Americana
The Rehabilitation of George W Bush: A Sisyphean Task
Freddy Gray is quite correct: the drive to rehabilitate George W Bush is suspicious. It is also a dog that won’t hunt. It is true that recent opinion polls have… Continue reading
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Why oh why oh why can’t Barack Obama be more like Lyndon Johnson?
So, is Barack Obama a wimp or just another lame-duck second-term President? Maureen Dowd, in her typically sophomoric fashion, appears to believe that the failure to pass gun control legislation… Continue reading
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Hugo Chavez: A Clown Masquerading As A Threat
As would-be dictators go, Hugo Chavez was on the clownish end of the repressive spectrum. By the end, however, the joke was wearing thin. He was, as Rory Carroll aptly… Continue reading
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Lessons from Ronnie and Maggie
Ramesh Ponnuru has written a splendid op-ed for today’s New York Times. Splendid, not because it is new or especially original, but because, alas, it’s central message needs repeating until,… Continue reading
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No, Barack Obama has not declared an end to the War on Terror - Spectator Blogs
I see that Con Coughlin is at it again. Apparently, you see, Barack Obama has “taken leave of reality”. How so? By declaring that al-Qaeda is but “a shadow of its former… Continue reading
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If Barack Obama is an isolationist then isolationism no longer has any meaning - Spectator Blogs
Con Coughlin suggests Barack Obama has “given up” fighting al-Qaeda which, frankly, is a curious assessment given the ongoing drone war (and other operations) in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Roger Kimball,… Continue reading
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Barack Obama's inauguration speech makes the case for Bigger Government - Spectator Blogs
I never quite know what to think about the whole Presidential inauguration thing. One the one hand there is always something stirring about being reminded of the sheer scale of… Continue reading
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Hillary Clinton 2016? If she wants it, then yes. - Spectator Blogs
Yes, yes, yes, speculating about the 2016 Presidential election before Barack Obama has even begun his second term is a silly business. But so what? Silly things can be fun… Continue reading
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Barack Obama's Gun Control Measures: Harmless but Ineffective - Spectator Blogs
Barack Obama’s response to the horror of Sandy Hook was entirely predictable, largely unobjectionable and most unlikely to make much of a difference to very much at all. Politics as… Continue reading
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The National Rifle Association Disgraces Itself. Again. - Spectator Blogs
Earlier this week I suggested that America’s gun owners have often been let down by the leadership of the gun-rights movement. I don’t know if that has ever been more… Continue reading
108 Comments
Newtown, Connecticut: A Very American Tragedy - Spectator Blogs
I’ve not written anything for a few days because, well, I’ve been trying to organise what I think about the awfulness of the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut. Trying, also, to… Continue reading
71 Comments
Today's easy question: Why won't minorities support right-wing parties? - Spectator Blogs
I’m afraid that I can’t help but feel some of the comments left responding to this post go some way towards answering a question Daniel Hannan asked recently: why do… Continue reading
90 Comments
The View from the Cocoon of Denial and Epistemic Closure - Spectator Blogs
William F Buckley has, alas, gone the way of all flesh but his National Review lives on and arguably remains the flagship journal of contemporary American conservatism. It certainly considers… Continue reading
67 Comments
Amidst Obama's Triumph, America Enjoys A Libertarian Moment - Spectator Blogs
Amidst last night’s Democratic triumph and the confirmation that Obama is, in many respects, Ronald Reagan’s heir let’s not forget that this election was also a triumph for libertarians and… Continue reading
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Barack Obama is Re-Elected President of the United States - Spectator Blogs
Well, I was wrong. I thought Mitt Romney might do rather better than it seems he has. As I type this CNN has just called Ohio for Barack Obama, confirming… Continue reading
15 Comments
Barack Obama Deserves A Second Term - Spectator Blogs
No matter the result of today’s Presidential election, it will not be Morning in America tomorrow. Of course the successful candidate will talk of America’s essential greatness. He will promise… Continue reading
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The Continental Divide: Why are Red States So Red and Blue States So Blue? - Spectator Blogs
So, for the third time in the last four American elections it looks as though this contest is gonna be a close one. As in 2004, however, the narrow-but-significant advantage… Continue reading
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Annals of Hurricane Deprivation: Wall Street Edition
Hats-off to Bloomberg’s Max Abelson for this delicious, bone-dry report on how Wall Street’s finest have coped with the impact of Hurricane Sandy. Wall Street turned to Bordeaux, sushi and… Continue reading
3 Comments
Did America bring Hurricane Sandy upon itself? - Spectator Blogs
Apparently so. You can always count on the British left to sneer at the United States. (You can count on quite a bit of the British right to do so… Continue reading
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The Republican party didn't leave Michael Bloomberg. He was never really in it. - Spectator Blogs
If two things could have been predicted about Hurricane Sandy it was that, first, far too many people would waste time pondering the likely impact of the storm upon next… Continue reading
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