Monthly Archives: February 2008

February 21, 2008 — John Hinderaker

The AP Picks Up the Ball and Runs With It

The New York Times got the ball rolling by sliming John McCain yesterday, knowing that others would jump into the mud-pile. The Associated Press lost no time, weighing in with an article on Cindy McCain titled, “Cindy McCain joins other political wives by standing by her man in face of rumored infidelity.” So it’s official: the New York Times has started a rumor. The AP makes explicit the Times’ salacious »
February 21, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

Florence, here we come

Everton roared into the final 16 of Europe’s UEFA championship with a 6-1 home victory over the Norwegian side Brann. The aggregate score for the two legs was 8-1, the most decisive result in the round of 32. Yakubu had a hat trick today, and Andy Johnson contributed two goals. Everton’s win nearly earned us another trip to Norway, but Fiorentina edged past Rosenborg, so it’s on to Italy. Everton »
February 21, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

Penitent-in-chief

I’ve been watching small doses of the Democratic presidential debate. It’s basically a pander-fest. That’s pretty standard Democratic fare on domestic issues — try to top the other candidate’s laundry list — but it’s a bit disconcerting to see it extend into foreign policy. For example, a question about Cuba in the post Fidel era prompted a bidding war on dictators with whom the U.S. should negotiate directly and immediately: »
February 21, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

Rep. Shadegg to conservatives, I’ll stay

We read almost weekly about this or that Republican congressman who will not seek re-election. Since the Republicans have no shot at regaining a majority in the House, I generally consider the standing down of members of the old guard to be a positive development. There are exceptions, of course, and the biggest is Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona. In fact, as I noted yesterday, I signed a petition imploring »
February 21, 2008 — John Hinderaker

The Times Adds Insult to Injury

The New York Times has now reported on the controversy over its hit piece on John McCain, under the headline: “McCain Denies Aides »
February 21, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

Behind the Gray Lady’s drive-by

The New Republic has a “story behind the story” piece about the New York Times’ drive-by attack on John McCain: Beyond its revelations, however, what’s most remarkable about the article is that it appeared in the paper at all: The new information it reveals focuses on the private matters of the candidate, and relies entirely on the anecdotal evidence of McCain’s former staffers to justify the piece »
February 21, 2008 — John Hinderaker

Serbs Attack U.S. Embassy

In Belgrade, a mob of Serbs apparently angry about Kosovo’s declaration of independence have torched the U.S. Embassy. This footage is courtesy of the Associated Press: »
February 21, 2008 — Scott Johnson

What the Times left out

Senator McCain has released a 1,500-word document outlining what his campaign calls “some of the facts that were provided to the New York Times but did not end up in the story.” The document responds to the ethical window dressing of the Times story. Politico has posted the statement here. JOHN adds: See also my post from last night on the Times’ “news story.” »
February 21, 2008 — Scott Johnson

Ivy League populism

Victor Davis Hanson’s column on the fantasy world of the Democratic presidential contenders reads to me like some kind of a classic: Barack Obama may have gone to exclusive private schools. He and his wife may both be lawyers who between them have earned four expensive Ivy League degrees. They may make about a million dollars a year, live in an expensive home and send their kids to prep school. »
February 21, 2008 — Scott Johnson

Useful idiots at CNN

It is a bit late in the day to be surprised by the views of our betters at CNN and elsewhere on Communist butchers such as Fidel Castro. Nevertheless, publicatiion of the memo by CNN producer Allison Flexner instructing CNN anchors how to treat the subject of Fidel Castro is a helpful reminder of how little they know and how superior they feel to their audience: From: Flexner, Allison Sent: »
February 21, 2008 — Scott Johnson

William Katz: Real music — remember?

Occasional contributor Bill Katz coments on the news of the day at Urgent Agenda, though he continues to save some of his deepest relections on life and politics for us. Bill drew on his work for Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show to reflect for us most recently on speechifying in presdiential politics. Today he reflects on the fate of American popular music. Listen up! This is about music. Scott »
February 20, 2008 — John Hinderaker

The Times Upholds Its Standards

The New York Times smears John McCain in tomorrow’s paper, accusing him of ethics violations and insinuating that he had an affair with a lobbyist. What is most striking, though, if you actually read the story, is how thin it is. It’s mostly about the Keating Five scandal, which dates to the late 1980s. The “news” that gives the story a hook has to do with McCain’s friendship with a »
February 20, 2008 — Scott Johnson

Soft Rice, part 2

Mike Allen reports on the Obama campaign’s response to Senator McCain’s shot at Obama last night: Showing a new aggressiveness and focus on Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) as the likely Republican nominee, the Obama campaign held a conference call with foreign policy adviser Susan Rice to »
February 20, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

A fun fact about Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama’s brother “Super Craig” Robinson was a two-time Ivy League basketball player of the year at Princeton and is now a successful head basketball coach at Brown. »
February 20, 2008 — John Hinderaker

Are the Clintons Finished?

Earlier today, three of the Clintons’ top advisers, Howard Wolfson, Mark Penn and Harold Ickes, held a conference call today with members of the media. We weren’t invited, but Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post was, and he reports here. The Clintonites’ purpose was to argue that Hillary shouldn’t be counted out. Based on Cillizza’s account, they were less than persuasive. Ickes insisted that, barring an upset in Texas, Ohio »
February 20, 2008 — Scott Johnson

Fear Itself

Listening to our friend Hugh Hewitt tonight on the way home from work, I heard James Lileks relate the story of the man apprehended at the Tampa airport with a box cutter concealed in the pages of a hollowed out book (Fear Itself, by Jonathan Nasaw). Officers also found books in the backpack including Muhammad in the Bible, The Prophet’s Prayer, The Noble Qur’an, the Koran, and the Bible. It »
February 20, 2008 — Paul Mirengoff

Soft Rice

Zbigniew Brzezinski and Samantha Power aren’t the only dangerously soft and muddled members of Barack Obama’s foreign policy team. Obama has also tapped Susan Rice, who held a similar role in John Kerry’s campaign and before that in Howard Dean’s. As Bulldog Pundit reminds us, during Bill Clinton’s second term, Rice played a major role in the decision to refuse Sudan »