Clinton 2.0

I interviewed Hillary Clinton yesterday for a story that appears in the latest issue of TIME (fuller transcript here). Two things stood out to me. First, that Senator Clinton has distanced herself significantly from her husband on the issue of free trade. Here, for instance, is what she had to say about NAFTA, one of Bill Clinton’s …

In the Arena In the Arena

Why People Love Petraeus

I just heard that General Petraeus has asked the very well respected Colonel H.R. McMaster to be part of his Iraq team. McMaster wrote a terrific book about Vietnam and successfully attempted to use counterinsurgency tactics in Tal Afar last year (although as with Petraeus in Mosul, the success diminished after McMaster’s team left). …

In the Arena In the Arena

General Casey Suggests

I was airborne this morning and missed the first part of General George Casey’s testimony before the Armed Services Committee, but apparently John McCain gave Casey a tough time.

I know there’s belated sympathy for Casey. He’s obviously uncomfortable with Bush’s new strategy in Iraq. But that doesn’t mean Casey wasn’t an utter failure …

The Comedian and the Momma’s Boy

There was much less dish in the afternoon’s testimony, and lots of the same kind of niggling that has made the defense so unpopular with the audience. A significant portion of the cross examination today dealt with whether it might be POSSIBLE that Matt Cooper meant to type an “n” when he really typed an “r”… and thus, could it be …

In the Arena In the Arena

Hell Freezes Over

Eric Alterman at war with the teachers unions! I’ve long believed that the NEA and AFT were harmful to children, as functionally reactionary as Southern suburban Republican legislators–in fact, I’m sure Alterman has criticized me about my anti-teachers-union harangues at some point or other (before his own kids started going to public …

In the Arena In the Arena

Speaking of Edwards

There’s this from the estimable Roger Simon at Politico. I always thought Edwards’ nicey-niceness was gaggingly dreadful in 2004. He did John Kerry no favors by refusing to dispute him on the issues in the primaries. It’s good he’s speaking his mind now. Especially when he takes these positions with Simon:

To reduce carbon emissions,

Everyone Hates Chris

Jurors on the Libby trial are learning many things about the inner workings of unofficial Washington. Just today they were told that “There are a lot of bureaus in Washington” (from Judy Miller’s testimony on intial confusion about where Valerie Plame worked) and that the Chevy Chase Club doesn’t allow cell phones or Blackberries on its …

re: Oh Dear

I agree with the “Yikes” part of Joe’s reaction to Biden’s Obama remark. But I’m not sure about “Adios”. It will depend on how Biden explains himself, how Obama reacts and whether there’s an uproar. Suddenly being a second-tier candidate is a good thing for Biden.

I disagree with Joe about the seriousness of Biden’s Iraq plan. Of course …

Biden in ’08: Because Iraq Matters

It only seems as if Joe Biden has declared himself a candidate for President a half dozen times already. But now it’s official. He’s all the way in — no exploratory committee for him! — and he’s got the requisite web site at joebiden.comup and running and accepting donations.

In a Democratic field that includes Hillary Clinton, Barack …

In the Arena In the Arena

Oh Dear

There’s been a lot of comment on the web about Joe Biden’s ritual self-immolation in the New York Observer regarding Barack Obama:

“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

Clean? To which I say: Yikes and adios.
But …

Miller Time

On the stand yesterday at the Libby trial, Judith Miller was “disarmingly (though shy of charmingly) self-deprecating,” according to Ana. See her story here.

In the Arena In the Arena

Bayh for Vice President–or Kerrey?

This is an interesting idea–Evan Bayh would make a terrific vice president for Hillary, and the idea of announcing it early has some real merit. But then, of course, Barack Obama–or John Edwards–could respond by naming Bob Kerrey as their vice presidential pick. (At least one campaign, I can report, is thinking about doing just that.)

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