The Hollywood Liberal

American Cultural Imperialism
(Fremantle W. A.) November 28, 2008 Stella, from Great Britain, was disconcerted (and a bit intimidated) when she arrived in Australia and folks took to shouting (or pretending to yell) her name. Someone finally explained to her that they were imitating Marlon Brando in the movie “Streetcar Named Desire.”The anecdote points out an unusual paradox […]

Happy Thanksgiving!
President-elect Obama will spend Thanksgiving in Chicago with Michelle and their daughters and nearly 60 guests. Vice President-elect Biden and Jill are continuing their long-standing tradition of spending the holiday with their family in Nantucket. 

President Bush will spend Thanksgiving at Camp David with his family.

No public events are scheduled.

Have a great holiday!

Late Late Nite FDL: Old Crow Medicine Show
Whether you are thanking your lucky stars you have a little pork to put in your pot of beans this week or your gravy boat runneth over, take a few minutes and enjoy, The Old Crow Medicine Show.

The Old Crow Medicine Show “I Hear Them All”

The Old Crow Medicine Show with Gillian Welch “The Weight”

Whether you are thanking your lucky stars you have a little pork to put in your pot of beans this week or your gravy boat runneth over, take a few minutes and enjoy, The Old Crow Medicine Show.

And do tell us all, what’s on your mind tonight?

Economic Downturn Hits Women the Hardest
Women are being disproportionately affected by the U.S. mortgage crisis and economic plunge.

Election Central Morning Roundup
This Morning: Another Obama Press Conference Barack Obama is holding a press conference today at 10:45 a.m. ET — his third presser in three days — centered around the economy. As we posited yesterday, Obama appears to be trying to…

Last Chance
Today’s the deadline for applications for our Fall cycle TPM internship. Find all the details here….

Iraqi parliament approves new security pact.
After weeks of contentious debate, the Iraqi parliament approved the long-delayed security pact “that lays out a three-year timetable for the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.” The New York Times reports: For Iraq and the United States, the pact’s passage through Parliament by a large majority — more than 140 of some 200 […]

After weeks of contentious debate, the Iraqi parliament approved the long-delayed security pact “that lays out a three-year timetable for the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.” The New York Times reports:

For Iraq and the United States, the pact’s passage through Parliament by a large majority — more than 140 of some 200 lawmakers present voted in favor — marks a watershed moment, heralding an increase in Iraqi sovereignty over American and other foreign troops on its soil. […]

The pact gives Iraq considerable say in what operations American troops can undertake in the country, and sets limits on the Americans’ ability to search homes and buildings, and hold suspects that they detain.

Peter Juul, a Research Associate at the Center for American Progress Action Fund, recently argued that despite the Bush administration’s claims, the SOFA includes treaty obligations and therefore requires congressional approval. In the weeks leading up to the pact’s approval, the Bush administration refused to release an English-language version of the proposed agreement. The text of the agreement is now available HERE.

Rangel Probe Will Be Done in Weeks, Pelosi Says
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the far-reaching ethics investigation of Rep. Charles Rangel (D) will conclude by early next year.

Obama Shows His Smarts
WASHINGTON — When I started covering the White House, more than 50 years ago, I believed that the smarter a president was, the better he would be. That was wrong. Lyndon Johnson and Ronald Reagan were certainly not intellectuals, but they grasped the power of the presidency and they knew how to impose their agendas on their political partners and rivals. By contrast, Jimmy Carter was a whiz at policy analysis and Bill Clinton grasped the connections among issues almost intuitively. Yet neither one of them was able to leave the White House with a record of great achievements.