The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: THE PERSONNEL DELUSION. Once again we’re hearing the refrain: The grownups are coming! Bush is bringing some reasonable voices on board his national security team, and policy will be better for it. Matt‘s skeptical about just how salutary these recent personnel changes are — and he’s even more skeptical about […]

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: ACT OF DESPERATION: Senior correspondent Sarah Wildman reports from Spain that the Basque separatist group ETA’s decision to bomb a Madrid airport in late December won’t advance the group’s political goals. On the contrary — the bombing even alienated those ETA intends to �help�: Basques who want full independence from […]

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: BEYOND PAYGO. Bob Kuttner tells Democrats to get serious about repealing Bush‘s tax cuts and pushing for a progressive tax system: It is virtuous of the Democrats to resurrect pay-as-you-go, but it’s a little like closing the barn door after the horse escaped. In this case, the horse got away […]

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: WAR IS BEAUTIFUL. Life is Beautiful auteur Roberto Benigni has a new, heartwarming movie, this one set in Iraq. Noy Thrupkaew says it’s “repulsive.” –The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: STAR WARS. Last fall, to little fanfare, the Bush administration released the new U.S. space policy (the first such updating in nearly a decade). As Christopher Moraff reports, the administration’s militarism and unilateralism are little different applied to space than they are down on Earth. –The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: DRAWING THE LINE. Eric Rauchway efficiently reviews Thomas Pynchon‘s new 1,000-page novel, Against the Day, in less than 1,000 words. –The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: SALA’S CHOICE. Harold explains why Nancy Pelosi‘s ascendance represents a revival of the legacy of Phil and Sala Burton. –The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: IN THE BORDERLANDS. Jason Motlagh lays out the historical context for the sanctuary and support given to Taliban and al-Qaeda militants in the semi-autonomous Afghan-Pakistani border regions. –The Editors

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: RUDY CAN FAIL. Today, Bossman-at-Large Mike Tomasky inaugurates a “most Wednesdays” web column for TAP Online with a piece laying out the southern problem that Rudy Giuliani will face in his quest for the GOP presidential nomination. Mike includes a suggested attack ad against Rudy for a Republican opponent, free […]

JUST POSTED ON TAP ONLINE: KEEP IT CLEAN. The president has said he’s willing to “work together” with the new Congress to pass a minimum wage hike; he just wants a bunch of new business tax cuts larded onto it. EPI’s Larry Mishel and Jared Bernstein explain why, substantively, that’s a dumb idea. –The Editors