When I was a young pup working for Senator Birch Bayh, who like Lloyd Bentsen was the kind of giant in rare supply in Washington today, on a few occasions, my bosses would take me to the old Mayflower Hotel where Kenny O’Donnell would hold court.
Many Democrats seem to think the best policy on Iraq for the November elections is to say as little as possible. They worry that Republicans will brand them “unpatriotic” if they are too critical of Bush’s policies in Iraq — if they dare, that is, to use Iraq to “nationalize” the election.
Reading the transcript of former House Majority leader Tom DeLay‘s bitter, partisan (and in these ways, quite fitting) resignation speech from Thursday, I was struck by these remarks: We honor men with Monuments not because of their greatness, or even simply because of their service, but because of their refusal – even in the face…
At a meeting of Middle Eastern, European, Asian, and American strategic analysts in Dubai last week, it quickly became clear that the common American view of the situation in the Persian Gulf region is only about 180 degrees away from that of the rest of the world.
My friend and colleague Charlie Kupchan and I agree on much: Europe faces policy challenges, the EU’s constitution and concern with internal democracy don’t help, and a united Europe is performing well on Iran, Turkey and other issues.
Will the real president please stand up? There in our midst was the real president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, who charmed Washington Thursday as she made the rounds in this village.
OK, I can’t resist. Associated Press is reporting that Iraq’s prime minister Nouri al-Maliki has ordered a daytime driving ban in Baghdad and Baquoba provice (where Abu Musab al Zarqawi was killed) to prevent car bomb attacks. The driving ban will be from 11am to 3pm.
In an editorial about the Council of Europe’s report about alleged secret detentions in Europe, the Financial Times wrote on Thursday: “Europe’s foremost guardian of human rights yesterday painted a chilling picture of how more than a dozen European countries became part of a global “spider’s web” spun by the US to kidnap and transport…
Steve probably did not intend for his guest bloggers to transform TWN to a sports weblog. So, I apologize in advance for the following entry related to the Soccer World Cup which started in my home country of Germany yesterday. Please, bear with me if I direct your attention to an important game.