State & Local Politics

We couldn't even make it to confirmation — that first Clinton soap opera Barack Obama knew he was asking for when he nominated Hillary Clinton to be secretary of State arrived within two weeks of his announcement, just in time for Christmas.

It was a small one, as Clinton soap operas go. Hillary supporters piled on Caroline Kennedy for wanting to be appointed to Hillary's soon-to-be-vacant Senate seat. They waited a week while Caroline was playing it coy, then took it to the press and went on the record. Then Hillary made it clear she wanted it to stop. Notice the timing of when the Caroline boomlet began and when the spat ended. Read more...

It could be said that the war on Iraq was brought on by the tenacious will and determination of one man, George W. Bush, and the lack of it by many others.

Yet several have distinguished themselves as noble and fearless individuals in this season of the expedient — like Sen. Robert Byrd (D), the Gray Champion from West Virginia, who, recalling the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, opposed the invasion from the start. Another was Susan Eisenhower, who crossed party lines and abandoned her family tradition — one of the most respected in American history — to support Barack Obama. Read more...

It is funny, unsurprising and (as usual) irritating to watch Hillary Clinton supporters demean and ridicule Caroline Kennedy. I predict Sen. Clinton will soon have kind words for Caroline, since she is in the "Cabinet of rivals" of Obama and would not want to be seen supporting unfair attacks on Caroline because Caroline supported the man who named Hillary as secretary of State. But let’s be honest, these attacks are not about the Senate. If Caroline is elected and performs well, as I predict she will, Caroline Kennedy would be a very credible candidate for president in 2016, as Hillary was in 2008. Read more...

It’s true, we have no royal family. But I’m convinced most Americans want one. How else to explain the infatuation with Caroline Kennedy?

When the daughter of John F. Kennedy announced that she would seek Hillary Clinton’s New York Senate seat, the general public and the media acted as if it were hers by divine right.

Why? She’s a good person, a loving mother, a legendary fundraiser for New York schools, and she’d probably do a decent job as senator. But she’s no more qualified for the job than a whole host of other New Yorkers. In fact, she’s a lot less qualified. Read more...

Looking at the situation with Gov. Blagojevich and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., Armstrong Williams points out that so many politicians, especially a number of U.S. Representatives have been caught in scandals and maybe it's the profession that is susceptible to corruption.

It can’t be the most auspicious of Solstice turnings when in the prequel of the president-elect his friends are already starting to go to jail. And this pre-president, already compared before the start to Kennedy, Roosevelt, Lincoln and Jesus. But on this very beautiful and cold night in the White Mountains I am glad of one thing. Although a fine wordsman, he is not being compared to Robert Frost.

I’ve always had problems with Frost, especially because his house is near my house. Because of that “darkest evening of the year” thing, often illustrated on tourist novelties up here by an old Yankee riding along on a horse and sleigh through a heavy snow, with bells silenced at the edge of the forest, so as not to alert the packs of dogs, wolves and coyotes who start to get hungry starting now. Read more...

Republicans are desperate. We saw it during the campaign, when they resorted to “guilt by association,” trying to tie Barack Obama to Bill Ayers.

Now they’re at it again, trying to tie Obama to Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D). But this time, it’s so far-fetched even John McCain has told them to knock it off.

The facts are clear. Blagojevich decided on his own to try to profit from his appointment of a Senate successor to Barack Obama. While Obama himself had nothing to do with it. Read more...

It's a mad, mad world!

The not-so-subtle suggestions that the Illinois governor (for now), Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat, is an uncontrollable egomaniac who just may be stark raving mad, bipolar, harboring illusions of self-grandeur and should probably be locked up in a padded room rather than a jail cell are just a tad bit transparent. Read more...

President-elect Obama has taken to the podium now a couple of times to answer questions about his personal and his campaign’s involvement in the Illinois governor controversy.

My scorecard so far of Mr. Obama has him at some pretty high marks. While I thought he misstepped at first in not calling immediately for Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s (D) resignation, he adeptly put that issue to rest and followed up with a series of strong statements regarding the governor’s pathetic behavior as well as Obama’s involvement in the whole affair. Read more...

A recent Rasmussen poll indicates that 84 percent of the American people believe that Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) should step down. The prestigious MILLS-MIUAYG (Make-It-Up-As-You-Go) Poll reports that the dissenting 16 percent who think he should remain in office represent all the reporters and bloggers who would love nothing more than to be writing about this story for the next month.

Let's face it, worrying about Governor Rod sure beats the heck out of trying to figure out the nuances of how President-elect Obama plans to pay for his healthcare plan. Read more...