As the scandal over the dismissal of the New Black Panther Party (NBPP) voter intimidation case percolates in the media, letters have been flying through the corridors of power. On July 22, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) sent a letter to President Obama demanding that he appoint a special counsel to look into the Justice Department’s handling of the case. On July 28, Gerald Reynolds — chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights — sent Attorney General Eric Holder another letter once again demanding the testimony of Christopher Coates, who …
The all-too-familiar idea “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste” has reared its head in Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D–NV) Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Company Accountability Act of 2010. In addition to proposing hurdles high enough to trip efforts to develop energy resources in the Gulf of Mexico, the proposal would gift to the greens one of their long sought desires: a full pot of money in the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LCWF). It would be a big pot of cash that can be spent “without further …
Last week, representatives from the oil, seafood, and tourism industries as well as local politicians and residents of the Gulf organized a rally at the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana, to call for an end the Obama Administration’s drilling moratorium.Even after a federal judge overturned the ban, ruling it was arbitrary and capricious, the Administration implemented another ban despite the Gulf’s demand to lift it. Finally, some politicians in Washington are starting to get it: The House will vote Friday on a measure that would ease the Obama administration’s temporary ban …
During his 1964 acceptance speech, Barry Goldwater described his movement to the audience with these words: This party, with its every action, every word, every breath and every heartbeat has but a single resolve, and that is freedom — freedom made orderly for the Nation by our constitutional government; freedom under a government limited by the laws of nature and of nature’s God; freedom — balanced so that order, lacking liberty, will not become a slave of the prison cell; balanced so that liberty, lacking order, will not become the …
Earlier this week, Representative Peter King (R-NY), the ranking minority member on the House’s Committee on Counterterrorism, gave a public lecture at Heritage titled, “Keeping America Free, Safe And Prosperous: Counterterrorism in the Obama Administration“. In his speech, King highlighted our current problems with counterterrorism and the future of homeland security. Afterwards, he sat down with us for a short interview to discuss some of these issues in greater detail. He stressed the importance of understanding the enemy. As he said, “The enemy is Islamic terrorism. … [The Obama Administration …
Tomorrow, July 31, would be Milton Friedman’s 98th birthday. To honor the great man, we offer a quote that, though written three decades ago, is shockingly relevant today. In his last major work, Free to Choose, Friedman wrote words of hope: Fortunately, we are waking up. We are again recognizing the dangers of an over-governed society, coming to understand that good objectives can be perverted by bad means, that reliance on the freedom of people to control their own lives in accordance with their own values is the surest way …
What should a school principal expect after working “tirelessly” to help struggling students achieve? Certainly not to be asked to step down. However, this is exactly what can happen once the federal government gets involved. Despite support from parents, teachers, and administrators for Principal Joyce Irvine of Wheeler Elementary School in Burlington, Vermont, school administration is being forced to remove her. This is so the school will be eligible to receive federal stimulus money through programs such as the Obama Administration’s Race to the Top. Reports The New York Times:
In 2000, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) was signed into law to boost America’s economic relationships with African nations. Since its inception, the level of trade between the United States and African countries has grown significantly, but most of that increase has been in the extractive industries. Broadening the benefits of AGOA and opening the door to more than oil and minerals is a shared goal. During last year’s AGOA Civil Society Forum in Nairobi, the AGOA trade process was compared to a sporting event. African and American …
Judicial tyranny is alive and well in the United States, and as a result the debate over the future of marriage may soon be front and center once again in the national news. Two major federal court rulings, one just released and another imminent, pose separate challenges to marriage. First, on July 8, a federal judge in Massachusetts overruled 427 Members of Congress and struck down a key part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Second, most observers consider it likely that another federal judge, this one in …
Brian Riedl argued in a Washington Times piece on Tuesday that the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act should be repealed. CLASS, a government-run long-term care (LTC) insurance program, has been widely panned by actuaries as unsustainable and likely to result in a future taxpayer bailout. Howard Gleckman of the Urban Institute responded in turn with an argument that participation in CLASS should be made mandatory. Gleckman’s argument, however, is flawed. As Americans live longer, demand for long-term care services grows. Gleckman correctly states that Medicaid, which is …
