Lowe's decision to pull their ads from All-American Muslim is quickly turning into a PR disaster. I have to admit some personal fascination with this story. Somewhere, some Lowe's suit or roomful of suits said, "Yup, this is a good idea!" Who could possibly have come to that conclusion? That's what fascinates me. Whenever I see a story about some crazy thing someone has done, I always want to ask them, "At what point did any of this seem like a good idea?" Not in a smart-alecky way, but because I really want to know -- what makes obviously lousy ideas seem rational?
Does a strong showing in Iowa polling mean that it's Ron Paul's turn to be the not-Romney? I kind of doubt it. Paul's made a huge effort to get votes in Iowa and I think it's paying off. According to ABC News, Paul's "ground game hasn’t gone unnoticed by Iowa’s Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, who called Paul’s operation the best of any of the Republican candidates in the state." Outside Iowa, Gingrich's lead widens.
Donald Trump pulls out of moderating the all but dead Newsmax debate. In doing so, he manages to blame the GOP candidates and basically says they're afraid of him. What a massive ego.
Gallup polling indicates some trouble for Obama in swing states, but things are still pretty unpredictable right now. I think this is a pretty good, if brief, analysis.
Harry Reid hopes to head off GOP gamesmanship on a payroll tax-cut extension.
The National Transportation Safety Board calls for a national ban on the use of cell phones while driving. I'm waiting for some wingnut blogger to show how this is exactly like Nazi Germany.
James Murdoch knew phone hacking was going on.
Finally, Karl Rove's Crossroads GPS PAC is a bullshit factory. Try to act surprised.
