Does Dr. Ben Carson even remember Samuel Pierce? The late attorney held the job Carson has been nominated for–Secretary of Housing and Urban Development–during the Reagan administration. He was the sole African-American member of the Reagan cabinet–as Carson will almost assuredly be during the Trump administration–and, well, let’s just say it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing: […]
D.R. Tucker
D. R. Tucker is a Massachusetts-based journalist who has served as the weekend contributor for the Washington Monthly since May 2014. He has also written for the Huffington Post, the Washington Spectator, the Metrowest Daily News, investigative journalist Brad Friedman's Brad Blog and environmental journalist Peter Sinclair's Climate Crocks.
Posted inPolitical Animal
What It Means to Miss New Orleans (Updated)
Well, here’s one more result that isn’t surprising, but certainly disappointing, considering the implications: John N. Kennedy of Louisiana has prevailed in the final U.S. Senate contest of 2016, beating out Democrat Foster Campbell for the seat being vacated by David Vitter (R). Shortly after the polls closed, the Associated Press projected Kennedy the winner. […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Moving Backwards
Did anyone seriously think Donald Trump would change his mind on climate change? Apparently, former Vice President Al Gore’s highly publicized efforts to convince the Addams, er, Trump family to give efforts to reduce CO2 their due were for naught, as the apparent President-elect went ahead with plans to hand the Environmental Protection Agency and […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Governing Principles
November 7, 2017 will give us the clearest indication yet of whether the Democratic Party has its groove back. If the party wins the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial elections, it will demonstrate that Democrats still have plenty of fight left in them. Remember how the mainstream media hyped the Republican victories in those two […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Political Hacks
All of a sudden, Jill Stein doesn’t look like such a nutjob now, eh? The CIA has concluded in a secret assessment that Russia intervened in the 2016 election to help Donald Trump win the presidency, rather than just to undermine confidence in the U.S. electoral system, according to officials briefed on the matter. Intelligence […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
From All Class to Jackass
The psychological shock progressives felt on November 8 will be minor compared to the shock they will feel on January 20. Not since Bill Clinton turned the White House over to George W. Bush has their been such a disparity in terms of decency and dignity between an outgoing and incoming President. They may play […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
No Mercy
Like Salon’s Heather Digby Parton, I can’t quite understand why any Democrat in his or her right mind would agree to work with Donald Trump on anything that would make the 45th President look good: From my perspective it’s too early to know how to react to this freakish psychopath beyond trying to remain as […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
A Silent Scream at Standing Rock
Stop being surprised by how little coverage the Dakota Access Pipeline protests are receiving in US broadcast and cable media. As I noted last month, were it not for Lawrence O’Donnell and Joy Reid of MSNBC, the efforts by the self-described “water protectors” of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to prevent Energy Transfer Partners–the parent […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Check on It
Good on 2012 and 2016 Green Party candidate Jill Stein for trying to confirm the outcome of the 2016 Presidential election. (Stein was interviewed about her effort by investigative journalist Brad Friedman on Thanksgiving Eve.) You can never be too sure, especially these days: An election recount will take place soon in Wisconsin, after former […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Sorry, Charlie: The Fiction of “Moderate Republicanism”
One week prior to the 2016 election, I observed that regardless of whether Donald Trump won or lost, “Elected officials who have positioned themselves as ‘reasonable’ Republicans (think Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and Maine Senator Susan Collins) won’t be able to pull off that particular gambit for much longer.” In the case of the former, […]
