EDITOR’S NOTE: As Wisconsin’s Democrat Senators escape to Iowa to avoid voting on Governor Scott Walker’s (R-WI) proposed budget, read Heritage analyst James Sherk’s commentary from NRO on what the fuss is all about. Wisconsinites are still celebrating the Green Bay Packers’ win in Super Bowl XLV, but taxpayers in the Badger State may be on the verge of an even bigger victory. Newly elected governor Scott Walker has taken a page out of Chris Christie’s playbook. He is going to deal with the state’s budget crisis by tackling the …
Today’s Washington Post highlights an important outcome of yesterday’s hearing on the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (DCOSP): U.S. Sens. Joseph I. Lieberman and Susan Collins sternly told District officials Wednesday that Congress probably will cut funding for city schools if efforts to revive a federal voucher program for students are not successful this year. At a hearing of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Collins (R-Maine) stressed that they and House Republicans are making the renewal of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program a chief priority.
A government that sacrifices the long-term security of its own people in a vain attempt to appease its enemies of today cannot be said to protect either liberty or security. In his speech at 2011 CPAC, former Governor Tim Pawlenty (R–MN) repeatedly underlined this point. His comments were a strong reminder that we will “never, ever, ever, stop fighting for our freedom” and that in this fight we must maintain an “extraordinary commitment” to the cause. Diplomacy is effective only if it can be enforced. Negotiating from a position of …
When studying Isaac Newton’s laws of motion in high school, we all learn that every action has a reaction. I was recently reminded of that simple truth of physics at a symposium addressing poverty. Last week, as part of a two-day forum sponsored by The Heritage Foundation at the University of Mobile, Jay Richards spoke about why “Good Intentions Aren’t Good Enough.” His main point was that well-meaning government policies often end up hurting those they are designed to help. In other words, what seem like compassionate actions can have …
Iran is one of the most dangerous and evil regimes in the world. The protests in Egypt and Tunisia have distracted U.S. attention from its nuclear programs. This makes recent Iranian protests all the more important, reminding us yet again of the oppressive nature of the Iranian regime, a regime that poses even more dangers if regional instability expands its sphere of influence and emboldens it to press ahead even more rapidly with its development of nuclear weapons and long-range missiles. The U.S. needs to refocus the international spotlight on …
The effects of Obamacare will reach every niche of the health care system, but they won’t stop there. The new health law will also have widespread negative effects on the economy, especially businesses, which are already facing growing health care costs and incentives to dump coverage altogether. Congressman John Kline (R–MN) put it well when he said, “To suggest this doesn’t undermine job creation is to deny reality.” At a hearing held last week by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, lawmakers heard from experts and those affected …
News organizations were aflutter to report on the controversies at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) this past weekend. Several socially conservative groups boycotted the meeting. Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney were greeted with jeers and boos. One conference attendee was removed after calling the former Vice President a war criminal. Is conservatism imploding? It depends. If the conservative consensus rests on support for specific policy proposals, then it is possible to find an issue to splinter the coalition. But, if conservatism is grounded “not as much at the level …
Is the President’s new “winning the future” slogan about America succeeding, or is it about his 2012 campaign hopes? President Obama’s FY2012 budget proposal makes it clear that he did indeed punt on making the difficult choices our country badly needs. He even failed to use the recommendations of his bipartisan deficit commission, instead deferring to some future bipartisan dialogue. Mr. Bowles and Mr. Simpson laid a platter of solutions in front of the President. The President turned his back on his commission’s recommendations and chose instead to present a …
While politicians are still talking about restoring civility, liberal thugs are waging an all out attack on the website of David Rivkin, lead counsel in the multi-state lawsuit against Obamacare, rather than engage in a civilized debate that they can’t win. And what do the ACLU and other left-leaning civil rights groups have to say about these attempts to silence a leading voice for freedom and liberty? Not a thing. Rivkin represents 26 States, the National Federation of Independent Business, and two individuals in the most prominent and successful challenge …
On February 15, Mexican gunmen boldly attacked and killed a U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agent Jaime Zapata and wounded a second, Victor Avila. This latest attack was the highest-profile assault against U.S. law enforcement officials in Mexico in decades. It was not, however, the first time Mexican criminals struck at American officials. Last March, members of the Barrio Azteca gang in Ciudad Juarez murdered U.S. consulate employee Lesley A. Enriquez and her husband Arthur H. Redelfs on the streets of the Mexican border town. The full force of U.S. …
