On November 8, officials in Springfield, Illinois, discovered that cyber hackers had gained remote access to the city’s water utility. As The Washington Post reports, the hackers first stole the password and access codes from a local company that develops Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems. SCADA systems are operating systems that run many manufacturing plants around the globe. The hackers then used the stolen codes to manipulate the utility’s operational system. As a result, at least one water pump was damaged and burned out. According to a Department …
The U.S. military and America’s national security stands at the brink. This week, a congressional “super committee” was due to develop a plan to reduce the federal deficit by more than $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. Failing to enact the plan by January 15, 2012, would result in automatic cuts to military spending–a scenario that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta describes as “devastating.” The super committee’s ability to succeed remains in serious doubt, with reports of its deadlock and failure headlining newspapers this morning. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidates are …
The Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute host a Republican presidential debate on CNN this Tuesday at 8 p.m. on the subjects of foreign policy and national security. At a time when domestic issues dominate the headlines, Tuesday’s debate offers an opportunity to refocus our attention on matters of constitutional significance. The Founding Fathers spelled out in the U.S. Constitution that the federal government must provide for the common defense. Yet defense spending has fallen below its 45-year historical average. It is projected to drop to 3.4 percent of gross …
Ballistic missiles pose an increasing risk to the United States and its allies, particularly as more nations strive to acquire nuclear weapons. The once exclusive nuclear weapons club now has nine members, and Iran is knocking on the clubhouse door. Altogether, at least 32 countries have ballistic missile capabilities. Defending the United States, its forward-deployed troops, and its friends and allies against such threats should be a national security priority for the U.S. president. We have a fledgling missile defense capability. But further investment, research and procurement are needed to …
As environmentalism has become more trendy, the value of appearing green is now more important than helping the environment, argues Todd Myers in a new book called “Eco-Fads.” He spoke at Heritage this week and joined us for Scribecast. Myers cited the Obama administration’s $535 million Solyndra scandal as a high-profile example of how environmentalism is actually harming the environment. Myers noted that solar panels are among the worst performing as far as reducing carbon dioxide emissions. “Waste of money is waste of resources,” Myers said. “And anybody who believes …
During his confirmation hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mark Lippert, nominee for Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs, was asked about the Administration’s decision to provide the Taiwan air force with only upgrades to its 20-year-old F-16 A/Bs rather than selling new F-16 C/Ds, as Taipei has requested. (It is important to note here that the F-16 C/D sale was to replace the obsolete F-5s and Mirage-2000s that are still in the Taiwan inventory rather than augment the current F-16 A/B fleet.) Stating that …
Ice-breakers are an essential component of maritime and national security infrastructure. It is time to determine the fate of U.S. ice-breakers Polar Sea and Polar Star. Both parties are grappling over the future of the two nearly 40-year-old ships. The argument falls during the heated economic budget crisis, centering on whether to eliminate one ship for spare parts to fix the other or to spend federal funds to fix and update both ships. The problem involves making decisions that could sacrifice security or spend valuable defense funds. With the state …
While the White House continues its rhetoric on job creation, the job-killing effects of Obamacare are already taking effect. One provision of the law, its tax on medical device manufacturers, is already having a detrimental impact on a Michigan-based manufacturer. Stryker Corporation has announced that it will cut approximately 5 percent of its workforce by 2013 due to the tax. As Heritage has shown, this isn’t the first device manufacturer to voice concerns about job loss in the U.S. resulting from the tax, and it is sure not to be …
In a Heritage in Focus, Heritage Vice President of Communications Mike Gonzalez discusses the opportunity Heritage shares with American Enterprise Institute and CNN to co-host a GOP presidential debate. Tune in here. What will the focus of the debate be? How did Heritage get the opportunity to become involved? Listen to find out that and more! To get regular updates on Heritage in Focus podcasts, visit our RSS feed or subscribe on iTunes. To listen to more Heritage in Focus podcasts, visit our podcast page.
In 1969, as President Nixon’s Domestic Policy Council sought ways to spend the forthcoming “peace dividend”—savings projected from the wind-down of the Vietnam War—council members ran into an inconvenient fact: The fiscal windfall did not exist; any post-war “savings” were already committed to a range of new spending, including some of the blossoming Great Society programs of the previous Administration. It was the first time total government spending did not decline after a war. Today, some members of the congressional “super committee” want to go back to the future—by spending …
