DES MOINES— I’m leaving this fine city today, filing a story on the way, which means a little slack in the blogging for a few hours. Enjoy your life, don’t just read blog posts!
Last week I talked briefly to libertarian campaign finance reform advocate/ former FEC commissioner Bradley Smith about the new House Republican claims that the IRS colluded with the FEC to smash conservatives. He sounded skeptical that a new scandal was breaking out, but he’s got a Wall Street Journal column better explaining what he thinks, so in fairness you should read that.
Charles C.W. Cooke reports on the apparent decline of Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
“I was never an active member,” Sioux City mayor Bob Scott nervously made clear while justifying his decision to pull out earlier this year. “They’re not just against illegal guns, they’re against all guns.” In July, the mayor of Nashua, N.H., Donnalee Lozeau, struck a similar note, revealing in an interview with the Manchester Union Leader that she had scolded Bloomberg for going after Senator Kelly Ayotte: “You’re Mayors Against Illegal Guns; you’re not Mayors for Gun Control!”
Patrick McGuire reports that the government is annoyed with Barrett Brown’s media strategy.
Jacob Sullum asks why the Obama administration doesn’t take the next natural step on non-violent drug offenders: Let ‘em out.
Maryland’s white attorney general says the state’s black lieutenant governor is counting on race to elect him to the higher office they both want.
And Tim Lee finds that James Clapper will be on the intelligence review panel, so don’t worry, folks!
