As Perrspectives detailed here and here, the ever-charming GOP frontrunner and surprise Iowa winner Mike Huckabee is probably the most alarming extremist thrown up by either party in a generation. But while his most dangerous pronouncements involve his zealous determination to save souls for the next life, his radical tax proposals would surely impoverish them […]

It was only a matter of time before the conservative chattering classes extended the Republicans' perpetual "criminalization of politics" defense to the exploding CIA tapes scandal. On Friday, the Wall Street Journal obliged, claiming the Justice Department's probe into the spy agency's destruction of detainee interrogation videos was the equivalent of "criminalizing the CIA." Following […]

In New Hampshire Friday, John Edwards was offering his best Gary Hart impersonation. Like Hart in 1984, Edwards claimed his second place showing behind Barack Obama in Iowa had transformed the Democratic nomination into a two-man race. But no one is buying it, probably including Edwards himself. Sadly, Edward has misread the history and lessons […]

Lost in the media focus on the victories of the supposed "change" candidates in Iowa last night are the dramatic differences in the priorities of each party's voters. As Iowa Democrats headed to their caucuses in record numbers last night, the sputtering American economy topped their list of concerns. But in a disturbing hint of […]

The 2008 Iowa caucus is now one for the history books. But after just one presidential nominating contest, many of the outlines of the '08 race are becoming increasingly clear. 1. Mitt Romney is Finished Romney's campaign was mortally wounded in Iowa. From the beginning, his entire strategy hinged on the "Iowa Effect." That is, […]

In a devastating New York Times op-ed today, 9/11 Commission leaders Tom Keane and Lee Hamilton accused the CIA of stonewalling their panel. The chairman and co-chairman alleged that those in the Bush administration who knew about videotapes of CIA detainee interrogations but failed to inform the 9/11 panel "obstructed our investigation." But lost in […]

Lost in the pundits' pondering over Mike Huckabee's scam to show - and then not air - an attack ad against Mitt Romney is the former Arkansas Governor's apparent bloodlust. As Steve Benen and Michael Crowley note, Huckabee's spot takes Romney to task for a record in Massachusetts that included "no executions." In extolling the […]

With the Iowa caucus now just two days away, a new poll from the Des Moines Register suggests that Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee are maintaining small leads. But while Thursday's vote promises to be a nail-biter for both parties, an even more compelling story line may be whether the result catapults the […]

From the beginning, God has been at the center of the Republican presidential race. And He has not been kind to the GOP or its would-be leaders. While John McCain back-tracked from his claim that "the most important thing is that I am a Christian", Rudy Giuliani left it to the priests to decide whether […]

As the 2008 campaign begins in earnest, one of the emerging storylines is so-called hyperpartisanship, the bitter and increasingly divisive conflict between Democrats and Republicans that is said to be fueling cynicism - and apathy - among voters. In Iowa, Barack Obama proclaims that he will transcend partisan cleavages, while John Edwards vows to fight. […]