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The debt-limit debate is fascinating on many levels. It’s a big deal because a default by the U.S. government would create an unthinkable mess. It’s also a window into the Republican Party’s continuing efforts to defy reality, as it tries to convince itself that a default wouldn’t really matter, as well as President Obama’s difficulties [...]
“Truth” is the theme of Tim Pawlenty’s campaign kickoff this week, and while much of his message isn’t taboo shattering–the former Minnesota governor’s warnings about the debt and so-far-vague talk of reforming entitlements aren’t particularly audacious–his challenge to the politically sacrosanct $7 billiion in annual federal subsidies for ethanol production was a surprise.
Despite some extremely flawed and misleading reporting in the past week (Politico headline: “Paul Ryan Gets Boost From Catholic Bishops), no, New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan is not delighted by the House GOP’s budget. Nor has Dolan–the head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops–”clearly dispute[d] one of the chief rallying cries against the budget: That [...]
The GOP majority in the House is poised to move ahead with a vote on a no-strings-attached $2.4 trillion increase of the federal borrowing limit next week. Treasury Department officials have been warning Congress for months that the government is coming dangerously close to scraping up against the debt ceiling, risking market catastrophe or even [...]
Crack photographic analysis reveals how Newt (probably) spent some of that $500,000.
Convinced that the world was coming to an end on May 21, my wife and I decided to spend our last days–before being engulfed in the eternal fire–in Italy last week. Imagine my disappointment that the Lord’s smite schedule was out of whack (except, horrifically, in Joplin, Missouri), and I had to go ahead and [...]
–Republican House candidate Jane Corwin, responding to a question about what she would do differently if she could start the campaign to represent New York’s 26th district over again.
The state of the “special relationship” upon Obama’s arrival in Britain. House GOPers had ample warnings about the political pitfalls of the Ryan plan. Boehner’s need for credibility with his base likely pushed it ahead. Jon Chait thinks Tuesday’s NY-26 special election is a sign that Republicans are back to sharing responsibility for the sluggish economy.
The blizzard of attack ads, the waves of outside money and the phalanx of national operatives and press descending on New York’s 26th district all attest to the fact that Tuesday’s special election has taken on special meaning. Political agnostics exposed only to the campaign commercials would be forgiven for assuming the race pitted Nancy [...]
