Reports following Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s Monday meeting with Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicate that House Democrats are considering a $100 billion economic stimulus package that “money for ailing state governments, higher Medicaid spending and an increase in food stamp payments.” Completely ignoring their election promise to pay for any proposal increased spending by raising taxes or cutting spending elsewhere, Democrats are also considering tax rebates of $300 to $500. Such a plan would not help stimulate the economy since tax rebates do no stimulate the economy. Tax cuts do. …
Throughout President Bush’s current Middle East trip, administration officials have had to quell confusion about how the December 3, 2007 National Intelligence Estimate on Iran’s nuclear program affects U.S. policy in the region. Already the report has undercut efforts to form “an international coalition to impose sanctions against Tehran” and Iran has used the report for its own propaganda purposes. Besides the great damage it has done to the containment of Iran’s regional dominance efforts, the report’s conclusions are just fundamentally flawed. Heritage Foundation Comprehensive Guide to What is Wrong …
Just days after releasing a plan to reduce government spending, Fred Thompson continued his assault on earmarks, promising today that if elected president he would sign an executive order canceling lawmakers’ pork-barrel projects. President Bush is considering the idea, which is strongly opposed by congressional appropriators but supported by fiscal conservatives. Thompson fielded questions from bloggers during a conference call this afternoon. He was asked if he would issue an executive order instructing federal agencies to ignore the nearly 10,000 earmarks in the omnibus spending bill that was enacted in …
Picking up on the theme laid out by Heritage’s Mike Franc last week in Human Events, today John Fund writes in the Wall Street Journal about President Bush’s legacy on fiscal responsibility: This week President Bush will make one of the most important decisions of his remaining time in office. It won’t get headlines or lead the news, but it could play a major role in deciding whether this country ever gets any kind of grip on the constantly growing federal budget. Fund’s column comes at a critical moment. The …
