Blog: TAPPED

DISCIPLINE AND PUNISH. Say what you will about Tom DeLay, I don’t think you can get around the fact that there’s something honorable about the way — contrary to almost every relevant aspect of the American tradition and the basic structure of our political institutions — he built an effective, disciplined legislative caucus. Of course, […]

THE HAMMER DROPS. Today’s big news, besides my winning the Prospect NCAA office pool, is, of course, Tom DeLay‘s withdrawal from his re-election race and announced plan to step down from office in a matter of weeks. Former aide Tony Rudy‘s guilty plea last week — with Ed Buckham almost sure to be next on […]

THAT’S A FIRST. Not to pick on Matt Stoller, but as TNR‘s Michael Crowley notes in response to Stoller’s MyDD denunciation of Chuck Schumer as “the most extreme version of a Reagan Democrat” and a “center-right Beltway” type: “Man, tough crowd!” That’s gotta be the first time anyone’s ever referred to the former Brooklyn congressman […]

SAME OLD, SAME OLD. At the end of last week, former American Prospect intern Rob Anderson pointed to an item by Matt Stoller on MyDD and asked whether it meant that “Obama’s honeymoon with the liberal blogosphere is over.” It’s a fair question, as Barack Obama has come in for occasional criticism on various liberal […]

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW. For months, I�ve been assuming that The West Wing would conclude with Arnold Vinick, the moderate GOP California senator played by Alan Alda, taking the presidency over Jimmy Smits� Matt Santos, a Democratic Congressman from Houston. It has seemed to me all season (and, out of step with my fellow […]

HIATT TARS DEMS. Fred Hiatt‘s Washington Post column today slams the Democratic Party’s “Real Security” plan. His chief objection appears to be that it’s way too short on platitudes for his liking. Hiatt writes: The first thing you might notice is that the Democrats implicitly reject almost everything the Bush administration says about how Sept. […]

FEELING GREEN. The Center for American Progress partnered with The American Prospect this morning to host a discussion on forming and implementing policies for a post-petroleum society. The event was an offshoot of a recent Prospect special report that featured articles on several facets of the issue, from environmental health to farm subsidies to the […]

JUST POSTED ON TAP: THE TCHOTCHKE ECONOMY. Robert Kuttner explains that while electronics and other consumer goods have become more affordable, the costs of housing, college education, and health care are rising. You know what else is affordable? A subscription to The American Prospect. It�s just $19.95 for 12 issues. –The Editors

THE LIMITS OF MARKETS. Matt Singer tackles one of the under-noticed absurdities of Republican Party today as he muses over the weird conservative belief that privatization is always better. I tend to focus on the reasons that it�s BS as it relates to health care (an argument I make most fully and most recently here). […]

THE GATE IS CRASHED. I like Chris Hayes‘s argument that much of the revolutionary rule changes suggested in the netroots manifesto Crashing the Gates are rapidly emerging as conventional wisdom — moreover, I think it’s correct. Despite widespread beliefs that the base is locked in mortal combat with some sort of coherent Democratic establishment, I’ve […]