In an instant, life as we know it could cease to exist. An electromagnetic pulse (EMP) could permanently disable the nation’s critical infrastructure dependent on electrical systems. As panicked people run to the phones to dial 911, their calls are answered only by silence. Caused by either detonation of a nuclear weapon at high altitude or unusually powerful solar activity, the results of an EMP event would be devastating. As Heritage’s James Carafano explains: Communications would collapse, transportation would halt, and electrical power would simply be nonexistent. Not even a …
Since 1989, the United States has enacted numerous free trade agreements with countries around the world. These agreements have increased trade, improved international relations, and strengthened the U.S. economy. But don’t let the facts stop a good political fight. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), enacted in 1993, inspires the most controversy. For example, the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), in an exercise that stretches the logic of statistical analysis well past the breaking point, claims that the net loss of U.S. jobs due to NAFTA from 1993 to 2002 …
In the shadow of yesterday’s disastrous Wall Street meltdown and President Barack Obama’s address to the nation, a lesser-noticed piece of news emerged from the Obama Administration: By executive fiat, the White House is once again circumventing Congress in the name of advancing the President’s agenda. It’s a story we’ve heard before. Where President Obama can’t legislate, he will use executive branch action to accomplish his agenda. In the past, he has applied that tactic in the auto bailout, EPA regulations, and Obamacare. Now he’s using this approach to remake No Child …
Wisconsinites are headed to the polls to cast their votes in the Wisconsin recall elections. The recall campaigns — against six Republicans today and against two Democratic state senators next week — have gained national attention. They stem from the fierce standoff between the Legislature earlier in the year. The unprecedented circumstances in Wisconsin ensure low voter turnout and noncompetitive results won’t be a problem. Numerous politicians are calling for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s resignation following the downgrade of the U.S. credit rating from AAA to AA+. Congresswoman and presidential …
The folks at the MacIver Institute for Public Policy, a Wisconsin-based free market think tank, have compiled a stunning infographic on the network of liberal groups, most of them labor unions, that have poured money into the State Senate recall elections. The elections, which will be held Tuesday, are the latest battle in an ongoing political war in Wisconsin that began with Gov. Scott Walker’s budget reform bill, which trimmed the ability of the state’s public sector workers to collectively bargain. The MacIver Institute’s data was all gathered from official …
President Barack Obama made two fundamental mistakes today in his press conference which was intended to calm the markets. First, he did not lead off with a moment of reflection on the loss of American military lives in Afghanistan over the weekend. Second, he completely missed the boat on why Standard & Poor’s (S&P) lowered the credit rating of the United States. The President should have led off his press conference with prayers and condolences for the families of the 30 members of the U.S. military who lost their lives in …
U.S. taxpayers were reminded on Friday (and again this morning) that our long national Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac nightmare is far from over. On Friday, Fannie Mae requested another $5.1 billion in aid from the U.S. Treasury to keep its capital at acceptable levels, which would bring the total Treasury bailout of Fannie Mae to $104 billion, with only $14.7 billion being returned in the form of dividends. Then, this morning Standard and Poor’s downgraded Fannie and Freddie from AAA to AA+ following its downgrade of the entire federal …
Optometrists and ophthalmologists aren’t seeing eye to eye these days on the proper role of government. So contentious is the issue that divides them, in fact, that West Virginia legislator Don Perdue says he spent 16 hours locked in his office “trying to keep (them) from clawing each others’ eyeballs out.” The focus of their ire is H.R. 451, the so-called Healthcare Truth and Transparency Act of 2011—the title of which, like a great deal of federal legislation, masks malignant intentions as benign. Introduced in January by Representative John Sullivan …
California’s Santa Clara County used $16 million in federal housing funds not for affordable housing programs or similar services, but to increase guaranteed pension benefits for county workers. Employees of the county’s Housing Authority can now retire as early as age 50, receive as much as $40,000 annually during retirement, and enjoy 2 percent annual increases in pension benefits. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development says the move does not violate the conditions of the federal program, according to an article in Mercury News. Santa Clara County’s housing …
Last Wednesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee released a grim report showing a reduction in the availability of child-only policies for parents looking to purchase health insurance for their children. They findings show that, “Of the 50 states, 17 reported that there are currently no carriers selling child-only health plans to new enrollees. Thirty-nine states indicated at least one insurance carrier exited the child-only market following enactment of the new health care laws.” The reason for this decline in child coverage is that specific provisions of Obamacare …
