Not satisfied with just regulating the design of air conditioners, battery chargers, boilers, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, dishwashers, dryers, freezers, furnaces, heat pumps, light bulbs, refrigerators, toilets, and washers, the U.S. Department of Energy is cracking down on shower heads. In the words of the federal plumbing police: “It has always been the Department’s view that when Congress used the term ‘any shower head’ it actually meant ‘any shower head.’” By this they mean that the statutory limit on the maximum flow of a shower head does not reflect the amount of water …
Stewardship, compassion, and justice have been mentioned frequently in recent Christian commentary on our national fiscal crisis, and rightly so. Budgets are indeed moral documents; for example, it is wrong to pass down $200,000 in public debt to each child born today. These principles of stewardship, compassion, and justice have been well-established in serious conversation about the budget crisis for some time. That kind of dialogue has been taking place for years through the efforts of The Heritage Foundation and partnerships like the Fiscal Wake-Up Tour. The tour has included …
Yesterday, Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein used a recent poll to argue that Americans oppose House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s (R–WI) proposal to transform Medicare into a defined-contribution system, where seniors choose the health plan that best suits their needs. But, as always, the devil is in the details. The Washington Post–ABC News poll gave respondents the following options: “Medicare should remain as it is today, with a defined set of benefits for people over 65, OR Medicare should be changed so that people over 65 would receive a …
The U.S. has long held that the U.S.–Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty does not extend to Philippine claims in the South China Sea. There may have been a time when that position was prudent. After all, what interest could the U.S. have had getting involved in a spat among six relatively weak claimants? That time has past. Chinese “fishing patrol boats” and its rapid military modernization have chased it away. There is now one claimant stronger than the others, growing stronger by the day, and feeling it. We need to introduce …
By further cementing the positive relationship between South Korea and the United States, the pending South Korea–United States (KORUS) free trade agreement will further weaken the oppressive North Korean regime’s strategic position and help disabuse the regime’s leaders of any hopes they might have had of flagging U.S. support for the South. Ironically, opponents of KORUS have hyped the possibility of economic benefits to North Korea as a reason to oppose or delay the pact. The Kaesong Industrial Complex, a rather dormant and ill-fated economic development zone between South and …
Some critics of the proposed South Korea–U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) have expressed concerns about imports from North Korea, specifically goods originating from the Kaesong Industrial Region. This should be a non-issue. The chart below compares how imports from North Korea are treated today and how they will be treated if KORUS is approved. With or without KORUS, the U.S. government will continue to control imports from Kaesong and the rest of North Korea.
Almost immediately after it was announced that President Goodluck Jonathan won Nigeria’s presidential election this past weekend, violence erupted in many northern states. This post-election violence unfortunately tarnishes the nationwide vote that most observers deemed to be an improvement over previous elections, although it is evident that some rigging did occur. Since the government transferred from military to civilian rule in 1999, each election has been riddled with violations. The 2007 presidential elections were generally considered deeply flawed. Election rigging, electoral fraud, and voter intimidation have been fixtures in Nigerian …
Disco, mood rings and bell-bottom pants are relics of the 1970s relegated to the dustbin of cultural history. But one product of the 70s is still going strong and growing at a rapid rate, despite America’s monstrous fiscal crisis. It’s the Department of Energy (DOE), and in the last 10 years it has seen its budget grow by over $11 billion — a staggering 76 percent. If Congress wants to cut government spending, the DOE would be a good place to start. At a town hall meeting broadcast yesterday on …
At a recent Heritage event, author Ron Miller said it’s time for black conservatives to admit they’re conservative, even to themselves. In his new book, Sellout, Ron Miller describes the ways in which conservative policies actually best embody the goals and values that many black families hold privately. In a special Heritage in Focus podcast released this week, Ron Miller discusses how conservative policies in the areas of school reform, welfare and the encouragement of family life are actually the best solutions for the problems plaguing America’s low-income black communities. …
It’s that time of year again—the time for White House meetings aimed at placating the pro-amnesty lobby. There is lots of placating to do. It is almost an election year, meaning that soon politicians will engage in the time-honored tradition of duck and cover—which means they are definitely not interested in passing any kind of controversial legislation. President Obama has very few avenues by which to pursue his campaign promise of granting amnesty for the 11 million (down from 12 million) illegal immigrants inside the United States. With limited options, …
