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Archive for January, 2009

The Princess Of Camelot Has A Tarnished Crown

by Doug Mataconis @ Thursday, January 22nd, 2009. Filed under Politics

It appears that Caroline Kennedy’s withdrawal from consideration for the open New York Senate seat had nothing to do with her uncle’s illness:
ALBANY — Problems involving taxes and a household employee surfaced during the vetting of Caroline Kennedy and derailed her candidacy for the Senate, a person close to Gov. David A. Paterson said on [...]

Sounds Like A Good Idea To Me

by Doug Mataconis @ Thursday, January 22nd, 2009. Filed under Individual Liberty, Politics, Republicans

Glenn Reynolds has a policy proposal for President Obama:
I will make one policy proposal. Some of my fellow libertarians hope that the Obama administration will put an end to the drug war. I hope so too, but I’m not too optimistic. Instead, I propose a smaller step toward freedom — eliminating the federally mandated drinking [...]

A Record Breaking Inauguration

by Doug Mataconis @ Thursday, January 22nd, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Inauguration Day 2009, Politics

It may not have been the 4 million people that D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, in a panic, predicted in November, but it’s fairly clear that Tuesday’s Inauguration ceremony saw the biggest crowd in the history of Washington:
Two things are clear about the size of the crowd that gathered downtown for Tuesday’s inauguration:
First, although some experts [...]

Caroline Kennedy Pulls Her Hat Out Of The Ring

by Doug Mataconis @ Thursday, January 22nd, 2009. Filed under Politics

In a sign that perhaps she was never really serious about being a Senator to begin with, Caroline Kennedy has pulled her name from contention on the eve of New York Governor David Patterson’s announcement of his choice to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate:
Caroline Kennedy announced early Thursday that she was withdrawing from consideration [...]

Second Time’s The Charm For Obama & Roberts

by Doug Mataconis @ Thursday, January 22nd, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Inauguration Day 2009, John Roberts, Politics, U.S. Constitution

After Chief Justice Roberts flubbed the Oath of Office on Tuesday, which led to questions from legal scholars about whether the oath was truly effective because of the mistake, the President and Chief Justice did a second take yesterday:
WASHINGTON — In 25 seconds, President Obama became president again.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. re-administered the [...]

Ron Paul Responds To Obama’s Inaugural Address

by Doug Mataconis @ Wednesday, January 21st, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Inauguration Day 2009, Politics, Ron Paul

H/T: Stephen Gordon, the newest co-blogger at The Liberty Papers

Rooting For Failure

by Doug Mataconis @ Wednesday, January 21st, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Politics

Rush Limbaugh is injecting himself into the political debate yet again:
I got a request here from a major American print publication. “Dear Rush: For the Obama [Immaculate] Inauguration we are asking a handful of very prominent politicians, statesmen, scholars, businessmen, commentators, and economists to write 400 words on their hope for the Obama [...]

Because Nobody Is Above Ridicule, Especially The President

by Doug Mataconis @ Wednesday, January 21st, 2009. Filed under George W Bush, Inauguration Day 2009, Politics

There’s some degree of faux outrage on the right at the reception that former President Bush 43 received at yesterday’s Inauguration.
First, there’s the response to his presence being announced in the morning:

Then, there’s the reaction of some in the crowd on the National Mall to the sight of his helicopter leaving Washington:

Frankly, I’ve got [...]

Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, January 20th, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Inauguration Day 2009, Politics

Here’s the video:

As I said in my initial assessment, this wasn’t a barn-burner. It won’t go down in history as something memorable the way Kennedy’s speech in 1960 has, or the way Lincoln’s First and Second Inaugural Addresses have, but it was a good speech nonetheless.
And, at the very least, it’s nice to have a [...]

A Presidential Oath Do-Over ?

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, January 20th, 2009. Filed under Barack Obama, Inauguration Day 2009, Politics

Thanks to some rather obvious verbal gaffes by the Chief Justice of the United States during the Inaugural Ceremony, some experts say it couldn’t hurt:
The presidential oath of office is required of a new president before he can execute his powers, and the Constitution is clear that its 35 words must be spoken exactly.
Which is [...]

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