Over at Opinio Juris, my co-blogger Kevin Jon Heller has a post on the German political theorist Carl Schmitt and the history behind his brush with a Nuremberg prosecution at the end of the Second World War. It is drawn from research for Kevin’s book on the Nuremberg trials; given the interest that law professors […]
Archive | Politics
Bloggers: Romney is most likely Repub.nominee in 2012, and would be the strongest candidate
This week’s National Journal poll of asked right-leaning bloggers to list the 5 most-likely Republican presidential nominees in 2012. Left-leaning bloggers were asked to name which Republican would be the strongest candidate. Mitt Romney won both races handily. I voted for Romney as most likely, but don’t think he would be the most likely candidate to win the […]
Walter Russell Meade on Obama and – Hamilton, Wilson, Jefferson, and Jackson
Provocative, interesting essay by Walter Russell Meade in the latest Foreign Policy, The Carter Syndrome. It argues that Obama is a Jeffersonian in his foreign policy trying to come to grips with his Wilsonianism (“Barack Obama might yet revolutionize America’s foreign policy. But if he can’t reconcile his inner Thomas Jefferson with his inner Woodrow Wilson, […]
If You Like Your Health Plan, You Will NOT Be Able to Keep It
I like my employer’s health plan. Today I learned that under both the Senate and the House bills, I won’t be able to keep my plan. Both bills require reductions in health reimbursement benefits under my plan. Both the Senate and the House health bills slash a significant part of my employer’s health plan — […]
Political bloggers: We love Tom Coburn and Bernie Sanders
Last week’s National Journal poll of political bloggers asked Left-leaning and Right-leaning bloggers about their favorite political figures. Herewith, the results: Most-admired House member: On the Left, Alan Grayson. My father’s former campaign treasurer, Denver Rep. Diana DeGette, tied for second. On the Right, tie between Jeff Flake, Mike Pence, and Paul Ryan. I voted […]
Bush v. Gore was rightly decided
Nelson Lund explains why in this new article, from the Florida Law Review. Lund is responding an article by Akhil Amar, which does not appear to be available on the public Internet. Readers who want even more on the subject may enjoy Lund’s 2002 article in the Winter 2002 issue of Constitutional Commentary, responding to a […]
Baucus Scandal
By David Bernstein on December 5, 2009 9:02 am in Government Transparency, Legal Profession, Politics
N.Y. Times: A spokesman for Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, said early Saturday that the senator nominated his girlfriend, a lawyer who worked for him at the time, for a United States attorney position last March. The girlfriend, Melodee Hanes, worked for Mr. Baucus as his state office director and as a field director […]
Thoughts on Sarah Palin and Going Rogue
Like Ilya, I’ve been reading Sarah Palin’s book and following her media appearances. It’s difficult to say anything original about a polarizing figure such as Palin. And no matter what you say, around half of the VC readership will be convinced you are a complete idiot (which half depending on which side you take). But […]
Politics and Poker — er, I mean, Soccer
Nate Silver — the fellow who built FiveThirtyEight.com into one of the more successful and sophisticated predictive electoral sites on the Web, and who was remarkably prescient in his electoral vote predictions in the 2008 Presidential election — has now cast his net over more profound and important prey: the world of international soccer. As […]
Newsweek promotes Palin for President
The cover of next week’s Newsweek features a picture of Sarah Palin, along with the headline “How do you solve a problem like Sarah?” The cover is one more example of the periodical’s positioning itself as the ideas journal for people who think that the New York Times’ in-house editorials are middle-of-road, but have too […]
Blogger poll: Stupak amendment hurts Dems. Dems need to motivate base; Repubs need outreach to independents
This week’s National Journal poll of political bloggers asked “Would Democrats be helped or hurt politically if Congress enacts health care reform legislation containing abortion restrictions similar to those passed by the House?” On the Left, 79% said “hurt,” while the Right was fairly closely split between “helped,” “hurt,” and “not much impact.” I voted […]
Bloggers: 10% unemployment would be disaster for Dems in 2010. Split on whether Cap/Trade will pass
In last week’s National Journal of political bloggers, one question asked: “If unemployment remains at roughly the current level, what impact will that have on the 2010 midterm elections?” One hundred percent of the Right, and 89 percent of the Left bloggers thought it would hurt Democrats, and most thought it would hurt them a […]
Another good night for the Second Amendment
NY-23: Winning Democrat Bill Owens was A-rated by NRA (as was Hoffman). Virginia: Either Deeds (B rating) or McDonnell (A) were sure to be a big improvement over outgoing Governor Kaine. Deeds lost the NRA endorsement by supporting closing of the (non-existent) “gun show loophole.” In the Attorney General race, Republican Ken Cuccinelli (A+) handily […]
Four Obvious Lessons from Tonight’s Elections
I think there are four obvious lessons to draw from tonight’s election returns: 1. For Conservative Republicans: The America people reject Barack Obama and obviously want true conservative leadership. The Governorships of two states have switched to the “R” category, showing a grassroots conservative movement that is alive and well. 2. For Moderate Republicans: The […]
The California versus Texas Model, and Public Choice
By Kenneth Anderson on November 2, 2009 9:27 pm in California, Economy, Housing, Politics, Regulation, Voting With Your Feet
William Voegeli, a contributing editor at The Claremont Review of Books, has an excellent essay in Manhattan Journal comparing the economic performance of California and Texas. (I believe a short opinion page version appeared recently in the LAT.) Among other things, the article provides a good example for how a public choice analysis can be […]