Radnor Reports

Blue tide or red squeaker?

Ken Feltman — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:37:05 GMT

This is presidential election silly season. Everyone has a different prediction. Many spin their predictions to favor the candidate of their choice. Some look backward at previous elections to guide their forecast. Others look forward, armed with issue surveys and new voter registration lists.

Now the Irish!

Ken Feltman — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:59:12 GMT

First it was the Danes, then the French and the Dutch. Now it is the Irish. One gets the impression that when ordinary citizens of European Union countries get to vote, they invariably vote again giving the EU more powers. The governing bureaucrats, on the other hand, invariably reach for more powers. And there's the rub.

Can Obama pay the pump price?

Ken Feltman — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:35:54 GMT

The meeting was depressing, sometimes frightening. True believers are always a bit grim and these anti-nuclear energy zealots were no exception. They refused to listen to anyone who suggested that nuclear power could be part of the solution to America's continuing energy crisis.

Could Obama get more votes but lose?

Ken Feltman — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:38:52 GMT

Now that Senator Barack Obama has clinched the Democratic nomination, the pundits and political professionals are looking backward, explaining the inexplicable as best they can. We need to look back at what happened but then we should consider one aspect of the November voting that has the Obama team concerned but preparing.

Ethanol's roadkill

Ken Feltman — Thu, 15 May 2008 14:36:25 GMT

The corn-ethanol lobby is well organized, aggressive and nasty. Last year, I wrote three articles saying that corn-ethanol production takes farmland out of food production, uses huge amounts of increasingly scarce water, and leaves poor people in countries such as Mexico hungry because their cost of food increases beyond their means as corn and other grains are diverted to fuel.

"Obama Doesn't Like Me"

Ken Feltman — Thu, 01 May 2008 21:12:34 GMT

The Democrats seem intent on making it easier for Senator John McCain to win the November election. Most recently, Senator Barack Obama's comments at a private San Francisco fundraiser rumbled through the heartland. Next, Obama lost badly in Pennsylvania. Then his pastor spoke out again. If Senator Hillary Clinton is Obama's Freddy Krueger of the horror films, Jeremiah Wright is Krueger's evil twin. As his poll numbers slip, Obama cannot get away from either. More than that, suddenly he cannot get away from himself and his past.

Will anyone help Morgan Tsvangirai?

Ken Feltman — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 19:31:38 GMT

Bulletin from LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) April 13: Southern African leaders discussed Zimbabwe's deepening electoral crisis in a marathon summit that ended before dawn Sunday with a declaration that failed to criticize the absent President Robert Mugabe. Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who claims to have won the March 29 election outright, had wanted the leaders to press Mugabe to resign after 28 years as Zimbabwe's leader.

Obama: Wrapped up or undone?

Ken Feltman — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:41:07 GMT

The last few weeks started out as the most difficult of the campaign for Senator Barack Obama. But they may turn out to be the weeks in which he won the Democratic presidential nomination.

Who would believe this?

Ken Feltman — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:07:32 GMT

Where are the Democrats going? Who planned this trip? The Democratic Party nominating process has reached Alice in Wonderland levels.

Hillary: Alive in the back room

Ken Feltman — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:17:00 GMT

As the Democratic Party's presidential nominating process proceeds to its messy conclusion, what happened yesterday in Texas and Ohio is less important than what now happens in the back room where deals are made. That gives the Republicans a chance to win in November. Wisconsin should have ended the suspense. But it did not. The math favored Barack Obama. Hillary Clinton hung on. The map favored Obama. All Clinton could do was to conclude her campaign gracefully.

Has China Shrunk?

Ken Feltman — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:44:49 GMT

China may be smaller than we thought. The Chinese economy is not a $10 trillion economy about to pass the United States, but a $6 trillion economy - 40 percent smaller than previously calculated. India's economy is 40 percent smaller, too. The figures are from a World Bank statistical report of the economic output of 146 countries. What does this mean?

Super Tuesday Special

Ken Feltman — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:30:24 GMT

Senior Republican officials were telephoning each other during the night. They were deciding which of them should go to Mitt Romney to tell him that he should quit his campaign. When delivered, that message will have two parts. First, Romney will be told that he ran a good race and can expect consideration for appointive office or endorsement in future elective efforts. Then he will get the negative message: If Romney does not withdraw for "the good of the party," he can expect no help in the future, and can probably expect opposition.

Beyond the Bells

Ken Feltman — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:33:44 GMT

Facing a bloody and nation-wrenching Civil War, President Lincoln called on his fellow citizens to respond not to their prejudices but to the "better angels" of their natures.

But the people could not call upon their better angels. They were too angry, too divided. Their leaders shared their division. Some foreign leaders wondered why the central government could not slow or halt the march to war. They looked for action from the incoming president. There was precious little of that. Lincoln, a brooding realist, was already looking beyond the bloodshed to reconciliation. The horrible conflagration that will forever stain this country ensued.

Is this any way to pick a President?

Ken Feltman — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 10:13:57 GMT

Only 44 percent of the recipients of Radnor newsletters have what appear to be U.S. email addresses. The rest come from all over, with about a third from the European Union and an additional 8% from Russia (or parts of the former Soviet Union that are now independent). So it is no surprise that I receive questions from outside the United States about what is happening in presidential politics.

New Hampshire primaries special

Ken Feltman — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 11:37:14 GMT

Manchester - Everyone here keeps saying that New Hampshire is very different from Iowa. They are right, of course. And wrong: New Hampshire was a continuation of Iowa. New Hampshire's primary did not take place in a vacuum. Voters knew what had happened in Iowa and that knowledge changed how they did things in New Hampshire. They knew that Iowa had marginalized Edwards and Thompson. Politely, unless they were firmly committed to Edwards or Thompson, they ignored them.

Iowa caucuses special

Ken Feltman — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 17:01:16 GMT

Des Moines - What do the Obama and Huckabee victories in Iowa mean? As far as favorites for the eventual nominations, perhaps less than anticipated. But beyond that, much more is becoming clearer.

2008: Sleepless Hillary

Ken Feltman — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 10:20:51 GMT

In mid-December, as Senator Hillary Clinton slogged through snow to campaign in Iowa, a reporter sensed her exhaustion. He went up to former President Clinton, who was campaigning with his wife that day, and talked about how enervating campaigning can be. Then he asked what the Clintons do when they have a little downtime.

Tasting the smoke in Chinese light bulbs

Ken Feltman — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 09:09:07 GMT

Peter Mandelson lost. Global warming foes lost. So did cost-conscious consumers in the European Union. Ostensibly, the battle was over jobs in Europe and light bulbs manufactured in China but destined for European consumers. In fact, the battle showed that some Europeans are still beholden to the old struggle between labor and capital while China is moving quickly into the new thinking of the 21st century. What was this all about? Let’s look at what transpired.

Quoink! Bipartisan pork overruns Capitol

Ken Feltman — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 17:29:35 GMT

Pork continues to be the favorite meal for congressmen of both parties. With the Democratic takeover of the House and Senate after the 2006 elections, differences between the former Republican and new Democratic approaches to pork have become clear. In essence, the two approaches yield about the same results.

Henry Hyde and the brown envelope

Ken Feltman — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:32:21 GMT

Former Congressman Henry Hyde died yesterday. He was my client. But more than that, he was my friend. Of all the candidates and elected officials I have known, he was the best to work with. His wife, Jeanne, was easily the most cooperative and helpful spouse.