George W. Bush

After three months in office, former U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, chomping an unlit cigar, pronounced himself “a 99 percent improvement over Paul Wellstone.”  Coleman’s successor, Al Franken, has now held Wellstone’s old Senate seat for three months: Is he a 99 percent improvement over Coleman?

Think it was mere chance that got Minneapolis a mention in President Obama’s address to Congress? It turns out that the select occasions in the past when Minnesota’s biggest city turned up in presidential addresses have always been during serious talk about tough times. In fact, it happened first during the first State of the Union [...]

Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales will cooperate with a “truth commission” proposed by Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy to look into possible unlawful conduct by the Bush administration, the Washington Independent reports. This morning reporter David Weigel caught up with Gonzales after a forum on Republicans and the Hispanic vote and posed the question.
Gonzales’ reply:

Both civil libertarians and ex-CIA officials involved in interrogations and detentions policies welcome the changes.

Minnesota writer Christopher Koehler attended yesterday’s inauguration of President Barack Obama and shared these views of the excitement (and entrepreneurship) of a historic day.

Anticipating the inauguration of President Barack Obama, Twin Cities photographer Alec Soth compiled a series of photos entitled, “The Last Days of W.” Taking its title from a poem by Lester B. Morrison, the series (and book) offers a poetic look at the country George W. Bush leaves behind. Shot in Minnesota and across the United States, the works represent “a panoramic look at a country exhausted by its catastrophic leadership.”

While the official portrait of George W. Bush, unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery last month, has garnered criticism — for a label that links the attacks of 9/11 to wars in Afghanistan and Iraq — there has been little focus on the art itself. We asked local artists and writers, including Frank Gaard, Dan Ibarra, Mason Riddle and Todd Norsten among others, to weigh in on the portraits of the soon-to-be-former first couple. The responses ranged from the comical (Bush looks like he’s in a Viagra ad) to the meta (in 2009, why is an oil painting still the standard for official portraiture?) to the art historical (Bush’s pose before a vase of lilies suggests a surprising Christian symbol — of innocence).

9/11. Warrantless wiretapping. Two wars. Jack Abramoff. CIA black flights. Abu Ghraib. The apparently fake turkey photo-op. Gitmo. “Mission Accomplished.” Bank bailouts. Playing guitar while New Orleans submerged. The Bush years have been, at the least, memorable, and at worst surreal. So perhaps a fitting way to remember his two-term presidency is through a look [...]

With only a week left in the Bush presidency, The Atlantic offers a illustrated look at what the last eight years have brought. While some changes aren’t surprising — Apple profits up, Big 3 automaker profits down; electricity costs up, personal savings rate down — others are a bit less obvious. Like the doubling of [...]

“Love her or hate her, [Rep. Michele] Bachmann attracts attention,” writes The Hill in a profile that lists the Minnesotan’s 2008 humdingers, including her State of the Union presidential grope-and-smooch and the infamous “Hardball” incident. The piece also notes something I’ve been noticing — a Bachmann media blitz that had her on Fox three times [...]