I’m saddened, frustrated , and absolutely disappointed. The story of Mark Sanford was a roller coaster that dumped me off a cliff at the end. Allow me to take you through this sequentially.

I’ve spent the past 36 hours dramatically changing my thoughts about how I might speak to the unusual story of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford’s mysterious disappearance. Mark was the head of the Republican Governor’s Association (now headed by Haley Barbour), and considered a potential candidate for the 2012 Presidential nomination.

First I thought, after hearing that he had been missing for several days after driving off in a bodyguard’s SUV, that this guy was a little weird. I could, at that point, conceive of only one type of circumstance that might explain this behavior, and that would be some kind of kidnapping or other threat by an outside party. Barring such a circumstance, I figured running for President didn’t sound like something that could be on his calendar… disappearing on purpose and intentionally avoiding everyone with no explanation just didn’t sound like an event that would instill anyone’s confidence. The good news, I thought, is that he certainly hadn’t disappeared because of an extramarital affair. No one would draw this much attention just so they could spend time with an alternate squeeze.

Later on I heard he was hiking in the Appalachian Trail. Clearing his head, evidently. According to his staff, this was not unusual, so my thoughts about the man didn’t change much, just continuing to seem very odd and unlikely to be a kidnapping but rather just some eccentricity. South Carolina officials were [...]

I am not surprised at the guilty verdict handed down against US Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) on seven counts of making false statements. And nor should anyone else. I stated earlier in the year that Alaskan Republicans needed to find another candidate, but they failed. It amazes me that people like Ted can imagine that they are not only above the law, but that in the midst of failure they should continue on with their struggle for power when they should be focusing on dealing with the issue at hand… planning a appeal. From The Hill:

The senator vowed to “fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy I have” and said he would return home to defend his seat.

“I am innocent. This verdict is[...]

A lot of you have seen the speech, some have not.  Overall, high marks for contents.  Very high.  I think he brought out the right issues, positions, and comparisons with Obama.  He’s working out the differences, which he needs to continue to do.  Probably the three key areas that he addressed and should continue to [...]

The Left is going absolutely bonkers over the selection of Sarah Palin to run for Vice-President on the GOP ticket.
There’s also a lot of negative comments coming from the Right, although not quite as emotionally charged as those from the Left.
Christopher Patton of The Podium, aka DI Blog (that is, Daily Iowan, I believe) had [...]

In this weekend’s Wall Street Journal, there is a report of an investment made by Nancy Pelosi and her husband.
They put somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000 into T. Boone Picken’s company, Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
At first blush, the relatively small amount (compared to millions of dollars in assets held by the Pelosis) would make most [...]

Although we may all support the notion that one is innocent until proven guilty, we (and Stevens) have a responsibility to ensure that we not only keep our noses clean, we do all we can to avoid the appearance of impropriaty.  The fact that Ted managed to get himself in a situation where the FBI [...]

It’s so easy to get away with things.  Right in front of everyone.  No one seriously does anything about it.  We’ve seen it with Obama, Clinton, Clinton, and today, with Chris Dodd.
I don’t know why I keep thinking that people like Dodd are respectable and of high integrity.  When Countrywide gave him a great, no [...]

I was pleasantly surprised this morning to hear (on the New York Times Audio Digest) this story about the Pope’s speech to the US Bishops on Wednesday.
It was an excellent assessment of the lives we tend to live in America where we’ve gotten comfortable compartmentalizing our faiths or belief systems away from the realities of [...]

I hate to say this, but I’m not all that worked up about any of Hillary Clinton’s (or any other politician’s) hypocrisy.  Hypocrisy is unbecoming, and it may even raise some question of character (although I’m not sure how exactly), but it’s really empty criticism.  On it’s own, it might make a good argument for [...]

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer today confirmed he met with a prostitute in a Washington hotel room.  He apologized for his actions and said little more.  He did not say if he planned to resign.

“I apologize first and most importantly to my family. I apologize to the public, to whom I promised better,” he said.

He’s [...]