By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Apr 26, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Wednesday at The Recovering Politician we will continue this week’s theme of featuring outstanding women and their stories of political recovery.
Tomorrow morning, we will feature a former state legislator who ran last year for statewide office, and got caught in the GOP tsunami that struck the entire country. In her candid essay, she reveals her mixed feelings about her current status as a recovering politician, and shares her current state of mind about her future.
Speaking of outstanding women, Mrs. RP will make a return visit to discuss the vital role women mentors and leaders can play in the lives of other women. I think you will find the piece both informative as well as a call to arms to ensure that all of our daughters (and granddaughters) seek stong women role models in their lives.
Y’all come back now, ya hear?
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Apr 25, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Tuesday will be another big day here at The Recovering Politician.
We begin with an RPTV Fifteen Minutes of Fame interview with author, political commentator, and policy guru, Jim Pinkerton. Since the first Bush Administration, Pinkerton has been widely known as one of the keenest GOP policy minds in Washington, and he has never been afraid to skew from the party line. Pinkerton shares his thoughts on the budget debate in Congress, the 2012 election, and his recommendations to combat income inequality.
We will also be treated with another very personal story from contributing recovering politician Jeff Smith. Following up on his piece on prison life that has received incredible national attention, Jeff tackles another very controversial topic: race relations. Don’t miss his tales from the campaign trail that offer a glimpse at the larger issues with which America still grapples.
Look forward to seeing you tomorrow.
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Apr 25, 2011 at 12:45 PM ET One of my favorite columnists/bloggers/ whatever-you-want-to-call-hims, Andrew Sullivan, has been on an extended rant, raising questions as to whether Sarah Palin is the legitimate birth parent of her now three-year-old son Trig.
A conspiracy theory, formerly consigned to the ranks of far-far-left bitter partisans, is being very seriously and very publicly scrutinized by an often-conservative, almost-always-thoughftul member of the media Establishment.
Read here and here and here and here and here and here.
Of course, sensing an opportunity to rile up the far right, Andrew Breirbart has joined the fray, attacking Sullivan for his “disgusting, ends-justify-the-means obsession with the personal family life of Sarah Palin.”
While generally speaking, I will side with Sullivan over Breitbart 102 times out of every 100, and while I certainly dispute Breitbart’s characterization of Sullivan’s motives, I rise to defend Sarah Palin in this instance.
Let’s suppose the accusations are true — that Palin is lying about the baby’s maternity. And let’s make an even bigger leap of credulity: that Sarah Palin could turn around her disastrous — and sinking — poll numbers and emerge as a legitimate contender for the White House.
I believe that even in the most powerful position in the world; even with someone who has voluntarily subjected herself to the ultimate measure of public scrutiny; and, yes, even with an individual who has pushed her family out front and center in an effort to win voter sympathy — I still believe that a public official should retain a limited, but still discrete, zone of privacy.
Read the rest of…
The RP: In Defense of Sarah Palin
By RP Staff, on Fri Apr 22, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Thanks for another incredible week at The Recovering Politician. We are so grateful for all of your support, compliments, and good ideas.
We even appreciate your complaints. And we are addressing them.
One of them comes from the RP’s household. The RP, as you may know, is not the Speaker of his House, and he’s barely the minority leader: Mrs. RP, the two RPettes, and even the RPcanine is female.
While the site’s introduced two superstar female contributing RP thus far — Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Lisa Borders — the site has had, let’s say, a testosteroneal (?) imbalance.
So next week, we are playing makeup. Three — count ’em 3 — outstanding contributing recovering politicians, all with both X chromosomes fully in place.
Wednesday, we feature a former Democratic State Representative who took a shot for statewide office and was swept up in the GOP tide. Friday, you’ll hear from a former Republican metropolitan city councilwoman, who left an outstanding career to join the private sector.
But first, on Monday, you will meet a highly-regarded former New York City councilwoman, who engaged in a highly publicized political battle over education reform, lost an election, but has now become a national leader in pursuing her reform passions from the private sector. Her first piece may challenge some of your common conceptions of public education.
On RPTV Tuesday, I will interview one of the smartest policy minds in the Republican party: a prolific writer, a frequent television commentator, and one of the most respected expertsof either in Washington. While you might disagree with his opinions (and I do on occasion), you will respect his views and how he approaches the issues. Kind of the essence of what we are trying to accomplish here at The Recovering Politician.
And of course, a whole lot more.
I hope you enjoy a wonderful holiday weekend, both religious (Good Friday, Easter, Passover), and secular (Earth Day). See you on Monday!
By Andrei Cherny, on Fri Apr 22, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET
Among the dozens of hats that he wears, Contributing RP Andrei Cherny edits Democracy: A Journal of Ideas. His post this month reflects on his status as a recovering politician. But even more, it makes a passionate case for progressive economics in an era that seems to be focused on selfish materialism and me-first politics
Here is an excerpt — the full link is below:
Candidates for office, it has been said, will show up for the opening of an envelope. This is especially true for those seeking an office like state treasurer. So it was that in early October of last year I found myself waiting for my turn to speak at the Yavapai County Tea Party forum. By then it was clear that as a Democrat campaigning statewide in Arizona in 2010, the effort I was engaged in could be reasonably called an “uphill climb” only if the hill in question was named Everest. Nevertheless, I was hopeful, though not blindly optimistic, that there was a path to victory—one that, at least partially, would run through convincing audiences like this one that, though a Democrat, I was the candidate who was more attuned to their concerns.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that this was one avenue that was closed off. Before it was time for my opponent and me to take the stage, I sat listening to the candidates for Congress debate. Like the audience at an old-time Saturday morning cliff-hanger, the crowd cheered the hero Republican and hissed at the villain Democrat. I turned to my campaign staffer and whispered through a tight smile, “Pull the car around when I get up there. We may have to make a run for it.”
It was the kind of gallows humor on which campaigns thrive, and despite receiving my own share of jeers while speaking, the people there were as friendly to me personally as they were completely uninterested in voting for me. But something bigger was at play that Saturday evening in Prescott than Tea Party politics and the ruminations of a doomed candidate for an obscure office.
Read the rest here.
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Apr 21, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Thank Goodness It’s Almost Friday…
Friday at 8:30 AM, means it is another debut of a contributing recovering politician. Tomorrow’s writer secured his party’s nomination for a statewide office, and almost won the general election against a tidal wave election for the opposite party. He also happens to be a published author of an outstanding book on one of the greatest moments in American history — the Berlin Airlift. You will enjoy his well-considered thoughts on today’s economic battles.
Contributing RP Jason Atkinson also makes his return, in two guises: You will hear his musings on one of his favorite avocations — competitive cycling — and watch an old video of a speech he delivered on the Oregon State Senate floor, dressed up as a much more famous fellow Republican.
Look forward to seeing you tomorrow!
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Apr 21, 2011 at 12:00 PM ET Welcome back to your favorite game show — with the winner receiving a free, signed copy of The RP’s The Compassionate Community: Ten Values to Unite America.
Below is a picture of The RP with his gorgeous posse (Mrs. RP and the RP-ettes). For a hint about the location, take a careful look at what is protruding in the back center of the photo.
The first person to guess the correct location in the comments section below this piece wins. (Close friends and family are disqualified — but they already have a signed copy of the book anyway.)
By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Apr 20, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Another day, another half-dozen posts at The Recovering Politician…
Tomorrow, we will introduce a new Friend of the RP. Our younger readers will want to pay close attention to this piece: He’s the only person I know who made partner at a huge, international law firm without billing an hour. And he still isn’t billing clients.
We’ll also have another edition of that ultra-popular game show, Where in the World is the RP? Pay close attention to the Web site (That means click in every five minutes or so), because you will never know when the piece will be posted, and only the first person who guesses the location of the picture wins a free, autographed copy of The RP’s book, The Compassionate Community: Ten Values to Unite America.
And of course, since tomorrow is Thirsty Thursday, all beers sold at this site will be half-priced. Except Miller Genuine Draft, as the RP gets residuals.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Apr 19, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET Tomorrow morning, we lead off with a timely piece from a special new recovering politician.
She is a nationally renowned leader, a former Lt. Governor, and also happens to be the daughter of my father’s hero. (If you don’t know who she is by this description, then you haven’t been reading all my posts: DO YOUR HOMEWORK!)
She is also the author of a thoughtful book on faith and politics. So it is fitting that her inaugural piece for The Recovering Politician focuses on that very subject during a Holy Week for Jews and Christians, which conincides with one of the most significant budget battles in recent history. Whatever your faith (or lack thereof), I think you will find this piece very thought-provoking. So tune in tomorrow.
Also tomorrow, our Recovering Professor, Ronald J. Granieri, will bring his expertise in European history to bear by sharing his unique perspective on the Libyan conflict, with a focus on the relationship between the United States and its allies during this new era. If you are tired of all of the partisan soundbites back-and-forth on this issue, I think you will find Ron’s analysis to be quite interesting.
So, see you bright and early for some spirited discussion on some critical issues.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Apr 19, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET My teenage daughter and I BOTH love it. So go forth, click, buy & read! Furiously patting myself on the back for sucessfully introducing Nick Hornby’s masterpiece, High Fidelity, to my 17-year-old daughter, I’ve decided to make a tradition of aping the protagonist’s habit of breaking down pop culture categories into top five lists. (See my post on Top Five Breakup Songs here).
And now that the depression of March Madness has dissipated, and the ennui of the NBA playoffs has set in, there’s no better time to pick up a great book (or five) about basketball.
Unfortunately, with the qualifiation of the word “great” in the sentence above, there are not many to choose from. While the literary elite has focused its attention on the diamond or the gridiron, hoops have been sorely neglected.
There are, however, some exceptional exceptions. Click on the book covers below to preview and/or purchase):
1. The Breaks of the Game by David Halberstam
The best book on basketball — and in my not-so-humble-by-any-means opinion, the best book on any sport, exclamation point — celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. You probably have never heard of it, and I wouldn’t have either, had I not read Bill Simmons’ The Book on Basketball (See #3 below). The late, Pulitzer-Prize winning reporter Halberstam followed the 1976-77 Portland Trailblazer NBA Champs in the years following their title, through injuries (most prominently to star center Bill Walton), dissension, trades, discontent, and sometimes, triumph. Halberstam eloquently illustrates through his prose that basketball — as I argued in my inaugural RP post, “Why March Madness Matters” — is the ultimate communitarian sport: Players and teams only can achieve greatness when individuals put aside their selfish needs to advance the common good.
 2. A Season on the Brink by John Feinstein
The best book on college hoops was born when John Feinstein was granted permission to spend the year with the University of Indiana Hoosiers and its coach, Bobby Knight, who is perhaps the most controversial and polarizing team leader of his generation in any sport. This uncensored examination of how the pressures of the sport affect a coaching staff and its mostly teenage squad of players captures brilliantly how big-time college sports has emerged to transcend (some will say, offend) the Athenian ideals of amateurism, and become a professional institution of its own. And remember — this was written after the 1985-86 season, in the infancy of the March Madness phenomenon, which many argue began with the 1979 NCAA Championship, pitting a different kind of hoosier — Indiana State’s Larry Bird — against Earvin “Magic” Johnson of Michigan State.
3. The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons
To be clear (as admitted in the subtitle, “The NBA According to the Sports Guy”), this is really “The Book of Professional Basketball.” But despite mostly ignoring the finer collegiate variety of the game, this is a fascinating read — the kind of book that both provides tidy places for reading breaks, but also encourages you to read on and on. Simmons is at times hilarious, profane, and viciously jingoistic (He is a self-admitted Boston Celtic fanatic). The reader’s thirst for hoops information is fully slaked through reams of statistics, colorful stories, and witty pop-culture-laden metaphors, but Simmons also weaves through the book a wonderful narrative theme, borrowed from his favorite basketball tome, Halberstam’s The Breaks of the Game (See #1, above): “The secret of basketball is that it’s not about basketball…Teams only win titles when their best players forget about statistics, sublimate their own games for the greater good and put their egos on hold.”
 4. The Jordan Rules by Sam Smith
The book that famously tarnished the uber-Man Michael Jordan myth created by Nike and the NBA (and discussed brilliantly by David Sirota in his new book, Back to Our Future), vividly captured the human side of the living legend: his temper tantrums, his biting critiques of his teammates, and his emerging super-sized ego. But the book also demonstrates how Jordan’s Zen-master coach Phil Jackson was able to direct Jordan and his teammates to emerge as one of the greatest squads in NBA history, by focusing the star’s attention (Here we go again!) away from personal scoring statistics to unselfish team play.
5. Duke Sux by Christian Laettner
In this touching — sometimes even moving — confessional memoir, former Duke University All-American center, Christian Laettner, apologizes to college hoops fans everywhere for the arrogant attitude of his squad, of the Duke student body, and most importantly, of himself. A key chapter is dedicated to his asking for forgiveness for his famous foot-stomping of Kentucky Wildcat reserve Aminu Timberlake during the historic 1992 NCAA Regional Finals, and his admission that the Blue Devils’ NCAA Championship that year should be vacated and given to the Kentucky Wildcat squad that almost beat them during the Greatest Game Ever Played/Worst Moment in World History.
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OK, OK. I might have made up one of the books above. (I told you this genre was bereft of classics!)
Please guess which one is the fake in the comments below. Or let me know what great hoops books I’ve missed.
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