The global image of America has sunk further, even among our close allies, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center. President Bush saw that firsthand during his visit today to Austria. Protesters carried signs that said, “World’s No. 1 Terrorist,” and foreign reporters were combative during a press conference. Bush made an impassioned defense of U.S. foreign policy, The New York Times reported, and said it was “absurd” that many Europeans believe the United States is a bigger threat to world peace than Iran.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
The murder of another of Saddam Hussein’s lawyers (in photo) shows again how difficult the situation is in Iraq — the abductors were wearing police uniforms — and how uncertain it is whether Iraq’s legal system will be able to deliver justice in this case. Also of concern is that another member of the defense team blames the United States for no longer providing security to the lawyers, which the United States denies. Saddam’s trial must not be another casualty of this war.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Hope you can come to the WE Blog meet-up Thursday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Here are some directions: The Eagle building is at 825 E. Douglas, in Old Town. Free parking and the entrance are behind the building, off Rock Island (so don’t park on Douglas). The doors might be locked when you arrive, but a security guard should be around to let you in. The gathering will take place in our conference room A, which is located on the mezzanine level. You’ll need to walk toward the front of the building and either take the elevator or go up one flight of stairs. Hope to see you there.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Republicans and Democrats might be wise to find new blood in a 2008 presidential candidate. Close to half of Americans polled this week said they would “definitely not vote for” Hillary Clinton (47 percent), John Kerry (47 percent) and Al Gore (48 percent). And more than half of those polled — 63 percent — said they would not vote for Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani got better responses, with about 30 percent saying they wouldn’t vote for them. Maybe Democrats pushing for a run by Illinois Sen. Barack Obama have the right idea (see next blog item).
Posted by Melissa Cooley
Most of the Democrats said to be considering a run for president — Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and Al Gore — have been in the public eye for a long time. Maybe too long, some Democrats are saying. Those in the party who think it’s time for a fresh face in 2008 are reportedly turning to freshman Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois as a potential candidate. The senator has been a rising star since his speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. “I haven’t seen a phenomenon like this, where someone comes in so new and is so dazzling,” Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y, told The Washington Post. So far, Obama hasn’t ruled out a run.
Posted by Melissa Cooley
“An intriguing debate has broken out among Republicans elites over how to treat black folks,” syndicated columnist Clarence Page noted on Tuesday’s Opinion pages. Conservatives Jack Kemp and Steven Warshawsky recently have had dueling commentaries about whether the GOP is on the right side of racial history. Page’s take is that the GOP often gets a bum rap on race but that it “became known as the party of white flight” after Barry Goldwater opposed the Civil Rights Act. “I’ve often said,” Page wrote, “that my family did not leave the party of Lincoln; the party left us.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Absent any new information, the brief lunch discussion about school finance between Kansas Supreme Court justice Lawton Nuss (in photo) and two state senators appears to be an isolated, dumb mistake, not the grand conspiracy promoted by some court critics. But the controversy highlights how difficult it can be to get information from the judiciary.
The high court turned down an open records request from a state senator seeking to determine whether the lunch meeting really was an isolated incident. And the Kansas Commission on Judicial Qualifications isn’t allowing cameras or tape recorders when it reviews the Nuss case, as is its regular policy.
The judiciary needs to recognize that secrecy breeds mistrust. Conversely, as Randy Brown, executive director of the Kansas Sunshine Coalition for Open Government, told The Topeka Capital-Journal: “The more access they have, the better it is for the public, the better it is for the Supreme Court.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
