“A single nuclear weapon exploded a hundred miles above the United States could create electromagnetic pulse effects, thereby bringing our entire economy to a standstill,” writes Phyllis Schlafly, a lawyer and conservative political analyst, in her most recent op-ed. An electromagnetic pulse (EMP), a high-intensity burst of electromagnetic energy caused …
On Thursday, the Senate is expected to begin consideration of H.R. 5949, the Foreign Intelligence Amendments Act of 2012 (FAA). The bill would reauthorize amendments to the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which are set to expire December 31. FISA created a secret court to review wiretap applications for …
According to the Financial Times, the insurance industry estimates the total bill for insurers from Hurricane Sandy will be between $20 billion and $25 billion. President Barack Obama’s emergency request for Hurricane Sandy totals $60.4 billion. One must naturally wonder how the damages not covered by insurance could be roughly …
Throughout recent federal budget discussions, strategies to pull America out of recession, and the potential for massive cuts to national security, one cost cutting idea has been to withdraw U.S. military forces from Europe. The primary arguments behind such proposals are that this will save money immediately and that these …
Last week North Korea successfully launched an Unha-3 rocket, thereby demonstrating an alarming capability to target U.S. territory with ballistic missiles. China is rapidly expanding its fleets and arsenals in an unprecedented military build-up, while intimidating other countries in East Asia—including U.S. allies. The Middle East is a conflagration of …
The threat of sequestration—the half-trillion dollar cut to defense set to occur January 2, 2013—has been debated and prevention plans have been discussed since before it was even written into law. The budgetary measure was written to be so unpalatable that Congress and the Administration would have to find a …
Rumors are swirling that included in their negotiations to avert the “fiscal cliff,” President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner (R–OH) may add an additional $100 billion in cuts as an alternative to the roughly $500 billion in defense budget cuts over nine years required by sequestration under the Budget …
Senator Daniel Inouye (D–HI) passed away last evening, an old warrior succumbed to complications of pneumonia. His last word was “Aloha.” Inouye was one of an all too quickly disappearing cadre of elder statesmen who began their public service as military members. He was one of the Greatest Generation. Inouye, …
Federal watchdogs warn in a new report that a pilot Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program designed to keep Hurricane Sandy victims in their homes may be highly susceptible to waste, fraud, and abuse. The administration of FEMA’s Sheltering and Temporary Essential Power (STEP) program “requires increased vigilance to monitor the expenditure of public funds,” …
Many Americans will find it difficult to return to their daily routines today. The massacre at a Connecticut elementary school Friday, in which 26 people were murdered in an act of senseless violence, including 20 small children, has left the country shocked. The Heritage Foundation expresses its condolences to the …
