→ show Blue Yeti's comment (#)
Blue Yeti

Re: Calling All Texans

Blue Yeti

I'll jump in here to let you all know that this interview will be taped in front of a live audience on June 13th at 11AM in Austin as part of an event being put on by The Texas Public Policy Institute. We are in the process of securing a number of tickets for Ricochet members. We'll have more information about that next week. We'd also be interested in having an informal Ricochet meetup in Austin on the evening of June 12th.

Edited 2 hours ago
Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson
4 hours ago
images-2

Folks, this is a bleg.  I need help.

Preparing to interview Gov. Rick Perry for Uncommon Knowledge down in Austin next month, I keep finding the same question coming to mind:  What makes Texas Texas? 

While my beloved California has raised taxes, imposed onerous regulations, and run vast budget deficits--and all this under both Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, and Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, demonstrating that dysfunction here in the Golden State has become bipartisan--while California has been doing all it could to drive business and enterprising citizens out of the state, Texas has welcomed business, keeping taxes low, imposing a relatively light and more or less sensible regulatory regime, and--this is Perry's personal accomplishment--enacting a tort reform that seems to have ended frivolous lawsuits against business.  Of the jobs created in this country in the last few years, according to some estimates, the majority have been created in one state, the Lone Star State.

images-3

Pretty clearly, Texas is now deep into a virtuous cycle:  Conservative policies have created jobs and wealth--and a hunger for more such policies.  But how did the cycle get started?  Does it all go back to Sam Houston and the hardy, self-reliant Anglos who moved into the state when it was still part of Mexico, then declared independence?  Does it have something to do with the willingness of the business class to participate in politics?  Whereas here in California loads of businesspeople shun politics--one of the proudest boasts of the Silicon Valley entrepreneur is that he refuses to have anything to do with politics--in Texas, I've noticed, they seem to play a more active role, helping to choose, and fund, good candidates.

The history of the place, the current business culture--what?

I repeat, What makes Texas Texas?

I'd be happy to hear from anyone who thinks he has an insight to offer, but, needless to say, I extend a particular invitation to the denizens of the Lone Star State.  Honestly, I just can't figure it out.  Say on!

Read more...
Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson
5 hours ago
images

In the first round of the Egyptian presidential election, which took place last week, the two top vote getters were Ahmed Shafiq, Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister (pictured to the left), and the candidate of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Morsi (pictured on the right).  (Morsi, incidentally, is an engineer trained in the United States.  His experience of this country seems to have turned him against us.)

These two candidates, both of whom received very nearly 25 percent of the ballots, will now proceed to a second and final round of voting, which will take place on June 16 and 17.

images-1

Mubarak's last prime minister or the candidate of the Muslim Brotherhood.  What a miserable choice--or so I thought until reading Fouad Ajami's piece in today's Wall Street Journal.  Even if the Muslim Brotherhood elects its man, Fouad argues, there will be a limit to how much damage he can do:

In the vision of the Islamists, Egypt would be ruled by Shariah law and the secularists reined in. This cannot be sustained on Egyptian soil. Theocracies like Iran, or Saudi Arabia for that matter, rest on oil wealth, on the margin such wealth allows the rulers to mold the society. In Egypt, so dependent on foreign aid, remittances, the revenues of tourism and the kindness of strangers, a religious utopia would be undone.

Egypt may grow worse, in other words, but only by so much.

Well, that's some comfort, anyway.

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James Lileks

Re: Obama Says You Don't Have All the Information

James Lileks

Perhaps he's right. We don't have enough information. We know that the policies of the left result in more government, less freedom, and diminished personal property. But we don't quite get why that's a good thing.

John Yoo
John Yoo
9 hours ago

My recent book, Taming Globalization, argues that globalization presents profound  challenges to the American constitutional order because it gives rise to international law and institutions that demand the transfer of sovereignty in response. Ted Carpenter of the CATO Institute posted a  review at Liberty Fund's new website, here.

While generally favorable, Carpenter criticizes the book for its slight mention of the Bricker Amendment and for being too favorable toward presidential interpretation of treaties and international law (as opposed to the courts).

My reply is here.

I think  Ricochet readers will find interesting both disagreements, but in particular the Bricker Amendment, which was an effort to amend the Constitution to prevent treaties from having any legal effect within the United States.  It failed by only one vote in the Senate.  Although Bricker was from the Midwest, I argue that the Amendment was an effort by Southern senators (led by Lyndon Johnson, among others) to prevent human rights treaties from undermining segregation.

Read more...
Jonathan Horn
Jonathan Horn
11 hours ago

For more than three years, members of the political class have wondered why some Americans disagree with President Barack Obama's policies. Surely, after all, the problem can't be in the policies themselves. If only Americans understood individual mandates and Keynesian economics, they would grasp the logic of Obama's views.

Earlier this week in Iowa, Obama finally spelled out what the political class has suspected all along. His critics are just poorly informed. Here is an excerpt from his speech with the key line in bold.

And when enough of you knock on enough doors and pick up enough phones, and talk to your friends or your neighbors and your coworkers -- and you're doing it respectfully and you're talking to folks who don't agree with you, you're talking to people who are good people, but maybe they don't have all the information -- when you make that happen, when you decide it’s time for change to happen, you know what, change happens.  Change comes to America. 

Read more...
Blue Yeti
Blue Yeti
12 hours ago

Thje Amatuer cover

Another Saturday night special edition of The Hinderaker-Ward Experience is ready for your listening pleasure.  It’s John Hinderaker of Power Line and Brian Ward of Fraters Libertas breaking down the big stories of the week.  These include President Obama’s straight-faced claims of leading the most fiscally responsible administration in the last 60 years and Obama’s perhaps not unrelated difficulties in cracking 60% of the vote running against convicted felons and “none of the above” in Democratic primaries around the country.

Special guest this week is New York Times best selling author Edward Klein.  His latest book is THE hot buzz story on the Internet this week, it’s The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House.   Via hundreds of personal interviews with political and Obama insiders Ed provides previously undocumented details on the President’s background and performance in office over his first term.   Lots of juicy tidbits as well, including Bill Clinton’s real opinion of Obama, Valerie Jarrett’s undue influence in the White House, and the acrimonious rivalry between Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey.

Later, Loon of the Week (top Democrat official claims of unnatural relations between Romney and a corporate entity) and This Week in Gate Keeping (how changing one word can REALLY affect the accuracy of a story).

We hope you enjoy, and comments and feedback are always most welcome.

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John Bell, Guest Contributor

Re: A Manifesto's Unbridled Power

John Bell, Guest Contributor

Not discouraged in the least. The clarity that impressed me most in the Apple Manifesto was a) Saying "no" to thousands of projects. The mountain to climb has been defined. It is not a range. b) The quest to own and control primary technologies and, c) Reiterating the innovative culture. I'm not so sure the "soft" purposes and values detract. Thanks for weighing in.

John Bell, Guest Contributor
John Bell, Guest Contributor
15 hours ago
Breathe-it-all-in

Manifestos ignite people into action. The best manifestos are so emotionally charged that their catalytic influence can endure for centuries. The Ten Commandments and the Declaration of Independence are good examples. As recently as fifty years ago, an emotional speech delivered from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial established a clear and compelling purpose for American Civil Rights. Today, MLK's I Have a Dream is arguably the most inspiring manifesto of the 20th Century.

Though manifestos are best known for political movements, the ideals and intent of such potent texts can also move people to excel on behalf of the organizations that employ them. Apple is a very good example. Tim Cook stated the Apple Way six months before Steve Jobs passed away. Cook’s declaration left employees and investors believing that Apple could go on without Steve Jobs. Read it and you’ll understand why. Cook said,

We're on the face of the earth to make great products.
We're constantly focusing on innovating.
We believe we need to own and control the primary technologies behind the products that we make and participate only in markets where we can make a significant contribution.
We believe in saying no to thousands of projects so we can focus on the few that are meaningful to us.
We believe in deep collaboration and cross pollination in order to innovate in a way others cannot.
We don't settle for anything other than excellence in any group in the company, and we have the self-honesty to admit when we're wrong and the courage to change.
Regardless of who is in what job, those values are so embedded in this company that Apple will do extremely well.

Crafting a company manifesto is no easy task. For the statement to be effective it must:

1. State a Compelling Purpose. Apple’s purpose is all about existing to make awesome products and operating under deep emotional principles.

2. Capture Core Values. Apple’s manifesto is loaded with core values – admitting error, simplifying, collaborating, innovating, and demanding excellence.

3. Tell the Truth. Mission Statements are full of illusionary and distant visions. Great manifestos instantly strike the emotions when they are true.

4. Link Business Life to Personal Life. The Apple Manifesto does not touch on this. It likely doesn’t have to, because unlike most industries, tech life and home life is intertwined – certainly the case at Apple.

5. Be Inclusive. The manifesto must touch (and move) everybody. I don’t know if Disney, Nike, Cirque du Soleil, or the New England Patriots have a manifesto. But they sure as hell act like they do.

6. Differentiate. There is nothing more powerful than differentiation in a competitive arena. That goes for business and sports. Even war.

Unlike the stereotypical corporate mission or the vision statement, a manifesto tells everyone who you are, what you believe in and why you are prepared to invest yourself in the cause. As for a simple manifesto on this thing we call life, I suggest you take a moment to breathe it all in and love it all out.

The above image comes courtesy of Kal Barteski http://www.kalbarteski.com/

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Tommy De Seno

Re: I Wish They Had Fought Like This Over Obamacare

Tommy De Seno

New Jersey's Congressional Delegation has an advantage in the Congressional Battle Royale with former NFL lineman, Congressman Jon Runyan:

jon runyan
Edited 13 hours ago
→ show Tommy De Seno's comment (#)
Tommy De Seno

Re: #VetThePrez: Obama and Recreational Drugs

Tommy De Seno

SNL and other comedians still do jokes about George Bush.

Can you imagine if these facts came out about a Republican.  No joke would fail to have a stoner reference.

On another point -  that he did become President will be used as evidence by those who hold that marijuana is no more dangerous to one's life than liquor.

Edited 13 hours ago
→ show Tommy De Seno's comment (#)
Tommy De Seno

Re: TCM Alert and Memorial Day Movie Thread: What's Your Favorite War Movie?

Tommy De Seno

War related -  I found Charlie Wilson's War to be fascinating.

Adrian
Joined
Nov '11
Adrian
22 hours ago

To get you started, here's what TCM is playing Monday (yes, I just pasted from their site, I'm busy!):

Green Berets, The(1968) Where Eagles Dare(1969) Guns of Navarone, The (1961) Dirty Dozen, The (1967)Bridge On The River Kwai, The (1957)Great Escape, The(1963) Kelly's Heroes (1970)

I don't know if it counts as a war movie, my favorite is probably The Best Years of Our Lives, which I included in my post last week about best romances. Hey, it's a good flick.

Also of note this weekend:

- We had a great western movie thread, and a lot of people nominated Red River, it's on tomorrow afternoon if you want to catch it.

- The Mortal Storm is on tonight. Made in 1940, one of the earliest Hollywood films to confront what was happening to the Jews in Germany, very good as a movie, even better as a historical document.

That's it for me, let us know your picks in the comments - that's an order!

Read more...
Robert Mitchell
Joined
Mar '12
Robert Mitchell
May 25 at 10:53pm
Joe Biden

Yesterday, Joe Biden was continuing the attack on Mitt Romney's Bain Capital experience, stating that Romney's experience as a private equity CEO "no more qualifies you to be president than being a plumber." For a vice president whose main role on the ticket is to connect with the blue collar Reagan Democrats, that is a Biden blunder ranking up there with praising Obama as "clean and articulate."  No surprise.

I view it as a "Kinsley gaffe," in which a politician reveals what he (and in this case, most of the Democrat leadership) actually does think, about the average blue collar tradesman. Why, exactly, is a plumber unfit to be president? I know one plumber who has built up a substantial contracting business over the last 35 years; I suspect his practical knowledge of how the real world works far better fits him to be president than, say, a lawyer with a lifetime in the US Senate or a community organizer turned law professor. But, in the minds of Biden, Obama, and most of the Democratic leadership and the "Mainstream Media", only people possessing advanced degrees are qualified for elective office. (I suspect Sarah Palin's lack of such a credential was the invitation to her marginalization.)

This obsession with higher academic credentials goes far beyond elective office, though. Over the last 40 years, the whole view of blue collar work has changed profoundly. Parents of children who choose not to go to college are deeply shamed (particularly if they attended college themselves). My father (who had a masters degree) never felt that way about my brothers who went into blue collar jobs, but now even those brothers push their own kids to go to college. (This is the cultural driver of the higher ed bubble that is rarely discussed.)

In the 50s America I grew up in, blue collar men were not ashamed of their work, and it was inconceivable that a Vice President of either party would casually voice the kind of snobbism Biden did.  The Left's obsession with income equality can be seen as simple projection, a strategy to divert attention from the reality of the Left's contempt for the noncredentialled serfs they pretend to represent.

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Rob Long

Re: TCM Alert and Memorial Day Movie Thread: What's Your Favorite War Movie?

Rob Long

tabula rasa: One more. My Dad landed on Omaha Beach on the fourth day of the invasion (D-Day + 3), which meant that he had to drive his tank three or four miles inland before they started shooting at him. He was badly wounded in October.

When Saving Private Ryan came out, he surprised me by saying he'd like to see it. After the horrific first 20 minutes, there's a scene in which Tom Hanks stands atop a bluff with the invasion beaches stretching out behind him (as I understand it, this was filmed on the Irish coast). My Dad leaned over and said, "That's exactly what it looked like." I liked the movie, but my Dad's comment made it special to me. · 4 hours ago

Edited 4 hours ago

I heard the same thing from a D-Day vet, Tabula.  

My vote:  Bridge Over the River Kwai.  Just spectacular.

→ show Paul A. Rahe's comment (#)
Paul A. Rahe

Re: Free Advice to the Romney Speechwriting Team

Paul A. Rahe

Noesis Noeseos

It is often asserted that the world has made a great deal of progress since 1776, that we have had new thoughts and new experiences which have given us a great advance over the people of that day, and that we may therefore very well discard their conclusions for something more modern. But that reasoning can not be applied to this great charter. If all men are created equal, that is final. If they are endowed with inalienable rights, that is final. If governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, that is final. No advance, no progress can be made beyond these propositions. If anyone wishes to deny their truth or their soundness, the only direction in which he can proceed historically is not forward, but backward toward the time when there was no equality, no rights of the individual, no rule of the people. Those who wish to proceed in that direction can not lay claim to progress. They are reactionary. Their ideas are not more modern, but more ancient, than those of the Revolutionary fathers.

Take that, Progressives! · 20 minutes ago

That is, indeed his theme.

→ show Diane Ellis, Ed.'s comment (#)
Diane Ellis, Ed.

Re: #VetThePrez: Obama and Recreational Drugs

Diane Ellis, Ed.

Eeyore

Diane Ellis, Ed.  Maybe it'll provide inspiration for a conversation to have with your children about drugs. 

Diane, I know it's future speculation. However, are you really ready to hear 

"But Mom, he became President!"· 45 minutes ago

I'd thought of that earlier too and was bemoaning the fact that we have a President who sets such a bad example for American children and adolescents in this regard.

Diane Ellis, Ed.
Diane Ellis, Ed.
May 25 at 3:46pm
Obama_via BuzzFeed

Had the revelations about young Barry's recreational drug habits surfaced four years ago, maybe they wouldn't have mattered.  To be sure, those details wouldn't have hurt his popularity in stoner cities like Santa Cruz, Berkeley, or San Francisco.  But it's still uncanny that it all went unremarked upon in 2008. 

Mollie already highlighted Obama's old habit of "snagging joints from his buddies’ hands and shouting ‘Intercepted!’ before taking an extra hit," but BuzzFeed has published the complete User's Guide to Smoking Pot with Barack Obama based on excerpts from David Maraniss' new book.  I wonder when we'll see the President interviewed about his activity in the "Choom Gang" (choom is a verb that means "to smoke marijuna").  Specifically, I'd like to hear him tell us about his trendsetting ways:

As a member of the Choom Gang, Barry Obama was known for starting a few pot-smoking trends. The first was called "TA," short for "total absorption." To place this in the physical and political context of another young man who would grow up to be president, TA was the antithesis of Bill Clinton's claim that as a Rhodes scholar at Oxford he smoked dope but never inhaled.

Take a look at the Guide.  Maybe it'll provide inspiration for a conversation to have with your children about drugs.

Read more...
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Peter Robinson

Re: Last Questions and the Curse of Sudden Self-Consciousness

Peter Robinson

Pilli: Peter, I have always admired the fact that you actually listen to and think about what the guest is saying.  Unlike other interviewers (Rose or  Moyers) you ask the follow-up questions that summarize what the guest has said then challenge some or all of it.  You are a master interviewer and the tons of in depth preparation you put in is obvious.  

When I listen to Uncommon Knowledge, I'm all ears...too. · 8 minutes ago

You just made my day.  Muchisimas gracias.

→ show Paul A. Rahe's comment (#)
Paul A. Rahe

Re: Free Advice to the Romney Speechwriting Team

Paul A. Rahe

Peter, here is something to think about. Coolidge's speech is an oblique response to a speech Woodrow Wilson gave at Gettysburg on the 50th anniversary of the battle. Coolidge returned to Lincoln's themes, which Wilson had assiduously avoided. I talk about this briefly in Soft Despotism, Democracy's Drift.

→ show Diane Ellis, Ed.'s comment (#)
Diane Ellis, Ed.

Re: Last Questions and the Curse of Sudden Self-Consciousness

Diane Ellis, Ed.
EJHill: Have Diane tape this to the table in front of you... · 15 minutes ago

It's nice when he instructs us how to get under his skin, isn't it?

In all seriousness though, I for one appreciate knowing that even a successful guy like Peter feels self-conscious now and then.  Makes my own self-consciousness seem appropriate.

→ show Peter Robinson's comment (#)
Peter Robinson

Re: Last Questions and the Curse of Sudden Self-Consciousness

Peter Robinson
EJHill: Have Diane tape this to the table in front of you... · 1 minute ago

Whether this graphic will have the same effect on anyone else, I cannot say.  But I happened to call it up while a telephone call at the office just now, and I had to excuse myself for bursting into laughter.

There's only one EJ.

(And thank goodness.)

Edited on May 25 at 6:18pm
Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson
May 25 at 2:46pm
images-4

An email from Ricochet member Jo:

Hi Peter,
Recently Ricochet solicited questions from members and what a thrill when mine was mentioned in a podcast - "how many last questions does Peter ask per episode [of Uncommon Knowledge]?" It was meant in warmth and fun. I'd always assumed your last questions were a result of your curiosity and passion and every last question made me smile.
But now it appears you're not using this technique any longer. I'm sad. I hope you didn't change your methods because of me. Please, more last questions!!

My reply:

Dear Jo,

images-2

Your comment, to be honest, did get inside my head, in that Dumbo-do-you-really-believe-that-feather-enables-you-to-fly kind of way.  All of a sudden, I realized that in taping Uncommon Knowledge I quite often promise a guest three, four or five times in a row that this question really is the last question.  But in each the last couple of episodes, I was very careful to ask only one last question, making the last question the last.

Now I'll try to reverse myself, going back to my old ways, proffering not just one last question, but a plenitude.  I warn you, though, that it won't be any easy.  Was Dumbo able to regrasp the feather?

As I say, I'll do my best.  But if in the next few episodes you see me crashing to earth--I lack Dumbo's saving ears--you'll all know why.

Read more...
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Peter Robinson

Re: Is David Cameron a Soviet Sleeper Agent?

Peter Robinson

Paul A. Rahe: Peter, keep in mind that Bill Clinton was in my generation at Oxford-- he left just before I arrived -- and E. J. Dionne and Franklin Raines were there with me (as was Rowan Williams). We have a lot to answer for.

 · 2 hours ago

Quite right, Paul, and come to think of it, strictly speaking I belong to the generation between yours and James's, having gone done from Christ Church in 1981.  Clinton was long gone by then, but Brother James was still learning the alphabet.

Christ Church, as you'll have been well aware, was affectionately known as the "House."  A favorite cheer of the boat club during those halcyon days when I was in the bow position in the first XVIII:  "Give me an 'H.'  Give me an 'I.'  Give me a 'C.'  Give me an 'E.'  What's that spell?"  Whereupon we would all roar our reply in our best Bertie Wooster accent.

Ah, me.  You can see why Margaret Thatcher believed England needed to be given a good shaking up.

Edited on May 25 at 2:25pm
→ show Rob Long's comment (#)
Rob Long

Re: Glad We Saved 'Em

Rob Long

Duane Oyen: We keep slipping into Bachmann Syndrome on this.  1) Of course, Rob is right about the proper fate of the idiots responsible. 2) Of course, we hate the idea of bailouts.

But-TARP was not instituted or voted in because we wanted to rescue careless bankers or preserve their bonuses.  It was reluctantly implemented because we were afraid that the alternative was a collapse of the banking system under a domino effect caused by inadequate capital reserves, due to reduced value of shaky assets (collapse in housing prices after an extended run-up). The problem wasn't the derivatives, it was the underlying assets.  TARP wasreluctantly accepted by a large number of pristine free-market, conservative economists (including Ricochet's Prof. King Banaian). 

The solution is, of course two-fold, and hated by every big banker out there (and who cares what they think?): 1) break up the banks into "OK to fail" size, and 2) increase capital requirements. · 33 minutes ago

Hey, Oyen!  Stop making sense, okay? Can't a guy just vent irrationally once in a while?

→ show Troy Senik, Ed.'s comment (#)
Troy Senik, Ed.

Re: Empirical Proof: Congress is Getting Dumber

Troy Senik, Ed.

I agree with those who are wary of the methodology. I had to chuckle when I saw that sentence length was one of the criteria. Anyone who's ever spent time in a Congressional gallery knows that the problem isn't an insufficient commitment to long-windedness from the speakers.

That being said, no one seems to be challenging the bigger premise -- that political rhetoric, on average, has become depressingly pedestrian. I understand those of you who are emphasizing clarity -- it's an excellent point -- but Churchill and Lincoln managed to be perfectly clear with a lot more sophistication. And let's be honest -- if you listen to most of these members of Congress, their simplicity doesn't translate to Sowellesque insight. It's pablum.

If you have the desire, spend part of your Memorial Day weekend with the rhetoric of the Founding Fathers; the floor speeches of Webster, Clay, and Calhoun; The Lincoln-Douglas Debates; Calvin Coolidge & FDR; JFK & Ronald Reagan. You'll find a firmness of prose in each. But, more importantly, you'll find robust thought underpinning them. That, my friends, is the real casualty of this trend.

Rob Long
Rob Long
May 25 at 1:32pm

In the Ukrainian parliament yesterday, there was a fight over the use of the Russian language.  And when I say "fight," I mean fight:

If only they had fought like this over here when Obamacare was enacted.

(I'm only 70% kidding about that, by the way....)

Read more...
→ show Jonathan Horn's comment (#)
Jonathan Horn

Re: Free Advice to the Romney Speechwriting Team

Jonathan Horn

Peter, good advice especially since Romney is following in President Coolidge's footsteps. Silent Cal was the last governor of Massachusetts to make the trip from Beacon Street to Pennsylvania Avenue.

Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson
May 25 at 12:42pm
images-1

Find some way, and soon, of having the candidate quote Calvin Coolidge--yes, Calvin Coolidge.

From Coolidge's magnificent "Speech on the Occasion of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence":

We live in an age of science and of abounding accumulation of material things. These did not create our Declaration. Our Declaration created them. The things of the spirit come first. Unless we cling to that, all our material prosperity, overwhelming though it may appear, will turn to a barren sceptre in our grasp. If we are to maintain the great heritage which has been bequeathed to us, we must be like-minded as the fathers who created it. We must not sink into a pagan materialism. We must cultivate the reverence which they had for the things that are holy. We must follow the spiritual and moral leadership which they showed. We must keep replenished, that they may glow with a more compelling flame, the altar fires before which they worshiped.

Principled, passionate, and informed by a deep knowledge of American history.  Traits, in other words, with which Gov. Romney would do well to associate himself.  Come to think of it, why not schedule a Romney speech in honor of the Declaration of Independence for this coming Fourth of July?

(A tip of the hat to our own Ben Domenech, who reminded me of the Coolidge passage by using it to conclude an issue this week of his daily roundup of news and politics, "The Transom.")

Read more...
→ show Paul A. Rahe's comment (#)
Paul A. Rahe

Re: Is David Cameron a Soviet Sleeper Agent?

Paul A. Rahe

Peter, keep in mind that Bill Clinton was in my generation at Oxford-- he left just before I arrived -- and E. J. Dionne and Franklin Raines were there with me (as was Rowan Williams). We have a lot to answer for.

James, the thesis of your post reminds me of a piece that I once wrote suggesting that Barack Obama was a Manchurian Candidate fostered and foisted on the Democratic Party by that evil genius Karl Rove.

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