Inaugurations Past and Present by Larry J. Sabato
Rituals matter in any society, but in a democracy they are especially significant. Most authoritarian regimes are stable for long periods of time; the barrel of a gun ensures it.
Political Commentary
Most Recent Releases
January 8, 2009
January 8, 2009
Onus Now on Dems for Ethical Government By Froma Harrop
There are those who regard politics as sport and those who see it as an adjunct to government. They frame things very differently.
January 7, 2009
Crazy Like a Fox By Susan Estrich
As the weeks pass since Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was publicly drawn and quartered by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, the man has simply refused to give up. The Energizer bunny has nothing on this guy.
January 7, 2009
Being President 101 By Tony Blankley
With two weeks still left in President-elect Barack Obama's transition and because of the alleged corrupt conduct of several people in his proximity and his own passivity and public silence (and the inherent drama of current events), his has become the most dramatic presidential transition in memory.
January 6, 2009
Eric Holder and All Political Prisoners By Debra J. Saunders
Conventional wisdom last week decreed that President-elect Barack Obama had done such a fine job culling his Cabinet that only one pick -- Attorney General-nominee Eric Holder -- would present a problem, but most likely, a surmountable hurdle.
January 6, 2009
The Mortgage Thieves Return By Froma Harrop
First come the shady operators, then comes the collapse, then comes the bailout, then come the shady operators. That, too often, is the sad history of financial meltdowns and their cleanups.
January 4, 2009
Big Brother/Backseat Driver By Debra J. Saunders
For lo these many years, the Democratic motorcade class has scolded American workers for driving gas-guzzling cars. Now that Americans have begun driving more fuel-efficient cars and driving less, how have the finger-waggers reacted? No, they are not planning a parade -- they already are working on a new tax on miles driven to make up for lost gasoline-tax revenue.
January 3, 2009
No Permanent Majorities in America By Michael Barone
As we approach the change from a Republican to a Democratic administration, I have been thinking about the differences in the basic character of our two historic parties -- the oldest and third oldest free political parties in the world (number two, at least by my count, is the British Conservative Party).
January 2, 2009
Offshoring Is One Sure Thing By Froma Harrop
Barack Obama's pick for commerce secretary, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, vows to create millions of technology jobs that can't be outsourced. Sounds good, particularly in this melting economy.
January 2, 2009
Time for a Choice -- Not an Echo By Lawrence Kudlow
Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell is absolutely right to warn against Obama's gigantic stimulus-spending package. McConnell says it "will be the largest spending bill in the history of our country at a time when our national debt is already the largest in history." As a result, he says the bill "will require tough scrutiny and oversight."
January 1, 2009
Happy New Year ...By Susan Estrich
When I was younger, New Year's was a time fraught with frantic uncertainty revolving around the seemingly critical questions of whether I would have a date and-or something to do.
December 31, 2008
Now Sits Expectation In The Air By Tony Blankley
As President-elect Obama vacations with his family in Hawaii and publicly complains about the intrusiveness of the press pool and the intense scrutiny of his Secret Service team, I suspect about now Obama may be recalling George Bernard Shaw's heartless observation that: "There are two tragedies in life. One is not to get your heart's desire. The other is to get it."
December 30, 2008
What Israel Still Must Do By Froma Harrop
Everyone knows what must be done if there is to be a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Israel's forceful response to rocket attacks from Gaza does not change that.
December 30, 2008
Unpardonable By Debra J. Saunders
If President Bush had been looking for a textbook case of a federal offender who should never win a presidential pardon, Isaac R. Toussie would fit the bill.
December 27, 2008
Obama May Be an Aloof President By Michael Barone
Barack Obama and his family are vacationing in his native Hawaii, far from the wintry snows of Chicago -- and far from almost every other American politician.
December 25, 2008
What Nixon Admitted (and Cheney Won't) By Joe Conason
To understand the philosophy of government that Dick Cheney brought to Washington over the past seven years, it is most instructive to see "Frost/Nixon," with Frank Langella's remarkable reanimation of Tricky Dick for a generation that never knew him.
December 25, 2008
The Christmas Spirit By Susan Estrich
In the eight years since he left the White House, Bill Clinton has worked tirelessly to save the lives of children in some of the most miserable places on the planet.
December 25, 2008
Bubble Bourgeoisie Learns to 'Do-It-Yourself' By Froma Harrop
"Doing it yourself these days?" asks the Depression-era ad for bleach. It shows pampered hands wading in a tub full of laundry.
December 24, 2008
A Disturbing Book Worth Reading By Tony Blankley
I recently read a book that deserves the widest possible readership: "The Trouble with Textbooks -- Distorting History and Religion," by Gary A. Tobin and Dennis R. Ybarra. I never have met or talked with either of these gentlemen, but I can't say enough good things about this book.
December 23, 2008
Free the Saddleback One By Debra J. Saunders
Gay civil rights groups -- the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force -- are calling on President-elect Barack Obama to yank his invitation to Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warren to give the inaugural prayer on Jan. 20.
