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POPSAre they underestimating Harry Reid? I wonder if Harry Reid is smarter than we've been giving him credit for. Conventional wisdom in Democratic circles holds that he's a wimp who folds every time Republicans even threaten a filibuster. But I wonder if it's possible that playing the helpless minority, especially on Iraq, might pay more political dividends than direct confrontation by sending the message that voters *must* give the Dems 60 votes in the Senate and the presidency if they want the war to end. I still think they should be more confrontational on domestic issues like the AMT, but this is food for thought.
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POPSDetails of Saddam's Execution I find it interesting that Al-Maliki didn't attend the exection. He's on record as being against the death penalty, but it's also smart politically. By not attending personally, he avoids the appearance that he's a Shiite politician gloating over the death of the Sunnis' hero.
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POPSProminent conservative surveys the wreckage of contemporary conservatism The entire article is highly reccommended for those that want to trace the GOP's post-9/11 "stumble into neoconservatism" from an insider's perspective. Bramwell's honesty and way with words are refreshing. Until recently, it has been almost impossible for me to speak candidly about the conservative movement, for it was my strange fate to serve as director and later trustee of the movement’s flagship journal, National Review. Earlier this year, at William F. Buckley’s request, I resigned both positions. I can therefore now declare what perhaps has oft been thought but never, at least not often enough, expressed. Notwithstanding conservatives’ belief that they, in contrast to their partisan opponents, have thought deeply about the challenges facing the United States, it is they who have become unserious.