Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s epic brain-freeze during a Republican primary debate is often referred to as a “gaffe.” That’s a strange word that gets used strangely — it gets applied to simple misstatements and unintentional double-negatives, to brain-freezes like Perry’s, and to slightly off attempts to praise local culture — such as when a candidate in Philly orders a cheesesteak with provolone, like most natives do, instead of with Cheeze Wiz, like most non-native members of the media imagine most... Read more

So here’s what Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said yesterday in New Hampshire: I will go to the NAACP convention, and tell the African-American community why they should demand paychecks instead of food stamps. For a self-proclaimed “historian,” this is appalling ignorance. Or, at least, ignorance would be the most charitable possible interpretation. But it strains credulity to believe that Newt Gingrich really believes what he said — that he is really so profoundly stupid as to believe that the... Read more

A brief reminder: Duverger’s law. That’s how it works. Candidate A vs. Candidate B. Party A vs. Party B. Moral purity and moral perfection will not be on the ballot. Those seeking moral purity and moral perfection pleasure themselves by imagining that theirs is a superior ethical responsibility. But this is delusional — an embrace of irresponsibility. It’s the claim that one is not responsible for any outcome, consequence or action in this world apart from maintaining, above all, one’s... Read more