Credit Unions Help Students See the Light, Not the Red Credit Unions Help Students See the Light, Not the Red
How does a student afford mandatory expenses for college without graduating $5,000 or more in the red? Consider credit unions, instead of credit card companies.
Aug 3, 2010 / StudentNation / Melanie Breault
Newt Gingrich’s Lost Marbles Speech: ‘The Sharians Are Coming! The Sharians Are Coming!’ Newt Gingrich’s Lost Marbles Speech: ‘The Sharians Are Coming! The Sharians Are Coming!’
A psychotic outburst at the American Enterprise Institute.
Aug 2, 2010 / Blog / Bob Dreyfuss
Our Long Hot Summer of (Faux) Racial Tension Our Long Hot Summer of (Faux) Racial Tension
Unlike during other periods of race-based strife in this country, this summer, there is no action. There is only media.
Aug 2, 2010 / Ari Melber
MEDIA FIX: Upcoming George W. Bush Memoir Eagerly Embraced By—The Democrats? MEDIA FIX: Upcoming George W. Bush Memoir Eagerly Embraced By—The Democrats?
(This guest post written by Nation intern Melanie Breault.) George W. Bush’s memoir Decision Points -- remember, he was "The Decider" -- is not set to be published by Crown until November 9th, the week after the 2010 midterm elections, but it's already raising alarms, and not just in the predictable places. The former president says his book is not an autobiography, but more of “an analysis of key decisions in his life, both before and after he was elected president,” according to the early pubilcity. That’s fourteen decisions to be exact. Already we know that Decision Points starts with an anecdote about the night Laura Bush asked her husband whether he preferred booze to fatherhood and how from that moment on, he quit drinking, cold turkey. Crown says the book gives "gripping, never-before-heard detail" about the disputed 2000 election, how he responded to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Hurricane Katrina and the financial crisis. Bush will also write “honestly and directly” about his weaknesses and mistakes as president, as well as his path out of alcoholism. News emeged today that Bush would grant his first big interview for the book on November 8 with NBC's Matt Lauer. As Bush edits the final touches of his opus on his computer in Dallas -- it's already marked down from $35 to $18.90 at Amazon -- GOPers can’t decide whether they’re happy about this new release or depressed. Former aide to the president Matt Latimer says the publication date -- surely highlights from the book will be leaked before Election Day -- represents “monumentally bad timing.” Paging Julian Assange! Other conservatives call Bush “selfish and stupid” because of the timing, like Lebron James (but with less access to ESPN hype). Latimer titled his Daily Beast article, "The Bush Book Bomb." Bush is not on the ballot this time, making the midterms “a referendum on Barack Obama,” says GOP strategist John Feehery, in NPR's report. But still, nervous Republicans would have preferred a later release date. "Right before Christmas," Feehery suggests. "It would make a nice stocking stuffer." The Democrats have already started putting out the welcome mat for Bush era nostalgia, as Laimer describes in his piece for The Daily Beast: Rep. Chris Van Hollen, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said: “The more flashbacks of the Bush era we have, the more people will be reminded about the huge mess that Barack Obama and the Democrats inherited." Democratic strategist Karen Finney says that the publicity surrounding the book is the perfect opportunity to refer to the Bush policies and “have it resonate with voters by linking Republicans still in office with those policies.” Which is exactly what the DCCC did last month when they unveiled a new web video ad that showed Rep. Pete Sessions telling Meet the Press, “we need to go back to the exact same agenda.” But Republicans like Sen. John Cornyn think this book is a great idea and that the GOP can use it as Americans become more dissatisfied with the increasing national deficit under the Obama Administration. He told C-SPAN, "I think a lot of people are looking back with a little -- with more fondness on President Bush's administration, and I think history will treat him well." Since Bush is no longer the president, voters are warming up to “Bush, the person,” so they may also be intrigued by his memoir, not resentful. Its Amazon page offers a "three-fer" with latest books by Bill O'Reilly and Laura Ingraham. Bush says he wants historians to use this book as a tool to evaluate his presidency. "I don't think you can come to a definitive conclusion about a presidency until the passage of time," Bush said. "I want to put you in my position."
Aug 2, 2010 / Blog / Melanie Breault
How Citizens United Twisted Decades of Legal Precedent to Empower Corporations How Citizens United Twisted Decades of Legal Precedent to Empower Corporations
The overwhelming number of Supreme Court cases cited by Justice Anthony Kennedy in his decision were intended to protect the unique First Amendment rights of media outlets, not all...
Jul 30, 2010 / Mel Wulf
Baseball Fans Rally Against Arizona Immigration Law Baseball Fans Rally Against Arizona Immigration Law
The nationwide boycott of the Arizona law has hit the sports arena: demonstrators outside ball parks in cities across the country are demanding that baseball owners move the 2011...
Jul 30, 2010 / Nation in the News / Press Room
Slacker Friday Slacker Friday
On Shirley Sherrod and the Republicans' great future hopes.
Jul 30, 2010 / Blog / Eric Alterman
Baseball Fans Rally Against Arizona Immigration Law Baseball Fans Rally Against Arizona Immigration Law
The nationwide boycott of the Arizona law has hit the sports arena: demonstrators outside ball parks in cities across the country are demanding that baseball owners move the 2011 A...
Jul 30, 2010 / Video / Democracy Now!
The Unemployed Netroots Are Gaining Power The Unemployed Netroots Are Gaining Power
There are people who have been unemployed for six months and there are some who have been unemployed for 99 months or more. Congress should watch out for the 1.5 million unemploy...
Jul 29, 2010 / Nation in the News / Press Room
Do You Know Who Eric Alterman Is? Do You Know Who Eric Alterman Is?
On Nascar, the Pentagon Papers and the mail.
Jul 29, 2010 / Blog / Eric Alterman