The XX Factor : Vicki Iseman, John McCain

Five Things To Like About Vicki

Melinda Henneberger — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 19:13:00 GMT

1) As usual, a woman's skinny blondness is admitted as evidence against her, once again deflecting suspicion from zaftig brunettes. 2) As noted by Emily Y. , insinuations about said skinny blonde are better than a spa week for making an old soldier young...(read more)

What's the Big Deal?

Rachael Larimore — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 20:36:00 GMT

As our resident McCain supporter, I'd be remiss not to weigh in on the strange story in the New York Times about the affair that the presumptive GOP nominee may or may not have had with lobbyist Vicki Iseman (who, as Hanna points out , looks eerily like...(read more)

The Geezer or the Stud

Emily Yoffe — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 17:23:00 GMT

John McCain may be denouncing the New York Times ' story about his possibly inappropriate relationship with a young, fetching lobbyist, but doesn't it subliminally help him? One of his big problems is that he's so old—he keeps trotting out his 96-year-old...(read more)

What About the Boring Old Lobbying?

Emily Bazelon — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 15:05:00 GMT

I entirely agree, Anne and Hanna , that the affair/maybe-not-affair aspect of the Times ' McCain story makes the piece seem weirdly bonkers. Still, what about this toward the end (for those who wade past the rehash middle): A champion of deregulation,...(read more)

Unfit To Print

Anne Applebaum — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 04:18:00 GMT

Hanna, I read the Vicki Iseman-the-cute-lobbyist/John McCain-isn't-ethical piece , too, after no fewer than three people told me to—none particularly enthusiastic about McCain. All were apalled, not by the content of the story, but by the transparent...(read more)

It's About Vicki, Stupid

Hanna Rosin — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 03:17:00 GMT

That New York Times story about McCain's "self-confidence on ethics" is one of the weirdest news stories I've ever read. This is not a story about McCain's coziness with lobbyists and whether his line about money corrupting politics is a lie. It's not...(read more)