James Brown, who died today, famously played the Nixon inauguration, performing “Say it Loud (I’m Black and I’m Proud).”

To fully appreciate the oddity that was James Brown in a Republican celebration — heck, the oddity that was James Brown in Washington at all after John F. Kennedy’s whites-only Camelot years — let’s revisit Time magazine’s Jan. 17, 1969 coverage of the Nixon inauguration:

It will not be the exuberant, swinging blowout that began the Kennedy years, with a seemingly endless inaugural parade and partying through the night. For four days, the capital will whirl sedately with genteel Republican merrymaking, beginning with an All-American Gala in the District of Columbia Armory, produced by Ed McMahon of the Tonight Show. For $10 to $100 a ticket, the guests will get Ed and his boss Johnny Carson, Dinah Shore, Lionel Hampton, James Brown, Marguerite Piazza, Tony Bennett, Hugh O’Brian and Hines, Hines & Dad. The night before Inauguration, Salt Lake City’s 350-strong Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Soprano Anna Moffo and Pianist Andre Watts will hold forth at a concert honoring the President-elect and his Vice President in Constitution Hall.

What I would give for time travel capability to see Dinah Shore, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Spiro Agnew … and James Brown, all in DC at the same time celebrating Richard Nixon. All a warm-up act, of course, for Sammy Davis, Jr.

Tired of conventional, standard-issue prayers to The Lord? Want one that could make McCain-Feingold advocates and do-gooders everywhere wince?

Then let’s remember one of the most direct prayers of all time, offered by the late Reverend Richard Halverson, a Senate chaplain years ago.

As cited by Bill Thomas in The Washingtonian magazine, Reverend Halverson once opened a Senate session with this appeal:

“Sovereign Lord … we pray for the senators running for reelection … Give wisdom to those who direct their campaigns. Give the senators special persuasion in speech … and provide wherever needed adequate campaign funds.”

Can I get an Amen? Merry Christmas everyone!

The Sunday Washington Post Zeitgeist jabs:

Virginia’s own James S. Gilmore III is the latest GOP presidential wannabe to consider an exploratory committee. Its first task will be to explore who exactly is James S. Gilmore III.

Poor Michael Grunwald is a day late with the snark. Turns out the Post has already shrilly defined Gilmore for us.

The editorial page demonized Gilmore this way Saturday:

A former governor from the South, zealous about tax-cutting and allergic to opposing views, who stubbornly insists on ill-fated policies despite abundant and well-founded warnings that they are leading to ruin. Maybe this guy is presidential material after all.

Why so much venom for Gilmore, who never was a Senator, never was close to the religious crazies the Post loathes, and who never really clicked with President Bush?

Perhaps his record as an effective tax-cutter — who really knows? Regardless, this 2nd-tier politician sure got a 1st-class whupping. Maybe it’s a signal Jim Gilmore would be the Post’s biggest nightmare as President.

A dig at President Bush — in the Washington Post’s Cars column?

Indeed, check out Sunday’s Warren Brown review of 2007 Subaru Impreza WRX Sport Wagon.  He opens by mentioning his wife:

I wish she would commit to learning how to drive a manual-transmission car, something she has resisted through 37 years of marriage.  I’ve tried to get the woman to shift gears. But getting her to change her mind is more difficult than getting President Bush to change his.

Interesting fact in the current issue of Business Week:

“Pfizer, with a p-e ratio of 12, is cheaper than it has been since the Hillary Clinton health-care initiatve more than a decade ago.”

Even though I own a few shares of Pfizer, I say, good.  The company’s hit a bad patch recently and the market’s reacted properly.  I’d rather have the market dictate a company’s true value than a politician, Hillary or anyone else.

The Washington Post ran this story today:

Toyota said yesterday that it was on track to become the world’s largest automaker next year, dethroning General Motors and underlining how far auto manufacturing has fallen from its once-pivotal place in America’s economy and politics.

I talked to an auto industry insider about the story. His astute observation: Here’s the reason Toyota is taking over the auto market. For years, the model for American manufacturers was build the car, sell it, and then fix it. The Toyota way is different. For Toyota, the model is build a car, fix it, and then sell it.

Washington Post editorial reminds us of this classic comedy moment:

It’s not unheard of to have such early dropouts: Former vice president Al Gore emerged from the “Saturday Night Live” hot tub at this time four years ago to announce he wouldn’t be a candidate in 2004.

Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell send a note today to Virginia bloggers.  Excerpts:

Dear Virginia Bloggers … This past year we have endeavored to make this a “blog-friendly” statewide office. To achieve this we have strived to have at least one event per month for the blogging community. We have done this through live blogs, podcasts, blog meetings, and blog conference calls. In addition, our press office has made it a goal to keep all Virginia bloggers who wish to be on our email list up-to-date and informed of what the office is doing.  Through your blogs you reach a large number of Virginians, and it is our goal to let as many Virginians as possible know about the positive work being done in the Office of The Attorney General. For that reason this relationship is in many ways a symbiotic one, and one that I hope will only improve in the years ahead.  More than ever before, Virginians today get their news from a variety of sources. Increasingly there is no distinction made between a report on the radio and a post on a blog. I welcome this change, for I have long believed that a republican form of government can only be successful with an informed citizenry. You inform your fellow citizens, and in the 21st century the proper and active dissemination of information has never been more imperative…

Good to see bloggers getting some love these days

Seems like the first Martin Frost is upon us.  Or was that a Jeff Flake?  Either way, if we’re getting Olympia Snowe or Tony Snow anytime soon, it means we’ll have to see farewell to 2006.

Shelly Winters arrived so soon.  Tough to tell now whether this year’s snowfall will be smaller than ever or Judy Biggert than ever.  Maybe it will be David Dreier than normal.  Assuming there’s no major Hannah Storm, we’ll be warming up with a nice mug full of hot Chris Chocola, easy on the nutmeg ryan.  Will help prevent us from catching a cold.  And sneezing.  Anna Eshoo!  Oh, excuse me.  Make sure you button up your coat and put up your Ray Lahood.  It’s Richard Burrrrrrrr out there.  Actually, with the wind, it’s David Vitter cold.  And the roads and bridges are getting Darrell Issa, too.

I already can’t wait to say Evan Bayh to winter and hello to spring when the flowers will Earl Blumenauer, or at least bloom in a day.  But Steve Buyer beware: A man’s home is his Mike Castle.  Hey, Ron Wyden I think of that!

Until then, Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, and Happy Barbara Boxing day.

Some Washington Post stories are dull.  Others duller.

This one: Dulles.

Can deep-frying a turkey ever be a bad idea, especially at a holiday party?  It sure can, according to the air traffic controller’s union, especially if the sizzling goes on inside administrative offices at Dulles International Airport. The union is blasting its managers for deep-frying a turkey last week in offices adjacent to the Dulles terminal and just a few hundred feet from the control tower.

Talk about your gobble-to-gobble coverage.