Archive: January 6, 2008 - January 12, 2008
In Michigan, a Lonely Hunter
The first thing to know about Rep. Duncan Hunter's (R-Calif.) presidential campaign is that he travels light. "I don't have any consultants, thank God," he says, "so we don't have any large payroll we have to carry." Rep. Duncan Hunter at a GOP debate last June. (AP) With no busload...
By Ben Pershing | January 12, 2008; 11:56 AM ET | Comments (3)
Congress Ready to Stimulate
With the stock market shaky and economic worries rising to the top of the campaign issue pyramid, you can expect members of Congress to return to town in the next two weeks with money on their minds. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is no Ben Bernanke - Congress can't just wave...
By Ben Pershing | January 11, 2008; 12:20 PM ET | Comments (1)
Doolittle Expected to Announce Retirement, Endorse Oller
Embattled California Rep. John Doolittle (R) is expected to announce at a news conference today in his district that he will not run for re-election and will endorse former state senator Rico Oller (R) as his successor, according to a knowledgeable California GOP source. Doolittle's decision -- scheduled to be...
By Ben Pershing | January 10, 2008; 11:15 AM ET | Comments (257)
McCain's Back, But Immigration Reform Isn't
Remember when Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) presidential campaign was supposedly dead because of his vocal support for comprehensive immigration reform? And remember when the knives came out for Mike Huckabee because he wasn't tough enough on illegal immigration either? McCain, of course, just scored a huge political comeback in New...
By Ben Pershing | January 9, 2008; 3:55 PM ET | Comments (312)
Are Congressional Endorsements 'Overrated'?
Sen. Judd Gregg gambled by endorsing former Gov. Mitt Romney in Tuesday's New Hampshire Republican primary, and he lost. Romney finished second to the surging Sen. John McCain. Two other New Hampshire lawmakers, Democratic freshman Reps. Carol Shea-Porter and Paul Hodes, rode the wrong horse by backing Sen. Barack Obama...
By Ben Pershing | January 9, 2008; 12:15 PM ET | Comments (2)
Larry Craig Makes Second Attempt to Withdraw Guilty Plea
Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) asked the Minnesota state Court of Appeals on Tuesday to reverse a lower court's decision preventing him from withdrawing his guilty plea following a sex sting last June at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Capitol Briefing readers -- and much of the known world -- will remember...
By Ben Pershing | January 8, 2008; 7:31 PM ET | Comments (12)
Hello and Welcome (or Welcome Back)
Just under one year ago today, Paul Kane inaugurated this blog with a pledge to provide "a behind-the-curtains look at what really drives the decision-making process on Capitol Hill." Paul did that and did it well, and he has now moved over to the Washington Post to cover Congress full-time...
By Eric Pianin | January 8, 2008; 1:00 PM ET | Comments (9)
About Ben Pershing
Ben Pershing is the author of Capitol Briefing, a blog about Congress. He joined washingtonpost.com from the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call, where he worked for a decade, most recently serving as Deputy Editor. Before holding that post he was a reporter for several years, covering everything from the House...
By washingtonpost.com Editors | January 8, 2008; 8:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
