Bush fought for unprecedented expansion of presidential power – and failed By Gabriella Anderson ’12 and Elise Liu ‘11 Executive fiat. Secret orders. Martial law. These are the trademarks of authoritarian regimes, and yet they also rank among powers presumed by the Bush administration in the past eight years. Begun in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001, George W. Bush’s ... Read More
Taking stock of the future vice presidencyBy Laura G. Mirviss ‘12 The days when the vice presidency was worth “no more than a bucket of spit” are long over. Though the office has almost no formal powers under the Constitution, the power sharing dynamic between the president and vice president is a malleable, case-by-case determination. Thus, more than any other ... Read More
The everyday values of George W. BushBy Ian Merrifield ’12 Much of George W. Bush’s success in the 2000 and 2004 elections came from his remarkable ability to connect with American voters. Compared to Al Gore and John Kerry, President Bush looked and sounded much more like someone whom the typical American voter would “like to have a beer with.” ... Read More
Fresh off of his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, former Virginia governor Mark Warner is spending the rest of his summer engaging in a much less glamorous task: braving the Virginia humidity in search of a new job. Once considered a strong potential candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination this year, Warner is currently campaigning for a ... Read More
On April 29, 1972, the Barristers Union at Yale Law School held its annual Prize Trial, in which four top lawyers, two to a side, competed. Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham formed the prosecution team on a fictional case about police brutality in Kentucky. The case was presided over by Abe Fortas, who had recently been forced to resign from ... Read More
“I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them,” Caroline Kennedy wrote in January in her endorsement of Barack Obama. From the start of his campaign, Barack Obama has wrapped himself in the mantle, and the myth, of the Kennedy family. But by turning down public financing for the fall ... Read More
The NY times ran an article today discussing shifts in support within the Democratic Party from Hillary to Obama. After candidates reported first-quarter fundraising figures last weekend, it became evident that many former supporters of Bill Clinton had “switched sides” and were now opening up their wallets to Obama instead of Hillary. Such a shift should have been expected considering ... Read More
