For those who had the good fortune to miss his 2007 State of the Union address, President Bush just offered the American people a stunning profile in rhetorical obfuscation and political comeuppance. Domestically, his seeming move to the middle on energy, immigration and health care may have alienated his own base while offering some prospect […]

As George W. Bush prepares to deliver his 2007 State of the Union address, the President and his amen corner in suffered through another week of rhetorical distress. With the GOP in rebellion over the President's "surge' in Iraq and the CIA leak trial of Cheney chief-of-staff Scooter Libby underway, Bush in succeeding weeks might […]

Tuesday's State of the Union Address should offer Americans compelling viewing. After the GOP's electoral disaster in November and the resounding thud that greeted the "surge" in Iraq, the 2007 SOTU can be said to officially mark the last throes of the Bush presidency. In anticipation of tomorrow night's presidential flight of fantasy, here are […]

What a difference a year - and electoral disaster - makes. As Attorney General Alberto Gonzales defended the Bush administration's illegal NSA domestic spying last February, Republicans Senators rushed to the defense of the President and his program. Fast forward to yesterday's announcement by Gonzales that the White House was backing away from wiretapping without […]

The Avenging Angel, smiter of the evil doers of the right, enjoyed another busy week punishing conservative miscreants for their misdeeds. In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice continued to disgrace the nation with her latest rhetorical disasters. Hoping to deflect criticism over the looming Iraq escalation, the feckless Rice feebly tried to assuage the […]

While a fierce battle over President Bush's "new way forward" in Iraq is being joined in the halls of Congress, an even more ferocious war of words is taking place to win the hearts and minds of the American people. Among Democrats, Republicans and the media at large, a rhetorical conflict to control the marketing […]

As 2006 comes to a close, the Top 10 GOP Sound Bites chart has been turned upside down. In the wake of the Republicans' midterm election nightmare and the battering of the Iraq Study Group report, a bevy of GOP favorites have fallen off the list. Nowhere is the shake-up more evident than in the […]

Back in November, BlueOregon highlighted the key role played by Oregon's Gordon Smith in restoring Trent Lott to the Republican leadership in the Senate. Now, the December 18th issue of the New Republic offers the rich backstory on Smith's indispensable help in resurrecting the disgraced Lott at the expense of the milquetoast Tennessee Senator Lamar […]

In its December 18th issue, the New Republic offers a window into the soul of Kansas Republican Senator and 2008 White House hopeful Sam Brownback. Tracing Brownback's dual conversions from small government Gingrich acolyte to red meat culture warrior and from devout evangelical to Catholic firebrand, TNR ponders his presidential prospects. But Brownback's' new found […]

The holiday season frequently features both selfless charity and empty gestures. For Barbara and George H.W. Bush, 2006 proved no exception. Appearing on ABC's This Week on Christmas Eve, the President's parents recalled their work over the past week ringing the bell for the Salvation Army in Houston. Calling it "the Lord's work," Bush the […]