MICHAEL O. ALLEN

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May 19
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it's all politics

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Compiled by Jonathan Helman and Mary Grace Lucas, CNN Washington Bureau

Washington Post: Clinton Quiet About Own Radical Ties
When Hillary Rodham Clinton questioned rival Barack Obama’s ties to 1960s radicals, her comments baffled two retired Bay Area lawyers who knew Clinton in the summer of 1971 when she worked as an intern at a left-wing law firm in Oakland, Calif., that defended communists and Black Panthers.

USA Today: GOP departures to cost party millions
The number of Republicans leaving Congress will cost the GOP millions of dollars in party-building funds for the fall congressional elections, campaign-finance records show.

Washington Post: Iran Remains Key Concern as Bush Returns
As he toured the Middle East over the past five days, President Bush tried to shore up support for his strategy of isolating Iran in meetings with the leaders of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian territories. But the one session that did not take place laid bare the problems his administration faces as it tries to persuade its allies to keep the faith.

LA Times: John McCain and Barack Obama Offer Two Visions of the Supreme Court
John McCain and Barack Obama, the two leading presidential candidates, have set out sharply contrasting views on the role of the Supreme Court and the kind of justices they would appoint.

AP: Obama warns seniors on Social Security threats
Democrat Barack Obama told seniors Sunday that Republican John McCain would threaten the Social Security that they and millions like them depend on because he supports privatizing the program.

NY Times: McCain to Rely on Party Money
Pivoting toward the general election, Senator Barack Obama is turning again to his history-making fund-raising machine, which helped to anoint him as a contender against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and then became a potent weapon in their battle for the Democratic nomination. To confront the Obama juggernaut, Senator John McCain, whose fund-raising has badly trailed that of his Democratic counterparts, is leaning on the Republican National Committee.

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May 19
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the political wires . . .

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Compiled by Jonathan Helman and Mary Grace Lucas, CNN Washington Bureau

Washington Post: Clinton Quiet About Own Radical Ties
When Hillary Rodham Clinton questioned rival Barack Obama’s ties to 1960s radicals, her comments baffled two retired Bay Area lawyers who knew Clinton in the summer of 1971 when she worked as an intern at a left-wing law firm in Oakland, Calif., that defended communists and Black Panthers.

USA Today: GOP departures to cost party millions
The number of Republicans leaving Congress will cost the GOP millions of dollars in party-building funds for the fall congressional elections, campaign-finance records show.

Washington Post: Iran Remains Key Concern as Bush Returns
As he toured the Middle East over the past five days, President Bush tried to shore up support for his strategy of isolating Iran in meetings with the leaders of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian territories. But the one session that did not take place laid bare the problems his administration faces as it tries to persuade its allies to keep the faith.

LA Times: John McCain and Barack Obama Offer Two Visions of the Supreme Court
John McCain and Barack Obama, the two leading presidential candidates, have set out sharply contrasting views on the role of the Supreme Court and the kind of justices they would appoint.

AP: Obama warns seniors on Social Security threats
Democrat Barack Obama told seniors Sunday that Republican John McCain would threaten the Social Security that they and millions like them depend on because he supports privatizing the program.

NY Times: McCain to Rely on Party Money
Pivoting toward the general election, Senator Barack Obama is turning again to his history-making fund-raising machine, which helped to anoint him as a contender against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and then became a potent weapon in their battle for the Democratic nomination. To confront the Obama juggernaut, Senator John McCain, whose fund-raising has badly trailed that of his Democratic counterparts, is leaning on the Republican National Committee.

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May 17
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Ted Kennedy

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Conflicting reports out of Massachusetts today said Sen. Ted Kennedy, (D-Mass.,) suffered an apparent seizure. I hope he recovers. He’s one of our best fighters.

It was both a tragic and triumphant time on the public stage for the liberal lion. And I’m not talking about the death of his brothers. Mainly I refer to the young woman he caused to die and the dissolution of his first marriage.

I am sharing this speech because it exemplifies both his promise and his weakness. It came at the end of a vainglorious and doomed run for the presidential nomination against a president of his own party (he was largely blamed for Jimmy Carter’s loss in 1980, although I think Carter did not do much to help himself in that race.

In giving up the run, Kennedy gave one of the best speeches in the history of American political rhetoric.

1980 Democratic National Convention Address

Delivered 12 August 1980, New York, NY

Ted Kennedy at the 1980 Democratic Party National Convention

Thanks very much, Barbara Mikulski, for your very eloquent, your eloquent introduction. Distinguished legislator, great spokeswoman for economic democracy and social justice in this country, I thank you for your eloquent introduction.

Well, things worked out a little different from the way I thought, but let me tell you, I still love New York.

My fellow Democrats and my fellow Americans, I have come here tonight not to argue as a candidate but to affirm a cause.

I’m asking you — I am asking you to renew the commitment of the Democratic Party to economic justice.

I am asking you to renew our commitment to a fair and lasting prosperity that can put America back to work.

This is the cause that brought me into the campaign and that sustained me for nine months across a 100,000 miles in 40 different states. We had our losses, but the pain of our defeats is far, far less than the pain of the people that I have met.

We have learned that it is important to take issues seriously, but never to take ourselves too seriously.

The serious issue before us tonight is the cause for which the Democratic Party has stood in its finest hours, the cause that keeps our Party young and makes it, in the second century of its age, the largest political Party in this republic and the longest lasting political Party on this planet.

Our cause has been, since the days of Thomas Jefferson, the cause of the common man and the common woman.

Our commitment has been, since the days of Andrew Jackson, to all those he called “the humble members of society — the farmers, mechanics, and laborers.” On this foundation we have defined our values, refined our policies, and refreshed our faith.

Now I take the unusual step of carrying the cause and the commitment of my campaign personally to our national convention. I speak out of a deep sense of urgency about the anguish and anxiety I have seen across America.

I speak out of a deep belief in the ideals of the Democratic Party, and in the potential of that Party and of a President to make a difference. And I speak out of a deep trust in our capacity to proceed with boldness and a common vision that will feel and heal the suffering of our time and the divisions of our Party.

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May 17
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Obama seeks focus on end of primary campaign

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EUGENE, Oregon (AP) — Attempting to lay a symbolic claim to his party’s presidential nomination, Democrat Barack Obama will mark the latest round of primary voting with a rally in Iowa, where his solid win in January caucuses propelled him to his status as the front-runner.

Obama was campaigning Saturday for primaries Tuesday in Oregon and Kentucky as his aides announced the rally on primary night in Iowa, which they described as “a critical general election state that Democrats must win in November.”

Rival Hillary Rodham Clinton has a strong lead in polls in Kentucky, but Obama has the advantage in Oregon.

Obama has built a solid lead in Democratic National Convention delegates over Clinton, and is working overtime to cast an image of inevitability to his campaign for the nomination. In recent days, he has spent more time focused on his differences with certain Republican nominee John McCain than sparring with Clinton.

Iowa has been a swing state in recent elections. Democrat Al Gore narrowly carried the state in 2000, and President Bush collected the state’s seven electoral votes by just over 10,000 votes in 2004. Since that time, however, Democrats have build a substantial edge in registered voters, and turnout in the January precinct caucuses was at record levels.
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May 17
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Florida, Michigan cannot save Clinton

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WASHINGTON (AP) – Michigan and Florida alone can’t save Hillary Rodham Clinton’s campaign.

Interviews with those considering how to handle the two states’ banished convention delegates found little interest in the former first lady’s best-case scenario. Her position, part of a formidable comeback challenge, is that all the delegates be seated in accordance with their disputed primaries.

Even if they were, it wouldn’t erase Barack Obama’s growing lead in delegates.

 The Democratic Party’s Rules and Bylaws Committee, a 30-member panel charged with interpreting and enforcing party rules, is to meet May 31 to consider how to handle Michigan and Florida’s 368 delegates.

Last year, the panel imposed the harshest punishment it could render against the two states after they scheduled primaries in January, even though they were instructed not to vote until Feb. 5 or later. Michigan and Florida lost all their delegates to the national convention, and all the Democratic candidates agreed not to campaign in the two states, stripping them of all the influence they were trying to build by voting early.

But now there is agreement on all sides that at least some of the delegates should be restored in a gesture of party unity and respect to voters in two general election battlegrounds.

Clinton has been arguing for full reinstatement, which would boost her standing. She won both states, even though they didn’t count toward the nomination and neither candidate campaigned in them. Obama even had his name pulled from Michigan’s ballot.

The Associated Press interviewed a third of the panel members and several other Democrats involved in the negotiations and found widespread agreement that the states must be punished for stepping out of line. If not, many members say, other states will do the same thing in four years.

“We certainly want to be fair to both candidates, and we want to be sure that we are fair to the 48 states who abided by the rules,” said Democratic National Committee Secretary Alice Germond, a panel member unaligned with either candidate. “We don’t want absolute chaos for 2012.

“We want to reach out to Michigan and Florida and seat some group of delegates in some manner, at least most of us do. These are two critical states for the general (election) and the voters of those states who were not the people who caused this awful conundrum to occur deserve our attention and deserve to be a part of our process and deserve to be at the convention,” she said.

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May 17
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British Army faces public inquiry over Baha Mousa death

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by Aislinn Simpson, 5/15/2008

The British Army will face a public inquiry over the torture and subsequent death of an Iraqi hotel worker in its custody, the Defence Secretary confirmed on Wednesday.


The Defence Secretary Des Browne said in a written statement to Parliament that a public enquiry would ensure lessons could be learned.

Baha Mousa suffered 93 separate injuries and died of asphyxia while he was held by the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment at a British Army base in Basra in September 2003.

Seven members of the QLR faced court martial over the incident but all were eventually acquitted, including QLR commanding officer Colonel Jorge Mendonca.

One, Corporal Donald Payne, 35, became the first British serviceman to admit a war crime, that of treating Iraqi prisoners inhumanely and was jailed for a year.

Mr Mousa’s family and eight other Iraqis held in custody launched a claim for compensation through the British courts and the Government admitted it breached the 26-year-old father of two’s human rights and would pay damages.
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May 16
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Thumbs on the scale

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FROM MEDIA MATTERS FOR AMERICA
During a speech to the Israeli parliament yesterday morning, President Bush attacked Barack Obama, comparing him to Nazi appeasers for the Illinois senator’s willingness to hold discussions with Iran.
One problem: Bush’s speech came just hours after The Washington Post reported that Bush’s defense secretary, Robert Gates, said that the United States needs to “sit down and talk with” Iran. Not only that, Gates added, “We can’t go to a discussion and be completely the demander.”
Oops.

McCain Was For Talking To Hamas: Before He Was Against It…

Naturally, then, a media firestorm erupted, with the Bush administration and its political allies questioned all day about whether Bush has any idea what he is talking about, whether he has lost control over the Pentagon, whether Gates will be fired, what Gates thinks about Bush’s comparison of those (like Gates) who advocate dialogue between the United States and Iran to appeasers of Adolf Hitler, and whether the fiasco will remind voters that the Bush administration’s foreign policy has been marked by incompetence and dishonesty, thus doing irreparable electoral damage to John McCain and other Republican candidates.
Sorry — what was I thinking? That didn’t happen.
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May 16
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Obama takes on McCain/Bush

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Obama Hits Back: Debate With McCain And Bush Over Foreign Policy Is One “I Will Win” By Greg Sargent, May 16, 2008
In remarks in South Dakota just now, Barack Obama hit back hard at George Bush’s and John McCain’s foreign policy attacks yesterday, stating flatly that a debate with the two Republicans over foreign policy is a debate that “I will win.”

“George Bush and John McCain have a lot to answer for,” Obama said.

The fight is one that the Obama campaign is eager to have, because it accomplishes two things. First, it forces McCain to stand by Bush, making it easier to tie them together. And second, it puts Obama, sans Hillary, on the same stage as the current Republican president and his would-be successor, making the Dem primary seem a bit like a distant memory.

“If George Bush and John McCain want to have a debate about protecting the United States of America, that is a debate I am happy to have any time,” Obama said. “That is a debate that I will win.”

He proceeded to rattle off all the things Bush and McCain have to “answer for.” The unnecessary Iraq War. The phantom WMDs. The strengthening of Iran. The fact that “Hamas now controls Gaza.” And the fact that Osama Bin Laden is “sending out video tapes with impunity.”

Obama also slammed the notion that he’d ever supported any sort of negotiations with terrorists. “They’re trying to fool you, trying to scare you, and they’re not telling you the truth because they can’t win a foreign policy debate on the merits,” he said.

At times, Obama hit what I think is the right tone — ridicule and bemusement, rather than outrage. At one point, for instance, he noted that McCain has now promised an end to the war in 2013, after repeatedly suggesting a much longer open-ended commitment might be necessary.

“I think he noticed that it wasn’t polling well,” Obama joked.

May 16
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BMW's New Baby: Fast, Not Fresh

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THE DRIVER’S SEAT By JEFF SABATINI, May 16, 2008

BMW 135i coupe
The 1-Series is the German auto maker’s smallest and least expensive model.
In Europe, BMW sells 3- and 5-door hatchback version of the 1-Series and offers four-cylinder gas engines as well as diesel engines.

The convertible 1-Series offers the same engines and is priced slightly higher than the coupe, starting at $33,100.

The 135i is an inch taller than the larger 3-Series coupe, making the 1-Series’ roof look out of proportion with the rest of the car. This effect isn’t helped by a concave crease that runs along the vehicle’s lower sides.

I have become somewhat disaffected about BMW of late, disliking the overriding design theme of this decade’s newest models. From the “flame surfacing” look of asymmetrical and unbalanced curves and lines to the myriad electronics that sully the man-machine interface, I pine for the purity of BMWs past.

So it was with much excitement that I hopped behind the wheel of the 2008 BMW 135i coupe for my weekly test drive. The new 1-Series is being cast as a car for a big group of BMW fans: enthusiast drivers who love the communicative steering, nimble handling and rear-wheel-drive layout of Bimmers, but feel the beloved 3-Series has become too big and heavy, too feature-laden and too expensive.

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May 16
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Hillary Is Too Boring to Be President

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By JOE QUEENAN, May 16, 2008; Page A13

Journalists like to pretend that it makes no difference to them who gets elected president, but this is a lie. A few years ago, I disclosed in print that I had two handwritten notes from Steve Forbes that would vastly increase in value were he elected to the highest office in the land. Yes, I admired my ex-employer’s pluck and thought he had some wonderful ideas about simplifying the tax code. But the main reason I supported his candidacy was because of those two collectibles I could cash in. I may be venal and morally rudderless, but at least I’m honest.

Journalists, and especially humorists, need to come clean and admit that none of us ever really wanted to see Hillary Clinton in the White House. No, it isn’t her hair or her know-it-all attitude or her inexplicable marriage or her pitiful attempts to portray herself as a tribune of the working class or the fact that she went to Wellesley that puts us off. She’s just no fun, and politicians who are no fun are hard to write about. A barrel of monkeys is fun. A barrel of dead monkeys is no fun. Hillary is less fun that three barrels of dead monkeys. Maybe 300.
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