Ach, I didn't get around to running this on Friday. I had a new piece out over at Salon as part of the candidate web site series, this one looking at foreign policy -- but it turned out to be about Afghanistan, as I found that Republican candidates don't even acknowledge that the place exists.
I also had one at Post Partisan on ACA polling and why "repeal and replace" isn't likely to entirely disappear as a slogan, and one at Greg's place saying what you would expect me to say about the jobs numbers -- it's bad news for the economy and for Barack Obama, but people shouldn't overreact to one piece of data. So far as least, the best evidence is that the economy is continuing its slow, unimpressive recovery. No boom, but no double dip.
I thought the business about GOP candidates and Afghanistan was interesting -- 15 of the 16 I looked at didn't mention it at all. So I'll encourage you to check that one out.
You seem to have missed Scott Brown:
ReplyDelete"Regarding Afghanistan, I supported President Obama’s troop surge and his plan to bring down those troop levels, but we must constantly monitor the situation and be careful not to sacrifice the security gains we have made. Preventing Afghanistan from becoming a safe-haven for terrorist groups seeking to attack our country is critical to America’s national security. We need to continually re-evaluate our progress there based on reports from commanders and conditions on the ground. Last summer, I completed my annual National Guard training requirements in Afghanistan, which gave me an additional perspective about the conditions on the ground. I am continually impressed by the dedication of the men and women of our military serving on the frontlines to keep our country safe. They deserve the highest levels of gratitude and respect of all Americans."
I have a feeling most Republican candidates don't want to admit that they agree with Obama, so they just avoid the issue. 'Stay the course' isn't exactly a popular position either...
I was doing non-incumbents only, so that's why I didn't look at Brown.
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