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Category Archives: Columns
Clinton to Obama: ‘Don’t Blink’ – The Daily Beast
There were lines outside the big tent where Bill Clinton spoke an hour before he was set to begin. A seminar on “The Future of Cancer” was his warm-up act. When he took the stage, spillover crowds were placed in … Continue reading
Has the Third Party’s Moment Arrived? – The Daily Beast
Independence Day came a few days early this year, as columnist and author Tom Friedman declared his support for a third party at the Aspen Ideas Festival. “We need a third party. I am for a third party,” Friedman said to … Continue reading
New York Passes Gay Marriage: This Is the Tipping Point – The Daily Beast
If you can make it here, you’ll make it anywhere. Celebrations erupted in the streets of New York after the Empire State became the sixth and largest state in the nation to legalize same sex marriage after weeks of gridlock … Continue reading
In GOP Presidential Field, Only Three Are for Real – CNN.com
There are three ways to run for president these days. The first is to run to promote yourself. The second is to run to promote ideas. The third is to actually run for president of the United States. The Republican … Continue reading
Obama Speech Looks Toward 2012 – The Daily Beast
President Obama wore the mantle of commander in chief with uncharacteristic ease in his prime-time East Room address announcing the end of the surge in Afghanistan. The theme was “promises kept.” The frame was America 10 years after the attacks … Continue reading
Huntsman the Dark Horse – The Daily Beast
It’s so crazy, it just might work. Jon Huntsman is set to officially announce his run for the presidency today in sight of the Statue of Liberty, where the Gipper kicked off his fall campaign in 1980. The Reagan homage … Continue reading
The Religious Right Is the GOP’s New Norm – The Daily Beast
Some surprises in the first New Hampshire GOP debate—Mitt Romney avoided taking fire as the front-runner and Michele Bachmann exceeded (admittedly low) expectations. While GOP field is united on fiscal issues and predictably quick to declare President Obama a “failure,” … Continue reading
‘Live Free or Die’ state good test for GOP – CNN.com
It makes sense that the first major Republican debate is going to be held Monday night in New Hampshire. The Granite State is the best test of general election appeal of any presidential candidate before Super Tuesday. That’s because New … Continue reading
Sex scandals turning into civic problem – CNN.com
Really? Another ambitious politician is laid low by personal behavior that would make a drunk frat-boy think twice. What’s with these people? At this point, Americans are scandalized but unsurprised. Political sex scandals feel like giddy new installments of reality … Continue reading
Why Democrats don’t want Huntsman to run – CNN.com
With Mitch Daniels’ decision to opt out of the 2012 presidential race, Jon Huntsman is the lone standard-bearer of the center-right in a crowded GOP field. Historically, that should put the former Utah governor in a strong position to compete … Continue reading
NAACP Under Fire in New York Charter-School War – The Daily Beast
It was an inspiring sight: a protest rally 3,000 strong in the heart of Harlem. Students, parents, and teachers wielding signs and slogans, all standing up for their right to pursue a quality public-school education. But the target of their … Continue reading
When Medi-Scare Wins, Americans Lose – The Daily Beast
Medi-scare works. That’s the cynical lesson politicos in both parties will take from Democrat Kathy Hochul’s NY-26 special election victory on Tuesday. And that’s bad news for the nation. We’ve seen a rise in fear-mongering policy attacks in American politics … Continue reading
Sudan on the Verge of a New Civil War – The Daily Beast
Blood is flowing on the dirt roads of Abyei. Airstrikes and artillery fire have compounded the body count. The surviving population has been driven out, their town looted and burned. Sudan now faces the real prospect of a reignited civil … Continue reading
Pawlenty’s Fiscal Shell Game – The Daily Beast
Tim Pawlenty unveiled his presidential campaign Monday with a message centered on fiscal discipline and being the self-styled truth-teller in the 2012 race. It was only a matter of hours before his state’s previous Republican governor, Arne Carlson , unveiled … Continue reading
A Reality Check for the Doomsday Unhinged – The Daily Beast
Doomsday cults have a lousy track record. You’d think that alone would make it more difficult to dupe new recruits. But devotees of the Family Radio network have been taking to the streets and subways of New York, handing out … Continue reading
GOP Govs’ Popularity Plummets – The Daily Beast
The cycle of over-reach and backlash is in over-drive these days—with significant implications for the 2012 presidential election. In pivotal swing-states where voters narrowly elected Republican governors in 2010—like Florida and Ohio (with 47 electoral votes between them)—evidence of buyer’s … Continue reading
The Rigged Game of Redistricting – CNN.com
Across the country, state legislatures are debating redistricting right now. It’s a once-a-decade proposition: the opportunity and obligation to redraw political district lines to reflect the latest census. The problem is that the system is rigged — politicians choose their … Continue reading
The Right-Wing Talk-Radio Flameout- The Daily Beast
There’s new evidence to suggest a demand for something different than hyper-partisanship in the world of talk radio and political media. It’s not just the sunset of the Glenn Beck Show on Fox or the dispatch of Keith Olbermann from … Continue reading
Savor this moment, in the name of the 3,000 – CNN.com
I have never been so happy to hear that someone is dead. It’s not bloodlust — it’s justice. Ten years ago at this time, Osama bin Laden was in Afghanistan planning the terrorist attacks that killed more than 3,000 of … Continue reading
Birthers Who Won’t Give Up – The Daily Beast
Conspiracy entrepreneurs are, by definition, shameless. Nonetheless, it was impressive to see so many professional polarizers be forced to face facts—namely that the president was indeed born in the United States—and still find a way to weasel out of accountability. … Continue reading