The New Republic

WASHINGTON--Normally, we might be talking about President-elect Barack Obama's Monday news conference on energy and the environment. But, no. Thanks to the Democratic governor with a wire-brush mop of hair, a crude mouth and what's alleged to be an inclination to put his state government up for sale, the political world's interest has drifted elsewhere. READ MORE >>

WASHINGTON--Hope versus fear, new versus old: Barack Obama and John McCain have placed their bets. These are the terms on which the 2008 presidential campaign will be decided. That's why it's unfair for political bystanders to attack Obama and McCain for offering few specifics as to how they'd fix an ailing economy. And it's foolish to ask them to jettison their campaign promises in order to pay homage to the God of Balanced Budgets. READ MORE >>

WASHINGTON -- September began as John McCain's month and ended as Barack Obama's. McCain's high-risk wagers aimed at shaking up the campaign turned into very bad investments. And Friday's debate eliminated McCain's best chance to deliver a knockout blow to an opponent whose most important asset may be his capacity for self-correction. McCain is supposed to own the foreign policy issue--and he should have owned Friday's debate. During their respective primary battles, McCain was a better debater than Obama, who could be hesitant, wordy and thrown off his stride. READ MORE >>

Let's say it unequivocally: Mitt Romney's Mormon faith should not be an issue in this presidential campaign. Period. And then let us explore why the Mormon "issue" may be unavoidable--and what Romney and the rest of us should do about it. Romney's biggest problem is that he is running in a Republican Party that has been saturated by religion in recent years. Other than Sunday's debate on Fox News, the biggest GOP event during the weekend was the straw poll at the Values Voter Summit sponsored by the Family Research Council. READ MORE >>

SHORTLY BEFORE NOON on the day that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected Pope Benedict XVI, I was standing in St. Peter's Square with a smart young Carmelite priest from Ireland. We were watching black smoke pour out of what, for a few days at least, was the most famous chimney in the world. That meant no Pope, yet. READ MORE >>