Before I offer my own pedestrian thoughts on Michael Moore's new film, Sicko, I offer two disclaimers:
1) I direct to you to the just-published review of same by my ever-brilliant daughter.
2) And I readily admit that I am a fully-declared Michael Moore-phobe, having detested Bowling for Columbine and the execrable Fahrenheit 9-11 ( as well [...]

*** Update Thurs. Morn.: The bill is now dead. And with it any glimmer of reform anytime in the near future. 
I'm pretty well disgusted with the general silence, and lack of leadership, on the immigration issue by liberals and the liberal blogosphere. This side of the 'sphere has pretty much nothing to say about this [...]

There's Dick. And then there's Dick.
As to the first one, Mr. Cheney, don't forget to catch the final and fourth installment of the WaPo's opus on the vast power he has accumulated and exercised. The whole thing is starting to read like a bad joke. Whatever the worst thing is you can imagine, he's done [...]

Even the normally cautious and reserved CNN reporter, Ed Henry, couldn't contain himself. "Absurd" is how he described Dick Cheney's, um, absurd assertion that his office isn't part of the executive branch. Then CNN ran footage of Monday's White House briefing in which a red-faced Dana Perino stood at the podium and, with little effort, [...]

Monday's Washington Post carries a lengthy, comprehensive and ultimately stunning piece by Barton Gellman and Jo Becker that begins a four-part series on the unprecedented power of Vice-President Dick Cheney.
In rich and rather nauseating detail, we learn of the relentless efforts undertaken by Cheney over the last five years within the administration to promote policies [...]

The daughter has written this review of the new movie about Daniel Pearl, A Mighty Heart.

Joaquin Villalobos, the former commander of the Salvadoran FMLN guerrilla army, takes on Hugo Chavez in this tangy opinion piece (which I had the fun of translating).
Back in 1988 I had the privilege of doing the first American TV interview with Joaquin (for PBS Frontline) -- and I never regretted the four days of hiking [...]

She graduated. I love her.

Having finished off the Carl Bernstein book on Hillary last week, I've now decided to plow through the Gertz-Van Atta tome.  Bernstein, in the end, disappointed me. He's a rather clunky writer to tell the truth. And while he certainly put a lot of sweat equity into his research, he left me asking more questions [...]

Finally, the Clintons come clean. The most honest comparison of themselves to date.
I saw Hillary earlier in the day at a televised union forum. The pro-Hill crowd got audibly angry at moderator Chris Matthews when he asked her opinion of pardoning Scooter Libby (which she artfully dodged). The Clinton supporters accused Matthews of trivialization. [...]

"We will bring transparency and openness to the budget process and to the use of earmarks and we will give the American people the leadership they deserve."
Thus spake Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi in 2006.
So CNN had the bright idea of spending two days last week calling up every member of the House and asking if they [...]

What's all the suspense about regarding Iraq? The congressional Democrats --for the most part-- have joined with Republicans in promoting the cynical myth that we're going to reach some climactic turning point in September. That's when General David H. "Jesus Christ" Petraeus, along with U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker, are scheduled to give their definitive report [...]

Gene over at Harry's Place sums it all up quite nicely. The Left -- and The Butchers of the Left (and socialists,  liberals,  women,  gays, and Jews) together at last. Sigh.

Out here in California, the local Democrats are on the verge of making an historic deal -- one that would betray their long-time union allies.
Read about it in my latest L.A. Weekly column.
Money talks. Suckers walk.

The latest national polling numbers have arrived. How many ways can you say doom and gloom?
George W. Bush has hit an all-time low of  a 29% job-approval rating.  Only 19% of Americans believe the country is headed in the right direction. As GOP pollster Neil Newhouse points out, these numbers have crossed the infamous "Mendoza [...]

Sorry to learn that Don Herbert, Mr. Wizard, has passed away. Even sorrier to learn that he had been living just a few minutes away from me in Bell Canyon.
If I had known he was so near, I would have certainly found some "journalistic" reason to go meet and interview him.
Herbert, best to my recollection, [...]

So what did good, old avuncular Fred Thompson really do with that nice little red pick-up truck he featured in his cornball campaigns?
Apparently he used it to cart tons of insider cash back and forth to the bank as he worked as, um, a foreign agent for a British, um, asbestos company.
Raking in more than [...]

I've pretty much had enough of this turkey, Mike Huckabee -- long before most anybody has heard of him. He's a wonderfully gifted smooth-talker, about the best I've seen. The gap between his style and his substance reaches from here to --well-- eternity. He seduces his interviewers and interlocutors into believing they're actually talking to [...]

SOPRANOS: Well, I think I like the way The Sopranos ended, but not 100% sure. It's anti-climactic climax certainly makes sense. There is little justice in this world so why expect much except the basic status quo? I was thrilled by the FBI ratting out Phil Leotardo and even more enthusiastic about the way Phil's [...]

With less than 3 hours to go before the series finale, both Tony Soprano and Paulie Walnuts are favored to survive -- at least by online oddsmakers.
Given the legal vagueries of Internet wagering, I'm not going to confirm nor deny that I have placed any real money on this proposition.
I will say -- if a [...]