Free Republic

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) is having a bad week. First, he is body-blocked from getting on camera in Mike Huckabee’s media circus with Kim Davis. Then he gets upstaged by Donald Trump at a purported Iran rally that Trump converted into a campaign event. It is a sad state of affairs for a media hog like Cruz when he gets overshadowed by even hoggier opponents. How long will Cruz play Robin to Trump’s Batman? It is not fun to be Ed McMahon when Mike Huckabee sits in the host chair. Cruz would like to think of himself as the smartest...

Thank God for the Wonk Book (WB) run by the Washington Post.For readers who have no idea what the Wonk Book is, it’s a blog run by some Poindexter types at the Post, who get use the amazing and changing D.C. buzzwords like “narrative,” “meme,” “optics,” and “pivot” to make themselves sound important and in-the-know. “Aren't these just buzzwords that dumb people use to sound important?” asked the Simpsons character forever to be called “Writer,” about his generation of “wonks,” known back then as “TV executives”.Yes. Yes, they are.At times the Wonk Book is insufferable, and at times it’s hilarious-...

What happens after you — yes you, voters — approve billions of dollars in spending and then walk away? Plenty. In 1998, voters passed Proposition 10 and increased the cigarette tax by 50 cents a pack to fund children's health programs. This has arguably done a lot of good. But in 2004, auditors found large amounts of the Proposition 10 money unspent, with no consistent rules in place to govern contracts. In rural Kern County, commissioners used $1,400 to put up bronze plaques honoring themselves in tot lots. ... --snip-- Now, California is getting ready to spend $3 billion for...

Sen. John Kerry made the following statement today on the transfer of sovereignty in Iraq: "Today's newspapers are full of stories about how the President and the administration are trying to repair relationships with NATO and with allies, and obviously, I hope that that repair job can be done as rapidly and as successfully as possible. "On the day of the transition of sovereignty to the Iraqi people, I want to start by saying that our troops have conducted military operations with extraordinary courage and skill. And they have been doing a magnificent job under very difficult circumstances. We owe...