Blog Archives: October 2007

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White House Press Briefing

Happy Haloween! 

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Strange Times at an Evangelical Flea Market

“Strange Times at an Evangelical Flea Market” Lord knows I’m sick of talking about Christian Conservatives, but there are a few more anecdotes I need to purge before entering into my memory-erasing hypnosis sessions. Anyone who’s ever attended a partisan political summit fully understands t

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Celebrating 36 Years of a Clinton-Bush Cooperative: Dynasties in the White House

Apparently I was born into the wrong family. My whole life, I've dreamed of being President, and just when I thought that my big problem was that I'm not 35 yet, I learn that my future has nothing to do with age: there are just no Smiths in the White House. Clintons, sure. Bushes, of course. Kennedy

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Blackwater Immunity

Oh, Blackwater. The FedEx of the National Security Apparatus. Immune from punishment. Immune from responsibility. And running with Mitt Romney. Just warms the cockles of your heart, doesn't it? The way this works: our government can take out their leaders as criminals (Saddam) but our criminal

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Today's White House Press Briefing

Enjoy

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Blackwater guards offered immunity by investigators without the authority to do so

   In a moment of rash stupidity, State Department investigators are reported to have offered Blackwater USA security guards immunity. The State Department investigators from the agency’s investigative arm, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, offered the immunity grants even though they d

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What Does it Take to Get Fired in This Administration? Ask FEMA Faker

Wow.  John “Pat” Philbin, who until last week’s press conference fake-out was external affairs director at the Federal Emergency Management Agency is, er, no longer with the company.  And he won’t be starting in that new position in National Intelligence either, said a repres

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Bush planning to use recess appointment for Homophobic Holsinger?

  Is Bush about to have another recess appointment? Back in July, Bush's Surgeon General nominee James Holsinger appeared in front of the Senate. Three months later, the committee is still waiting for his questionnaire with a due date of August 10. In case you missed the controversy surroundin

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The Drug War in Mexico: Police with pistols vs. American AK-47s

  The Washington Post today published an article detailing the enormity of weapons smuggling out of the U.S. into Mexico. While Americans are focused on keeping Mexicans out, Mexico is struggling to control the surge of firearms being brought into its country by drug lords. The guns earn s

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RedState Says No More Ron Paul?

Maybe they're just frightened that the steady stream of "Support Ron Paul!" comments on their site outweighs the I Heart Huckabee constituency, but GOP bloggers are now blaming liberals for Ron Paul's internet success (they're just Democrats pretending!) and are banning all Ron Paul-related comments

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Monday Morning Must-Reads

Rudy a Lefty?  Yeah, Right.  [WaPo]    It starts out like this: "If you like President Bush, you'll love a President Giuliani."  And it's worth reading on - namely because half the people I know who have spent the last eight years viciously complaining have actually said they wouldn't mind a P

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Acting Attorney General Faces Questions on Torture, Future of Voting Rights Chief

Acting Attorney General, Michael B. Mukasey This time last week, Barack Obama was making news by calling for the resignation/termination of Justice Department voting rights chief, John Tanner.  This week, Senator Ted Kennedy has asked acting Attorney General Michael Mukasey to review Ta

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Horowitz has a noose around his neck

Happy Islamofacism awareness week! Today at Columbia University, David Horowitz complained about the double standard of Columbia getting upset about an African American professor having a noose hung up outside her office, as opposed to doing anything about the figurative noose above his own head. Of

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Conservative Christians Heart…Mitt Romney?

Watching Mike Huckabee address the crowd at the 2007 Values Voter’s Summit felt like one of those moments in life when a person wholly finds their element, sort of like how it must have been when Pasteur finally stopped the milk from turning in that French laboratory or right before Daniel crane-k

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Anne Coulter has been perfected

Our friends at Barely Political have done a pretty fantstic song about Anne Coulter... 

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Code Pink runs Congress

Yesterday Dana Perino suggested Code Pink (the women's anti-war activist group) runs Congress. As you can see from the vid, they're really running the show. 

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Rice's New Rules - 19 recommendations that manage to avoid the central problem.

   After a bloody month where at least 17 civilians died at the hands of private security firms, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice has announced a new set of rules dictating private security firms' operations. Neither the U.S. military nor the State Department's Diplomatic Security Servic

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Wednesday Interview: Natalie Davis Discusses Bright Blue Dots in Really Red States

In light of last weekend's Values Voters Summit, we think it's a good idea to dig a little further into what is going on in the breeding ground of the average Christian Conservative - typically a white, southern, Republican voter. So we went straight to the source - Prof. Natalie Davis, professor of

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DREAM Act fails Senate test vote. What does it take to be American?

   The DREAM Act has failed the vote in the Senate. The DREAM Act is focused on bringing permanent residency to illegal immigrants that have completed two years of college or military service. In addition, illegal students will gain access to work study programs and federal loans (federal

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Michael Hayden Gets Reviewed

There's something fufilling in knowing that the vast stretches of Human Resources protocol extend even into our federal government, where lord knows there's enough administrative staff to fully stock every HR department from here to Timbuktu.  And in the great glory that is every HR department, the

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Dodd Announces He Will Delay Vote on FISA Until Immunity for Telecoms is Removed.

Senator Chris Dodd discusses his opposition to telecom immunity on October 20, 2007. Senator Chris Dodd announced today that he will place a hold on a bill to extend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) if the Senate Judiciary Committee does not remove language granting retroactiv

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Calm Like a Bomb: Inside the Family Research Council’s 2007 Washington Briefing

I spent the better part of Saturday stumbling around the Washington Hilton, talking with self-identified “Values Voters” about the upcoming Presidential election.   I was amazed that nobody seemed noticeably insane. In between speeches from Republican presidential candidates, there were no audi

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White House Press Briefing- "Czechoslovakia"

Today's White House Press Briefing. Is it worse that Dana Perino doesn't know that Czechoslovakia ceased to exist in 1992 or that neither did the White House press corps? 

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Novak Indicts Plame, CIA in Anti-Bush Cabal

Ah, Robert Novak.  The political genius who so intrepidly evaded any semblance of civic responsibility or journalistic integrity after outing Valerie Plame as a CIA agent way back when.   The Grand Ole Pundit himself now points a new finger at Plame: she's apparently part of an Anti-Bush cabal at

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Border Fence: Made in China

Just when it seemed the 854 mile border fence project couldn't get any more controversial, information leaked out that the steel being used to construct the fence is imported from China. There were "Buy American" rules requiring the use of US Steel, yet photos have been released showing steel pipes

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Ron Paul Gets Booed

The Republican debates have taken on a life of their own as GOP infightening threatens to rival the mud-slinging of the Democratic hopefulls. Last night's target? Ron Paul, whose profoundly sane ideas won him the admonishment of the audience.

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Comcast blocking file-sharing - and never bothered telling customers.

Our friends at TPM have confirmed it: Comcast is controlling internet access. The second largest internet provider has taken to 'traffic shaping,' a practice Comcast says is meant to give equal access to all consumers. In reality, Comcast is blocking file uploads to keep it's bandwidth more availab

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Monday Morning Must-Reads

Bush or the Dems: Who's Relevant?  [HuffPo]     At yesterday's press conference, President Bush insisted that he is still "relevant." Normally, it's an immutable law of politics that if you have to say you're relevant, you're not (shades of Clinton circa 1995). But in Bush's case, his role as t

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Obama Calls Justice Department Official's Comments Offensive, Calls for Resignation

At the end of a week in which most of Senator Barack Obama’s press came from pundit musings on his willingness to toughen up his act and distinguish himself from his rivals, came a freebie from the Department of Justice. Speaking to a Latino group in Los Angeles earlier this month, John T

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FCC At It Again, Working to Change Media Ownership Rules

FCC Chair, Kevin Martin  Most of us tend to think of the Federal Communications Commission as a bunch of puritanical dorks obsessed with protecting the American viewing and listening public from exploding f-bombs and flashing areolas—Think former FCC Chair Michael Powell’s outraged d

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Crabcakes: WH Briefing

Dana Perino doesn't exactly big up Rice's chances of creating Middle East peace. For your Friday viewing pleasure. 

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Dutch ban shrooms

I’m a little but late with this one, but it’s worth mentioning nonetheless…The Netherlands, famous for its canals, daffodils and gay policemen, banned magic mushrooms last week – a further dent in the country’s reputation as a bastion of liberalism, tolerance and tripped-out students.It

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Brownback (R) + Biden (D) Campaign Together on Iraq

In an unprecedented joint campaign event, a Republican presidential candidate and a Democratic presidential candidate crossed the political line and met in the middle on Iraq. While all the other candidates are busy muck-swinging and vote-pandering, what should we take from this unique moment of bi

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Bush Explains his Principles

Today's WH Press Conference was an exercise in principles. At least when it comes to Bush explaining his own. The fast version: Principle #1: Democrats won't fund the government. Where's my snack. Is it nap time yet? Principle #2: I love the Dalai Lama. Support Tibet! Principle #3: But not

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Colbert Announces Campaign for President

  And...He's in!"After nearly 15 minutes of soul-searching, I have heard the call….I am hereby declaring that I will enter the presidential primary in my native South Carolina, running as a favorite son," Colbert said on his show Tuesday night. "I defy any other candidate to pander more

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Larry Craig Standing His Ground in the “Toughest Fight” of His Career.

Well, Matt Lauer’s sit down with Idaho Senator Larry Craig and his wife Suzanne proved to be the squirm-in-your-seat groaner everyone had anticipated. With nothing remotely persuasive to say in his defense, Craig ticked off the laundry list of self-defeating justifications he used in early pres

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China upset at America hosting the Dalai Lama

   Putin's visit to Iran isn't the only diplomatic move causing an uproar. The Dalai Lama has a meeting with Bush today, marking the first time a sitting U.S. president will speak to the Dalai Lama in public. Bush will be awarding the Dalai Lama the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest ci

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Ann Coulter Fixes America by "Perfecting" Jews

Okay, if Hillary Clinton is one of Frank Rich's "Good Germans," Ann Coulter is Hitler himself. In an interview with Donnie Deutsch (a practicing Jew), she's announced her resolution for a perfect America: first, perfect the Jews - make them Christian.The feedback:

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Stephen Colbert as a NYTimes op-ed columist? Believe it.

   The other night on his show Stephen Colbert went at the NYTimes...again. He classified the paper as only good for "kindling," and said that if you throw it away it "takes over a hundred years for the lies to biodegrade."Maureen Dowd was watching the show, and after the prompting of Colb

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Clinton Says No Extreme Torture

In what must be the most intellectually serious moment The View has ever witnessed on its set, Hillary Clinton came out against extreme torture today on the midday talk show. Maybe she's got Frank Rich Fever and doesn't want to be a "Good German" any longer.

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Kotecki Does Al Gore

Our friend - and among the first in our Wednesday Interview series - has done a great video on the power of Gore for Politico, where he is now resident video blogger. We're always looking for more of those ourselves, so if you're interested, let us know - and congratulations, James!

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Condi Rice: Speaking Truth to Power. Sort of.

In Moscow this weekend, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice encouraged activists and leaders in business and media to fight the power that has coalesced around Russian President Vladimir Putin and his circle of Kremlin cronies.   "I think there is too much concentration of power in the Kr

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How to deal with historical guilt...

If you are the U.K, in some instances, you can say "sorry". In 1997, acknowledging the role that the U.K had in exacerbating the Irish famine in the 1840's (when corn was exported to England despite the failure of the potato crop), Blair said: ''Those who governed England at the time failed their pe

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The Most Important Op-Ed You Have Read in Years

The ‘Good Germans’ Among Us By FRANK RICH [New York Times]Published: October 14, 2007“BUSH lies” doesn’t cut it anymore. It’s time to confront the darker reality that we are lying to ourselves.Ten days ago The Times unearthed yet another round of secret Department of Justice memos counte

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First the Nobel, Next the White House?

Now that he's won the peace prize, where will Al go next?

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A second helping of Cold War stew? Why, yes, I'd love some, thank you.

I was a small child in the 80's when the Cold War was winding down.  Between the Smurfs, Snorks and Gummi Bears I vaguely remember seeing commercials about Russian paratroopers stealing our fast food, Gorbachev meeting with , the Berlin Wall coming down.  That's my remembrance of the Cold

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Study published: Outlawing abortion does not decrease abortion rates

   A collaborative study between the World Health Organization and scientists found that making abortion illegal does little to affect its rate of occurrence.A comprehensive global study of abortion has concluded that abortion rates are similar in countries where it is legal and those whe

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Obama Not Aggressive Enough?

The Illinois Senator on the Situation Room.

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Should the Democrats Forget Dixie?

It was 2006, and the first-ever YearlyKos was just getting underway. The annual circus of liberal wonk was punctuated by a steady round of panels, and at one of them, David “Mudcat” Saunders was asked to speak about the role the Democratic Party will play way down south in Dixie. He’s a l

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WH: Oops, Armenia!

Armenia v. Turkey. It's still on. Turkey asking us to pretend a genocide didn't happen is too ridiculous for comment, but that we'd even listen to them is fascinating. Wait, would we love Turkey? Even after a certifiable genocide? Wait, wait. Why would that be? Would it have anything to do

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Wednesday Interview: Politics in Second Life

 I was playing around on YouTube yesterday when I found this crazy video -- of a Newt Gingrich speech in Second Life. Now, I'll be the first to admit I'm entirely unaware of what happens in Second Life - I've got too much chaos in first life to branch out - but this really struck me. Newt? A

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American policy on the Armenian Genocide: 'What genocide?'

Everyone loves to point and laugh at Mahmoud Ahmadinejad when he denies the Holocaust, and the appropriate uproar ensues over the offensiveness of such a claim. In those moments, Americans often have the attitude that, while history might be hard to swallow, it has to be accepted for what it was. U

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GOP Debates: Giuliani Plays Hardball with Mitt

A few important things came out of this debate. (1) We know Fred Thompson needs a couple cuts to get his script down. (2) Giuliani is trying to be Jack Nicholson with this sound-important-then-move-my-glasses-and-grin move. (3) Mike Huckabee can channel Jimmy Carter, but he doesn't sound as good

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YouTube vs. Myanmar

You Tube have done a great job of supporting citizen journalism by highlighting footage of the protests in Myanmar that has been posted on the site. User "Juvenile Birds" listed as 17 year old Myanmar citizen has been doing a particularly good job, and has a good collection of his/her work- the cl

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Supreme Court Silences Masri Case at Request of Bush

  The Supreme Court has refused to hear the case of Khaled Masri. Two years ago, Masri filed a lawsuit against the CIA for his wrongful imprisonment, torture, and refusal of rights.This is a story few people forget:The mistake apparently arose because his name was similar to that of a want

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Unnamed Private Firm Reportedly Killed Two Iraqi Women

   Tuesday in Iraq two women were killed, shot by private security guards escorting a four-car convoy through Baghdad. The security company responsible has not been named.Witnesses are reporting that two women were driving in their own vehicle when one of the private guards ordered them to

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Rob Reiner Does Hil's Newest Ad

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Third Party Candidate?

So when the Conservatives don't want to vote with Giuliani Republicans, will Hillary win? Is this going to be another Nader split? [Not that I want it, but those constructionist "moral voters" should take Jamie Raskin's lead and think about what vote pairing can do for them...]

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Iraqis want a new government of their design.

   "We demand that the American administration stop this adventure, which is rejected by all the sons of the people and its national political powers," the leading Shiite political coalition said in a statement. "Their elements are criminals who cannot be trusted or relied upon." WPAnd so

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Joe Scarborough Wants a Pulitzer

Ah, Morning Joe. The most intellectual way to break bread in the morning. A little toast, a little intolerance... breakfast of champions. "If the Iraqis think they can do a better job than Blackwater, why the hell don't they put their own people out there, protecting their own country," Joe said

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Clinton v. Clinton on Torture

Bill to Tim Russert: Hillary's probably right about this. Mara Liason to FOX: But a President does what a President has to do.

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Brown is taking Britain out of Iraq

  The new British Prime Minister is taking a very different line on Iraq than his predecessor: getting the hell out.It would start with British forces training and mentoring Iraqi security forces, securing supply routes to the Iranian border and being able to provide back-up to local secur

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Monday Morning Must-Reads

The Presidential Primary Scan [Salon]     Why the game is rigged, and why true democracy is only a secondary factor in the nation's rush to nominate the next president.  It's far worse than you think -- worse than hanging chads, faulty Diebold machines, and billionaires who

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Bush: We Don't do Torture

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Hope for Ron Paul?

Jack Cafferty thinks so.

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Still Going...

The Genius of Larry Craig, Senator. You've heard the news. Sen. Larry Craig isn't resigning after all. He'll keep plugging away in the Senate until January 2009. For the moment at least he says he's not going to run for reelection. (I put the odds of his getting into the presidential at about three

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White House Press Briefing- Torture Edition!

Today's White House press briefing was heavily focused on the United State's use of torture. Dana Perino displayed her usual calm in the face of heavy questioning from the White House press corps and a thorough knowledge of the Geneva Conventions.

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Junta seals Myanmar - no internet, no telephone, no information

   For the past few weeks, horrifying pictures and video have leaked out of Myanmar - showing a very different reality to the political takeover than what the new ruling generals presented.That will all change today. To stop the international uproar over information coming out of Myanmar,

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Kennedy's Challenge to Bush

This was bound to get interesting. And writing a direct challenge to the President in today's Huffington's Post, Senator Edward Kennedy was the one to deliver the blow: "There's one thing President Bush and I do have in common, though - American taxpayers cover 72% of our health care premiums,

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SCHIP On His Shoulder

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SCHIP Goes Down

Our veto-skiddish President has decided the time has come to exercise the power of his pen: and so he's taking healthcare away from children. This is one of those proud-to-be-an-American moments. But Congress isn't taking this one sitting down. There's hope for the bipartisan bill yet - mostly i

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Dr. George Bush

    Bush is making the fourth veto of his presidency, choosing to take a stand over the horrors of........child health insurance.The decision to veto SCHIP even has Republicans banging their heads against desks. It seems that Bush is determined to ruin any remnant of good feelings over

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Blackwater? A Republican Company?

Blackwater's run amuck.  CEO Erik Prince is busy testifying on Capitol Hill that all lives are precious.  Vice President Cofer Black is the terrorism advisor for the Romney campaign.  He's the old CIA guy who ordered an agent to find Bin Laden and send his severed head home in an ice

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McCain for a Christian America

  In case you were wondering what type of nation you live in, John McCain is clearing up any doubt. 'The Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation.' McCain recently stated in an interview. He then proceeded to discuss that these values should be recognizab

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WH on SCHIP and Iran

How do we define neediest children? Do the neediest children in New York deserve health care less than children in Kansas? And then there's the "diplomatic solution" in Iran... and the military options aren't "off" the table. Circus! I mean, leadership!

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GOP Ignores Blacks - On Purpose

"At least in the primary..."

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Could you pass the new citizenship test?

What does it take to be an American? Answering 6 out of 10 questions correctly. The citizenship test has long been debated as ineffective and too hard by liberals, while Republicans argue the questions are just memorized responses. For the past 6 years historians, political scientists, and test sp

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Monday Morning Must-Reads

Christian Conservatives Get Their Election On [NYT] ... and contemplate a third party candidate. Alarmed at the chance that the Republican party might pick Rudolph Giuliani as its presidential nominee despite his support for abortion rights, a coalition of influential Christian conservatives is