In the Arena In the Arena

The Most Powerful Man in Iraq…is Iranian?

There is so much excellent reporting in this McLatchy feature about Brigadier General Qassam Suleimani that it is hard to pick a choose the best nuggets. To my mind, there are two crucial takeaways from this piece:

1. It’s another reminder that the Iranians have as much, if covert, sway in the current ruling alliance in Iraq as we …

That Lame Party

Favorite moment: Watching Ben Affleck harangue a McCain senior staffer about the press’ overly favorable treatment of McCain, then slip seamlessly into an equally passionate rant about the press’ overly favorably treatment of Obama. “Sure, I’m gonna vote for the guy,” he said, “But they’re being way too easy on him.” Asked if he was …

In the Arena In the Arena

Re: The Coolest Party…Still Lame

Well, if Karen can–so can I. The highlight for me was hanging with three members of the cast of The Wire–Sonja Sohn (Det. Kima Griggs), Jamie Hector (Marlo Stansfield) and Isiah Whitlock Jr. (Senator Clay Davis). All three talked about how tight the cast had gotten over the years; how much more interested in politics and urban issues …

Re: The Reverend Wright

Our colleague Amy Sullivan was at Reverend Wright’s appearance this morning at the Press Club and writes about it for Time.com. Her assessment:

Maybe Barack Obama skimped on his contribution when the offering plate came past at Trinity United Church of Christ. Or perhaps he nodded off during one of Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s sermons. It’s

Re: The Coolest Party … Still Lame

Everything Michael had to say about the dinner is true, but as my family’s obsession with “The Office” has been well documented in this space, I thought I would share the highlight of my evening. Huffpost captured the moment. You can scroll down here to see it … and Swampkid #2’s birthday present.

P.S.: B.J. Novak is really, really nice.

McCain Watch Cont’d. . .

Though I would not employ the same adjectives, I just wanted to endorse Joe’s comments on the apparently shifting tone of the McCain campaign. A couple months ago, I wrote with some admiration about the “high standards” that the campaign seemed to be adopting in dealing with partisan gunslingers. As campaign manager Rick Davis wrote in …

In the Arena In the Arena

McCain Watch

So Barack Obama graciously says that Reverend Wright’s comments are a legitimate political issue and this is John McCain’s response? If this be an honorable campaign, I wonder what McCain would consider the gutter to be.

A reminder: This is Obama’s former minister. Obama has repudiated Wright’s wrongs in no uncertain terms. What McCain …

In the Arena In the Arena

The Reverend Wright

Oy.

And furthermore, I’ve been to dozens and dozens of African-American church services over the years, including the investiture of one of my friends as an AME minister two years ago, and I have very rarely, if ever, heard the kind of rants that are part of Reverend Wright’s canon. Yes, as many have pointed out, Martin Luther King Jr. …

The Coolest D.C. Party is Still Lame

I’ve been working in Washington D.C. for five years, but Saturday was my first experience with the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. A real horror show. My write-up, for Time.com, can be found here. It begins:

WASHINGTON — We are a sorry lot, us D.C. dwellers. Not sexy enough for Los Angeles, we settle for the pancake

In the Arena In the Arena

It’s a Mixed Bag, Josh

Josh Marshall wants to me to follow up on the column I wrote a few weeks ago, suggesting that John McCain would run an honorable presidential campaign–and I can only thank him for the reminder because I was thinking about posting yesterday about McCain’s cheesy nonsense about Obama being endorsed by Hamas. If McCain wants to go that …

In the Arena In the Arena

The Generals Problem

More from the New York Times today about the former generals who are doing TV analysis about the war. The Pentagon is stopping special briefings for the generals…but I don’t think that’s such a big deal. The problem isn’t the briefings–journalists get briefings all the time; sometimes there’s useful information, sometimes not.

The …

  1. 1
  2. ...
  3. 993
  4. 994
  5. 995
  6. ...
  7. 1199