New DNC Ad Slams GOP's 'Angry Mobs'

Krugman: It's a 'disaster' for the country, and shows he'll surrender again

(NEWSER) - President Obama caved deeply in a debt deal that made the Republicans big winners, with both Andrew Leonard and Paul Krugman arguing that he "surrendered." Their take:

• “In the end, President Obama had to admit surrender,” writes Andrew Leonard in Salon , detailing “a smashing victory for the Tea Party and a crushing defeat for Democrats.” In Obama’s defense, he “had to choose between an awful deal or an outright catastrophe.” But he made a mistake in trying to sell it as a compromise. "The president said it was not 'the deal I would have preferred.' He should have said it's a bad deal that does not address the pressing needs of the nation," but one that he had no choice but to sign.

But Republican backers are more likely to vote

(NEWSER) - It's good news/bad news time, Democrats. Bad news: The public doesn’t much like you. In fact, a whopping 60% disapprove of the job you’re doing in the latest AP poll. Good news: They dislike Republicans even more; 68% disapprove of them, and Sarah Palin and George W. Bush are viewed significantly more negatively than President Obama. But more bad news: The people who dislike Democrats are more likely to actually vote. More»

Democrats love his with-us-or-against-us conservatism

(NEWSER) - Jim DeMint might just be the Democrats’ secret weapon. For starters, the senator from South Carolina is making good on his declaration that he’d rather have “30 Republicans in the Senate who believe in principles of freedom than 60 who don’t,” endorsing lots of far-right candidates around the country, many of whom are unelectable. But the damage he’s doing to the party could stretch well beyond 2010, writes Stuart Rothenberg for Roll Call . More»

Michael Steele is a victim of this narrow-minded atmosphere

(NEWSER) - Joke all you want about Michael Steele's new troubles , but one part of this mess isn't so funny, Ned Resnikoff writes for Salon . It's the depressing—and dangerous—political reality that neither Republicans nor Democrats will tolerate debate of the Afghanistan war. "The leadership of both major parties concludes that the only acceptable position to take is a stalwartly pro-war one," he writes. More»

RNC chair rushes to declare support for troops

(NEWSER) - Having enraged conservatives and delighted Democrats by criticizing the decision to engage in Afghanistan—a policy advanced by President Bush and supported by congressional Republicans—the RNC chairman is scrambling to defuse the controversy, reports the Washington Post . "For the sake of the security of the free world, our country must give our troops the support necessary to win this war," Steele said today. More»