Entries for January 2007

Be sure to read Jason Horowitz's account in the New York Observer of his interview with Sen. Joseph Biden. He's running for president, and he knows he doesn't have much chance to win. Which leaves him willing to say just what he thinks of the front-runners, and it's not all complimentary. Here's Horowitz's summary:

Are things moving in the right direction in the Middle East? Most Americans, I think, would say no. But perhaps they should ponder a trio of interesting columns. Two weeks ago, the military historian Edward Luttwak wrote a column in the Wall Street Journal arguing that George Bush's policies have created a Middle East much more hospitable to American goals. Here is his summation:

Here's a video of the debate last week between London Mayor KenLivingstone and Daniel Pipes, and also their seconds, Salma Yaqoob and the formidable Douglas Murray. I haven't had a chance to watch it yet but am looking forward.

In this column in the Los Angeles Times, writer Andrew Klavan ponders the question of why moviemakers aren't making movies about the war on terrorism. His conclusion is that they don't because they're uncomfortable with the notion of Americans being the good guys and people of color/residents of the virtuous Third World being the bad guys. Hey, we're "less than a lifetime from Jim Crow," so therefore how can we be the good guys?

After he was defeated for mayor of New York in 1989, Rudy Giuliani spent a lot of time at Manhattan Institute seminars. They helped to shape his thinking on issues like crime, welfare, and taxes. Now Steven Malanga of the Manhattan Institute reminds us how successful a mayor he was and how he achieved that success. Under Giuliani, crime was reduced by 64 percent and welfare dependency by a similar proportion. He took on established liberal interests, most notably the editorial writers of the New York Times, and prevailed. It is an executive record second to none. A more detailed and, I think, definitive account of Giuliani's achievements is Fred Siegel's The Prince of the City, to the latest paperback edition of which he has appended an afterword. America knows how Giuliani performed on September 11. But Republican voters who must choose who the party's nominee will be should at the very least read Malanga's article and will profit from reading Siegel's book.

Ending on a Good Note

10:08: Fox is broadcasting the audio of members talking to the president. Cliff Stearns of Florida tells him the best line was "We did not vote for failure." I'd love a transcript of this; can't take it all down fast enough. One woman member--I think it's freshman Minnesota Republican Michele Bachmann--kisses Bush. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen tells Bush that "Jeb is my constituent now." Ralph Hall, the oldest member of the House, slaps Bush on the shoulder. Bush is schmoozing in the hall with Tom Harkin, who is very cordial. Russ Feingold is very pleasant.

Immediate post-speech thoughts:

Democrats were not as hostile as I thought they might be. Part of this is a response to the ceremonial nature of the occasion, and Bush played on this ably at various points in the speech.

10:04: Bush shakes hand with Pat Leahy, who will do his best to reject his major judicial nominees.

10:02: Hails America in the last paragraph. Hits a very good note. I'd like to quote it in full.

Pajamas Media is running a weekly straw poll on the Republican and Democratic presidential nominations. You can vote for both Democrats and Republicans. The sample is obviously not representative of the general public and undoubtedly leans to the pro-Iraq war right, but the results are interesting nonetheless.