Newsweek

Rove: Make Burr face of the GOP

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:17:37 -0500

Karl Rove thinks Sen. Richard Burr could help save the GOP.

In a proposed roadmap out of the political wilderness published last week in Newsweek, the former political strategist for President Bush argued that Burr could be a fresh face for the Republican Party.

He argued that the "party's face" is now its Congressional leadership.

Senate and House Republicans will be seen more than any party chair or 2012 aspirant. Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. John Boehner must put on center stage their most persuasive, compelling members: Richard Burr and Jon Kyl in the Senate, and Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor, Mike Pence, Cathy McMorris, Peter Roskam and Kevin McCarthy in the House, for example.

Burr is no stranger to TV interviews, having spent a fair amount of time boosting Sen. John McCain's presidential bid this year.

Facing a potentially tough re-election fight in 2010, he probably wouldn't object to spending more time getting his name out there either.

It's also worth noting that Rove recruited Burr to run for Senate.

Is Dole ad a model for Obama?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:51:36 -0400

Is an attack ad on U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole a model?

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's new ad, which slyly brings up Dole's age, has attracted attention beyond North Carolina.

On Newsweek's Stumper blog, Andrew Romano wonders whether such a line of attack could be used against Republican presidential candidate John McCain.

The whole thing is a self-consciously transparent effort to mention Dole's age (and tie it to her supposed "ineffectiveness") without actually mentioning her age—like, say, starting a speech with a list of all the things you aren't going to say. And the actors' stilted delivery actually contributes to the effect, making the spot--which exaggerates Dole's longevity by a two whole decades, after all—seem like a delightfully dry SNL spoof.

Romano says to broach the subject of age opponents have to "get creative."

An imperfect 100?

bkrueger — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:58:38 -0400

No one has ever received a perfect score on Newsweek's "Dignity Index," which measures "just how low a person can go."

Until now.

North Carolina's John Edwards is the first person to score a perfect 100 on the Dignity Index. The magazine said Edwards "outclassed the competition by cheating on his wife, who has cancer, and then lying about it during the campaign. Ouch!"

Newsweek doesn't chilipunk Munger

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:59:03 -0400

Mike Munger got a brief shoutout in Newsweek.

Columnist George F. Will wrote about the Libertarian Party's resurgence in the 2008 elections:

It has recruited 600 down-ballot candidates around the nation (including Michael Munger, chairman of the political-science department at Duke, who is running for governor of North Carolina) and expects to have 1,500 by Election Day.

On his blog, Munger writes that he got a call from Will before the column ran:

George called me last week, and we got to talk for a second. He wanted to make sure I was really running, since it is "irrational."
I pointed out that, as a Cubs fan, George Will is just as irrational as a Libertarian, and maybe more so. He acknowledged that there is some truth in that.

Well played, Munger.

The rules of the game pick the winner

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 08:20:11 -0500

In Monopoly, the rules often determine the outcome.

At Dome's house, any fees paid because of a Community Chest card are placed in the middle of the board. If you land on Free Parking, the pot of money's yours.

That slight variation on the rules has dragged out many a Monopoly game, allowing a comeback by a player who's burned through a lot of cash.

As Newsweek science blogger Sharon Begley writes, the rules of elections often determine the outcome as well.

A prime example is going on with the Democratic presidential primary. Under party rules, states must divide their delegates proportionally among candidates who get at least 15 percent of the vote.

Along with his campaign cash, that rule is keeping John Edwards in the race, since he can continue winning delegates even though he's in third place. In a winner-take-all system, Edwards would have little motivation to keep fighting.

Again, the rules are determining the outcome. Remember that the next time you skip a news item about an obscure fight over elections laws.