Yesterday, President Barack Obama ended his months-long press conference drought and faced the White House press corps. Unfortunately for the American people, questions on some of the biggest issues facing the country remain unanswered. The 100-ton elephant in the room that wasn’t discussed? The economy. Though the President would like to revel in the country’s recent spate of moderate economic growth, all is not well in America. More than 8 percent of Americans remain unemployed — nearly 13 million in total. What’s more, only 63.7 percent of adult Americans are active …
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), measurements of the budget impact of federal credit do not adequately address the risks involved, and may, in some cases, dramatically understate the costs of those programs. Under the current system, federal accounting practices do not “fully incorporate the cost of market risk,” (emphasis in the original) explained CBO in a new report. Market risk “arises from shifts in macroeconomic conditions, such as productivity and employment, and from changes in expectations about future macroeconomic conditions.” The expected costs of federal loan and …
The devastating tornadoes that ripped through the South and Midwest last week left broken homes and shattered lives in their wake. While the wind and rain still blew, churches, ministries, and charitable organizations fanned out across many states to help pick up the pieces. Public policy should respect the vital role these Good Samaritans play and, at the very least, not harm their ability to serve the common good. In southern Indiana, the New Albany Salvation Army set up food canteens to feed survivors. In Missouri, volunteers from Mennonite Disaster …
House Cloakroom: March 5 – March 9 Analysis: This week the House will take up legislation on a variety of issues. The JOBS Act is a combination of several financial services related bills meant to ease access to capitol and remove barriers to entry for startup companies. The countervailing duties bill will allow the federal government to place tariffs on imports from nonmarket economies, particularly China, to combat the practice of dumping. Dumping is defined as a country exporting goods at an artificially low price, but it is difficult to …
“Jim Wilson was one of America’s greatest thinkers, scholars, and patriots, as well as a good friend. He had a major influence on the modernization of policing in our nation and was also one of the most profound writers on moral philosophy. His teaching at several institutions inspired young Americans and provided a series of outstanding writings, which will be invaluable for years to come. Jim’s work was particularly valued by former President Reagan who had appointed him to the President’s Commission on Violent Crime in 1981. The whole country …
When President George W. Bush presented James Q. Wilson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, our nation’s highest civilian award, he said that whatever the subject, Professor Wilson “writes with intellectual rigor, with moral clarity, to the appreciation of a wide and growing audience.” Jim’s passing this morning at age 80 robs us of an intellectual giant, but we find solace in knowing that his legacy lives on. Jim was a great teacher, a good man, and a longtime friend. For many years he told the truth and taught the …
This week two more Congressmen, Dan Lungren (R–CA) and Aaron Schock (R–IL), joined the Eisenhower family in opposing Frank Gehry’s design for the Dwight D. Eisenhower memorial, which disrobes a statesman of his legacy and slaps Eisenhower’s name on what is, in fact, a monument to the national experiment in moral relativism. In art and architecture, postmodern thinking has slowly but steadily stripped public spaces of potential beauty. Now the movement seeks to strip statesmen of their meaning. Conviction is almost a dirty word in this era of relative truth. …
As we mourn the sudden passing of Andrew Breitbart we wanted to take time to reflect our thoughts and memories of him. Heritage’s Ed Feulner and Rob Bluey shared their thoughts and below are the memories of some Heritage staff members who had the opportunity to work with him to advance the conservative movement. Ed Meese: The death of Andrew Breitbart marks a great loss to the nation and particularly the Conservative movement. He was a bright star and leader in communicating a critical message concerning the future of the …
It was with great sadness that I heard this morning Andrew Breitbart passed away from natural causes at the young age of 43. Our first thoughts turn to his family: his wife Susie and his four children. He loved them with the same passion he had for his crusades on behalf of freedom. The prayers of the Heritage family are with them. This is a loss for the entire country. The cause of truth and freedom will be without one of its biggest champions. Andrew was fearless. He took on …
The city of Troy, Michigan, prides itself as being “The City of Tomorrow … Today,” but now it has another slogan to affix to its city hall: “Stimulus Dollars Not Welcome Here.” What’s this all about, you ask? Why would a city say “no” to free money? As The New York Times reports, Troy — a northern suburb of Detroit — was in line to receive an $8.5 million grant from the federal government in order to finance a transportation center that would be part of the Detroit to Chicago …
