Latest articles by Mark Willen
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Obama's Inauguration: Good Speech, Great Imagery
Politics The bar was so high that it was a given that some people would be disappointed in President Obama's inaugural address.
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No Seat at Cabinet Table for Business
Politics Notice what's missing from Barack Obama's new Cabinet? He's gotten a heap of praise for putting together a smart, experienced and diverse group of advisers, but one important element is absent, and that could make it harder to achieve his No. 1 goal -- jump-starting the economy.There are no business executives in Obama's Cabinet.
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Should Warren Speak at Obama's Inauguration?
Politics Symbols matter, sometimes a lot, so it's hard not to sympathize with the gay rights groups that are very angry over Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren, a prominent evangelical minister, to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. Warren crossed the line when he compared gay marriage to incest and pedophilia.
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Wrong Job for Caroline
Politics I've been trying to figure out what I think about the prospect of Caroline Kennedy being named to replace Hillary Clinton as New York's junior senator and having a tough time deciding.
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Media Bias vs. Reader Bias
Politics You'd think after 35 years in this business, I'd be used to charges of media bias, but the truth is that you never really get used to them.
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Joe Lieberman -- The Man Without a Party
Politics Say what you want about Joe Lieberman (and most people have), but you have to admire his chutzpah.
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Howard Dean as Unsung Hero?
Politics If the pundits are right and Democrats manage to win the White House and boost their margins in the House and Senate, a fair amount of the credit ought to go to Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
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The GOP's Closing Message
Politics With a week to go, Republicans have settled on one of their closing arguments -- that voters can't afford to turn all of Washington's power levers over to any one party.
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Joe the Plumber Won't Swing the Tax Debate
Politics With 11 days to go, John McCain launched a "Joe the Plumber" tour through battleground states today, determined to convince voters that Joe is just like you and me and that he'll pay higher taxes if Obama is elected.
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A Bold Move That Makes No Sense
Politics John McCain tried to show the American people yesterday that he lives by his campaign slogan of "Country First." He suspended his campaign, called for a postponement of the first debate and announced plans to fly to Washington to work on the bailout. Voters will decide for themselves whether they approve, but I find myself agreeing with the unnamed Republican strategist quoted in The Washington Post today: I don't get it at all. McCain's rationale is that this is a crisis akin to 9/11 and that he and Barack Obama should shun politics for a bipartisan approach.
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Too Many Questions; Time for Answers
Politics It's far too early to judge the fallout from the various revelations that have besieged the Republicans since John McCain surprised the world -- and much of his staff -- with the selection of Alaska Gov.
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Polls Get Even Tighter in Presidential Race
Politics The latest round of polls -- whether on the national or on the more important state level -- confirm that this is going to be another very close presidential election.The latest national poll -- by Pew Research -- shows that McCain has drawn almost even with Obama, trailing by 46% to 43%.
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The Nader Factor: Don't Dismiss Him Just Yet
Politics When Ralph Nader announced he was running for president (again), few gave it much thought.
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The Changing Electoral Map
Politics To see if the electoral map is really changing, Cook mapped the changes in voter registration statistics. He found that across the nation, Democrats have gained 700,000 new party members since President Bush's re-election in 2004, while Republicans have lost 1 million -- and that's only in the 29 states that register by party.
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The Case for Sam Nunn
Politics Barack Obama isn't talking -- and he's ordered his staff to stay mum, too -- on all the speculation over his vice presidential running mate.
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Corporate Taxes: Change in the Making
taxes Some powerful forces are going after the corporate income tax -- everyone from George Bush to John McCain to Barack Obama's new economic adviser, Jason Furman.
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Don't Be Fooled by the Polls
Politics Don't draw any big conclusions from the new public opinion polls.
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Hillary's Blackmail
Politics Barack Obama woke up this morning facing one huge political problem: What to do about Hillary.
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Endorsements Make a Difference -- In This Case
Politics In the last 48 hours, even as he was getting trounced by Hillary Clinton in West Virginia, Obama won the backing of more than half a dozen superdelegates, a key abortion rights group, three former chairmen of the Securities and Exchange Commission (two of whom were appointed by Republicans) and finally, former candidate John Edwards.
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Why Americans Are Fed Up With Congress
Politics It doesn't take a political scientist to figure out why Congress's approval ratings just hit an all-time low of 18% -- just spend a few days on Capitol Hill watching lawmakers in action.
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Duck! Here Comes the Mud!
Politics Republicans chafe when the media predicts a dirty campaign with the lion's share of mud thrown at Barack Obama.
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Showdown in Mississippi
Politics There's a very important election Tuesday and it's not the Democratic primary in West Virginia.
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What Could Wright Have Been Thinking?
Politics It may be impossible for a white person to understand what is motivating the Rev.
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Huckabee's Overlooked Comments on Obama
Politics He's no longer running for president, so it's no surprise that the comments of former Arkansas Gov.
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