Tom Schaller: I'd like to start with Rick and Byron, and ask that they provide some perspective on conservatism and its relationship to the GOP, as a way of putting the conservative angst we have witnessed in 2009 into a broader historical... Full Article at Salon

Doug Hoffman, Conservative Party candidate for New York's 23rd Congressional District, left, and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin Oct. 29, 2009 | In 2009, the energized right-wing base of the Republican Party transformed American politics. Full Article at Salon

“In his book Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America, historian Rick Perlstein argues the seeds of today’s polarized politics were sown during the 1960s and 1970s. Full Article at Rational Review

Obviously, this is good news for John McCain. I just posted a comment on the NY race at my own blog that essentially says that whether Conservative Party canidate Hoffman wins the race, or the race is thrown to the Dems, the Dems win. Full Article at Balloon Juice

Rick Perlstein emails--and says that I can broadcast if I fix his typos: So I lectured at San Angelo State U today in West Texas. We repaired for the evening to "In Vino Veritas," a combination wine store/wine bar. Full Article at Brad DeLong's Semi-Daily Journal

Thursday I reached for Rick Perlstein's wondrous Nixonland to help make a point about how similar the tragically hubristic war in Afghanistan is to the tragically hubristic war in Vietnam. Full Article at Down With Tyranny!