In case anyone still doubted the transformation of American politics into just another form of entertainment, news that Laura Bush and her would-be Republican successor Cindy McCain will soon be hosting NBC's Today Show and ABC's The View should be a case in point. And to be sure, millions of Americans will see the two […]

Just one day before lambasting Barack Obama over his recent comments about religion, John McCain was a no-show at Sunday's CNN Compassion Forum on faith. That's because when it comes to discussing his own religious beliefs, the Republican presidential nominee believes that silence is golden. And judging by the fawning stories from the Washington Times, […]

Addressing the annual meeting of the Associated Press, John McCain stayed true to form in his ongoing courtship of the media. Pandering to what is in essence his base, McCain proclaimed his support for a proposed federal press shield law. Then in typical fashion, McCain joined President Bush in decrying the use of confidential sources […]

Over at the Weekly Standard, Michael Goldfarb takes the Obama campaign to task for deploying the "diversity police" during an appearance by Michelle Obama today at Carnegie Mellon University. But while the campaign staff's efforts to produce a multi-racial backdrop may have been ham-handed, they pale in comparison to the comic Republican attempts to create […]

In the Politico this morning, Jonathan Martin offers what the New Republic deemed a "smart piece" about John McCain's religious beliefs. But in describing McCain's reluctance to speak publicly about his faith ("McCain Shies Away from Religion Talk"), Martin tells only half the story. Given that John McCain is now the de facto leader of […]

In conservative political circles, you can't keep a bad man down; he'll just come back and write a novel. And so comes word that former Christian Coalition wunderkind, Jack Abramoff crony and failed Georgia GOP candidate Ralph Reed is joining Scooter Libby, Lynne Cheney and Bill O'Reilly among the pulp pushers of the right. On […]

In December 2005, New York Times reporters James Risen and Eric Lichtblau broke the shocking story of the Bush administration's program of illegal domestic surveillance by the NSA. Now, in a new book due out next week, Lichtblau details the White House's 13-month effort to block the Times' revelations of its lawlessness. And to be […]

In another unfortunate case of premature Iraq elation, the Wall Street Journal last week celebrated the decline and fall of Iraqi Shiite leader Moqtada Al-Sadr. Echoing the "bring 'em on" taunt of their former boss, ex-Bush advisers Dan Senor and Roman Martinez triumphantly asked "Whatever Happened to Moqtada?" But as the renewed turmoil in Baghdad […]

The life of the American conservative is a perpetual crisis of cognitive dissonance, especially when it comes to the run-up to the Iraq war. So three new stories this week are certain to cause right-wing minds to explode, or at least to seek the safe harbor of denial. First came word of a new book […]

Yesterday, I offered surprisingly accurate predictions for the Democratic primaries in Texas and Ohio. But while I called correctly Texas for Hillary Clinton by 3% and was close on Ohio (forecasted 8% margin versus 10% actual), it appears I got the ensuing story line wrong. On Tuesday, I assumed the standard media narrative would portray […]