Terence Samuel

There is a working Democratic assumption that Democrats are on the verge of something big, that come November the American people are going to want — and will produce — a sweeping change in the makeup of the national government. Needless to say, there is a lot in the historical record and the current political […]

So it looks like Brownie was doing a heck of a job after all. The release of videos showing that former FEMA chief Michael Brown knew Katrina was going to be a beast, and that he told everyone he could, makes it a little easier to understand why he was so pissed off last fall […]

I knew Republicans were scared about the November midterms, but it was not until the theatrical uproar over the Dubai Ports World deal that it became clear exactly how scared they are, and how much they feel a need to separate themselves from their president. The “Hell No” letter to the president by North Carolina […]

Anger management consultant Ken Mehlman, who moonlights as chairman of the Republican National Committee, was in Southeastern Pennsylvania Wednesday talking about how frustrated some African Americans with being taken for granted by Democrats, and how much Hispanics wanted the country to deal with immigration issue. He hung out at Lincoln University, the historically black university […]

George Bush in so much trouble with the American people that he looks to be almost politically dead. Approval ratings hover around 40 percent, which is the near-equivalent of political brain death. And even in a White House full of people who do not read polls, those numbers must make it difficult to get up […]

If Republicans want to keep control of the Senate, they can’t lose Missouri. Yes, it’s a swing state, and a legendary bellwether, and all that, but this is the kind of race they should be winning comfortably. Jim Talent is a well-liked incumbent, conservative senator with whiffs of moderation — as well as a seasoned […]

In a couple of weeks, Congress will reconvene, and for the second time in 27 years, Bob Matsui will not be among the returning members of the House. Matsui died last year on New Year’s Day just as Congress was getting ready to deal with a re-elected Bush administration, touting its newly acquired political capital. […]

The Bush Administration finds itself in a very odd place–under and sinking fast–and for them, the dislocation must be staggering. And while it is interesting to watch as the White House unveils its new candor campaign in trying to right itself, that effort may be the definition of ‘too little, too late.’ All you have […]

The holidays are coming, people are not broke and they are feeling pretty good about themselves, and that for the moment may have arrested George W. Bush’s downward spiral in the polls. It’ll be interesting to see how Democrats react to that piece of good news for the White House. In fact, the Democrats have […]

The big question is, “Why is Michael Scanlon smiling?” There was something uncomfortably incongruous about having a man who had just pleaded guilty to a count of what amounts to public corruption come out of the courthouse smiling as if he had just switched his car insurance to Geico. And it is even harder to […]