October 23, 2006 Issue

Cover art by: Cover art by Robert Grossman, cover design by Gene Case & Stephen Kling/Avenging Angels

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Feature

AIPAC Runs Right

American Jews are liberals and support Democrats. Why, then, do Jewish organizations, supported by contributions of liberal Jews, strategize with Republicans on how to smear these same Democrats?
Eric Alterman
Leave No Tax Cheat Behind

If President Bush and the Republican Congress would close the loopholes on tax cheats--especially the superrich--there would be ample money to improve the nation's public schools.
John C. Fager
Gone Nuclear: How the World Lost Its Way

As the world reacts to news of North Korea's underground nuclear test, a crucial anniversary is observed: Twenty years ago at the Reykjavik Summit, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev outlined a vision for a non-nuclear world. What went wrong? In this Nation forum, four experts from the nonproliferation movement discuss how to put disarmament back on the world's agenda.
Richard Falk , Mary Kaldor , Randall Caroline Forsberg and George Perkovich
No Blank Checks on Torture

As the fight against the Administration's policies on torture and the terror detainees shifts to the Supreme Court, there is reason to be confident that the Justices will again rein in Bush's power grab.
Jonathan Hafetz
The Economic Debate: Fear vs. Corruption

As election day approaches, don't expect a reasoned discussion of economic policy between the two parties. A barrage of quips and one-liners have taken the place of detail and fact in political debate.
Robert L. Borosage
State Cops

At a time when the federal government has failed to do its job, state attorneys general are asserting their authority to protect the public interest.
John Nichols
Repainting Statehouses Blue

If current trends hold, Democratic governors will soon be popping up all over the country, and with them comes a greater opportunity to challenge the Bush Administration.
John Nichols
The Minutemen Hit the Wall

As Democratic Congressional candidates in Arizona embrace comprehensive immigration reform, conservative Republicans are no longer winning on their "militarize the border" message.
Marc Cooper
Virginia’s Rumbling Rebels

As Senator George Allen's faux-populist campaign devolves into a series of racial embarrassments, Virginia Democrat Jim Webb's unlikely campaign is surging, thanks in large part to Webb's unblemished record of opposing the Iraq War.
Bob Moser

Editorial

Nuremberg: Past, Present and Future

Let us follow the example set by the judges and prosecutors who pursued justice in the Nuremberg Trials to lead America back to a reverence for the rule of law and the common good.
Sen. Christopher Dodd
The 5 Worst 2006 Candidates Seek Redemption

Steve Brodner
In Fact…

HAM-HANDED SMITHFIELD
the Editors
Cultural Famine: A Cycle

Famine is at its worst when people waste away and die. But there is another kind of famine: the death of the human soul--the emptiness and senseless cynicism in this country that has taken up residence in our hearts.
Walter Mosley
Death Trip

Philip Roth and Joan Didion have each written compellingly about death, but their insights about dying and mourning signify a retreat from the world rather than an embrace of the forces by which we all live and die.
Richard Goldstein
Woodward, Revised

Bob Woodward is late to the party: His new book, State of Denial, catches up to the story of the Iraq debacle that other journalists have been reporting for years.
David Corn
Sanctioning Lawlessness

What's more important to Congress: America's standing in the world and the rule of law, or partisan advantage in the midterm elections?
David Cole
Disgraced Republicans

America needs a new Congress--the question is, Will Americans hold the GOP to account for their corruption, ineptitude and irresponsibility?
the Editors
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Column

Just Blame Bill

Instead of pursuing real diplomacy with North Korea, the Bush Administration chose a my-way-or-the-highway approach. Rather than face up to the mess they made, it's easier to blame Bill Clinton.
Robert Scheer
Foley’s IMbroglio

It shows how hapless and shallow Democrats are that they show so little electoral joy in a principled challenge to GOP rule. Instead we get tactical theatrics about whatever comes down the pike: gas prices or Foley.
Katha Pollitt
Orgasms and Wargasms

America can't talk about the legalization of torture or about Iraq, where soldiers are raping girls and shooting families at close range. It stands to reason they are now obsessed by a Congressional sex scandal.
Alexander Cockburn
We Got Those Wall- To-Wall 24/7 Damage-Control Blues

Bush and his boys will be singing this little ditty all the way to the voting booth.
Calvin Trillin

Books & the Arts

Nuremberg: Past, Present and Future

Let us follow the example set by the judges and prosecutors who pursued justice in the Nuremberg Trials to lead America back to a reverence for the rule of law and the common good.
Sen. Christopher Dodd
Down These Mean Streets

Martin Scorsese is one of those great artists who not only expresses emotion through film but also invents it. With The Departed, he proves why he's one of the best.
Stuart Klawans
America, Through a Glass Darkly

An intellectual biography of Richard Hofstadter rides a wave of nostalgia for this artful historian and liberal icon of the 1950s and '60s.
Jon Wiener
Not the President’s Men

A review of Frank Rich's The Greatest Story Ever Sold and two books on I.F. Stone shows how media politics have changed since the cold war. Now it's all about repeating the same few things until they seem inevitable, even if--especially if--they're not true.
John Powers
Cultural Famine: A Cycle

Famine is at its worst when people waste away and die. But there is another kind of famine: the death of the human soul--the emptiness and senseless cynicism in this country that has taken up residence in our hearts.
Walter Mosley
Death Trip

Philip Roth and Joan Didion have each written compellingly about death, but their insights about dying and mourning signify a retreat from the world rather than an embrace of the forces by which we all live and die.
Richard Goldstein
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Letters

Food, Glorious Food…

Everyone has an opinion about what they eat, and our first Special Food Issue [Sept. 11] received much mail.
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October 23, 2006 Issue

Feature

American Jews are liberals and support Democrats. Why, then, do Jewish organizations, supported by contributions of liberal Jews, strategize with Republicans on how to smear these same Democrats?

If President Bush and the Republican Congress would close the loopholes on tax cheats--especially the superrich--there would be ample money to improve the nation's public schools.

As the fight against the Administration's policies on torture and the terror detainees shifts to the Supreme Court, there is reason to be confident that the Justices will again rein in Bush's power grab.

As election day approaches, don't expect a reasoned discussion of economic policy between the two parties. A barrage of quips and one-liners have taken the place of detail and fact in political debate.

At a time when the federal government has failed to do its job, state attorneys general are asserting their authority to protect the public interest.

If current trends hold, Democratic governors will soon be popping up all over the country, and with them comes a greater opportunity to challenge the Bush Administration.

As Democratic Congressional candidates in Arizona embrace comprehensive immigration reform, conservative Republicans are no longer winning on their "militarize the border" message.

As Senator George Allen's faux-populist campaign devolves into a series of racial embarrassments, Virginia Democrat Jim Webb's unlikely campaign is surging, thanks in large part to Webb's unblemished record of opposing the Iraq War.

Editorial

Let us follow the example set by the judges and prosecutors who pursued justice in the Nuremberg Trials to lead America back to a reverence for the rule of law and the common good.

HAM-HANDED SMITHFIELD

Famine is at its worst when people waste away and die. But there is another kind of famine: the death of the human soul--the emptiness and senseless cynicism in this country that has taken up residence in our hearts.

Philip Roth and Joan Didion have each written compellingly about death, but their insights about dying and mourning signify a retreat from the world rather than an embrace of the forces by which we all live and die.

Bob Woodward is late to the party: His new book, State of Denial, catches up to the story of the Iraq debacle that other journalists have been reporting for years.

What's more important to Congress: America's standing in the world and the rule of law, or partisan advantage in the midterm elections?

America needs a new Congress--the question is, Will Americans hold the GOP to account for their corruption, ineptitude and irresponsibility?

GET UNLIMITED DIGITAL ACCESS FOR LESS THAN $3 A MONTH!

Column

Instead of pursuing real diplomacy with North Korea, the Bush Administration chose a my-way-or-the-highway approach. Rather than face up to the mess they made, it's easier to blame Bill Clinton.

It shows how hapless and shallow Democrats are that they show so little electoral joy in a principled challenge to GOP rule. Instead we get tactical theatrics about whatever comes down the pike: gas prices or Foley.

America can't talk about the legalization of torture or about Iraq, where soldiers are raping girls and shooting families at close range. It stands to reason they are now obsessed by a Congressional sex scandal.

Bush and his boys will be singing this little ditty all the way to the voting booth.

Books & the Arts

Let us follow the example set by the judges and prosecutors who pursued justice in the Nuremberg Trials to lead America back to a reverence for the rule of law and the common good.

Martin Scorsese is one of those great artists who not only expresses emotion through film but also invents it. With The Departed, he proves why he's one of the best.

An intellectual biography of Richard Hofstadter rides a wave of nostalgia for this artful historian and liberal icon of the 1950s and '60s.

A review of Frank Rich's The Greatest Story Ever Sold and two books on I.F. Stone shows how media politics have changed since the cold war. Now it's all about repeating the same few things until they seem inevitable, even if--especially if--they're not true.

Famine is at its worst when people waste away and die. But there is another kind of famine: the death of the human soul--the emptiness and senseless cynicism in this country that has taken up residence in our hearts.

Philip Roth and Joan Didion have each written compellingly about death, but their insights about dying and mourning signify a retreat from the world rather than an embrace of the forces by which we all live and die.

The stakes are higher now than ever. Get The Nation in your inbox.

Letters

Everyone has an opinion about what they eat, and our first Special Food Issue [Sept. 11] received much mail.