Those many Republicans banking on public inattention to the sordid tales of GOP corruption may not want to pick up today’s Post anytime soon — Sex has entered the equation. “Federal authorities are investigating allegations that a California defense contractor arranged for a Washington area limousine company to provide prostitutes to convicted former congressman Randy ‘Duke’ Cunningham (R-Calif.) and possibly other lawmakers, sources familiar with the probe said yesterday.” Uh, oh…DC just loves a good sex scandal, right, guys? Update: The limousine firm in question denies the allegations.
Tag: Election 2006
Ney to Pay.
In related news, federal authorities expand their probe into Casino Jack flunky and former House GOP higher-up Bob Ney. “Court papers filed in recent months show that prosecutors have lined up at least four cooperating witnesses against the Ohio congressman: Abramoff, former congressional aides Michael Scanlon and Tony C. Rudy, and businessman Adam Kidan. All have pleaded guilty to various conspiracy, fraud or public corruption charges.”
A Rodham by any other name.
“Including Hillary Clinton’s maiden name increased her approval rating among Republicans polled to 23 percent. “Hillary Clinton” had a 16 percent approval rating among people who identified themselves as Republican.” What’s in a name? For Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, seven points.
Bleeding Turnip (Day.)
“Up until now, you have probably thought that when you saw Democrats dumping their traditional principles in order to run pallid, market-tested campaigns appealing to swing voters with rhetoric borrowed from the G.O.P., they were doing so because they had been listening to consultants, pollsters, focus groups and so on. Well — according to Mr. Klein, you have it precisely backwards. In Joe’s world, the consultants and the pollsters and even the money are all on the other side, forever driving the cowardly politicians to the partisan extremes. Consultants on the Democratic side seem always to turn out to be liberals in Mr. Klein’s telling, and liberalism itself is usually the sad result of a candidate listening to consultants.” By way of Ted at The Late Adopter, Thomas Frank of What’s the Matter with Kansas? eviscerates Joe Klein’s new book Politics Lost. I liked the TIME excerpt decently enough, but Frank pretty much takes the book apart here.
House for Sale: New Wallpaper, Same Rotting Foundation.
After a deal is reached with irate Republicans on the House Appropriations committee (who were piqued by a rather tame anti-earmarking measure that has since been broadened beyond appropriations bills), the House GOP pass a cosmetic “lobbying reform” bill 216-207 that emphasizes disclosure of donations, gifts, and earmarks rather than outright bans. “A solid phalanx of Democrats and 12 Republicans, including House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (Wis.) and Republicans pushing for stronger measures, cast votes against the legislation…Rep. Christopher Shays (Conn.) said the bill was less than a window dressing and should be rejected. Later, to reporters, he called the bill ‘pathetic.’ On the House floor, he added: ‘We’re losing our moral authority to lead this place.’“
Two out of Three Ain’t Bad.
Further dispatches from the GOP freefall: As the Republican Congress desperately tries to look busy, that bastion of the liberal media FOX News puts Dubya’s approval rating at a new low — 33%.
Batten down the hatches.
“One of Bolten’s biggest challenges, administration allies say, will be to find ways to open up the Oval Office to new ideas and to the opinions of people who are not longtime Bush confidants. On that score, many people who know the administration best are privately dubious.” The WP ponders the Dubya White House’s “shift into survival mode.”
Small-R Republic.
“What the Democrats still don’t have is a philosophy, a big idea that unites their proposals and converts them from a hodgepodge of narrow and specific fixes into a vision for society. Indeed, the party and the constellation of interests around it don’t even think in philosophical terms and haven’t for quite some time. There’s a reason for this: They’ve all been trained to believe — by the media, by their pollsters — that their philosophy is an electoral loser. Like the dogs in the famous “learned helplessness” psychological experiments of the 1960s — the dogs were administered electrical shocks from which they could escape, but from which, after a while, they didn’t even try to, instead crouching in the corner in resignation and fear — the Democrats have given up attempting big ideas. Any effort at doing so, they’re convinced, will result in electrical (and electoral) shock.“
By way of The Late Adopter (whom y’all really should be reading), The American Prospect‘s Michael Tomasky makes the case for a Democratic turn towards small-r republicanism and a renewed embrace of the common good. This is the closest article I’ve seen in some time to my own thoughts on where the Dems need to go these days (and in fact sounds a lot like a side-project I’ve been working on in my spare time, which I’ll share with y’all more as it progresses.) “The task before today’s Democratic Party isn’t just to eke out electoral victories; it’s to govern, and to change our course in profound ways. I’d like to think they can do it. But the Democrats must become republicans first.“
Beam me Out, Scotty.
I dannae if the ship of state could take any more…As suspected, the continuing White House shakeup claims another victim in press secretary Scott McClellan. (Text of statement.) Also, Rove got reassigned from policy to politics, but that sounds like more of a cosmetic switch than anything else.
Breaking News: Rain is wet.
Sit down before you read this one, folks. In the well-duh dept., the Post front-pages the following story today: “Anger at Bush May Hurt GOP at Polls.” Really? Who woulda thunk it? Next you’ll be telling me that Santorum might be going down too.