In its infinite wisdom, the Senate Budget Committee slashed $4.1 billion from President Bush’s proposed International Affairs budget. International Affairs, which includes our diplomacy, development and international organization expenses, comprises just over 1.2% of our total federal budget and 6% of our national security spending. It accounts for almost all of our global non-military footprint.
If this fundraising appeal from Louisiana Senator David Vitter for his campaign to defeat the Law of the Sea Convention weren’t so dishonest and misleading it would be hysterical. Ok, actually, it’s still amazingly funny. For starters, the note includes a header at the top that reads “Personal & Confidential.
It’s true, I’ve given Hillary Clinton a harder time for her fear-based messaging than I’ve given Barack Obama for his. Well, I have my reasons.
John McCain pushed to suspend Russia’s membership in the G8 as early as 2005. Hillary Clinton says she looked into Vlad Putin’s eyes and saw that he didn’t have a soul and she says nothing will change with Dmitry Medvedev’s election. Barack Obama’s position seems pretty similar.
This has to stop. Hillary has every right to tout her experience — it’s probably her biggest selling point in this election. But she’s got to find a way to do it without heightening the fear, discussing our “dangerous world,” or constantly reminding voters that we are at war.
You’d expect it from the editorial page, but not from the WSJ news section.
The Wall Street Journal is running an interesting piece on Alexandre Albuquerque, the Chairman of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Worth a read for anyone interested in just part of what’s at stake in the Law of the Sea ratification debate.
Hillary Clinton went out of her way to reference John Edwards a number of times, but it didn’t seem forced. One of her tasks tonight was apparently to position herself as the candidate carrying Edwards’s torch on economic issues. On that, she did a reasonably good job.
The Bush administration has bent over backwards to cater to business interests. At least, that’s been my perception from the outside. Last week, I met with an influential operative in the business community about the Law of the Sea. We agree on the importance of U.S.
Hillary Clinton told her supporters last night: “One of us is ready to be commander-in-chief in a dangerous world.” Setting up the “dangerous world” frame is right out of the Frank Luntz playbook. I’d link to his writings on national security but I can’t seem to find them online — I only have hard copies….
