Democrats have proven that they can intelligently frame an issue about a place nobody visits, since they have consistently shut down Republican efforts to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). When people hear ANWR, they think of caribou. There's a reason they do, and that reason is because Democrats successfully framed the issue (for once). Protecting streams for fishing is another image they could be just as successfully utilizing to show the American public the face of the Republican Party, up close and personal.

Read Complete Article »

The White House even tried to stop Petraeus from testifying before Congress in the open (as opposed to a secret hearing), until they noticed that the law specifically said that he would be made available to Congress for testimony in both "open" and "closed" settings. The White House quickly backpedaled on that one, thankfully, which means that both Petraeus and Crocker will indeed be answering Congress' questions in public, in open hearings.

I'm actually kind of surprised President Bush didn't try to claim executive privilege, which seems to be his knee-jerk reaction to anyone testifying before Congress. Even if Bush thought he'd eventually lose in court, it would take months if not years to resolve, just like all his other executive privilege claims

Read Complete Article »

There are a number of other cases pending which also deal with dissenting opinions being expressed at presidential appearances, and the fact that the Bush Administration has settled one of these for $80,000 is certainly good news for these cases, and for the First Amendment. I have written before about the ACLU's evidence in one of these cases, a heavily-redacted copy of the "Presidential Advance Manual," which shows a clear White House policy of unconstitutional disdain for such opposing viewpoints.

Read Complete Article »

I don't get no respect. I played hide-and-seek, and they wouldn't even look for me.
-- Rodney Dangerfield

Wyoming Republicans must know how Rodney feels. They attempted to get some media attention (and some attention from the candidates) by passing an impossibility into law, but nobody noticed. No respect indeed.

Read Complete Article »

The irony is that whoever wins the upcoming September battle in Congress will likely lose in next year's elections, because the American public will not like the outcome -- no matter which political party wins the debate in Congress.

Read Complete Article »

There are two parts to the Petraeus-is-trustworthy spin: that he's competent and knows what he's doing, and that he's not political and not partisan. But when you examine the evidence, this fantasy falls apart.

Read Complete Article »

There are always complaints, after the straw poll is taken, that some candidate or another has "rigged the results." Well, duh. If you design a contest to see who can buy the most votes in the first place, it's a little ingenuous to complain about "rigging" anything.

Read Complete Article »

Who would you like to see host a debate? Jews? Muslims? Mormons? Atheists? People who love Barry Bonds? Pickup truck owners? Prius owners? Surfers? Eagle Scouts? Medical marijuana patients? People who bought Paris Hilton's CD? People who bought K-Fed's CD? Snowmobile owners? Amateur pilots? Polygamists? Conspiracy theorists (man, wouldn't that make for good television!)? People who work in Starbucks? People who work in WalMart? People who don't work? People who make the minimum wage? Hedge fund managers? CEOs? Strippers? Waitresses? Flight attendants?

Read Complete Article »

Republicans, it should be noted, are pretty dispirited going into this campaign. They feel the weight of the Iraq fiasco, they feel the weight of the fact that they've got a pretty disappointing field, and they feel the weight of President Bush dragging them ever downwards. In other words, Republicans are not happy campers when they think about the 2008 campaign.

Which will most likely lead them to the same calculation Democrats were making four years ago -- which candidate is most electable? Especially against Hillary. Or Barack. Or even Edwards. That's a cold political calculation to make, and it certainly won't be easy for Republican primary voters to make, considering the field.

Read Complete Article »

Looking at the polling data for the early primary states (Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida) shows how volatile a race it is shaping up to be, in both parties. Looking at national polling shows clear frontrunners, but when you dig into the state data, things get cloudier. State polls can be seen at RealClearPolitics.com.

Muddying the waters even further (on the Democratic side) is the fact that most polls only collect data from "likely voters," or voters who answer "yes" as to whether they voted in the last election or not. This is usually a better predictor of the final results, but not always. If candidates can pull in a significant amount of votes from people who don't normally vote, they can prove all the pollsters wrong and win unexpected victories (see: Governor Jesse Ventura).

Read Complete Article »