June 2008

The Meltdown Lowdown (No. 11)
Airline CEOs have some odd ideas about customer service, Exxon gets a break from the Supreme Court, and many middle aged families have very little savings.
June 27, 2008 | By Dean Baker | web only

Does the Housing Bubble Have to Pop?
Congress is currently debating the Dodd-Frank bill, which would provide relief for struggling homeowners. But does the bill offer the most efficient solution to the housing crisis?
June 27, 2008 | By Dean Baker and Robert Kuttner | web only

The Celeb Factor in Politics
Hollywood and Washington have always had a lot of connections, but, this election cycle, the nature of celebrity involvement in politics has really changed.
June 27, 2008 | By Courtney E. Martin | web only

The Torture Taint
Even as they worked out the details of how interrogation techniques widely regarded as torture would be used on detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Pentagon officials sought to keep the blood off Defense Department hands.
June 26, 2008 | By Brian Beutler | web only

Democrats Capitulate on FISA
Democrats are trying to rationalize capitulating on surveillance and telecom immunity in the new FISA bill by calling it a compromise. It isn't.
June 25, 2008 | By Julian Sanchez | web only

The FundamentaList (No. 39)
Latino evangelicals may play a decisive role in future elections, Dobson says Obama has a "fruitcake" interpretation of the Constitution, and culture wars continue in Texas.
June 25, 2008 | By Sarah Posner | web only

Talking to Iran Is Not So Controversial
Don't look now but there is a broad consensus on what the next administration should do about Iran.
June 25, 2008 | By Ilan Goldenberg | web only

Smearing Michelle
Frustrated by their inability to successfully call Barack Obama's character into question, his opponents have seized on the next best option -- attacking his wife.
June 24, 2008 | By Paul Waldman | web only

Larry Johnson's Strange Trip
How a onetime hero of the liberal blogosphere and the Democratic Party spread perhaps the most damaging anti-Obama smear of the primary.
June 24, 2008 | By David Weigel | web only

Dodd and the Democrats' Countrywide Problem
The news that Sen. Dodd received a preferential mortgage deal comes right as the Senate gears up to debate a new bill that would bring relief to borrowers.
June 23, 2008 | By Terence Samuel | web only

When Love Meets Racism
Lincoln Center's rapturous new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific" is a reminder of liberal moral pluck on issues of race and the simplicity of a bygone era's emotions.
June 20, 2008 | By Harold Meyerson | web only

Corzine's Choice
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine is facing one of the nation's worst budget crunches. Can a man who was elected to clean up a state's financial crisis also enact progressive policies?
June 20, 2008 | By Kate Sheppard | web only

A New Legal Challenge to Israeli Settlements
In a pioneering court case, Israeli human rights activists are asking the Supreme Court to grant an order to demolish homes being built on Palestinian land in the West Bank.
June 19, 2008 | By Gershom Gorenberg | web only

The Meltdown Lowdown
(No. 10)
A Chinese central banker makes some very odd complaints, Wall Street bankers got bonuses for profits that we now know were bogus, and McCain doesn't understand what cap-and-trade means.
June 19, 2008 | By Dean Baker | web only

"If the Detainee Dies, You're Doing it Wrong"
We have known for a long time that Donald Rumsfeld approved the use of 15 torture techniques in 2002, but a new congressional hearing exposes the depth of opposition he faced from the military.
June 18, 2008 | By Brian Beutler | web only

Will This Man Fix American Health Care?
Can Max Baucus and the Senate Finance Committee finally reform health care? Monday's "Prepare for Launch" event was their attempt to convince us to let them try.
June 18, 2008 | By Ezra Klein | web only

The FundamentaList
(No. 38)
The Southern Baptist Convention returns to politics, Obama secretly meets with evangelical leaders, and why Huckabee is a threat to the Southern Baptists.
June 18, 2008 | By Sarah Posner | web only

Feminist Groups Prepare to Back Obama
Are angry feminists defecting en masse to the McCain campaign? Far from it. Behind the scenes, many women's organizations are preparing to fight for an Obama victory in November.
June 17, 2008 | By Dana Goldstein | web only

McCain's Desperate Debate Gambit
John McCain knows his campaign is in trouble, and so he's trying to pressure Barack Obama into a long series of town hall meetings. But speeches are the real way the president appeals to the public.
June 17, 2008 | By Paul Waldman | web only

Bush's Misplaced Regrets
George Bush says he regrets that his rhetoric did not make him sound like a "man of peace." But his actions, not his rhetoric are what destroyed his party and his legacy.
June 16, 2008 | By Terence Samuel | web only

Beyond Boumediene
The Supreme Court's decision in the most recent enemy combatant case was a reminder that Roe v. Wade is far from the only area of law in which treasured constitutional protections are hanging by a thread.
June 16, 2008 | By Scott Lemieux | web only

The Friendship Offensive
Peace activists on Capitol Hill hope to stave off war with Iran through cross-cultural contact between ordinary citizens. Leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus show their support.
June 13, 2008 | By Brian Beutler | web only

The Meltdown Lowdown
(No. 9)
The average homeowner owes more and more, why renters are the ones accumulating wealth, and why we shouldn't want a strong dollar.
June 12, 2008 | By Dean Baker | web only

Wrecking the L.A. Times
Sam Zell is doing his best to wreck The Los Angeles Times. Newspapers' problems can't be fixed by indiscriminate cuts or measuring reporters' output by the number of column inches they produce.
June 12, 2008 | By Harold Meyerson | web only

The FundamentaList
(No. 37)
McCain's problems with evangelicals are exaggerated but real, polls show Obama could win the votes of some moderate evangelicals, and a prominent evangelical defends Hagee.
June 11, 2008 | By Sarah Posner | web only

The Soft Art
Obama's defining political skill may prove to be his ability to parry attacks and turn them to his advantage. It kept his campaign moving forward and upward when others would have found themselves unable to go on.
June 10, 2008 | By Paul Waldman | web only

In Iran, Things Can Always Get Worse
American neoconservatives have consistently downplayed differences among Iranian leaders and, as a consequence, ignored the impact their own words have on Iranian politics.
June 10, 2008 | By Justin Logan | web only

Dear Hillary: A Letter from an Obama Feminist
Even though I didn't vote for you, I want to thank you for your path-breaking campaign. You changed the landscape of politics and gender.
June 9, 2008 | By Courtney E. Martin | web only

Did Road to Unity Begin in Virginia?
Before sneaking off to a secret meeting with Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama spoke kindly about Hillary Clinton at a rally in Virginia. His supporters weren't so nice.
June 6, 2008 | By Thomas F. Schaller | web only

The Spectre of '68
The last candidate to lead a seemingly unstoppable movement for racial and economic justice was Bobby Kennedy. Obama has the potential to carry on Kennedy's legacy and build a progressive majority.
June 6, 2008 | By Terence Samuel | web only

Patching Up the Democrats
Forty years ago two good Democrats divided the Democratic Party. Supporters of each candidate lost perspective and the resulting tensions hurt the party. But this year, unlike 1968, Democrats have a chance at reconciliation.
June 6, 2008 | By Harold Meyerson | web only

Seven Ways Hillary Clinton Changed Our Politics
How did Hillary Clinton affect the 2008 Election, and progressive politics, over the course of the primary?
June 6, 2008 | By K.A. Geier | web only

The Public Transit Paradox
At the very time we need public transit most, its funding is being cut across the country. This is crazy. As gas prices rise, transit should become a central priority in infrastructure spending.
June 5, 2008 | By Robert B. Reich | web only

Tough Like Tzipi
As Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni prepares her run for prime minister while Hillary Clinton ends her run for president, the question becomes: How tough must a female candidate be?
June 5, 2008 | By Gershom Gorenberg | web only

Bill Clinton's Party of One
Bill Clinton may be a remarkable political talent, but his genius is defensive, and that has not translated well into helping other Democrats win elections.
June 5, 2008 | By Ezra Klein | web only

Three Fixes For Our Lobbyist Problem
Forget money, lobbyists' real power comes from information. Here's three ideas that would reduce their influence on Congress and strengthen our democracy.
June 5, 2008 | By Lee Drutman | web only

The FundamentaList
(No. 36)
This Week in the Religious Right: McCain gets a warm reception from AIPAC and Ralph Reed, evangelicals may not mind McCain's rejection of Hagee, and Hagee's Jewish friends don't mind his controversial comments.
June 4, 2008 | By Sarah Posner | web only

What Hillary Did for Women
We don't have to wait to see how Hillary Clinton's campaign changed the role of women in politics. From the vice-presidential competition to punditry to Netroots activism, we're already seeing positive results.
June 4, 2008 | By Dana Goldstein | web only

Did Hillary Crack the Working-Class Code?
In the waning months of the campaign Hillary Clinton found a new and startlingly effective way to talk about the economy. She may have lost, but her novel economic argument will live on.
June 4, 2008 | By Mark Schmitt | web only

Why the Democrats' Cap-and-Trade is Far Better than McCain's
McCain's plan to combat global warming is really a giveaway to people who already pollute heavily. Clinton's and Obama's plans make everyone who wants to pollute pay equally.
June 3, 2008 | By Robert B. Reich | web only

The Anatomy of Smear
The White House response to former press secretary Scott McClellan's damning new book would be much more convincing if it weren't so familiar. The administration is following the same script it always uses when one of its own turns against it.
June 3, 2008 | By Amanda Terkel | web only

Winter Soldiers on the Hill
Veterans of the Iraq War have finally testified before Congress about the violence against civilians, torture, and lax rules of engagement. But their larger campaign -- convincing other soldiers to oppose this war -- is ongoing.
June 2, 2008 | By Aaron Glantz | web only

The Problem With Conservatism Is Conservatism
Conservatives fail to understand that replacing the government with free-market forces simply hasn't worked in practice.
June 2, 2008 | By Greg Anrig | web only

The New Look of School Integration
A bad Supreme Court decision overturning race-based integration programs in Louisville, KY, and Seattle, WA, has produced a positive result. A new initiative in Louisville does something even better for children -- it integrates them by class.
June 2, 2008 | By Richard D. Kahlenberg | web only

Not Holding Her Own
Clinton supporters on the Rules Committee break with their candidate -- a portent of what's to come if she continues her campaign.
June 1, 2008 | By Harold Meyerson | web only