Author: cecil

  • It’s happening again…

    Remember when the media spent all that time covering Monica Lewinsky and Whitewater and Travelgate? And then, how after 9/11, looking back, most of us, regardless of party (far far right excepted) thought: “hunh. that may not have been the best way for the media to have used its time — yapping on about that…

  • When they talk about “Bush hating” remember this

    The headlines over on the drudgereport (again — can’t stand to give him a link, though I suppose — blech — I am giving him “press” by even commenting on this) currently reads “Slaughters Animals. Burns Down Tiny Village.” Who does such things? Why, according to Drudge, John Kerry. (These are those charges from the…

  • I just want to savor the moment

    Tonight, at least, Pat Buchanan is a Kerry booster. (What is up with that, by the way? For the last several weeks I’ve noticed him shifting into a Bill Kristol-style-almost-neutral-observer-who-happens-to-be-a-hard-righter mode. Is it a carrer move? Or, as someone over at dailykos.com speculated, is it a by-product of his longstanding dislike for the Bush family?)…

  • Matt Drudge: Liar

    I’ve been extra-super-special repulsed by Drudge’s coverage this week (with apologies, I just can’t stand to throw a link to this guy). There’s been a different piece of tear-them-down news for every cycle, all timed so evenly you have to figure it was all drawn out well ahead of the convention in color-coded crayon —…

  • Bob Dole and the return of the old nasty

    Back before the ’96 election, Bob Dole gave the GOP response to a Clinton State of the Union. And it was just shattering in its glowering negativity. In fact, his response was such a nasty, nutty, powerfully awful speech, it struck many as the very moment Dole’s campaign was plaster-wrapped and buried at sea. The…

  • Backfire

    You have to wonder: at what point will the GOP attacks on Kerry’s wife backfire? When will it start to seem petty and crude to the independent voter? Could it be, perhaps, when they start making a big deal out of inter-personal “I don’t like Ted Kennedy” type comments she made back in 1976? (I…

  • Presidential popularity compared — I could lose myself in this chart for a week

    Kos linked over to this extraordinary chart that shows the ups and downs of presidential popularity for Bush I and II, Reagan, Carter, and Clinton. I’ve been hoping to find something like this for weeks, to draw my own side by side comparisons without, er, benefit of media interpretation. In that same spirit, I’ll let…

  • John Kerry Star Wars action figure

    FliG blows the lid of Kerry’s next big scandal, here.

  • McCain: A win-win for Democats?

    I’ve been open to the Kerry McCain ticket, but it struck me this week that McCain may actually be (even) more useful to the Kerry campaign right where he is — a Republican, and at least nominally part of the Bush campaign — someone who can’t be completely dismissed by the Right, much less independents…

  • Classic

    The problem isn’t what we’re seeing. The problem is that we have eyes. (hat tip to jfern on dailykos for pointing this story out.)

  • Classic Fox News Slant

    ABC, CNN, MSNBC news sites all lead with the assassination of the head of the Iraqi Governing Council. Their headlines read…. abnews.com: “Shocking Loss.” msnbc.com: “Major Iraq Setback.” cnn.com: “Iraqi Governing Council Chief Sworn in After Killing.” Meanwhile over on foxnews.com the headline trumpets: “Chemical Agents Found in Iraq.” In the immortal words of Stan…

  • Zogby attempts to steal thunder from Vortex — calls election for Kerry 24 hours later

    Here’s an odd coincidence — so Saturday, I post “This was the week Bush lost the election” and even at the time I’m thinking, OK, sure, this is how it feels, but really, this post is a touch overboard. I mean, 6 months out? Clinton was losing to Bush senior like 3 months out. Dukakis…

  • Fact of the day: 3 times more spent on Iraq war than on homeland security

    Fact of the day, worth mulling and sharing: according to this article in the Chron, we’ve spent 3 dollars on Iraq to every dollar spent on homeland security. Not might spend. Or will spend. Or could spend. Spent. Done did. Insane. Some folks are getting frustrated that Kerry’s not doing much of late. I’m one…

  • Must-read column from Newsweek’s Fareed Zakaria

    Over the last couple of years, Fareed Zakaria’s analysis has been unrelentingly sharp, honest, and more often than not, borne out by the events that follow. I still can’t believe he writes for Newsweek. Anyways, The Price of Arrogance sums up the moment better than just about anything else I’ve seen this week. Highly recommended.

  • This was the week Bush lost the election

    At first, we went to Iraq to get the WMD. Then there were no WMD. Then we retroactively went to Iraq to free the Iraqis and be the liberators. It was a just war. This is the week the war officially became something to be sad and ashamed about for a much larger pool of…

  • Your Monkey Man one-liner of the day

    Here’s a quick one-liner from my good pal, the Monkey Man: “George Bush isn’t a big picture guy — (oooh oooh! aaaah aaaah!) — he’s more of a big picture book guy.” And there it is: Your Monkey Man one-liner of the day.

  • The real John Kerry

    The right sure has found their swing when it comes to Kerry bashing this week. Turns out, and here’s a huge surprise, John Kerry has a problem with the truth. Wow. That came outta left field. Can’t these yahoos at least come up with a new line? What Gore must be thinking right about now….…

  • Sharon’s parting shots?

    The latest assassination of a Hamas leader, combined with Sharon’s legal troubles and the real possibility that he may soon be forced to step down, has me wondering if he’s getting in a few last hits before leaving office.

  • Homeland defense, four years down the line

    Oft disturbing conversation on Kos today about alleged attrocities by US forces, here. Two posters made a connected point worth reflecting on this week — that Tim McVeigh and DC sniper John Muhammad were both vets of the first Persian Gulf war. And that today’s little seen, presumably unfilmed violence in Fallujah has the potential…

  • Deep thoughts on tonight’s presidential press conference

    Any time you ask this guy a question, he tries to make you feel bad. Q: Is Iraq another Vietnam? A: The people posing that question are endangering our troops. And should feel bad. As should you. Q: Will there be greater international burden sharing in Iraq? A: That question is demeaning to the good…

  • New York, New York

    Been thinking the last few days about the impact of the latest 9/11 revelations on the campaign. If nothing else, this should put a clamp on future Bush campaign 9/11 TV ads. Here’s a related thought: Last year, most (me included) figured that a NYC convention would be a source of strength for the Bush…