James Kirchick of The New Republic has discovered Rep. Ron Paul’s newsletters: What they reveal are decades worth of obsession with conspiracies, sympathy for the right-wing militia movement, and deeply held bigotry against blacks, Jews, and gays. Little Green Footballs rightly notes that Charles Johnson flagged this story months ago, based on excerpts posted at Free Republic. At Reason magazine’s Hit & Run blog, Jesse Walker publishes Paul’s response and writes that Paul

at Dartmouth, where some students walked out on him.  Video.

Only 18 percent of the U.S. Foreign Service think Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is doing a good job protecting their profession, according to a recent survey conducted by the service’s union. Forty-four percent rated her performance “poor” or “very poor,” the same percentage of respondents who said that “developments of the last few years” had made it less likely they would complete their careers in the Foreign Service. According to an informal

Andrew on Huckabee: He’s now the front-runner nationally – check here and here. I can’t see anyone over-taking him right now.   I think he over-estimates his powers of obser-vation. 

The candidate on the left.

You’re a nut: Comment by Kareoleena on 1/8 @ 1:15 pm My thoughts are that there needs to be a changing of the guards. I mean, lets be realistic about this. How much change can there actually be if the Clinton’s and Bush’s have been in the white house for the past 20 years. It would be the same business as usual if Hillary were in the white house. She

Alex Leamas: The best thing to come out of this whole teary fiasco is the post and comments at Marc*nt’s. Ping

In a sneering piece on Bush the Younger’s view of his likely place in history, Dan Froomkin attributes to him a Messiah Complex. At the same time, it is clear from the contrast between the qualified language of the President and the certainty of the journalist, that Bush speaks with more humility than Froomkin.  And one may say, “as well he should,” reflexively, without considering in what way we are

US sitting atop vast reserves of clean-burning, environmentally friendly snake oil.

hilzoy at Obsidian Wings: A member of Andy Olmsted’s family has just written me to say that if people want to do something in honor of him, they can send donations to a fund that has been set up for the four children of CPT Thomas Casey, who served under Andy and was killed while trying to help him. The address is here: Capt. Thomas Casey Children’s fund P.O. Box