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Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates - Ta-Nehisi Coates is a senior editor for The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues for TheAtlantic.com and the magazine. He is the author of the memoir The Beautiful Struggle. More

Born in 1975, the product of two beautiful parents. Raised in West Baltimore—not quite The Wire, but sometimes ill all the same. Studied at the Mecca for some years in the mid-’90s. Emerged with a purpose, if not a degree. Slowly migrated up the East Coast with a baby and my beloved, until I reached the shores of Harlem. Wrote some stuff along the way.
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She ain't a crook, son...

By Ta-Nehisi Coates

Aug 31 2008, 11:17 AM ET Comment


This is a great, great post by Josh which elegantly and simply distills TrooperGate. Reading this, I can see I've actually underestimated this story and its Alberto Gonzales-like implications. Old girl didn't simply pursue a vendetta against her creep ex-brother-in-law. She pursued said vendetta, came up completely empty and, instead, took out a civil servant who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong-time. Read the piece. It's not shocking because of the revenge factor, politcians clap back at their enemies all the time. It's shocking because of the ineptness of said revenge. I've always said that the biggest problem with the Bushies wasn't that they were thugs---it's that they're fake thugs.

UPDATE: As a commenter below reminds, it's also only right that I give the Post their due for this story, given how hard I went at them this morning.




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