TEN BEST NUGGETS OF THE WEEK!!
1. U.S. Does Not Believe Iran is Trying to Build Nuclear Bomb from the Los Angeles Times"The latest U.S. intelligence report indicates Iran is pursuing research that could enable it to build a nuclear weapon, but that it has not sought to do so."
2. The Iran-Washington Conspiracy? (Leslie H. Gelb) from the Daily Beast
"Both Washington and Tehran are maneuvering to head off an Israeli attack against Iran, a process of intriguing diplomatic gamesmanship."
3. Al Qaeda Is Going Gently into the Night from the Atlantic
"Counter-terrorism experts said Al Qaeda wouldn't vanish in a sweeping final act but in a gradual, winnowing decline. A new report out of Southeast Asia gives a sketch of what that looks like. Reporting from Jakarta, the Associated Press writes that Al Qaeda's foothold in Southeast Asia appears to be gone."
4. Navy SEALs: Obama’s Secret Army (Daniel Klaidman) from Newsweek
"At a time when many Americans think their government is inept, the ‘Special Operators’ get the job done. Just ask the President, who is doubling down on the Navy SEALs."
5. The Way Greeks Live Now from the Sunday New York Times Magazine
"At some point, I asked Hadjigeorgiou how the crisis was affecting him personally. Life was getting difficult, he acknowledged. Then, prodded a bit more, he mentioned that he had not been paid by his newspaper, the major left-leaning daily, in four months. Nor had any of his colleagues at the paper. "
6. When Do Political Rules No Longer Apply? (Stuart Rothenberg) from Roll Call
"Traditionally, there are “rules” that apply in politics as well. But this year, things seem different. They don’t seem to apply, which is a problem for those of us who look at the past to understand the present and to project future outcomes."
7. Republican Race's Volatility is Historic (Alex Roarty) from the National Journal
"Calling the 2012 Republican presidential primary the most volatile for the GOP in generations isn't political hyperbole - it's empirical fact."
8. President Obama as an Alien (E.J. Dionne) from the Washington Post
"They say that President Obama is a Muslim, but if he isn’t, he’s a secularist who is waging war on religion. On some days he’s a Nazi, but on most others he’s merely a socialist. ... Whatever our president is, he is never allowed to be a garden-variety American who plays basketball and golf, has a remarkably old-fashioned family life and, in the manner we regularly recommend to our kids, got ahead by getting a good education. Please forgive this outburst. It’s simply astonishing that a man in his fourth year as our president continues to be the object of the most extraordinary paranoid fantasies."
9. Right Wingers Go Wild Against Women Around the Country (Michael Tomasky) from the Daily Beast
"This isn’t politics. It’s not even theology... And it’s most certainly not morality. It’s quite the opposite of morality. It’s a consequence of a mindset that equates compromise with capitulation, that insists on purity, that attempts to abuse the tools of democracy to secure anti-democratic outcomes, and that is driven by rage against modernity. And it’s hardly an accident that all these forces come together to assume their foulest shape against women."
10. Real-world Issues, Fantasy-Land Solutions (Fred Hiatt) from the Washington Post
"Run to the extreme in the primary, move to the center in the fall: That’s expected. But moving from the cartoon world the Republican presidential candidates have constructed back into three dimensions might prove more difficult. In their debate Wednesday night, the remaining candidates seemed to be continuing their drift from reality — the reality of a center-right electorate they propose to woo and govern, and of the complexities of the problems they promise to solve."
Now, to our regular nuggets for Sunday, February 26.
OUR PUNDIT-OF-THE-DAY!!
Conservative Chickens Come Home to Roost (Matt Taibbi) from Rolling Stone Magazine
"This is justice. What we have here are chickens coming home to roost. It's as if all of the American public's bad habits and perverse obsessions are all coming back to haunt Republican voters in this race: The lack of attention span, the constant demand for instant gratification, the abject hunger for negativity, the utter lack of backbone or constancy (we change our loyalties at the drop of a hat, all it takes is a clever TV ad): these things are all major factors in the spiraling Republican disaster.Most importantly, though, the conservative passion for divisive, partisan, bomb-tossing politics is threatening to permanently cripple the Republican party. They long ago became more about pointing fingers than about ideology, and it's finally ruining them. ... Santorum, instead of turning around and laying into Paul, immediately panicked and rubbed his arm as if to say, "See? I’m made of the right stuff," and said, "I’m real, Ron, I’m real." These candidates are behaving like Stalinist officials in the late thirties, each one afraid to be the first to stop applauding."
Hamas Ditches Assad, Backs Syrian Revolt from Reuters
"Leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas turned publicly against their long-time ally President Bashar al-Assad of Syria on Friday, endorsing the revolt aimed at overthrowing his dynastic rule. The policy shift deprives Assad of one of his few remaining Sunni Muslim supporters in the Arab world and deepens his international isolation"
Hamas "backs Syrian revolt"? That could be interesting. How so?
Why Republicans Welcome Birth Control Politics (Nancy Scola) from Salon
"More voters are worried about governmental control than women's health, they say."
Ghastly Outdated Party (Maureen Dowd) from the New York Times
"Do we need another “Lysistrata” until Republicans stop campaigning against sex?"
The Religion and Politics of Division (Lisa Miller) from the Washington Post
"Obama: "I’ve said this before, and I know this raises questions in the minds of some evangelicals. I do not believe that my mother, who never formally embraced Christianity as far as I know;. I do not believe she went to hell.” Most Americans are with Obama on this."
Fading Chances: Republicans Appear Incapable of Nominating Someone Who Can Win the Votes of Independents in November (Charlie Cook) from National Journal
"Simply put, the passion and energy of the Republican Party today may well fail to produce a nominee with a decent chance of winning in November. My assumption was that Romney would be the nominee and would make a good run. Now, I have begun to doubt both propositions. His odds of winning the nomination are growing longer. And even if he does, he has twisted and turned himself into a human pretzel. I’m not sure how electable he is. The alternatives, however, seem even less so."
Now -- this is something when Charlie Cook is saying this. Beltway insider conventional wisdom doesn't get more insider-like than Cook's.
Romney Aides Warn Backers of a Long Fight for Nomination (Jim Rutenberg) from the New York Times
"As Mitt Romney’s campaign intensifies fund-raising to meet rising costs, some Republicans are worried about the impact of a prolonged party contest on the November election."
Obama’s Dream: To Run Against Santorum (Kathleen Parker) from the Washington Post
"Let me be blunt: If Republicans nominate Rick Santorum to run for president, they will lose. The prospect of four more years of President Barack Obama holds some appeal for many Americans but probably not for most Republicans. It may give doubters among them some comfort, however, to know that Obama and Santorum share the same prayer: that Santorum be the Republican nominee."
It is rather interesting to see pundits on the right conclude that Obama and his team "set up" conservatives on the issue of contraception, to make them look bad and send the GOP on a culture war witch hunt that would be a total loser for them. As much as I admire Obama and the people around him, even I don't think Obama's mind is THAT three-dimensional. I DO think he is one of the best political counter-punchers ever -- and thus I think his strategy has been responsive rather than as part of some thought-out initiative on his part.
The Lost Party (John Heilemann) from New York Magazine
"The strangest primary season in memory reveals a GOP that’s tearing itself apart. ... “The fact that Romney is running with basically the same views as then but is seen as too moderate tells you that the base has moved rightward and doesn’t simply want a conservative candidate—it wants a very conservative one.” The transfiguration of the GOP isn’t only about ideology, however. It is also about demography and temperament, as the party has grown whiter, less well schooled, more blue-collar, and m"
Rick Santorum’s New Punching Bag: the Press from Politico
"Rick Santorum has a new punching bag: the press. Facing increased scrutiny and more intense media coverage as his campaign has surged, the former Pennsylvania senator is intensifying his criticism of the media."
Wisconsin Recall Rival Slams Scott Walker from Politico
"In a preview of the Wisconsin recall election, top Democratic challenger Kathleen Falk has come out guns blazing against Gov. Scott Walker, saying he ruined the state, has no scruples in labeling any opponent as a union pawn, and is under a cloud from the ongoing “John Doe” criminal
investigation into some of his former aides."
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