This post is about the politics of the President's Afghanistan speech and policy. For my take on the policy, see Blue Moose Democrat; I am tepidly supportive.
They used to say that politics stops at the water's edge. That hasn't really been true since at least Bosnia, but at' [...]
Congressman John Tanner, who represents the Tennessee Eighth Congressional District in the northwestern corner of the Volunteer state, is set to announce his retirement according to the National Journal. Rep. Tanner is serving his 11th term in office.
Rep. Tanner becomes the second Democrat and second Blue Dogs [...]
Your thoughts?
Update [2009-12-1 20:35:19 by Charles Lemos]: The text of the speech is below the fold.Good evening. To the United States Corps of Cadets, to the men and women of our armed services, and to my fellow Americans: I want to speak to you tonight about our effort in [...]
Between Alan Grayson in the House, and Russ Feingold in the Senate, the Democrats have a couple of truth-tellers that are not afraid to take on Obama's desire to drag the Democrats into supporting an escalation of the occupation of Afghanistan.
Russ Feingold rips Afghanistan decision: Feingold, flanked [...]
I had meant to conclude with a final post on this subject reserved simply for laughing at the Manhattan Declaration and the comical preening of its pompous prose.
It provides a hilarious, real-world example of the kind of wince-inducing misplaced self-importance and lack of perspective that I've always enjoyed when it's [...]
It seems appropriate to link to Comedy Central for this bit of news from CNN that Obama plans to conclude the war and withdraw most U.S. service members within three years, senior administration officials told CNN Tuesday.
Barack Obama -- who is nearly one year into his first [...]
One reason so many areas are dominated by big chain restaurants is that some states sharply limit the number of restaurant liquor licenses. In New Jersey towns get one restaurant license for every 3 thousand people. That isn't many.
' [...] These really are consecutive posts from Politico. Post one:
Cook Political Report House analyst David Wasserman notes a telling indicator that the political environment in 2010 is shaping up to be favorable for Republicans: Several Democratic candidates have decided to drop out of tough races, while Democratic members of [...]
White House is sending out emails asking people to host their own jobs summits.TPM says we'll see it soon:
"We'll have something for you soon," a Justice Department spokeswoman just told TPMmuckraker via email.
...
Based on leaked information, it seems clear that the report, by DOJ's Office of Professional Responsibility, will be critical of the work of DOJ lawyers like John [...]
I haven't been there since it started service, but Salt Lake city has been pretty aggressive about developing its local rail service, though it usually isn't talked about much by transit nerds focused on denverandportland.
And while I'm all for raising the gas tax, as contrary to myths all those roads and their maintenance are not covered by it currently, I think a non-regressive tax should be the starting place...
' [...] 
"...The conservative blogosphere unleashed a torrent of criticism against Mike Huckabee Monday after a man whose sentence he commuted as Arkansas governor was suspected of gunning down four police officers in Washington state over the weekend.According to Real Estate Econometrics, a property research firm, the total balance of delinquent and defaulted commercial mortgages in the July to September time frame in the US has jumped by 14 percent to $50.3 billion. During the 3Q09, the commercial default rate rose from 2.88 percent to 3.4 percent, [...]
As feared, President Obama is upping the ante in Afghanistan by sending 30,000 additional troops on a fool's errand with some vague mutterings about an exit strategy from a conflict that was lost almost as soon as it was declared because boots, resources and attention were' [...] The conservative blogger Charles Foster Johnson, founder of Little Green Footballs and co-founder of Pajamas Media, has parted ways with the right. Tonight he blogged on the matter outlining his rationale:
1. Support for fascists, both in America (see: Pat Buchanan, Robert Stacy McCain, etc.) and in [...]
At some point, Krugman’s going to realize no one in this administration is listening.
[...]
Never understood it, just assumed that maybe there were more bored millionaires without better places to go than I could imagine...
[...] Nate Silver has an interesting post up tonight disputing the contention by Chris Bowers that while the Democrats are in electoral trouble, progressives are not. To prove his point, Nate examines how the 39 most vulnerable House members -- as determined by the Cook Political Report -- [...]
The only reason that the two deaths caused by cyclists in recent days are notable is because deaths caused by cyclists are so rare.
Let's let that sink in for a second.
If you look at it with [...]
Wow, I can’t believe it. If you keep me in the top five, that makes me a finalist. So go vote if you haven’t already!
It sure would be funny if I won this thing, wouldn’t it? I’ll remind you when the second round of voting [...]
For all the liberals who hypnotized themselves into thinking Obama was an anti-war candidate. It was a major case of projection – he was always pretty clear that he was going to expand the war in Afghanistan.
[...]Glenn calls him out as the amoral piece of crap he is.
[...]You know, it really is depressing – and infuriating – to see how little will actually be accomplished with this so-called health care “reform.”
And unless the House waves a magic wand in the conference committee hearings, I doubt anything will change:
Measured against the promises President Obama and congressional Democrats [...]
Well, in a word the GOP, the party of obstructionism. If you can't get your way, paralyze government. Here are some of the holdups:
Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky is holding the nomination of Miriam Sapiro for U.S. trade representative because the Canadian Parliament is considering a ban on adding' [...]
Over at The Atlantic, Matt Cooper asks, "Best veep picks of the post World War II era?", answering his own question with the names Al Gore, George H.W. Bush, Estes Kefauver, Hubert Humphrey. I'd like to throw in one more: Alben Barkley.
Barkley had been in the Congress for' [...]
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. ..."
So begins Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, and if you ever set out to write a novel you should try if you can to produce an opening [...]
Well, the couch is inside. (Good thing, since it’s pouring rain.) I had a friend come over to take the wall unit apart, and then he and my other friend carried the sofa upstairs. (Oh, and he also removed my window a.c. and put it away.)
I have to say, though, [...]
President Obama's Afghanistan speech leaked.
Yes, its a done deal: "The commander-in-chief has issued the orders."
Here's some fate that might save Democrats from this debacle:One Democratic congressman predicts that fully half of his caucus will oppose the escalation. "Obama is going to get his ass kicked" [...]
What Digby said. What Taibbi said, what Krugman said, what just about anybody with a brain said.
[...]
[...] Can someone please get me a Xanax? Matt Taibbi:
… The Obama administration is filled with people connected to Rubin, including Orszag (who headed Rubin’s Hamilton Project, an economic think-tank founded by Rubin*), NEC director Larry Summers (who worked under Rubin in the Clinton White House), Tim Geithner (ditto), NEC [...]
It’s like deja vu all over again. Despite the fact that we know the causes of deficits are more important than the actual deficits, despite the fact that most top economists are calling for more economic stimulus and jobs programs, the New York Times has embraced the anti-deficit theme [...]
Stuart Rothenberg (via Political Wire) calls the New York congressional district won last month in a special election by Democrat Bill Owens one of the 12 most vulnerable House seats in the nation for 2010 (for some reason rating the district ahead of the open seat the GOP [...]
The Mamas and the Papas:
[...]
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I’ll bet this has something to do with why the French get universal health care and we don’t.
[...]I'll begin with Plouffe's book, from the beginning up till about December 2007.
There's three main points [...]
[...] A growing trend: students applying to honors programs at community college to save money.
[...]
Evan Bayh.From the New York Times, we find out just how many Americans now qualify for food assistance:
MARTINSVILLE, Ohio — With food stamp use at record highs and climbing every month, a program once scorned as a failed welfare scheme now helps feed one in eight Americans and one in [...]
Do you save your wife or son from drowning?Former Arkansas Governor and 2008 GOP Presidential runner up Mike Huckabee is in the eye of a storm after police in Washington state reported that a person of interest and wanted for questioning in relation to the ambush killing of four uniformed policemen in Lakewood was granted clemency in 2000 [...]
If the Obama administration doesn’t realize they’re playing with fire over this, they’re just plain stupid.
[...]
I thought 2008 would be tough to top, but 2009 was made in blogging heaven. Never in my long scriberly career have I had so much at my fingertips to sound self important about, and practically every day has been an adventure in bathos, pathos, mythos [...] 
The Conspiracy Deepens.
Rock on.
How I stopped worrying and learned to love the freedom bombs.
enjoy
And I guess that's why we should execute 
Because it's been awhile since I read 
I don't really have anything against legalizing gambling, though I hate the casino projects in Philadelphia because they're shitty urban development, but 
enjoy
Politico is so 
by Molly Ivors
The 
Rock on.
enjoy
It isn't about 
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enjoy
I bet the banksters are 
The Villagers helped to give us 
