“The spirit of moderation in a state of overbearing power is a phenomenon which has not yet appeared, and which no wise man will expect ever to see.” -- Alexander Hamilton

Quoted in "The Sources of American Legitimacy," by Robert W. Tucker and David C. Hendrickson, Foreign Affairs, November/December 2004.

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I hope you will forgive the lack of blogging here today and yesterday, and in so doing I ask you to accept, or at least take under consideration, my thoroughly reasonable excuses.

First, as you can imagine, after five days of “reading, rest, relaxation, and raw-hide bones,” time was needed to decamp from Chester County, Pa., and return to Philadelphia. Not more than an hour’s travel, but with the Conschy Curve and all that . . . Well, you gotta’ be local for that one.

Simultaneously, or at the same time, which is, of course, the very definition of simultaneous(ly), I was preoccupied by discussions related to a position of full-time employment, talks that sparked thoughts of – Dare I think it? – a regular paycheck and similar but ultimately rather ordinary delights, that after more than a year of unemployment, more than 12 months with no regular source of income during which I was ineligible to collect even a dime of unemployment compensation (contract employee, different states of residence and employment, etc., etc.). [Insert violin strains here.]

Orchestral string arrangements aside, let me here and now thank those readers who have contributed to the annual Rittenhouse fund drive. Your contributions are greatly appreciated. Sure, with a job on the horizon now may seem like a good time to leave the drive behind, but to be honest, I have ample ground that needs recapturing, most important, the acquisition of a new PC (the library and the housemate’s laptop are less than ideal means of sustaining this project), and my prospective employment is in the dreaded arena of “public interest,” and, well, you know what that means.

Begging and pleading aside, or rather, put directly in focus, I hope you will give some thought to making a modest, or generous, contribution to The Rittenhouse Review by clicking here. Your support and encouragement are greatly appreciated.

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Herewith a little lazy Sunday blogging, direct to you from a quaint little village in Chester County, Pa., where Mildred and I have gone away for five days of reading, rest, relaxation, and raw-hide bones. No “pithy” comments like “indeed,” just a few things of interest I found and elected to share today.

“Will the Last Hipster Please Turn Out the Lights?” by Zev Borow, New York, November 29.

“Babes in a Grown-up Toyland,” by Benedict Carey, the New York Times, November 28.

“To Hell With Values,” by Michael Kinsley, the Los Angeles Times, November 28.

“The Great Indecency Hoax,” by Frank Rich, the New York Times, November 28.

“The Sources of American Legitimacy,” by Robert W. Tucker and David C. Hendrickson, Foreign Affairs, November/December 2004.

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Somebody’s probably going to get in trouble for this, but what the heck.

Sisters, Lynne Cheney’s steamy novel about the Wild West, has been so effectively suppressed that the last time I checked I could find only one copy for sale on the web, and that at a staggering $13,000.

Search no more, friends, for Mrs. Tarquin Biscuitbarrel has transcribed Sisters, word for word, and posted the novel on the web at Lynne Cheney’s ‘Sisters.’”

You had better go read it now. I give the site two weeks before it’s shut down.

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From Houston:

A 5,280-pound Ten Commandments monument removed from an Alabama court building was displayed near a Bible monument at the Harris County Civil Courts Building on Friday to show support of religious symbols on government property.

American Veterans In Domestic Defense parked a flatbed truck with the granite Ten Commandments near the Bible display outside the courthouse.

"Our egregious judicial decisions are running roughshod over our Christian heritage, and we are tired of it," said Jim Cabaniss of Houston, the group's president, who is a retired owner of a company that built laboratories.

On Friday, the veteran's group drove the truck carrying the monument to the civil courts building on Fannin and parked directly in front of the entrance. […]

About 20 people were on hand to view the monument. Several parents and their children had their photos taken in front of it.

Barbara Casarez of Spring Branch said, "I wanted to see the wonderful monument and stand with the other Christians."

Donald Buzbee, 70, an evangelist from east Houston who protested removing the Bible from the county monument, said, "It is great to use this (tour) to stop the madness of the Supreme Court in ruling on religious issues."

The monument remained in front of the building for only two hours before heading for stops at Houston-area malls.

Attention Kmart shoppers, First-Amendment gutters cheapening religious values now in aisle three.

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A week ago readers were asked to participate in a poll asking, “Should Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) run for president of the U.S. in 2008?”

Although participation was limited to a somewhat disappointing 360 readers, those who cast votes left no doubt where they stand. A substantial majority of readers, 84 percent, said Sen. Clinton should not seek the presidency four years hence, while 11 percent said she should, and five percent were undecided or had no opinion.

The full results are published below:

No: 301 votes, or 84%
Yes: 41 votes, or 11%
Don't Know/Not Sure/No Opinion: 18 votes, 5%

I voted yes, in keeping with my longstanding view that having more candidates from which to choose, particularly if the candidates involved can effectively promote a wide range of positions, leads to a better informed electorate. I recognize that in practice this robust debate routinely fails to emerge, that due in large part to eagerness among the party leadership, echoed by the media, to narrow the field quickly. (The party wants to prevent “divisiveness,” while the media, well, to them it’s all just so confusing.) I still have hope.

Thanks to all who participated in the poll.

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Today The Rittenhouse Review was visited by a resident of Idaho -- Boise, Idaho, to be specific -- bringing to a full 50 the number of states represented in the new referral log created on November 14. Thanks go out to the unknown Idahoan.

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There's a new daily newspaper, of sorts, in Philadelphia. Launched yesterday, the Evening Bulletin replicates the name of a daily that folded in 1982 after a 134-year stretch.

How long it will take the new incarnation to reach the standards of its namesake remains to be seen. As the Philadelphia Inquirer notes today ("Evening Bulletin Launches, and An Old Name Returns," by Murray Dubin), the first issue was a little lacking in heft: "[T]he new Evening Bulletin was 28 pages yesterday, 12 of them containing results of the Philadelphia Marathon on Sunday."

Mary Lou Doyle, spokeswoman for the Evening Bulletin told the Inquirer, "We're going to have journalistic integrity and be good storytellers," adding that the staff of 25 reporters, photographers, and editors will produce a paper that would be "more conservative" than the old Bulletin, but would not make any "political endorsements."

Chris Brennan offers a few arch comments in today's Philadelphia Daily News ("New Bulletin Debuts With Little Fanfare"):

The paper's front-page motto, Res Ipsa Loquitur, is a Latin phrase meaning "The thing speaks for itself."

That's a common legal term for claiming someone is guilty of negligence if they controlled something that caused an accident.

How that applies to putting out a daily newspaper is not explained in Monday's Bulletin.

And this:

In a story about the paper's launch, editor Kevin Williamson said newspapers are now written by overtrained reporters who no longer live among the readers.

"The reason fewer people read newspapers today is because the quality of American newspapers has declined," said Williamson, a Texan who lives in Ardmore and recently left a job as editor of the weekly Main Line Times.

I have no idea what the real market is for such a publication, but judging from letters to the editor published by the Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News, there are plenty of cranky conservatives who feel threatened by the leading dailies, papers one would think, based on their complaints, are Maoist revolutionary rags.

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An interesting coincidence, I think, that CBS news anchor Dan Rather announced his impending retirement (to take effect March 9) just one week after the passing of persistent critic Reed Irvine, whose 16-year "Can Dan" campaign failed to bear fruit during his lifetime.

Coincidence, I suppose, and not spite, but who knows?

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The Rittenhouse Review, starting this evening, features an opportunity for readers to comment on each post published at this site.

I have great misgivings about this change, but am willing to add the feature on a trial basis in response to readers' longstanding requests for a voice at the site.

As such, I make no promises.

Let me say that I'm still learning exactly how the comments section functions, or even if it works at all. If there are unacceptable limitations embedded in the software I will turn off the feature.

And allow me to emphasize that profanity, vulgarity, crude language, personal attacks, unauthorized commercial activity, and spam are strictly forbidden.

[Note: Commenters especially are encouraged to make a donation to the annual pledge drive. Blogging at the public library and from my housemate's laptop is not particularly effective and, frankly, it's getting old.]

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Earlier this evening I posted a brief item at HorowitzWatch, a blog I created in July 2002 to keep an eye on the antics and hysterics of David Horowitz -- no, not the crusading consumer advocate, but the opportunistically conservative foundation-funds-feeder -- an endeavor ably and nobly aided by several of my fellow bloggers.

I regret that I have neglected the tending HorowitzWatch deserves, relying on my colleagues to keep the site going. My neglect resulted largely from the fact that Horowitz's star, such as it ever was, has faded considerably in the past two years, a diminishment that is the responsibility of only one person: the increasingly marginal fringista known as David Horowitz.

And I must admit I wouldn't have been able to publish today's post, "Pass the Microphone to Roger Ailes," without the assistance of Roger Ailes, the blogger who proudly has nothing whatsoever to do with Fox News.

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The latest Rittenhouse reader poll, posted Friday, thus far has taken the pulse of just more than 200 readers, a somewhat tepid response given this site's daily readership.

And so allow me to encourage you to participate in the poll, which you can find in the sidebar at right, and which asks, "Should Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) run for president of the U.S. in 2008?"

Note that readers are not asked whether they would support Sen. Clinton, only whether she should run for president, the implied subtext being whether her candidacy would be good for the Democratic Party and for the country.

Responses will be taken until 8:00 p.m. (Eastern time), Friday, November 26, after which the results will be forwarded to the Washington office of Sen. Clinton.

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Failed Senate Candidate Alan Keyes

Successful Mass Murderer Colin Ferguson

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Reader L.M. writes:

I'm writing in response to your query of November 20, "I always thought a man who carried 'Jr.' after his name was obliged to drop that suffix upon the decease of the elder relative from whom that honorific was derived. . . . With that in mind, and if I'm correct, why are we expected to continue to refer to that which is known as William F. Buckley Jr. as William F. Buckley Jr. instead of William F. Buckley?"

Your surmise is correct. "Junior" distinguishes between a living person and his namesake. When the latter passes away, it is customary for the survivor to drop the suffix, or if there are other namesakes, to adopt the appropriate Roman cardinal, as in "II."

As to why Mr. Buckley still sports the suffix, it's because he is a hopeless arriviste with more pretension than provenance.

And I am adopting your suggestion of a boycott of Florida oranges.

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News from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.: "Two masked robbers burst into a Catholic church Monday morning in the upscale Victoria Park neighborhood and demanded money from the parishioners assembled for Mass. Police said 11 churchgoers were in the sanctuary at Saint Anthony Catholic Church for the 6:30 a.m. Mass. Mayhem broke out when the two men, at least one of them armed with a black semi-automatic handgun, walked down the center aisle demanding wallets and purses."

Now, maybe it's just me thinking like this, but if the goal is to pull in a decent cash haul by robbing from the pews, Sunday really is a better bet than Monday.

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Avedon Changes Her F-Stop [*]
Avedon Carol has relocated her indispensible London-based blog, The Sideshow, which now can be found here.

Wyoming is In the House [*]
The Rittenhouse Review is just one state away from having been read in all 50 states since Sunday, November 14, when a new traffic counter and referral log were installed here. The good news came out of Wyoming, home to the easily outraged Dick Cheneys and, more important, a longtime Rittenhouse reader who, like me, grew up hearing early-morning references to "The Wreck of the Hesperus." Idaho, care to join us?

Facts Don't Matter I
Eric Boehlert eviscerates New York Times columnist and right-wing propagandist William Safire in "William Safire's Dubious Legacy," published today at Salon.com.

By the way, Safire today is throwing his support behind the Schwarzenegger amendment. His piece, "The 28th Amendment," includes this oddity:

Article II of the Constitution directed that in the future only "natural born" citizens would be eligible for the nation's highest office. [...]

That makes all naturalized citizens . . . slightly less than all-American. Even children born abroad of U.S. citizens have fallen under the shadow of Article II; this has caused pregnant women to race back to our shores to make certain their children's political potential is not somehow beclouded.

Please tell me Safire is trying to be funny.

And be sure to read the penultimate paragraph of Safire's doodlings. It's simply bizarre.

Facts Don't Matter II
Speaking of factually challenged right-wing pundits . . . Against my better judgment I took a look at Arnaud de Borchgrave's op-ed piece in Sunday's New York Post, "Europe's Civil War." To be honest my curiosity was piqued less by any interest in what the former Washington Times editor had to say on the subject and more by my surprise upon learning de Borchgrave is still among the living. I was going to blog about his stunning display of ignorance about Dutch culture as reflected in a piece that any self-respecting 10th-grader would have been ashamed to call his own. Then, on a lark I checked in on Vaara, the expatriate blogger based in Amsterdam, and found he already had mercilessly dissected the essay, and without breaking a sweat.

Blogging in the News
Give the Philadelphia Inquirer some credit. The newspaper is trying to "get" blogging; at the very least, the editors understand the need to bring blogs to the attention of Inquirer readers. For example, once a week the op-ed page includes selections from a handful of weblogs. It's a respectable effort even if the selections are too often pedestrian and a bit dated. And the "Currents" section of Sunday's Inquirer featured as its lead story "The News as Conversation," a look at the blogosphere during the presidential election season by Jeff Jarvis. The essay is marred by several serious flaws, the most notable of which is its blogcentric outlook on the dissemination of political news. Jarvis writes:

Nationally and locally, candidates will continue to use blogs to get their messages to voters -- bypassing the old gatekeepers of the news media. . . . I recently sent letters to my senator [sic] and congressman protesting the Federal Communications Commission's censorship of TV, and I waited weeks to get back letters explaining their positions. How much more efficient, informative and interactive it would be for those lawmakers to post their stands and responses on blogs for all their voters to see.

Why would lawmakers need blogs to do that when they already have home pages that serve the same purpose?

The sidebar accompanying Jarvis's piece, "Join in All the Buzz," is about as formulaic an introduction to the blogosphere as could be written. Pull quote:

Where to begin? A good place is Instapundit.com. The man behind Instapundit is Glenn Harlan Reynolds, a law professor at the University of Tennessee. [...] Reynolds' method is simply to post links to items he finds of interest, usually adding some pithy comments of his own.

"Indeed" is pithy?

A Little Nudge
The annual fund drive for Rittenhouse continues. Click here to donate.

[Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Take a look at this A.P. headline: "Colin Powell Begins Mideast Peace Mission."

February 2, 2001? No. November 22, 2004.

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Yesterday's edition of the Washington Post Book World is notable for the inclusion of an astute review of a very timely book, Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime: From the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terrorism by Geoffrey R. Stone. The review, also entitled "Perilous Times," was written by Christopher Capozzola, assistant professor of history at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

[Post-publication addendum: Stone's book is reviewed in the December 6 issue of The Nation, in "Suspension of Disbelief" (Subscription required.), by Eric Foner, DeWitt Clinton Professor of History at Columbia University, where Mr. Capozzola earned his doctorate.]

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Will someone please tell me, or remind me, why Republicans hate America, why the nation's leading political party is so happily unconcerned about the threat of terrorism against the citizens of their own country?

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Meghan Cox Gurdon, the frazzled, Valium-addled columnist for National Review Online, has it rough, what with raising four children as a virtually single mother, her husband having gained notoriety for making himself suspiciously, albeit justifiably, scarce.

Rough, or so she would have readers believe, though my friend Tom each week puts the kibosh on the efforts of Mrs. Cox (Gurdon) -- Gurdon, or Hugo Gurdon, of the National Post, is the scarce mister of the household -- to exhale about the wacky, zany life she endures at home with the four youngins: daughters Wealhtheow, Hygd, and Freawaru, and son Mary.

Now, as a childless man, a "perpetual bachelor" as a family member once described me, I have only second-hand knowledge of the time, effort, attention, and devotion it takes to raise one's offspring regardless the number. I salute anyone and everyone who undertakes the task of raising children, particularly those children who have the good fortune to be my nieces and nephews (All 16 of them!), a gang that, when I'm gainfully employed, I can spoil like crazy and then leave to the care of others when the kids' rambunctiousness gets ugly. (Hey, what's a gay uncle for anyway?)

At the same time, and speaking as one of ten children, I've seen the parenting endeavor from the other side, so to speak, and in spades. And based on that experience I feel compelled to say that Mrs. Cox (Gurdon) is a wimp. A wimp I compare, and not favorably, to that red-state mother who appears in certain television advertisements for Wal-Mart Stores Inc. squealing, "When you have a big family like I do . . ."

Said red-state, Wal-Mart woman, at least as depicted in the commercial, has all of three children.

Listen, my mother, except under certain circumstances, raised ten children in quiet dignity, without drawing attention to herself, and with only one dishwasher, and did just fine, all ten of her children finishing college and eight of them earning at least one graduate degree (Soon to be nine, and with respect to the tenth, does it really matter?). I'm not saying I would like to try to better that feat myself, or even to try to, but, really, can't we keep things in perspective?

[Post-publication addendum: Since we're on the subject of National Review, may I ask readers a question? I always thought a man who carried "Jr." after his name was obliged to drop that suffix upon the decease of the elder relative from whom that honorific was derived. In other words, had I been named James M. Capozzola Jr. after, say, my father or one of my uncles (This didn't happen since my father's Christian name is not James nor did any uncle carry such name.), upon said relative's expiration wouldn't I henceforth be referred to as James M. Capozzola? With that in mind, and if I'm correct, why are we expected to continue to refer to that which is known as William F. Buckley Jr. as William F. Buckley Jr. instead of William F. Buckley?]

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Have you seen the latest television advertisements paid for by the Florida Citrus Commission and aimed at Americans who drink orange juice?

The organization's big tag line, its major selling point, is this: "Remember, every glass you drink is helping rebuild Florida."

Yeah, right, like we want to participate in that effort.

Sounds like it's time for a boycott of Florida's red-state oranges.

Here's how this boycott might work: Florida oranges are primarily cultivated for the production of orange juice. As a result, you should stop drinking orange juice unless you can determine that the oranges used to produce the drink, or at least a large majority thereof, were grown in Brazil, the other major, alternative source of imports for this product. And don't buy orange fruit raised in Florida. Choose blue-state California oranges instead.

Pretty easy, huh?

[Post-publication addendum: Think tomato juice from blue state California.]

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Yesterday I mentioned The Rittenhouse Review since last Sunday had been visited by readers from 47 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, leaving only three states, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, unrepresented among the week's readership. That count is now down to just two states, as a resident of Butte, Mont., earlier today made his or her way, accidentally or intentionally, to Rittenhouse. Where are you, my right-thinking Idahoans and Wyomians?

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Don't forget to vote in the latest Rittenhouse reader poll, posted in the sidebar at right, asking, "Should Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) run for president of the U.S. in 2008?"

Upon conclusion of the poll, at 8:00 p.m. (Eastern time), Friday, November 26, results will be forwarded to the Washington office of Sen. Clinton.

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Okay, so your lack of awareness, and at the time my own, led to the abrupt and premature cancellation of "My So Called Life," among the very best series ever produced for American television. Too few episodes remain extant, I know, but let's move beyond that and allow me to recommend to you the best television show you're (probably) not watching: "Third Watch."

"Third Watch" appears on NBC on Friday nights at 9:00 p.m., and the show is in syndication on A&E at 5:00 p.m. (both times Eastern).

To be honest, I like the older episodes better, if only for the superior eye candy, personified by Bobby Cannavale as Roberto "Bobby" Caffey, Eddie Cibrian portraying Jimmy Doherty, and Michael Beach in the role of Monte "Doc" Parker.

Of course, the remnants of the original cast are something nothing to shake a stick at: Jason Wiles as Maurice "Bosco" Boscorelli, Anthony Ruivivar as Carlos Nieto, and Coby Bell as Ty Davis. And then there's a recent addition to the ensemble, Josh Stewart, who plays Brendan Finney.

Now, just to be fair to the other side, there's Tia Texada (Maritza Cruz), Kim Raver (Kim Zambrano), and Nia Long (Sasha Monroe), none of whom is harming anyone's vision.

Stepping up from my customary shallowness, let me extend my appreciation to every other actor on the series, include those known as or considered "character actors," including, or especially, the incomparably talented Molly Price and Skip Sudduth.

You should know that I've not normally watched a great deal of prime-time network television during my adult life, recent viewing patterns notwithstanding. The number and names of popular series of which I've seen not a single episode would likely surprise you. (Such a list would include "L.A. Law," "Thirtysomething," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Star Trek," and countless others.) As such, you might take my observations about "Third Watch" with a grain of proverbial salt. I wouldn't blame you.

Still, may I say that what strikes me most about "Third Watch," and more specifically about the ensemble cast, is that it looks, or they look, collectively, very much like the world in which I live and have lived for the past 20 years in Washington, New York, and Philadelphia. Better, the writers put the cast's -- the characters' -- diversity out there every week with virtually no self-consciousness, no unnecessary commentary on the matter.

Racial and ethnic tensions make for great, if contrived, drama. They also make for great fodder for misguided and misinformed pundits whose lives are constituted of little beyond hours at the home office and cocktail parties with other rich white poeple. No wonder those who don't live in places like Washington, New York, and Philadelphia -- or the highly protected outposts or inposts therein -- are so ignorant of the real world, that great place where "people like me" live well and happily aside "people like them."

(If you've read this far let me ask you for a favor. I'd like to post a weekly Rittenhouse reader poll on the subject of "the best television series you're not watching." Please send your nominations to The Rittenhouse Review as soon as possible. Thank you in advance for your assistance with and participation in this project.)

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I think, or at least I hope, it goes without saying that any reference to Condoleezza Rice, a Bush administration official who has been spared no -- Or is it many? -- criticisms here, as "Aunt Jemima" is despicable and offensive, and that anyone who speaks about Ms. Rice in such terms is beyond the pale.

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I spent a couple of years working in the magazine publishing business, and so it is not without great amusement that I occasionally pick up a copy of Parade, tucked each Sunday between the Philadelphia Inquirer's inserts for Eckerd, Circuit City, and Pep Boys, and read the throw-away's almost Orwellian tag line: "More than a magazine." It's hilarious, yet sad at the same time, to see Parade, a publication one step above Lucky, calling itself a magazine.

In the same way it's hilarious and yet sad to see Her Supreme High Priestess of Racism, the dessicated harpie known as Ann Coulter, asserting that it's Democrats, and not Republicans, whose party, whose very existence and reason for being, is tainted by the ugly stain of racism.

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Have you ever co-sponsored a bill pending in Congress? No? Neither have I, until today that is, when I joined thousands of American citizens signing up as co-sponsors of legislation to provide healthcare coverage to every child in this country. The bill will be introduced in the U.S. Senate early next year by Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.).

Sen. Kerry, in an e-mail sent to supporters earlier today, wrote:

Normally, a member of the Senate will first approach other senators and ask them to co-sponsor a bill before it is introduced -- instead, I am turning to you. Imagine the power of a bill co-sponsored by hundreds of thousands of Americans being presented on the floor of the United States Senate. You can make it happen. Sign our "Every Child Protected" pledge today and forward it to your family, friends, and neighbors. . . . This is the beginning of a second term effort to hold the Bush administration accountable and to stand up and fight for our principles and our values. They want you to disappear; they are counting on that. I'm confident you will prove them wrong, and you will rewrite history again.

Signing up as a co-sponsor of Sen. Kerry's takes just a moment, and his strategy will send a powerful message to Congress of the real American values all of us hold dear.

Please join us and tell your friends to do the same.

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There's a new reader poll posted in the sidebar at right. The latest poll asks, "Should Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) run for president of the U.S. in 2008?" Readers may choose from one of three responses: yes, no, and don't know/not sure/no opinion.

Votes will be taken, accepted, and accounted for from now through 8:00 p.m. (Eastern time), Friday, November 26.

Regretfully, The Rittenhouse Review cannot at this time offer a paper receipt verifying readers' votes.

Votes cast by readers in Florida and Ohio are subject to cancellation, negation, nullification, reversal, or double-counting at the sole discretion of the publisher of this web site.

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Hound This [*]
I have no idea what the heck "The Power of Nightmares" is or are, but I trust my friend Vaara (Jeopardy! [Ed.: It's a Finnish thing.]) of Silt knows what it's about since, after all, he's been hounding the subject for weeks.

Chilly Relations [*]
Marital divorce became legal in Chile for the first time ever today. According to El Mercurio (Santiago), there were 52 filings on the first day. [Linked story written in Spanish.]

Red States Lagging [*]
This is likely of interest to no one except me, but last Sunday I changed the service I use to measure traffic coming to the site. The new service shows, among other things, the states (and countries) from which readers access the blog. In the last five days (actually, within the first three days) American visitors arrived from 47 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Just three states have yet to show up on the referral log, all of them red states: Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. As for foreign visitors, the following countries have appeared, roughly in order from the greatest number to the least: Canada, England, Australia, Ireland, South Africa, Sweden, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France, Mexico, New Zealand, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Hungary, Brazil, Finland, Spain, Chile, Trinidad and Tobago, and others.

File Under . . .
Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

A Whole Lot of Legos
Ten tons of illegal imitation Lego building blocks seized by Finnish customs officials were crushed yesterday in order to produce electricity for the city of Lahti. Pratical people, those Finns.

Mixed Reviews
As expected, the expansion of the Museum of Modern Art is garnering mixed reviews. Michael Kimmelman of the New York Times calls it "a triumph of formal restraint and practical design - an eloquent reaffirmation, within its galleries, of the enduring beauty of the Modern's historic, albeit tendentious, account of modernism." Neoconservative grouch Hilton Kramer, writing in the New York Observer, calls it "grossly expanded and grossly expensive," adding "almost everything about it has the character of an anachronism." The museum, at 11 West 53rd St., New York, reopens to the public tomorrow.

Coincidence or Conspiracy?
Hmmm . . . Rolling Stone magazine has decided that the greatest rock 'n' roll song of all time is . . . "Like a Rolling Stone."

A Gentle Reminder
The annual fund drive for Rittenhouse continues. Click here to donate.

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[Note: Additional items may be posted to “PP&T” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) has decided to withdraw five of his children from the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School in response to the Penn Hills, Pa., school board's decision that the senator and his family are not residents and therefore cannot impel the school district to pay the $37,775 in annual tuition on the children's behalf. The Santorums said they will return to home-schooling their children. And the lawmaker's spokeswoman said reimbursement for the district's past tuition payments is unlikely. (For the latest report, see "Santorum Residency Questioned," by Oliver Prichard, Philadelphia Inquirer, November 19. [Note: The Inquirer misstates the name of the school.])

In response, "the cyber school's teachers have offered to donate their services so the children's education is uninterrupted," that according to a report in today's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ("Cyber School Faculty Offers Free Services to Santorum's Five Children," by Eleanor Chute). The Post-Gazette also reports, "The Santorums, though, would have to pay for computers, Internet access and material. There was no immediate response from the Santorums."

Sounds a little suspect to me. One could readily argue the teachers' offer to donate their services essentially constitutes a gift of free tuition. I can't imagine even Sen. Santorum would be brazen, or stupid, enough to take them up on it.

[Post-publication addendum: See also "Hey, Rick, You Know Where to Put Your Money," by Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer. Pull quote: "Yo, Rick, know what? Make up the difference. Cough up the 20G. You make, what, $158,100 a year and your whole life's a federal write-off? You weren't entitled. Someone else paid. You should pay back. Also, seeing as you're in the business of making laws (and a lawyer), maybe you oughta make yourself a little more familiar with laws, especially those directly affecting your immediate family. And, as someone who drips of holier-than-thou (your Senate Republican Conference says you "made your mark" stressing "the need for fiscal and personal responsibility") you should maybe consider (oh, what's that phrase?) practicing what you preach?"]

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The editors of the Philadelphia Inquirer today take Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) to task for his tk in Washington this week. In "Arlen Specter: Survival at What Cost?" the editors write:

Sen. Arlen Specter -- what's left of him -- has weathered the storm of conservative protest to secure the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Anyone who has followed his career should have bet on his survival. But Specter may have paid for this coveted post with his presumed independence. [...]

Specter has pledged since then not to stand in the way of President Bush's judicial nominees. Following two days of closed-door meetings with colleagues whose support he needs, the pro-choice Specter delivered a written statement yesterday that he will not impose a pro-choice "litmus test" on candidates and will give them prompt hearings.

As a practical matter, Specter has yet to give up much. Pledging to support the President's judicial nominees is no shift from his record of the last four years. Specter has voted to approve all of Bush's judges to date, pro-choice or not. [...]

[I]n principle, his pledge to look favorably on all the President's nominees is an abandonment of his self-professed independent streak. [...]

If the upshot of the last two weeks is to guarantee confirmation of all Bush nominees, why bother to hold hearings? Just send black robes to the lucky winners via overnight mail.

It's a shame the Inquirer's editors didn't see fit to remind voters that in endorsing Sen. Specter's reelection in November these same people wrote:

The Inquirer believes Specter should get another six-year term. Preserving the legality of abortion plays no small part in this decision. Sometime in the next four years, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee will very likely find himself in the pivotal role of scrutinizing at least one new Supreme Court nominee. Assuming that Republicans are in charge of the Senate, it would be better to have the chairman's seat filled by Specter, who says Roe v. Wade is "inviolate" as the law of the land. If Specter loses, next in line among Republicans to be chairman is Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, who opposes abortion rights.

And, pinning hopes on a wing and a prayer, the editors added this about Sen. Specter:

[His] moderate streak ought to show up more often in the new year.

Happy now, NARAL, Humane PAC, and Michael J. Fox?

Like they say, be careful what you wish for.

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This Isn't Working [*]
The Coalition of the Willing . . . The Coalition of the Disappearing . . . The Coalition of the Forget-About-It. The Associated Press is reporting this afternoon: "Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg, and Greece [have] refused to contribute troops to the U.S.-led coalition that overthrew President Saddam Hussein and to the postwar campaign against insurgents."

More of the Same
It's already clear the second term of President Idiot Mittens will offer more of the same, only more extreme, more reactionary, and more biased in favor of the rich. The Washington Post provides a rough sketch of the administration's ideas on "reforming the tax code" ("Bush Plans Tax Code Overhaul," by Jonathan Weisman and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum): "[T]he administration plans to push major amendments that would shield interest, dividends and capitals gains from taxation, expand tax breaks for business investment and take other steps intended to simplify the system and encourage economic growth, according to several people who are advising the White House or are familiar with the deliberations." Why is it when the Democrats try to help the poor the right wing screams "Class warfare!" but when Republicans coddle their base scarcely a word is spoken?

There are Limits
Judith Miller, last seen in the simultaneous employ of the New York Times, Ahmed Chalabi, and Jason Epstein, can't be too happy to read the latest news out of Providence, R.I.:

Jim Taricani, an investigative reporter for Channel 10, was found guilty of criminal contempt yesterday for refusing to reveal the source of an undercover videotape that showed a City Hall official accepting a cash bribe.

After a trial that lasted less than an hour and that was based entirely on arguments made by lawyers, Chief U.S. District Judge Ernest C. Torres said "the evidence is clear and overwhelming and undisputed" that Taricani had willfully violated the law for refusing to obey a court order to disclose the source of the leaked FBI videotape, even if he felt he had good reasons for doing so.

Taricani now faces up to six months in prison as punishment for his refusal to reveal his confidential source.

I feel very strongly about journalists protecting their sources, but I also have a hard time with Miller's case. Although I wouldn't want her to serve time, I wouldn't be completely unhappy about it.

Powell's Intelligence
Secretary of State Colin Powell's allegedly extemporaneous remarks about Iran's nuclear capabilities and intentions "caused surprise and confusion in Washington on Thursday, and members of Congress demanded that he provide more details," according to a report in today's Los Angeles Times ("Powell's Talk of Arms Has Fallout," by Sonni Efron, Tyler Marshall, and Bob Drogin). The Times also reports our European allies were caught off-guard. Moreover, "Some sources raised questions about the credibility of the intelligence. . . . One source . . . described the intelligence mentioned by Powell as 'weak.' Some administration officials 'were surprised he went public on something that was weak and, because it was weak, was not supposed to be used,' the source said."

Dangerous Drugs?
Forget about the imaginary dangers of Canadian pharmaceuticals, some experts believe there are enough dangerous drugs on the market here at home.

A Timely Reminder
The annual fund drive for Rittenhouse continues. Click here to donate.

[* Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Mother of God [*]
Odd, I don't see the Blessed Mother in that grilled cheese sandwich. Instead, I see Marlene Dietrich. And while I'm not sure how "never sprout[ing] a spore of mold" compares with "the odor of sanctity," it sounds pretty impressive.

Students Attacked
There has been a rash of attacks on students in the Philadelphia area: a 12-year-old boy was raped by an 11-year-old student at West Kensington Middle School; a Drexel University graduate student was attacked by a man armed with scissors at the Hahnemann University Hospital; and WPVI-TV (ABC 6) is reporting a man is being sought for three attacks on women at Villanova University since September.

Where's the Beef?
People has named British actor Jude Law the "sexiest man alive." Personally, I don't get it, but it's nice to see a fellow skinny guy take the title.

How's the Beef?
It looks like the U.S. now has its second case of "mad cow disease." Naturally, the Bush administration is playing down the story. Reuters reports: "USDA declined to comment on the likelihood this would be a mad cow case. 'They are inconclusive for the very reason that we just don't know,' said USDA spokeswoman Alisa Harrison." (By the way, and just so you know, before joining the Bush administration Harrison was employed by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association.)

Fund Drive
The annual fund drive for Rittenhouse continues. Click here to donate.

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[* Note: Additional items may be posted to “PP&T” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Bloody Hands [*]
Don't miss Joe Conason's latest column in the New York Observer, Politics Prevails Again In Rice’s Appointment," from which comes the following pull quote:

As observers of the Bush administration are quickly discovering, even the abject loyalty demonstrated by [Colin] Powell is not sufficient for survival in the new era of "the mandate." The fact that many voters supported the President despite severe misgivings about the nation’s direction is of no concern to the White House. The order of the day is extirpation of dissent and debate. Competence is dismissed while conformity rules. To disagree is to be purged, as Mr. Powell now understands.

The rise of Condoleezza Rice demonstrates this disturbing trend, however inspiring it is to see the first black woman appointed Secretary of State. As National Security Advisor, Ms. Rice nimbly abandoned her own once-cautious views to echo those of the dominant faction in the White House and the Pentagon. She repeatedly proved her willingness to prevaricate, whether to conceal the administration’s missteps before Sept. 11 or to promote myths about Saddam Hussein’s arsenal.

Historians will someday ask how Ms. Rice escaped accountability for neglecting urgent warnings about Al Qaeda by former counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke, former C.I.A. director George Tenet and others during the summer of 2001. They will wonder why she endorsed a decision to wage war based on patently false "intelligence" about Iraq’s nonexistent nuclear capacity. Did she know that the aluminum tubes supposedly intended for uranium enrichment were not suited to that purpose, as the government’s experts explained? Did she ignore evidence that the Niger uranium tale had been concocted from a forgery? She has never given convincing answers, leaving her integrity and competence in doubt.

Like her boss, Ms. Rice wishes to be seen as strong and decisive. No matter how wrong she may be, she is never in doubt. Doubt surrounds her nevertheless, due to her inability to manage the policymaking process in the National Security Council. The result has been confusion in dealing with the most serious challenges we face in stopping nuclear proliferation in North Korea and Iran.

Is this supposed to be the government we deserve? Oh, right.

Specter's Holy Grail
Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) has secured the backing of all the Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee, virtually assuring he will be seated as chairman in January. It's not clear what Sen. Specter gave in exchange for this, his holy grail, but his comments today aren't comforting: "I have assured the president that I would give his nominees quick committee hearings and early committee votes. . . . I have no reason to believe that I'll be unable to support any individual President Bush finds worthy." A.P. reports the senator's remarks were "cleared painstakingly in advance by committee members as well as the GOP leadership."

DeLay's Indictment
The grand jury indictment of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), widely considered only a matter of time at this point, won't be an obstacle to his continued service of right-wing interests and issues. House Republicans yesterday changed a 1993 rule that would have required Rep. DeLay to step down after any indictments in state or federal courts. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) responds: "Republicans have reached a new low. It is absolutely mind-boggling that as their first order of business following the elections, House Republicans have lowered the ethical standards for their leaders." As if they weren't below ground already.

[Post-publication insertion: For a thorough run-down of Rep. DeLay's malfeasance, see Jesse Lee's post at The Stakeholder.]

Clinton's Library
President Bill Clinton can still attract a crowd anywhere he goes. The official opening of the Presidential Center in Little Rock, Ark., today drew more than 30,000 people. The New York Times reports, "[D]espite the dreary sky, Mr. Clinton was beaming as he listened to words of praise from both Presidents Bush and former President Jimmy Carter, who all hailed his legacy as the 42nd president. (Former President Gerald R. Ford, 91, could not attend for health reasons.)

[* Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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The alternative scheme Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) derived to finance the non-traditional eduction of his children by the taxpayers of the Penn Hills, Pa., school district has been declared invalid. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports ("Santorum Told Kids Ineligible for School," by Joe Fahy):

U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum said last night that he and his wife, Karen, are withdrawing their five school-age children from the Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School.

Santorum has come under criticism from officials in Penn Hills, where he owns a house, who say the school district should not have to foot the $38,000 annual bill to educate his children.

The Santorums do not live in the district full time and spend most of their time in Leesburg, Va., outside Washington, D.C.

"The school district has just informed us that after reviewing our situation, only children who live in a community on a full-time basis are eligible to be educated in a public cyber charter school program," Santorum said.

And in a separate article, "Penn Hills Director Wants Santorum to Refund Tuition," the Post-Gazette reports at least one school-board member wants the Santorums to reimburse the school district:

Erin Vecchio, a school board member and chairman of the Penn Hills Democratic Party, said last night she expects the Republican senator to pay back the money used to educate five of his six children. Penn Hills pays the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, a computer-based school in Midland that allows students to work from home, $38,000 a year to educate Santorum's children. The children have been enrolled in the cyber school the past four years. Until this school year, the school was known as the Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School.

Four years, $38K a year, that's $152,000. That's a pretty big check. Then again, it was also a lot of other people's money.

[Post-publication addendum (November 19): See also "Santorum Residency Questioned," by Oliver Prichard, Philadelphia Inquirer, November 19.]

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Six More Years [*]
The Freepers are wailing and gnashing their teeth and rending their garments: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) is reported to have decided to run for reelection. New York gets Sen. Clinton and Sen. Charles Schumer (D). God hates Pennsylvania.

Green Tea [*]
The right wing -- and CNN, but why be redundant? -- had a great big hee-haw upon learning Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) once ordered green tea instead of coffee early in the campaign. As a Digby reader at Hullabaloo points out, it's not elitism, it's cancer. Nice work, Ms. Crowley. A tempest in a . . . No, I won't say it.

R.I.P. [*]
Requiescat in pacem: Margaret Hassan, humanitarian, Care International: 1945-2004.

They're Back [*]
For at least two years neoconservatives have denied there is any such thing as "neoconservatism" and accused almost everyone who asserted otherwise of anti-Semitism. And yet today a leading member of the crowd, Jacob Heilbrunn, is crowing about their influence in the Los Angeles Times.

Missing the Obvious [*]
Marc Lacey of the New York Times reports today that the U.N.'s Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria is vastly underfunded, leading the Bush administration to pony up some extra bucks call for a moratorium on grants to countries ravaged by these diseases. ("U.S. Suggests AIDS Fund Delay Grants.") For reasons unknown, Lacey doesn't ask or address the question of which countries have contributed what to the fund.

Specter's Sycophancy
Watch Arlen grovel. It's fun. The Washington Post reports ("Specter Seeks, Gets Support," by Helen Dewar) Sen. Arlen "Flat-Out Perjury" Specter (R-Pa.) is likely to gain the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

The predictions followed an extraordinary, nearly two-week-long campaign by Specter to firm up his shaky grip on the chairmanship. It culminated yesterday in personal appeals by Specter to GOP leaders and committee colleagues to trust his assurances that he will do all within his power to win speedy approval for President Bush's judicial nominees.

Specter still plans to plead his case before the full Senate GOP caucus today, and will not face an official vote of committee Republicans and the whole caucus until January. Some senators were pushing for a formal statement reflecting Specter's commitments on the handling of judicial nominations. But several senators said Specter had mostly allayed concerns about his performance as Judiciary chairman and is likely to prevail.

Make him beg.

He Promised Otherwise
Porter J. Goss, the new and very Republican head of the Central Intelligence Agency, has sent a memo to employees to remind them to "support the administration and its policies in [their] work." What was that about not bringing politics to the CIA?

George F. Will, Jock
George Will is cracking me up today. The adulterous right-wing pundit shifts his girly throwing "skills" to basketball, and the results are no more effective than when the big jock talks baseball. "Condoleezza Rice, a sports buff, knows that, as a professional basketball player has said, 'It's not going to be peaches and gravy all the time.' Herewith some hard questions senators might ask in her confirmation hearings[.]" That's Will's lead graph. Oddly, he doesn't return to the basketball theme, and signs off with this preciousism: "Such questions are difficult, but there will also be peaches and gravy." (Somewhat related slice of my life: "B------, my boyfriend throws like a girl." B: "Yeah, I noticed that, but I wasn't going to say anything.")

Alive and Well
Sexual discrimination is still with us. Read the news from the United Farm Workers and sign the petition.

Readers in Chappaqua
More than one recent glance at this site's referral log reveals The Rittenhouse Review is being read by one or more residents of Chappaqua, N.Y. If it's you, and it probably isn't, but if it is, please send me a message.

[Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Ray Brent Marsh, the former Noble, Ga., crematory operator accused of dumping 334 bodies and -- yes, there's an and -- passing off cement dust as ashes, has agreed to a plea bargain that will result in a prison term of no more than 12 years.

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Damned, or Dammed, Cash
A dam made of stolen cash? Blame it on the beavers.

Politics and the Boy Scouts
The wire services today are reporting: "The Pentagon has agreed to warn military bases worldwide that they should not directly sponsor Boy Scout troops, partially resolving claims that the government has improperly supported a group that requires members to believe in God. The settlement, announced Monday, came in a 1999 lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, which said American military units have sponsored hundreds of Boy Scout troops." And here I am wondering when Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street (D) is going to make good on his word to kick the Boy Scouts out of (very) choice city-owned and subsidized property on the city's Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

Any Day Now
Lori of Avocado8 -- A Philadelphian! -- should be a mother before we know it.

E-mail Campaign
Please take a moment to tell Jeanne d'Arc how much you would appreciate her continuing to post to her blog, Body & Soul. Jeanne's voice, particularly on such matters as human rights, women's issues, and religion in politics, is much needed and highly valued.

No Excuses
I caught "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" on Bravo TV the other day. Let me say this: I've never seen so much bad hair, let alone so much bad gay hair, in one place in my entire life.

R.I.P.
Requiescat in Pacem: My P.C., my personal computer. No longer dying, my PC has passed away, apparently for good. My PC problems explain, in large part, the less than consistent blogging displayed, much to my regret, on this page in recent weeks. During the frequent down times associated with PC failure I have tried to fill the gaps using either my housemate's lap-top computer or the PCs made available at the Free Library of Philadelphia, the latter for just an hour a day.

It's been difficult, challenging, and frustrating, all at the same time, just to keep the site going. It has been extremely difficult to keep the blog up and running with anything resembling consistency. Thank you to all readers, new and of longstanding, for bearing with me during this difficult period.

With the expiration of my PC now a faît accompli, the outlook for continued blogging on a daily basis is, at best, uncertain. To facilitate the remediation of this situation, your contributions are both welcomed and appreciated through the PayPal link embedded in the sidebar at right. (To send your donation by snail mail, please inquire here.)

[Note: Additional items may be posted to “PP&T” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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The emerging controversy over Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), his place of residence, and his neighbors' taxes may be even more interesting than I thought. (See "Small Brain, Small House," November 13.)

According to Sunday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ("Penn Hills Studying Santorum Residency Issue," by Eleanor Chute), "The Santorums use the Penn Hills address for voter registration as do two other people, Bart and Alyssa DeLuca, both 25, according to Allegheny County records."

Toss in Mr. and Mrs. Santorum and their six kids, and, I assume, at least one dog, and that is one crowded two-bedroom house.

Someone is living in that house. Chute writes, "When a reporter went to the house on Stephens Lane on Friday, a young man who came to the door declined to comment." (According to the article, the house is at 111 Stephens Lane. The Post-Gazette also published a photograph of the modest abode.)

Who are the Delucas? Are they residing full-time at 111 Stephens Lane? Are they relatives of the Santorums? Squatters? Or is the senator renting out the house for a little extra income?

He had better hope not. Chute also reports, "Bob Hunter, Penn Hills director of code enforcement, said the Santorum house lacks a required occupancy permit, which calls for a municipal inspection for any code violations and a dye test of the sewer system. Hunter has sent a letter asking them to seek an occupancy permit."

[Post-publication addendum: The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, historically sympathetic to conservatives, on November 11 ("Santorum's Residency Questioned," by Reid R. Frazier and Tom Jewell) reported: "He pays about $2,000 annually in property taxes on the Penn Hills house he owns on Stephens Lane. Santorum has been registered since last year to receive a homestead exemption on the house, which allows property owners to exclude the first $15,000 in the assessed value of their homes from county real estate taxes. But he doesn't take the tax break, Traynham said. The county's homestead exemption application states the break 'can only be claimed once, for a place of primary residence . . . where the owner intends to reside permanently, not temporarily.' "]

[Note: This post may differ slightly from that originally published. Portions of the initial post were lost when the addendum was added. I have tried to reproduce the original to the best of my memory.]

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They Went With the Persistent Prevaricator
President Tinker Toys has nominated Condoleezza Rice to replace Colin Powell as Secretary of State. Stephen J. Hadley will take Rice's position as the president's national security advisor. Meanwhile, Powell's deputy, Richard Armitage is also leaving State. And the reviews of Powell's performance are rolling in: They're not good.

[Post-publication insertion: Regarding Rice and Powell, see also: "Colin Powell is Gone," by David Corn of Capital Games, and "Defining Failure Down," by Katrina vanden Heuvel, at Editor's Cut, both writers affiliated with The Nation.]

Misguided Croatian Blogging
Vibor "Vibbi" Kalogjera, a third secretary at the Croatian Embassy in Washington, has been recalled from Zagreb as a result unauthorized blogging.

Billy, We'll Hardly Miss Ye
The New York Times announced today that columnist and nattering nabob of necromancy William Safire will write his last piece for the paper's op-ed page on January 24.

[Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Secretary of State Colin Powell reportedly has submitted his resignation, effective upon confirmation of his replacement. Let the names flow. Will the new secretary be someone considered reasonable and seasoned, like U.N. Ambassador John Danforth? Or someone compromised by persistent prevarication, like National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice? Or will the Bush administration go with a tried-and-true convicted criminal, like National Security Council staffer Elliot Abrams?

[Post-publication addendum: The New York Times is reporting additional resignations are expected: Secretary of Agriculture Ann M. Veneman and Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham.]

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A striking graphic accompanies the top story in today's Philadelphia Inquirer, "Fallujah Occupied But Not Subdued" (by Dogen Hannah and Tom Lasseter).

The graphic is not reproduced on the paper's web site, but one can glean the published figures from the article. The sidebar reads: Death Toll. Estimated casulaties since the Fallujah siege began, according to U.S. military: 38 U.S. soldiers, 6 Iraqi soldiers, 1,200 guerrillas.

In the article itself we learn, "In addition, the dismembered body of a woman, perhaps a Westerner, was found in the battered city yesterday."

So, not one single Iraqi civilian casualty?

Amazing.

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Sen. Rick Santorum (R), Pennsylvania's biggest embarrassment in the U.S. Senate, though only by a hair, continues to draw scrutiny for his unconventional use of local taxes to pay for the unconventional education of his children.

According to the Associated Press ("Paying for Santorums' School Costs Questioned," by Jennifer C. Yates), Sen. Santorum in 1997 bought a two-bedroom house in Penn Hills, a small town east of Pittsburgh, for $87,800.

Right off the bat that simple statement should raise eyebrows. As you know, Sen. Santorum has a large family: a wife and six children. It's a hard fact to miss given the senator mentions his family at every opportunity and they often travel together around the state. Now, as someone from a large family myself, I can assure you that a two-bedroom home is too small a space to properly raise six children. (I'm one of 10 children; the house in which I spent most of my childhood had eight bedrooms. A few more rooms, while not necessary, would have been nice.)

The question some in Penn Hills have raised is not whether Sen. Santorum is adequately caring for his progeny, but rather whether he's sticking his neighbors with the hefty tab associated with the kids' private, home- and road-based education. You see, since 1997 the Penn Hills school district has paid $100,000 for the senator's children to "attend" the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, an internet-based educational outfit.

The crux of the matter is that it's doubtful the Santorums ever -- or ever planned -- to live in the town whose taxpayers are paying his tuition bills. According to the A.P., "Santorum's spokeswoman, Christine Shott, said she did not know whether the senator and his wife, who have six children, had ever stayed in the two-bedroom house they own in Penn Hills." In the same article Shott says she doesn't know and can't comment on whether the family ever stayed at the home or rented it out.

More likely, of course, the Santorum family lives in another house entirely: a home in Leesburg, Va., assessed at $757,000 this year. The Santorums pay taxes in both locales, but Pennsylvania law requires the school district in which a student lives to pay the tuition charged by cyber charter schools. Virginia makes no such requirement. So Sen. Santorum has himself a pretty good deal here: Pay the property taxes on a modest, forgotten little Pennsylvania house and let others worry about the cost of the "free-market" choice he's made for his children's education.

Penn Hills school board member Erin Vecchio has asked school superintendent Patricia Gennari to conduct a formal review this week.

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Gregory Peck

Dan Futterman

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Disappearing Shares [*]
Your tax dollars at work: "Archer Daniels Midland Co. . . . said Friday that its board approved the repurchase of up to 100 million shares of the company's common stock between Jan. 1, 2005 and Dec. 31, 2009." Better for ADM to use its cash to buy back shares than to invest its profits in ethanol production. ADM is happy to let taxpayers take that risk.

Disappearing Lesbians? [*]
John Aravosis of AmericaBlog reports that, with the presidential election over, some right wingers are unhappy about being "slapped in the face" with Mary Cheney's "flaunting" of her sexuality, that because she dares to be seen in public with her partner, Heather Poe. Let's see how long it takes dirty-book writer Lynne Cheney to reprimand Joe Glover for being "cheap and tawdry" and "not a nice man." And how long for all those "sophisticated" right-wing bloggers who piled on John F. Kerry to do the same.

Disappearing Breath [*]
Vice President Dick Cheney has been taken to the George Washington University Hospital, complaining of "shortness of breath." CNN reports: "It is unknown whether Cheney, who has a history of heart problems, will be admitted. Dan Bartlett, White House communications director, said Cheney has been suffering from a cold recently. Because it was unclear if his shortness of breath was related to the cold or not, and given his history of heart disease, it was the recommendation of the White House medical unit that he go to the hospital for tests."

CNN also reminds us: "In May 2004, doctors gave Cheney a clean bill of health after his annual heart checkup."

Hmm . . . Isn't it time for President Too Busy For Physicals to report to a doctor's office? The campaign has been over for 11 days.

Disappearing Spooks
This really isn't such a good time for the CIA to be falling apart. The Washington Post today reports ("Deputy Chief Resigns From CIA," by Dana Priest):

The deputy director of the CIA resigned yesterday after a series of confrontations over the past week between senior operations officials and CIA Director Porter J. Goss's new chief of staff that have left the agency in turmoil, according to several current and former CIA officials.

John E. McLaughlin, a 32-year CIA veteran who was acting director for two months this summer until Goss took over, resigned after warning Goss that his top aide, former Capitol Hill staff member Patrick Murray, was treating senior officials disrespectfully and risked widespread resignations, the officials said.

Yesterday, the agency official who oversees foreign operations, Deputy Director of Operations Stephen R. Kappes, tendered his resignation after a confrontation with Murray. Goss and the White House pleaded with Kappes to reconsider and he agreed to delay his decision until Monday, the officials said.

Several other senior clandestine service officers are threatening to leave, current and former agency officials said.

Great choice, guys.

Disappearing Allies
"Significant progress" is a far cry from "mission accomplished," don't you think? Meanwhile, the Coalition of the Disappearing grows: Hungary is leaving, the Czech Republic is going, the Dutch are getting out, and Bulgaria is considering a force reduction. Bulgaria!

Disappearing Cabinet Members
Education Secretary Rod Paige, a self-styled linchpin in the war against terrorism, joined the growing number of cabinet members leaving the Bush administration. Quick: Name one accomplishment.

Just Disappear
He may protest that his intentions are noble, but really, shouldn't we keep Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld out of Central America?

[* Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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Sen. Arlen Specter (R), Pennsylvania's second-biggest embarassment in the U.S. Senate, is fighting for the prize he has wanted so badly for so many years: chairmanship of the Judiciary Committee.

Unfortunately, the 74-year-old lawmaker, a former Democrat, appears to have attached his ultimate political ambition to the wrong political party. Conservatives, including some in the White House, are concerned about Sen. Specter's potential treatment of pro-life judicial nominations and raising alarums at the prospect of his taking the top committee spot.

This week the senator has been chasing down the job, talking to everyone out of both sides of his mouth, and outlining a new strategy in yesterday's Wall Street Journal, with additional coverage in today's Philadelphia Inquirer ("Specter: Moderates in GOP Must Speak," by Steve Goldstein, November 11).

Sen. Specter's latest tactic is stake out, and stake claim to, the withering political force known as "moderate Republicanism," claiming he has been under assult all year from his party's dominant right wing: "You saw it all during the primary. That was their mantra, their bugle call. The same people that are after me now were after me in the primary."

The Inquirer's Goldstein writes:

The senator said he would never stop advocating a Big Tent for his party, in which the views of moderates were considered along with those of conservatives. Although so-called values voters -- a slice of the electorate primarily concerned with the moral values of candidates -- were a significant advantage for the President in the election, they are not a majority of the party, he added.

"No one group elected the President by themselves," Specter said. Moderate Republicans have a significant role to play, he said.

"It's important for the party but it's also important to the country that the Republican Party has balance," Specter said. "And there are a lot of independents and swing Democrats who look to see that there are moderate voices in the Republican Party." [...]

"There really is an urgent need for more vocal participation by moderates and pro-choice Republicans," he said.

Specter said he had recently sought out other moderate GOP members of the Senate. Though he declined to characterize those conversations, he said the only way they could remain relevant was to assert themselves. [...]

"It's a very important battle," he said. "And it's really a battle for balance in the party and it's really a battle for balance in America."

Does Sen. Specter intend to lead a battle for a more inclusive Republican Party? Does he really think there's a viable future there? It seems to me he's more than a little late to the party.

Where was Sen. Specter when the party lurched dramatically rightward in the 1980s? Along for the ride. What did Sen. Specter say and do during the 1990s when the Republican Party adopted ever more fringey ideas? Nothing of any significance or effect. What underlies Sen. Specter's latest scheme? Only the same opportunism that has characterized his entire career.

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Gonzales on the Fast Track
The second term of the Bush administration has virtually begun, and it doesn't look pretty. The Washington Post reports ("Ashcroft, Evans To Leave Cabinet," by Dan Eggen and Mike Allen): "Administration sources said Ashcroft's successor is likely to be White House counsel Alberto R. Gonzales."

Kidnappings
Meanwhile, "staying the course" in Iraq, we learn two family members of Iraqi Prime Minister Ghazi Allawi have been kidnapped and face execution by decapitation, taking this shameful tactic to the highest levels of Iraq's sovereign leadership.

Backsides
In an age when legitimate First Amendment protections are stifled anywhere a Bush administration official appears in public, it's time to Turn Your Back on Bush. It's easy, effective, legal, quiet, and almost impossible to stifle.

[Note: Additional items may be posted to “Political Notes” after initial publication but only on the day of publication, excluding post-publication addenda. Such items, when posted, are designated by an asterisk.]

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