Bush Showed U.S. Is No Paper Tiger By Debra J. Saunders
From the day President Bush took office, the long knives were out for him -- in ways they will not (and should not) be out for President-elect Barack Obama.
Political Commentary
Most Recent Releases
January 18, 2009
January 17, 2009
Arnold's State of the State -- Not So Good By Debra J. Saunders
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's State of the State address on Thursday was a far cry from his first such speech in 2004.
January 17, 2009
Is a Change in Migration Patterns at Hand? By Michael Barone
Evidence keeps accumulating that the tide of immigration is ebbing. Tough enforcement laws passed by states like Arizona and Oklahoma and localities like Prince William County, Va., have reportedly spurred Latino immigrants to move elsewhere.
January 16, 2009
What the New President Will Need By Susan Estrich
President-elect Barack Obama will no doubt ask for many things in the coming weeks -- from Congress, from the states, from banks and businesses, and from the American people. He will ask for new legislation, new programs, new regulations, not to mention confirmation of all his new people.
January 15, 2009
The Party of No Ideas By Joe Conason
Would it be rude to ask whether the Republicans have any new proposals to save the country from this worsening recession? The question arises not because anyone expects the minority party to burst forth with creative ideas, but because conservatives in Congress and the media seem so determined to thwart or stall the economic stimulus plans of President-elect Barack Obama.
January 15, 2009
In Speech, Obama Won't Do an FDR By Froma Harrop
Even in this awful economy, the voters seem content to toggle between the two main political parties. If Republicans aren't doing the job, then let Democrats try. Barack Obama? He seems competent. There's little agitation for a radical third-party response.
January 14, 2009
Respect By Susan Estrich
I don't hate George Bush. I never have. I voted against him twice. I disagree with him, sometimes passionately. I think the country is in worse shape now than it was eight years ago, and that history will not be kind to him.
January 14, 2009
A Truncated Presidential Honeymoon? By Tony Blankley
It was fairly common chatter from congressional Democrats in Washington during the autumn months of the presidential campaign that while Barack Obama was almost certain to win, in 2009 policy would be driven from the House speaker's office.
January 13, 2009
From Jack Bauer to Leon Panetta By Debra J. Saunders
Sunday's New York Times ran two columns that advocated for investigations into America's use of coercive interrogation techniques -- known to editorial writers as "torture" -- of enemy combatants, as well as one that opposed a show trial.
January 13, 2009
Taxes Will Have to Be Raised, Eventually By Froma Harrop
During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama portrayed his tax plan as a way to help "spread the wealth around." That was an unfortunate choice of words, though not as silly as the "conservative" formulation that raising taxes "punishes success."
January 11, 2009
How Big-Government Is Obama? By Lawrence Kudlow
Obama spoke Thursday at George Mason University about his American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan -- a.k.a. the stimulus package. There's an interesting section that would warm the heart of John Maynard Keynes.
January 11, 2009
Governator, the Sequel By Debra J. Saunders
Former eBay chief Meg Whitman is preparing to run for governor in 2010. Considering that California is so broke that next month it may have to issue IOUs instead of checks, I cannot imagine why anyone would want the job.
January 9, 2009
For Love of Israel By Susan Estrich
"Go back to the oven," the woman in her hijab in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., yelled to the Jewish Americans demonstrating their support for Israel. "You need a big oven, that's what you need."
January 8, 2009
Timing Is Wrong for Phony Thrift By Joe Conason
As the government contemplates spending very large sums of money, it is reassuring to know that somebody still worries about waste. Or it would be reassuring, if only that somebody were not Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, who promises that he and his fellow Republicans will "protect taxpayers against the rush to spend their money."
January 8, 2009
Empty Seats By Debra J. Saunders
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has an identity problem. In blocking the lawful and legitimate appointment of Roland Burris -- admittedly tarnished by its maker, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich -- the Nevada Democrat apparently thought that he was the king of Illinois, with the veto power over whom Illinois could send to the Senate.
January 8, 2009
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.
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.
