States
Winning Colorblind
With all eyes trained on Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary and last week’s Iowa caucus, a Missouri court earlier this week handed down a major win to supporters of colorblind government. As they attempt to pass a ballot initiative barring government preferences based on race, sex, or ethnicity, Ward Connerly and other campaigners had to fight in court to prevent their measure from being deliberately misrepresented on the ballot. The question revolves around the wording that will be posed to voters in November. Normally, the Secretary of State is responsible for writing this copy, but Judge Richard Callahan’s ruling rejected the language proposed by Democratic Secretary of State Robin Carnahan. Instead, Judge Callahan adopted wording almost identical to what the initiative’s supporters had proposed. “Winning Colorblind” By David Freddoso 1/10 7:30 AM

 Congress
Dangerous Congressional Precedent
As they left town for Christmas, Congress passed an unprecedented end-of-the-year appropriations bill with billions in wasteful spending designed principally to benefit incumbent members of Congress. This bill includes thousands of self-serving Member-directed spending projects and displays total disregard for both legislative process and the Constitution. Though civics teaches that both Houses of Congress must pass a bill before it can be presented to the president for his signature to become law, this did not happen. Instead the House, fearful of political fallout, used trickery so members could avoid voting on the actual bill as it passed the Senate. A dangerous precedent. The 3,417-page bill (34 pounds) was dropped barely 20 hours before final consideration by the House. It included 9,170 member-directed spending projects. Over 300 of these had never been made public, seen by rank-and-file Members, or passed by either House. Combined with the 2,161 passed earlier, Members gave themselves a total of 11,331 self-serving projects, costing Americans over $20 billion this year. During a season of goodwill, this bill, and those who crammed it through Congress, showed none toward American taxpayers, their children, or grandchildren. “Dangerous Congressional Precedent” By John Shadegg 1/10 7:00 AM

 Education
Unhappy Birthday
Today the No Child Left Behind Act turns six, and even as President Bush and other supporters sing “Happy Birthday,” the time has come to blow out the candles on it for good.Since NCLB’s enactment in 2002, its supporters have been quick to credit it for anything even resembling improvement in American education, whether upticks in history knowledge (with which the law doesn’t deal), or improved math and reading scores. President Bush typified the whole always-declare-success strategy at an NCLB birthday bash Monday in Chicago when, at the outset of his speech, he declared simply, “I know No Child Left Behind has worked.” “Unhappy Birthday” By Neal McCluskey 1/8 2:30 PM

 2008
Is McCain Back?
Sen. John McCain is surging in the polls and could win two early primary states. “Is McCain Back?” By Mark Hemingway 12/21 11:30 AM

 2008
Pastor, Can You Spare Us?
With great power comes great responsibility. And Mike Huckabee, once and future Baptist preacher, could afford to watch where he’s taking to the pulpit. That’s “future” because the former evangelical pastor will be at John Hagee’s Cornerstone Church on Sunday. “Pastor, Can You Spare Us?” By Kathryn Jean Lopez 12/21 8:30 AM

 2008
The Weak Huck
Mike Huckabee has serious weaknesses. As governor of Arkansas, he raised taxes, backed scholarships for illegal aliens, and secured parole for a vicious criminal who went on to kill. As a wartime presidential candidate, he has a mushy foreign-policy agenda that makes Jimmy Carter look like … Chuck Norris. Expect to learn even more. In days to come, the other GOP candidates will stuff reporters’ Christmas stockings full of opposition research. The mainstream media, however, are misjudging where his soft spots are. A New York Times analysis says that his Christmas-tree TV spot could backfire outside of Iowa. “[T]he religiosity of the message may turn off more-secular voters elsewhere, and remind them that Mr. Huckabee has been dismissive of homosexuality and indicated that he does not believe in evolution.” “The Weak Huck” By John J. Pitney Jr. 12/21 7:45 AM

 2008
Reconsidering Huck
MEMORANDUM DATE: December 20, 2007 TO: Mike Huckabee FROM: The Conservative Movement RE: Membership Renewal Application Mike: It’s your old buddies in the conservative movement here. We know the Iowa caucuses are only two weeks away but we’ve got to talk. We know you’ve endured the slings and arrows of some establishment folks and to a certain extent the piling on hasn’t been terribly fair. Many of your critics — George Will comes to mind — seem far more comfortable with the idea of Rudy Giuliani as president despite the fact that he’s pro-choice, and has an overall troubling record on social issues that seems about as bad as your fiscal record. Furthermore, nobody has given you credit for the conservative stands you have taken. As only the fourth Republican elected to statewide office in Arkansas since Reconstruction, you held your head up proudly as a Republican. Certainly that took political courage. Further, it needs to be said that most of your tenure as governor of the state involved having to work with one of the most Democratically lopsided legislatures in the country. Given what you were up against, it’s hard not to admit that you did some good in difficult circumstances. “Reconsidering Huck” By Mark Hemingway 12/21 12:00 AM

 Immigration
Stalled at the Border
Republicans have an opportunity on immigration, if only they will seize it. The Democrats are positioning themselves to the left of public opinion. Howard Dean denounces Republicans for using “outrageous phrases like ‘illegal aliens.’” Hillary Clinton ties herself in knots for days over granting drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants. Meanwhile, almost everyone in public life favors — or, at any rate, feels compelled to claim to favor — tougher enforcement measures. Yet Republicans are blowing the opportunity. They are engaged in petty backbiting over one another’s records. Since very few politicians have good ones on this issue, that’s a strategy of mutual assured destruction. It also obscures the choices we face now. Worse, the Republicans are picking on secondary or even tertiary issues. Gov. Mike Huckabee has taken a lot of criticism from the other presidential candidates, for example, for allowing the high-achieving children of illegal immigrants to receive favorable tuition rates at colleges and universities. It is the sort of question that would not even arise in a country that was serious about controlling its borders. A politician’s position on the narrow question is important only insofar as it bears on what he or she would do about the broader one. “Stalled at the Border” By The Editors 12/21 12:00 AM