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Category Archives: Columns
The High Cost of Rush: Talker Bleeds Millions From His Carriers as Toxic Talk Slumps, Cumulus Seems Set to Part Ways With Rush Limbaugh – The Daily Beast
“We’ve had a tough go of it this last year,” Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey said Tuesday morning. “The facts are indisputable regarding the impact certain things have had on ad dollars.” Dickey told analysts on the earnings call that his … Continue reading
Elizabeth Colbert Busch and Mark Sanford Clash at South Carolina Debate – The Daily Beast
There was rolling thunder and rain outside the Citadel on Monday night, but the lightning was inside the packed auditorium where Mark Sanford and Elizabeth Colbert Busch clashed in the one debate of the one congressional race in the country … Continue reading
False Flags, Sharia Law, and Gun Grabs: GOP Lawmakers Embrace The Crazy – The Daily Beast
A few days after the Boston bombings, Stella Tremblay went to Glenn Beck’s Facebook page to express her conviction that the terror attack was, in fact, orchestrated by the U.S. government. “The Boston Marathon was a Black Ops ‘terrorist’ attack,” … Continue reading
Market Leninism vs. the West – The Daily Beast
So much for the end of history. Twenty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall gave rise to the idea that liberal capitalist democracy would carry the human race inexorably toward broad sunlit uplands, we are confronted with the … Continue reading
Mark Sanford Ditched by NRCC, but Counting Him Out Would Be Unwise – The Daily Beast
Leave it to the National Republican Congressional Committee to take a bad situation and make it worse. After the unwelcome revelation that former South Carolina governor and GOP congressional nominee Mark Sanford has been accused of trespassing by his ex-wife, … Continue reading
A Time for Resilience – The Daily Beast
There, with the end in sight, two bombs exploded on Boylston Street. The shrapnel tore through the cheering crowd, knocking marathon runners down with the force of the blast, turning their moment of triumph into tragedy. Even hours later, still … Continue reading
GOP’s Cowardly Gun Filibuster Threat – CNN.com
There are days when Congress seems determined to earn its 12% approval rating — and that 14 Republican senators are threatening to filibuster any new gun legislation should make your blood boil if you still have a heart to pump … Continue reading
Obama Budget Catching Hell From Both Sides: Why That’s a Good Sign – The Daily Beast
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall catch hell from both sides.” So said a sign on the Justice Department wall of Burke Marshall at the height of the civil rights era. But it could also apply to President Obama’s … Continue reading
South Carolina Special Election Has All the Makings of a Scandal-Filled Telenovela – The Daily Beast
This is one local election that’s going to get national attention. With Mark Sanford’s victory in the Republican runoff Tuesday night, South Carolina’s May 7 congressional special election will be packed with enough scandal, redemption, and gender-war themes to fill … Continue reading
Georgia Is Celebrating Confederate Heritage and History Month? Really? – The Daily Beast
I thought it was an April Fools’ joke. There in my inbox on the morning of April 1 was an email from something called Ray McBerry Enterprises announcing the official start of “Confederate Heritage and History Month” in Georgia. Apparently, … Continue reading
Baseball is Back, Thank God – CNN.com
Forget Punxsutawney Phil’s predictions. The words “Play ball!” are the most dependable sign that spring has arrived in America. Finally, baseball season is here. Maybe because it is an outdoor game, with a schedule stretching across three seasons. Maybe because … Continue reading
Palin’s SarahPAC Embarrassment: Consultants Are Cashing In – The Daily Beast
Sarah Palin attempted to relaunch her political career and her political action committee, SarahPAC, on Thursday with a Web video called “Loaded for Bear,” which presented the former Alaska governor as the new kingmaker for conservative populists in the GOP. … Continue reading
How Gay Rights Went Mainstream – CNN.com
Some days start out historic. The gay civil rights movement has reached the Supreme Court — a milestone by any measure. We won’t know what the justices will decide until June, but it is not too early to reflect on … Continue reading
CNN Podcast: Big Three – Supreme Court and Same Sex Marriage
CNN Radio’s Big Three: John Avlon, Margaret Hoover and Dean Obeidallah.
Exclusive: Congressional Ethics Probe Adds to Michele Bachmann’s Political Woes – The Daily Beast
The Hindenburg. The Titanic. Michele Bachmann. Eighteen months ago, the Minnesota House member was considered an unlikely but undeniable Republican rising star, winning the Iowa straw poll that unofficially begins the primary season. Today, she is embroiled in a litany … Continue reading
More Sarah Palin Than Ronald Reagan: CPAC’s Paranoid Style – The Daily Beast
There’s no place where the paranoid style in American politics mixes with presidential aspirants quite like CPAC. At this year’s conservative conclave, held at the Gaylord Hotel in Maryland, there is a mood of grim resignation after their rejection in … Continue reading
The Elephant in the Room: Chris Christie’s CPAC Dig – The Daiy Beast
With the “Star Wars bar” of the Conservative Political Action Conference (in other words, a bunch of aliens) kicking off Thursday morning, it was no coincidence that among the first speakers were Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and Texas Congressman … Continue reading
Who’s to blame for debt gridlock? – CBS Early Show
With Speaker Boehner walking out on President Obama over a solution to the nation’s debt crisis, Russ Mitchell gathers a panel of independent voters with Senior political analyst for Newsweek, John Avlon , and Republican commentator, Margaret Hoover, to find … Continue reading
Is Jeb Bush Right About Campaign ‘Crack Addicts’? – CNN.com
“You guys are crack addicts.” That was Jeb Bush on “Meet the Press,” addressing journalists about their obsession with the 2016 presidential campaign, more than three years away. The former Florida governor was joking and it’s a fool’s errand for … Continue reading
Rand Paul Kicks It Old School in Filibuster Marathon Over Drones – The Daily Beast
Give Rand Paul credit—he decided to kick it old school on the Senate floor and filibuster in person rather than simply filing a procedural motion. The result was the kind of spectacle we only see in Frank Capra films and … Continue reading