MSNBC
The Great Epistemic Closure Debate
Julian Sanchez has been writing about the right's tendency toward "epistemic closure" -- an intellectual world in which the only trustworthy sources of information are those within your movement. Sanchez is libertarian-ish, but clearly argues that this is primarily a right-wing phenomenon: READ MORE >>
The Repeal Fantasy
Looks like an uphill fight even within the Republican Party, reports Suzy Khimm: READ MORE >>
Tavis Smiley's Backstep: Why Not Just Have a Party?
Not long ago, Tavis Smiley did something I would not have expected, which is rare. He announced that he was discontinuing his annual State of the Black Union conferences. These have been powwows where the Usual Suspects are invited to make the usual points: roughly decrying racism while genuflecting to the radical idea that people are responsible for repairing their own culture too. They have had black conservatives sprinkled in for “balance,” to be sure, but we all know the drill. READ MORE >>
Health Care Pollyanna Update
MSNBC's First Read reports, "We’re told that the White House and House Dem leaders are fewer than five votes away from 216." I have always thought that the key is to get within four or five votes. Once you're there, you're very likely to win. Why? Because then the White House and Democratic leaders can concentrate all their attention on a few holdouts. READ MORE >>
Iran Contrarians
A Long, Strange Post On Somebody You've Never Heard Of
Why Washington Loves The Filibuster
Where's the Obama I Voted For?
If you’ve been a Democrat for more than two or three years, disappointment with your leaders is something that comes rather naturally. From the 1970s until well into the previous decade, the party produced presidents and presidential candidates like Jimmy Carter, Michael Dukakis, and John Kerry. These men weren’t lovable losers. They were just losers. Even the lone winner among them--Bill Clinton--famously and infamously found ways to disappoint. READ MORE >>
What Is Anthony Weiner Doing?
Rep. Anthony Weiner has been a uniquely valuable voice on health care over the last few months--pushing for the best possible bill, complete with a public option, but also embracing a compromise when it was the only available option. That makes his performance tonight all the more mystifying--and disappointing. READ MORE >>
Since news broke that Keith Olbermann would have to consider allowing former Newsweek writer Richard Wolffe back on "Countdown" due to his perceived conflict-of-interest as a member of Dan Bartlett's PR firm Public Strategies, one open question remains: Why are Olbermann and MSNBC hedging now? Wolffe's position at Public Strategies was never a secret. The company sent out a press release on March 30 announcing his arrival. Wolffe includes his title in his bio for his Daily Beast column, and his READ MORE >>
