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| A newfangled news tangle |
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Dole Questions Kerry's Vietnam Wounds By / AP — Permalink CRAWFORD, Texas - Former Republican Sen. Bob Dole suggested Sunday that John Kerry apologize for past testimony before Congress about alleged atrocities during the Vietnam War and joined critics of the Democratic presidential candidate who say he received an early exit from combat for "superficial wounds." | |
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Michael Totten: Nor is it my place to say John Kerry's wounds weren't bloody enough, as Bob Dole said today. (Bob? Was that really necessary?) Blackfive: It'll be difficult to come back against this: Dole Questions Kerry's Vietnam Wounds By PETE YOST, Associated Press... KJL: DOLE TAKES ON KERRY-VIETNAM ISSUE — From AP: [quote] "One day he's saying that we were shooting civilians, cutting off their...[end quote] |
James Joyner: Dole Questions Kerry's Vietnam Wounds — Dole Questions Kerry's Vietnam Wounds (AP) [snipped quote] Wow. Glenn Reynolds: THINGS ARE REALLY HEATING UP: [snipped quote] — That would be the easiest way to resolve these things. Josh Marshall: Today Bob Dole suggested that one or more of John Kerry's Purple Hearts may have been fraudulent in some way because they were for "superficial wounds." |
| Also: Ann Althouse, Orrin Judd | |
Winter in Cambodia? By / US News — Permalink This month the Kerry Campaign abandoned one claim that John Kerry had made for years about his Vietnam War service and put another into question. The claim that has been dropped: that Kerry was in Cambodia at Christmastime in 1968. | |
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William Voegeli: Michael Barone summarizes the controversy about Kerry's Merry Christmas: "In a 1979 review of the movie "Apocalypse Now"... Glenn Reynolds: MICHAEL BARONE'S LATEST COLUMN looks at the Christmas in Cambodia story: "This month the Kerry Campaign abandoned one... Charles Johnson: Barone on Kerry — In US News & World Report, Michael Barone looks at the Kerry Cambodia story—and brings up the character issue: Winter in Cambodia? |
Bird Dog: Michael Barone, as usual, offers a clear-headed perspective: "The Kerry camp has provided no documentation of Kerry's... The Big Trunk: The eminent journalist Michael Barone may be a little late to the parade of Republican smear artists sliming John Kerry, but better late than never: "Winter in Cambodia?" Betsy Newmark: First John Leo, and now Michael Barone, in the very same issue write about Kerry's Christmas in Cambodia fantasies. |
| Also: Hugh Hewitt, William J. Dyer | |
Big lies for Bush Boston Globe — Permalink IMAGINE IF supporters of Bill Clinton had tried in 1996 to besmirch the military record of his opponent, Bob Dole. After all, Dole was given a Purple Heart for a leg scratch probably caused, according to one biographer, when a hand grenade thrown by one of his own men bounced off a tree. | |
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Mathew Gross: The Boston Globe got it wrong today: [snipped quote] But this is the Bush family— the dogs ain't gonna be called off. Richard TPD: "Big lies for bush" — From an editorial in today's Boston Globe; absolutely required reading. DemFromCT: Blogosphere Thoughts — Today's popular article posts on the left side of the blogosphere include this Boston Globe editorial. |
Ann Althouse: No sooner does the Boston Globe invoke the name of Bob Dole in a carefully constructed editorial against the Swift Boat... Digby: Dole-ful Loser — That despicable old f**k Bob Dole is on Blitzer complaining about Kerry's purple hearts and backing up the Swift Boat liars. Atrios: Questioning the Record — The Boston Globe editorial is pretty good (aside from the "Clinton/draft dodger" comment - Clinton was no more a draft dodger than Dick Cheney. |
| Also: Josh Marshall, Larre @LeftCoaster, Harley | |
Arsonists Destroy Jewish Center in Paris By / AP — Permalink PARIS - Arsonists destroyed a Jewish community center in eastern Paris in a pre-dawn attack Sunday and left behind anti-Semitic graffiti, police said. No one was hurt as flames tore through the center located on the first floor of a six-story building. | |
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Gary Farber: Darn Jews. [snipped quote] I'm willing to volunteer for the moon colony, but you go first, without a vacuum suit, okay? Roger L. Simon: Arsonists have destroyed a Jewish center in Paris, leaving behind anti-Semitic graffiti. Allah: UPDATE: Meanwhile, in Deutschland. . . . |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: "ANTI-SEMITISM SCARCELY EXISTS IN THE WEST" — You would think that after enough of these reports, Noam Chomsky would be... Charles Johnson: French Antisemitism Watch — Arsonists Destroy Jewish Center in Paris. |
Was 9/11 Supposed to Be 9/18? By / WaPo — Permalink In the spirit of the 9/11 commission's call for greater "imagination" in intelligence analysis, there is a strong case to be made that the original al Qaeda plan was not to attack New York and Washington on Tuesday, September 11, but rather a week later, on Tuesday, September 18 — the day on which Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, fell in 2001. | |
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Eszter Hargittai: Some light shed on crazy 9/11 rumors — Kenneth Quinn has an interesting piece in WaPo about whether 9/11 was supposed to be 9/18 according to original plans. Gene @HarrysPlace: Here's an intriguing theory: The 9/11 attacks were originally planned for 9/18— which in 2001 fell on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Betsy Newmark: Here is an interesting theory that the 9/11 attacks were originally scheduled to take place a week later on 9/18 which would have been Rosh Hashanah. |
Stephen Pollard: 9/18 — An interesting theory: that 9/11 was originally intended to be 9/18 - Rosh Hashanah. Orin Kerr: In today's Washington Post, retired Foreign Service Officer Kenneth M. Quinn offers a theory that the attacks of 9/11/01... |
Marching to November By / Weekly Standard — Permalink But he had a single qualification that overwhelmed his many shortcomings. John Kerry is a war hero. John Kerry fought Charlie in 'Nam. John Kerry wore the brown bar and ate the chop-chop. John Kerry was in the s**t and came out alive. (Democrats can speak the lingo too, you know.) | |
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Michael Totten: Andrew Ferguson in The Weekly Standard has written what I think is the very best piece on this subject. Orrin Judd: IT'S NOT THE 4.5 MONTHS, IT'S THE SUBSEQUENT 35 YEARS: Marching to November: The politics of chest-thumping. Richard TPD: Hard to believe, but one of the soberest, fairest assessments of what's going on with the shrill anti-Kerry crusade is to be found in one of America's most unappealing journals. |
DeLong: I still find this very odd: The Weekly Standard's Andrew Ferguson writes: [snipped quote] So why didn't the grownup Republicans do something about it? Jesse Taylor: Psychomolology — The Weekly Standard posts a less hyperbolic version of Ken Layne's post from last week about the... Oliver Willis: Check out this story in the White House-approved right wing Weekly Standard (the playground of neocon media man Bill... |
| Also: Kevin Drum, DemFromCT, Harley | |
Vietnam Vet Says Has No Proof for Claim Kerry Lied Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A veteran who disputed Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry 's Vietnam war record acknowledged on Sunday he had no proof to back his charge that Kerry fabricated the reports of enemy fire that won him two medals. | |
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John Emerson: There were a handful of neutral and negative headlines, but here are twelve of the first fifteen stories (about 7:30 PM... |
Jesse Taylor: Curious Standards Of Evidence — From Van Odell, he of "I know for a fact that John Kerry faked his Bronze Star report"... |
Austin Powers Opinion Journal — Permalink What would you say if we told you we have a way to add as many as eight new Republican senators to Congress? We could also add eight right-leaning votes to the Electoral College. It's simple, it's fun, and it's perfectly constitutional: Texas should divide itself into five states. | |
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Glenn Reynolds: THOSE TRICKY REPUBLICANS: A strategy to lock down the Senate, co-authored by my law school classmate Michael Paulsen. Michael DeBow: Messin' with Texas: It seems that Texas could split itself into five states, without the necessity of Congressional action. |
The Big Trunk: Today OpinionJournal has posted the column from this past week's Wall Street Journal that we referred to in our post: "Austin Powers." William J. Dyer: Which brings me, through uncertain logic, to a bit of whimsy published in Sunday's edition of the WSJ's OpinionJournal... |
Republican smear machine can't stand up to the facts Facing the future of higher education Minneapolis Star Tribune — Permalink John H. Hinderaker and Scott W. Johnson had a jolly good time in a Wednesday commentary "fact-checking" Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's statements about operating his Swift boat in Cambodian waters. | |
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Vox Day: He won't show — After the Star and Sickle ran a hit piece defending Krazy John against the Powerline duo of Hindrocket... The Big Trunk: Boyd's column is "Republican smear machine can't stand up to the facts." |
Hindrocket: A Further Response to Jim Boyd — In today's Minneapolis Star Tribune, Strib editorial board member Jim Boyd writes that... |
GOP Senators Propose End Of CIA CBS News — Permalink (CBS/AP) Senate Intelligence Committee Republicans proposed removing the nation's largest intelligence gathering operations from the CIA and the Pentagon and putting them directly under a new national intelligence director. | |
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Mathew @Centerfield: Read the full article here. I am posting this mostly for the comment section, as I have not wrapped my head around it, just yet. |
Laura Rozen: Sen. Pat Roberts hasn't shared his intel reform plan with the Democrats, nor with the White House yet, but he did run a... |
Bush Health Care Plan Seems to Fall Short By / WaPo — Permalink If the Republican-controlled Congress enacted President Bush's entire health care agenda, as many as 10 million people who lack health insurance would be covered at a cost of $102 billion over the next decade, according to his campaign aides. | |
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Meteor Blades: And then there's the failure of Bush to deal with the health insurance crisis: "Gap Grows Between Hard Data,... |
Gary Farber: GOOD NEWS ON HEALTH INSURANCE! This is very comforting: [snipped quote] Clearly we need more good news like this. |
'The Scream' stolen from museum AP — Permalink OSLO, Norway (AP) — Armed men stormed into an art museum Sunday, threatened staff at gunpoint and stole Edvard Munch's famous paintings "The Scream" and "Madonna" before the eyes of stunned museum-goers. | |
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Gary Farber: BRING ME BACK! (And get me an aspirin!) Jan Haugland: Here's CNN. PS 3: The WebMuseum in Paris has a nice page with many pictures of Edvard Munch paintings. |
Damian Penny: Thomas Crown wanted for questioning — Edvard Munch's The Scream was stolen from an Oslo museum earlier today. |
Kerry in a Straitjacket By / Time — Permalink John Kerry suffered a small embarrassment last week that illuminated a big problem in his campaign. The embarrassment involved the not exactly riveting issue of troop redeployments. | |
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Dale Franks: Lack of Substance — Joe Klein, writing in Newsweek opines that John Kerry's campaign is suffering from a lack of substance about issues that matter in the here and now. |
Charles Johnson: Flipper in a Straitjacket — Joe Klein of TIME Magazine notices that John Kerry doesn't always hold consistent opinions: Kerry in a Straitjacket. |
Al-Qaida said to recruit in Latin America AP — Permalink MONTERREY, Mexico - Governments throughout Mexico and Central America are on alert as evidence grows that al-Qaida members are traveling in the region and looking for recruits to carry out attacks in Latin America — the potential last frontier for international terrorism. | |
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Jan Haugland: Al-Qaeda targets Latin America — There are growing concerns that al-Qaeda terrorists are increasingly looking to Latin... |
Joe Gandelman: The AP reports: "MONTERREY, Mexico - Governments throughout Mexico and Central America are on alert as evidence grows... |
Jewish-run centre burned in Paris BBC — Permalink French President Jacques Chirac has condemned an attack on a Jewish-run soup kitchen in Paris. Swastikas were daubed on the walls of the kitchen which was then set alight in the early hours of Sunday morning. | |
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Jan Haugland: New anti-Semitic attack in France — Vandals attacked a Jewish run soup kitchen in Paris, writing swastikas on the walls and putting the center on fire. |
Roger L. Simon: UPDATE: Make that deux fois. (via Instapundit) For the francophone, Le Monde coverage of the "social center" burning is here. |
The Making of an X Box Warrior By / NYT — Permalink It was only a virtual Baghdad, baking under a virtual sun. As in real life, though, troops were dodging gunfire. I was at the Institute for Creative Technologies in Marina Del Rey, Calif., playing a new X box video game called Full Spectrum Warrior. | |
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Nathan Hallford: The New York Times Magazine looks at this process of using an Xbox to train soldiers for combat in Iraq. |
Phillip Carter: "All but war is a simulation" — Clive Thompson has a really interesting article in this week's Sunday NYT magazine on... |
Cut-and-Paste Propaganda Infiltrates Opinion Pages By / WaPo — Permalink Reader, beware! Some of America's newspapers have become unwitting conduits for campaign propaganda. Thanks to some nifty Internet technology, the campaigns of President Bush and John F. Kerry are making it easy for their supporters to pass off the campaigns' talking points as just another concerned citizen's opinion. | |
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David Neiwert: Paul Farhi in the Washington Post recently offered this report: Thanks to some nifty Internet technology, the campaigns... |
Max B. Sawicky: BETTER LATE THAN NEVER — Today the Post clues into the "strong and getting stronger" campaign, reported here and by Atrios last friggin' Tuesday. |
Obama holds 41-point lead over Keyes By / Chicago Tribune — Permalink Alan Keyes said it would be an uphill climb when he agreed this month to be the emergency candidate for Illinois Republicans in the U.S. Senate race, but he may not have realized just how steep the ascent will have to be. | |
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Orrin Judd: KEYES 11, OBAMA 0: Obama holds 41-point lead over Keyes Democrat solid among blacks, independents Advertisement By Bob... |
Jeralyn Merritt: A new Chicago Tribune poll has him biting the dust—and bringing down local Republican candidates. |
I Still Have Work to Do By / NYT — Permalink Trenton — Ten days ago, I made a very difficult personal decision to announce my sexuality and resignation as governor of New Jersey. I also apologized to my wife for my failure to respect the covenant of our marriage, and to the citizens of New Jersey for allowing my professional decisions to be distracted by my personal life. | |
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Roger L. Simon: He has an oped today in the NYT in which he again wraps his personal angst and political activites in the mantle of the Gay Rights Struggle. Cori Dauber: He's still pretending, though, that his resignation was not something forced by the politically untenable situation his... |
Jeralyn Merritt: McGreevey Explains His Decision — New Jersey Governor James McGreevey explains his decision to remain in office until November in an op-ed in today's New York Times. Jeff Jarvis: McGreevey speaks (sort of) : NJ Gov Jim McGreevey writes an op-ed in the Sunday Times. |
The RAF's Guinea Pig heroes near final scramble By / Observer — Permalink To join the Guinea Pig Club, the boast of its members goes, you had to serve in the RAF in the second world war and suffer disfiguring injuries from being boiled, mashed or fried by enemy fire. | |
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Christopher Kanis: THE TOWN THAT DIDN'T STARE — Spotted this one over at The Corner. It's a good one. |
Andrew Stuttaford: THE TOWN THAT DIDN'T STARE — For a story of courage, stoicism and kindness, go here. |
Armed Robbers Steal Munch's 'The Scream' in Oslo Reuters — Permalink OSLO (Reuters) - Armed robbers stole "The Scream" and another masterpiece by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch on Sunday in a bold daytime raid on an Oslo museum packed with terrified tourists. | |
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Moe Lane: Armed Robbers Steal Munch's 'The Scream' in Oslo: [snipped quote] mdf668676 Now, aside from an uncontrollable urge to... |
Betsy Newmark: Arrgghhhh! Why can't the Norwegians keep ahold of their classic art treasures? |
Inheritance tax to rise to 50 per cent By / Telegraph — Permalink Inheritance tax for middle class families is to soar under government plans that would come into effect after the next general election. The scheme, which is being prepared in Downing Street for inclusion in Labour's manifesto, would raise an extra... | |
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Andrew Stuttaford: Now it seems that he is looking at increasing the death tax paid by some better off Britons, all in the name of 'fairness', whatever that is supposed to mean. |
Gabriel Syme: The front page announces that inheritance tax is to rise to 50 per cent for those whose inheritance exceed a limit set... |
The general in his library By / Boston Globe — Permalink TODAY, ALL BRANCHES of America's armed forces have lists of books they recommend to their personnel. On July 23, the chief of staff of the Army, General Peter Schoomaker, issued a significant update to the Army's list. | |
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Phillip Carter: Army changes its homework assignments for soldiers II — Ian Mason has an interesting article in this morning's Boston... |
Orrin Judd: THE GLACIAL PACE OF BUREAUCRACY: The general in his library (Ian Garrick Mason, August 22, 2004, Boston Globe)... |
Munch's Famous 'Scream,' 'Madonna' Stolen By / AP — Permalink OSLO, Norway — Armed men stormed into an art museum Sunday, threatened staff at gunpoint and stole Edvard Munch's famous paintings "The Scream" and "Madonna" before the eyes of stunned museum-goers. | |
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Kevin Raybould: The Scream Stolen — This sucks "Armed men stormed into an art museum Sunday, threatened staff at gunpoint and stole... |
Michael DeBow: Norwegian art heist: From the AP: [quote] Edvard Munch's famous paintings "The Scream" and "Madonna" were stolen from an art...[end quote] |
Kerry Urges Bush to Demand Attacks Stop AP — Permalink EAST HAMPTON, N.Y. Aug. 21, 2004 — Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry on Saturday night urged President Bush to "stand up and stop" what he called personal attacks on him over his combat record in Vietnam. | |
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Sir George: In other Kerry news, or more accurately the same news story with different ending twists, they mentioned some new vets coming out for Kerry. Josh Marshall: Today at a rally, John Edwards said, among other things, "This is a moment of truth for George W. Bush. |
Charles Johnson: After inviting George W. Bush to Bring ... It ... On, John F. Kerry is now begging him to Make ... Them ... Stop. Kevin Drum: UPDATE: More evidence to support Kerry is buried in this AP story: "Kerry also picked up support from Wayne D... |
Exposed: Scandal of double voters By / NY Daily News — Permalink Some 46,000 New Yorkers are registered to vote in both the city and Florida, a shocking finding that exposes both states to potential abuses that could alter the outcome of elections, a Daily News investigation shows. | |
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Orrin Judd: MAKE EVERY VOTE COUNT...TWICE: Exposed: Scandal of double voters: With debate over the 2000 election still raging,... |
Betsy Newmark: The New York Daily News has done some investigative reporting into people who are registered to vote in both New York and Florida. |
A very Kerry Christmas By / US News — Permalink Some people wondered how long the major media would be willing to ignore the Christmas-in-Cambodia story. Well, the answer is in: at least 10 or 11 days. I first noticed the story August 6 on Glenn Reynolds's Instapundit blog. | |
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Orrin Judd: SELF-INFLICTED WOUND: A very Kerry Christmas (John Leo, 8/30/04, US News) "Some people wondered how long the major... Glenn Reynolds: (Via Roger Simon). It's worth reading this column by John Leo from U.S. News, too. Betsy Newmark: John Leo takes on the major media for muffling the Kerry in Cambodia story. |
The Big Trunk: Oh, yes. John Leo has also joined the parade: "A very Kerry Christmas." William J. Dyer: John Leo's article for U.S. News & World Report is entitled "A very Kerry Christmas," and begins: "Some people wondered... |
Lost Votes in N.M. a Cautionary Tale By / WaPo — Permalink Four years ago, about 2,300 voters traveled the winding roads through this remote county to cast their ballots before Election Day on state-of-the-art, push-button electronic voting machines. For 678 of them, their votes were never recorded. | |
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Andrew Stuttaford: E-VOTING — An update... "ESPAÑOLA, N.M. |
Betsy Newmark: Those voting districts that have embraced electronic voting as the great new technology are now learning about GIGO. |
Kerry: Slo-Mo on Swifties By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON — It's easy for the Bushes to stay gallant. They delegate the gutter. There are always third-party political assassins, ostensibly independent, to do the dynasty wet work. | |
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Richard TPD: Quote of the Day — From the never-to-be-misunderestim ated Maureen Dowd: [snipped quote] Ouch. Atrios: MoDo — Indeed. "It makes sense for W. to use surrogates to do his fighting, just as he did when he slid out of Vietnam... |
Leah A: Here are a few more highlights; you can and should read the whole thing here, but after having spent the week doing... Laura Rozen: And check out Dowd: "It makes sense for W. to use surrogates to do his fighting, just as he did when he slid out of... |
The Talk Shows WaPo — Permalink Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (WTTG), 9 a.m.: Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.), John Hurley, national director of Veterans for Kerry, and Van Odell of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. | |
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DemFromCT: How about Attack on Kerry's war record riles GOP rep? (thanks, RBH) - the Weekly Standard story is coming home to... |
Betsy Newmark: Plan your Sunday show viewing. Here's the list of guests. |
Dems play second fiddle to celebrity egos By / Chicago Sun Times — Permalink One of the most agreeable aspects of the Republican Party is that there's minimal risk of running into celebrities. At a Democratic political get-together, the only way to tell who the senators are is that they're the only two guys in the room you don't... | |
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Tim Blair: NYCRC PREVIEW — Of the upcoming NYC Republican Convention, Mark Steyn writes: "One of the most agreeable aspects of the... Charles Johnson: GOP Gets Zero Celebrity Rating — Mark Steyn, on the plethora of dim-bulb Democratic celebrities: Dems play second fiddle to celebrity egos. |
Ed Driscoll: Steyn on the Stars — Mark Steyn notes that one of the delicious ironies located where the Hollywood and the Kerry... Judith Weiss: UPDATE: Mark Steyn on the celebrity-deprived GOP. |
Good Grief! That Favorite Comic Strip Is Missing By / NYT — Permalink When The Dallas Morning News pruned its stock tables, sports results and television listings this year, a consequence of sluggish advertising revenue and sharply rising paper costs, few readers felt aggrieved enough to complain. | |
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James Joyner: Papers Dropping Lousy Comic Strips — Good Grief! That Favorite Comic Strip Is Missing (NYT) [snipped quote] It amazes me that the soap opera strips survived as long as they did. |
Ken Layne: Young People Don't Read Newspapers — Once again, newspaper publishers mistake the sad comic strips they print for something young people might read. |
Bush Promises to Offer Detailed Plans at Convention By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 - President Bush will present what aides say will be a detailed second-term agenda when he is nominated in New York in 10 days, part of an ambitious convention program built on invocations of Sept. 11 and efforts to paint Senator John Kerry as untrustworthy and out of the mainstream. | |
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Mathew Gross: This has been bothering me all day, since I read it, but I wasn't quite able to put my finger on what was so bothersome. Steve M.: Or you could just read the first third of any Adam Nagourney story in the New York Times, like this one, and get the... Jeralyn Merritt: Bush's Convention Plans — Reading about Bush's plans for the convention in Sunday's New York Times, it was hard not to gag. |
Matthew Yglesias: Through The Looking Glass — I mentioned this article once already, but it's really pretty astounding. Natasha @PacificViews: World Net Daily Today — The 'news' organization World Net Daily is recommended to listeners by radio hosts like Neal... Orrin Judd: SO MUCH YET TO DO: Bush Promises to Offer Detailed Plans at Convention (ADAM NAGOURNEY, 8/22/04, NY Times)... |
'I will do everything I can to stop John Kerry becoming the commander-in-chief of this nation's armed forces' By / Telegraph — Permalink The Vietnam veteran at the heart of an increasingly vicious campaign to discredit John Kerry's "war hero" status has vowed to do "whatever it takes to stop that man becoming commander-in-chief of America's armed forces". | |
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Orrin Judd: 'I will do everything I can to stop John Kerry becoming the commander-in-chief of this nation's armed forces' (Charles... |
Patterico: One commenter here points me to this odd article in the London Telegraph. I don't know what to make of it. |
Swift Boat Accounts Incomplete By / WaPo — Permalink When John F. Kerry rescued Jim Rassmann from the Bay Hap River in the jungles of Vietnam in March 1969, neither man could possibly have imagined that the episode would become a much-disputed focus of an American presidential campaign 35 years later. | |
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Max B. Sawicky: BALANCED AND UNFAIR — Somehow the headline to this story, which basically confirm's John Kerry's account of his military service, doesn't seem quite apt. |
Robert Cox: Michael Dobbs of The Washington Post has written precisely the kind of article a great newspaper should write. |
Former POW Resigns From Bush Campaign AP — Permalink WASHINGTON - A former POW resigned as a volunteer to President Bush 's re-election campaign Saturday after it was learned that he appeared in an anti-John Kerry ad sponsored by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. | |
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SK Bubba: And I guess you already heard that a Bush campaign operative resigned, because he appeared in one of the not-so-swift... |
Oliver Willis: Bush Campaign Working With Swift Boat Liars, More Proof — Former POW resigns from Bush campaign "Retired Air Force... |
Swift Boat Accounts Incomplete And Flawed By / WaPo — Permalink When John F. Kerry rescued James Rassmann from the Bay Hap River in the jungles of Vietnam in March 1969, neither man could possibly have imagined that the episode would become a much-disputed focus of an American presidential campaign 35 years later. | |
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John Emerson: P.S. My winger friend Al came up with a link for the Washington Post FOIA request for Kerry's military records. Josh Marshall: On the front page of the Washington Post website, the headline for Michael Dobbs' piece on the Swift Boat controversy... Tom Smith: Mysterious changing headlines — I could have sworn the headline on this story in the WaPo was different when it originally appeared on Friday, I think. |
Bird Dog: A Little Light Amid the Heat — The Washington Post thankfully provides an evenhanded assessment of certain events in a... Wind Rider: Guests on both programs today mentioned new coverage in the Washington Post, which includes several maps and graphics, as well as a .pdf copy of the after action report. Matthew Yglesias: Fail to Disprove — Gee, "Critics Fail to Disprove Kerry's Version of Vietnam War Episode" is a mighty odd way of putting the point. |
| Also: Barbara O'Brien, Jeff Jarvis, Phillip Carter, William J. Dyer, Lambert @Corrente, David Cohen, C. D. Harris, Glenn Reynolds, Hugh Hewitt, DemFromCT, Kevin Drum, Oliver Willis, James Joyner, Joe Gandelman, Donald Sensing | |
No pain, no gain American Thinker — Permalink Once again, a seeming strength of the Kerry campaign has turned into a liability. Adam Nagourney, writing in the New York Times, speculates that Kerry spent too much time letting the Swiftvets' charges go unanswered: | |
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Hugh Hewitt: For comprehensive coverage of the whoppers Kerry told about Vietnam and continues to refuse to either defend or recant,... Roger L. Simon: Thomas Lifson demurs: The dogmatic insistence by Nagourney in the unreliability of the new media is sour grapes, indeed. |
Glenn Reynolds: A NEW ERA: Thomas Lifson responds to Adam Nagourney. (Via Roger Simon). It's worth reading this column by John Leo from U.S. News, too. |
Going Negative: When It Works NYT — Permalink THIS was supposed to be the positive campaign. Late last fall, Democrats and Republicans alike predicted that a new campaign rule requiring candidates to appear in their own advertisements and take credit for them would discourage them from making negative ads. | |
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EDM: Opinion Data on the Effect of Anti-Kerry ads Not as Clear As Press Commentary Suggests — Recent press commentary has... Orrin Judd: DAVID ALWAYS BEATS GOLIATH: Going Negative: When It Works (JIM RUTENBERG and KATE ZERNIKE, 8/22/04, NY Times) |
Michael Froomkin: It remains to be seen whether Bush/Cheney's tactical gains can be overcome by a strategic loss — which happens only if... |
DOING THE 'RIGHT' THING IN L.A. New York Post — Permalink IS there a growing cadre of closet conservatives in Hollywood? In an exposé on secret Hollywood Republicans in its upcoming September issue, Details magazine unmasks a host of stealth celebrity conservatives, including Adam Sandler, Freddie Prinze Jr., Jessica Simpson and Shannen Doherty. | |
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Charles Johnson: UPDATE at 8/21/04 6:10:33 pm: And just as I posted this link to Mark Steyn, Yehudit pointed out a NY Post gossip column about Hollywood's stealth Republicans. Jeff Quinton: Page Six: "In an exposé on secret Hollywood Republicans in its upcoming September issue, Details magazine... |
Judith Weiss: I'm going to quote most of this because it's short and doesn't have a permalink: "In an exposé on secret... Orrin Judd: NOT EXACTLY REAGAN, WAYNE & COOPER: DOING THE 'RIGHT' THING IN L.A. |
Kidnappers Will Release U.S. Journalist, Militia Says By / NYT — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 21 - Representatives of a rebel Shiite militia said Saturday that they expected the release of Micah Garen, a 36-year-old American journalist who was taken hostage a week ago on Friday outside a gun shop in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriya. | |
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Joe Gandelman: Terrorists To Release American Journalist — You can tell it wasn't an Al Qaeda group this time: [snipped quote] The key... |
Jeff Quinton: Terrorists to release American hostage — N.Y. Times: [snipped quote] Via Joe Gandelman @ Dean's World. |
Don't Mind If I Do By / WaPo — Permalink We're in the middle of simultaneous wars against terrorism and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the outcomes are anything but certain. To help fight these wars, Congress passed a gigantic $416 billion appropriations bill for the Department of Defense in July, which President Bush signed into law on Aug. 5. | |
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Phillip Carter: Winslow T. Wheeler, a senior fellow at the Center for Defense Information, writes in today's Washington Post Outlook... |
Gary Farber: PIGS IN A BLANKET. The most patriotic dish there is. Non-partisan! [snipped quote] Isn't it luverly? Read The Rest Scale: 3.5 out of 5. |
Graphic Designer Fired After Heckling Bush By / AP — Permalink CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A man who heckled President Bush at a political rally was fired from his job at an advertising and design company for offending a client who provided tickets to the event. The fired graphic designer said Saturday he won't try to get his job back. | |
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Xan @Corrente: "I was told that my actions reflected badly on the company and that a client was upset," Glen Hiller of Berkeley Springs... |
SK Bubba: Freedom of speech... ..and freedom to get fired. |
G.O.P. Vows to Offer Detailed Agenda at Its Convention By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 - President Bush will present what aides say will be a detailed second-term agenda when he is nominated in New York in 10 days, part of an ambitious convention program built on invocations of Sept. 11 and efforts to paint Senator John Kerry as untrustworthy and out of the mainstream. | |
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Taegan Goddard: Republicans Brace for Protests — President Bush's "advisers said they were girding for the most extensive street... Dave Johnson: Keeping in mind that Horowitz' book is considered the "Bible" of Republican strategists, take a look at this news story... DemFromCT: The RNC - A Preview of Failed Policy — G.O.P. Vows to Offer Detailed Agenda at Its Convention "President Bush will... |
Michael Froomkin: From the mind-boggles dept: Bush Promises to Offer Detailed Plans at Convention: Mr. Bush's advisers said they were... Matthew Yglesias: Dipshits — [snipped quote] These people are really making me mad. |
Kerry to File Complaint Tying Bush to Attack Ads LAT — Permalink FORT MYERS, Fla. — The campaign for Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry said Friday it would file a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, charging that a Vietnam veterans group had been illegally coordinating its ad campaign about Kerry's military record with President Bush. | |
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William J. Dyer: The Kerry campaign and its allies — obviously including the Los Angeles Times — are reacting to the second SwiftVets... Skippy: the latimes reports that kerry is filing a complaint with the fec that awol is coordinating with the shifty boat boys, which is against federal election laws. |
Patterico: Los Angeles Times Blows the Story of John O'Neill's Contributions to Democrats — Very interesting comment in the Los... |
Voters rush past Keyes, favor Obama By / Chicago Tribune — Permalink Alan Keyes said it would be an uphill climb when he agreed this month to be the emergency candidate for Illinois Republicans in the U.S. Senate race, but he may not have realized just how steep the ascent will have to be. | |
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Oliver Willis: I say this with certainty because Obama currently is ahead in the polls 65% to 24% against right-wing nutcase Alan Keyes. |
ArchPundit: Poll Up — The Trib Has Sunday's Edition up, so the poll is up showing it is indeed 65 Obama 24 Keyes 12 Other/D/K The... |
Witness breaks silence - backs Kerry's story AP — Permalink CHICAGO — A Chicago Tribune editor who was on the Vietnam mission for which John Kerry received the Silver Star is backing up Kerry's account of the incident. | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: The latest news is the Chicago Tribune copy editor who comes out for Kerry's version. |
Joe Gandelman: Read the whole thing. —A witness breaks his silence and backs Kerry's story. |
A continent divided: Half of Europe is leaning to Kerry. But it's the wrong half National Post — Permalink If the presidential election still looks open in America itself — the polls show the two candidates continually overtaking each other — Senator John Kerry is agreed to be the firm favourite in Europe. | |
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Ed Driscoll: But as far as most American voters are concerned, it's the wrong half. (Via Charles Johnson.) |
Charles Johnson: Kerry's European Blunder — A great piece by John O'Sullivan on John Kerry's much-vaunted support among Europeans: Half... |
Swift boat skipper: Kerry critics wrong By / Chicago Tribune — Permalink The commander of a Navy swift boat who served alongside Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry during the Vietnam War stepped forward Saturday to dispute attacks challenging Kerry's integrity and war record. | |
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Joe Gandelman: Signs Of Backlash On The Swift Boat Vets Issue — You can see some signs of the backlash by reading Jeff Jarvis here and Walter Swann here. Jeff Jarvis: So see the Chicago Tribune today, where one of Kerry's men points to the untruths of the Swifties. William J. Dyer: But neither it, nor the companion news article by Rood's Chicago Tribune colleague Tim Jones, directly contradicts the SwiftVets' principle allegations of fact. |
McQ: Per the Chicago Trib article: [quote] The book's authors, John O'Neill and Jerome Corsi, wrote that Kerry's attack on the Viet Cong ambush displayed "stupidity, not courage." [end quote] Phillip Carter: In response, an editor at the Chicago Tribune who skippered a Swift Boat with then-LT Kerry decided to publish a... Captain Ed: Rood Counters Swiftvets But Qualifies 250 Other Witnesses — As Mickey Kaus noted yesterday, Chicago Tribune editor... |
| Also: Michael Froomkin, Glenn Reynolds, KJL, Harley, James Joyner, Skippy, Jon Henke, Barbara O'Brien, Josh Marshall, Christopher Kanis, Jerome Armstrong, Atrios | |
Anti-Kerry vets not there that day By / Chicago Tribune — Permalink There were three swift boats on the river that day in Vietnam more than 35 years ago—three officers and 15 crew members. Only two of those officers remain to talk about what happened on February 28, 1969. | |
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Barry Ritholtz: I continue to think this is a losing approach by the incumbent, replete with the potential to backfire. click for full... William J. Dyer: The single best development for Sen. John F. Kerry during the past two weeks is the just-published first-person account... James Joyner: His piece, "Anti-Kerry vets not there that day," is getting quite a bit of attention from the left side of the blogosphere today. |
Captain Ed: Rood Story Doesn't Quite Add Up — As William Rood's testimony gets parsed more closely and the initial novelty of a... ArchPundit: Trashing Kerry Has Other Effects — While trashing Kerry by a political operation that trashed John McCain is bad, the... Laura Rozen: All sides in the Swift Boats nonsense are not 'equally guilty.' The facts overwhelmingly back up the Kerry side, as this... |
| Also: Venkat @BeggingToDiffer, William Swann, Larre @LeftCoaster, Kevin Drum, Steve Gilliard, Barbara O'Brien, Atrios | |
Military records support Kerry's account of Vietnam service By / Knight Ridder — Permalink WASHINGTON - Military records back John Kerry's account of his service in Vietnam and have backed at least two of his accusers into a corner. Kerry this week was forced to defend himself against accusations by a group of fellow Navy veterans of Vietnam that he was a liar and a coward. | |
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Barry Ritholtz: The rest of the media has followed up on this, from the NYTimes to Knight Ridder. Harley: And Knight-Ridder has a helpful summary re the Swifties and their laughably inconsistent statements re the man they are trying so hard to destroy. DemFromCT: Steve Gilliard on the Neverending War with a review of a Joe Galloway article from today supporting Kerry. |
Kevin Drum: THEN AND NOW...I've mentioned before that one of the reasons you shouldn't trust the SwiftVets group is that until... Robert Cox: Oliver Willis has a link to another respected voice, Joe Galloway of Knight-Ridder who backs Kerry's version of events. Skippy: knight ridder cites military records supporting kerry's version of the events. |
| Also: Barbara O'Brien, Steve Gilliard, Ed Cone, Atrios | |
Kerry Might Pay Price for Failing to Strike Back Quickly By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 - The fierce back and forth over John Kerry's Vietnam War record may seem an odd storm to break out during the summer lull before the Republican convention. But it goes to the heart of his challenge to President Bush, and its resolution may prove pivotal in determining Mr. Kerry's hopes of victory this fall. | |
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William J. Dyer: In Saturday's mainstream media papers, NYT reporter Adam Nagourney serves up "Kerry Might Pay Price for Failing to... Roger L. Simon: Lifson Takes On Nagourney — Some of you may have noticed that Adam Nagourney had some nasty things to say about blogs this morning. Glenn Reynolds: MORE SLOPPY AND UNSUBSTANTIATED CHARGES THIS POLITICAL SEASON: They're from the New York Times, which writes:... |
David Adesnik: NYT CHEAPSHOT AT THE BLOGOSPHERE: I saw it this morning, but Glenn beat me to the post. Mike Hendrix: A-fisking we shall go — Reynolds links to a NYT article that is just astoundingly transparent twaddle, even by the... Betsy Newmark: The New York Times says that Kerry made a mistake by delaying his counterattack against the SBVT ad. |
| Also: Tom Maguire, Hindrocket, Orrin Judd, Joe Gandelman | |
Some Veterans Still Bitter at Talk of Crimes WaPo — Permalink William Ferris was confined to a bed in a military hospital, his severed sciatic nerve reminding him of the attack on his Navy Swift boat in a Vietnamese river. A shot from a recoilless rifle had pierced the boat's pilothouse and then Ferris's body, leaving him in constant agony. | |
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William J. Dyer: Washington Post staff writers Josh White and Brian Faler today bring us a front-page article entitled "Some Veterans... Susan Madrak: 'BABY KILLERS' — Looks like this is primarily based in their need to punish Kerry for his testimony all those years ago: [snipped quote] You know what I find odd? Betsy Newmark: The Washington Post has a front page piece talking to some of the men who signed the SBVT ad asking Kerry to open his military records. |
Glenn Reynolds: UNLIKE THE STORY OF THE MEDALS, this will be harder to spin: [snipped quote] Kerry's postwar conduct is all a matter of... The Big Trunk: And Drudge has flagged this article from this morning's Washington Post: "Some veterans still bitter at talk of crimes." Tom Maguire: For their part, the Swiftees have moved the argument to what seems to be their real objection to John Kerry - his medals... |
| Also: Orrin Judd | |
Putting Brakes On Olympic Blogs CBS News — Permalink (AP) Athletes may be the center of attention at the Olympic Games, but don't expect to hear directly from them online - or see snapshots or video they've taken. The International Olympic Committee is barring competitors, as well as coaches, support personnel and other officials, from writing firsthand accounts for news and other Web sites. | |
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KJL: OLYMPICS BLOGS BANNED Cori Dauber: The IOC has ruled that athletes, coaches, even officials, posting first hand accounts, photos or video, interferes with... |
Robert Cox: Cori Dauber notes that the IOC is shutting down Olympic bloggers beacuse it is a threat to broadcasters who paid for the rights to broadcast the Olympics. |
An Ocean Apart, a World of Difference By / NYT — Permalink In a relationship as complicated as America's with Europe, where politics, history and culture collide, politicians and analysts have but a limited role in defining its meaning. | |
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David Adesnik: LETTER TO THE EDITOR: The NYT ran a photo essay on European aristocracy on today's op-ed page along with a commentary... Cori Dauber: And what's so special about these pictures? |
Orrin Judd: AN OLD GULF WIDENED: An Ocean Apart, a World of Difference (AMANDA FOREMAN, 8/21/04, NY Times) [snipped quote] Bring him back today and he'd apologize. |
Group to Air Ad Attacking Kerry's 1971 Testimony By / WaPo — Permalink The fight over Vietnam and valor consumed the presidential campaign yesterday, as a group of veterans accused John F. Kerry of betraying fellow soldiers and dishonoring the country when he became a leader of the antiwar movement upon his return, and Democrats launched a new counteroffensive. | |
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Orrin Judd: THE KERRY CAMPAIGN PEAKED AWHILE AGO, NOW IT'S MCPEAKED: Group to Air Ad Attacking Kerry's 1971 Testimony: Democrats... Josh Marshall: But the Post piece gives some sobering signs about how effective it's been. |
Betsy Newmark: The back and forth among the aides is really quite amusing. [snipped quote] The problem is that the public has heard all about Bush's National Guard service and processed it. |
SHIELDS AND KRISTOL Online NewsHour — Permalink Jim Lehrer speaks with syndicated columnist Mark Shields and Weekly Standard editor William Kristol about this week's developments in the presidential campaign and the controversy created by television commercials questioning the medals Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., received for his service on Swift boats during the Vietnam War. | |
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William J. Dyer: Update: Add PBS Newshour talking head Mark Shields to the list of those desperately trying to insist that the SwiftVets second ad takes Kerry's testimony out of context. |
The Big Trunk: Reader Mike Fox sends us the link to the Mark Shields/Bill Kristol segment on the News Hour last night with the comment: "The story is out." |
Olympians largely barred from blogging AP — Permalink (AP) — Athletes may be the center of attention at the Olympic Games, but don't expect to hear directly from them online — or see snapshots or video they've taken. The International Olympic Committee is barring competitors, as well as coaches, support personnel and other officials, from writing firsthand accounts for news and other Web sites. | |
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Gary Farber: The Kings and Queens of the Olympics have spoken: "(AP) — Athletes may be the center of attention at the Olympic... Dan Gillmor: Olympic-Sized Arrogance — AP: Olympians largely barred from blogging. |
Ed Cone: Blogging banned as Olympic sport. Doesn't the IOC have some seats to be selling in Athens, or at least some bribe money... |
Kerry Is Filing a Complaint Against Swift Boat Group NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 - Stepping up a counteroffensive against a veterans group that is attacking his military record, the campaign of Senator John Kerry said on Friday that it was filing a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing the organization of violating campaign laws by coordinating its activities with the Bush campaign. | |
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David Cohen: HOIST BY THEIR OWN PETARD — Kerry Is Filing a Complaint Against Swift Boat Group (Glen Justice and Jim Rutenberg, NY... Tom Maguire: And from Glen Justice and Jim Rutenberg, "Kerry Is Filing a Complaint Against Swift Boat Group: ...some Democrats said... |
Rich Lowry: So I agree with the Democractic aide quoted in this Times story: "Mr. Kerry's campaign argued that he was relating... John Cole: Kerry Is Filing a Complaint Against Swift Boat Group This is, of course, after trying to stifle the book. |
Keyes' refreshing honesty could change GOP By / Chicago Sun Times — Permalink How I love the campaigning, cyclonic Alan Keyes! Let me count the ways. To appreciate the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, you must consider his two ingredients. First, an Old Testament prophet. ''Thus says the Lord,'' the prophets declared. | |
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ArchPundit: Apparently, Roeser isn't being satirical. Because, you know, Thomas Aquinas and an old testament prophet would be great candidates today. |
Orrin Judd: KEYES 8, OBAMA 0: Keyes' refreshing honesty could change GOP (THOMAS ROESER, 8/21/04, Chicago Sun-Times) |
Clashes Slow as Cleric's Grip on Mosque Seems to Slip NYT — Permalink The tightrope that the two sides are walking was clearly visible in the cemetery on Thursday and Friday. Late on Thursday night, American soldiers in tanks and armored vehicles pushed to its southern edge, just a few hundred yards from the mosque, where they fired tanks and heavy machine guns at buildings in the Old City. | |
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Rich Lowry: THE KEYS — I love this formulation from a Sistani aide, reported in the New York Times: [snipped quote] PS: Check out... |
Cori Dauber: NAJAF — This report from the Times suggests that the situation is too confusing to read precisely — but is beginning to look as if the crisis will pass. |