There has been a lot of discussion recently of Iranian involvement in Latin America, especially with the recent plot involving an assassination attempt against the Saudi ambassador to the United States. Of course, a lot of people are going to Latin America these days: the Russians, the Chinese— and even the Europeans. That’s because the region is abundant in natural resources, especially energy, and it offers the potential of emerging markets. Unfortunately, Iran is looking to make a less-than-friendly mark in Latin America, especially for the United States. Tehran has …
Congressman Paul Ryan (R–WI) and Senator Ron Wyden (D–OR) have proposed a new bipartisan framework for structural Medicare reform. It continues the conversation with the American people on a solution to save the popular but financially troubled entitlement program. While there are differences between the proposal and the Heritage plan outlined in Saving the American Dream, and while their proposal does not go as far or as fast as it should in changing the massive entitlement program, it would establish a premium-support system of financing for Medicare, a variant of …
Given the sad state of our economy, the bad investment climate, and the danger posed by profligate federal spending and ever-increasing government regulation, American entrepreneurs have to plan very carefully about where to locate new plants, stores, and other facilities when they expand an existing business or start a new one. If you are a business owner facing such a decision, here are 10 places where you should not invest your money or locate your business: Philadelphia, California, West Virginia, South Florida, Madison County, Illinois, St. Clair County, Illinois, McLean …
There are quite a few reasons to be concerned about the U.N.’s pending Arms Trade Treaty. It poses a number of risks to the Second Amendment and, more broadly, it is based on the completely fallacious belief that all the world’s nations are actually serious about controlling the illicit arms trade. If they were, of course, no treaty would be necessary. What the treaty will end up doing is making the arms trade more dangerous, by giving the world’s dictator states an internationally-recognized right to import and export all the …
The latest issue of the Weekly Standard gives everyone the chance to play a game called “What if it happened in America?” What if in America there was a gang of neo-Nazis who, over the course of 14 years, murdered 10 people, nine of them “foreigners” and one a policewoman? What if the gang had also carried out a nail-bomb attack in an immigrant neighborhood? What if immigrant (in this case, Turkish) households and apartments were attacked with Molotov cocktails and spray-painted with Nazi SS symbols? What if the authorities …
With Christmas just a week away and the new year nearly upon us, Congress came within a whisper of yet another potential government shutdown and once again demonstrated its inability to make substantive spending cuts and deliver the American people the reforms necessary to secure America’s fiscal future. Rather than produce a timely budget by way of standard operating procedure, congressional leaders again butted up against the deadline and reached a deal on a trillion-dollar “mega-omnibus” nine-bill appropriations package that sadly is yet another disappointing failure to rein in government …
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta presided over a muted ceremony in Baghdad yesterday marking the end of the U.S. military mission in Iraq. He proclaimed that the United States had achieved its goal of establishing “an Iraq that could govern and secure itself.” But he warned that “Iraq will be tested in the days ahead—by terrorism, and by those who would seek to divide it.” Unfortunately, the Obama Administration’s failure to negotiate an extension of the U.S. military presence past the December 31 deadline set by the 2008 status of …
The House mega-omni—the massive nine-bill appropriations package now moving toward a vote in the House—represents another disappointing failure to cut spending and prove Congress can instill some measure of fiscal discipline. Equally troubling: The procedure for considering the legislation allows everyone to vote for something he likes, while taxpayers pick up the tab. The main omnibus measure, formally the Final Consolidated Appropriations Bill (H.R. 3671), spends a total of $914.8 billion in annualized budget authority (BA) for fiscal year 2012, which started on October 1. (Agencies covered by the nine …
Click here Join us on Friday right now for a special “Lunch with Heritage” chat where are joined by the Assistant Director for the Center for Principles and Politics David Azerrad. He is taking your questions about what the left has been up to and he will also be taking your questions on how we can go back to a Constitutionally based government. Lunch with Heritage feat. David Azerrad
A new study released by the Pew Research Center on Wednesday shows that the percentage of married adults has fallen to a record low. According to the report, just 51 percent of Americans are currently married, compared to more than 70 percent of adults 50 years ago. This continued decline of marriage in America, especially among the middle class, signals troublesome news for the health of civil society. As shown on newly updated charts on Heritage’s FamilyFacts.org, marriage rates in the U.S. have fallen precipitously over the past six decades. …
