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Slimes At The Times

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Feb. 21 (Opinion) - The New York Times launches its long-awaited smear of John McCain today, and the most impressive aspect of the smear is just how baseless it is. They basically emulate Page Six at the Post, but add in a rehash of a well-known scandal from twenty years ago to pad it out and make it look more impressive. In the end, they present absolutely no evidence of wrongdoing -- only innuendo denied by all of the principals:

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McCain's Michigan Edge: Democrats

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Jan. 14 (Opinion) - The Michigan primary promises to start a bloody debate among Republicans that in some quarters has already started. A new Zogby poll of likely GOP primary voters in Michigan shows John McCain with a three-point edge over Mitt Romney. The poll's internals, however, show that Romney leads among Republicans while McCain gets a boost from Democrats and independents that will skip the meaningless Democratic primary

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Did Reporters Get Born Yesterday?

Sun, 30 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Dec. 30 (Opinion) - The dumbest political controversy this week, a prize that one wins with some difficulty, comes unsurprisingly from the Boston Globe. Michael Kranish found it necessary to breathlessly report that John McCain used a proverb that is so well-known that it has probably appeared on tens of thousands of blogs before yesterday. Somehow, however, Kranish and an unnamed reporter on McCain's beat managed to turn it into a nasty personal attack on Mitt Romney:

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The Russian Conundrum

Wed, 26 Dec 2007 07:55:07 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Dec. 26 (Opinion) - Russia has begun transferring nuclear fuel to Iran for the completion of its contract for the nuclear power plant at Bushehr. The delivery marks a victory for Iran, but also a potential trap. The Russians claimed today that its delivery of fuel renders a uranium enrichment program by Iran unnecessary -- as the UN begins considering another round of sanctions for the Iranian refusal to suspend enrichment:

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The Bias In What Gets Left Out

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Dec. 23 (Opinion) - Pew Research Center issued a stinging indictment on Wednesday regarding the press coverage of Iraq this year, one that shows a subtle but clear editorial bias. The news media gave plenty of attention to the war in Iraq when they could show it as a failing enterprise, with half of all their coverage focusing on anecdotal stories of violence. When the success of General David Petraeus made even that coverage difficult, media outlets simply stopped reporting on Iraq (via Wake Up America):

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The Retraction At The Tank

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 12:07:55 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Dec. 02 (Opinion) - A couple of commenters on the latest TNR thread wonder whether we will hold National Review Online's The Tank to the same level of scrutiny as Franklin Foer and Scott Beauchamp. I had not actually heard about this controversy until I read the comments last night. Michelle Malkin covers this topic, though, and issues some rather scathing criticisms while noting the completely different approaches between TNR and NRO:

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About That Economy ....

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 10:44:46 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Nov. 29 (Opinion) - It appears that we're growing our way into a panic on the economy. It may be the first recession in history initiated by a 5% annual GDP growth rate. It won't be the first attempted by scare tactics in the run-up to an election.

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Unfortunately, This Qualifies As A Minor Democratic Scandal

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 07:56:47 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Nov. 17 (Opinion) - A nude woman fleeing a groping imposter? Lying about academic credentials in court? Owning a controlling interest in a Texas law firm without having a license to practice law? In these days of Norman Hsu and the Fujian fundraising scandals, this case may only qualify as a minor embarrassment to Hillary Clinton and Texas Democrats. Mauricio Celis got indicted on a slew of charges yesterday as I left Corpus Christi, and the fundraiser may join Hsu in the rogues' gallery for the 2008 cycle:

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Democrats Try Timetables Again

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 08:10:15 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Nov. 15 (Opinion) - Over the spring and summer, the Democrats tried putting timetables for withdrawal onto funding bills for the war in Iraq. At that time, they claimed that the war had been lost, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid explicitly declaring defeat on the floor of the Senate during the debate. In the end, they lost the battle for defeat and retreat as the Bush administration backed them into a corner, even while losses spiked in the early days of the surge.

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Pervez Gets Shakespearean

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 06:13:24 -0800

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Nov. 04 (Opinion) - Pervez Musharraf's seizure of power yesterday did not extend as far as feared, but instead falls in a legal gray area. The assemblies continue to operate and the status of press freedom remains unchanged, according to the Guardian's Ali Eteraz. However, Musharraf appears to have taken a page from Shakespeare's Richard III, and rounded up all the lawyers:

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Is The Fight Against Marijuana Worth It?

Sun, 28 Oct 2007 12:19:20 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 28 (Opinion) - The suicide of a woman who fought a painful battle against immune disease has once again brought the war on drugs to center stage. The Missoulian reports that Robin Prosser had attempted suicide three years earlier, and wound up in trouble after police discovered marijuana in her possession at that time

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The Curious Issue Between Congress And Mukasey

Sun, 28 Oct 2007 08:22:17 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 28 (Opinion) - The only issue that has tripped Mukasey, however, is whether he considers waterboarding torture. John McCain certainly does, but others disagree; the technique helped break Khalid Sheikh Muhammed, and American commandos undergo waterboarding to prepare them for more serious torture in case of capture. Mukasey has refused to specifically call waterboarding a form of torture, and therefore illegal, despite the insistence of the Senate Judiciary Committee that he do so for confirmation. And here is the core of the silliness in this standoff. Here we have Congress, as represented by the Judiciary Committee, demanding that an AG candidate declare a specific act illegal. They have it completely backwards. Congress has the responsibility to pass laws and make the determination of legality and illegality -- and the AG has the responsibility to enforce those laws.

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WaPo: Petraeus Was Right

Sun, 14 Oct 2007 09:16:58 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 14 (Opinion) - The Washington Post's editorial board noticed something over the last few weeks that many of us have pointed out all along. They discover that General David Petraeus told the truth about the improving situation in Iraq. They have also found out that hardly any news agency seems interested in reporting it:

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CLC 07: The Finale

Sun, 14 Oct 2007 08:27:33 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 14 (Opinion) - Last night, the Conservative Leadership Conference concluded with an awards banquet and yet another two excellent speakers from whom we had not heard before. The CLC created two awards for their first conference to honor those who work to advance conservative principles, named after former Reagan aide Lyn Nofziger and conservative titan Senator Barry Goldwater. Introducing the first was former Ambassador Jerry Carmen, who worked closely with Nofziger in and out of the White House. Carmen told some wonderful stories about Nofziger, how dedicated he was to Reagan, and how he always followed his own star on politics. Nofziger criticized the Reagan administration in which he served on more than one occasion, but he did so to remind people of the principles that got them into office. Former Senator Paul Laxalt gave a touching tribute on video. The CLC awarded the Nofziger to Rich Galen, former director of GOPAC and now syndicated columnist.

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The Way Primaries Work

Mon, 08 Oct 2007 09:26:14 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 08 (Opinion) - We seem to have people who still misunderstand the primary system, both in our CapQ community and in the national political movements on the Right. Over the last couple of weeks, we have had grand ultimatums from a couple of factions which have demanded a particular type of nominee, or else the faction leaders claim they will depart the Republican Party. A few commenters have asserted the same ultimatum in the comments on this blog. It shows a lack of understanding not just of the primary process but also in how to build the necessary political coalitions that result in agendas getting addressed.

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Democrats Respond On FISA

Sun, 07 Oct 2007 08:47:43 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 07 (Opinion) - The Democrats have proposed a different approach to FISA reform for its February renewal. The initiative they have floated would remove the requirement for individual warrants for foreign communication passing through American switches by granting a year-long "umbrella warrant". This is a vast improvement for the Democrats. They just need to tighten up a few aspects of the silliness, and it may serve as a good compromise that allows our national-security efforts to proceed without further interruption.

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Leahy Retreats

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 11:30:00 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 04 (Opinion) - Source: NewsTrust Yahoo Pipes Feed : Patrick Leahy has capitulated on scheduling confirmation hearings for Michael Mukasey's nomination as Attorney General. Originally, Leahy wanted to hold Mukasey hostage to his demands for internal memos from the White House. However, the Bush administration has apparently proven too...

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Christian Conservatives For Hillary

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:25:02 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Oct. 01 (Opinion) - If the Christian Right did the same by organizing a third party, they may as well write themselves off as a significant force in American politics. They have plenty of candidates to support in the primaries, including Mike Huckabee, who matches up well with their platform. If they can't get Huckabee nominated within the system, then the faction should acknowledge that the party made a different choice and support the end result of the primary process. If they cannot do that, no one in Republican politics will ever trust them, and their influence will wane substantially.

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How Petraeus Moved The Debate, Literally

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 06:25:00 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Sep. 27 (Opinion) - How far has General David Petraeus moved the debate on Iraq? His testimony on the surge, and the effects of the surge itself, has made it much more difficult for Democrats to argue for withdrawal and defeat. In fact, at last night's debate, the leading contenders for the Democratic nomination couldn't even commit to a withdrawal -- by 2013:

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Strike Three? - A bomb-sniffing dog in Ankara helped Turkish ...

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 09:26:44 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Sep. 11 (Opinion) - A bomb-sniffing dog in Ankara helped Turkish authorities stop a massive terrorist attack on the anniversary of 9/11. A van full of explosives in a parking garage would have devastated the center of the large city, and it would have served as a counterpoint to the messages released by Osama bin Laden in the past week:

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Top Democrats To Punish Florida, Michigan

Sun, 02 Sep 2007 09:41:26 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Sep. 02 (Opinion) - On Friday, three also-ran Democractic presidential candidates vowed to skip campaigning in Michigan and Florida after the DNC sanctioned the states for breaking rules on primary schedules. The impact of that pledge seemed marginal at best. It would take the top three candidates signing the pledge for it to have any effect -- and surprisingly, they have signed it:

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As If 2008 Wasn't Going To Be Tough Enough

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 00:20:01 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Aug. 28 (Opinion) - Larry Craig, the Republican Senator from Idaho, paid a visit to Minneapolis in June, and apparently wanted the full tour of the Twin Cities. He went from the airport men's room to the hoosegow by the most direct route after attempting to importune ...

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Politicizing Terror - One of the accusations commonly tossed ...

Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:25:01 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Aug. 25 (Opinion) - One of the accusations commonly tossed at the Bush administration is that they politicize the war on terror. Critics use every warning from the White House about elevated threat levels to claim that the administration wants to get some sort of political boost from the announcement. It reached its nadir when Madeline Albright and Teresa Kerry both claimed six weeks before the 2004 election (see update below) that Bush had Osama bin Laden locked up and would announce it as an October Surprise, the dumbest and least-realized political meme ever.

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The Clueless Congress

Sun, 19 Aug 2007 07:57:11 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Aug. 19 (Opinion) - This session of Congress has already made a name for itself as one of the least-accomplished in recent history. Now, even when it does accomplish something significant, it manages to botch it badly. The new FISA legislation winds up granting the executive branch powers it never requested, thanks to poorly-managed edits to the originaly language of the bill by Congress.

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Rove Hits The Road

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 09:25:04 -0700

Captain's Quarters - By Ed Morrissey - Aug. 13 (Opinion) - The Karl Rove era will come to a close at the end of this month, as George Bush's key aide has told the Wall Street Journal he will return home to spend time with his family. For any other departure, that would sound like a euphemism for "I got canned". For Rove, who has served as Bush's effigy for many of his critics, the wonder is how he managed to put up with the abuse for so long:

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