Over the past eight years, at a time when his party was making a comeback, when his personal popularity was increasing, when his wife was a Senator everyone expected to run for President, why, oh, why did Bill Clinton believe he needed tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions to his charitable foundation [...]

Hi, this is Danielle Ivory from the American News Project. My colleague, Lagan Sebert, and I just published a new video on the bailout and a lack of serious oversight. Today, Henry Paulson urged Congress to release the second half of the $700 billion of the bailout money. But no one seems know what banks [...]

On Wednesday, New York’s Governor David Patterson unveiled a proposed $121-billion budget for next year, which includes a barrage or 88 new or higher taxes and fees to help close a $15.4-billion gap. Among the new revenue raisers are an “I-Pod tax” on downloaded music, sales taxes on cable and satellite TV, new taxes on [...]

As Caroline Kennedy made a pilgrimage to Harlem to lunch with Rev. Al Sharpton, her rivalry with Cuomo scion Andrew, who is currently serving as New York State Attorney General until he can find a higher office, heated up. Kennedy actually answered a couple of reporters’ questions in a sidewalk press availability, after munching with [...]

I know that as a gay man I should be joining like everyone else in condemning President-elect Obama in selecting Rick Warren to give a prayer at the inaugeration since he vigorously supported Prop 8 which banned same sex marriage in California, but I’m not. I don’t agree with Warren’s views on this of course, [...]

Just when you thought maybe the molten lava of Prop 8 protest backwash had cooled to street steam and legal challenges, BOOM! Barack Obama, of all people, rolls a great big grenade under the door of the gay community. If you haven’t heard the yelling the last 24 hours after the announcement that controversial, pro-8 [...]

“Be it BMW, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, Mitsubishi or Hyundai, the South has become a sanctuary for foreign assembly plants, for which Southern states have been paying subsidies.” – Pat Buchanan on the “Toyota Republicans” Here’s some more perspective… The $14 billion loan to the Big Three that Republican senators filibustered to death is just [...]

Looks like the Obama team is dismissing the number, as well as even lower numbers. And I know that this news will make Keynesians like Krugman and Reich extremely nervous. From CNN: Some outside economists have pushed the trillion-dollar figure. One recent report suggested the transition team was working with an $850 billion plan. But [...]

On its face, the Warren pick seems like a slap in the face to the progressive gay movement, and I can understand why this group would be incensed. Here you have the first African-American President inviting one of the most high profile supporters of Prop 8 to speak at the inauguration. And it’s not like [...]

Looks like it’s a little bit longer than the 16 months Obama talked about during the primaries, but as long as the plan is to get out during his first term I bet he’ll allow the generals more time to execute a plan they think is realistic. From NY Times: The plan was proposed by [...]

Of all the news that could come out of the White House regarding aid to the Big Three automakers, this is perhaps the most encouraging: WASHINGTON — The White House said on Thursday that an “orderly” bankruptcy was one option being considered to try to rescue General Motors and Chrysler, which are seeking billions of [...]

This isn’t going to make gay rights activists happy. Barack Obama has selected evangelical pastor Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. Once again, Obama seems more interested in reaching out rather than reaching inwards towards his base. While Warren is not of the fire-and-brimstone mold, he did play a prominent role in [...]

I have an op-ed in US News & World about Joe Biden’s role in Obama’s “cabinet of rivals.” I proferred that there are three basic models for veeps:  the pitbull, the loyalist, and the confidant. Spiro Agnew was the classic pitbull.  His primary role in the administration was to tar the Democrats and the media [...]

Caroline Kennedy Meets With Syracuse Mayor Matt Driscoll My lady of Camelot, I know I speak for all respectable persons residing in the outer provinces when I say how deeply shocked we are by the offensive manner in which your ladyship was received by that pack of louts who badgered you with impertinent questions during [...]

Hello Donklephants! I’m Mark, and I regularly blog at (and run) the site Publius Endures. Ostensibly I self-identify as a libertarian, although I’m not terribly dogmatic and tend not to write much on the more common libertarian themes, focusing instead on taking a sober look at the relationships between interest groups (which I define broadly) [...]

The New York media is starting to ask the elusive Senate-wannabe questions: SYRACUSE — In a carefully controlled strategy reminiscent of the vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin, aides to Caroline Kennedy interrupted her on Wednesday and whisked her away when she was asked what her qualifications are to be a United States senator. In her first [...]

“Hell no, I won’t go” was Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s answer to calls by Barack Obama, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn, Senator Dick Durbin, the Illinois State Legislature, various Madigans, and almost everyone else who lives in Illinois that he resign. Instead, Blago hired a hot-shot criminal lawyer who told the legislators convening in Springfield to [...]

Looks like the folks at Goldman Sachs will get those hefty bonuses after all. Still think paying taxes isn’t patriotic? From Bloomberg: Dec. 16 (Bloomberg) — Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which got $10 billion and debt guarantees from the U.S. government in October, expects to pay $14 million in taxes worldwide for 2008 compared with [...]

We have a saying here in Texas: it’s an ill wind that don’t blow nobody no good. In the current recession, good is blowing towards businesses that are positioned to absorb the shifting spending habits of consumers. Businesses like General Mills and ConAgra Foods which both posted higher than expected profits. ConAgra, which makes Banquet [...]