Time magazine included John McCain’s “The fundamentals of the economy are strong” among its Top 10 Unfortunate Political One-Liners. The rest: Richard Nixon’s “I am not a crook” (1973). Bill Clinton’s “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” (1998). George H.W. Bush’s “Read my lips: no new taxes” (1988). Jimmy Carter’s “I’ve looked on a lot of women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times” (1976). Rep. Mark Foley’s “It’s vile. It’s more sad than anything else, to see someone with such potential throw it all down the drain because of a sexual addiction” (1998, about Clinton). Lyndon Johnson’s “We still seek no wider war” (1964, after the Gulf of Tonkin incident). Clinton’s “That depends on what the meaning of ‘is’ is” (1998). Herbert Hoover’s “The fundamental business of the country, that is, production and distribution of commodities, is on a sound and prosperous basis” (1929). Nixon’s “You know, I always wondered about that taping equipment but I’m damn glad we have it, aren’t you?” (1973).
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., didn’t make it to the Florida presidential primary, dropping out of the race for the GOP nomination months before. But he received one write-in vote in the general election in Duval County, Fla., according to the Florida Times-Union. Of course, other recipients of single write-in nods included Bill O’Reilly, James T. Kirk, Tommy Chong, Joe the Plumber, “Against All,” “They Both Suck ‘08″ and “Twice Cooked Pork $4.95.”
The court order last week to release five Algerian men who had been held at Guantanamo Bay for seven years was another rebuke of the Bush administration’s unconstitutional detention program. President Bush had claimed during his 2002 State of the Union address that the men were part of a plot to bomb a U.S. embassy. But once detainees were finally given the right to challenge their detention, thanks to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the government dropped the embassy allegation. Now a Bush-appointed judge has ruled that the government didn’t have evidence to hold the men. Robert C. Kirsch, one of the detainees’ attorneys, said the case showed “the human cost of what can happen when mistakes are made at the highest levels of our government, and no one has the courage to acknowledge those mistakes.” It also shows what can happen when our government sets aside the very principles that made our country great.
Good for Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., for his continuing leadership in the Senate on Africa. On Wednesday he introduced, with Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., a resolution calling for a cease-fire in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Brownback said in a statement: “With over 250,000 people displaced in the last two months, sporadic fighting between armed groups, rape and sexual violence thriving on impunity, this forgotten crisis continues to pass through each of our hands without our knowledge. Exploited minerals, used in our daily electronics, are being smuggled out of eastern Congo which in turn are funding armed groups and allowing this conflict to continue. We call on the electronics industry for transparency in their products, we call for an immediate cease-fire and negotiations towards a political solution to this conflict, and we call on the international community to not allow Congo to fall into the shadows once again and be so easily forgotten.” On Thursday the U.N. Security Council approved sending 3,100 more soldiers and police to Congo, but there is more the world community can and should do to quell the violence and respond to the resulting humanitarian crisis.
Time magazine included John McCain’s “The fundamentals of the economy are strong” among its Top 10 Unfortunate Political One-Liners. The rest: Richard Nixon’s “I am not a crook” (1973). Bill Clinton’s “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” (1998). George H.W. Bush’s “Read my lips: no new taxes” (1988). Jimmy Carter’s “I’ve looked on a lot of women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times” (1976). Rep. Mark Foley’s “It’s vile. It’s more sad than anything else, to see someone with such potential throw it all down the drain because of a sexual addiction” (1998, about Clinton). Lyndon Johnson’s “We still seek no wider war” (1964, after the Gulf of Tonkin incident). Clinton’s “That depends on what the meaning of ‘is’ is” (1998). Herbert Hoover’s “The fundamental business of the country, that is, production and distribution of commodities, is on a sound and prosperous basis” (1929). Nixon’s “You know, I always wondered about that taping equipment but I’m damn glad we have it, aren’t you?” (1973).
