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07.25.08 -- 1:42AM // link | recommend (2)

Confessore in the Times ...

Four Spitzer administration officials violated the state's ethics law when they used the State Police last summer to gather travel documents they hoped would tarnish Joseph L. Bruno, then the State Senate majority leader, according to a report released on Thursday by the State Commission on Public Integrity.

--Josh Marshall

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07.25.08 -- 12:54AM // link | recommend (14)

An Ominous Growth

In the post immediately below I referred to Obama's audition for the role of 'head of state/commander-in-chief'. And as a potential wartime president and in the rhetorical universe we're now living in, this CINC test is inevitable and important for Obama to pass. But we should not forget how novel and in many ways pernicious the elevation of this term is.

At some points during the Republican primary campaign especially, CINC was being used almost as a synonym for president -- much as we might substitute 'chief executive' for president. And the growing use of the term in this sense is an effective barometer of the progressive militarization of our concept of the presidency and our government itself.

We see it here in its semantic form but we can observe its concrete effect in the Bush administration's claims of almost absolute presidential power well outside of war-fighting -- almost as if the president is a kind of warlord simultaneously directing the military and the civilian governments with similar fiat powers.

We need to re-familiarize ourselves with the fact that the point of the constitution's explicitly giving the president the title of commander-in-chief was not to make him into a quasi-military figure. It was precisely the opposite -- to create no doubt that the armed forces answered not to a chief of staff or senior general or even a Secretary of Defense (originally, Secretaries of War and Navy) but to a civilian elected officeholder who operates with the constrained and limited power of that world rather than the unbound authority of military command.

We've gotten the relationship seriously out of whack.

--Josh Marshall

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07.25.08 -- 12:34AM // link | recommend (7)

Long Term

After it became clear that Obama's trip through the Middle East was not only error-free but wildly successful (because of Maliki's gambit), there's been a third wave of press chatter and fretting to the effect that Obama's trip may now be too successful, that voters on the home front would rather have him stateside addressing their concerns than being feted by adoring Europeans. Joe Klein actually had a good post on this at Swampland yesterday. In the short term sense, I don't think watching Obama walk on water in Europe (or in whatever lakes or rivers they have available) will goose his poll numbers. It may even have a bit of the reverse effect. The key was banking a solid trip abroad, an audition for the head of state/commander-in-chief role, that he'll be able to refer back to (mostly implicitly, sometimes explicitly) during the tough weeks ahead in the fall.

So I don't think anyone should be surprised that his numbers aren't spiked. The reverse might even happen. But it's still a key step since fundamentally this election is about hiring Obama, and overcoming the residual doubts (about his newness, youth, funny name, whatever) that are allowing John McCain even to stay in contention.

It's not Obama v. McCain. This is about Obama, with McCain as the alternative.

--Josh Marshall

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07.25.08 -- 12:13AM // link | recommend (2)

Heartening

According to this post by Matt Stoller at OpenLeft, every major Democratic senate challenger this year (judged by very expansive criteria) supports Net Neutrality.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 10:45PM // link | recommend (2)

Lurita!

Oh, how we missed Lurita Doan! No cookies on the table. No memory loss. No private sass.

Never before had the chief of the General Services Administration drawn such attention, and maybe never again. So bad was her performance that she was one of the select few Bush Administration officials who were abruptly shown the door by the White House.

But now she returns, as a commentator for Federal News Radio (at 1050 on your AM radio dial in the District) with her very own segment, magnificently titled "Leadership Matters." Oh, indeed, it does. And who better to prove it to us than Lurita herself.

Here's one of the forehead-smacking pearls of wisdom Lurita has bestowed on us already: "A leader is not afraid to admit that something may not be going right, because everyone understands that you can never fix a problem unless you can admit that you're having one."

One marvels, but not before wondering, "Is she speaking there in the hortatory subjunctive?"

I trust our DC listeners will be tuned in for Lurita's premiere at 7:28 a.m. Tuesday, but for those who can't wait that long, we offer this reprise of Lurita's greatest hits:

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 5:57PM // link | recommend (78)

Citizens of the World

Offending phrase highlighted ...

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.

John Kennedy, Inaugural Address

Flagged by TPM Reader MA.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 5:10PM // link | recommend (13)

Today TPM, Tomorrow the World

Tomorrow's the deadline for applications for our Fall internship. If I don't say so myself, it's a good gig. Certainly a lot of hard work but TPM interns work in the core functions of our operation pretty much from day one -- researching, formatting the news section, editing video, even writing bylined posts. About half our staff is made up of former interns and other recent interns have gone on to work at the Washington Post, Huffington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Sun, Think Progress and more. For instructions on how to apply, click here.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 4:46PM // link | recommend (18)

Loaded Questions

We dug into the internals on the latest Fox News poll, and some of the questions might surprise you (or might not, since it's Fox).

Example: Have you heard any of your friends and neighbors say there is something about Barack Obama that scares them?

There's more.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 4:28PM // link | recommend (17)

Obama In Berlin

The speech:

Late Update: TPM Election Central analyzes the speech here.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 3:27PM // link | recommend (8)

Don't Hide the Fudge!

Okay, this one's just for fun. You know, John McCain's been having a rough few days on the image and message front. Had to cancel the visit to New Orleans and the Gulf Oil rig because of the recent oil spill. And here he is doing a media availability in front of a big sign that says 'Fudge Haus' which he improbably refers to as the 'Sausage Haus' ...

(Ed.note: A rapid fire TPM investigation revealed that while McCain and Sen. Lindsay Graham were standing in front of "Schmidt's Fudge Haus" there is a nearby "Sausage Haus". So possibly he and Graham went to 'Sausage Haus' before stopping over for some post sausage fudge.)

Late Update: Occasionally one part of TPM doesn't know what the other is doing. As it turns out, at noon today Greg Sargent reported at Election Central that McCain did very much patronize the Sausage Haus. Greg even spoke directly to Farah Hice, hostess at the Haus to confirm McCain's meal. So McCain must have first eaten at the Sausage Haus before going over to stand in front of the Fudge Haus sign to do his media availability.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 2:53PM // link | recommend (25)

Seriously?

Former CIA Director Porter Goss has been appointed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) as co-chairman of the new Office of Congressional Ethics.

Late Update: For those who may not recall, Goss' disastrous run as CIA chief ended with his abrupt resignation in 2006, shortly after the FBI raided the home and office of the then-No. 3 at CIA, Dusty Foggo, who was later indicted as part of the Brent Wilkes/Duke Cunningham corruption scandal.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 2:07PM // link | recommend (6)

TPMtv: It's the Surge, Stupid

If you're desperate to be John McCain's vice presidential nominee, you better get on TV and start talking up the Surge as the single most important issue in this year's presidential campaign. And if you're serious about getting picked it wouldn't be a bad idea to say John McCain invented the idea of the surge and maybe even coined the word either. In today's episode of TPMtv we check in on some of the wannabes to see just how bad they want it ...

High-res version at Veracifier.com.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 1:55PM // link | recommend (1)

Nothing to Fear

Todd Gitlin stumbles upon Franklin Roosevelt's 9th State of the Union Address: "Our people are not afraid"

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 1:36PM // link | recommend (3)

"This is the Moment"

Full text of Obama's Berlin speech.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 12:46PM // link | recommend (4)

Ouch

Looks like some of our favorite 'wingers are set to have their hearts broken by the good folks at BMW Direct.

Yesterday in the New York Post, Michelle Malkin was positively giddy at the "jaw-dropping political miracle [that] may be on the horizon."

Namely, the challenge to veteran Democratic Rep. John Murtha (D) being mounted by Army reservist William Russell. And she's so bullish on his chances of ousting Murtha because of the nearly $670,000 he's raised in the second quarter -- a stunningly high total.

Unfortunately for the GOP, Russell appears to be yet another little-known candidate who's turned over his fundraising to BMW Direct, the best-practices direct mail outfit that pulls back in fees 90% to 95% of the funds they raise for their clients. Andrew Tilghman has the story.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 12:15PM // link | recommend (5)

Counter-Messaging

John McCain will lunch today in a German restaurant -- in Ohio.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 11:28AM // link | recommend (14)

Reality Check

McCain pulls ahead in Colorado and closes the gap in Michigan and Minnesota, according to new Quinnipiac polls.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 9:47AM // link | recommend (8)

Election Central Morning Roundup

Obama's big speech in Berlin is at 1 p.m. ET. That and the day's other political news in the TPM Election Central Morning Roundup.

--David Kurtz

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07.24.08 -- 2:45AM // link | recommend (17)

Classier and Classier

McCain runs new ad pairing Obama with Castro.

--Josh Marshall

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07.24.08 -- 1:59AM // link | recommend (11)

Ginger Cruz Update

As you'll recall, 2007 was the first year of the annual Golden Dukes "to recognize great accomplishments in muckiness including acts of venal corruption, outstanding self-inflicted losses of dignity, crimes against the republic, bribery, exposed hypocrisy and generally malevolent governance." One of our nominees in the category of Outstanding Achievement in Corruption-based Chutzpah was Ginger Cruz, the Deputy Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR). Sen. Larry Craig (R) of Idaho ended up taking the award in that category.

But now Ms. Cruz sends along news on two important new developments.

Earlier this month a grand jury investigating the case declined to indict Cruz and her boss, Stuart Bowen. And several days later the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency similarly cleared Cruz and Bowen of wrongdoing.

Stay tuned for the 2008 Golden Dukes, coming up right after the November Election.

--Josh Marshall