US Politics
DeBlasio and the Police
I was planning on doing a post on the above topic when I came across this from The Daily Beast’s Michael Tomasky. It is so good that I’m passing it on without further comment–you should just read it. And, while ...
Read MoreCuba and the US
I have sometimes cited US-Cuban relations as an unusually pure illustration of the effects of the US presidential electoral college on policy. Cuba had been a major locus of Cold War history: the site of the US’s most embarrassing Cold ...
Read MoreTorture and Its Apologists
A notably fatuous defense of the use of torture by the Bush administration’s CIA came unsurprisingly from ex-President Bush himself, before the Senate Intelligence Committee report came out: We’re fortunate to have men and women who work hard at the ...
Read MoreJ Edgar Hoover RIP (Not)
We’ve known for a long time what a twisted, dangerous character J Edgar was, but this is incredible. The FBI building by act of Congress bears his name. A change in that name is long overdue. Somebody needs ...
Read MoreThe Radicals’ Big Win
So, the midterm elections were about as completely disastrous as could be. Progressives will try to spin the outcome with various reasonable arguments. The Republicans enjoyed significant cyclical advantages–the older and whiter midterm electorate, the traditional vulnerability of the party ...
Read MoreThe Puzzle of Obama’s Unpopularity
President Obama’s popularity, measured in opinion poll approval ratings, has been sagging badly lately, to the considerable benefit of the Republicans’ election prospects this year. Democratic candidates are almost universally avoiding identification with the president and his policies; one Senate ...
Read MoreMidterm Elections 2014
I don’t have any special insights to offer about the upcoming elections. I see no basis, other than wishful thinking, to challenge the consensus of the prognosticators that the Republicans are likely to win control of the Senate. That would ...
Read MoreVictory in New York
I didn’t say it here, but a week or so ago I was thinking (honestly, I was) that if Zephyr Teachout managed to win a quarter of the Democratic primary vote against incumbent governor Andrew Cuomo, it would be a ...
Read MoreElection Season: New York
A week from today, New York State voters will decide on the Democratic and Republican nominees for state office. Andrew Cuomo will win the Democratic primary for governor, and Rob Astorino will win the Republican. Cuomo will beat Astorino in ...
Read MoreThe Clinton Worldview
Hillary has clarified. She says that she really didn’t mean to attack President Obama’s foreign policies in that Atlantic interview last week. Maybe. But she did very clearly mean to stake out a position to the hawkish right of the ...
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