Fox New breaks open the story of the Castro-Hillary-Obama alliance …
So how will Senate Republicans square their calls for Sen. Larry Craig’s resignation with their support for Sen. David Vitter (R-LA)?
Let’s put it this way: Vitter did more than slide his foot under a bathroom stall. He has as much as admitted to breaking the law by paying for prostitutes proffered by the D.C. Madam. He left precious little ambiguity in his public statements, though he didn’t go quite as far as Craig’s guilty plea.
But that is a slim reed of a difference. Is the only real difference for GOPers that Vitter was in for straight sex (though apparently pretty kinky straight sex, by one account) whereas Craig went in for gay sex in public places?
There’s been considerable commentary on conservative commentators’ double standard for Vitter and Craig. But it’s a standard GOP senators are going to have to answer for, too. Let the squirming begin.
Late Update: I included the last link above, to Kevin Drum, because it specifically lays out one possible reason for the double standard: Craig’s replacement would be appointed by a Republican governor, Vitter’s by a Democratic governor.
The influential New Hampshire Union Leader challenges Fred Thompson to declare already, and show up for a September 5 debate. That and other political news of the day in today’s Happy Hour Roundup.
It has been a difficult summer for Republican politicians staying within the law in their use of public bathrooms. In today’s episode of TPMtv we take a look at the misunderstood/mistaken/mixed-up cases of State Representative Bob Allen (R) of Florida and Idaho Senator Larry Craig (R).
But even the President of the United States
Sometimes must have
To stand naked.
— Bob Dylan
The Hillary campaign will divest themselves of money from convicted fraud Norman Hsu â but there are no plans yet from the Obama camp to do the same. That and other political news of the day in today’s Election Central Morning Roundup.
TPM Reader RK:
Carlson beat up a man? A fully grown man? Please. Tucker Carlson could be beaten into submission with nothing more than a heavy thought.
Is this outside their area of expertise?
Rep. Jon Porter (R-NV) just got back from Iraq and he says that Petraeus, Crocker and the chieftains of the Iraqi government told him not only that there would be genocide if the US left but that gas prices would go to $8 or $9 a gallon.
The Nevada Republican, who returned Tuesday from his fourth trip to Iraq, met with U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker, Iraqi Deputy President Tariq al-Hashimi and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh.
“To a person, they said there would be genocide, gas prices in the U.S. would rise to eight or nine dollars a gallon, al-Qaida would continue its expansion, and Iran would take over that portion of the world if we leave,” Porter said Wednesday in a phone interview from Las Vegas.
Is it Petraeus or Crocker who’s got the oil price analysis portfolio?
Someone remind me.
Sen. Larry Craig is not getting much love at home in Idaho either. The GOP governor and longtime Craig ally reiterated that Craig is a friend but is declining to say one way or the other whether Craig should resign.