Town Hall Debate Deconstructed
Saturday Night Live
Many memorable moments from Obama and McCain's second debate get lampooned.
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Why I'd Be a Better VP than Sarah Palin
Rosanne Cash : Presidential Election 2008
I'd like to formally submit myself to replace Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket. For your consideration, my big, fat résumé.
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Someone Watching Sarah Palin's Campaign Tactics Imagines How She Might Challenge a Referee's Call in a Sixth-Grade Hockey Game
Calvin Trillin
Push back on the pushy hockey mom.
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Tina Fey Reprises Palin's VP Debate
Saturday Night Live
In an uproarious recreation of the 2008 VP showdown, Fey introduces a flute for the 'talent portion of the debate.'
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Homer Simpson vs. Electronic Voting
YouTube : Voters & Voting
The Simpsons character encounters a corrupted electronic voting machine: 'This doesn't happen in America! Maybe in Ohio, but not in America!'
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On a Clear Day, I See Vladivostok
Calvin Trillin
The song of a political visionary--with apologies to Alan Jay Lerner.
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Tina Fey Takes On Sarah Palin
Saturday Night Live : Sarah Palin
Fey impersonates Palin in a hilarious sketch parodying the Republican's disastrous interview with Katie Couric.
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The Amazing McBlaine!
Evan Eisenberg
With apologies to David Blaine, and none to John McCain, an ode to a political magician.
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Stephen Colbert 'Suspends' His Show
The Colbert Report
Parodying McCain's campaign "suspension," Colbert briefly brings his show to a halt until the financial crisis is averted.
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The Palin Action Doll
Revision3
Puppet lobbyists, banned books and the Bridge to Nowhere Play Set sold separately.
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John McCain Explains What He Meant by Saying That the Fundamentals of the Economy Are Strong
Calvin Trillin
He'll figure it out eventually.
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John McCain's Age Card
Barely Political
Confused? Forgetting what you stand for? Sleeping on the job? You need the Age Card.
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Gov at First Sight
The Daily Show
Jon Stewart mocks Sean Hannity's suggestion that we should all just shut up about the economy while he gushes over Sarah Palin.
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Jon Stewart Slams Sarah Palin Sideshow
The Daily Show : Presidential Election 2008
As Wall Street crumbles and hurricanes rip through the southern United States, Stewart sees the brighter side: a hot VP candidate.
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Sarah, Will UB My BFF?
Annabelle Gurwitch
U R so right: With the beehive and schoolmarm glasses, people really take you seriously!
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The Daily Show Does the DNC
The Daily Show
John Stewart checks in with his crack team of reporters for the latest developments at the DNC.
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Baracky II
Humanitainment : Presidential Election 2008
McCain keeps trying to knock him down, but Obama is prepared to overcome with his good character and reach victory.
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Paris/Britney Campaign Blowback
Annabelle Gurwitch : Presidential Election 2008
John McCain got more than he expected, with an ad comparing Obama to Paris Hilton. The blowback is just beginning.
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Comic Book Fans Go to the Polls
Barely Political : Presidential Election 2008
Americans channeling their favorite superheroes and villains weigh in on who their political heroes will be in this year's election and why.
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A Devil's Dictionary of Politics
Nicholas von Hoffman : Presidential Election 2008
With millions of first time-voters expected to go to the polls in November, never has an insane political system been more in need of explanation. You won't find much help here.
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What the McCain Campaign Seems To Be Saying About Obama's Recently Concluded Trip Abroad
Calvin Trillin
It's a race to the bottom of world opinion.
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Bush Parody: Swing 'Em Home
236.com
Unlike Bush, these guys are determined to play golf as often as possible to support our soldiers overseas.
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Dump the Junk
Annabelle Gurwitch : Environment
It takes a lot of work, but it's possible to go green. Start with stopping your junk mail.
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Pushing Limits--and Proud of It
Katrina vanden Heuvel
The Nation has a long history of publishing images even some of our staunchest fans find offensive. Just ask our cartoonists.
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McCain Strikes a Pose
YouTube
How can John McCain make himself more exciting to voters? He needs to team up with Madonna!
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Bush Tours Damage Caused by Presidency
The Onion
President Bush will seek to comfort victims of his presidency as they try to make sense of the destruction he has caused.
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Top McCain Aide Says That Another Terrorist Attack on the US Would Be to McCain's Advantage in the Election
Calvin Trillin
What a way to energize your base.
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Liposuction: The Key to Energy Independence
Barbara Ehrenreich : Energy
Obese America is literally sitting on vast energy reserves--all we need to do is extract it and turn it into fuel.
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Happily Never After
Annabelle Gurwitch
Gay and ready to tie the knot? Take some advice from a couple of heteros: marriage isn't all it's cracked up to be.
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John McCain, Demonstrating His Intention to Make Inroads Among African-American Voters...
Calvin Trillin
But guess who showed up instead?
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Stephen Hadley Says an Olympic Boycott Is a 'Cop-out' on the Tibet Issue Compared With Our 'Quiet Diplomacy' With China
Calvin Trillin
Just keep it coming.
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What Real Straight Talk From McCain Would Sound Like on the Fifth Anniversary Of the Iraq War
Calvin Trillin
This is just the beginning.
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FDR's Democratic Propaganda
Stephen Duncombe : Progressives, Liberals, & The American Left
Today's progressive message-makers can learn a lot from Franklin Roosevelt's homey "fireside chats."
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The Essence of Geraldine Ferraro's Explanation of Why Barack Obama Is in the Lead for the Democratic Presidential Nomination
Calvin Trillin
Who asked her to the party?
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Democrats Bid a Fond Farewell to Mike Huckabee
Calvin Trillin
Saying goodbye to the Republicans' funniest candidate.
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On One of the Sabbath-Gasbag Discussions, Robert Novak Says That Mike Huckabee May Have Remained in the Race to Bolster His Lecture Fee
Calvin Trillin
The lure of filthy lucre on the campaign trail.
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Movin' On Up
Patricia J. Williams : Presidential Election 2008
Now that we've crested the mountaintop, let's have some politically incorrect dreams.
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Mitt Romney, the Power-Point Moneybag, Will Stay in the Race
Calvin Trillin
A hidden weapon in our fight against recession.
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One Possible Explanation for Surveys Showing That Rudy Giuliani May Not Win His Own State
Calvin Trillin
O Captain, not my Captain.
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A Platter of Crow for the Pundits
Marvin Kitman : Presidential Election 2008
Political opinionators have a lot of explaining to do about their poor prognostication in New Hampshire.
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How Do You Like Me Now?
Annabelle Gurwitch
If Hillary wants Americans to like her, she should start doing the things Americans like.
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A Lame Duck President During the Presidential Primaries
Calvin Trillin
Whatever happened to what's-his-name?
2007
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Why I Won't Be Invited to Mitt Romney's White House
My top-ten list of reasons why I gave God the old heave-ho.
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George Bush, Upon Hearing That the Iranians Abandoned Their Nuclear Weapons Program in 2003
All fired up and nowhere to go.
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Bare-Bones Huckabee Creeps Up on Free-Spending Romney in Iowa, While Humming 'O Tannenbaum'
Great hair and lots of money can't get you everything.
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President Rudy's War Council
Peter C. Baker : Presidential Election 2008
Norman Podhoretz and Daniel Pipes consider how the newly elected President should proceed in the world arena. The first act of a five-act play.
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Rudy G. Responds to Accusations of Using Phony Statistics
The GOP front-runner's dubious miracle cure.
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The Nicest Republican
Huckabee wins the prize for "Mr. Congeniality" hands down...whatever else you might say about him.
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On Larry Craig's Decision to Serve Out His Term in the Senate
The GOP learns a thing or two about what it means to be gay.
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Rudy Admits Cellphone Addiction
His campaign slogan--"As I Was Saying, You Have My Undivided Attention"--is playing well with voters in areas where cell phone coverage is erratic.
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Does Sarah Silverman Suck?
The raunchy, racy comedian makes us laugh and cringe.
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Against Happiness
Women are less happy than we used to be. But given the state of the world, perhaps if we had a little more worry and a little less happy, we'd be better off.
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The Times They Are A-Changin'
Annabelle Gurwitch : Electoral Politics
Politics aside, a speeded-up primary season may be a unique opportunity to rethink our notions of time altogether.
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Fear of Restrooms
Barbara Ehrenreich : Increased Security After 9/11
Now that we know there's a vice squad deployed to find people looking to hook up for quickies in airport bathrooms, air travel has taken on a whole new dimension.
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Disappointment in Iowa
The Corn Belt looks askance at a highly disagreeable field of GOP contenders.
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End of the Affair
Annabelle Gurwitch : Cultural Criticism & Analysis
The Nation Cruise drops its final anchor and its highly politicized passengers head for home.
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The War on Infrastructure
Barbara Ehrenreich : George W. Bush
Describing the recent bridge failure and steam-pipe explosion as "cowardly attacks on our way of life," Bush today opened a new front in his permanent war on everything.
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Two Sets of Parents Hear That Ralph Nader May Run Again
The word "spoiler" doesn't even begin to describe it.
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Bush Seeking New Discredited Ideas
The White House announced that the President has run out of his own bad ideas and is looking elsewhere for new ones, even if they don't make any sense.
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Blair Steps Down at Westminster (the Parliament, Not the Dog Show)
How good a pup will Gordon Brown be?
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On the Tributes to Scooter Libby That So Underwhelmed the Judge
It takes one to know one.
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George W. Bush's Reception in Albania
The President's offshore approval ratings get a boost.
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The Simpsons Hit 400
Simon Maxwell Apter : Television
Over eighteen seasons and three presidential eras, The Simpsons has paid badly animated homage to all that sucks in America.
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On Three Out of the Ten Republican Presidential Candidates Stating That They Don't Believe in Evolution
The Big Bang is something else entirely.
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A Bring-the-Troops-Home Rally in Baghdad
Help for the troops might come from an unlikely source.
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Tangled in Table Talk
Candidates are eager to "keep all options on the table," but where's the table?
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On John McCain's Much-Ridiculed Attempt to Use His Shorja Market Visit as Proof That Baghdad Is Being Pacified
McCain bought himself trouble in his visit to Baghdad.
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Katrina vs. Colbert
Katrina vanden Heuvel & Stephen Colbert : Television
Katrina vanden Heuvel appears on The Colbert Report to debate the host on the question of truthiness and much more.
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On the News That Mitt Romney Finished First Among Republicans in First-Quarter Fundraising
As a candidate, Mitt is now legit.
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What Congress Is Concluding About the Attorney General's Relationship With The Truth
The truth gets whacked on Fredo's watch.
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Bush Approval Rating Drops Below Zero
Polling experts say that Bush's numbers are at an all-time low, and that only certain toxic molds have come close to those numbers in the past.
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A Dispiriting Thought On the 2008 Presidential Election Campaign
What a long, strange trip it's going to be.
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A Republican Talks Straight to an Anti-Surge Democrat
The ultimate test of patriotism.
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Report by the Pentagon's Inspector General Concludes That Douglas Feith Cooked the Books on Pre-war Intelligence
A prize-winning piece of work.
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What Has Been Concluded Lately by People Discussing Dick Cheney on the Public Airwaves and the Floor of the Senate
Is there a screw loose somewhere?
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After Tuning In to the Sunday Talk Shows to See What the Sabbath Gasbags Have to Say
It's a long way to 2008.
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A Question and a Follow-up for George W. Bush's Next Press Conference
Calvin Trillin : George W. Bush
It's not the surge we're worried about. It's the soldiers.
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George W. Bush Explains His Signing Statements, Among Other Things
Can you say "Decider"?
2006
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Four Options That the Baker-Hamilton Report Offers to Those Prosecuting the War in Iraq
And each one has to do with getting the hell out.
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On the Iraq Memo Donald Rumsfeld Wrote as He Was About to Be Fired
Goodness, gracious! He was right all along.
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An Analysis of the War by the Newly Rehabilitated Trent Lott
Now here's a guy who knows whereof he speaks.
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Vulcans Triumphant: The Victory Bash
Evan Eisenberg : Republican Party
Republicans in Congress have set aside $20 million for a gala in Washington to celebrate victory in Iraq and Afghanistan. The party may be postponed for a while, but the program has been drafted--and we've got a copy.
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Trying to Be at Least Civil in Bidding Don Rumsfeld Farewell
Pentagon briefings won't be the same.
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A Silver Lining for House Republicans
At least one person in the GOP might feel relieved.
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An Explanation of Karl Rove's Confidence About the Midterm Elections
Hint: It starts with the M-word.
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New White House Strategy on Iraq
What passes now for West Wing policy is whatever will cover their collective derrieres.
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Bush: Thousands of Registered Democrats Needed For 'Extremely Important' Mission
President Bush said Monday that members of the opposition party are the only ones who can make the November operation a success.
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A Short History of 'Cut and Run,' Using the George W. Bush Definition
From 'Nam to Lebanon, the Gulf War and, um, Texas.
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As Denny Hastert Stumbles Through an Array of Denials That He Knew About Mark Foley's Behavior and Did Nothing About It
What makes you think he knows anything?
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We Got Those Wall- To-Wall 24/7 Damage-Control Blues
Bush and his boys will be singing this little ditty all the way to the voting booth.
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The Dubya Diaries
Rosecrans Baldwin : George W. Bush
"Some expert on CNN said, 'A stitch in time saves nine.' And I thought, Doesn't anyone speak clearly anymore? Nine what?"
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On the Intelligence Report Finding That the War in Iraq Has Produced a New Generation of Jihadists and Increased Terrorism
Yes, there is indeed a link between Iraq and Bush's "war on terror."
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George W. Bush and Some Republican Senators Discuss the Geneva Conventions
Calvin Trillin : George W. Bush
The Decider takes on that bothersome Constitution and that meddling Congress.
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George Bush Explains His Policy on Torture To Someone Who Is Being Waterboarded
Don't worry--it only feels like you're drowning.
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George Bush's Pledge to the People of New Orleans on the Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
The President gives us a lesson in drive-by personal diplomacy.
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The Choice on Iraq
Here's how Democrats should spin the biggest political question in the midterm elections.
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Presidential Eating Preferences
Calvin Trillin : George W. Bush
Everyone knows what his predecessors liked for dinner. But there's one special dish we'd really like to serve George W. Bush.
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Inside the Alleged Mind of Bill O'Reilly
Joseph Minton Amann & Tom Breuer : Non-Fiction
Looking for a blast of hot air? Two intrepid literary critics venture deep into the steaming, muddy jungles of the Fox News pundit's award-losing prose.
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'Mushroom Cloud' Rice, The Icy Spinmeister, Tries Again
Condi takes her "birth pangs" mantra on the road.
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Bush Postpones 2008 Election
Stephen Gillers : George W. Bush
In a news brief from the future, Bush continues to do whatever it takes to protect us from terror.
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Reading Less Bad News From Iraq
Calvin Trillin : Media Analysis
The papers simply cannot find the space.
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A Summary of Bush Administration Statements on Its Conduct of the 'War on Terror'
There's not a lot anyone needs to know.
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Who's Really Screwing America
Right-wing nutcase Bernard Goldberg may think he has a lock on who's messing up the Republic, but consider Dan Brown, Joe Franklin, Tucker Carlson...
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Some Perspective
Celebrating the death of Zarqawi, the President puts his spin on the truth.
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After Forty-one Suicide Attempts at Guantánamo Bay, Three Prisoners Manage to Kill Themselves
Another winning strategy for Team Bush and its war on terror.
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Boxed In
In his new short story collection In Persuasion Nation, absurdist extraordinaire George Saunders offers a surreal depiction of the destruction of individuality through consumer mega-culture.
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As the Republican Base Grows Restive, George Bush and Bill Frist Receive Some Marching Orders From Karl Rove and Co.
A vote to ban gay marriage always works like a charm.
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P-Funk Politics
As hurricane season began in earnest, Ray Nagin, who famously declared New Orleans a "chocolate city," began his second term as mayor. What better time to appreciate the way George Clinton, America's should-be poet laureate, has funked up politics?
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The Rockies Pitch Religion
The Colorado Rockies recruit Christian players and claim God is at work on their game. Major League Baseball woos evangelicals with special "Faith Days at the Park." Something's going on here, but it has nothing to do with God.
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Bush Is Asked Again If He Can Recall Any Mistakes
A contrite Commander in Chief will watch his words from here on.
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Cellmates' Reunion
Barbara Garson : Health Care Policy
Desperate for medical care, an ailing granny pies the President and finds a soft bed in a country club prison. It's enough to make you go out and commit a crime.
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Ricky Williams Dreams of Canada
Former Heisman trophy winner and ganja-smoking peacenik Ricky Williams is contemplating the sweet life in the Canadian Football League. Here's hoping he finds it.
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Sorel's People
Richard Lingeman : Books, Literature, & Ideas
In Literary Lives, caricaturist Edward Sorel tells all and then some about giants like Yeats, Proust, Hellman and Jung within the humble frame of a comic strip.
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On John McCain's Willingness to Speak at Jerry Falwell's University
What it takes to make him change his mind.
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Cheney at the Pump
Why should anyone be surprised that Dick Cheney's good oil boys are making out like bandits?
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The Gospel of Scooter
Richard Lingeman : US Politics & Government
A political nightmare, with a scriptural spin, tells the true story of two nefarious lords and their faithful servant.
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Adieu, Scott McClellan
Goodbye to a Bush official who has been remarkably consistent.
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Calls For Rumsfeld's Resignation
Calvin Trillin : Donald Rumsfeld
The Pentagon chief has been too wrong for too long.
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If This Isn't War
A musical answer to a bellicose question, with apologies to Yip Harburg and Burton Lane.
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The Gospel of Scooter
Richard Lingeman : George W. Bush Administration
A political nightmare, with a scriptural spin, tells the true story of two nefarious lords and their faithful servant.
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The Nino Scalia Guide to Sicilian Hand Gestures
It can now be revealed that Justice Antonin Scalia has compiled his own secret list of Sicilian hand gestures expressing subtle jurisprudential points.
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Rabbit's Revenge
Nicholas von Hoffman : Religion
Time-honored traditions of Christianity are being challenged by scientists and scholars questioning the motives of Jesus, Judas and the power of prayer.
Can young voters stand up to suppression and swing Election 2008? Plus: Robert Fisk on the Middle East, and McCain's Russia scandal. (13mb mp3)
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