Iran’s government announced that it was pushing ahead with plans to enrich uranium to 20 percent levels, ostensibly to fuel a research reactor. The latest Iranian zig zag came only days after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed that Iran was open to a deal on exchanging some of its stockpile of low enriched uranium for fuel for a research reactor that the United Nations offered last year. Ahmadinejad suggested that he had made the decision to escalate Iran’s enrichment efforts because western powers failed to accept Iran’s counter-offer: “We gave them …
Last week, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke delivered a speech at the National Press Club titled “Back to Basics: A Blueprint for Exports-Driven Job Growth,” and remarked that “[President Obama’s National Export Initiative] will correct an economic blind spot that has allowed other countries to chip away at America’s international competitiveness.” The secretary also stated that “The United States is the most open major economy in the world…And that’s not going to change!” Well, unfortunately, “empirical reality” tells us a different story. According to the 2010 Index of Economic Freedom, …
In what was seemingly an outlandish Super Bowl commercial, the “Green Police” could become all too real. Though the cap-and-trade legislation appeared to die in the Senate after the passing the House, that doesn’t mean the war of environmental regulations is over. Liberals could still force draconian environmental restrictions on us anyway. Tucked into the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency (run by unelected bureaucrats) is money to enact “laws” that will force us to comply with new emissions standards. This commercial would be funnier if it wasn’t so true.
A year ago, President Obama warned the American people that the financial crisis was dire and required a whole new approach to government spending. Obama argued that the government must help America spend its way out of the recession, and his economists, using Keynesian multipliers, argued the “stimulus” would keep unemployment below 8.2 percent (PDF). Conservatives were skeptical, and pointed out that many of the government jobs would take a year or more to materialize, but Obama replied that we must be patient and keep spending. Conservatives pointed out that …
Hundreds of thousands of recession-induced retirements are proving to be terrible news for the Social Security Administration, leading to the total decimation of its annual surplus for the first time in 25 years, according to USA Today. But this morning’s headline really doesn’t qualify as “news,” per se, given that Social Security has been headed toward dark territory for quite some time. The chief actuary for the Social Security Administration said of today’s “news” that, “Things are a little bit worse than had been expected.” He understates the true extent of …
The Pentagon’s release of the Ballistic Missile Defense Review confirmed that North Korea could be able to deploy a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile capable of striking the United States within the next decade. The Washington Times reports that the review expressed serious concern over North Korea’s two underground tests and its attempt to develop a long-range missile. The Pentagon’s review also highlighted U.S. intelligence’s concerns about the Iranian nuclear program and their pursuit of “long-range ballistic missiles.” The report comes a day after Iran announced that it had launched a rocket …
In an article today titled, “Cash-Strapped States Feeling Burden of Snow,” Delaware and New Jersey lament how much money they have spent on snow removal this winter. With budget deficits hitting most states, those two states aren’t the only ones who will be looking for cash to pay for the snow removal. One source may by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) given its recent history of issuing declarations for these type of routine events. In its entire 57 year history, FEMA has issued 293 declarations for “Winter Storms“. From …
Although the feckless spending of successive Labour Governments has resulted in massive decline for Britain, there is one thing that Gordon Brown got right on the economics front: he denied Tony Blair’s plans to take Britain into the single European currency. Launched in 1999, the Euro has been the bedrock of European elites’ dream for a United States of Europe. And there’s the rub: founding a major economic program on the basis of a supranational political dream meant there was surely trouble ahead. Nowhere is this more visible than in …
Right before the Super Bowl, President Barack Obama spoke about health care reform with CBS News’ Katie Couric: “I want to come back and have a large meeting, Republicans and Democrats, to go through systematically all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward.” According to aides, the President envisions a half-day meeting on February 25th held in Blair House (a building across the street from the White House) presumably televised by C-SPAN. President Obama’s conciliatory rhetoric aside, everyone knows this publicity stunt has nothing to do …
