The senator points his party toward a stronger defense policy By William S. Lind A concept central to our medieval forebears’ understanding of how life works was the wheel of fortune. Whoever was on top would soon be on his way down, and whoever was humble and lowly would find himself on the way up. If [...]Continue Reading
Several Republican lawmakers believe the American citizen should be shipped off to Gitmo. Politico: Several Republican lawmakers are calling for the surviving suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings to be tried as an enemy combatant, rather than as an ordinary criminal. “It is clear the events we have seen over the past few days in [...]Continue Reading
By Dustin Hawkins The Case for a Palin Candidacy for President Democrats claim they would love for Sarah Palin to be the Republican nominee in 2016. They constantly write articles of her “irrelevancy,” and mock her and write story, after story, after story about her. Because that’s what you do with irrelevant people. Many Republicans are [...]Continue Reading
This account by the Daily Beast’s Michael Moynihan highlights the virtual libertarian takeover of CPAC this year and what it means for Rand Paul: When Rand Paul addresses those issues that divide libertarians and traditional conservatives-national security, the drug war, immigration, gay rights-he does so gingerly, framing them for the CPAC audience. Guantánamo and the [...]Continue Reading
Rand Paul made quite the statement with his epic filibuster last week. When the old guard Republicans John McCain and Lindsey Graham turned on him (not-surprisingly) it only made him that much more liked by the conservative base. The speculation was already high that Paul would be interested in running for president in 2016, and [...]Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — The eight senators meet in private several times a week, alternating between Sen. John McCain’s and Sen. Charles Schumer’s offices. They sit in arm chairs arranged in a circle and sip water or soft drinks as they debate temporary workers and border security. In a capital riven by partisanship and gridlock, they [...]Continue Reading
John McCain’s presidential campaign manager from four years ago, Steve Schmidt, has compared the upcoming Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) to the “Star Wars bar scene.” Reflecting on the dysfunctional 2008 freak show that passed for a campaign against Barack Obama, Mr. Schmidt would know. The conference’s problem, for many longtime participants, is not the [...]Continue Reading
One last question about newly confirmed Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. Why? Why for nearly two months (a Washington eternity) did this nominee above all others galvanize GOP Senate opposition? I ask the question in genuine wonderment. After all, there was John Kerry with that giant bull’s-eye on his record for giving outrageous aid and [...]Continue Reading
Former Nebraska Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel walked into the Dirksen Senate Office Building with a smile on his face at 9 a.m. on the morning of his hearing for confirmation to the post of secretary of defense. Once he was seated, though, Republican panelists on the Senate Armed Services Committee took turns wringing out the [...]Continue Reading
Just as moderates are completely unrepresented in a Democratic Party that’s dominated by liberals, movement conservatives often don’t feel represented by the Republican Party. At first glance, this seems rather odd since most Republicans in Congress are conservative. However, it’s a natural reaction to the Republican establishment that has its hands welded to many of [...]Continue Reading
“Chuck Hagel is out of the mainstream of thinking … on most issues regarding foreign policy,” says GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham. Neocon William Kristol concurs: Hagel is “out on the fringes.” But where, exactly, is the mainstream on foreign policy in 2013? Since the Bush II years, “the three amigos” — Sens. Graham, John McCain [...]Continue Reading
At his news conference Wednesday, President Barack Obama postured as the young Galahad striding out onto the schoolyard to stop a pair of bullies from beating up a girl. Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham had charged U.N. Amb. Susan Rice with misleading the nation when, five days after the Benghazi attack in which Amb. [...]Continue Reading
Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee called Wednesday for the formation of special joint select committee to investigate Benghazi, like that assembled to probe the Nixon-era Watergate scandal. Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) told reporters that the efforts of the Senate Armed Services, Intelligence, and Foreign Relations [...]Continue Reading
