The first “scandal” of the Obama administration is upon us, with Democrat Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich being charged with trying to sell Obama’s Senate seat. No allegations have been made by the prosecution that Obama knew anything about it.

This week, president-elect Barack Obama made the last of his major nominations and appointments for his staff. Barring a Nannygate type of scandal, we know who be sitting at the table in Obama’s White House.

As a result, it’s time to grade his choices.

As the end of the George W. Bush presidency approaches, presidential pardon season has begun. While the number of pardons Bush has granted during his two terms has been relatively low, last week he issued fourteen pardons and commuted a pair of sentences to mostly obscure offenders. And earlier in his presidency, Bush commuted Scooter Libby’s sentence. [...]

According to Sebastian D’Souza, a Mumbai photographer, armed police refused to engage with the terrorists in India. And the world receives another example that one’s safety is one’s own responsibility. Relying on other to provide security is a sure-fire (pun intended) way to become a statistic.

India has a long history of draconian anti-gun legislation, stretching back into the 19th century. The British managed to put down a major Indian insurrection in 1857, and quickly moved to ensure it did not occur again. The Indian masses were systematically disarmed and means of firearm production were destroyed, so that the Indians could never rise against their colonial masters again. [...]

Given that I’m certainly going to bitch about Obama when he makes decisions with which I disagree (and I expect there to be many), it’s only fair that I give him credit for the good ideas.
It was leaked today that the Obama team is interested in exploring a prepackaged bankruptcy for the automakers. This is [...]

Was McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin a brilliant political move, or a little thought through mistake? Palin’s impressive political skills, notable personal flaws, and inept campaign handlers make this a difficult analysis. With just over two weeks passed since the election, what have we learned?
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Many pundits referred to the Palin pick [...]

First and foremost, thank goodness it’s over. Two years is way too long for a political campaign. Unfortunately, I fear the trend will be towards even longer campaigns.
I would have expected the campaigns to be dirtier. Yes, there was plenty of ugliness amongst the extremists on both sides, but the campaigns themselves toyed with the [...]

I have previously stated that McCain is done, and that Obama is going to win this thing. On the other hand, nothing is really done until it’s done. So, what are the scenarios under which he could lose?
While I’m the first to admit that conspiracy theories are fun, they rarely reflect reality. As a result, [...]

CBS News’ Dean Reynolds just published a fascinating look behind the scenes of the presidential race, from the point of view of a reporter who has covered both campaigns.
Suffice it to say that McCain’s camp is much better organized and the candidate himself has a much better touch with the media. Obama’s camp is somewhat [...]

With about a month left until election day, Obama is pulling ahead, and things are pretty much over for the McCain campaign. Unless something horrific is revealed about him in the next few weeks (unlikely, but not impossible given the smokiness of some of his early biography), the fundamentals will take over, and Obama will [...]