Just the other day, Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) objected to Senator Tom Coburn’s (R-OK) move to force the reading of Bernie Sander’s (I–VT) 767-page amendment (thankfully defeated) to create a single-payer, Medicare-for-all health care system. Republicans plan to force a reading of the final (as yet un-released) Reid health care legislation currently being debated in the Senate, a move Democrats will assuredly try to block. When ordinary Americans sign their tax forms and thereby fund the federal government, they declare under penalties of perjury that they have read the document. …
Albert Einstein famously defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” So after a $787 billion stimulus that was supposed to create (not merely save) 3.3 million net jobs but instead saw 3.4 million net jobs lost, House Democrats this week have doubled down by (barely) passing yet another $150 billion stimulus bill. Of course, if deficit-spending created jobs and growth, then the staggering $1.4 trillion deficit in 2009 would have already overheated the economy. The new stimulus bill is offensive on a …
In “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” Dr. Suess teaches children that even the most cold-hearted among us can find good in their hearts, especially during the holidays. Despite a series of recent setbacks, hundreds of low-income kids in Washington, DC are holding out hope that the Grinches on Capitol Hill who are working to kill the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program will have a similar change of heart. Last week, the House and Senate approved an Omnibus spending bill that includes legislative language that effectively ends the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program, …
This morning while President Barack Obama addressed the United Nations Climate Change Conference, his allies were busy trying to shield him of the political fallout from the conference’s apparent failure to produce anything substantial. Throughout the conference, one of the biggest obstacles to an agreement was the insistence of developing nations that rich countries sign a binding treaty that included a large transfer of wealth to the developing world. If there were any doubts that wealth distribution was at the heart of climate cap-and-trade agreements, President of the Bolivarian Republic …
The President just gave a brief speech here in Copenhagen to the assembled parties, laying out what he believes are the crucial elements to a successful climate change accord. Specifically, there are three elements—greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation commitments, transparency, and financing (but more on those in a moment). Consistent with the Administration’s prior statements about global warming, the President spoke in absolute terms about the urgency of the matter. Statements along the lines of “We are running out of time,” “The time to talk is over,” and “No time to …
The Heritage Foundation’s Steven Groves and Ben Lieberman are live at the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference reporting from a conservative perspective. Follow their reports on The Foundry and at the Copenhagen Consequences Web site. Though Barack Obama garnered much attention for his Nobel Peace Prize win, the United States has won three lesser-known, tongue-in-cheek awards at the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference from a liberal environmentalist organization that has been critical of America’s refusal to wholeheartedly embrace their radical agenda. And what “ignoble actions” earned the United States these noble prizes? …
President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Hugo Chavez received resounding cheers from the audience after saying, “Seven percent of the world population – some 500 million people – are responsible for half of contaminating emissions. Capitalism is to blame for this.” He also asserted, “our revolution seeks to help all people…socialism, the other ghost that is probably wandering around this room, that’s the way to save the planet, capitalism is the road to hell….let’s fight against capitalism and make it obey us.” If President Chavez means carbon dioxide emissions …
With the Copenhagen climate summit wrapping up Friday, there are a number of battles developing from the political elite to the grassroots activists. But none is bigger than the one between developed and developing nations that has stalled progress for a binding treaty. Rich vs. Poor Developing nations want more money to combat climate change, steeper emissions cuts from developed nations and exemption from any binding agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Developing nations are pushing for $100 billion annually, emissions cuts of 25-40% by 2020 for developed countries and …
President Obama last week told a group of Republican members of Congress who were at the White House that, every economist he has talked to said they need to spend more money to create jobs and stimulate the economy. The President then asked them to produce a list of economists that say we shouldn’t spend money to get us out of the problem. Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) today released such a list. 222 economists from across the nation signed on to support a statement that cautions against out of control …
One year ago, Americans had just elected Barack Obama as president, and he promised to enact the most progressive agenda in U.S. history. The mainstream media had declared conservative ideas outdated and the conservative movement dead. But at The Heritage Foundation, we chose to stand our ground. In 2009, our experts have led the charge against socialized medicine, made the case against handouts to big labor and stood up to the Left’s cap-and-tax global warming plan. And we’re taking the lead as conservative momentum grows around the country. Sean Hannity …
