Catching you up on clips, commentary and news of the day. Sign up for the daily email update from Scribe. Ronald Reagan, champion of freedom – Edwin Meese III Riding the Chinese tiger – Kim Holmes Call it Isolationism! – Marion Smith Marital Marshall Plan – Chuck Donovan and Kathryn Jean Lopez Obama’s Enemies List of Contractors’ Donations – Hans von Spakovsky Obama Hints at Deeper Cuts to Defense Spending – Leo Shane III Cornyn shut out of Senate hearing on new air regs that effect Texas – Dave Michaels Clarence …
Iran secretly has tested ballistic missiles that are capable of carrying a nuclear warhead in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions, British Foreign Secretary William Hague warned yesterday. Britain believes Iran conducted at least three secret tests of medium-range missiles since October, more evidence of Iran’s accelerating missile buildup. Hague’s statement came the day after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have launched 14 missiles as part of the ongoing “Great Prophet 6,” 10 days of military exercises designed to showcase the Islamic Republic’s growing military strength. Hague also …
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently released its annual Long-Term Budget Outlook, which highlights the effects of existing policy on the federal budget. The verdict: The current trajectory is “unsustainable.” Growing federal health care spending is a major driver of future deficits. As CBO explains, “Spending for health care in the United States has been growing faster than the economy for many years, posing a challenge not only for the federal government’s two major health insurance programs, Medicare and Medicaid, but also for state and local governments and the private …
“When all else fails, blame Bush.” This seems to be the operating principle of the current Administration. Case in point: At a conference on innovation earlier this week, Cass Sunstein—the head of OMB’s regulatory review office—tried to deflect criticism that the Obama Administration was responsible for a “tsunami” of regulation sweeping over the American economy. His defense: Bush was worse: “The annual cost of regulations has not increased during the Obama administration,” Sunstein said. “In its last two years, executive agencies in the Bush administration proposed far higher regulatory costs …
A freshman congressman has offered legislation that would make the extensive federal rulemaking process associated with the new Obamacare law dramatically more transparent. The bill would also give Congress a stepped-up oversight role as federal agencies begin drafting rules to implement the law, which will go fully into effect by 2014. In fact, both the purpose and letter of the Creating Sunshine, Participation, and Accountability for Our Nation Act (H.R. 1432) align well with President Obama’s stated concern for transparency in federal rulemaking. The bill, introduced by Rep. David Schweikert …
It is heartbreaking to see the destroyed homes, scattered possessions, and lives shattered by recent tornadoes in Alabama, Missouri and elsewhere. Many have lost loved ones and businesses while large parts of communities have been tragically leveled. Yet creating a new federal program would not be a worthy response to the plight of those affected by the twisters. However, the Obama Administration—known for, in the words of former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, not letting “a good crisis go to waste”—wants to use the recent disaster to grow …
As we saw at yesterday’s press conference, President Obama is not going to lead on the debt ceiling issue. Nor is he going to compromise or play a mediating role. He is more interested in blaming others for his troubles, demagoguing other solutions and running for re-election. This is why conservatives need to be reminded not to yield to scare tactics. Last night, our sister organization, Heritage Action for America, announced it would ask Members of Congress to vote “no” on raising the debt ceiling–unless, that is, a deal “rises to …
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) didn’t come to Washington to make friends. And after calling on his colleagues to skip their week-long Fourth of July vacation, he might even have a few enemies. A day after making a passionate speech on the Senate floor, Johnson was leading a group of 10 Republican colleagues to oppose the Senate’s upcoming recess until lawmakers take action on the debt. Expect more fireworks today. Heritage welcomes author James Delingpole for a noon event on his new book, “Watermelons: The Green Movement’s True Colors.” Delingpole writes …
Today, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision upholding Obamacare against a constitutional challenge. While this is disappointing, there are several reasons to believe that this flawed decision is not predictive of how the Supreme Court will rule. In recent years, the Sixth Circuit has achieved a growing reputation for not just reversals, but summary reversals at the Supreme Court. In a summary reversal, the Supreme Court unanimously reverses a lower court decision without hearing argument or even having a full merits briefing—because the decision is so clearly …
The chief economic culprit of President Obama’s Wednesday press conference was undoubtedly “corporate jets.” He mentioned them on at least six occasions, each time offering their owners as an example of a group that should be paying more in taxes. “I think it’s only fair to ask an oil company or a corporate jet owner that has done so well,” the president stated at one point, “to give up that tax break that no other business enjoys.” But the corporate jet tax break to which Obama was referring – called …
