conservatism than they normally would. Conversely, persistent exposure to zealous righty ideologues causes centrists to sympathize more with liberalism. Follow-up question: If this is true, what lesson should we draw from it?"

LEST WE FORGET: Only Four Shopping Days Left

Extreme Mortman is "not making this up" when he links to the Drug Enforcement Administration Gift Shop's description of lovable plush DEA German Shepards: "This little, 6 inch length, "Beanie" plush German Shepherd, is the ideal "Best Friend", for all ages. Choose either a gold collar w/ DEA in black, or black w/ DEA in white letters." Mortman quips: "No word whether this stuffed animal is trained to sniff other stuffed animals."

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:03 PM

December 20, 2006

12/20: Why HuffPo?

What do incoming the following Dems have in common: Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid (NV), Reps. Jane Harman (CA), Ellen Tauscher (CA), John Murtha (PA), Dennis Kucinich (OH), and Major Owens (NY) all have in common? They all used The Huffington Post as their blogging venue of choice to engage the lefty blogosphere. Now a quick perusal of the list demonstrates that simply showing up at HuffPo in no way guarantees a softening of netroots antagonism for an elected Dem, and Murtha's hero status does not stem from his blogging either. So why has Arianna's wildly successful blogging venture developed into a favorite Dem blogging outlet?

GOP FIELD: Bushless

Building off an APstory quoting a Columbia, SC, pastor describing state religous conservatives as "really up for grabs," The Corner's Jonathan Martin rehashes his own earlier analysis on SC without ex-SC Gov. Carroll Campbell (R):

Without Campbell, there is no unified political operation ready to get behind a favored Republican. John McCain can't be taken out if there is a) no George W. Bush to do the taking out and b) no ready apparatus to crush the insurgency. Whether there will be one of the former - a consensus establishment candidate with backing from both the country club donor wing and evangelical activist wing of the party - is an open question. But nothing resembling the latter exists today within the South Carolina Republican party, say observers there.

Marin updates: "Now "a)" increasingly appears to be MA Gov. Mitt Romney. Nobody else, besides McCain, is right now working the money guys and grassroots down there like Team Mitt. But, as evidenced by the presence of at least two deep-pocketed South Carolinians in attendance tonight at former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani's kick-off shindig and the lingering unease in social conservative ranks about their options, McCain still benefits from there being no singular Bush figure in the race."

BROWNBACK: We Think They Meant 'She'

Not all righty bloggers are critical of Sam Brownback's hold on MI state judge Janet Neff. The MI Cooler writes: "Urge Brownback to Keep up the Fight! Brownback has done a great job for conservatives by holding up liberal Judge Neff from the Federal bench. Please email Brownback at info@brownback.com and urge him to continue to hold up the Neff nomination. He officiated a gay marriage in Massachusetts."

GIULIANI: Everybody Loves Rudy

Real Clear PoliticsTom Bevan argues the conventional wisdom displayed in a 12/19 WaPo article on potential problems Rudy Giuliani might face with conservative primary voters "may turn out to be wrong." Bevan reasons: "even if you set aside the obvious baggage Giuliani carries on social issues and with respect to his personal life, the Mayor takes all the same positions as [John] McCain on those key issues which McCain is constantly vilified by the conservative base. For example, Rudy is very much in favor of comprehensive immigration reform, and he publicly supported McCain-Feingold in 2000 when he was flirting with a Senate run against Hillary."

Bevan then explains why conservative voters are willing to overlook Giuliani's ideological shortcomings: "The answer to that question may turn out to be as simple as this: Rudy is just more likeable. Likeability with base voters is important, and intangible. McCain doesn't have it. Rudy does."

IA's Krusty Konservative posts the text of an email sent by Team Giuliani marking the launch of JoinRudy2008 including: "As part of the website's launch, we are trying to reach out to friends online and across the "blogosphere." It is important to us that the web community knows that we intend to be an active and contributing presence to the intellectual debate and discussion that occurs on the web. As an indication of our seriousness in this effort, we thought we'd tell you about the new site ahead of time (no hat tip required, although certainly appreciated). In the coming weeks and months, we will continue to reach out to you and appreciate any advice and ideas you have to offer."

The Right Angle's Robert Bluey compares: "In sharp contrast to Sen. John McCain's chic black-and-white website, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani went live today with a colorful, information-packed site for his exploratory committee ... While McCain opted to minimize the content available on his site, ExploreMcCain.com, Giuliani isn't holding back. He providers readers with a detailed biography -- broken down by the "Early Years," "The Crime Fighter," "Mayor of New York" and "Business Leader."

KEATING: Singing In The Rainey

The Corner's Jonathan Martin reports SC developer/Bush Pioneer John Rainey is hosting a lunch 12/21 for ex-OK Gov. Frank Keating. Martin expounds: "Rainey is one of the most politically powerful money men in the state and serves (or has served) on a number of top boards and commissions. He is being heavily wooed by other Republican candidates and would certainly be a signigicant 'get' for a candidate just out of the box like Keating."

MCCAIN: 'Cause Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

RedState's Streiff is taking Richard Cohen's 12/19 op-ed as a sure sign the "Romance" is over between John McCain and the MSM. Streiff writes: "So long as Senator McCain was dissing the Republican base, making life difficult for the administration, and giving great interview he was "maverick John McCain" and a hero to all. Now that McCain looks like he's within a red-faced meltdown of the Republican nomination for president in 2008 all that is changing."

The Right Angle's Matt Lewis argues this development can only help McCain in the GOP primary: "McCain has learned the lessons of 2000. This time around, he knows that he must do two important things: 1. Appeal more to conservatives, and 2. Woo Bush donors and operatives. ... Once again, John McCain proves to be a master at manipulating the media. By criticizing him, they are playing into his hands."

Back at The Corner Martin credits Team McCain for their quick courting of Palmetto Family Council official Oran Smith after Smith publicly expressed doubts about MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R).

ROMNEY: Send In The Clowns

Following the Boston Globe's lead RedState 's Mark Kilmer calls Mitt Romney a "clown" for his response to the Globe's revelations that Romney "hire[d] illegal lawn mowers." Kilmer explains he hasn't "seen the specifics" of Romney's immigration policy but does add: "I can't comment on the logistics, but it seems that Romney blames the lack of federal regulation and red tape for his illegal hirings, The solution he proposes seems to be the registration of all legally employed people in this country. (Perhaps with numbers tattooed to their ankles?) Quite a database."

GORE: And The Winner Is ...

The Huffington Post's Bob Cesca awards Al Gore his "Voice of Reality" award for Gore's elevation of global warming "to a position close -- close -- to where it should be on our collective national roster of vital issues." Past winners include Richard Clarke in '04 and Keith Olbermann in '05.

OBAMA: Add Bobby Kennedy To The List Of Obama Comparisons

The Plank's Eve Fairbanks posts video of Draft Obama's first tv ad running in DC and NH now and possibly in HI while Barack Obama is there for Christmas.

Fairbanks critiques: "I don't think this is a great spot from a technical point of view -- the text is distracting, the photo montages retro, and the whole thing smacks of a weirdly un-American hero worship -- but, at the same time, it's hard to see how others can compete with the audio, taken from Obama's famous '04 Democratic Convention speech. ... For better or worse, Obama channels Bobby Kennedy."

RICHARDSON: Movin' On Up

MyDD's Jonathan Singer sings the praises of Bill Richardson under the header, "Richardson Staking Out Position as Candidate with Foreign Policy Cred." Singer explains that Richardson is not "limiting his campaign to his domestic and political successes as Governor" but is also setting "himself apart from other candidates by stressing his views on foreign policy, highlighting his service as UN Ambassador." Singer concludes: "With these moves, Richardson can help position himself as a candidate with a firm grasp of both foreign and domestic policy and perhaps move up from a lower tier to a higher one."

DCCC: Holla' If You Love Van Hollen

The big boys of the netroots are universally pleased with the selection of Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) to head the DCCC. DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas calls it "an excellent pick," but also adds: "Welcoming message to Chris: "Stay the heck out of contested primaries." Other lefty reax include:

• MyDD's Chris Bowers: "I have done some real quick background, and the most interesting bit I have found is that while, like Rahm [Emanuel], he came in 2002, he was significantly outspent in his contested Democratic primary by Mark Kennedy Shriver ... That is a good sign for the way Van Hollen will act during primary campaigns. ... We seem to be moving forward quite well. I can't imagine Van Hollen upsetting netroots activists the same way as Rahm.
• Firedoglake's Pachacutec: "Unlike Emanuel, Van Hollen did not get his start as a machine politician opposed to a grassroots progressive through a campaign marred by criminal corruption. Van Hollen was, in fact, the local progressive who beat out a better known and better financed Democrat in a 2002 primary. We look forward to the possibility of communicating and collaborating with the DCCC under Mr. Van Hollen for the next campaign cycle."
• Blue America's Howie Klein: "I'm very excited about this. ... I don't know a lot about Van Hollen but he's got to be a lot better than Emanuel. I'd love to see the DCCC, the grassroots and the netroots working together for a common purpose: electing more Democrats to the House (rather than furthering the personal careers of a couple of power-mongers).

In a not-unrelated MyDD item, Democraticavenger has a list of the "50 most likely Republican Seats to flip to Democratic." The top 10 include: 1. Tim Walberg (MI 07), 2. Charlie Dent (PA 15), 3. Jon Porter (NV 03), 4. Ric Keller (FL 08), 5. Dave Reichert (WA 08), 6. Marilyn Musgrave (CO 04), 7. Rick Renzi (AZ 01), 8. John Doolittle (CA 04), 9. Mike Ferguson (NJ 07), 10. Robin Hayes (NC 08).

IRAQ: Surge Protector

Incoming Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) took to The Huffington Post 12/19 assuring the blogosphere he doesn't "believe that more troops is the answer for Iraq." Reid then outlines his position on the war:

• 1. I believe we should start redeploying troops in 4 to 6 months (The Levin-Reed Plan) and complete the withdrawal of combat forces by the first quarter of 2008. (As laid out by the Iraq Study Group)
• 2. The President must understand that there can only be a political solution in Iraq, and he must end our nation's open-ended military commitment to that country.
• 3. These priorities need to be coupled with a renewed diplomatic effort and regional strategy.

MyDD's Chris Bowers responds: "It was ridiculous in the first place to think that Reid supported troop escalation in Iraq, considering that he voted for a timeline thirteen months ago. Even if it wasn't ridiculous, we shouldn't have been parsing his words. Rather,we should have been focusing on his proposed oversight measures and legislative policy proposals, and critiquing those."

Atrios agrees: "More seriously, I think something we all need to come to terms with is the fact that the Democrats actually have power now. ... Messaging is still important, and they still shouldn't screw it up. But it isn't the only power they have now, and it isn't the most important power they have. So, yes, they should speak smarter when they go on the Sunday shows. But the sky isn't falling when they don't."

IRAQ II: They Need A Plan For Their Plan

The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum puts the Blogometer ashame ably synthesizing the state of Iraq opinion at TAPPED:

• Ackerman: If Democrats press too hard on withdrawal from Iraq, the end result will probably be a rerun of the Vietnam myth: we could have won in Iraq, but feckless liberals snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and precipitated a national humiliation. "Over the next fifteen years, this becomes accepted wisdom. A younger generation of liberals, tired of being bludgeoned with the charge, more or less accepts it themselves. Another Republican gets elected, and sets to work combating Iraq Fatigue. We get another war."
• Farley: Word. Things might turn out a little better this time since Iraq is a purely Republican war, but maybe not. After all, "Millions of moderate to conservative Americans who had come to support a withdrawal from Vietnam by 1972 found it very easy to convince themselves, by 1980, that the war had been a noble struggle undermined by the malfeasance of counter-culture activists and Congressional Democrats."
• Lemieux: Bollocks. "The problem is, the blame-the-war's-opponents narrative will be trotted out and may hold no matter what the Democrats do." Besides, Congress isn't going to defund the war anyway, so this is all just a round of wankerism.

Drum concludes with his own thoughts: "The question here isn't so much about withdrawal, which I believe Ackerman, Farley, and Lemieux all support, but about how to handle withdrawal politically in order to minimize damage to the Democratic Party. My read is that Ackerman says we should be concerned about this, Farley agrees but thinks there are ways to handle it, and Lemieux says it doesn't matter because Republicans are going to smear us no matter what we do. It's on this issue that I'm in a quandary."

BLOGGERS VS. THE BOTTOM LINE: Fly Like An Eagle

RedState's Directors informed readers 12/20 that they had been purchased by Eagle Publishing, Inc., the owners of Human Events, Regnery Publishing, and the Conservative Book Club. RedState assures readers: "While RedState will continue to take steps to improve the site, there are no plans for significant changes. RedState will remain a unique property within the Eagle family. ... Erick Erickson will continue to be the Editor of the site, and all the writers you've come to appreciate will still be here.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: No Crackpots Here

The Corner's Mark Krikorian offers evidence to show "immigration hawks" aren't exaggerating about "supporters of amnesty" really wanting "open borders." Krikorian links to an Wall Street Journal op-ed by UC Davis Law School Dean Kevin Johnson and quotes from the piece: "The borders of the United States should be open with no numerical limits on the number of immigrants who can enter the country in any given year." Krikorian adds:

Note that this guy, leftist though he is, is not some fringy crackpot - he's a dean at the UC Davis law school, one of the top immigration law professors in the country, and a board member of MALDEF. In fact, his op-ed is an example of how the open-borders crowd has gotten bolder - i.e., more candid - as the Bush-Kennedy-McCain amnesty/guestworker approach has gained ground; Johnson submitted a brief essay for a paper I published a few years back on various writers' ideal immigration policies, and it was much more circumspect than this new piece.

More evidence? The nation's top Hispanic groups called yesterday for a halt to immigration enforcement until Congress has a chance to send an amnesty bill for President Bush's signature.

LEST WE FORGET: The Miserable Wretch That Is The Blogometer

Deadspin points us to Every Day Should Be Saturday's fabulous rundown of the season's first bowl game including:

• Name: The San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
• Motto: "You'll watch it because it's on, you miserable wretches."
• Location: San Diego, the city that discarded it's old motto "America's Finest City" in a shame spiral it had after a long night of drinking. Famous for being damn near perfect in every way but not at all smug about it like those eco-friendly, coffee-drinking, holier-than-thou-vegan a--holes in San Francisco and Seattle.
• What to watch for: A methodical TCU attack hogs the ball, scores on long, heart-rending drives. A gimpy Wolfe has run his legs dead after a 1,900 yard season, and goes nowhere against TCU's superbly coached defense. NIU's backup Dan Nicholson earns a miserable postgame bender by getting sacked a few times, throwing a few picks, and trying to hurl the Huskies back into the game singlehandedly in what could be an excruciating third quarter to watch.

EDSBS concludes: "Which you will, you desperate sick person, you, since it's been sixteen days or so since football-related content last lashed your eyeballs. Damn you, sweet Poinsettia Bowl!!! Your poisonous leaves still taste sweet to our starved tongue! This might actually reveal the sick logic behind the name, after all: it's bad, it'll make you sick (allegedly!), but when starving you'll down it like Doritos.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:23 PM

December 19, 2006

12/19: Bloggers And The GOP

While the Blogometer has been taken to task before for suggesting that righty blogs are not as socially conservative as the larger GOP base, others have noticed similar patterns. Recent GOP WH '08 blogging again suggests the pattern may be true. While National Review Online's Byron York documents MA Gov. Mitt Romney's (R) troubles with social conservatives in SC, Power Line's Paul Mirengoff offers a limited defense of Romney's positions on gay marriage, stem cells, and abortion rights and goes on to announce he's still leaning toward Romney.

More interesting though is this passage from righty blogger stalwart Captain's Quarters castigating Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) for blocking a judicial nominee for attending a civil union ceremony: "A union ceremony breaks no laws and infringes on no one's rights. It involves two people celebrating their relationship without demanding any recognition from the government or special rights as a result. ... The government does not belong in the bedroom, and the Senate has no business extracting pledges of recusals from judicial nominees for any reason." How representative are these sentiments of wider GOP primary voter opinion?

BROWNBACK: Get Out Of My House

Captain's Quarters describes news of Brownback's drop of a hold on the judicial nomination of MI state judge Janet Neff an "Early Setback For Brownback." CQ describes Brownback's hold on Neff for her attendance at a same-sex union ceremony as "unprecedented" and "ridiculous." CQ adds: "Neff's attendance at a private function on her own time has no bearing on her fitness to the bench. A union ceremony breaks no laws and infringes on no one's rights. It involves two people celebrating their relationship without demanding any recognition from the government or special rights as a result. The two women invited family and friends to attend, and Neff decided to support her friend and help her celebrate a ceremony that would have taken place regardless. ... The government does not belong in the bedroom, and the Senate has no business extracting pledges of recusals from judicial nominees for any reason. If Brownback doesn't understand these two concepts, then he has no business anywhere near the White House.

HUCKABEE: Tic Toc

IA's Caucus Cooler runs through the GOP field, writing: "Rudy and McCain have clear issues with certain sects of the GOP base. Romney has been engaged in a 2-week flap over flip-flops on social issues. Brownback is liberal on immigration and can't raise the money." CC then hits Huckabee for failing to "take advantage" of the opening: "By the time they get off the pot, it will probably be too late to do anything except finish 3rd or 4th in Iowa and fizzle in New Hampshire."

HUNTER: Pat Buchanan Lite?

Outgoing Armed Services Chair Duncan Hunter (R-CA) experienced a mini-blog-bloomlet 12/18. Right Wing News, IA's Krusty Konservative, and NH's GraniteGrok all had kind words for Hunter including:

• Krusty Konservative: "From what I've read Duncan Hunter is a solid conservative candidate. ... I like Congressman Hunter but I don't know if he is the credible conservative candidate I'm looking for. While the Iowa Caucus is all about retail politics, I wonder how Hunter will motivate caucus goers to support him."
• GraniteGrok: "He opposes partial birth abortion. Favors school vouchers. Favors drilling in ANWR. He regularly votes to de-fund the National Endowment for the Arts. He is pro-military (his son just finished his second tour in Iraq as a Marine). ... For this conservative blogger, when I look at the positions taken by Mr. Hunter, I find myself in almost full agreement."

Right Wing News posts video of an ad "running in South Carolina" that RWN found underwhelming: "It's about "fair trade", which, along with national security and illegal immigration is one of Hunter's three big issues, but is that really the issue to start a campaign on? ... most conservatives are free traders and I'm not sure that this message is going to necessarily appeal to them. Personally, I think Hunter have been better off doing a commercial bragging about his role in getting the wall through the House. That would have also set him apart from a lot of the other contenders and there would have been a larger, more receptive audience for what he had to say."

MCCAIN: They Don't Like You, They Really, Really Don't Like You

RedState's Erick Erickson reminds readers that RedState "will not be offering an endorsement for any Presidential candidate for the foreseeable future, if ever." But he goes on to be blunt: "Consider me in the anybody but McCain camp." Erickson acknowledges McCain is right on spending, North Korea, Iraq, and abortion rights, but also pronounces him "wrong on the fundamentals." Erickson explains: "All John McCain needs is a CNN camera crew and he stands ready to shove conservatives under the bus if he's guaranteed prime time and Anderson Cooper crying tears of joy while Chris Matthews stands by blowing kisses. ... John McCain is not my choice because he seeks to regulate first and ask questions later."

Beltway Blogroll rounds up left and right reaction to McCain's introduction of a bill seeking to curtail child pornography writing: "But one means to that end -- punishing Internet sites that fail to report pornographic content on their servers -- does not sit well with bloggers who, thanks to an article in News.com, see McCain's bill as an attack against them."

Instapundit links to Beltway and adds: " I think that John McCain realizes that bloggers are unhappy with him over McCain-Feingold -- he said as much in our podcast interview -- but I don't think he grasps just how unhappy, or how much this hurts him. I suspect that (at least some of) his staff does, though. But what can he do about it?"

ROMNEY: Much Ado About Something

Reacting to Byron York's article on the damage recent reports of 1994 Romney statements that were "pro-choice, in favor of expansive gay rights, and dismissive of Ronald Reagan" Power Line's Paul Mirengoff writes: "The gay stuff strikes me as much ado about very little. As I've said, I don't perceive a big gap between what Romney said 12 years ago and what he's saying now. And the fact that Romney ran twice for state-wide office in Massachusetts without ever saying he favored gay marriage tells me that he's a solid social conservative on this issue."

The abortion and stem-cell issues are more of a problem for Mirengoff: "By his own admission, Romney has dramatically changed his position. ... Romney's conversion took place in 2004, by which time he must have been thinking about running for presidency. Moreover, in the case of stem cells he converted to the position that I don't favor." These differences, however, are "not deal-breakers" for Mirengoff and he says he still "leans towards Romney" over Giuliani and McCain. Mirengoff does acknowledge that room is opening for a fourth major candidate though.

Still in defense mode over Romney and gay marriage: The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez celebrates Romney's 12/18 quote, "I don't think there's any conflict between feeling that all people deserve respect and tolerance and that discrimination is wrong and a belief that marriage is between a man and a woman," and adds: "Romney would do us all a service if he could get us to a point where a statement like that ... does not make news because it is a given. To take us to a place where those who support protecting traditional marriage are not easily and routinely dismissed in polite society as homophobic would be a great milestone for civil society."

Also at The Corner, Jonathan Martin looks at Romney efforts to circumvent "Old Media" through the use of NRO and FOX News as well as "friendraiser[s]" like the one documented by TN blogger Bill Hobbs. Martin writes: "Now instead of getting 750 words of "If I Should Decide To Run..." in the Tennessean, we have Romney talking up his efforts to build up a national finance base and explaining why he doesn't do Sunday talk shows. And what does Team Mitt get? A Reagan comparison (at a time when he could use one) and largely favorable report that many a Tennessee Republican will see today along with, assumedly, a kind word or two on talk radio that will be heard by thousands of other Volunteer State GOPers. Oh, and probably a few more checks for that campaign that he may or may not launch."

CA 10: "The Kiss" Becomes "The Caress"

The samecircles that got such mileage out of naming Sen. Joe Lieberman's (I-CT) SOTU embrace of Pres. Bush "the kiss" have now labeled the pre-Iraq-war picture of Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) sitting with Bush's hand on her lap "the caress." But Tauscher's trouble with pictures past does not end there. DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas calls Tauscher "a coward" for "scrubbing pictures of Lieberman from her site in fear they'll be used against her." Kos even hits Tauscher for photos not on her site including one from the signing of the Homeland Security Act, calling the pictured Tauscher, Lieberman, Bush, and ex-Maj. Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) "the four horsemen of the apocalypse."

Kos later spells out the netroots case against Tauscher: "Suffice it to say, she's the leader of the Conservative Blue Dog Democrats, has consistently undermined the Democratic Party, has been a driving force (not just a supporter) in things like the Bankruptcy Bill, and essentially acts like she represents Utah while serving in a 59 percent Kerry district."

Names of a potential challenger have not yet surfaced on the bigger blog front pages but state Sen. Tom Torlakson's (D) name was mentioned in the comments section (however, other commenters insist Torlakson has his eyes set on state school superintendant in 2010.

DEM FIELD: Not The Results They Were Looking For?

The netroots are upset with Newsweek for failing to mention the full results of their latest poll in their cover story on Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Barack Obama (D-IL). The bloggers have no problem with the results mentioned in the story showing "86% of respondents would vote for a qualified woman candidate for president if their party nominated one, and 93% say the same for a qualified African-American," but they note that Newsweek forget to mention the results of the specific matchups between the top GOP/Dem frontrunners which show HRC beating Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) and MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) in head-to-head matchups.

The Carpetbagger Report writes: "Now, I appreciate the fact that these early polls are likely to fluctuate a lot in the coming year, but why on earth would Newsweek not report the data at all?

DEM FIELD II: There's A Flag On The Field

Looking to head of internecine '08 warfare Atrios posts

"Some Notes on Primary Season" including:

• 1) Your favorite candidate is the only one who can win.
• 2) Your favorite candidate is the only one who will truly get behind a progressive agenda.
• 3) Other candidates are part of some nefarious conspiracy to destroy your candidate.
• 4) Supporters of other candidates are motivated by groupthink.
• 5) Supporters of other candidates are operating in bad faith and arguing dishonestly.
• 6) "Powerful" bloggers shouldn't be "biased."
• 7) Primary season is the silliest season of all.

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas approvingly links to Atrios' rules and adds: "Too bad we can't have referees with yellow flags running around penalizing people for making these stupid arguments. Because we're going to hear them over and over again."

Meanwhile, at The Huffington PostMatt Stoller argues HRC and Obama "are not on our side in terms of progressive movement building" and therefore are not ready for the "bar fight" that is presidential politics. Instead, Stoller likes ex-Gen. Wesley Clark (D) and maybe John Edwards. Stoller says Clark "is a genuine liberal, and has fought the right clearly and consistently for the last four years, most recently in Connecticut when he was the only real surrogate against Lieberman" while Edwards has "spent much of his time working with unions" but has not stood "up for us in a real way."

DEM FIELD III: A Niche Market

TAPPED's Ezra Klein notes the exit of ex-VA Gov. Mark Warner (D) and Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) from the WH '08 field and writes: "In presidential primaries, "space" is the definitional attribute. Niches get filled, interest groups sated, and constituencies satisfied. ... Warner and Bayh both dropped out because there was little space to Hillary's right and even fewer voters waiting in it. ... The dynamics of this field are friendly only to liberals, and serious, electable ones at that." Later Klein adds: "As for the involvement of Howard Dean in all this, the Democratic Party is now one that he and his movement created. ... The center in the 2008 primary will be just about where Howard Dean, the lefty, was in the last one. And his success from that spot was an undeniable force in popularizing it, all the more so because it was proven right by events."

The Plank's Jonathan Chait wasn't buying: "Color me confused. I think the ideological distinction between Obama, Edwards and Gore and Hillary Clinton is fairly narrow. ... Dean ran as a faction candidate--the guy who would wrest control of the party from the traitorous moderates and give it to the "Democratic wing of the Democratic Party." I thought that was a bad message to bring into a general election, and it turns out it was a bad message for the primaries also. ... So, while Obama and Edwards have a progressive message, they're not promising to make the streets of Washington run red with the blood of the Democratic Leadership Council. Indeed, Obama, who is substantively quite liberal, has a can-we-all-get-along message that seems to account for much of his popularity."

CLINTON: Fool Me Once, Shame On You ...

TPM Cafe's Greg Sargent puts HRC's "I'm not going to believe this president again" APquote under the header "Quote Of The Day: Hillary Won't Be Fooled Again."

OBAMA: The Same, But Different

MyDD's Jerome Armstrong is showing signs of joining the pro-Obama camp. After reading Newsweek's interview with Obama, Armstrong writes: "The movement behind Barack Obama is as compelling as those behind Clark and Dean in 2004, but also different ... It's tragic that had John Kerry and John Edwards used the polarizing rhetoric on Iraq that they do now, they would have defeated Bush. ... The '08 contest, with Democrats trying for trifecta control, will be a much different election. Instead of battleground strategies, we need mapchanger attitudes; instead of nit-picking about single issues, we need a connect-the-dots vision; instead of kick-ass partisan rhetoric, we need an appeal to the nation that instills hope."

GOP FIELD: Another Free Agent Hits The Market

IA's Caucus Cooler reports one of the top remaining WH '08 "free agents," Rep. Steve King (R-IA) ex-COS Chuck Laudner, left King's staff and "is actively seeking support in an attempt to become either the state Chairman or the executive director" of the IA GOP. CC adds: "A source close to Rep. King said that the Congressman is not supporting or opposing Chuck's bid for State Chair/ED."

LANDSCAPE '08: Here To Stay

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas looks at the 30 Dem House pickups and notes: "11 of the 30 districts were districts that a strong war-fueled Bush couldn't garner 50 percent against a weak Kerry. In only 10 of those districts did Bush win by a double-digit margin." Kos goes on to argue that continued GOP governing incompetence will solidify Dem gains in many of these seats and adds: "They'll clearly have big opportunities to roll back some of those pickups -- TX-22, OH-18, and FL-16, the scandal pickups -- tops amongst them. But some of these races (like CA-11, IN-02, and KS-02) are not the flukes they appear to be. These were second-time candidates who built a long-term infrastructure in their districts. But in that same vein, we have plenty of new targets to go after."

BLOGGERS VS. AUSTIN: R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Texas Kaos' Annatopia announced "Project Bridge the Gap" 12/18 on MyDD. Inspired by a narrow loss at "taking over" the TX Dems in June '08 and upset over a "institutionalist" decision "not to compete statewide in 2006" Annatopia is trying "to hand deliver a copy of Crashing the Gate to every TDP officer and SDEC [State Democratic Executive Committee] member."

Annatopia feels "that the Texas Democratic Party should no longer rely on turncoat big donors (like the ones who sabotaged Chris Bell by jumping ship to support "Independent Republican" Carole Strayhorn), and instead should build their small donor base. We believe that we should have a functioning party in all 254 counties, and we believe that it is a show of respect to travel the state and ask every voter for their support. We don't believe in waiting for demographics to shift in our favor; we believe in aggressively reaching out to the emerging Latino majority."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Just Say No

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas advises Kossacks against "those extended warranties Best Buy and others try to sell you." After seeing a friend struggle to get Best Buy to honor a warranty on a digital camera, Kos did "a little bit of Googling" on consumer warranties and pronounced them "scams." After noting Business Week reports that retailers often make better profits on the warranties than the items themselves, Kos posts a brief USA Today ad sponsored by Consumer Reports reading:

Dear Shopper,
Despite what the salesperson says, you don't need an Extended Warranty.
Yours truly,
Consumer Reports

LEST WE FORGET: 'Tis The Season For Wholesale Smiting

RedState's Moe Lane blegs for reviews of Eternal Forces, the video game based on the Left Behind book/movie series. Lane writes: "What I want to know is, can it sustain the comprehensive levels of violence and sustained automatic weapons fire that I would personally require from a Tribulation-based game? And can I reasonably expect to be able to fire tank rounds and/or SAMs at demons at some point during game play?"

Lane continues: "PS: I'm being serious. I'd love to play a real, honest-to-God Apopcalyptic game that was done by people who actually knew something about the Book of Revelation. But I gotta have the wholesale Smiting."

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:17 PM

December 18, 2006

12/18: The More Things Change ...

While plenty of lefty blogger criticism of incoming Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid's (D-NV) endorsement of a brief Iraq troop increase can be found, some prominent bloggers were calling for a change in how the netroots treats Dem leaders; specifically a shift from focussing on what pols say, to what pols do. Not all Dems will be receiving the lighter treatment however. Rep. Ellen Tauscher's (D-CA) vote for the Iraq war, her perceived coziness with K Street and Pres. Bush, have already made her the netroots number one target for '08's primary season.

IRAQ: It's Time For A Change?

Reid's endorsement of a "surge" of US troops for Iraq drew wide netroots attention. Reaction was generally negative with some Reid defenders hoping he had a larger strategy in mind and others suggesting all criticism of Dem leadership should cease for now. Those firmly against Reid's statements include:

• Talking Points Memo's David Kurtz: "Harry Reid sips the Kool-aid."
• The Huffington Post's Cenk Uygur: "Harry Reid displayed classic Democratic plantation mentality on Sunday. ... Democrats need to shake the cobwebs out and realize they have been given power. They weren't given power so that they can continue to bow down to the absurd ideas of this out of control administration.
• Arianna Huffington: "Part of what has enabled this disastrous war from the beginning has been the willful delusion about who George Bush is and how he operates. ... As the old saying goes, there is nothing so permanent as a temporary solution. Except President Bush's incompetence, willful denial of reality and refusal to listen to the will of the American people. We don't need a surge of those any more than we need a surge of troops in Iraq.
• Daily Kos' Kargo X: "The political problem, of course, is the same one we've been dealing with all along. Fear of the "Dems are soft on the war/terror" meme. Or its evil twin, "We coulda won if it hadn't been for those meddling Democrats." But the time has come to cut Bush off."

Those hoping Reid has some other larger strategy behind his endorsement of more troops include:

• Atrios: "People seem to be upset that Reid sorta-endorsed the McCain/Lieberman plan to increase the number of troops in the short run. I don't really see it that way - no Senator can expect to micromanage troop levels in Iraq. Reid basically said that he's fine with any strategy which has the goal of getting the troops out by about next Spring. That, of course, isn't the McCain/Lieberman strategy."
• AMERICAblog's John Aravosis: "Reid may be using the troop increase as a backdoor way of getting a firm commitment to end our combat engagement in Iraq by 2008. By giving our commanders on the ground what they want - if in fact they want more troops - Reid and the Democrats are seen as supporting our commanders rather than undercutting the war effort, and ultimately being blamed by the Republicans for losing the war. But at the same time, Reid is giving our generals, and our commander in chief, one last change to fix things. And if they don't, we're out of there - the public will know that Bush has lost this war, Harry Reid gave him a fair shot, and it was the Democrats that finally got our troops home safely."
• Daily Kos' BarbinMD: "[i]t is true that when the troops are withdrawn from Iraq, additional forces will be required as a protection force. Hopefully this is what Reid was proposing.

TPM's Kurtz wasn't buying the logic behind a Reid gambit: "There are any number of problems with this reasoning, both politically and substantively, not the least of which is the assumption that Bush will send additional troops (check), it won't work (check), and then he'll be forced to begin a large-scale withdrawal of U.S. forces (right--just like he was going to be forced to do after the Democrats took Congress and after the ISG report). ... On the political side, 71% of Americans disapprove of Bush's handling of Iraq. Why are Democrats still looking for political cover?

Over at MyDD, Chris Bowers urges his fellow netrooters to tone done the Reid criticism:

We will also need to make a transition online. ... The latest blogswarm on Harry Reid is a particularly good example of the ways in which we need to transition ourselves. Simply put, our behavior today is not how we should be acting anymore. ... What our leaders say in public will quickly mean quite a bit less than what types of legislation and oversight they propose and conduct. For example, if one of our leaders makes a misstep in an interview on a staid, Sunday morning talk show about Iraq, that means a lot less than what that leader does or does not do to facilitate oversight, and what legislation that leader passes to help actually change course in Iraq.

I seriously doubt Harry Reid will pursue a course of policy that will lead to troop increases. If he does then that is when we need to oppose what he is doing as strongly as possible. However, if we instead throw all of our might against one poorly phrased sentence, we won't be able to mount a more serious opposition to a far more serious development. I mean, we go apoplectic all the friggin' time, we quickly turn the movement into a bunch of little boys crying wolf.

DEM FIELD: One Down, Two To Go

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas tells readers he "like[s] Bayh plenty in the Senate" and reminds readers that his 12/17 exit "would make Vilsack and Clinton the last two DLCers in the race. (And I mean that literally. Vilsack replaced Bayh as the organization's chairman.)"

Looking at Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) putative entrance into the race, Atrios argues there is still room for a progressive in the field: "I think the primary thing that an Obama run does is kill what was the long held conventional wisdom that the race would be between Hillary and someone who manages to emerge as the Not Hillary. Obama could've been the Not Hillary if he'd gone that path, but his knee-jerk tendency to triangulate has made that unlikely. So, right now we're looking at Hillary, Obama, and NotHillaryOrObama, who will probably be Edwards.

MyDD's Jonathan Singer also argues for a progressive alternative to Clinton/Obama but has other names in mind: "Like Atrios, I see John Edwards as being the frontrunner for this position, though he is not a prohibitive one. Should Al Gore decide to or be cajoled to run, he would likely be able to fulfill this role, though if he doesn't others, including Bill Richardson, Wes Clark or even someone else (though probably not Mike Gravel), could play the part. But the key is finding the one consensus candidate to fulfill this role."

EDWARDS: Runnin' With The Big Boys

Just returned from LA 02, MyDD's Tim Tagaris looks at news Edwards will announce his candidacy from New Orleans, LA, and comments: "Of all the candidates potentially running for the Democratic nomination, John Edwards is uniquely positioned to work storm and flood recovery into his central message."

Also at MyDD, while looking at the importance of card check campaigning to organized labor, Nancy Scola writes: "It's no secret here that Edwards wants to enter the election season as a champion of American labor, a friend to the union movement. ... He's courting the big-boy unions. And he's turned to former House Whip Dave Bonior to lead his possible presidential run. ... Bonior's the chair of American Rights at Work, a group whose raison d'etre is to help workers get unionized."

KERRY: Damascus Or Bust

The Democratic Daily's Pamela Leavey defends Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) from Boston Herald's Jules Crittenden's criticism of Kerry's trip to Syria. Leavey writes: "Considering the claims by so many right wing bloggers that Kerry is irrelevant, they all spend an awful lot of time giving him coverage on the blogosphere. Which leaves open the interpretation that Kerry is, as we all know, a huge threat to BushCo apologists in the blogosphere and the BushCo shills and hacks like Jules Crittenden."

OBAMA: Bad For The Brand?

The smaller fish in the lefty blogger sea are starting to defend Obama from big kahuna criticism of his positions and rhetoric. Unfogged takes on Atrios accusations that Obama has a "knee-jerk tendency to triangulate." UF writes: ""Triangulate" connotes what Hilzoy calls "bad bipartisanship:" compromising principles for political gain. But there's very little evidence that Obama has done that. And disagreeing with other liberals about issue X doesn't make one a triangulator, as long as one actually believes that liberals are wrong on issue X. I don't get the sense that Obama's religion, for example, is a put on. If you don't like his position, fine, but saying that he's triangulating adds a baseless insult to a substantive disagreement."

Atrios responds: "Anyway, to clarify - Obama's triangulation is more rhetorical than real. One can triangulate by picking a Third Way position, or one can triangulate by picking a position and calling it the Third Way and that's what Obama tends to do. ... It may be dishonest or he may genuinely mean it, and I don't much care. Dishonesty has an honorable place in politics. ... My problem with triangulation is that it's a way for a man to win an election, but not a way to build a party's brand. It's a short term strategy to benefit an individual, not a long term strategy to increase the size of the tribe."

In a separate exchange, IL's ArchPundit takes on David Sirotacriticism of Obama's "peddling the Great Education Myth." ArchPundit responds by summing up Obama's policy prescriptions for globalization woes: "Immediately after that passage Obama talks about how workers need a need social safety net, and spends about 10 pages talking how workers need better unemployment and trade adjustment assistance, and introduces the concept of wage insurance, expanding EITC, better bargaining power for unions, portable pensions, health care, bankruptcy reform to fix the garbage that was passed, etc."

RICHARDSON: Firmly For Withdrawal

Daily Kos' MissLaura gives credit to NM Gov. Bill Richardson for calling "for a firm date in 2007 for withdrawal from Iraq" while at the winter NH Dem meeting. Laura comments: "As Democratic presidential contenders begin campaigning seriously, Iraq is going to be one of the issues to watch; of the presumed candidates Richardson appears to be staking out one of the firmer positions for withdrawal."

GINGRICH: Bested By Bill Again

Ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich (R) received rave righty blogger reviews for his 12/17 Meet the Press appearance. The Corner's Jonah Goldberg writes: "I'm a critic of what appears to be his burgeoning front-porch strategy for the White House and I'm skeptical about his chances generally, but he really is the best conservative talker in America right now. He simply has no peer, save for Bill Clinton, in the ability to extemporaneously explain an idea - or beat one back - and sound perfectly reasonable in the process."

Also impressed, Captain's Quarters wonders if Gingrich's '08 strategy can pay off: "The lack of a credible conservative candidate also plays to this strategy. He can allow himself to get drafted late in the process, avoiding some of the internecine fighting of the early campaigning and perhaps even be a figure of unity within the GOP. Clever indeed. Gingrich has always been clever, but he has miscalculated in the past. We'll have to wait until Labor Day to see whether he has this time."

ROMNEY: He Does Have Great Hair

Eye on '08 has solidified itself as the go-to destination for Romney haters. Recent E'08 hits include criticism of Romney's SC staff, amplification of Christian Broadcast Network coverage of Romney's Log Cabin letter, and charges of "flip-flopping." The last item even drew a correction from New Hampshire Union Leader's Drew Cline who writes: "Some anti-Mitt Romney outfit calling itself eyeon08.com has included me in a list of "MSM" members down on Romney for flip-flopping on abortion and marriage. Not so. I haven't made up my mind about Romney yet. Nor do I have to. It's a long way to the primary. Heck, I haven't even interviewed him yet. But I do like his hair.

Over at The Corner, Rich Lowry shares "a top conservative strategist's" thoughts on Romney's recent troubles: "He thinks the gay and abortion flip-flops are uncomfortable for him, but certainly survivable and not any worse than we've seen from other Republicans who have won the nomination." The strategist goes on to warn Team Romney about overpandering though: "Romney got into the top tier partly by getting to the right on everything through various Massachusetts controversies. I can see how his announcement yesterday on illegals, though, might have made some conservatives begin to think, "Geez, you're really pandering to me."

The Right Angle's Matt Lewis responds: "Howard Dean made this mistake in 2004. Being the liberal/outsider/blog guy got him noticed -- but in the end -- it also brought him down. ... In retrospect, Dean should have used his liberal blogger image to separate him from the pack and get him into the top tier -- and then he should have pivoted into running a more traditional campaign."

In other Romney news, TN's Bill Hobbs compares Romney to Ronald Reagan after an event in Nashville, TN. Hugh Hewitt argues the '08 field will be decided on foreign, not domestic issues, and that Romney is his man for the war on terror. Right Wing News counters Hewitt arguing Pres. Bush "has been steadfast on national security issues and not so hot on the domestic side" before noting Bush's anemic approval numbers.

THOMPSON: Some Good Grubbs

IA's Caucus Cooler and Krusty Konservative both have nothing but good things to say about ex-HHS Sec./ex-WI Gov. Tommy Thompson in light of his hiring of Steve Grubbs to head up his IA efforts.

CA 10: Just One Ned Lamont Away From Being The Next CT SEN

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas posts a photo of Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) with Pres. Bush from right before the Iraq war and writes: "That's soon-to-be-primaried Ellen Tauscher with you-know-who. ... And if you're wondering what a netroots-backed primary challenge looks like from day one, read this. We're going to have fun with this future race."

Kos' "this" is a Political Cortex post lamenting CA's 300th Iraq war death. PC's Blogswarm adds: "I am disgusted by Tauscher and I'm too pissed off to write what I really think. I don't mind swearing in blog posts, but I lack the words to describe how I fell about Ellen Tauscher."

Calitics documents the scrubbing of the Bush/Tauscher photo from Tauscher's official website and adds: "I really don't know what to think. Photos online don't just disappear unless somebody (in this case a federal employee) takes the time to remove -- or scrub -- the website of the photo. Why did this happen? Is this even legal?" Firedoglake's Jane Hamsher also noticed the picture go missing: "Don't worry, Ellen. We'll remember."

BELTWAY VS. BLOGGERS: Politics As Usual

Blog P.I. tracks a blogosphere rumor about possible incoming Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) opposition research on a list of VA bloggers (both right and left) and doesn't see anything out of the ordinary. Commenting on Webb research into official "Netroots Coordinator" Lowell Feld, Blog P.I. writes: "Why on Earth would he want to risk alienating his chief ally in the blogosphere? Easy: To protect himself. Everybody who follows politics at least casually knows about oppo research, but the flip-side of that seamy-but-crucial campaign activity is what's called self-research. ... Some Virginia bloggers assume this research might have been used for character assassination, but what's more likely is the Dem-side research was done to decide whether to hire Feld in the first place, and whether to associate with other bloggers. Do we really expect that a Senate campaign wouldn't do this kind of due diligence?"

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: The Right Questions

The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum is shocked to find himself asking the same questions Instapundit is. Instapundit writes:

We like to treat this [i.e., the broad war on terror] as a military problem because (1) we're good at those; and (2) that seems to produce simple questions, like "more troops, or not?" Trouble is, those probably aren't the right questions. ... Our Army size was entirely adequate for crushing Saddam's forces in short order. It's probably adequate to doing the same to Iran's forces. It's not up to fully policing a big country once we've done that. Do we want a military that is?

Drum then links to a summary of a New Yorker piece describing the GWOT as a "global counterinsurgency" and writes: "Food for thought. I confess that I'm not entirely sure (a) exactly what a "global counterinsurgency" would entail, although a few of its features are fairly clear, and (b) whether we ought to create a branch of the military dedicated to occupation and peacekeeping (since it seems unlikely to me that our existing Army can do both that and fight conventional wars). I lean toward believing that we should, because even though I'd like to see us fight many fewer wars than we do, it's inevitable that we're going to fight at least few. As long as that's the case, we better learn how to fight them successfully."

LEST WE FORGET: It's Your World, The Rest Of Us Just Live In It

Blogger derision of Time's decision to name everybody person of the year was widespread. MyDD new comer Nancy Scola had the wittiest reaction: "I'm with Markos in tagging this a cop-out, though perhaps not surprising following years where the picks were "The American Soldier" and "Whistleblowers." Next year the magazine's cover will just be blank and will arrive in the mail with a crayon taped to it with which you can express your singular vision by just drawing someone's face in. Or a picture of your cat. Whatever. It's your world, the rest of us just live in it."

While Scola had a great line, Blog P.I. deserves credit for predicting this move two months ago when they wrote at the time: "[I]t's only been about 10 months since Time Magazine declined to choose an individual for its much-devalued Person of the Year award, so it only stands to reason they're back in the hunt. It's also been nearly a decade since Time named someone (or thing) from the tech industry - Jeff Bezos in 1999 - and more than 20 years since they named the PC its "Machine of the Year." Also, it's not an election year, so it won't be the winner of the presidential election. It's time for another gimmick!"

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:28 PM

December 14, 2006

12/14: Immigration And '08

Maybe it's because we're close to Christmas, but outside of Michelle Malkin the usual righty blogger suspects aren't blaring as loud as normal following 12/13's Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid of meatpacking plants in 6 states. The early consensus on ex-Rep.-elect Ciro Rodriguez's (D) victory over Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-TX) seems to be that hardline GOP positions on immigration cost them the seat. Already, one righty blogger is questioning the political expediency of pushing the immigration issue. With MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) deputizing state law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration laws, how many other '08 hopefuls will move closer to Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) position on immigration?

TX 23: Rove's Nightmare Comes True?

Almanac of American Politics editor Charles Mahtesian's Hotline On Call observation on Rodriguez's victory drew wide blogger reaction. Mahtesian wrote: "Take a look at these remarkable numbers in Maverick County. Bonilla won it with 59% in 2004, even as Kerry was carrying the county; Bonilla lost it 86-14% tonight. Maverick County is a border county and home to Eagle Pass, where the border fence issue was huge. Bonilla's vote in favor of a fence made an enormous difference here."

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas comments: "Boy, has the "border fence" issue backfired disastrously on the GOP ... Here's what Rove knew -- second-generation Latinos were more likely to be Democratic. Naturalized Latinos, however, trended heavily Republican. Bush won recent immigrants in 2004. Liberalized immigration laws and a path to citizenship would've solidified millions of Latinos as future Republicans, grateful for being given the opportunity. Instead, the Tancredo crowd has pushed Latinos into the open arms of the Democratic Party."

AMERICAblog's Joe in DC weighs in: "The GOP decided to follow the immigrant-bashing strategy of "Tex" Sensenbrenner. The Republicans can only demonize and beat up on people for so long before they fight back. Of course, that doesn't help explain why one in four gay people vote Republican."

The analysis even had some righty bloggers re-thinking their immigration stance. Ankle Biting PunditsBull Dog Pundit writes: "To me, this story is very disconcerting to those, like me, who have a "Border Security First" view of the immigration issue. ... What gives me trepidation about the result is that it appears Bonilla's support of the border fence cost him the race ... ominously for those of us who agree with the view of "enforcement first", I don't think there's any other way to spin this race other than to say that argument caused Bonilla's defeat - in a "border" county no less. For the record, I'm not saying I think my view on immigration is the wrong one in practice. I'm just saying that politically, it may not be a winner."

Other non-immigration related thoughts on the race include:

• Kos: "Tom DeLay's redistricting gambit was a huge disaster. ... I used to be in favor of tit-for-tat mid-decade redistricting in Democratic-controlled states. I've changed my mind."
• The Corner's Jonathan Martin: "There is, however, one bright spot in yesterday's results, at least for true-blue conservatives. Rep. Henry Bonilla's (R) loss marks the seventh defeat or retirement this cycle of a Republican appropriator - eight if you include the Duke-stir.
• The Right Angle's John Gizzi: "Withered Grassroots Helped Defeat Bonilla, Says Texas GOP's Ex-Chairman ... So says Tom Pauken, former Reagan Administration official, longtime conservative activist, and state Republican chairman of Texas from 1993-96. ... He added that the decline in volunteers and grass-roots activist "is something apparent in most of our counties, including Bexar County [San Antonio]," which is the hub of the district Bonilla has held since 1992."

IMMIGRATION: In A Completely Unrelated Story ...

Immigration and Customs Enforcement's raid on meat-packing plants in 6 states drew heavy blogger attention, the heft of it from the right. Michelle Malkin and The Right Angle's Ivy Sellers focussed on the identity theft angle of the story, with Malkin noting "One of the victims was a Border Patrol agent!" CO's Slapstick Politics rounded up MSM coverage of the story and Malkin complains that New York Timescoverage of the raids highlighted "arrested workers' families in tears" and not "any of the hundreds of American victims of illegal alien identity theft whose Social Security numbers were stolen to enable the illegal alien workers to work."

The Lonewacko calls the raids "too little too late" and sees them only as evidence of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Pres. Bush serving their "massive amnesty" masters. Lashawn Barber and Captain's Quarters both want more punishment for companies like the raided meatpacker. CQ writes: "The company faces no charges because they acted in good faith. They used the Basic Pilot system to check on the credentials of their workers, and the system reported that the SSNs were legitimate. ... However, that did not keep Swift from angrily denouncing the raids and Basic Pilot as ineffective, a position they took at Congressional hearings this summer. ... The government has let private industry off the hook for their use of illegal immigrants for too long, and it's good to see that change. However, we had better be prepared for the economic damage this could cause."

Malkin seconded CQ's call for economic sacrifice: "Yes, it's something I've repeated often. We have all been immunized from the consequences of lax immigration enforcement. On 9/11, 3,000 people paid for some of the costs with their lives. Higher meat prices, more expensive hotels, and costlier produce are nothing compared to what many other victims of open-borders chaos have suffered."

On the left TPMmuckraker's coverage was widely cited by other bloggers. Muckraker highlighted two MSM stories: one on ICE agents allegedly separating workers by skin color to determine citizenship; and another on a baby left motherless.

GOP FIELD: Conservative Candidate Wanted

The Corner's Rich Lowry says a piece on ex-VA Gov. Jim Gilmore (R) "reminded me of my 2008 Republican-primary principle: if you're a conservative, run!" Lowry profiles the rest of the field: "Romney projects as a strong candidate, but if he stumbles, there is going to be a big gap for a non-McCain conservative. Who would fill it? Brownback? Huckabee? If you are a conservative office-holder (or former office-holder apparently) out there, you've got to think, 'Well, why am I any more unlikely than any of those guys?'" He concludes: "Jim Gilmore wants to fill the slot George Allen's defeat left open."

BROWNBACK: The Next Pat Robertson?

Eye on '08 doubts Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) has the star power to eclipse MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) as the conservative alternative to Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): "I've heard that he's been on the phone this week contacting leaders who are publicly and privately unhappy with Romney. Right now, conservatives and evangelicals, especially, are looking for a leader who is genuinely with them, not just someone they can rent. ... But, in the end, Sam Brownback doesn't become President, and I don't think Brownback thinks he will be President. He thinks that either, he becomes VP or he becomes the public spokesman for the conservative Christian movement, in the same way that Pat Robertson's 1988 race made him the public face."

GIULIANI: Forget DuHaime, Is K-Lo Faltering?

The Right Angle's Matt Lewis describes ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani's (R) hiring of Mike DuHaime as "huge" because "it is a clear signal that Rudy -- currently the most popular GOP candidate in America (if you believe the polls) -- is in this thing."

At The Corner, Romney/Santorum fan Kathryn Jean Lopez describes Giuliani as "positively Santorum-like" for his recent comments on "Islam-fundamentalist terrorists" and adds: "And Rudy did campaign for Rick . Giuliani-Santorum 2008? That might make Peoria give the NY guy a second look."

MCCAIN: Regulate First, Ask Questions Later

Team McCain moved rapidly to squelch bad blogger buzz after Drudge and Slashdot both linked to a CNET story on McCain's "Stop the Online Exploitation of Our Children Act." McCain's office contacted Instapundit claiming the bill does not create a blogger obligation to monitor or discover child porn, only to report it once aware of it. Apparently the bill is directed at "the MySpaces of the world," not individual bloggers. Instapundit was not convinced: "I've given the bill a quick read -- text here -- and it doesn't seem entirely clear to me that it doesn't reach individual bloggers, regardless of intent. ... UPDATE: Email from InstaPundit readers is universally mistrustful of McCain, which is indicative of just how much damage he's done himself with his support of campaign finance "reform."

The Directors at RedState were less forgiving, calling McCain "The Regulator" under the header "John McCain Wants To Regulate You Until You Shut Up." The Directors add: "We'd love it if, just once, John McCain's good intentions led to something besides massive government regulation of our daily lives." Also at RedStatemachiavel adds: "As a pander to what the Senator endearingly terms "the far-right base" it's probably good politics -- or at least someone in his office thought so. But, as legislation, it's very poorly crafted and shows a certain cluelessness when it comes to the medium he has repeatedly tried to regulate to death. It also dashes the hope expressed by some that McCain would represent a revival of the Goldwater-Gingrich "leave us alone" coalition that could drive a stake through the heart of Big Government Conservatism. As with CFR, as with Kyoto, as with the gun-show loophole, McCain's answer is always to regulate first, and ask questions later -- the essence of Big Government "conservatism."

Reacting to Robert Novak's 12/13 op-ed on GOP liklihood of nominating McCain since he is the "corporate choice," Captain's Quarter's writes: "The problem with the corporate choice, in Novak's history, is that it tends to favor the Rockefeller Republicans. Gerald Ford, Dole (Ford's running mate in 1976), and Bush all came from the moderate wing of the party. ... I tend to doubt Novak's analysis in this case. The previous corporate choices, if they can truly be known as such, had one particular quality even above their political moderation: consistency. McCain, on the other hand, has spent the last several years nurturing his reputation as a maverick. He has waffled on tax cuts, opposing them for most of the time since they got enacted in 2002-3 until deciding to run for President. He has been unreliable on judicial nominations, and reliably bad on free speech."

Captain's Quarters also has doubts as to whether MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) has the credentials to shore up the GOP's conservative base.

ROMNEY: Where Is Romney On Iraq?

Romney continues to take heavy blogger criticism for his 1994 statements on gay marriage. The Right Angle's Ivy Sellers and Ankle Biting Pundit's Bull Dog Pundit both are unimpressed with Romney's brush off of AP inquiries into gay marriage record. Eye on '08 notes that Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network's The Brody File is on day three of their Romney "assault." The Brody File even posts an email response from Romney's Communications Director including Romney's 6/04 Senate testimony on the Federal Marriage Amendment and his remarks to a 10/06 "Liberty Sunday" event.

Eye on '08 is even moved to respond to commenter suggestion that Romney is "toast." The Eye writes: "In the end, Romney has three things going for him which will make him the most important #2 to McCain: 1) Romney may be able to raise as much or more money than McCain; 2) Romney will have all the talent he needs at all levels; 3) He is still the most credible anti-McCain because of 1 and 2. ... Simply put, I don't believe that anyone else can put together a 50-state operation, especially in Iowa, which is what it will take to challenge McCain."

In addition to troubles on the social conservative front, trouble on the national security front is slowly brewing as well. The Corner's Rich Lowry asks: "Just curious-has anyone heard him say anything on troop levels in Iraq? If he has, I've missed it." Streiff at RedState also wants to know when Romney's position on the ISG will be forthcoming.

Turning to good blogo-Romney news, The Right Angle celebrates Romney's "tough stance on immigration" and Krusty Konservative's IA sources tell him Gentry Collins will lead Romney efforts in IA and will play a role nationally. KK adds: "This move shows us how important Iowa is in Romney's quest to win the Republican presidential nomination. Gentry Collins is hands-down one of the best people that you could get to run an Iowa kampaign."

Finally, The Right Angle's Matt Lewis argues its high time Team Romney hired an official blogger and links to Robert Bluey's earlier list of GOP blogger options.

CLINTON: Ski Bum

Tom Schaller at Tapped cites a Rocky Mountain News story suggesting that Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) would actually benefit from Denver, calling it "spot on." Schaller: "Yet a source close enough to the site machinations told me last week that Clinton is really pushing for New York. I confirmed with Clinton blogger nonpareil Peter Daou that, in fact, Hillary wants NYC to host the convention. As an advocate of the pan-western strategy for Democrats, with special focus on the Interior West and Midwest, I think it would be a tragic error to have the 2008 convention in New York." Schaller says Denver would help so much it "makes me wonder if the Hillary teams is really providing any resources beyond lip service to secure New York as the site."

Later, Schaller reports on a conversation with James Carville, who thinks HRC can win FL, OH, CO, NV, MN and IA -- all states Pres. Bush took in '04.

Firedoglake's Jane Hamsher criticizes HRC for "hanging out with Holy Joe" Lieberman "and scolding folks about violent video games." Hamsher suggests Clinton and Lieberman "really need to do something" about Wal-Mart's refusal to pull the Left Behind: Eternal Forces video game, in which one opponent of the game says "you are mowing down your enemy with a gun. It pushes a message of religious intolerance."

OBAMA: No Crowbar Needed To Pry Him Into The Race

TMPcafe's Eric Kleefeld reports on an ad on behalf of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), being run by DraftObama.com movement in NH. Kleefeld has a copy of the ad and surmises that "if Obama's recent high-profile activity in New Hampshire is any indication, conscription may not exactly be required to get Obama in the race."

Over at the Coffeehouse, M.J. Rosenberg comments on recent CNN segments featuring several on-air personalities questioning Obama's name. "Pretty racist, if you ask me. I don't recall CNN playing with Joe Lieberman's name when he first went national in 2000." More: "You can't mock Jews or African-Americans and you can mock people with Arab-sounding names and so CNN will." He concludes: "Anyway, no reason for us Obama fans to be upset. It is still 2006. They can ridicule the Senator's name for another year. The joke will be long stale by the end of 2007." For the record, Rosenberg also suggests a running mate for Obama: Al Gore.

BLOGGERS VS. BELTWAY: The Season Of Giving

At Daily Kos, Adam B is able to shed more light on how much money Dems gave to the DCCC and individual Dems. Top 10 "heroes":

Nancy Pelosi (raised/gave $59,400,143) Rahm Emanuel ($42,200,158) Debbie Wasserman Schultz ($14,923,765) Chris Van Hollen ($13,997,311) Joe Crowley ($7,799,144) Steny Hoyer ($7,441,619) Mike Thompson ($5,453,005) John Murtha ($4,514,249) Jan Schakowsky ($3,516,160) George Miller ($3,320,050)

And the top "Misers" who sat on the largest CoH.

Marty Meehan (MA)
Frank Pallone (NJ)
Robert Andrews (NJ)
Lloyd Doggett (TX)
Steve Rothman (NJ)
Bill Delahunt (MA)
Jerry Costello (IL)
Bud Cramer (AL)
Tom Lantos (CA)
Richard Neal (MA)
Jesse Jackson Jr. (IL)

MyDD's Jonathan Singer writes that one of the few disappointments in '06 was allowing incumbents like Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA 42) to run unopposed. The Los Angeles Times reported this week that Miller, on the day Monrovia's City Council was to vote on whether to turn land owned by Miller into a wilderness preserve, asked a staffer to find a way to place one of the councilmen on the "prestigious" National Park System Advisory Board. And internal memos show that Miller "continued to push for the councilman's appointment even after staff members warned him that trying to secure the park board seat for the councilman could appear to be a bribe." The Hill adds that Miller attempted to secure earmarks for the city to buy property he owned.

Singer: "In short, this guy has a serious ethics, if not corruption problem and we -- the Netroots, the Democratic Party, and House Democrats -- were remiss for not actively recruiting a candidate to run against him this year. This mistake cannot and must not be repeated this year, either in California's 42nd district or anywhere else."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Another Shameless Republican

Reacting to Tom Delaysuggestions that righty bloggers need to fight harder on line, Insta-Wife Dr. Helen responds:

Many times, people mistakenly call me a Republican although I am a right-leaning libertarian. Apparently, labeling one as a Republican gives ammunition to call one sexist, evil, mean-spirited or just plain scum. How many times do you hear someone apologizing for having right leaning views -- "Oh, no, I am not really a Republican, I have other views etc." My question is, what if one is a Republican or right leaning. So what? Is that a crime? Are those who are Republicans afraid to speak their views at universities, in academic settings, in the media etc. for fear of being labeled something vile? Maybe speaking up and not slinking around in shame would be a better strategy.

It seems like those with views other than liberal must wear the Scarlet R. Well, I will not hide any longer. If people want to call me a Republican, I will wear the label with pride with the R proudly displayed on my forehead whether it really fits or not, just to show my solidarity with those who are oppressed by such labels. Maybe you should too.

LEST WE FORGET: Blame Canada

Deadspin links to an Out of Left Field makes the case that Canada dominated its neighbor to the south in the sporting world this year. Items on his list include:

• Cindy Klassen, whose five medals were the highlight of this country's most successful Winter Olympics, was named the winner of the Lou Marsh Award just minutes ago as Canada's outstanding athlete. She symbolizes this year in Canadian sport, before Steve Nash and three other reigning MVPs -- soccer's Christine Sinclair as U.S. women's college athlete of the year, Justin Morneau in major-league baseball and Joe Thornton in the NHL.
• The World Series was a mistake-fest that was won by a team which had fewer regular-season victories than the Toronto Blue Jays, not that St. Louis Cardinals fans should feel need to apologize for their unlikely victory.
• World Baseball Classic? Canada, with a lineup of pros who earn less combined than Alex Rodriguez, who couldn't even decide what team he wanted to play for, beat Team USA, which was triumph enough. The powerhouse U.S. team couldn't even get to the semifinals.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:26 PM

December 13, 2006

12/13: Are You Ready For Some '08?

While lefty bloggers had plenty of otherthings to say about Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) 12/12, surprisingly few had anything to day about Obama's 12/11 Monday Night Football intro. The Plank had a post before the clip aired more poking fun at MNF's cultural demise than commenting on Obama, and Crooks and Liars posted the video (a full 30 hours after it aired), but among the netroots big boys, nary a mention. Righty bloggers on the other hand couldn't get enough of the bit. Were they genuinely impressed with Obama's sense of humor, or were they just happy to see Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) squirm?

OBAMA: Why Do Lefties Hate Football? ... And Why Do Righties Hate The NFC?

The Corner was full of reactions to Obama's MNF intro 12/11. Rich Lowry included some email reactions of readers:

• I watched the Bears game with my father & wife's grandfather in Dupage County, Illinois. Unlike the rest of America we know how to vote. (Have fun in Washington, Congressman Peter Roskam!) Both my father & my wife's grandfather started voting Republican right out of the womb. But when the Obama Monday Night Football cameo ended they both turned to each other & said, "I like that guy." Mitt, John & Rudy, be afraid, very afraid.
• Obama's turn on Monday Night Football was actually very well done. I don't like his politics, but it's hard not to like the person. He's got an easy smile and came across like "It's cool to be asked to do this, so I am doing it." Nothing awkward at all. He's very non-threatening.
• I think it was a pretty good political move. Any chance to snub Hillary, who at times has portrayed herself as some sort of Chicago sports fan, is a plus for him.
• The NFC has become so much worse, and more boring, than the AFC, that I did not even know it happened until you told me.

The Right Angle's Ivy Sellers posts video of the clip and adds: "After watching the clip, I've got to hand it to the guy -- that was pretty good. Hillary had to be squirming for a minute or two."

Definitely not watching football 12/11, Andrew Sullivan does post the text of Obama's address to Rick Warren's mega-church and liked Obama's words: "They impress me. They give me hope. That's all for now. And it's enough for now."

Lefty bloggers were watching CNN 12/11 and they were not happy with the network's "cheeky feature segment on the similarity between "Osama" and "Obama," complete with side-by-side photos of the two." The Plank's Michael Crowley acknowledges the bit was intended to be funny but adds: "on some level I'm sure this stuff sinks in." TPM Cafe's Eric Kleefeld includes Obama's quote from the piece: ""I mean, it would be one thing if my name was 'John Hussein Smith.' When you're already starting with 'Barack Obama...'"

Obama's NH tour continued to draw lefty blogger reaction 12/12. TAPPED's Ezra Klein admits to finding the "Obama hype" puzzling, but after watching video of Obama in NH, he came away impressed: "It's one of the most remarkable addresses I've ever seen, and, in its soft and irresistible way, it explains the whole of the buzz. In possibly the most telling section, he gives a great riff on health care, which manages to totally inspire while not actually saying anything sweeping or controversial. Watching it, you'd swear he just promised the stars, the sky, and universal insurance, when he really just committed to electronic records. And yet, you scarcely mind, if you even noticed.

Also commenting on the substance Obama's NH speech, The Huffington Post's David Sirota is in full attack mode: "Most of Obama's speech is a rambling ode to happy-sounding concepts like "democracy" and "unity" and "bipartisanship." It was only toward the end that the audience got a taste of substance on the defining economic issue of the next 50 years: globalization."

Sirota goes on to hit Obama for buying into the "Great Education Myth - the idea that if we only just made everyone in America smarter, we would solve outsourcing, wage depression and health care/pension benefit cuts that are the result of forcing Americans to compete in an international race to the bottom." Sirota continues, blaming "Big Money" for propagating the Great Education Myth so they can deflect attention away from reform of "our trade policy to equalize capital protections (copyrights/patents) and human protections (labor/wage/enviro)."

LANDSCAPE '08: They Took The Country To Pottery Barn, Not Us

Picking up on Hotline editor Chuck Todd's 12/12 observation that former Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) advisor Mike Murphy's 12/12 Los Angeles Timesop-ed seemed to scream: "PRES. BUSH, STOP IRAQ FROM BEING A 'REPUBLICAN WAR'!" DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas writes: "Ultimately, it is Bush's war, even though McCain and Lieberman have struggled mightily to make it theirs as well."

Kos continues: "Democrats have made clear their solution -- a withdrawal timetable. That is our solution. Bush, McCain, Lieberman, the remaining neocons, and the "serious" pundits are betting that sending more troops and some extra loud clapping will spontaneously generate magic ponies in Iraq and all will be well. They're wrong, and all they're doing is getting more of our own killed, but they've making their choice in opposition to Democratic wishes and those of the American people. ... In 2008, there will be no way that Republicans will be able to shirk off responsibility for their war. They broke it, they bought it. It's theirs."

GOP FIELD: A Sweet 16 For McCain

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas invites readers to examine the GOP's '08 primary calendar:

January 21: Iowa
January 28: New Hampshire
February 5: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Michigan,
Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina,
North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah,
and West Virginia.

Kos comments: "That's 16 states in the first two weeks of the race, including delegate-rich New Jersey, Florida, Missouri and Michigan, giving the guy with the most media buzz and money an advantage. At this early point of the race, that person is McCain."

MCCAIN: Romney's Not The Only One With A Past

IA's Krusty Konservative does "not have a horse in the 2008 race" but after hitting Romney earlier KK decided to examine McCain's conservative record:

• Gay marriage: Senator McCain is an opponent of a federal amendment to ban gay marriage.
• Tax Cuts: An early opponent of the Bush tax cuts - McCain voted against them in 2001, citing his desire for fiscal responsibility. Later, he changed his position on the Bush tax cuts and voted for their extension after he began looking towards an '08 run.
• Abortion: McCain says he has a 100% pro-life voting record. While it's not 100%, it's pretty good, overall. However, he has a few are trouble spots.
• Immigration: McCain's position is a tough one for most konservatives, but it's an issue that also haunts konservatives like Brownback and Huckabee.
• McCain Feingold (what's with all the co-sponsorships with the most liberal members of the Senate?): Perhaps the most liberal item in the McCain record - it especially affects political speech on the right, while allowing unions and other voices on the left to go unabated.
• War on Terror: McCain takes a brave stance in support of the Iraq war, calling for a substantial troop increase in the short term to "turn the tide" against the terrorists and rising sectarian violence.
• Spending: this is where I find the most agreement with Senator McCain. He has a very strong record opposing rampant federal spending, pork, and earmarks.
• Ethanol: OK, this isn't an issue for konservatives per se, but it's a big deal for Iowans. McCain has always opposed subsidies for ethanol.

ROMNEY: Getting His $250K Worth

IA's Caucus Cooler posts an email from Romney fundraiser Nicole Schlinger whom CC claims signed with Romney for "somewhere in the neighborhood of 250K." The email titled "Clarifying Gov. Romney's Support for Traditional Marriage" includes:

As you may know, an article is being circulated today by supporters of Sen. John McCain as an attempt to mislead voters about Governor Mitt Romney's unwavering support for traditional marriage. In fact, his record of defending marriage is unassailable, and frankly is unmatched by any other political figure in America. ... He does believe, however, that we should be a tolerant nation. ... Mitt Romney is 100% committed to a federal marriage amendment, while other possible candidates for president, including Senator John McCain, are not.

CC comments: "A couple of small shots at McCain and an empassioned defense of her man. Nice pick-up for team Romney."

Back in DC, Eye on 08 is tracking "Evangelical media" reaction to the "Romney/gay story" including a "Romney Family Values Stand Under Fire" story from "Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network." Eye08 also links to CBN's The Brody File posting about Brian Camenker Mass Resistance group attacking Romney on marriage. Eye08 adds: "When Brody says,"Family conservative activist groups like Family Research Council and Focus on the Family are not happy" he knows what he's talking about."

RedState's Leon Wolf is not done getting his money's worth out of his Lexis access, this time highlighting a 7/25/02 Hotline write up of a Boston Globe piece on Romney and the minimum wage. Wolf comments: "Apart from the fact that this is not exactly a "conservative" or "business-friendly" view of the minimum wage (it is, in fact, one of the oldest plays in the liberal Democrat playbook), the story of Mitt Romney's journey to this position is damning for its similarity to other journeys that Mitt Romney has recently taken."

CLINTON: A Doubly Or Triply Unfortunate Position

The Huffington Post's Sheldon Drobny reminds readers "that Bill Clinton was responsible for the execution of a mentally retarded murderer" due to DLC wishes to demonstrate "that Democrats were not soft on crime." Drobny argues: "I strongly suspect that [Sen.] Hillary [Clinton (D-NY)] voted for the war in Iraq because of the same political expediency."

In a seemingly unrelated post Matthew Yglesias wishes "we could keep the discourse a little bit more elevated" than a New York Timesarticle on gender barriers HRC will face in her WH run but also adds: "There are much better questions to ask about Clinton's views on national security policy than whether she's too girly to handle it. Indeed, there's at least some indication that fear of this sort of misogynistic attack is part of what's motivated her to take such a hawkish line which winds up being doubly or triply unfortunate."

GORE: Dated Obama, Married Gore?

Al Gore's 12/11 refusal to rule out an '08 run continues to tantalize lefty bloggers. Firedoglake's Pachacutec: "From the time I saw An Inconvenient Truth, I thought it was a campaign film. It included a lot of rebranding of his image and some inoculation against his perceived flaws in the public mind, brought to you by the establishment media in 2000."

At The Huffington Post, Taylor Marsh adds: "When you hear a big time politician like Al Gore continue to offer caveats on running for president he's seriously thinking about running for president. ... Or maybe I'm just hoping beyond hopes we will actually have a deep thinking candidate that knows about foreign policy and military issues, while having deep knowledge of the biggest challenge we face in our lifetime, energy independence. So, stop by Run Obama. But then get serious. Say it with me: Run, Al, run."

KUCINICH: The "Cure"

The Nation's John Nichols reports that Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) is running "to cure what ails his own Democratic Party. The Democratic disease, he says, is caution regarding the antiwar position it should be taking." Nichols concludes: "Kucinich's presence in the debates could well sharpen the discussion among Democrats regarding the war. And as Kucinich rightly points out, that sharpening is needed. Indeed, Kucinich argues, the fate of the Democratic Party could rest on the question of how it responds to the desire of Americans to bring the troops home."

Ohio2006 Blog is "very glad that he will join the field. It's not that I think he has a chance to win, it's that his hard-core anti-war stance will force the other Democratic candidates to take seriously the views of anti-war Democratic voters."

TX 23: Christmas Coal For The GOP

MyDD's Chris Bowers celebrates ex-Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D) victory over Rep. Henry Bonilla (R) writing: "This seat is Ciro's to hold until redistricting. He beat an incumbent pretty badly tonight, and now he is once again an incumbent Democrat from a majority minority district. ... Considering Ciro's strong voting record, the TX-23 will be a cornerstone of a blue majority for a long time to come." Bowers also notes the TX's Burny Orange Report was the "first news source in the nation to call the election."

National Review Online's Kathryn Jean Lopez calls the loss "Salt in the November GOP Wound" and RedState's AdamC adds: "I'm not sure Republican leadership understands how bad the GOP brand has been hit in the last 2 years. If anything good can come from this loss, maybe they will realize it wasn't one bad night. It's been a bad two years."

DEMS: And The Next Lieberman Is ...

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas hits former Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) campaign manager Katie Merrill for writing: "Only a month has passed since the Dems took back the House and Senate, and the divisive efforts of the netroots to rid the party of elected officials they don't agree with has geared up in full force." Kos responds: "It's not surprising that this writer ... would try to head off what will be a vicious fight for this seat in a primary. ... Unlike her apparent hero Joe Lieberman, Tauscher won't get a "do-over" if she loses." Kos points readers to a Tausher constituent's response to Merrill at Calitics titled "Ellen Tauscher Does NOT Share My Values":

Last year, after most of the members of Ellen Tauscher's New Democrat Coalition made a rare break with their globalist dogma to vote against CAFTA, NDC leaders scurried to assure K Street lobbyists that the Coalition was still on board to promote future free trade agreements. ... Obviously, Tauscher's highly touted free trade agreements are mostly fair to business, not to labor or Americans concerned with earning a living wage so that they can support themselves and their families.

Earlier Kos linked to The Hill's 12/12 story on increased lobbyist attendance at a recent New Democrat Coalition "meet-and-greet." Kos explains there is nothing wrong with lobbying per se, but does argue the article underscores the importance of Dem enacting "an ethics reform package with real teeth." Kos added: "Meanwhile, keep an eye on Ellen Tauscher. She's going to have a rough 2008."

Also in lefty blogger trouble for support of trade Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) took to The Huffington Post to defend himself from recent David Sirotacriticisms of Frank's "grand bargain" with business. Frank argues Sirota misrepresented his record writing: "I have worked very closely with Rep. Sandy Levin (D-MI), who has been our leader on trade, to insist on the inclusion of all of these items in trade bills, and I have voted against trade bills including NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO for China, fast track authority, etc. for that very reason. ... My Grand Bargain starts with a way for us to pass a broad liberal agenda - including raising wages (not just the minimum wage), health care, labor and environmental standards in trade agreements, more support for access to education, and an increased public sector in many other areas - and I am prepared to work with some aspects of the business community's agenda if we can get them."

Sirota responds: "There is no debate that our current free trade policy and policies that support "more outsourcing" are ones that are A) corporate-written and B) include no wage, environmental or human rights protections. Continuing those current policies, as Frank said was part of his "bargain," would be continuing to have none of those protections. So there's no misrepresentation there at all."

Sirota adds: "Frank then uses the age-old move of going on to say "but wait, look - I am good on other issues!" It's like a magician trying to make you look in one hand so that you take your eye off the other. ... Just because you have done great stuff on some issues, doesn't mean you are automatically immune from questions about other issues."

IRAQ: Opposition Polling Away From The Pack

In the wake of several polls out lately showing less than stellar ratings of the war in Iraq (see Hotline On Call) righties latch onto Gallup's not-as-bad numbers. The Corner's Byron York cites data afewtimes and says the numbers "make it clear that most Americans do not believe the U.S. is losing in Iraq but rather than the situation has deteriorated into stalemate." He spins other numbers in what many see as a pessimistic poll as not as terrible as everyone would have us believe. Paul Mirengoff at Powerline says the numbers show that "many who want to see our forces remain in Iraq in substantial numbers have lost faith in Bush."

In the same post, John Hinderaker adds: "The President's position may not be so dire, as long as he aligns himself with the advice he gets from the military. If he announces publicly that he is going to implement the recommendations made by the Pentagon group that is currently conducting a policy review, it would seem that most Americans would follow his lead."

From the left, Minnesota Monitor links to a CBS News account of the Gallup poll and notes that this poll is the first time Gallup has shown the war in Iraq is more unpopular than the war in Vietnam.

BLOGGER VS. BELTWAY: Gotta Repizent

Noting that a "campaign just had a blogger meeting in which a "representative" of Daily Kos was supposedly there" DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas clarifies who can and can not "represent" Daily Kos. For those of you keeping score at home only the following Kossacks can "represent" Daily Kos: BarbinMD, Darksyde, DavidNYC, DeminCT, Devilstower, DHinMI, Hunter, Georgia10, KagroX, Mcjoan, Meteor Blades, MissLaura, Plutonium Page, SusanG, and Trapper John.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Wither Reagan's GOP?

Andrew Sullivan plucks his 12/13 Quote of the Day from a Tech Central Station article on libertarian political power by David Boaz and David Kirby:

If Republicans can't win New Hampshire and the Mountain West, they can't win a national majority. And they can't win those states without libertarian votes. They're going to need to stop scaring libertarian, centrist, and independent voters with their social-conservative obsessions and become once again the party of fiscal responsibility. In a Newsweek poll just before the election, 47 percent of respondents said they trusted the Democrats more on "federal spending and the deficit," compared to just 31 percent who trusted the Republicans. That's not Ronald Reagan's Republican Party.

LEST WE FORGET: Congress Critters

Extreme Mortman believes Humane Society Pres. Wayne Pacelle when he says: "The new Congress will be a friendlier environment for animal welfare advocates." Mortman notes: "That's great news for Frank Wolf, Virginia Foxx, Butch Otter, and Robert Byrd. And it explains the loss of Charlie Bass. But too bad for Duncan Hunter and Louise Slaughter. No word from Brian Lamb."

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:27 PM

December 12, 2006

12/12: The Curse, Or Blessing, Of Campaign Experience

Last year at this time, few took the WH aspirations of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) or MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) seriously. Now both are positioned as credible alternatives to their parties' putative frontrunners, Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and John McCain (R-AZ)). There are plenty of differences between Obama and Romney, but the most glaring this week might be how their histories are helping or hurting their WH ambitions. While Obama has served 2 years in the Senate in 6 more in the IL legislature, he has never really faced a competitive election. Romney, on the other hand, has won 1 and lost 1 bitterly contested statewide race in MA, famously hostile territory for GOPers. At first glance, it might appear that Romney's experience was the better bet. But while Obama coasts on blogger critiques of his Monday Night Football promo, Romney is knee-deep in the fourth straight day of blogger haggling over past campaign statements. Perhaps Obama's relatively blank slate is his biggest asset.

ROMNEY: Romney Revelations Day 4

Reacting to more coverage of Romney's '94 statements The American Scene's Ross Douthat asks: "Is Romney Finished?" Douthat doesn't think so, but does the revelations as a blow to Romney's efforts to establish himself as a social conservative alternative to McCain: "If Romney were the establishment candidate, and social conservatives were planning to support him out of political expediency, ... then being a flip-flopper wouldn't hurt him that much, so long as he's flipping in the right direction. But he's not the front-runner - McCain is ... And if you're trying to get people excited about you, they need to actually, well, believe in you - and people don't like to believe in a flip-flopper, for pretty obvious reasons."

AmSpec Blog's James Antle outlined the same dynamic: "Romney isn't running as a candidate who is "acceptable" to social conservatives. He is trying to prove that he is a better candidate on social issues than front-runners John McCain and Rudolph Giuliani. It seems to me that social conservatives aren't asking very much when they demand that Romney's record square with a major rationale for his candidacy. His social-issues conversion story is a significant part of his attraction, so it needs to be convincing."

National Review Online's Ramesh Ponnuru later questioned if social conservatives were "doing themselves any favors" by attacking Romney's past: "Certainly Romney is going to have to offer an explanation of how his thinking has changed over the years. It may be that in some cases, it hasn't changed all that much. ... Surely [Paul] Weyrich and [Tony] Perkins don't mean to cast out anyone who has come over time to agree with them? That doesn't seem like a recipe for the success of their causes."

Responding to Ponnuru RedState's Leon Wolf digs out another 1994 Romney quote, this time distancing himself from Ronald Reagan, and writes: "The issue with me is not that Romney has changed his mind on these positions - it is not even that, for the most part ... he has diametrically changed his position with no explanation offered for the change. The problem for me is the cynicism of it all." Ponnuru offered back: "Look, guys, I'm not ruling out the possibility that Romney has made a series of entirely cynical decisions to tack first this way and then that on the social issues. I'm just saying that we don't know that to be true."

It wasn't all bad news for Romney 12/12. The Corner's Warren Bell described Romney as a "CEO-President and Reaganesque rugged-leader-in-troubled-times" after meeting him at "a reasonably small gathering at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills" 12/11.

On the left, TPM Cafe's Eric Kleefeld was moved to call James Dobson for his take on Romney's past: "Election Central has just spoken to a ministry representative for the organization who asked for anonymity, and this person told us that there will be no public statement forthcoming from either Dobson or his group regarding Romney. ... Dobson's decision to stay silent on the issue - should it last - will give Romney one less thing to worry about."

In non-Romney/'94 SEN news The Corner's Jonathan Martin reports Foundation for Florida's Future ED Mandy Fletcher will soon sign with Team Romney. Martin explains the significance of FFF: "Close followers of Gov. Bush's career will recall that the foundation was the think tank he originally set up after losing his '94 run against then-Gov. Lawton Chiles (D). The entity gave Bush a platform to speak out on policy issues in between his initial loss and successful '98 gubernatorial bid."

BROWNBACK: Spoilers Not Wanted

While hitting Romney for not being a credible social conservative alternative to McCain, The American Scene's Douthat also raises serious doubts as to Sen. Sam Brownback's (R-KS) ability to fill that role: "Whereas Brownback has, well, Darfur and . . . oh yeah, support for campaign finance reform (ouch) and comprehensive immigration reform (double ouch). Which is not going to be enough to get him past a McCain or a Giuliani, I suspect."

Ponnuru piles on: "I don't think Ross Douthat quite does justice to the argument for the negative. Douthat doesn't think that Brownback can get the nomination. If that's the case, as I believe it is, and if his support is going to come almost entirely from the social Right, which is also almost certainly correct, then it follows that the more successful he is, the less influence the social Right will have on the actual nominee, whoever he is." Ponnuru also points readers to a TNR profile on Brownback's social conservative record.

CLINTON: A Woman's Place Is In Her Pajamas

Pouring over his Visa bill after a busy '06 of online Dem campaign giving, The Huffington Post's Paul Loeb is not happy to learn that Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) is "sitting on a $13.5-million-dollar war chest" after spending $36 mil "on a race that she could have won staying home in her pajamas." Loeb adds: "When Bill Clinton first surfaced as a leading Presidential contender, I asked a mutual friend what he thought. "He's smart," said my friend. "He reads good books. He wants to do the right thing." Then he paused and said, "But he won't go to the mat for anything except his own political future." To me, that was Bill's core flaw ... Hillary seems to share Bill's hunger for power."

EDWARDS: A Woman's Place Is In The Blogosphere

Picking up on Political Insider reports of Elizabeth Edwardsrecent activity at Archpundit, Atrios writes: "One of the never-picked-up-on stories of the 2004 election was the fact that Elizabeth Edwards actually spent quite a bit of time hanging around blogs and online forums. I kept waiting for the fake "Elizabeth Edwards posts on a forum where some other commenter once said something bad..." controversy, which mercifully didn't happen."

KUCINICH: Extremely Amusing

The Plank's Isaac Choitner welcomes news Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) entrance into the WH race: "I've always thought of Kucinich as the Democrats' Gary Bauer: diminutive, ideological, and extremely amusing.

OBAMA: What Would Mahmoud Wear?

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall takes issue with CNN's Jeff Greenfieldfor comparing Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) no tie dress to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's style: "But if Barack Obama goes around wearing a jacket, collared shirt and no tie, do I figure he's trying to look like a happening dude from a GQ spread (maybe, ok, check), trying to appeal to the youth vote (sure, check), looks like your average tech executive (sure), just likes to dress that way (sounds right)? Do I think he reminds me Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Wow. I've got to say I really didn't see that coming. ... I'm not saying I'm outraged exactly. It's more like curiosity. Kind of like I want to sit down with Jeff and a few Rorschach cards. Bizarre."

The Plank's Jason Zengerle was underwhelmed by news Obama landed the intro segment for Monday Night Football: "This might have been cool, oh, 25 years ago--when Monday Night Football was actually a major event. But these days, the game's an afterthought: its broadcast is relegated to basic cable and its "celebrity" guests tend to be C-list types like Brian Bosworth and Christian Slater. C'mon Obama, your last media stunt was so perfect. But Monday Night Football? What's next? A walk-on cameo on Desperate Housewives?"

EMANUEL: Things Nancy Would Never Do For $100, Alex

Glenn Greenwald's argument that Rep. Rahm Emanuel's (D-IL) Foley-scandal-related-behaviour falls below "minimal ethical standards" Dems must maintain "if they are to avoid becoming indistinguishable from the rotted and corrupt GOP tyrant" continues to draw left and right blogger attention. MyDD's Matt Stoller writes:

One of the main arguments that progressives must make to a cynical electorate is that both parties are not the same, that Democrats hold ourselves to high ethical standards and can be trusted to run the country. It's much harder to make this argument when people like Emanuel are highly regarded figures with esteem and power within the Democratic Party even as they cynically lie to a national audience. ... the level of cynicism and credibility that Democrats deserve from the electorate will ultimately relate to the level of integrity and honesty with which we conduct ourselves. And in that sense, Rahm is a problem.

Firedoglake's Pachacutec calls Emanuel "Unfit for Leadership" in a post where he describes the "inside machine illegality and thuggery brought to bear to get Emanuel into his congressional seat in the first place." Pachacutec adds: "Rahm Emanuel does not belong in a leadership position in the House. Voters cited corruption as their top issue in this election, along with Iraq. Democrats need to be better than Republicans to sustain any governing majority, and more importantly, to change the direction of our country. If Rahm Emanuel won't resign his leadership position, Speaker Elect Pelosi, then he should be removed."

Townhall's Dean Barnett links to a post he made immediately after Emanuel's This Week and explains his method for predicting that Emanuel was lying: "I have a two-pronged test that helps me determine when a former Clinton apparatchik is lying. First, I look to see if his or her lips are moving. If they are, then I know something might well be afoot. Then I listen to hear if they're evading direct questions by answering unasked question as opposed to talking like normal people with nothing to hide. When the former is the case (as it usually is), you can be pretty sure they're lying."

MN SEN: Because He's Good Enough, And Strong Enough, And Doggonit It, People Like Him

Linking to a Roll Callstory on the possibility of a ex-SNL cast member Al Franken challenging Sen. Norm Coleman (R) in '08 MyDD's Jonathan Singer says he is "less pessimistic about Franken's chances than many." Singer adds: "Franken would come in with relatively high name recognition, which carries positives and negatives though might not be as detrimental as some politics watchers think. True, Franken does have a long record from which opposition researchers could pull potentially damaging quotes. Still, alternative weekly publisher John Yarmuth did, too, but that did not stop him from defeating incumbent GOP Rep. Ann Northup in Kentucky this fall."

MS SEN: Scared Into Retirement?

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas picks up on Blue Sun Belt thoughts on Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) delayed decision to seek reelection and writes: "The worst that could happen would be for the top-tier Democrats to sit around and wait for Cochran to make his decision. If we get Mike Moore early, raising money, and looking as though he'd give Cochran a run for his money, it might push him more toward retirement. ... So let's be aggressive in Mississippi. Let's see how hungry Cochran is to remain in a Senate minority with little chance of reversal in 2008."

BLOGGERS VS. MSM: The Blogometer Is Not Related To John

Lefty bloggers are swarming over a WBGH "Beat The Press" segment by Boston University Assistant Professor John Carroll that errantly reports MyDD founder Jerome Armstrong is actually the person behind online pseudonyms Matt Stoller, Chris Bowers, and Scott Shields. TAPPED's Tom Schaller writes: "As anyone who actually spends time in the blogosphere -- you know, instead of cruising through for a drive-by "expose" chock full of high dudgeon but skimpy on reportage -- knows, all three men actually exist. A one-minute Google search would have turned up any number of photos of them." Schaller later updates: "Carroll has emailed me to say that he believes the program will address the problem of last Friday's episode, both on-air and on the blog."

Others on the left were not as kind. DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas takes the opportunity to label the whole "Beat the Press" panel "losers" and demands accountability: "Who is going to be held "accountable" for messing up this blogger story so bad? Is John Carroll going to be fired? Docked a month's pay? Flogged in public? How, exactly, will he and his little band of yes-men and women be held accountable for what is essentially a slanderous piece?" Atrios adds: "Whenever journalists scoff at the undifferentiated mass that is "the bloggers" they inevitably bring up the issue of "accountability" or, more specifically, the lack of it. ... In any case, I doubt John Carroll is going to resign in shame from his media and faculty gigs, so I suppose there's no accountability in his world either. Whatever that means."

BLOGGERS VS. MSM II: Solomon The Biased?

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall reports that "GOP oppo research push-over" John Solomon is moving from the AP to the Washington Post. Marshall quips: "Apparently they're going to set him up with his own investigative unit. Presumably in addition to the one he has at the RNC." TPMmuckraker rounds up the lefty blogger caseagainst Solomon.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Maybe The Boy Was Known To Have Bad Aim?

The Agitator begs readers to "have a look at this photo." The caption reads: "A member of the Durham Police Department Selective Enforcement Team escorts a child to use the bathroom after serving a search warrant at a suspected drug house." The Agitator writes: "Believe it or not, there was a time when people would have doubted a picture like this could have been taken in America. No one would believe it -- probably some third-world despot or Eastern European dictatorship. In fact, it was taken in Durham, North Carolina by a college photojournalist, and recently won in the "Spot News" category of the College Photographer of the Year competition."

LEST WE FORGET: A Spirted Debate Indeed

Lefty bloggers and Keith Olbermann are all pointing fans to tomdelay.com, a tribute site to the 75-minute period that Tom Delay.com hosted an unedited comment section. Reprintable comments for this family publication include:

• What a magnificently, terrifically boring and irrelevant blog. Honestly, who on earth cares what you have to say?
• The fact that you are trying to keep your name alive by starting a stupid blog is actually kind of pathetic and sad. Please just go away.
• Tom, you corrupted the conservative cause and brought disgrace to our party. We can never forgive you for that. Please crawl back into your hole.

Suburban Guerilla finds some surviving comments just as funny as those deleted: "I am a liberal left-y, and I am delighted to have your voice contributing to the debate. While I'm guessing we'll rarely agree, I welcome the spirited debate to come as we all work to the common goal of all Americans (not just conservative Americans): a better tomorrow for America."

LEST WE FORGET II: Shameless Promotion

Be sure to catch the latest episode of HotlineTV featuring discussion on blogger favorites for '08. Also feel free to drop by YouTube to leave your comments on the segment.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:38 PM

December 11, 2006

12/11: Bloggers 'Bleh' On Romney Rights Revelations

Reaction to New York Times and Boston Globe articles on MA Gov. Mitt Romney's (R) history on gay rights issues was the second most popular subject on righty blogs 12/9 and 12/10 (ISG reax still leading the league). The articles drew out Romney supporters and detractors, with National Review Online's Kathryn Jean Lopez and Townhall's Dean Barnett leading the Romney defense. While some prominent IA bloggers are troubled by the news, the wider righty blogosphere does not appear to be. In the latest GOP Bloggers '08 straw polling, Romney remains in third as readers top choice for the nomination, but also is first as an "acceptable" GOP nomination.

ROMNEY: Better Now Than Later?

IA's Caucus Cooler reports Romney "got blasted by the East Coast establishment media this weekend on his statements regarding gay marriage." CC claims storiesfrom the New York Times and Boston Globe were timed to punish Romney for supporting a MA const. amndt. that does not include gay relationships in the definition of marriage. CC (a Romney fan) comments: "For Governor Romney it's important that he addresses these issues in December 2006, not December 2007. Because wanting to outdo Ted Kennedy on gay rights certainly is something he will want to avoid in the days leading up to the Iowa Caucus."

As if she was the official campaign blog-spokewoman, righty bloggers looked to The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez for a defense of the outgoing-Gov: "I think that this Romney then-vs.-now meme is out (pun intended) and circulating now, is a bit of a gift to his campaign. He will have to address early on next year his evolution and explain why he stands where he does today and make the sale that he believes what he says today ... As I've written, the governor's got a great genuinely humane tone when he speaks on marriage and why it's important to preserve it as we know it. ... I think he has a real opportunity to bring people together in a way that really gets us somewhere on some tough but crucial issues."

Those on the right supporting other GOP hope fulls eagerly welcomed the news. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) aide Ankle Biting PunditsPatrick Hynes posts "the screaming headline" from the Bay Windows article covered by the Globe "just for fun." The headline reads: "I'll be better than Ted for gay rights." Ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) fan Race4 '08's DaveG makes it clear Romney's pro-gay sentiments are fine with him, especially since it means more primary voters will choose Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) or AR Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) over Romney as a socially conservative alternative.

Unaligned conservative bloggers troubled the revelations include Captain's Quarters who argues the controversy "will certainly fuel the notion that Romney has a little too much flexibility in his principles. That impression has already taken hold on the issue of abortion, where Romney now professes to be pro-life but did nothing to oppose abortion during his one term as governor in Massachusetts." CQ adds: "Even to me, who believes that the Republican Party has to get over its issues with gays, this pattern seems inconsistent." The Right Angle's Matt Lewis claims the NYT piece "pokes a big hole in Mitt Romney's efforts to portray himself as the conservative alternative to John McCain" and IA's Krusty Konsrvative says the issue "give [Romney] fits here in Iowa." KK adds: "Pro-Romney people like to make excuses for his past remarks by saying that Romney was running for office in the bluest of blue states, and any Republican is better than a Democrat. That sort of logic should worry any conservative."

Romney defenders were not relegated to the Manhattan offices of NRO. Power Line's Paul Mirengoff also defended Romney: "the socially conservative Republicans may view the matter differently ... but I don't see much in the article that concerns me." John Hinderaker adds: "I suspect that much mainstream news analysis is filtered through the false assumption that conservatives generally hate homosexuals. ... I think a large majority of conservatives have no ill will toward homosexuals, while at the same time believing that gay marriage would be an unwise social policy." Townhall's Dean Barnett has the longest defense of Romney including: "The question itself regarding Romney's putatively shifting views suggests Romney has a penchant for flip-flopping with such audacity that John Kerry should be obvious. There is, however, an answer to the question ... He's not a hater. He's not a bigot. He's not a homophobe. ... Romney is also a traditionalist. He does not believe that institutions such as marriage should be mucked with. And he certainly doesn't believe that such institutions should be playthings for a gaggle of unelected officials who happen to wear black robes for a living."

But Eye on '08 notes that the MSM is already picking up on the flip-flopper meme, including Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace who asked Brownback 12/10:

It turns out that one of your potential rivals for that mantle up there on the screen right now, Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, has apparently changed his positions on abortion, and now it turns out on gay rights, since the 1990s

Eye on '08 adds: "As I said earlier, the danger for Romney is that he has this story emerges again and again on issue after issue. If the press, the voters, and conservative leaders settle on the theme that Romney's another MA "flip-flopper", he's in a world of hurt. As Hotline pointed out, what is the Iowa Christian Alliance saying?

And possibly not helping Romney in the primaries at all, Andrew Sullivan explains how he could now support a Romney candidacy: "If Romney proposes healthcare reform on the basis of the Massachusetts experiment, if he backs gay civil unions and ENDA, if he reaches out to LCR, if he leaves marriage to the states to decide, and if he has a sane and serious strategy for fighting Islamist terror, I'd be perfectly open to backing him. If he is serious about cutting spending, I could even get enthusiastic."

GOP FIELD: Rudy Wins Again

GOP Bloggers is in the middle of their 12/06 '08 straw poll. The top choices of righty blog readers as if 10 AM 12/11 are:

Gingrich 29%
Giuliani 23%
Romney 20%
Brownback 6%
Tancredo 6%
Pataki 6%
McCain 5%

GOP Bloggers also asks which candidates are "Acceptable/Unacceptable." The top three acceptable candidates are:

Romney +48%
Gingrich +47%
Giuliani +33%

The three most unacceptable candidates are:

Hagel -59%
Pataki -56%
McCain -35%

BROWNBACK: Hire That Man!

The MI Cooler shares an anonymous tip: "[F]ormer U.S. Senate candidate Jerry Zandstra was overheard at the Michigan Republican State Committee Meeting this morning promoting Sam Brownback for President." MC suggests: "Brownback would be smart to signup Zandstra immediately because he is the darling of Michigan conservatives after his interesting run for U.S. Senate. He received more press than any other candidate and endorsed the anti-racial preference ballot issue and a constitutional amendment to ban abortion."

DEM FIELD: All Aboard The Populism Train!

At The Huffington PostDavid Sirota is interested in '08 hopeful willingness to be an economic populist. Sirota quotes Sen.-elect Sherrod Brown (D) from a Mother Jonesarticle demanding a Dem nominee that "will work to put the government on the side of working families. And that means different trade policy, standing up to the drug industry, taking on the oil industry. It means showing that the Democratic Party is a progressive, populist party." Sirota adds: "In other words, Brown is letting the field know that any Democrat who wants a chance to win Ohio - and thus win the presidency - better get on board with the kind of economic populism he used to win the most politically important swing state in the country."

Still reacting to the ISG report, MyDD's Matt Stoller is not impressed with '08 hopeful leadership on the issue: "No one who knows anything about that region of the world and is willing to consider the realities of domestic American politics thinks this report adds anything useful to the debate. Democratic leaders like Harry Reid, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton continue to hide behind the skirt of James Baker, who is of course not on our side. The only people I've seen in political office who have shown leadership are Nancy Pelosi, Jack Murtha, and Russ Feingold. That's it."

BIDEN: Hit Me Baby One More Time

Atrios takes Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) to task for his repeated use of the phrase "one last shot" when discussing Iraq. Atrios rounds up Biden uses of the term going back to 11/7/2003.

OBAMA: Let The Good Times Roll

MyDD's Jill Tubman covers minority blogger opinion of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) for MyDD's "Racial Politics This Week" segment. Tubman finds "Latino Bloggers" upset with Obama's immigration policy, "Black Bloggers" worried Obama "will end up like Jesse," and not "much just yet" from "Asian Bloggers."

Also at MyDD, Matt Stoller looks at Hotline On Call reports that Zephyr Teachout and John Hlinko joined the Draft Obama organization: "I worked a bit with Hlinko during the Draft Clark movement. He's very skilled at creative media, so get ready to see some fun press stunts asking Obama to run for President." But Stoller is not encouraged by Sen. Dick Durbin's involvement in the Obama movement: "Dick Durbin of all people is trying to draft Obama into the Presidential contest, and that should give us something of a sense that Obama's candidacy is exciting insiders as much as anyone else. ... Obama's power isn't coming from a deep base, but a very wide and shallow one. It's not clear to me who his people are - women, labor, youth? I don't know. Maybe all of them."

LA 02: Embarrassingly Awful

Lefty bloggers were uniformly unhappy with Rep. William Jefferson's (D-LA) 12/9 win over state Rep. Karen Carter (D). MyDD's Matt Stoller finds the "situation" "just so embarrassingly awful." Fellow MyDDer, Chris Bowers was reminded of Philadelphia mayor John Street's (D) "playing the victim after it was revealed that the FBI had a bug in his office" helped him win in 2003. Bowers adds: "This is a dangerous cycle for both progressives and African-Americans. We have a difficult time removing our corrupt leaders because we view their corruption not as real, but rather as a fictitious creation of a conservative movement looking to make yet another power grab. Our inability to distinguish between legitimate victims of governmental persecution and corruption within our own leadership has the potential to sow the seeds of our own undoing not long from now."

Talking Points Memo's David Kurtz suggested Dems refuse to seat Jefferson along with Rep.-elect Vern Buchanan (R-FL) before readers pointed out it would be unconstitutional for Dems to do so.

FOLEY: It Depends On What Your Definition Of 'Aware' Is

Glenn Greenwald is receiving wide praise from the right and left for his review of Rep. Rahm Emanuel's

This Week

appearance in light of the House Ethics Cmte.. Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) report showing Emanuel was aware of the Foley emails before the IM story broke. Greenwald argues that while Emanuel did not technically lie on the show he "was guilty of exactly what he was accusing the GOP House Leadership of. And his hypocritical, pious lectures about the "warning signs" which GOP Leaders had were dishonest at their core."

The right's Outside the Beltway finds "Greenwald's candor" "refreshing" and then looks at this Greenwald passage:

It's possible that the Democratic takeover of Congress can result in genuine and meaningful - and desperately-needed - change for our country. But it's also possible that it could result in nothing notable, that it will produce only the most marginal and politically risk-free actions, all justified by the need not to do anything too "extreme' due to a fear of harming their 2008 electoral prospects.

OTB responds: "The latter is more than "possible;' it is virtually assured. Neither party has a monopoly on virtue. Indeed, most Members of Congress are honorable people genuinely trying to serve the public. The incentive structure, especially in the House with its biannual elections, though, is for the majority party to maximize fundraising and minimize risk. That's not going to change just because the leadership changed hands." Captain's Quarters wonders: "Will Emanuel pay any price for his dishonesty? It's doubtful; by the time of the next election, this will be old news that neither party will want to revisit. Still, kudos to Glenn for getting tough with his own party on dishonesty and political cynicism of the highest order."

Back on the left, Down with Tyranny links to CNN's coverage of the House report under the header: "Rahm Emanuel Should Resign From Congress Immediately And Go Back To Being A Crooked Stockbroker Or Ballerina."

Also taking blogger heat from the report, Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) released a statement claiming he took "prompt action" in response to an email he received from a page. TPM Muckraker had reported the House report showed the pages email included reference to an IM referencing "the page's penis size."

REYES: Po-tay-to, Po-tot-o, Sunni, Shia, Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

Congressional Quarterly's 12/8 interview with incoming House Intel. Cmte. chair Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) drew wide blogger attention, almost all noting that Reyes did not know whether Al Qaeda was a Sunni or Shia organization. Talk Left's Big Tent Democrat urges Dems to reconsider Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA) for the post and Daily Kos' emptywheel mockingly prepares a test for incoming lawmakers.

RedState's Pejman Yousefzadeh and Captain's Quarters also push for a Harman reconsideration in light of Reyes' statements.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Advantage McCain

MyDD's Matt Stoller looks at the '08 implications of the ISG:

As our situation gets uglier, John McCain may come out looking better and better. He's not trying to win in Iraq, he's trying to blame Bush and the Democrats for losing Iraq. James Baker made that very clear when he said this morning that the ONLY critic of the report who had an alternative plan was John McCain, adding that he had enormous respect for McCain. I can't predict whether McCain's position is going to help him. What I can say is that if Democratic elites choose to rely on this report as anything but a propaganda wedge, then the assumptions of this report - that it's not worth rehashing the initial invasion and the massive failure of the establishment's apparatus for judgment - are going to become the standard arbiter for what we do going forward. And in that case, it won't matter that McCain supported Bush, because we need to look forward, as the Iraq Study Group says. And McCain is the only one with a plan to do that.

LEST WE FORGET: The Key To Fixing The BCS Is Peace In The Middle East

Looking at the ISG, Townhall's Dean Barnett quips: "If James Baker ran a bipartisan Blue-Ribbon panel tasked with saving social security, his commission would conclude that no real progress on social security was possible until Israel ceded the Golan Heights to Syria and made whatever concessions necessary to mollify Hamas.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:29 PM

December 08, 2006

12/8: There Goes That 'I' Word Again

For admittedly no discernable reason MyDD's Chris Bowers made a case against impeachment 12/7 setting off a heated debate on the left. DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas quickly seconded Bowers position, arguing that the Dems are better served showing Americans how they would govern if they were in power. For now, the netroots readership seems to be with their leaders, but judging by the comments and online polls at Daily Kos and MyDD, that consensus could rapidly change as Dems make progress in oversight hearings.

DEMS: Investigations Now, Impeachment Later

While "not really sure why" he was writing the post, Bowers lays out nine reasons why Dems should not move to impeach Pres. Bush including:

• This isn't an ethics lesson. It isn't a debate over whether or not impeaching and convicting Bush would be the right thing to do or not. Simply put, the votes to pull off either, especially the conviction, are not there. We aren't even close.
• Now that we have the majority, I do not see the value in pursuing legislation that will divide us, while unite the Republican opposition. I would like to wedge them, rather than wedge ourselves.
• The vaunted public support for impeachment based on a single Zogby poll is illusory. Looking at the complete history of impeachment polling, you get the following results. CNN: Favor 30%--69% Oppose; Fox: Favor 30%--62% Oppose. LA Times Favor 36%--56% Oppose, ABC-WaPo: Favor 33%--66% Oppose; Newsweek: Favor 26%--Oppose 69%. Overall, only 26% to 36% of the country supports this idea. A supermajority opposes.

Bowers concludes: "Do I think that Bush has committed impeachable offensives? Probably. However, I would rather pursue a course of legislative action that would keep our caucus close to united, help large numbers of actual Americans, have a legitimate chance of passing both branches of Congress, conduct actual investigations and oversight and, if those investigations prove worthy, close by censuring Bush."

Kos adds: "We have one year to make our case for 2008 to the American people. ... We can spend 2007 either pushing impeachment, or we can use it educating the American people about what a Democratic government would look like -- passing meaningful legislation that would improve their lives like the minimum wage, health care reform, ethics reform, stem cell research funding, policies that help families and the middle class. ... And Bush? He's going down as the nation's Worst President Ever. We don't need "impeachment" to make that case, Bush has done a great job of it all by himself."

Kos post inspired a number of popular Daily Kos responses including Jerome a Paris's diary "Impeachment: you think the world is not watching?" which drew 1381 comments. Jerome writes: "So Democrats also think it's okay to go invade another country, to get several hundred thousand of its inhabitants killed, to proudly practice and promote torture around the world, to tear up the Geneva Conventions and a whole load of international treaties, and to go grab random foreigners around the world to put them in Guantanamo and throw away the key? ... The world is watching. And it will not forget. Our current leaders may be cowards, but they won't always be there. Haven't you noticed how being anti-American makes you a popular politician and makes you win elections around the world?" A completely unscientific reading of the comments show the vast majority of Kossacks favor impeachment. Sample comments include

• Tuffy: "Thank you. I FUMED when I saw Kos' post up front. This is about justice, not political positioning."
• Hummingbird: "Impeachment is about the rule of law, Kos, and to not impeach will show that our Democracy is a SHAM. We will have failed in our Democracy because things were too "inconvenient". That's bogus."
• Cali Scribe: "We owe it to America and to the world to do it right -- investigate first, then impeach if we have enough evidence to get a conviction."

Daily Kos diarist PsiFighter37 titled his post "Impeachment is not an option...right now." He argues: "The question of whether or not Bush and Cheney deserve to be impeached is beyond settled; the crimes that they have committed against America are unquestionable ... In an ideal world, Bush and Cheney's impeachment would be the first order of business when the 110th Congress convenes on January 4, 2007. But we do not live in an ideal world, and we cannot impeach them because the process isn't about justice. It's about politics." PF included a poll:

The impeachment of Bush should be... ...not considered right now, but possibly later 46% ...an important priority, but not the most important 21% ...the top priority 17% ...not considered at all 13%

Not on Dkos, AMERICAblog's John Aravosis agrees with Markos: "And look at it this way. Two more years of George Bush, and the public won't be voting Republican again for a very long time." Booman Tribune does not: "I'm going tell you right now that Chris Bowers has taken leave of his senses. ... do you really think that we couldn't find 18 Republican Senators that would consider convicting and removing the President?"

DEMS II: Speaking Of Investigations...

Firedoglake's Christy Hardin Smith looks at Time reports incoming Gov't Reform chair Henry Waxman plans to utilize his authority to issue subpoenas without a committee vote: "I've spent a little time trying to figure out what oversight Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) ought to start with, and the choices are pretty much endless. People often say something is "endless," but they don't really mean it. But in all honesty, just looking at the mess that has been made by the Bush Administration in so many areas of government -- it just may be endless. And the fact that Henry Waxman gets to conduct these hearings under rules that the Republicans themselves set-up to play their intricate game of gotcha with the Clinton White House Christmas Card list? Priceless."

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall doesn't "deny for a second that there are hearings I'm looking forward to just to see some of the Bush administration's crooks and incompetents get their comeuppance" but says a hearing on the conduct of the Iraq war is not one of them: "Think how much might have been different if Congress had exercised any meaningful oversight role through any of this catastrophe. The level of irresponsibility, the lockstep indifference has been nothing short of depraved. Calling it an abdication of responsibility is like saying a murderer didn't have enough concern for his victim's health."

DEMS III: A Breach Of Faith

TruthDig's Joshua Scheer interviewed Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) about House Dem plans for Iraq:

I think this is going to be a serious test of the Democratic Party. ... Now, if Congress goes ahead under Democratic leadership and votes to approve what some are now estimating as an additional $160 billion for the war in Iraq, bringing the total for the fiscal year to $230 billion, the Democratic Congress will have bought George Bush's war. Now, who would buy a used war from this administration? ... The Democrats came to power because of a strong desire on the part of the voters to get out of Iraq. That's why people voted Democratic. So now, with the Democratic leadership taking a position saying they're going to approve the supplemental budget in the spring, this could be seen by many as a breach of faith.

Scheer later asks: "For me this is really disheartening, because I feel like I have been lied to, and the American people have been lied to, because the [Democratic] Party was so against extra funds for the war. It's almost like the party has done a bait-and-switch."

Kucinich responds: "I think there's going to be a concern around the country that this does represent a bait-and-switch. I'm hopeful that this position will be reconsidered and that the Democrats will not vote to keep the war going."

GOP FIELD: Tancredo's Only In Fourth?

The Right Angle's Ivy Sellers posts the results of Human Events Online 11/06 '08 straw poll. The top five vote getters were:

Newt Gingrich:    54.51%
Mitt Romney:      13.63%
Rudy Giuliani:     8.52%
Tom Tancredo:      7.33%
Condoleezza Rice:  3.92%

BROWNBACK: Sam Who?

The MI Cooler wants to know when Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) "will officially announce his Michigan Team to compete with McCain and Romney. McCain clearly has the Cox/Land/Yob machines behind him, and Romney has Chairman Anuzis behind him, but where is the Brownback Team?"

Under the header "Who is Sam Brownback" The Right Angle's David Ferguson posts a lengthy bio including:

Brownback is a constant voice for increased responsibility in the entertainment industry. He convened the first congressional public health summit on entertainment violence, and helped uncover the widespread marketing of violent, adult-rated entertainment to children. ... Brownback has taken an active role in developing U.S. foreign policy concerning India, Pakistan, Central Asia and Iraq. He is a leader in the U.S. Senate on a variety of important issues ranging from human cloning to addressing the role of the media in public health, identifying innovative solutions to our common environmental concerns, protecting traditional marriage and wholesome family values, and taking a principled stand against embryonic stem cell research.

MCCAIN: Mormons Not For Mitt

Romney fan Kathryn Jean Lopez manages to spin UT AG Mark Shurtleffendorsement of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) into a pro-Romney story: "You mean all Mormons aren't going to vote for Mitt Romney? His presidential aspirations are not part of a theocon conspiracy from Utah? It's almost as if Mormons just like everyone else - Americans who can endorse or vote for whichever candidate they chose to. Weird."

RedState's Erick Erickson posts video of McCain's questioning of the ISG 12/7 under the header "John McCain Making Sense" and doesn't add: "I'd add something, but I think this speaks for itself."

GIULIANI: A Quarterback, Not A Maverick Loner

Race4 '08's DaveG takes issue with Tony Fabrizio's National Review Online suggestions that McCain's path to the WH is dependent on ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) entrance into the race: "Needless to say, I disagree. Pretty much all of the empirical evidence that we've seen thus far shows 1) Rudy beating McCain in a two-man race among Republican primary voters and 2) Rudy doing better among those primary voters who self-identify as Republicans, while McCain does better with independents."

Dave also responds to Fabrizio's suggestion that Giuliani run as an independent: "I think this is a horrible idea that totally misunderstands the Rudy temperament. If Rudy is anything, he's a team player. A leader. A quarterback, not a maverick or a loner. I'd say McCain fits the mold of a third-party candidate far better than Rudy does, as does Joe Lieberman on the other side of the aisle. If Rudy does get the opportunity to take the Oath of Office, I have no doubt he will go down in history as a great president. But make no mistake about it; he'll be a Republican."

ROMNEY: Not The Only bush Wiggling These Days

The Corner's Jonathan Martin details "A Nice Trio For Mitt" including FL Gov. Jeb Bush LG Toni Jennings, Al Cardenas, and Allan Bense. Martin explains: "While none of them is Gov. Jeb Bush, each brings Romney a bit closer to the popular outgoing gov's inner circle. ... But how about the man himself? He said at the RGA that he couldn't "envision" an endorsement, but that leaves a bit of wiggle room, doesn't it?"

THOMPSON: Could Be Credible

RedState's AdamC is in search of "a new Reagan" and examines whether ex-HHS Sec. Tommy Thompson (R) fits the bill: "Gov. Thompson was one of the first to implement another small government, pro-market reform: school choice. ... I don't have a lot of other information, but Gov. Thompson is pro-life and pro-stem cell research ... He could be a credible pro-life moderate who supports most of the 1994 revolution efforts."

CLINTON: Depressing The Youth

Arianna Huffington was not impressed with Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-NY) decision to announce the launch of a tv PSA campaign on video game ratings the day after the ISG report was released: "Oh. My. God. The violence in Iraq is becoming more savage by the minute -- among the dead yesterday were 45 bullet-riddled corpses found in Baghdad, many of whom had been tortured before being executed -- and Hillary is worried about video game violence? Are you kidding me? Could she be any more politically tone deaf?"

MyDD's Matt Stoller is also unhappy with HRC's choice and suggests such initiatives will "Depress the Youth Vote in 2008."

KERRY: Get Out Of The Way Already

TAPPED's Garance Franke-Ruta suggests calls for another Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) nomination might be coming from "Massachusetts politicians" who "just want him to stop clogging up the local political system." GFR writes: "Kerry has been in office since 1985, and Ted Kennedy since 1962. That means that, for the past 20 years, no Massachusetts politicians holding lower-level offices have been able to move up and into Congress's upper house. ... If Kerry would just move on, by trying to move up again himself, then Barney Frank, Ed Markey, Marty Meehan, and Steve Lynch could all potentially contend for his seat, and a domino effect could be unleashed across the system. For that to happen, though, the first domino has to fall, and Kerry has to run for president again."

KUCINICH: A Secret Plan To End The Dean Campaign?

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas is no fan of Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) as a presidential candidate: "I was wondering who was going to represent the cranky left of the party in the primaries. Apparently, it might be Kucinich again. Really? Kucinich? Oy vey. ... Few care whether Kucinich will lose badly again in 2008 like he did in 2004 (after helping sabotage Dean in Iowa with his secret deal with Edwards). Apologies to those who like him, but the man is a joke."

OBAMA: Ending Racism As We Know It

TPM Cafe's M.J. Rosenberg isn't ready to endorse Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) yet, but argues his election could solve "America's longest and deepest problem." Rosenberg writes: "America is all about race. ... Racism is and has always been the cancer eating away at the heart of America. And now we have the possibility of electing a Presidential candidate whose election itself, even before he takes office, will end a 250 year chapter of unimaginable ugliness. Would Obama's election solve the whole race problem. No. The poor will still be poor. Hatred will survive. But it would say to all African-Americans, to the world and to ourselves that 143 years after the guns fell silent, that the United States is no longer a racist nation."

BLOGGERS VS. BELTWAY: Game On, Stu?

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas is calling Stu Rothenberg out for his "One-Term Wonder?" picks. Rothenberg named incoming Reps. Nick Lampson (D-TX), Nancy Boyda (D-KS), Jerry McNerney (D-CA), and Tim Mahoney (D-FL). Kos responds: "I agree with Lampson, and Mahoney will be tough. But Boyda and McNerney? I bet Rothenberg $500 that McNerney holds the district and $500 that Boyda holds hers. He wins, I donate the money to his favorite charity, and vice-a-versa. Let's see if he's game."

And while he's at it, Kos again calls on Rothenberg to apologize for calling MyDD's Chris Bowers "clueless about politics."

BLOGGERS VS. NEW JERSEY: The Path To Greatness

MyDD's Chris Bowers picks up on Blue Jersey's efforts to air tv ads advocating gay marriage and challenges Gov. Jon Corzine (D) to act: "Jon Corzine has been doing the wrong thing on this clear issue of civil rights. I'm glad Bluejersey is there to help keep on the path to greatness. ... New Jersey is a state controlled entirely by Democrats. The Democratic Party could just make this happen, and the progressive blog Bluejersey is pushing them to do just that. If Corzine showed strength and pushed through marriage equality, he would be respected and be on a path towards greatness in governing."

ME SEN: We Don't Think They're Making That Chafee Comparison In A Good Way

Roll Call's 12/7 article on Rep. Tom Allen's (D-ME) senatorial aspirations is drawing significant netroots attention. Kos calls an Allen/Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) math up a "battle of titans" and AMERICAblog's Joe in DC labels Collins "the next Lincoln Chafee." MyDD's Jonathan Singer acknowledges Allen would face "an uphill climb" against Collins' "rather sizable approval rating in Maine" but likes Allens CoH totals.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Not Gonna Happen

The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum rounds up most of the ISG's 79 recommendations and speculates on whether Pres. Bush will enact them:

Rec #s	Subject	Bush's Likely Reaction
1-12	"New Diplomatic Offensive." Talk to Syria and Iran. Hold a conference of all regional players.	Bushhas already said he won't talk to Syria and Iran. The regionalconference is a possibility, but without Syria and Iran it's probably little more than fig leaf.
13-17	Restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.	Bush has never shown any interest in this.
19-39	Set various milestones for the Iraqi government. Push hard on national reconciliation.	Bush will probably say that these things are already being pursued. However, if Zalmay Khalilzad couldn't get them done, who can? It's unlikely that Bush will appoint anyone who can make serious progress on this.
40-45	Increase U.S. advisory role in Iraqi military units. Withdraw combat troops by 2008.	Nonstarter. Bush will never agree to this.
50-61	Transfer the Iraqi National Police and the Border Police to the Ministry of Defense. Various suggestions for U.S. training of Iraqi police.	Hard to say what Bush thinks about this. Most likely he doesn't care much. More to the point, though, it's not clear that the United States has the influence or authority to make this happen.
62-71	Increase U.S. economic assistance. Include more international participation.	He might push for this. Hard to say for sure, though, and also hard to say if Congress has much stomach for it unless there's some reason to think it will be more effective than past reconstruction efforts.

LEST WE FORGET: The No-Taste Blogometer Loves The Bangles

Ypulse notes Andrew Sullivan's ongoing "best and worst '80s videos" feature and weighs in with her on top and bottom five. Her favs include:

• 1) Pat Benatar: "Love is a Battlefield" (the tattered prom dress shimmy was priceless, and we were all rooting for Pat to break free from her mean pimp!)
• 2) Aha: "Take on Me" (it was so cutting edge, people become drawings, then people again...and oh so romantic.)
• 3) John Cougar Mellencamp: "Hurts So Good" (he was still "Cougar" back then. Maybe it's just me and my weird fascination with biker culture, or the fact that I must have watched this video 8 zillion times as a kid, but I thought this was a down and dirty fun biker party video)
• 4) Madonna: "Borderline" (She was such a rebel, spray painting on that statue. This is one if my favorite Madonna videos b/c it's so early Madonna..."Lucky Star" would be next)
• 5) Cyndi Lauper: "Time After Time" (you had to love the punk girl living in a cool trailer - her plaid pants, the lunchbox, outgrowing her square-looking boyfriend)

Ypulse's worst videos of the '80s:

• 1) The Cars: "Drive" (what the hell was wrong with that girl?)
• 2) Elton John: "Empty Garden" (loved the song but the video was sooo boring)
• 3) Rockwell: "Somebody's Watching Me" (blech - this one ties with Eddie Murphy's "Party All The Time")
• 4) The Bangles: "Walk Like An Egyptian" (cringeworthy)
• 5) Lionel Richie: "Dancing On The Ceiling" (enough said)

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:37 PM

December 07, 2006

12/7: If Only The ISG Could Unite Iraqis Like They Unite Bloggers

The substantive reasons why bloggers from the right and left dislike the ISG may differ (righties cringe at suggestions that help from Iran and Syria should be sought, lefties want troops out yesterday) but both sides are passionately turned off by "bipartisan" sanctimony surrounding the report. In perhaps the only sentences he'll ever write that could easily be posted on Daily Kos, Bill Bennett tells The Corner readers: "This is the triumph of the therapeutic, where bipartisanship - a hug across the aisle - has become a higher value than justice. ... In all my time in Washington I've never seen such smugness, arrogance, or such insufferable moral superiority. Self-congratulatory. Full of itself. Horrible."

IRAQ: James Baker Has No Clothes

Negative righty blogger reactions to the ISG include:

• T.F. Boggs: "The brainpower of the ISG has come up with a new direction for our country and that includes negotiating with countries whose people chant "Death to America" and whose leaders deny the Holocaust and call for Israel to be wiped from the face of the earth. Baker and Hamilton want us to get terrorists supporting countries involved in fighting terrorism!"
• RedState's Erick Erickson: "What does Congress's love child with the Axis of Evil look like? A James Baker-Lee Hamilton press conference. ... In essence, the report calls on the United States to capitulate to its enemies, abandon its friends, and blame Israel.
• under a header "The Emperor Has No Clothes" Townhall's Hugh Hewitt writes: "Incredibly, the ISG did not consult with anyone from the democratic government of Lebanon, even as the ISG urges us to reach an understanding with Syria."
• Captain's Quarters: "[the] recommendations descend from some strange Utopian vision of peace and brotherhood that only exists in the fevered imagination of the so-called realists. ... The ISG wants us to believe that Iran and Syria have no interest in instability in the region. That's an interesting perspective, since the two are the most notorious terror-sponsoring states in the world."
• The Corner's Rich Lowry: "On page xv it says Iran "should" stop the flow of arms into Iraq and promote its national reconciliation. And Syria "should" control its border with Iraq. Yes, they should! We needed an over-hyped bi-partisan commission for this?"
• Townhall's Dean Barnett: "The entire report exists in some kind of striped-pants-set fantasy world where all actors are rational and behave only in good faith. As a consequence, the report repeatedly offers idiotic banalities like, "No country in the region wants a chaotic Iraq," in spite of previously acknowledging that one of Iraq's most murderous militias, the Badr brigade, is a client of Iran."
• Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "The best the "wise men" can come up with is to have our worst enemies try to help us stabilize Iraq. And, apparently, the primary inducement will be to pressure Israel into creating a Palestinian state (as if Iran really cares about that). It's difficult to say which is more pronounced, the craven nature of this recommendation or its lack of realism."
• The Corner's Bill Bennett: "For a report to identify the outside agitators (which happen to also be the worst terrorist-sponsoring states in the world - Iran & Syria) as "provid[ing] arms, financial support, and training for Shiite militias within Iraq," i.e., fomenting war, and then say we should negotiate and offer incentives to those countries is simply too much to bear. Insult is added to injury with the absurdity that Iran and Syria then become members of something called the Iraq Support Group. Committeeism simply got out of control here."
• The Corner's Andy McCarthy: "I just don't get how the media and the solons themselves are willing to celebrate error as triumph, in a life-and-death matter, simply because everyone is willing to be wrong together. I'm trying to figure out whether that is more craven or dumb - I'll be back to you once I've reached consensus."

Army Reservist T.F. Boggs was particularly insulted by one recommendation: "Not only are the findings of the ISG a joke but the people who led the group (Baker and Hamilton) treat soldiers like they are a joke. One of the main recommendations of the ISG is to send more troops to Iraq in order to train Iraqis so they can secure their own country, but they don't feel that we are doing a good job of that right now because training Iraqis isn't an attractive job for soldiers to do because it isn't a "career advancing" job. As someone who trained Iraqis from time to time I take personal offense to this remark. In my experience soldiers clamored for the chance to train Iraqis. Any soldier who doesn't think training Iraqis is worth their time because it isn't a "career advancing" job shouldn't be part in the war on terror plain and simple."

Righties were pleased that the ISG did not recommend immediate withdrawal or redeployment of troops. The Corner's Cliff May: "On the plus side this report is not a recommendation to move out of Iraq; it's explicitly a a recommendation for "moving forward" in Iraq." Best Of The Web's James Taranto: "The recommendations of the Iraq Study Group are out, and those who are eager for a quick American defeat will be disappointed. More than a year ago, Rep. John Murtha caused a stir when he said America should "immediately redeploy," though he later claimed this wasn't what he meant (another botched joke?). The ISG's recommendation is much more moderate: a partial withdrawal, beginning more than a year from now, contingent on the success of efforts to train Iraqi forces. It seems like a plausible approach."

Looking forward, Outside the Beltway looks at how both parties will use the report: "It used to be said that politics ended at the water's edge; it has been many years since that was a reflection of reality. Both sides will use the Report to seek political cover for what they want to do but I suspect they will continue to bludgeon their opponents over the war."

The Truth Laid Bear posts an HTML version of the report and identifies the Adobe PDF keywords chosen for the ISG include: "iraq study group report james baker lee hamilton co chairs middle east congress bipartisan strategies president bush america abroad military withdrawal troops civil war iraqi government sunni shia kurds christian sectarian violence conflict post-conflict" TLB comments: "Yes, that's right. If you're looking for "withdrawal", this is the document for you. If you happen to be looking for "victory," however --- you are out of luck."

Power Line provides a rough summation of a conference call featuring ISG members William Perry and Alan Simpson as well as bloggers from the left and right. Finally, National Review Online has a symposium on the ISG.

IRAQ: This Isn't What We Voted For

The most popular ISG reaction in the lefty 'sphere came not from a blogger, but from Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI). DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas:

The fact is this commission was composed apparently entirely of people who did not have the judgment to oppose this Iraq war in the first place, and did not have the judgment to realize it was not a wise move in the fight against terrorism. ... So this is really a Washington inside job and it shows not in the description of what's happened -- that's fairly accurate -- but it shows in the recommendations. ... This report does not do the job and it's because it was not composed of a real representative group of Americans who believe what the American people showed in the election, which is that it's time for us to have a timetable to bring the troops out of Iraq."

Kos later notes the loss of 10 U.S. servicemen and adds: "But in Washington, as long as none of the bipartisan DC elite get embarrassed those are acceptable losses."

Crooks and Liars has video of Feingold's appearance on Countdown and comments: "Feingold said what I have felt all day. This report does not give us a clear path in Iraq and leaves the future of the war up in the air. Even worse is the fact that we have lost 10 more soldiers today and the administration needs more time to figure out what to do. Iraq sure doesn't need more time to slip into anarchy -- it gets worse by the day."

Other lefty reax include:

• Atrios: "The only way the ISG was going to actually possibly cause a change in policy was if they said it's time to leave. Bush will continue what he's doing. ISG report anniversary day is now on the calendar, and a year from now we can see just what the Wise Old Men of Washington have accomplished."
• firedoglake's Jane Hamsher: "The Baker-Hamilton Report calls for a reduction in troop levels to 70,000 by 2008 "subject to unexpected developments." Since the guy in charge of implementing it issued more than 750 signing statements saying why he did not have to pay attention to those laws which don't happen to strike his fancy, we're rather confident in his ability to interpret the phrase "unexpected developments" a somewhat loosely."
• The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum: "And what's this about keeping 70,000 non-combat troops in Iraq pretty much forever? That got a unanimous blessing from the commission members? I think that tells you more about who was eligible for the commission than it does about whether this is a good idea."
• Matthew Yglesias: "Now that I've read the whole thing, the good news about the Iraq Study Group report is that it's filled with accurate observations about the situation in Iraq. ... To make a long story short, these observations render virtually all of the ISG's recommendations moot. Absent political reconciliation, none of this stuff about embedding someone here, or training someone there is going to accomplish anything. And national reconciliation hasn't been forthcoming because the key people aren't committed to it."
• AMERICAblog's AJ in DC: "to some extent the report is the worst of all worlds, because it caved to political pressures but has no implementation power, which leaves the Bush administration able to pick and choose, creating a bad version of some of the recommendations while claiming to adhere to the report."
• AMERICAblog's John Aravosis: "I fear that it's still not PC to suggest in polite company that the war is over, we lost. And I fear just as much that the Study Group may not have seriously considered this possibility - the proposition that nothing we do will matter in the end, and that as bad as it sounds, the only solution is to get out now. Yeah, leaving sucks - but staying sucks worse."

Not every recommendation was unappreciated. TPM Cafe's M.J. Rosenberg was heartened to see the Israel-Palestine conflict play a major role in the report and writes: "It is critical that progressives support these recommendations and that the new Democratic majority in Congress does not try to score points with the right by criticizing Baker's call for engagement."

DEM FIELD: Al Gore's 500K Man Army

Kos posted his first '08 straw 12/6 and writes: "Let's say, conservatively, that 5 million people read liberal blogs. You get 10 percent of those, you're looking at 500,000 activists working on your behalf. What campaign wouldn't kill for that sort of interest?" With 15,834 respondents the 12/06 results stood at (with 7/06 results):

            Dec  Jul
Edwards      28   15
Obama        28    -
Clark        26   17
Clinton       5    2
Richardson    4    2
Kerry         1    2
Bayh          1    1
Vilsack       0    -
Biden         1    1
Feingold      -   38

Kos also included a "Fantasy Straw Poll" which Al Gore won handily with 57% to Obama and Clark's 12%.

Kos also unveiled hi first '08 "Cattle Call" rankings. In the Top Tier:

• 1. Barack Obama: "He's just executed, either by accident or by design, the most masterful media rollout in the history of presidential campaigns (or at least since I started paying attention). He's got Oprah. He's got star power. He Sister Souljah'd this site. He's tied for the lead in the latest dkos straw poll. He's got more "friends" on MySpace than any other politician.
• 2. John Edwards: "Benefitted greatly by Feingold's departure from the race, picking up a significant chunk of netroots support (tops in the latest straw poll, in fact). He is the "labor candidate", though we saw how well that worked out for Gephardt in 2004. Had a primary schedule that was made for him until Obama got in the picture, but is still pretty good nonetheless."
• 3. Hillary Clinton: "You know the arguments -- she has the money, she has the name ID, she has the top consultants, yadda yadda yadda. Fact is, she didn't want to enter this race this quickly, yet Obama has tipped her hand. Now, it's a race for Team Clinton to figure out how to take back some of that media thunder in which Obama is basking. She was supposed to be the rock star in this race, yet she's been pushed aside for the new kid."

Kos ranks the rest of the field: 4. Wesley Clark, 5. Bill Richardson, 6. John Kerry, 7. Evan Bayh, 8. Joe Biden, 9. Tom Vilsack, 10. Chris Dodd, and 11. Mike Gravel.

BAYH: What Is Populist For 'No Chance'

TAPPED's Ezra Klein picks up on The New Republicreports of Sen. Evan Bayh's (D-IN) role in '01 Bankruptcy Reform Bill and writes: "But forget merely voting for their reprehensible bill, Bayh even voted against any amendments to soften its reach or mitigate its harm. Now, as he suits up for a presidential run, he's relearning the language of populism."

KUCINICH: Progressive Wanted

MyDD's Chris Bowers links to Cleveland Plain Dealerreports that Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) might run and writes: "I don't think he was exactly a very effective spokesperson for the left-wing of the party last time, but progressives are not exactly in abundance among the current crop of candidates. Still, I think his platform would have done a lot, lot better in 2004 if there was a more impressive candidate - even another member of the house - running on it."

OBAMA: He's A Lover Not Fighter

Pamela on Politics's reports Obama is "scheduled to chat sometime tomorrow with Whip-elect James Clyburn. That's a move that could signal he wants the third most powerful man in the House to welcome him to the second primary state with open arms." Gentry adds: "In September, Obama wasn't running when I asked him about the matter after the Iowa steak fry. It seems that the answer is morphing into a 'yes.'"

Reaction to MyDD's Chris Bowers 12/4 post on Obama's New York mag interview continues. Digby writes: "It's so disheartening to see someone we hope will be a brilliant leader make the mistake of running against the Party just when it is finding a new sense of unity." Digby goes on to recount ex-Pres. Bill Clinton's Sister Souljah moment and comments: "It became, however, a matter of conventional wisdom that Democrats needed to distance themselves from their "special interests" and liberal base in order to win elections. ... Why would you run from them just when the other side's consensus is starting to fray? It's far more politically useful to present them to the public as the average people they really are. We're all just like you -- regular everyday citizens who believe that the country needs a new direction."

Daily Kos spin off Street Prophets is more forgiving of Obama's words: "Everybody seems to think that Much has been made of Obama's affinity for "third way" politics in the style of Joe Lieberman or Jim Wallis. There is some of that here, but we shouldn't mistake Obama for a simple triangulator like Bill Clinton. ... Obama believes that the current political logjam can be broken by repairing the discourse that created it. That, I may need to spell out, is a very Christian line of thought. Obama is going to drive progressives up a wall because they'll be looking for him to take their side in the partisan dogfights, and he's practicing a ministry of reconciliation."

The Huffington Post's David Roberts is one of the netrooters Obama is driving up the wall: "But when he turns to discussion of the issues, the tic emerges. In every case, there are two moldy, entrenched positions, politicized extremes advanced by shrill partisans. In every case, neither of those moldy positions adequately addresses our current realities. He, however, has a clear-eyed, above-the-fray position of his own that synthesizes all the best of both extremes. ... He doesn't dismiss or demonize you. No, no, he understands what motivates your position. He knows where you're coming from. All of you. Everybody. If Bill Clinton felt your pain, Obama does him one better: he thinks your thoughts too."

GOP FIELD: Rudy And McCain Speak To The Base

Captain's Quarters identifies two early '08 winners in ISG reaction. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani (R): "At least two presidential aspirants have publicly opposed the Iraq Study Group and its linkage of the situation in Iraq with the Palestinian conflict. Rudy Giuliani called some of the ISG's recommendations "useful", but told Dennis Prager that leaving Iraq would be a "terrible mistake", while John McCain scotched the notion of a regional conference dominated by two terror-supporting states."

Right Wing NewsJohn Hawkins details his unhappiness with the current GOP field for Human Events Online:

• 1) Sen. John McCain: "McCain is probably the single most widely despised Republican on Capitol Hill amongst conservatives in the know. That's because he seems to take particular delight in poking his finger in the eye of other conservatives in order to draw praise from liberals in the press."
• 2) Rudy Giuliani: "Giuliani is not conservative in the least. In fact, he's so ideologically ambiguous that he has more in common with the Democratic contenders than his Republican counterparts on perhaps a majority of issues."
• 3) Mitt Romney: "Although he is the outgoing governor of the very liberal state of Massachusetts and was named as one of the Top 10 RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) less than a year ago in HUMAN EVENTS, he's not as liberal as he might appear at first glance."

IA's Krusty Konservative takes a detailed look at the Romney and McCain operations in IA and notices a similarity: "The one thing that I find odd with both the Romney and McCain kampaigns is that they both have yet to fill the position of kampaign manager, yet they both have hired field staff and other positions. ... This type of bottom up strategy might lead to problems down the road for each kampaign."

GINGRICH: Run Already!

The Corner's Jonah Goldberg reports the DC GOP holiday party circuit is filled with pro-Newt Gingrich buzz. The Corner's Mona Charen echoes Goldberg's sentiments writing: "I spoke to a prominent Washington conservative over the weekend who is intimately familiar with Newt's problems, but confessed that nonetheless she is drawn to him now. He is so articulate and mentally nimble, and well, after six years of a verbally challenged leader."

Goldberg, however, notes his patience with Gingrich is running thin: "[i]f he's going to run for President, he needs to run for President. The game he's playing now is smart if he has no intention to run because it gives him a bigger megaphone. But if he wants to be elected President, his reluctant statesman act is foolish and self-indulgent beyond words - in my opinion."

ROMNEY: Is The Drudge Primary Over?

IA's Caucus Cooler reax to reports Team Romney hires BC '04 research director Matt Rhoades: "He was largely responsible for bc04's tremendous rapid response team as well as the anti-Kerry research. Most importantly he has a good relationship with Matt Drudge, who was already expected to be relatively hostile to McCain."

UNITY '08: When Sam Waterston Attacks

MyDD's Jonathan Singer takes issue with Law & Order's Sam Waterston's endorsement of Unity '08: "If I understand correctly, the assumption is that bipartisanship is in and of itself an end rather than a means, that America would be best served if the politicians could simply give up on their party allegiance and instead dedicate themselves to principle and compromise. .... Bipartisanship, however, is not a panacea. ... Both the Vietnam War and the Iraq War, the two examples of crowding out views that do not conform with leading opinion, occurred at times of bipartisanship."

Singer goes on to explain why he juxtaposed Waterston's Unity '08 message with his SNL spoof on robot insurance for the elderly: "Here, he brings up a number of things Americans dislike about their political system, including the mudslinging, the high cost of elections and the avoidance of issues (a claim I would take issue with, but that's a rant for another day...). As a solution to these ills Waterston suggests bipartisanship, explaining that he has met with the founders of the movement and is convinced that they can rise above these problems and usher in a better type of politics. There is little explanation of how, exactly, they will achieve this, but that is no matter. People trust Jack McCoy so they will trust the actor who portrays him, Sam Waterston. They will buy Unity08, just as they bought robot insurance."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: PoorGirl15

Matthew Yglesias comments on a Wired article showing that while popular, the creators of YouTube sensation LonelyGirl15 failed to make a lot of money of the enterprise:

To me, at least, this is the real moral of the story. Peer-production of digital media probably will produce a fair quantity of awesome popular stuff lurking amidst the vast pool of dreck. And well-designed services will let the awesome stuff rise to the top and the dreck fade to the background, rendering those services awesome and popular. But -- and here's the rub -- having something awesome and popular just may not prove to be especially lucrative. In the past, a popular television show or a popular album or a popular film or a popular distribution channel guaranteed you vast sums of money. In the future, that just may not be the case. The very most popular things will generate some income, enough to live off of and continue financing new projects, but not the sort of gigantic windfalls associated with 20th century media hits. And lots of other things -- including reasonably popular ones -- will only generate trivial levels of income. And they'll continue to be made. Made by people who think its fun, or who derive some benefit from their work other than direct monetary income.

LEST WE FORGET: Katherine Harris Was Funny

Extreme Mortman offers up his Top Ten funniest political moments of the year

• 1) The year opens with a bang. The opening of lawyer hunting season is ceremoniously marked when Dick Cheney shoots Harry Whittington.
• 2) Cynthia McKinney hurls a cell phone at a Capitol Police officer. The cell phone is swiftly wrestled to the floor and detained for questioning.
• 3) Jack Abramoff wears black hat, black coat to court. The disguise doesn't help. Everyone notices him except for a traveling band of Chasidim.
• 4) Court documents show Rep. William Jefferson kept $90,000 in bribe money in his freezer. Federal investigators still pouring over boxes and boxes of frozen pizzas.
• 5) Wonkette puts this one best: "The front page of Tom DeLay's legal defense fund website. The featured clip is Stephen Colbert's interview with Robert Greenwald, director of an anti-DeLay documentary. The DeLay team, in a mass email, claims that Colbert 'cracks the story on real motivations behind the movie,' presumably with questions like 'Who hates America more, you or Michael Moore?' which really get to the heart of Greenwald's nefarious secret agenda. Stephen Colbert? Very probably funny. Tom DeLay? Hysterical."
• 6) Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson sue for "gross invasion of privacy." Makes sense. After all, a cornerstone of the Wilson-Plame family is the sacrosanct value of privacy. They really hate publicity.
• 7) Katherine Harris runs for Senate. Her campaign highlight is one perfectly-positioned blanket.
• 8) Borat make benefit glorious press conference in Washington outside Kazakhstan embassy - then leads two dozen reporters on pied piper-style march to glorious White House benefit.
• 9) President Bush - both of them - gets big laughs at the White House Correspondents Association dinner.
• 10) Fights breaking out in other countries' parliaments are always hilarious. This year we were treated to an actual food fight - or at least one legislator in Taiwan chewing over a proposal on opening direct transport links with China.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:31 PM

Blogometer Extra

BLOGGERS VS. BELTWAY: Joe Vs. The Blogcano

  Ambassador Joe Wilson, he of yellowcake and Plamegate (in)famy, took on yet another challenging assignment and comported himself admirably: Firedoglake, in a triumphant exclusive, hosted a live chat with Wilson on Monday.  The Ambassador was peppered with questions of all types, fortunately sans too much fluff and obvious lead-ins.

  Christy Hardin Smith wrote a preface to the chat, profiling Wilson's accomplishments and his place in recent history.  She adds:

It is this background that Amb. Wilson brings to the table for today's discussion — a long history of serving this nation in the field as a diplomat in the center of any number of ethnic, regional and substantial conflicts across the continent of Africa and within Iraq itself, and as an advisor to both military and Presidential national security considerations and to Congressional offices charged with providing sorely needed oversight. ...

  [W]e felt that it was high time some serious discussion took place publicly about the potential for increasing chaos, the problems inherent in the current situtation and in any of the possible solutions that have been discussed thus far in the public arena.  And Amb. Joseph Wilson joins us today in the comments to do just that.  I look forward to some good debate, some in-depth questions and a lot of frank discussion.

  With that, the gates were opened and inquisitive minds fired away.  Some of the highlights of the Q&A:

Wilson, responding to a comment by Dennis Ross of Jim Lehrer's News Hour re: "fixing" Iraq: "The utility of engaging Iraq’s neighbors and indeed all the backers of the various insurgent groups is to bring additional pressure to bear on the insurgents to channel their differences into political negotiations and to provide guarantors to any compromises that they might be called upon to make.  As Dennis well knows, one of the roles of the US over the years has been to be the guarantor that any compromises made in the Arab Israeli peace process would not be the beginning of the end for the state of Israel."

Bustednuckles(Phil): "Can you name one diplomat ... who would have more experience and aplomb who could possibly have any impact reguarding talks in Iraq?"  Wilson: "I have a lot of respect for Jim Baker.  He is tough enough, experienced enough and savvy enough to pull a rabbit out of the hat if there is one in there.  The problem is we are so far down the road on the way to chaos that there may not be any way to stop this until all sides are exhausted.  The question is not whether the situation has become a civil war but rather whether it has degenerated from a civil war to out and out anarchy and a failed state.

Suzanne: "Do you see any way out [of Iraq]?"  Wilson: "It is tough but I think that we should reshape the debate domestically from the terms currently in use (stay the course, cut and run; strategic redeployment, timetables, and withdrawal) to one in which we consider what it is we are asking our troops to do at this stage of the occupation and whether what they are doing is in our strategic of operational interest.  If not they shouldn’t be doing it. ... [W]e should not put Americans unneccessarily in harm’s way, we should not use American firepower to unneccessarily kill Iraqis, we should call on the President to actually take the advice his military commanders have been giving him that he needs to find a political solution and we should reinvigorate the middle east peace process from which we have been AWOL for six years."

TheOtherWA: "Who would you like to see as Ambassador to the UN now that Bolton is leaving?  And who would you like to see as Ambassador to Iraq, since it’s rumored Kahlilzad may be leaving?"  Wilson: "I think Jim Leach or Bob Kimmitt would be good choices for the UN.  Ryan Crocker is who I hear is in line for Baghdad.  He is a career diplomat and one of the best I know.  He has been intimately involved in things Iraqi for a good part of his career, including in the first gulf war and as the director of the State Dept. effort to put together a post-war plan in the runup to the 2nd gulf war.  It is an almost unbelievably tough job.  I have great respect for the efforts of Khalilzad, despite my distaste for his brand of neoconservatism when he was promoting policies."

Twobits: "Could you please comment on the likelihood of the Iraq war escalating to a point that armed conflict begins among the regional powers for either self-preservation or the oil wealth of Iraq?"  Wilson: "There are already the beginnings of proxy wars with the external support of the various insurgencies.  Right now I think the battles are on behalf of tribal constituencies and for their respective political powers.  At some point they may shift to the picking over of the carcass that once was Iraq, but not yet.

johnSwifty: "Was [Vice President Dick] Cheney operating in full knowledge of you and your wife’s situation?"  Wilson: "I have no idea if it dawned on Cheney that I was the Joe Wilson who was in Iraq in the first Gulf War.  He is a busy man and there are a lot of Joe Wilsons.  What they did to Valerie was unconscionable and really stupid.  They took a four-day story — their lie in the State of the Union — and turned it into a four-year nightmare for everybody concerned."

watertiger: "What impact do you think the [Stephen] Hadley memo has on 'incentivizing' the Iraqi government to shore up its army so that we can 'stand down?'  It seems to me that at the press conference in Amman, al-Maliki was merely summoning up what some of us impolitely refer to as an 'F.U.' (Friedman Unit), a six-month time period which the talking heads like to fall back on when they don’t know how much time extrication will really take."  Wilson: "I think Maliki is woefully weak.  The history of Iraq has always been in the absence of strong central power, it tends to spin out of control.  Maliki does not have the power he needs to successfully govern.  Too many factions, too much dispersal of authority, too many militias and competing political goals."

neokneme: "Americans of all stripes feel badly about the carnage we’ve brought to the Middle East.  One common denominator is energy and not just oil. ... Is it too radical to suppose that the problems facing us can be addressed by reducing our own demand for what isn’t really ours anyway?"  Wilson: "We should have embarked on a Manhattan-style project on 9/12 to wean ourselves from foreign energy dependence.  Instead the President urged us to go shopping.  But it is not too late.  There is still in our system a lot of ingenuity.  It will take a Teddy Roosevelt to ensure that that ingenuity is not strangled at birth by entrenched interests."

watertiger: "I’m curious as to how much of Bush’s 'We won’t leave until the mission is accomplished' talk is simply bravado?"  Wilson: "I think the administration is in a tough spot right now, with no good options, and a president who still seems to believe that he can pull this off.  I take no satisfaction in watching this unfold, and I regret profoundly the carnage inflicted on Iraq and on our troops.  The neocons should be rooted out of adult foreign policy discussions and marginalized on the fringes where they belong.  Their infiltration of the op/ed pages (Krauthammer, Boot, Frum, Gigot, TNR) and of policy circles has been disastrous.  I wrote in my book that they are like a parasite loyal only unto themselves that found the Republican Party a willing host and now have fully infected it."

  Read the entire chat with many more frank, illuminating comments by Wilson at Firedoglake.

LANSCAPE '08: Anatomy Of A MyDDer

  ManfromMiddletown has an excellent, informative, (hopefully) ongoing series at MyDD that dissects state-by-state results of the 2006 midterm elections that handed the reins of Congressional power to the Democrats.

  As of 11/30, the Man has covered nine states, as well as New England, breaking each state's vote down by county, district and party and contrasting 2004 results with this year's.  Where merited, in-depth analysis and interesting revelations are presented from, as might be expected, a lefty point of view.  Which means lots of raised eyebrows along with cheery news, even in areas where Dems came up short.

  Take Wisconsin, for example.  MyDD notes:

The most impressive vote gain was in the WI-08 as was mentioned above.  In the WI-02, there was a 0.4% shift towards the Republican, while Democrats made an 8.4% gain in the WI-02, yielding a much larger Democratic margin of victory than in 2004.  In the Milwaukee suburbs, Democrats made 4.8% and 4% gains in the WI-01 and WI-05 respectively.  However, the Republican margin of victory in these districts was over 25% in 2006.

  In Ohio, the Man detects something amiss:

If Ohio's House delegation were apportioned by proportional representation, Democrats would control 9 of Ohio's 18 House seats.  Dependent on the outcome of recounts in the OH-15 and OH-02, this may still come to pass.  I'd like to point out something I found highly disturbing when researching this diary.  On the election results page of the Ohio Secretary of State page, provisional ballot totals and percentages of provisional counted as valid are given for 2004, while the 2006 results give an aggregate figure for provisionals and absentee ballots.

  I find this highly suspicous, and this technicality has the stink of bullsh*t upon it, because it could serve to obscure the true quantity of provisionals ballots in the two contested districts.  And this could serve to obscure evidence of voter suppression in the application of Ohio's new voter ID law.  The Secretary of State's office needs to release disaggregated figures listing the number of provisional ballots seperate from absentee ballots.

  MyDD is putting a lot of work into the series, and it's definitely worth following, should they choose to continue it.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 06:12 AM

December 06, 2006

12/6: Obamarama

Lefty opinion of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) may be a mixed bag (with more activist types, MyDDs Chris Bowers and Matt Stoller, voicing the most concern) but there's no doubt he generates the most interest of any WH'08 Dem hopeful. Whether by design, Obama seems to leave many lefty bloggers and their commenters guessing as to where he lies on an ideological spectrum, but some in the netroots are beginning to worry about Obama's willingness to distance himself from them. As Obama continues to make Rick Warren-like outreaches to non-traditional Dem groups, how far will the netroots let his rhetoric go before he slips into Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) status?

OBAMA: Apparently Batting .250 Makes You Dem MVP

Taking care to remind readers he still has no '08 favorites, DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas announced 12/5 that "barring scandal or the mother-of-all gaffes" Obama should win the nomination. Kos reasons that IA Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) will win IA, John Edwards (D) or NM Gov. Bill Richardson (D-NM) would win NV, and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) would win NH. Kos then argues SC would fall to Obama "given the state's large African American population, along with Obama's popularity with female voters (yeah, they love him)." The post drew over 1,300 comments (the next popular front page post had 440) many of them supportive of Obama.

Daily Kos commenter johnny rotten, however, reminded readers of a 12/18/03 past Kos prediction: "It is clear that our nominee will be either Dean or Clark. No one else has a shot." Kausfiles also isn't impressed with Kos reasoning: "So Markos Moulitsas expects Obama to lose Iowa, lose Nevada, and lose New Hampshire -- the first three Dem nominating contests -- but he nevertheless declares Obama the "prohibitive favorite," if he runs, because he might win South Carolina? I'm not quite following kos' logic. Does Jerome Armstrong have a new client or something?

At MyDD, Chris Bowers finds mixed news for Obama in Pew Research Center crosstabs showing HRC with a strong lead among African-American Protestants: "First, it shows that Clinton's lead on Obama might indeed be very soft, given that it is largely predicated upon a huge advantage among African-American Protestants, and presumably that would be a demographic where Obama could make up a lot of ground. Second, it shows that her current lead might be understated, since there is no way that African-American Protestants only compose 14% of the Democratic electorate."

Also at MyDD, Matt Stoller reminds readers of his concerns about Obama and offers a blogpulse chart showing spikes in blog mentions of Obama following his television appearances. For Stoller this means: "While Obama has real grassroots support, his campaign is a conversation being driven from the top." Stoller adds: "Obama has been quite the machine boss in his heavy handed moves against Cegelis in IL-06, and he hasn't done anything legislatively in the Senate to suggest he's capable of visionary leadership. So on balance, the evidence leans towards 'empty suit', but he was a good liberal state Senator, so there's evidence on the other side as well."

Lefty bloggers are also still reacting to Bowers 12/4 post highlighting New York mag quotes from Obama that Bowers characterizes as Obama using "left-wing strawmen" to bolster his own reputation. Talk Left's Big Tent Democrat is no fan of this Obama trait: "Democratic stars like Barack Obama especially must avoid doing this in my view. For two reasons. One, it harms the Democratic Party and its objectives. Two, it does not work to the benefit of the Democrat trying to curry favor." Matthew Yglesias is less bothered: "Obama seems to be the sort of nominee you're looking for -- someone who's actually more liberal than his public image would suggest -- rather than, say, an unnamed senator from New York who's less liberal than her reputation (now that I think about it, this applies to both NY Senators, but whatever)."

The Reality Based Community's Mark Kleiman, however, is only encouraged by Obama's success in reaching out to Rick Warren's megachurch: "When Democrats lose national elections, it's because they get creamed among whites who attend church at least weekly. If we could find a candidate who could make serious inroads into that group without sacrificing what Democrats believe in, we'd have a sure winner. ... I'm well known to be a Wesley Clark fan. ... Compared to a Dukakis, a Gore, a Kerry, or a Hillary Clinton, he's way more culturally Red-compatible. But I can't see him getting a standing ovation at a conservative megachurch after talking about condoms. ... Obama, with the Bible in his cadences, sounds like (I don't say he is, but he sounds like) someone who believes in God."

CLINTON: O - VER - A- TED!

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall looks at news HRC is telling IA Dems "I'm going to go for this," and he writes: "I've been saying this in one form or another going back to 2001. But I've always thought Hillary's chances are way over-rated. Not just in a hypothetical general election -- that's another matter -- but in a Democratic primary election. As much as Hillary -- who I'm a fan of -- has taken the brunt of ugly beltway conventional wisdom over the years, I still think her apparent strength at this point is just that -- puffed up endlessly by beltway insiders who aren't in touch with the real viability of her candidacy, or lack thereof."

WEBB: Bigger Than Wesley Clark

Sen.-elect James Webb's (D-VA) lefty blogger stock continues to soar. Matthew Yglesias picks out a WaPo article claiming Webb may become "the face of the Democratic Party's antiwar movement" and writes: "Some skepticism about the accuracy of that speculation aside, I'd like to see it become true; Webb has the right cultural and personal characteristics to sell an anti-war message. Post-9/11, I think an awful lot of Democrats have tried to compensate for having bad personal/characterological attributes for the politics of national security by adopting substantively bad policy positions -- John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden come to mind -- and this doesn't work very well. Webb's roughly the reverse, and feels no need to act defensive about being a patriot and supporting the troops and it worked well for him in the campaign despite the fact that he's not a very natural campaigner."

GOP FIELD: 48% of Dems Can't Be Wrong

RedState's California Yankee notes the winner of Gallup's latest '08 poll was "don't know" and writes: "Other than demonstrating that McCain is the most broadly accepted candidate, favored by 62% of Republicans, but also by a very healthy 58% of independents and 48% of Democrats, there is not much value in this poll. The poll only included 11 of the 24 potential 2008 presidential candidates. Obviously most Americans aren't yet focused on the 2008 presidential campaign."

IA's Krusty Konservative identifies the "Sweet 16" IA operatives still available, including (KK's description in parens): Chuck Laudner (Kongressman Steve King's right hand man), Hans Gullickson (Former Iowa 72-Hour Task Force Director), Nick Ryan (Nussle Kampaign Manager), Tim Albrecht (Rants' Kommunications Director), Sara Taylor (White House Political Director), Craig Schoenfeld (Lobbyist), Brian Kennedy (Former State Party Chair), Steve Grubbs (Former State Representative, Former State Party Chairman), Tamara Scott (State Director for Koncerned Women of America), Joe Earle (Bush-Cheney Iowa Koalitions Director in 2004), Andrea Cerwinske (former Iowa GOP Chair), Will Rogers (Former Ganske and Latham staffer), Steve Scheffler (President of the Iowa Christian Alliance), Kevin Graney (Lamberti's kampaign manager), and Jill Latham (Wisconsin GOP's Political Director).

BROWNBACK: Bet They Threw A Hell Of A Party

IA Caucus Cooler isn't surprised Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) landed Family Policy Center Pres. Chuck Hurley: "Why him? Well Chuck and Sam were college roomates, making his decision a rather simple one."

GIULIANI: The Cash Frontrunner?

The Corner's John Podhoretz comments on reports of a 12/20 ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani fundraiser hosted by Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone: "If there's one thing we can be sure of, it's that Rudy's ability to generate Wall Street dollars very quickly and with little difficulty will put pressure on other Republican candidates to match his war chest at the end of the first quarter of next year."

MCCAIN: Standing Athwart The Tide

The Corner's Larry Kudlow celebrates McCain's "courage" "principle" and "leadership" while "fighting the tide" of pessimism on Iraq. Kudlow writes: "Now I may not agree with McCain on every single issue, but I am completely behind him on national security. ... My guess is that Americans trust McCain. He's standing tall."

RedState's Erick Erickson has less kind words for McCain titling a post "McCain Trying To Shut Out More Party Chairs." Erickson links to a Sonora Alliance post detailing "Grassroots Arizona" PAC to support McCain friendly GOP chairman in AZ. Erickson claims over 40% of the money for the PAC came from Gregory Wendt and Lisa Wendt who are "big time" San Francisco Dem donors. Sonora Alliance explains: "Greg's has donated to such people as Ron Wyden, Max Cleland, Barack Obama, Diane Feinstein, and Claire McCaskill, among many other Democrats ... Mr. Wendt has supported, John McCain. Greg donated several thousand to McCain in 2003. The link can further be seen by checking the donations of Mrs. Lisa Wendt. She has been very generous to many of the same politicians as Greg, including McCain."

Meanwhile, McCain advisor and Ankle Biting Pundits contributor Patrick Hynesconservativeanxiety "over the absence of a genuine conservative in the race" and assures readers: "Conservatives on the lookout for a genuine anti-abortion candidate should look no further than at Sen. John McCain, who is my client. Sen. McCain has the longest record of service in protecting the unborn among all the prospective Republican presidential candidates. What is more, Sen. McCain's record has been consistent. ... Consider, for example that John McCain has voted to ban partial-birth abortion seven times in his career, including two votes to overturn President Bill Clinton's veto of partial birth bans."

DEMS: That Smarts

Incoming House Intel Cmte Chair Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) tells Newsweek: "We have to consider the need for additional troops to be in Iraq." Kevin Drum is surprised, considering that current ranking member Jane Harman "was passed over for the committee chairmanship because she had supported the war and was just generally a little too hawkish on national security matters. ... Which is better: someone who got it right in the beginning but has since lost his way, or someone who originally made a mistake but seems to have learned something since then? I think I'd pick door #2." Talk Left: "Harman had seen the light. We had gotten her to see the light. She would never have done this."

Jonathan Singer talks about the race for DCCC chair, "a contest made all the more interesting by the purported reticence of the potential candidates." The Hill says leading possibilities are Chris Van Hollen (MD), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL), Artur Davis (AL), Kendrick Meek (FL), Mike Thompson (CA) and Xavier Becerra (CA). Becerra and Van Hollen rank highest in partisan rankings, while Wasserman Schultz and Van Hollen earn kudos for caucus dues, money raised for the DCC and contributions for the Red to Blue program. He asks if the netroots should get involved, and has an online poll. The latest tally, as of 10:30 am, with just 14 votes, gave Wasserman Shultz 7 votes and Van Hollen 4.

Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC) writes at Daily Kos that "the sanctimony has already begun over the prospect of oversight hearings" by Dems. But that's because "they think we'll act like Republicans. ... Oversight is not just about causing heartburn for the other party." Meanwhile, Josh Marshall writes that "a big part of what Dems were after in the mid-terms was oversight and investigations. So how many folks know that the chief investigations and oversight guy in the Senate is Joe Lieberman?"

Back over at Kos, McJoan notes that Pres. Bush has invited Dems in the Blue Dog and New Dem coalitions to the WH. "They've decided to hitch their wagon to Mr. 30 Percent Approval? Really? See guys, that's not demonstrating your independence and capacity for 'bipartisanship.' That's just plain old treachery, and idiotic treachery to boot." Later, mcjoan clarifies that "I'm not saying that the Democratic leadership should not be meeting with Bush. That's part of their job. ... But the leadership has to be able to lead, and this move by Bush is an end-run around the leadership. It's an effort by the administration to peel away a block of Democrats that have, to the party's detriment, shown their willingness to buck party leadership."

On the local front, Georgia Politics Unfiltered discusses the prospect of a party switch by state Rep. Mike Jacobs (D). "I contacted Rep. Jacobs for a comment, a confirmation, or a denial, but he could not be reached."

GOP: They Gotta Win Eventually

Not deterred by the defeats of their chosen leadership candidates, The Directors at RedState endorsed Rep. Jeb Hensarling (TX) for Republican Study Committee Chair. They write: "It is time for conservatives in Congress to put up or shut up. In the race for Chairman of the Republican Study Committee ("RSC"), there are two good men running, but only one of them proved his loyalty to the cause in the movement by a repeated willingness to vote against a rule -- a bold and courageous move for a member of the then majority. Only one of them aggressively fought wasteful government spending consistently. That man is Jeb Hensarling and he is our choice to be the next Republican Study Committee Chairman."

On the immigration front The Right Angle's Robert Bluey posts C-SPAN footage of WH Dep. CoS Karl Rove getting a "chilly reception" from Hillsdale College's annual Churchill Dinner. Bluey describes: "During the question-and-answer portion, a member of the audience told Rove he frequently hears from Republicans who want to know what is being done about the open-borders problem. Rove gave an eight-minute response emphasizing President Bush's call for a "comprehensive" solution to the illegal immigration problem. While Rove recited some strong statistics emphasizing increased enforcement on the border, his overall answer suggested the U.S. had no way of keeping illegals out, and therefore, should instead invite them in as part of a guest-worker program. The response from the audience: dead silence."

GATES: Best Hearing Ever!

Ex-CIA Dir. Robert Gates 12/5 Senate Armed Services Cmte confirmation hearings drew more response from the right than the left; and most of it negative. RedState's Jeff Emanuel called the hearings "A rough start for Robert Gates" and Townhall's Hugh Hewitt worried Gates exchange with Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) caused "relief in Tehran and Damascus" and "concern in Israel." Power Line's Paul Mirengoff "found Gates' performance somewhat disappointing" but argued it "showed he's up to that task."

Iraq war supporter and fierce Bush critic Andrew Sullivan was pleased with the proceedings: "One feels a sense of great relief to hear the candor of Bob Gates in his Senate hearings. We are losing the war in Iraq; and our incompetence may have triggered the beginning of a massive regional conflagration. At least we now know that someone in this administration is grappling with reality rather than fantasy, that someone has some modicum of responsibility. At last."

Lefty reaction was light but mostly negative. Firedoglake's Christy Hardin Smith was "just appalled at the fluff, the softballs, the preening and the lack of much of any real substance and oversight in the questions and public statements." TAPPED's Adele Stan was argues "no senator on the Armed Services Committee, before which Gates appears today, who votes to move this nomination to the Senate floor will honestly be able to say that he or she has supported a man worthy of the job," but AMERICAblog reasons: "The guy has a creepy past, but there's really no way the Senate can block him. Rumsfeld is gone, that's the important thing, as is Bolton. You can't fight every battle, and we've already won two just out of the gate. And with Gates saying that we're not winning in Iraq, in this administration that practically makes him a prophet (or a heretic)."

The Corner's Jonathan Martin adds a lighter note to the proceedings: "The Senate is, of course, the Senate. And perhaps nobody personifies the courtly nature of the body like Virginia's senior senator. Chairman John Warner gaveled the first session to a close with a typically grand pronouncement that in his "28 years" on the committee, "this is as good a hearing as we've had." Turning to the more plain-spoken ranking member, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), Warner asked, "Is that right, senator?" Levin replied, "I'd agree with that." But then, how could he not?"

Finally, in anticipation of the Iraq Study Group report expected out just minutes after deadline, Instapundit rounds up blogger recommendations. Outside the Beltway isn't impressed.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Where There's A Will, There's Spam

Reacting to CNETreports on Digg news item manipulation by Internet marketers writing:

Goodness, well before most people knew what a "blog" was, these people were spamming comments sections and trackbacks to build higher pageranks for their sites, a plague with which we're still trying to cope. There are still days when I get thousands of spam comments; thankfully, most of them are caught by my filters. Ironically, many bloggers (myself included) are now trying to exploit Digg and similar sites to drive traffic back to our sites (although I have not used unscrupulous means of doing so).

It's noteworthy, too, that most of those sites are already essentially controlled by cabals of users with nothing else to do who band together and promote the links they wish and ensure that unfavored sites get immediately pounced upon with down votes. The bottom line is that people and businesses are always going to figure out ways to exploit new technologies to their advantage. Some will be more honorable than others.

LEST WE FORGET: Lifestyle Choices

Firedoglake's Christy Hardin Smith reposts some old holiday complaints:

I've decided that God is a capitalist. There's just no other explanation for why someone in my neighborhood bought a giant, air-filled snow globe with the Baby Jesus in it as their Christmas decoration this year. Nothing says "We're religious!" quite like having an inflatable lawn ornament that pelts the Christ child with fake plastic snow bits, let me tell you. I feel diminished in the eyes of the Lord because we don't have one.

Religion is big business in this country. Just ask Ralph Reed. Or those teevee preachers that live in the multi-million dollar mansions and ride around in their Rolls Royce of the month.

What happened to the whole "love thy neighbor" thing? The whole "do unto others," instead of just trying to look like a better person than the other guy by buying more licensed Jesus merchandise? Seems to me that money might be better spent on helping out the less fortunate instead of getting the latest from the Biblical video of the month club. ... It sure isn't my Grandpa's church any more. It's not a religion, it's a lifestyle.

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:18 PM

December 05, 2006

12/5: Lefties Love Labor, Not Libertarians

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas "throwaway blog post" describing himself as a "Libertarian Dem" generated enough interest that CATO Unbound hosted a "Should Libertarians Vote Democratic" forum 10/06 including a lead essay from Kos. CATO Research VP Brink Lindsey follows that interest up with a TNR piece 12/4 that has bloggers from the left and right talking again ... and no one is buying into the idea. Meanwhile, MyDD's Matt Stoller argues "the most interesting piece of netroots development that I'm hoping to see is an alliance between labor and the progressive blogs."

LABOR: A Match Made In Vegas

Looking back on Dem/netroot success in '06, MyDD's Stoller writes: "When you think about it, labor and the netroots have a lot in common. We're both frustrated at the skewed power dynamics in this country, and we are both working to restore accountability to our political and economic elites, because we see them as disconnected from American society at large. We're both by and large supportive of Democrats, but we also have independent power centers outside of the party and want to hold Democrats accountable. They pump huge amounts of money into campaigns, we pump some money into campaigns. And we're all organizing ourselves to inject our voices into the political process." Stoller goes on to support SEIU nurses currently locked out by United Health Services in Las Vegas, NV.

Echoing that sentiment Daily Kos diarist Phoenix Woman defends incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) from charges of banning Labor from meeting with freshmen reps. PW posts "some facts" from fellow Daily Kos commenter DemHillStaffer:

• This isn't an orientation session for Freshmen - it's part of an ongoing series of caucus meetings for all Members of Congress with leading thinkers on issues. For example, there's also one this week with military leaders on Iraq.
• Labor wasn't banned from this session. It's for Members of Congress only and a special guest. To be banned implies that it's open to people other than members of Congress. According to that logic, everyone who's not Bob Rubin is "banned." A better title would be "Pelosi Invites Rubin, not Labor, to Discuss Fiscal Responsibility."
• Whatever you think of his trade policy, [Robert] Rubin knows how to make the case for fiscal responsibility, which is the subject of his talk.
• Labor has a friend in Nancy Pelosi, whose top lieutenant - Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the author of the Employee Free Choice Act - is going to chair the House Education and Labor Committee.
• Why are we assuming the worst about Democratic leaders before she's even said one word opposing a pro-working family agenda?

LIBERTARIANS: A Match Made In Fantasyland

CATO Research VP Brink Lindsey's TNR article calling for a liberal/libertarian alliance drew fire from The Corner's Jonah Goldberg and his readers. Goldberg writes:

"Liberaltarians," if you ask me, starts unpersuasively analytically but slowly works up a head of steam toward crazy-enough-to-work territory. ... At the most basic level, what Lindsey is really asking is for liberals to give up the psychological and political impulses that make them liberals in the first place. ... We should all hope that Lindsey's project succeeds. Who among us unapologetic conservatives wouldn't like to see the two parties get in a bidding war over who is more libertarian on economic issues? I know I'd be ecstatic over such a struggle for the new - currently mythological - "libertarian center."

Goldberg later posts reader arguments that hopes of a libertarian-liberal alliance are nothing new and that none of the "three camps of libertarians" (the anti-tax, anti-government spending libertarians; the dope-smoking libertarians; and the pro-gun wing of the libertarians) will get along with Dem "party elders."

On the left, The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum illustrates Goldberg's point: "Liberals are never going to give up on the idea of progressive taxation, and our overall tax system is only barely progressive as it is. ... Ditto on entitlements. Universal pensions and universal healthcare are bedrock parts of the social safety net, and it's simply not conceivable that liberals will give ground on these. Nor should we. ... Bottom line: I just don't see it. Lindsey is better than most at diagnosing where the real differences lie, but those difference are core to the identities of both groups. It's hard to see the point of even trying to compromise on this stuff."

BAYH: The Next Lieberman?

DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas looks at Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) warnings that Dems "could lose their newfound grip on Congress if the party pursues an ideological course" and calls him "deluded." Kos adds: ""Ideological"? You mean, like governing based on core Democratic principles? I know Bayh doesn't have any of those. But perhaps he could wait until Democrats propose something "extreme" before he says idiotic shit like this? The punchline is that Bayh thinks he'll be a serious candidate for president. He refused to send some of his big warchest to the DSCC when we pushed the "Use it or lose it" strategy, denying the national party money when locked in its fierce battle for control of the Senate. Now, after betraying the party pre-election, he wants to lecture it post-election? I don't know why anyone would want to be the Joe Lieberman of 2008, but I guess Bayh wants the title. It's his. Congrats to him."

GORE: The Best Pre-Campaign Campaign Ever

Daily Kos' Mcjoan links to Al Gore's recent GQinterview and writes: "Gore's focus on global warming and his willingness to speak out against the Bush administration even before the rest of the country turned against it have been a real service to the nation. And how refreshing is it to hear a potential presidential candidate willing to skewer the Bush administration in no uncertain terms? Even if he doesn't intend to turn what appears to be the best pre-campaign campaign I've ever seen into a real campaign, he's rehabilitated as a public servant and a politician."

OBAMA: I Do And Do And Do For You, And This Is The Thanks I Get?

While Arianna Huffington celebrates Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) complications of Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-NY) '08 plans, MyDD's Chris Bowers worries about Obama's use of "left wing strawmen" to distance himself from a 'liberal' label. Bowers picks out two quotes from New York mag's 10/2 profile and writes: "What's worse, is that when it comes to someone like Barack Obama, for who I worked and tried to get elected, I am not really sure what I did to deserve being talked to that way. And yes, it actually hurts to be made a scapegoat by someone you wanted to see in office, and that you helped - even if only slightly - to achieve that office. A single phrase keeps going around in my head whenever I hear Obama use one of his strawmen: I helped you, man. Why are you treating me like this? Is this a sign you don't want me to help you anymore? Do you honestly believe that attacking me is more valuable than the help I can provide?"

Andrew Sullivan also is catching up on his New York mag reading, but he picks out a different Obama quote from the same article: "One good test as to whether folks are doing interesting work is, Can they surprise me? And increasingly, when I read Daily Kos, it doesn't surprise me. It's all just exactly what I would expect." Instapundit and Blog P.I. curiously also have thoughts, on the same day, on the 10/2 article.

KENNEDY: Why Not?

A blog "dedicated to electing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. President in 2008" came online 11/25. DraftRFKJR argues "As for his legacy, he is Bobby's son -- and that legacy is a good one. Bobby Kennedy is alive, and if anyone should ask why he should run for President, we just need to quote his father, and ask, "Why not?" To those who say that he has not thrown his hat in the ring, I say, "There are times that call for certain people to come forward. For those of us seeking a new paradigm for our society, one has to look no further than RFK, Jr."

BROWNBACK: Less Credible Than Barack Obama

Righty blogger reaction to Sen. Sam Brownback's (R-KS) entrance into the '08 was, at best, lukewarm. The Right Angle's Robert Bluey describes Brownback "[a]s the lone candidate so far who is sincere on social issues" and can force other GOPers "to be honest about many important issues" but also reminds readers that his vote for "amnesty" makes him un-electable.

Townhall's Dean Barnett also sees little hope for Brownback: "Bad news for you, Duncan Hunter. That ironclad lock you had on the least-plausible Republican candidacy has disappeared overnight." Back at Right Angle, Matt Lewis explains his lack of enthusiasm for Brownback comes from his growing concern "with the new brand of "purpose driven," mega-government compassionate conservatives (of which Sen. Brownback seems to belong). ... Aside from the fact that I disagree with them on some fiscal issues (Mike Huckabee is a prime example of this), I also have a suspicion that some of them hope to slowly move us away from opposing things like same-sex marriage, in order to be more (you guessed it) compassionate. (I'm not accusing Brownback of having this motive!). ... It also seems disingenuous; watching a recent television interview with Rick Warren, Barack Obama, and Sen. Brownback, I found myself thinking that Obama is the one I trust the most."

ROMNEY: We're Guessing Dean Has A Lot Do With Romney

Townhall's Dean Barnett reports on "buzz" that FL Gov. Jeb Bush (R) is a strong possibility for a MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) running mate and adds: "One thing you'll learn about Romney - there aren't a lot of people who have a lot to do with him who emerge anything less than completely and entirely impressed."

NM SEN: More Bunning Than Stevens?

Hitching his wagon to a Roll Call report (see 12/4's Hotline and Wonkette) suggesting Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) may have been walking around the halls of Congress in his pajamas, Kos calls NM's senior senator the "Jim Bunning of '08": "Those of you around in 2004 might remember the Jim Bunning situation, with the Kentucky Senator acting so bizarrely that he almost lost to an under-funded, low-name ID state legislator. And that was in a pretty solid Red state. The rumors of NM Senator Pete Domenici's degraded mental faculties are rampant, and now apparently confirmed with his own bizarre behavior." Jonathan Singer agrees: "These are not the actions of someone who is tasked with running for reelection over the next two years." More Singer: "This is not a mere Ted Stevens wearing an Incredible Hulk tie, this is a Senator potentially ambling around the halls of Congress in only his underwear. If this isn't a borderline Jim Bunning moment, I don't know what is."

BOLTON: Loud Complaining, Muted Celebrations

Reaction to Bolton's departure stirred up anti-UN sentiment on the right, beginning with Ankle Biting Pundits: "If a man can ever be judged his enemies and what they say about him, then John Bolton certainly had all the right enemies, and their comments upon his departure show why the UN is a useless organization and should be ignored." The Corner's Andy McCarthy: "We Don't Need an Ambassador at the UN ... We need a wrecking ball."

Captain Ed thinks it's evidence "that the White House has signalled a full retreat on its executive prerogative." More: "It doesn't look like the last two years of the Bush administration will have room for tough-minded fighters like Bolton and [Amb. to Iraq Zalmay] Khalilzad. "

From the left, Steve Clemons is magnanimous in victory, but still offers thoughts on the winners and losers from Bolton's departure. He says the biggest loser may be Sec/State Condoleezza Rice. Tapped's Mark Leon Goldberg: "Progress is now also possible on a host of important UN reforms that would make the UN a more efficient bureaucracy. These reforms stalled this summer amid threats by Bolton that the U.S. may withhold its support for the UN's budget unless the reforms were adopted. With threats like this one, Bolton showed an uncanny ability to torpedo UN reform by simultaneously uniting a previously fractious alliance of underdeveloped countries generally hostile to reform and dividing a previously united coalition of European and northern states that supported many of the proposed reforms."

BOLTON II: Who's Got Next?

Some suggestions on who ought to replace Bolton in NYC:

• Many float ex-Sen. George Mitchell (D-ME), to whom reaction runs the gamut. Some righties would be okay with it, including RedState
's Rick Moran ("We could do worse."). Others, like Mary Katharine Ham, aren't so amused at the idea: "So, I guess we're bypassing squishy Republicans and going straight to Democrats? ... Nuthin' says good things for America like 'ardent support' for the 'globalist agenda!'"
• Wizbang! offers a "semi-serious" suggestion: Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO). Commenters have a great time suggesting other names, including Jimmy Carter, Khalilzad, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I/D-CT), ex-MN Gov. Jesse Ventura, MD LG Michael Steele (R), Amb. Joe Wilson, ex-Sen. Zell Miller ("D"-GA), Dennis Miller, 50 Cent and "no one."
• The Corner's Andrew Stuttaford: "Ambassador Giuliani. Now there's a thought..."
• Meanwhile, Jonathan Martin urges us not to forget outgoing Rep. Jim Leach (R-IA). Martin: "Fear the sweater vest!"
• Steve Clemons thinks the job will go to Undersec/State Paula Dobriansky, who is "acceptable to both Rice and Cheney, and is not a complete rejection of John Bolton's views."
• American Prospect's Mark Leon Goldberg, on Khalilzad, Leach and Dobriansky: "Each of these three could be described as foreign policy pragmatists from of Secretary Rice's camp. If this holds, it seems that we may be in for a course correction at the United Nations."
• K-Lo's all about Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA). (Stuttaford chimes in: "Um, no.")
• More KLo: "And I thought I was depressed....an e-mail: 'K Lo, two words for you on who the new UN ambassador will be: Lincoln Chafee.'"

IRAQ: Doesn't Look Like Kucinich Got The No Funding Cutoff Memo

Noting that a Greenberg Quinlan Rosner survey of the 50 most competitive GOP-held districts found "25 percent of likely voters said Iraq was the single most important issue behind their vote -- nearly twice the level for the two next issues," The Democratic Strategist's Jeremy Rosner lays out a plan for how Dems can solidify their recent gains on national security issues: "The new Democratic Congress needs to provide the vigorous oversight of the war their Republican predecessors never provided. But they also need to avoid pushing for funding cut-offs that could be cast as undermining the troops (and which would in any event merely be veto bait). And they need to push for an end-game that moves gradually, doing what we can to build up Iraq's infrastructure and professionalize its military and police forces, acknowledging that we bear some moral responsibility for Iraq's growing chaos."

Daily Kos's Mcjoan echoes Rosner's plans for increased oversight and TPM Muckraker's Paul Kiel reports Rep. Ike Skelton (D-MO) has formally asked incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to approve the creation of a new House Armed Services Committee subcommittee "devoted to oversight and investigations."

At The Huffington Post, however, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) finishes up his three-part post on the necessity of cutting off war funds with a five point plan for Iraq:

• Transfer to the United Nations the authority the United States currently exercises in Iraq.
• The United States will finance a UN-sponsored peace keeping mission in Iraq and enlist the help of other members of the coalition of nations which participated in the Iraq action.
• UN troops will rotate into Iraq, and all US troops will come home. The United Nations, through its member nations, in cooperation with member nations from the region, will commit 130,000 peace keepers to Iraq on a temporary basis until the Iraqi people can maintain their own security.
• The United States must agree to pay for what we destroyed. An Iraq reconstruction fund, monitored by the UN in cooperation with the Iraqi government, must be annually replenished to replace destroyed infrastructure.
• The United States will abandon policies of "preemption" and unilateralism and commit to strengthening the UN.

TERROR POLITICS: Outrage Wanted

Andrew Sullivan posts photos of Jose Padilla in custody and writes : "An American citizen detained without charge for almost four years - in solitary confinement and darkness and forced to wear goggles and sound-erasing ear-plugs in public. ... One man is responsible for this. And he is president of the United States. I am told I am hysterical to be angry about this. But my anger gets deeper the more we know. I simply do not understand why the anger and sense of disgrace is not more widely felt." Talk Left also calls for "a greater outcry over this" and Digby is reminded of the Count of Monte Cristo.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: But Yglesias Says QBs Don't Matter

Chicago Bears fan Sheldon Drobny is happy the Bears are 10-2 but worries coach Lovie Smith is demonstrating too many similarities to Pres. Bush in sticking with struggling QB Rex Grossman:

Those of us in Chicago and in the MSM all are painfully aware of the fact that Grossman is not the man to lead this team, but Lovie Smith has a different reality than most others who observe and analyze the NFL. ... But, Lovey lives in his own reality. ... In many ways the nature of Smith's behavior is a metaphor for Bush and many of our political leaders. Lovey Smith and George Bush seem to be in the same reality. Do not confuse them with facts. They keep dreaming and leading by hunches and stubborn feelings in which they are certain that they are right. ... I wonder if Lovey Smith is a Republican.

LEST WE FORGET: Mmmm, Kerry-licious!

Apparently no one at The New Republic likes to buy groceries. After Jason Zengerle shared his discovery that NM Gov. Bill Richardson's (D) '04 Dem convo salsa was "pretty good" and "notably ... hot" Michael Crowleyconfessed to eating his "special-edition 2004 Democratic National Convention Kraft macaroni and cheese" during a late-night craving. Crowley writes: "After about 90 seconds of debating what it could be worth on eBay someday, I cooked it up and unsentimentally wolfed it down. Kerry-licious!"

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:11 PM

December 04, 2006

12/4: Enemies List

The netroots are not a monolithic entity, so not every list of blogger grievances with Dem stalwarts merits covering. But David Sirota is a New York Times best selling author and has enough pull in the netroots community to get select items cross-posted at both The Huffington Post and Daily Kos ... the two most trafficked blogs we cover. So as we approach the holiday season, and you want to know which Dems have been naughty or nice according to some progressive activists, check out the story below.

DEMS: He Named Names

Firedoglake's Pachacutec thanks David Sirota for "naming some names" when it comes to "who's on the side of the people and who's on the side of the DC/K Street Elites." Sirota's "People Party Leaders" include: Sens.-elect Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jon Tester (D-MT) Jim Webb (D-VA) and Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Russ Feingold (D-WI) , Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL), Reps. George Miller (D-CA), David Obey (D-WI), John Conyers (D-MI), Louise Slaughter (D-NY) and Henry Waxman (D-CA) Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Tim Ryan (D-OH), Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) Nancy Boyda (D-KS), and Bruce Braley (D-IA).

Enemies of the people (with their crimes in parenthesis) include:

• Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) ("trumpeted a new report calling for post-Enron corporate reforms to be gutted")
• Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) ("the architect of NAFTA")
• Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) ("bragged on his website about starting his own K Street Project")
• Rep. Ellen Tauscher ("ran to newspapers desperately trying to let K Street know that she would be working to undermine Democrats' efforts to reform our trade policy")

Those being watched closely by progressives (with their suspicious behavior in parenthesis) include:

• Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), ("this year he voted for the Oman Free Trade Agreement")
• Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) ("told reporters that he did not think Democrats should be so quick to embrace efforts to gut post-Enron corporate accountability laws")
• Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) ("never met a lobbyist-written trade deal he didn't like")
• Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) ("supporting the Bush tax cuts, the Bush Medicare bill and nearly every major lobbyist-written trade deal that has come through the Senate")
• Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) ("opposed to repealing Bush tax cuts, is interested in potentially continuing our current trade policy")
• Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) ("has proposed to business lobbyists a so-called "grand bargain")
• Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) ("may oppose efforts to allow seniors to purchase lower-priced, FDA-approved medicines from Canada")
• Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) ("she this year headlined the DLC's national conference - a very public rebuke of the People Party")
• Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) ("He additionally voted for the industry-written class action bill that limits citizens ability to seek legal redress against corporate abusers, he voted for the oil industry-written Energy Bill, he voted against legislation to crack down on exorbitant credit card interests rates, and he voted for the Oman Free Trade Agreement")

Echoing Sirota's concerns, Daily Kos' ManfromMiddletown reports "[t]here's a war on for the heart of our party, and it seems that Speaker Pelosi has chosen sides." Middletown specifically is concerned that Pelosi did not include voices from Labor among a series of seminars for freshman reps. that included a session by "free trade fanatic from the Clinton administration" Robert Rubin. Middletown writes: "Never in my life did I think that I would see a Democratic speaker of the House ban Labor from talking to the people's representatives."

OBAMA: Cancer Curer

Populist activist David Sirota cross posted his latest concerns about Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) potential candidacy 12/1 atSirotablog, Daily Kos, and The Huffington Post. Specifically, Sirota warns progressives to be wary of "national media" "swooning over Obama" since even they admit Obama has not "developed significant legislative initiatives" while in the Senate. Sirota explains: "For progressives, this situation is perilous indeed. Obama is a candidate who has kept his record deliberately thin, who has risked almost nothing for the bigger movement, and in fact who has sometimes gone out of his way to reinforce dishonest stereotypes about the left ([link to Sirota piece on Obama addressing Dems and faith]).

Sirota does acknowledge in an update that Obama "was a great State Senator in the Illinois legislature" but argues "that should only cause more skepticism, because if he was willing to push such a strong agenda in his previous job, why has he been unwilling to do the same now?" This admission did not stop Daily Kos' demosthenespublic from responding: "Sometimes, you really just have to sit back and laugh at the ridiculousness of the purity-obsessed political culture we now live in. Take this poorly written screed in which Dave Sirota belittles Illinois Sen. Barack Obama's (D) anticipated run for president."

Responding to demosthenes and others Sirota says Obama defenders fall into two camps: "1) Barack Obama was a great state legislator in Illinois even if he hasn't done much OR EVEN TRIED TO DO MUCH in the Senate, and therefore he is the second coming of the Almighty or 2) Barack Obama is just really incredibly awesome for no actual substantive reason, and therefore he is the second coming of the Almighty." Sirota then offers: "I'm not sure how to really argue with any of these absurd cliches because they are so fact-free, As one commenter said, if you apply Obama topically, he cures cancer. He can walk on water and split oceans to lead the people to their freedom...I mean, really - does it ever end?"

Sirota does add though: "None of this is Obama's fault, and as I've written repeatedly, I strongly believe he has incredible potential to be one of American history's great leaders, and in fact a great presidential candidate right now - but only if he starts aspiring to actually lead, starts using his bully pulpit to promote a real, substantive cause."

BIDEN: Unwelcome Comparisons

Under a header "Joe Biden's Trent Lott moment" Corrent Wire picks up on Columbia Statereports that Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) charmed a GOP crowd in Columbia, SC telling them DE was "a slave state that fought beside the North. That's only because we couldn't figure out how to get to the South. There were a couple of states in the way." CW responds: "But why on earth would a Democratic Senator, in 2006, help enable Republican to feel nostalgic for the "lost cause" of the slave market and the lash? What is wrong with this guy?"

MCCAIN: Leave No IA GOPer Unhired

IA's Krusty Konservative notes that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) "has been aggressively lining up staff after the November elections" including: Tim Miller, Scott Will, Jenn Crall, Erik Helland, Bob Haus, and Karen Slifka. KK adds: "With new these new faces, the McCain folks are going to need some office space. I hear they will be setting up shop in the same office that the Nussle kampaign occupied in the last election cycle. ... None of these hires really surprise me, and I'm sure this is just the tip of the iceberg."

IA's Caucus Cooler reports McCain also brought on "one of Iowa's leading social conservatives, Marlys Popma." CC comments: "Popma worked on the caucus campaign of Phil Gramm in 1996 and Gary Bauer in 2000. This is mostly significant because of Popma's strong ties to the social conservative community in Iowa- a group McCain will have to do a lot of work to win over. Bringing on Popma will go a long way in helping him do this. She is close to the Iowa Christian Alliance, Iowa Right to Life, and the Family Policy Center."

Over at RedStatePejman Yousefzadeh reminds readers of his differences with McCain but explains: "anyone who is brave enough to resist the bedlam of public opinion and announce his support for more troops in Iraq in order to achieve a successful reconstruction has my respect.

ROMNEY: Not A Bad Enemy To Have For The Primary At Least

Righty blogger consensus seems to be that Boston Globereports of MA Gov. Mitt Romney's lawn service provider hired illegal immigrants says more about the Globe than it does about Romney. Townhall's Hugh Hewitt writes: "The Globe story tells us a lot more about the Globe's animus towards Romney ... than it does about anything else, and certainly nothing about Romney's electability. ... As both Fred Barnes and Morton Kondracke agreed on tonight's show, it isn't a story of any consequence except it indicates again that the MSM has its knives out early and pointed only in the direction of the Republican candidates."

Power Line's Paul Mirengoff adds: "Of course, there is no evidence that Romney had any idea that this guy or any of his comrades are illegal. Nor is this something he should have known. Romney contracted with a legitimate company; that company hired the illegals. Romney is no more culpable than I am if I go to a restaurant that employs illegal aliens as waiters or busboys (or the Globe is if one of its vendors employs illegals)."

Not everyone was impressed with Romney's handling of the situation though Ankle Biting Pundit's Bulldog Pundit writes: "Why did he have to walk away and go back to his handlers to deal with the situation. That's pretty juvenile. The statement "several hours later" was that Romney didn't know anything about the legal status of the workers and only dealt with the guy who ran the company. ... That's totally believable and makes sense ... But why did he have to run away instead of issuing that statement himself. His actions make him look weak and indecisive, and that he has something to hide, even though he probably doesn't.

IRAQ: Rumsfeld Six; Kucinich One

The leaked ex-Def. Sec. Donal Rumsfeld memo on six options for Iraq received plenty of blogger reaction 12/3. Righty reactions include:

• Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "Oh so predictably, the Washington Post tries to use Donald Rumsfeld's classified memo on Iraq as a weapon against the Bush administration. And, just as predictably, the use of the memo for that purpose signals Rumsfeld transformation from chief villain to respectable analyst."
• Captain's Quarters: "However, it will be interesting after this memo to see how the press and the Democrats approach Rumsfeld. They have made him the Devil incarnate for the last three years for his prosecution of the war. Now that he has endorsed a lighter approach to Iraq, similar to what the media and the opposition have demanded, will they rehabilitate Rumsfeld as a "wise man" on the war?"
• Riehl World View: "What I sensed in reading the actual memo was just how much Rumsfeld was opposed to nation building in Iraq. Left with that impression, I wonder if it wasn't the final straw for Bush in deciding to let Rumsfeld go. The Bush policy, which I continue to support, by the way, is to establish democracy in the Middle East as a means of combating radical Islam with a long term solution that will actually work."
• The Corner's Andy McCarthy: "My strictly non-military observation, based on many years in government, is: We appear to be in for two years of increasing dysfunction.
• Outside the Beltway: "Rumsfeld is a bright guy and capable of doing much more in-depth analysis on his feet at press conferences so, presumably, his intent was merely to collect the various ideas floating around as a starting point for discussion. ... Had he intended it to be a detailed analysis advocating a specific course correction, he would have written one.
• Power Line's John Hinderaker: "What strikes me most about the memo is how similar Rumsfeld's recommendations are to what we have been doing for some time. ... The conventional wisdom is that both President Bush's firing of Rumsfeld, and the timing thereof, were dictated by political considerations. On the whole, I still think that is right. But reading Rumsfeld's final memo does raise another possibility: perhaps Bush read the memo and decided that, if the current leadership of the Defense Department couldn't come up with any ideas that represented a more significant departure from our existing policies, he would give someone else a shot.
• Andrew Sullivan: "Here's a mischievous thought. What if the two most recent leaks - the Hadley Memo and the Rumsfeld Memo - came from the same source? What if they were designed to kill any attempt by Bush and Cheney to pretend things are okay, that Maliki is viable, and that a revamped effort can work? And what if the leaker were a man who just got fired and who's skilled at bureaucratic payback? Just musing."

On the left, The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum was not impressed: "In other words, the options Rumsfeld isn't open to are the ones most frequently mentioned by outside analysts: Increasing the number of troops, concentrating on Baghdad, withdrawing, splitting Iraq into three mini-states, and negotiating with Syria and Iran. He doesn't like any of 'em. ... The bottom line then, is: maybe some small changes, maybe a change in rhetoric, but nothing serious."

At The Huffington Post, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) argues "There is only one way in which the United States will withdraw from Iraq, prior to the end of President Bush's term: Congress must vote to cut off funds." And later adds: "The Democratic majority is upbeat about establishing a domestic agenda including additional funds for health care and education. But, the unassailable fact is that the war is devouring the hopes for any domestic agenda. Each and every vote to fund the war is a vote to drive the United States deeper into debt and further away from humane aspirations."

BLOGGERS VS. MSM: Guilt By Association?

Beltway Blogroll's Daniel Glover came under heavy netroot fire for an accompanying write up to a New York Timesop-chart on paid campaign bloggers. Mentioned in the piece, MyDD's Jerome Armstrong calls the piece "slanted "opinion" with an agenda" and fellow MyDDer Jonathan Singer explains: "Glover ... seems to allege that political campaigns are getting more than they appear to be paying for with some of their consultants and employees, with top-tier bloggers on politicians' payrolls using their personal sites to boost their benefactors." Many on the left were quick to point out that two bloggers mentioned in the chart, but not the article, quit their blogs before starting with campaigns:

• Pandagon's Amanda Marcotte: "Daniel Glover and Mike Essl are hinting around that a lot of bloggers have undisclosed conflicts of interest and forget to include an extremely important disclaimer about some of the bloggers on their handy little chart here. You know, the part where they clearly state that bloggers like Peter Daou and our own Jesse Taylor have no conflict of interest at all. Because they quit their blogs before starting their campaign jobs so there was no conflict of interest.
• Atrios: "I guess the blogger ethics standard is now if you've ever run a blog there's something unseemly about actually working with politicians, even years later."
• Roger Ailes: "Neither mentions that Jesse Taylor no longer blogs at Pandagon and that he announced the fact when he went to work for Strickland. And why doesn't Glover mention Holy Joe Lieberman's hiring of Bull---t Marshall Wittmann in his article/chart?"
• Steve Gilliard: "What these cretins don't get is not all bloggers are the same. Many of us come from journalism backgrounds and don't do politics. Others are looking to get into politics. Look at the relatively small figures that these people have made, and this pernicious idea that bloggers are "selling out" is so f---ing silly. Some people do politics, some don't."

Glover even managed to join Atrios' illustrious "Wanker of the Day" club.

Blog P.I. wonders where all the vitriol comes from since the "only blogger explicitly criticized" by Glover is Ankle Biting Pundits contributor and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) advisor Patrick Hynes: "The only blogger explicitly criticized is Hynes, a Republican, yet most of the outcry comes from the left. Why? Guilt by association. That's why I think that the article might not have received such harsh criticism had it not been paired with a chart placing bloggers' quotes about their employers."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Is James Bond Responsible for the Iraq War?

Slate's Richard Cohen argues that when Pres. Bush told Americans: "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa," he meant that James Bond had personally attained the information. Cohen continues:

At the time, I did not give much thought to how Bond got this information, but I supposed it entailed a killing or two, a fast car, a gorgeous woman of situational morality, and a lethal gizmo provided by Q. Of course, I knew that it was not literally Bond who discovered that Saddam had gone shopping in Africa, but the fact that it was the British government that came up with the goods gave Bush's assertion unimpeachable authority. You need only ask yourself what the effect would have been if Bush had cited the Italian government or the Russian government or even the Israeli government, which could be seen as an interested party. "The Italian government has learned " We'd still be laughing.

LEST WE FORGET: Definitely The French

Matthew Yglesias points readers to a Go To Quiz that determines "Do You Want the Terrorists to Win?" by asking questions like:

"Who wants the terrorists to win more?"

• The French


• The Dutch


• The Spanish


• The American liberals


• None of these want the terrorists to win

Yglesias scored a 96% generating this write-up of his beliefs: "You are a terrorist-loving, Bush-bashing, "blame America first"-crowd traitor. You are in league with evil-doers who hate our freedoms. By all counts you are a liberal, and as such cleary desire the terrorists to succeed and impose their harsh theocratic restrictions on us all. You are fit to be hung for treason! Luckily George Bush is tapping your internet connection and is now aware of your thought-crime. Have a nice day .... in Guantanamo!"

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:31 PM

December 01, 2006

12/1: No Dogs In These Fights?

Reinforcing MyDD's Chris Bowers 11/27 observation that the netroots do not have a standard bearer in '08 DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas tell readers "I am 100 percent undecided at this point. I don't even lean toward someone." Kos advises: "I'm in no hurry, and none of us should be either. Make them work for our support."

Somewhat similar sentiments can be found on the right today as Power Line's John Hinderaker and Captain's Quarters both lament the like of a "mainstream conservative" in the '08 GOP field. With neither side truly in love with any one of its current candidates, will '08 fail to provide us with good information on how the blogs can affect their respective parties' presidential nominee?

RGA: Party Crasher Express

Ankle Biting Pundits contributor and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) tells readers, "McCain Steals the Show at RGA Meeting" and adds: "Some Republican Governors have already stated publicly that they will support McCain if he decides to run in 2008, including Jon Huntsman of Utah, Mitch Daniels of Indiana, and, according to one source, Haley Barbour of Mississippi."

Captain's Quarters explains: "Tim Pawlenty, who will preside over the 2008 Republican National Convention in Minnesota, gave McCain more than just one lift when he drove McCain to the reception. ... He could have ceded this ground to [MA Gov. Mitt] Romney, especially since some of his own allies tried to paint the Governor as exploiting the RGA for his presidential ambitions. Instead, he charged into opposition territory and made sure that he matched Mitt step for step -- and even walked away with an important endorsement and possibly a running mate. McCain will be tough to discourage in 2008."

In non-'08 RGA news, National Review Online has both Jonathan Martin and Kate O'Beirne reporting from Miami, FL. Highlights include:

• Martin: "Outgoing RNC chair Ken Mehlman opened up day two of the RGA meeting here in Miami with a strongly-worded speech laying out his vision for how the GOP can regain their status as the majority party ... After praising Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Gov-elect Charlie Crist and LG/Sen candidate Michael Steele for their outreach efforts this past cycle (and citing the statistical inroads they made with minority groups), Mehlman reminded the group that the GOP "needs to be growing, not shrinking." Calling for "comprehensive immigration reform," the chairman implored his fellow Republicans to "remember that we're a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants." ... On the same theme, Mehlman also alluded to the new regional problems facing the party (singling out New England) and compared them to the same challenges Democrats have faced in the South.
• Martin: "Giving welcoming remarks on a RGA panel devoted to homeland security, Governor Jeb Bush pointedly said, "Rep. Tancredo is absolutely wrong" about the host city for the conference. "We celebrate diversity here."
• O'Beirne: "during short presentations on the recent elections, panelists acknowledged that Republicans (and conservatives) suffer from a brand-name problem, but found some good news in polling data that shows Democrats haven't been embraced. ... I was surprised that national security was ignored as a political issue during this discussion, which might be because 1) it is an audience of state officials, or 2) no one is quite sure what to say about how the issue of national security can be a political asset for Republican candidates.
• O'Beirne: "To illustrate the importance of the GOP's GOTV operation, Sara Taylor, political director at the White House, reminded the audience that 18 congressional seats were decided by 5,000 or fewer votes and Republicans won 12 of them. And they were told that 61 Democratic members in the new House were elected in districts that George Bush carried in 2004, 32 of them by 55 percent or more."
• Martin: "The panelists also were largely in agreement that Republicans are lagging on taking advantage of the internet and bloggers. Newhouse, who polled for Sen. Joe Lieberman after the Dem-turned-Independent lost his primary, recalled how they'd get "daily email updates about what the bloggers were saying." In Republican campaigns, Newhouse said, "we had none of that." Consultant Russ Schreifer noted how some of his clients would ask where the GOP version was of the joint fundraising liberal bloggers did for favored candidates. Schreifer also recognized how the blogs had become not just fundraising outlets, but also unfiltered mediums for opposition research. Democrats did a better job, he said, of putting out such oppo online as a way of getting it into the media's bloodstream. And by the time the MSM got it, the DCCC already had the ads cued up."

Not in Miami, NewsBustersMatthew Sheffield links to Reuters reports of Google CEO Eric Schmidt's address advising GOPErs: "The ones that take advantage of [the internet] most effectively will be the ones that will be the winners of the next election." Sheffield adds: "Schmidt also said that his company was establishing procedures to stop web spamming (aka "Google bombing") that many left-wing blogs engaged in during the 2006 elections by repeatedly linking to negative articles about Republicans in order to bump them upward in search results. Unsavory business types also love to engage in this, in many cases setting up "spam blogs" designed to promote their products and web sites to unsuspecting web readers."

GOP FIELD: Mainstream Conservative Wanted

Power Line's John Hinderaker describes the "three announced contenders" for the GOP field (McCain, Romney, and ex-NY mayor Rudy Giuliani) as "strong...[b]ut none of the three is a mainstream conservative." Hinderaker adds: "What we are lacking in this lineup is a straightforward, mainstream conservative whose views align with the party's base across a broad range of issues: security, taxes, judges and the social issues." Hinderaker goes on to identify ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich as the best fit for this role but acknowledges that Gingrich carries more baggage than Northwest Airlines." Captain's Quarters echoes Hinderaker's concerns: "It's a long way to 2008, but conservatives might want to start thinking of at least one more credible conservative with national impact to draft into the race."

Over at RedState, Erick Erickson wonders why '08 hopefulls still pursue Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell: "Sonny Perdue, Mitt Romney, and others, in doing so, display a tone deafness toward the evangelical movement, which long ago moved beyond Falwell and Robertson ... I suppose for media attention those are the two guys to go to. ... They are, I suppose, the right wing equivalents of the Reverends Jackson and Sharpton. ... The fact of the matter is, though, that if a politician really wants evangelicals to get comfortable with them, James Dobson and Chuck Colson are the men to cozy up to."

Wizbang's Lorie Byrd announces that righty blogger backed ABC Pac has launched a "Your Choice, Your Voice" page to accept contributions to potential presidential candidates. The page includes a long list of possibilities ranging from the big three (Giuliani, McCain, and Romney) to Sec/State Condoleezza Rice and NY mayor Michael Bloomberg.

GIULIANI: The Frontrunner?

Race 4 2008's Woodrow Eisenhower links to Hotline On Call reports McCain advisor Mark McKinnon identified Giuliani as the GOP frontrunner when asked as a panelist of The Hotline/UVA Center for Politics Conference 11/30. Eisenhower comments: "While McKinnon is probably trying to keep McCain and his supporters on their toes so they don't get too complacent with all the belly-scratching the mainstream media is giving them, it is interesting to hear a major political expert go against the grain, even if it means down playing the power of his own boss. ... There does, however, seem to be a slow but noticeable move, even amongst the media and beltway pundits, toward acknowledging that Rudy is indeed a, if not the, frontrunner for the Republican nomination."

Also talking frontrunner status, The Corner's Ramesh Ponnuru claims he knows all "20 conservatives in Manhattan" and "they all seem to be supporting Giuliani for president in 2008." Ponnuru links to an NRO article on Giuliani's state-by-state poll numbers and comments: "Giuliani's supporters have been arguing that most of the people who back him in the polls must know, or be able to infer, that he is socially liberal on some issues. (Murdock points out that Giuliani was actually a socially conservative mayor by New York City standards.) Fair enough: But I doubt many of them know that Giuliani was for partial-birth abortion, and their perception of him as a law-and-order man may lead them to mistake his position on immigration as well."

The Corner's Andy McCarthy responds by musing on what types of judges Giuliani would appoint: "At the moment, I don't think there's much of a public record about the type of judges he'd appoint. But let's say he were to tell us he'd like to see originalist judges in the mold of Justice Scalia, or at least that he doesn't agree with Sen. Specter's view that Roe is a "super-precedent." That might give him space to contend that, while his personal views on some social issues are liberal, he strongly believes these issues ought to be resolved by the democratic process, not imposed by activist liberal courts."

ROMNEY: Boston, We Have A Lawn-Guy Problem

The Right Angle's John Gizzi reports outgoing members of Sen. Bill Frist's (R-TN) political team are likely to join Team Romney. Gizzi names Cat-Bond partner Linus Catignani, Alex Vogel, and Jack Oliver. Gizzi adds: "Can Frist himself be far behind the "Romney Express" if his top campaign team is poised to hop on? According to the same source that tipped us on "Team Frist,""The Leader [what intimates call Frist] will back Mitt Romney, in part because he can't stand John McCain."

The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez alerts readers to a Boston Globe article hitting Romney for using "illegal Guatemalan immigrants, to maintain the grounds" around his home. K-Lo classifies the issue as a "lawn-guy problem" and tells readers: "According to the Globe, the Romneys used a lawn-care company he connected with through his church. He evidently never asked about the legal status of those working for them. ... Asked about it at the RGA - seemingly hearing about the status problem for the first time - Romney replied, "Ah, geez."

Over at Ankle Biting Pundits McCain advisor Patrick Hynes ascribes the "inordinate amount of chatter regarding Mitt Romney's religion" to two dynamics: "The first dynamic is the liberal media's desire to paint evangelical Christians as intolerant of other religions (i.e. Mormonism). The second dynamic is the Romney supporters' disquieting hyper-sensitivity to any observation at all about Romney's faith by people who are not overt Romney enthusiasts. ... The whole thing is rather tedious to watch." Hynes goes on to tell readers there are a "great many other reasons" he opposes Romney, but his faith is not one of them. Hynes also took the time to email Clarion Ledger reporter Laura Hipp for her side of the Falwell-supports-Romney kerfuffle:

"This is the direct quote from Romney: 'A number of religious leaders among the evangelical Christian community will validate my effort if I get in. A number will say they endorse me. Others will say that if I'm the nominee, they'd be happy to work for me. I think a few already have, Dr. Land and Jerry Falwell and some others said look if this guy's the nominee, that's great we'll be happy to work with him.' "He used Falwell's name, implying his support."

Finally, The Corner's Ramesh Ponnuru shares his thoughts on MI conservative activist Josh Mercer's new site Romneyisaliberal.com: "The issues he mentions are the same ones Murdock mentions as problems for Giuliani: guns, abortion, and gay rights. Romney may have an honorable explanation for his apparent change of heart on these issues, but I haven't heard it myself."

DEM FIELD: As Long As We're On The Subject

Noting that "everyone else wants to" talk about '08 DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas posts a collection of "stream-of-consciousness" thoughts on '08 hopefuls:

• Sen. Evan Bayh (IN):"I won't forget those Democrats who dug deep on behalf of our majorities, and those who didn't. There was no one more miserly than Evan Bayh. Out of all the candidates, I am hostile to one -- Bayh, and it's because he demonstrated none of the party-building leadership I expect from our nominee and hopefully president."
• Sen. Hillary Clinton (NY): "[T]he Democratic nomination is not Hillary's for the taking. ... she tops out in the early polls, a popularity contest, at 35-ish percent. Now, money is good to build name ID and to brand. But who doesn't have an opinion well-formed about Hillary already? She's only been around 14 high-profile years. She's got one direction to go -- down."
• John Edwards: "I still think the frontrunner is Edwards. The primary schedule fits him best -- Iowa, where he dig extremely well in 2004, Nevada, where UNITE-HERE (which represents all Vegas casino workers) is an unofficial extension of the Edwards campaign, New Hampshire, where he only needs to show up and place top-three or four, and then South Carolina, where he should theoretically clean up."
• Al Gore: "No one knows if he's going to run. All indications say "no", though he's got a bunch of his supporters going around trying to drum up interest. It looks like an ego play -- get a reluctant Gore to enter the race to satisfy public clamoring for it. His entrance would be dramatic and welcome. And what better place to announce than when he accepts his Oscar for Best Documentary? Now that would be exciting.
• NM Gov. Bill Richardson: "Of course, Bill Richardson will make a play for Nevada, counting on regional kinship and its Latino voters to pull him to the top and give him a boost headed into the next few primaries. In fact, Richardson is a big reason the Nevada caucuses even exist. Still, if it's a battle of Latino voters versus Labor, I would give the edge to labor. My people still don't vote in the numbers they should. But Richardson is also very popular in the Latino community. If anyone can get them out, it'll be him."

OBAMA: Theater Candidate

Netroots opposition continues to manifest against Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL). LiberIL View's Braamer describes Obama as "a windblown politician ... who has never claimed to be a Black leader. ... Nowhere is this more evident than in the most critical issue facing Americans and the world at this dangerous juncture in history: the war in Iraq. ... Obama continues on his lifelong quest to demonstrate that he is a reasonable, thoughtful Black man - unlike the others. This is theater for American audiences only, and has nothing to do with statesmanship, or the search for peace. ... There is a political solution to the American war in Iraq, although not the one Obama and his corporatist friends are willing to accept."

On the right, Obama's outreach to Rev. Rick Warren is ruffling feathers:

• The Corner's K-Lo's official Evangelical Guy: "There is very much a strong belief in the Evangelical movement that the pastor must take care of the "pulpit", both in what he preaches from it and who he invites to preach from it. Warren inviting Obama is like inviting a wolf among the sheep."
• The Corner's John Podhoretz: "K-Lo, your e-mailer says it's "inappropriate" for Rick Warren to invite Barack Obama to speak from his pulpit, since it is a "holy place." Warren built that church practically by himself. It's his pulpit. And it is for him and his congregants to decide what is or is not appropriate conduct on that pulpit. Besides which, do evangelical Protestants believe a pulpit is "holy"? Isn't that more of a Catholic view? (Please don't send me 500 e-mails on this topic, as I have a column to write. Just discuss amongst yourselves.)"
• Townhall's Hugh Hewitt: "Rick Warren is catching some flak for inviting Senator Obama to a conference on AIDS, in Africa and around the world. Rick's a friend, so you can discount this if you'd like, but it seems to me that setting aside political differences --even on crucial issues like protecting the unborn-- is certainly appropriate when the focus is on the prevention of a deadly disease and relief for a epidemic devastated continent."

WEBB: Ned Lamont In Combat Boots

Sen.-elect James Webb (D-VA) is rapidly becoming the netroots darling of the 110th Congress. Glowing reactions to his recent chilly White House exchange with Pres. Bush include:

• The Huffington Post's Brent Budowsky: "Jim Webb is the real deal straight talk express, no bull dished, no spin doctored, no punches pulled. Jim Webb cares deeply, fights like hell for what he believes, knows what he is talking about, stands up for his brothers and sisters in combat, plays to win, fights with honor, and is an American patriot of the first order of magnitude."
• Raising Kaine's Rob: "First off, Webb is getting bashed for preferring not to go through this Presidential pomp and circumstance? When did our Presidents become some sort of monarch, where it's unexpected and even haughty to avoid some executive reception line. Seriously? Oh my, our Senator refused to kiss the Presidential ring! He didn't want his autographed picture! What a "pompous poseur!"
• Digby: "I'm watching some "Democratic strategist" named Rich Masters agree with Joe Scarborough that Jim Webb had made a rookie mistake by failing to kiss George W. Bush's ass when the jerk got snippy with him. ... I don't know what it will take to get them to stop doing it. They are making Jim Webb into one of the "crazy" guys like they made Gore and they made Dean. Don't they get that whenever a Democrats stands up to a republicans the establishment turns around and says they are nuts. Why are they helping them?"
• The Washington Monthly's Christina Larson: "On the campaign trail, Webb rarely talked about his son. He wore his son's boots as a personal reminder, but otherwise deliberately did not talk about him. Towards the end of the campaign, Virginia's Democratic governor Tim Kaine would bring it up for him, aides say. It might seem odd not to exploit the fact of having a son in Iraq on the campaign trail, but that's Jim Webb."
• Kos: "But I will say that there are things I'll be looking for -- executive experience, a track record of leadership, especially in controversial issues, an outside-the-beltway mindset, loyalty to party, demonstrated material assistance to the Democratic gains in 2006, an embrace of people-power, and some Webb-style cojones."

LA 02: Is That $100K In Your Briefcase, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me

TPMmuckraker's Paul Kiel looks at Rep. William Jefferson's (D-LA) new ad and points out that his claim that he was never photographed taking a bribe is accurate. Kiel notes: "The FBI informant actually is captured giving Jefferson the briefcase filled with $100,000 in cash as an intended bribe for the Vice President of Nigeria -- not Jefferson himself, so he does have a point." Kiel has the new ad in full.

MyDD's Tim Tagaris sees the race in stark terms for the blogosphere. Tagaris: "I consider Karen Carter's campaign run-off quite similar to Paul Hackett's special [in OH 02 in 8/05] in that our involvement in both symbolize something larger than the actual election itself. With Hackett, we finally had someone willing to stand up to President Bush on Iraq. ... With Karen, our support sends a message to the Democratic Congress that we expect the people of New Orleans will finally receive the assistance and attention reality demands. Nationally, it also sends a message that Democrats won't tolerate corruption on either side of the aisle."

AL SEN: Ford Tough?

Kos notes that ex-Sen. Max Cleland (D) will not seek his old seat against Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), who ousted him in '02, but that Rep. Artur Davis (D) is thinking about a bid against Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL). Kos: "If Davis -- a killer orator and skilled politician -- enters this race, it's immediately a second-tier race. That might not sound impressive, but we're talking about an African American candidate in Alabama here. And let's not forget, [Sen.-elect Jim] Webb (D-VA) was a third-tier candidate most of the race, made the second-tier after the Macaca incident, and didn't really go top-tier until the last month of the race when polls showed a competitive race. We'd also get to see just how racist the GOP wants to continue behaving, and whether such appeals continue to have an impact in the South."

MS SEN: First In The Series Of Dominoes?

Political Insider's Drew Pritt speculates on rumors of return bids by "the Big Three," ex-Govs. Ray Mabus (D) and Ronnie Musgrove (D) and ex-AG Mike Moore (D). Mabus and Musgrove are said to be contemplating a ticket for GOV in '07, while Moore is contemplating a SEN bid. Moore "has been the Democrats' dream candidate for some time."

Moore's bid is based on the assumption that Sen. Thad Cochran (R) retires. If he does, look for Rep. Chip Pickering (R) to step up for the GOP. In that matchup, "Moore would be able to easily outraise Pickering. Outraised and outgunned, and especially if the Democrats recapture the Governor's office in Jackson, Moore would be almost unbeatable." More: "Should Mississippi fall, it will be only a matter of time until Georgia and Texas fall, at which point Richard Nixon and Strom Thurmonds "Southern Strategy" of turning the South into a bastion of Republican superiority will be dead."

Linking to Pritt's post, Kos credits DNC chair Howard Dean's 50-State Strategy for making life easier for Sen./DSCC chair Chuck Schumer (D-NY): "As much tension as we had between Schumer and Dean this year, you better believe Chuck will be happy to see that Mississippi has a growing ground operation ready to work for Moore (or whoever the Dem nominee is)."

Jonathan Singer is also optimistic about a Moore-Pickering matchup. "Moore would come in with a number of strengths, not the least of which is his overwhelming favorability among the Mississippi electorate." More: "Of course 2008 is still a long way off and there is no definite proof that Cochran will not defy the prognosticators by running for a sixth term."

DEMS: Boulevard Of Broken Campaign Promises

Noting a Washington Poststory saying Dems are now unwilling to restructure Congress per the 9/11 Commission's suggested reforms, NRO's Jim Geraghty, who had been "debating writing something nice about the incoming Congressional Democrats," is now critical of Dems who "roasted their opponents for picking and choosing which ones they preferred; they insisted that only instituting all the recommendations demonstrated a serious commitment to protecting the American people. And now, we learn, that pledge was 'crap,' as [Rep. John] Murtha would likely put it."

At RedState, Pejman Yousefzadeh agrees: "This refusal -- after swearing up and down that all of the Commissions recommendations would be implemented -- is bizarre to contemplate ... until we notice that the recommendation involves Congressional reorganization, which will result in the loss of a certain amount of power and influence for the incoming Democratic majority." So does Ivy J. Sellers: "Considering the fact that the entire Democratic campaign plan this past year was based around the war, and a big reason they came to power is because the public wanted changes made to change the course of the war, this is big time. The public should be outraged at such a blatant betrayal." B.T. has no high hopes: "Gee, wonder if the MSM will hold the dems as accountable as they hold President Bush for any lapses in National Security now? Not. Holding. My. Breath." Captain Ed piles on.

From the left, TNR's Michael Crowley calls the move "definitely a real substantive and symbolic mistake." But if Dems "manage to push through other good legislation beefing up homeland security -- in the neglected area of securing loose nuclear materials, for instance, I suppose they can sorta make up for it." Also walking The Plank, TNR's Isaac Chotiner opines: "Whatever one thinks of the commission's recommendations, it's this sort of thing that makes you cynical about Washington ever really changing, election results notwithstanding." Left CoasterSteve Soto wonders if Dems are crazy like a fox: "Is this the first of several broken campaign promises, or a case of gaining the support of committee and subcommittee chairmen to get as large a package through as possible?"

Meanwhile, TPM's Kiel wonders about another Murtha-esque member: "Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-WV) is set to head up the panel that controls the purse strings for the FBI -- which is investigating him for his earmarking habits. Does anybody see that as a problem?" TPMmuckraker's Justin Rood has details.

GOP: Heckuva Job, Liddy!

Kos examines his archives and comes up with another reason he'd like to see Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) back atop the NRSC: "It wasn't just the millions that Liddy Dole dumped into Chafee's campaign, both in the primary and then in the general, it was also the scores of boots she removed from battleground states East of the Mississippi. For three weeks, the NRSC took its troops out of Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Missouri to rescue Chafee's ass in a primary, even though he was always a long-shot to retain the seat. And I'm sure no decision of that magnitude was made without Rove's direction."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: It's Almost As If Networks Like To Control How Their Content Is Presented Or Something

AMERICAblog's John Aravosis links to a Chicago Tribunearticle on tv network use of YouTube and comments: "So, it actually helps TV networks get MORE viewers if their videos are posted on YouTube, but we shouldn't post their videos on YouTube because somehow that harms them (cough, Comedy Central). Okay. And, at the same time, CBS can post their own videos all over YouTube, and they do, but when we post the same videos on YouTube somehow THAT harms CBS. How? Not clear, since CBS is already posting its videos, for free, on YouTube, so it's not like they're worried about their content going on YouTube, and it's not like they're suffering a harm for it being there. So what's the problem again? The networks need to decide if YouTube is a good thing or a bad thing, because in the meantime they're creating a lot of bad blood (Comedy Central)."

LEST WE FORGET: Fabu-Mass

Andrew Sullivan posts a reader email: "Thanks so much for the slide show of Benedict on the runway. My favorite is the velvet toque trimmed in white fur. When I was a young gay boy in the 50's I told myself I loved going to mass because I was good, but I was really just entranced by all the fabulous appurtenances."

Sullivan adds: "I've often wondered how many straight Catholics fully appreciate how gay their church has always been. Especially in the old days. High Mass was, in its heyday, more elaborate and choreographed than a very melodramatic Broadway musical. Do people really believe that gay priests and religious had nothing to do with it? They had everything to do with it."

Posted by Conn Carroll at 12:11 PM

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