[Updated below, 5:25pm] The Pew Research Center released some fascinating new findings Thursday on voter opinions about the 2012 field. (Short take: they’re not terribly psyched). I’ll have more to say later on the question of whether voters are willing to vote for a Mormon. But data on two other candidate traits jumped off the page [...]
The bond-rating service Moody’s has threatened to dim its outlook for U.S. Treasury bonds if the debt-limit showdown between the White House and Congressional Republicans drags on. Although Moody’s fully expected political wrangling prior to an increase in the statutory debt limit, the degree of entrenchment into conflicting positions has exceeded expectations. The heightened polarization [...]
The Minnesota congresswoman smacks T-Paw as a health care squish. This type of thing will provide an entertaining GOP primary subplot, as the two Minnesotans vie for conservative Iowa voters in a battle that could make or break Pawlenty’s candidacy. Bachmann will have the luxury of being a theatrical firebrand, whereas Pawlenty needs to make [...]
When Newt Gingrich announced his presidential campaign, he presented himself on YouTube as the optimistic care bear of conservatism, bathed in soft focus and speaking with a forced smile over synthesized strings. The effect was to distance candidate Gingrich from his reputation as a surly, divisive and quixotic lawmaker in the 1990s. When Tim Pawlenty [...]
Oh, well. Despite the efforts of Tea Party senator Rand Paul of Kentucky–and me!–the FAA just imposed civil penalties of up to $11,000 for bozos who point lasers at airplanes. I still think we should spend more time figuring out how to regulate complex industries like finance and nuclear energy to avoid national calamities, and [...]
Sarah Palin says she’s not (yet) running for President. But her week long “learning” bus tour of historical sites just happens to end in the politically important first primary state of New Hampshire where she just happens to be holding her only “event” of the trip – a clambake. And, by the way, she has [...]
In the latest issue of the New Yorker, Sy Hersh has a long story on what he says is a discrepancy between the intelligence community’s most recent estimate of Iran’s nuclear goals and the Obama administration’s assessment of and reaction to Iran’s intentions. The central argument of the story is:
Looking a little tired, but still standing tall on the center stage of Texas politics, Governor Rick Perry was triumphant at an Austin press conference Monday. He got most of what he wanted and then some from the regular state legislative session that ended this weekend, and perceived dissatisfaction with the prospective GOP presidential field [...]
–What President Obama reportedly told House Republicans when they complained that Democrats’ rhetoric on Medicare was hyperbolic.
Mitt Romney’s presidential announcement Thursday in New Hampshire will opportunistically hit on economic themes. This estimate of minuscule job gains for May should scare President Obama’s economic and political teams. The official report will be out Friday. Jim Tankersley doesn’t think a soft patch necessarily means it’s time to panic. Florida GOP Senate candidate Mike Haridopolis’ contortions on RyanCare [...]
