The American Spectator

Well here are a couple of noteworthy items:

1) Maybe Huckabee is not as far out of the GOP mainstream as free market conservatives would like to think. A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll says that 6 in 10 Republicans think free trade has been bad for the US economy and would favor a candidate who limits imports. It would seem that Republicans office holders and candidates have perhaps taken it for granted that their base understands the necessity of free trade and the benefits of globalization. As on so many topics it is time for GOP leaders including presidential contenders to make the case with voters.

2) The Washington Post has dueling op-eds today-- Patrick Fitzgerald arguing against a federal shield law for reporters and Ted Olson arguing in favor of it. Quite a crisis of conscience for some conservatives as to which advocate's recommendation they would follow! I find that Fitzgerald inadvertently makes the case for his opponent. If ever there were an example of a prosecutor run amok and the need for restraints on the remarkable power of prosecutors he is it. Granted many of the ills assoiciated with his actions are a function of the special prosecutor role which lacks the checks and balances normally found, but when Olson warns of "journalists being slapped with federal subpoenas" and that it is "now de rigueur to round up reporters, haul them before a court and threaten them with fines and jail sentences " it certainly rings true with Fitzgerald arguing the other side. Indeed, Olson makes an argument that conservatives should find appealing: the proposed legislation is inherently conservative, "a reasonable check on the government."