OutloudOpinion - Creators Syndicate Audio Editorials

The Type of Al-Qaida Operative We Allow on Planes 1.26.10

Terence P. Jeffrey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:17:53 -0500

In virtually unnoticed testimony before the Senate Homeland Security Committee last week, National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) Director Michael Leiter explained that U.S. policy leading up to the attempted Christmas Day suicide attack on Northwest Flight 253 was calculated to draw a line between two types of al-Qaida operatives: Those we allow on planes and those we do not. The policy, Leiter said, requires an analyst to decide which category the terrorist belongs in depending on "what kind of operative he was and what his intention was." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Can Obama Triangulate? 1.26.10

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:11:12 -0500

Q: How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb? A: One, but only if it really wants to change. Any president, at any time, can choose to embody the consensus his nation has reached after it has engaged in a period of extended debate. That process, called triangulation, involves the embrace of the elements advanced by the right and by the left that Americans have found valid and the rejection of those from which they have turned away. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Repeal the 17th Amendment 1.26.10

Tony Blankley — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:09:06 -0500

As I was preparing to write a column on the ludicrous maligning of the Tea Party movement by liberals, Democrats and the mainstream media (which I hope to write next week, instead), I started thinking about one of the key objectives of the Tea Party people -- the strict enforcement of the 10th Amendment ("The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people"). As an early 1960s vintage member of the then-new conservative movement, I remember us focusing on the 10th amendment during the 1964 Goldwater campaign. It has been a staple of conservative thought, and the continued dormancy of 10th amendment enforcement has been one of the failures of our now half-century-old movement. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Cover Your Ears 1.26.10

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:07:29 -0500

"This ruling strikes at our democracy itself," President Obama declared on Saturday. "This ruling opens the floodgates for an unlimited amount of special interest money. ... I can't think of anything more devastating to the public interest." The president was referring, of course, to the Supreme Court decision that last week overturned restrictions on political speech by corporations. Like most of the criticism provoked by the ruling, his reaction was long on outrage and short on constitutional interpretation. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The "Ellie Light" Scandal 1.26.10

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:05:46 -0500

The declining (or is it dying?) newspaper industry has suffered another blow to its image as punctilious skeptic with the motto "If your mother says she loves you, check it out." It turns out, a pile of American newspapers can't manage to check out the most basic information about people who are flat-out using their pages to push political agendas. A person with the name of "Ellie Light" has been successfully published with the same letter in at least 68 newspapers defending President Obama -- defrauding the editors by using local addresses. Reports have "her" published in two papers overseas. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Spender-in-Chief’s Fiscal Freeze Follies 1.26.10

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:03:27 -0500

There are more loopholes in President Obama’s proposed "spending freeze" than in an Olympic volleyball net. Gargantuan government entitlements (Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid) are exempt. A half-trillion in unspent stimulus money is exempt. Foreign aid is exempt. The Democrats’ proposed $154 billion jobs bill (Stimulus II) is exempt. Pet federal education programs will be exempt (including $4 billion for the White House "Race to the Top" standards initiative and an additional $1.35 billion he just requested in the 2011 budget). Green jobs spending will be exempt. (Obama proposed $10 billion in new clean energy spending earlier this month.) Electorally driven tax-credit expansions will be exempt. The health care takeover plan is not included. As even The New York Times reported, the "estimated $250 billion in savings over 10 years would be less than 3 percent of the roughly $9 trillion in additional deficits the government is expected to accumulate over that time." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

President Obama's Lexicon of Rhetorical Devices 1.26.10

Ben Shapiro — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:01:17 -0500

President Obama's friends call him the smartest man ever to occupy the White House (a dubious claim in light of the fact that John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Quincy Adams, Abraham Lincoln and Woodrow Wilson all had better intellectual credentials or were far superior writers, or both). According to his supporters, his command of the English language is supposedly unparalleled (when using a teleprompter, presumably). From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Pentagon Clueless on Fort Hood Shootings 1.25.10

Debra J. Saunders — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:39:35 -0500

Political correctness is alive in the Pentagon. Witness "Protecting the Force: Lessons from Fort Hood," a Department of Defense report released last week on the Nov. 5 shootings that left 13 people dead. Granted, drafters of the report had to be careful not to say anything that would help the defense of accused shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, who has pleaded not guilty. Even so, if the report's purpose was to craft lessons to prevent future attacks, how could they leave out radical Islam? "Our concern is with actions and effects, not necessarily with motivations," former Army Secretary Togo West explained to Time magazine. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

An Open Letter to Charles Johnson 1.25.10

Dennis Prager — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:37:24 -0500

On Sunday, The New York Times Magazine featured an article on Charles Johnson, whose website -- littlegreenfootballs -- had for years been very popular among conservatives and among all those who believed that Islamic terror and Islamic religious totalitarianism were the greatest expressions of contemporary evil. The reason for the article was that Mr. Johnson has made a 180-degree turn and is now profoundly, even stridently, anti-right. This is my letter to him. Dear Charles: As you know, over the years, I was so impressed with your near-daily documentation of developments in the Islamist world that I twice had you on my national radio show -- both times face to face in my studio. And you, in turn, periodically cited my radio show and would tell your many readers when they could hear you on my show. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Saving Professor Bernanke 1.25.10

Patrick J. Buchanan — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:35:37 -0500

"Elections don't matter!" conservatives have long groused. "No matter who you vote for, things never change." Well, we may have an exception here. Scott Brown told Massachusetts' voters if they elected him to what David Gergen calls "the Kennedy seat" in the Senate, he would go to Washington and run a sword through Obamacare. Thirty-six hours after Brown's triumph, a disconsolate Nancy Pelosi emerged from the House Democratic caucus to announce that the votes were not there to pass a bill that had, on Christmas Eve, gotten 60 votes in the Senate. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

State of the Union Grade: F 1.25.10

Chuck Norris — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:33:09 -0500

Mr. President, it's time to face the music and help America to do the same. This Wednesday evening, you will give your State of the Union speech. And millions upon millions of us are wondering whether you will sugarcoat the truth again -- whether you will pad your performance over this past year or confess that the plans and path Washington is taking are plummeting our country deeper into the abyss. If you convey the real status of the union, then you must confess that we are truly no better off (and much worse off in many respects) than we were when you first took seat in the Oval Office. About this I'll give you credit: You have indeed fulfilled your promise to "fundamentally transform the United States of America." And you've done so in record-breaking speed -- one year, to be exact. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

You Named Your Dog for Coolidge? 1.25.10

Mona Charen — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:31:19 -0500

Since the world appears to be self-correcting -- Massachusetts voters have matters in hand, the Supreme Court has come to its senses on the First Amendment, each day brings new revelations that the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report was a fraud, and President Obama acknowledges that his agenda has hit a "buzz saw" -- it's safe to detour into the personal. We have a new puppy -- an 8-week-old Golden Retriever who looks (I hope you won't think me immodest) like the pups they pose in catalogues to make you buy down jackets and lawn furniture. She's the kind of puppy pictured in saccharine wall calendars, toilet tissue commercials, and anywhere else that melting adorableness is required. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

We Need Diversity 1.25.10

Walter Williams — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:28:40 -0500

It's not at all uncommon to watch a college basketball game and see that 90 to 100 percent of the players are black. According to the University of Central Florida's Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport report titled "The 2008 Racial and Gender Report Card"- the percentage of black male basketball players in Division I was an all-time high at 60.4 percent. It was 45.9 percent in football and 6.0 percent in baseball. Diversity is worse in professional sports. In the National Basketball Association, almost 82 percent of the players are people of color, higher than last year's 80 percent. This is the highest percentage of players of color since the 1994-1995 season. The percentage of black players increased to 77 percent from last year's 76 percent mark. The percentage of Latinos remained constant at 3 percent. Football diversity is not much better. During the 2008 NFL season, the percentage of white players remained constant at 31 percent while the percentage of black players increased slightly from 66 to 67 percent. Casual observation shows that most sports lack sex diversity. Segregation by sex is the rule rather than the exception. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

'It's Not About Me' -- Wink, Wink 1.25.10

David Limabugh — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:26:33 -0500

The more painful exposure we have to Barack Obama -- and we're talking hyper-exposure at this point -- the more we realize how narcissistic he is. Indeed, we are treated to this overexposure precisely because of his narcissistic impulses. He can't keep himself out of the spotlight. So it was that on the heels of his crushing personal defeat in the Massachusetts senatorial election last week, Obama's principal reaction was, "This isn't about me." When someone says that one time or a few times, you might believe him. But when he says it repeatedly (see below), you have to conclude he is protesting too much and means just the opposite. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Great Scott! 1.25.10

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:24:21 -0500

Some of the most melancholy letters and e-mails that are sent to me are from people who lament that there is nothing they can do about the bad policies that they see ruining this country. They don't have any media outlet for their opinions and the letters they send to their Congressmen are either ignored or are answered by form letters with weasel words. They feel powerless. Sometimes I remind them that the whole political establishment -- both Democrats and Republicans, as well as the mainstream media -- were behind amnesty for illegal immigrants, until the public opinion polls showed that the voters were not buying it. If politicians can't do anything else right, they can count votes. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Voters Spurn the 'Boob Bait' of the Educated Class 1.22.10

Michael Barone — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:08:36 -0500

When the New York Times columnist David Brooks first sat down with Barack Obama, they talked a lot about Burke. That's Edmund Burke, the 18th century conservative British politician and philosopher. Not Jimmy Burke, the 20th century Massachusetts pol, who said that all you had to know to serve in Congress was "Social Security and shoes." The cold hard numbers in the Massachusetts special Senate election this week tell you something important about the appeal of Barack Obama and his policies on his 365th day in office. Democrat Martha Coakley did fine among the voters that would be impressed by your knowledge of Edmund Burke. But she got a thumbs-down and Republican Scott Brown got a thumbs-up from the children and grandchildren of the people Jimmy Burke represented 40 or 50 years ago. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Free Speech for Corporations 1.22.10

Steve Chapman — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:07:00 -0500

During the 2008 campaign, a group called Citizens United put together a documentary, “Hillary: The Movie.” Remember seeing it on cable TV? No, you don’t, because the organization decided it couldn’t show the film without the risk of felony prosecution. It had every reason to be afraid. The problem was that the movie was not only about Clinton but made the case that she should not be president. Worse, it was supposed to be shown during -- get this -- an election campaign. That, under the federal law, made it verboten. You might think the point of a campaign is to air facts and opinions about the people running, so that voters will have a wealth of information upon which to choose. But in the judgment of Congress, some facts and opinions are not welcome. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Defeating Obamacare: The Nail in the Coffin 1.22.10

Dick Morris — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:06:11 -0500

Now is the time to finish off the prospects of Obamacare with the Democrats reeling from the defeat in Massachusetts. We must not trust them. The apparent reluctance of the House Democrats to pass the Senate version will evaporate once Obama puts his weight behind the bill and Pelosi starts to twist arms. Moderate Democrats cannot be counted upon. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Are Republicans Listening to the Scott Brown Message? 1.21.10

Lawrence Kudlow — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:45:08 -0500

Sen. Scott Brown's epic victory in Massachusetts on Tuesday night dealt a crushing blow to Obamacare, cap-and-trade, card check (and other union favors) and, most importantly, all the tax hikes that are lingering on the table. But does Washington really understand the Scott Brown message? President Obama thinks his "remoteness and detachment" are the problems. This is nonsense. Obama's tax hikes and spending explosion are what caused the populist tea-party revolt that was punctuated by Brown's extraordinary victory. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

At War or Not At War? That Is the Question 1.21.10

Oliver North — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:45:06 -0500

"We are at war." So said the 44th president of the United States on Jan. 7. Those four words, a profound statement of the obvious, were uttered belatedly as our commander in chief transitioned from tropical sunsets on his "Hawaiian holiday" to klieg lights at the White House in the aftermath of the Christmas Day "near-miss" terror attack aboard Northwest Airlines Flight 253 en route from Amsterdam to Detroit. The phrase was startling because it wasn't an affirmation of a mindset President Barack Obama brought to office. Rather, it was the reluctant admission of facts Mr. Obama has spent a year in office diligently trying to deny. A year into this presidency, the so-called mainstream media and those who sample American public opinion are assessing what has changed and trying to explain the remarkable plunge in the president's approval rating. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Fine Tuning the Message 1.21.10

Linda Chavez — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:45:04 -0500

President Obama needs to give a few more speeches, maybe get his face on TV more often, give a few more interviews to friendly journalists and everything will be all right, despite Democrats' stunning defeat in the Massachusetts Senate race this week. "(W)e were so busy just getting stuff done and dealing with the immediate crises that were in front of us that I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American people about what their core values are and why we have to make sure those institutions are matching up with those values," the president explained to ABC's George Stephanopoulos. Yeah, that's the ticket. The president gave only 411 speeches during his first 365 days in office; that's barely more than one a day. Maybe if he'd given two a day, the American people would have gotten through their thick skulls that he knows what's good for them, even if they don't like it. Maybe he should have talked more about health care; he made only 52 speeches or statements urging health care reform during his first year. Surely, if he'd talked about it more often or explained it a little better, Americans would be clamoring to turn their health care over to the government. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's 180 Degrees Out of Phase With the People 1.21.10

David Limbaugh — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:45:02 -0500

Reading excerpts of President Barack Obama's interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos underscores how tone-deaf and self-absorbed Obama is -- and that his tone-deafness is a function of his self-absorption and rigid ideology. Obama said: "One thing that I regret this year is that we were so busy just getting stuff done and dealing with the immediate crises that were in front of us that I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American people about what their core values are and why we have to make sure those institutions are matching up with those values. And that I do think is a mistake of mine. I think the assumption was, if I just focus on policy, if I just focus on this provision or that law or are we making a good, rational decision here ... people will get it." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Conservatives: Beware of McCain Regression Syndrome 1.21.10

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:40:36 -0500

Pay attention: In the afterglow of the Massachusetts Miracle, there are flickers of peril for the right. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but like Paul Revere’s midnight message, consider this warning “a cry of defiance, and not of fear.” Conservatives have worked hard to rebuild after Big Government Republican John McCain’s defeat. But McCain isn’t going gently into that good night. Red Flag No. One: A reader from Arizona informed me the day after the Bay State Bombshell that he had received a robo-call from Massachusetts GOP Sen.-elect Scott Brown. “He basically wanted me to vote for John McCain in November,” the reader said in his description of the automated campaign call supporting the four-term Sen. McCain’s re-election bid. “No wonder [Brown] said he hadn't had any sleep. … He was busy recording phone messages!” From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Little Guy Sends Message to Washington: Drop dead 1.20.10

Michael Barone — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 20:56:30 -0500

The final percentages aren't in as this is written, but it's plain that Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley by a substantial margin in the race for the remainder of the late Edward Kennedy's Senate term. In Massachusetts. The state that in the last four presidential elections has voted on average 61 percent Democratic and 33 percent Republican. That's a bigger margin than in any other state. If a Republican can win there, he (or she) can win anywhere. That's a message that is not lost on anyone whose name is on the ballot later this year. A lot of attention over the next several days will be focused on health care legislation. Liberal bloggers and think tank denizens have been demanding that Congress pass a health care bill, by slow-walking Brown's swearing-in and slamming a compromise through the Senate, or by having the House pass the Senate bill, or by using the reconciliation process that would require only 51 Senate votes. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Health Insurance by Command 1.20.10

Steve Chapman — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 20:54:50 -0500

The nice thing about elections is that they give you a choice not only of people but of policies. In the 2008 primaries, for instance, Hillary Clinton offered a health care plan that required everyone to get insurance, while Barack Obama’s blueprint had no such mandate. That was about the only difference in their suggested solutions. It was a big one, to hear Obama tell it. He aired a TV ad attacking Clinton because her scheme “forces everyone to buy insurance, even if you can’t afford it, and you pay a penalty if you don’t.” He, by contrast, stressed that he would encourage more coverage by offering federal help in paying for it, while trusting in the ultimate wisdom of individual Americans to make their own decisions. On Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010, Brown defeated Coakley by 5 points. This astonishing Republican win in Massachusetts is a flat-out repudiation of President Barack Obama. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Massachusetts to Obama: 'No, You Can't!' 1.20.10

Larry Elder — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 20:53:48 -0500

"Let me be as clear as I can. There is no way in hell we're going to elect a Republican to Ted Kennedy's seat. Period." So said the man who finished second in the Democratic Massachusetts primary held to fill the seat occupied for 47 years by the late Sen. Ted Kennedy. State Attorney General Martha Coakley won the primary. Republican state Sen. Scott Brown once trailed her by 30 points in the polls. On Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010, Brown defeated Coakley by 5 points. This astonishing Republican win in Massachusetts is a flat-out repudiation of President Barack Obama. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Shot Heard Round the World 1.19.10

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:03:10 -0500

On the rude arch that spanned the flood In the April breeze their flag unfurled Here the embattled farmer stood And fired the shot heard round the world -- Ralph Waldo Emerson From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Kangaroo Court for the Banks 1.19.10

Tony Blankley — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:59:06 -0500

As a general rule, diagnosis should precede treatment. But last week, we saw in both the legislative and executive branches examples of the "treatment before diagnosis" mentality. In Congress, the first hearings of the congressionally created Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission was held under the chairmanship of Phil Angelides, former California treasurer and former chairman of the California Democratic Party. The commission was "mandated" by law with reporting back to Congress by December 2010, "with a series of conclusions about what occurred, and recommendations as to how to avoid future market breakdowns. (Disclosure: I provide professional advice to some financial institutions.) From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Democrats’ Massachusetts Meltdown 1.19.10

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:58:14 -0500

By early afternoon on Tuesday, several hours before the polls closed on the special Senate election in Massachusetts, the Democrats had already thrown in the towel and started throwing punches. At each other. There was more finger-pointing among Bay State and Beltway Democrats than in a "Three Stooges" marathon. More backstabbing than all of the "Real Housewives" combined. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Meanness of Martha Coakley 1.19.10

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:54:23 -0500

In recent years, the network news shows have raced by any political campaigns below the level of president, stopping only if the candidate is named "Clinton" or "Schwarzenegger." That principle held true for the U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts. By the time the networks arrived with just a handful of days remaining, Martha Coakley, the Democrat, had fairly well sunk, and there was nothing more to do than the tiresome "bad candidate, not faulty ideology" spin control. In liberal-media offices, the last narrative they want for this year is "1994: the Sequel." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Promise Worth Breaking 1.19.10

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:52:37 -0500

Obama's health insurance tax doesn't go far enough. President Obama's proposed tax on especially expensive medical benefits, which he last week agreed to modify in response to complaints from labor unions, breaks at least three of his promises. It still may be the best aspect of a health care plan that otherwise does little to control costs, ostensibly one of Obama's main goals. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Health Care Bill Is a Frankenstein's Monster 1.19.10

Debra J. Saunders — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:50:41 -0500

President Obama, congressional Democrats and labor leaders cut a sweetheart deal last week. They agreed to create a loophole for a new 40 percent tax on "Cadillac" health care plans. In their holy bid to take care of their own, this new triumvirate agreed to exempt from the excise tax union-bargained health care plans and state and local government employees until 2018. Obamaland's continual deal-cutting to deliver a bill -- any bill -- surely will kill the beast. Now Big Labor is on board, but the administration has just told the vast majority of American workers (who are not union members) that they will pay extra if their annual premiums exceed $8,900 for individuals or $24,000 for families. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Dems' Lock on Senate Is Mixed Blessing for Obama 1.15.10

Michael Barone — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:38:25 -0500

Year One of the Obama administration ends Wednesday. Another era may come to an end the day before, when Massachusetts voters -- or at least those of them motivated enough to vote -- choose a senator to fill the three years remaining in the term of Edward Kennedy, who held the seat for 47 years. If Republican Scott Brown wins that election -- and at this writing he seems to have an excellent chance to do so -- that election will mean the end, after just seven months, of the Democrats' 60-seat supermajority in the Senate. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Luck and Virtue in America and Haiti 1.15.10

Steve Chapman — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:36:52 -0500

We sit in the shade of trees we did not plant. -- Peter Raible Most Haitians may have never cut down a tree, but just as we enjoy trees someone else planted, they suffer from the absence of trees their forebears destroyed or didn’t plant. Haiti is a desperately poor place plagued by rampant corruption, bad government and violence, and it always has been. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Hillary Goes Weak-Kneed on Iran Sanctions 1.15.10

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:35:21 -0500

A squishy, misguided, weak-kneed liberalism has emerged in Hillary Clinton's comments about the kind of sanctions that would work best in halting Iran's nuclear program. Rather than take the one step that would really be effective -- cutting off the flow of refined gasoline to Iran -- she instead insists that we need to target the Iranian leadership with sanctions. Her husband wisely rejected the same kind of advice in deciding on the sanctions to impose on Serbia during the Bosnia war, opting for broad-based economic sanctions to deter aggression. The sanctions were incredibly effective, and the mere threat of their re-imposition in 1996 was enough to bring Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic to his knees. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama Rewards Losers, Punishes Winners 1.15.10

Lawrence Kudlow — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 11:15:31 -0500

President Obama's misbegotten bank tax is precisely the wrong policy at precisely the wrong time. It will wind up backfiring across the board. Why? Because bank consumers and borrowers are the ones who will wind up paying this tax, creating an obstacle to economic recovery. Obama is actually rewarding losers and punishing winners -- exactly the reverse of free-market capitalism. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Are Republicans "Due"? 1.15.10

Thomas Sowell — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 11:13:56 -0500

When a baseball player has come to bat after failing to get a hit twenty times in a row, some fans say he is "due" for a hit. But statisticians say he is no more likely to get a hit in this at bat than at any other time. In other words, there is no such thing as being "due." After the Republicans went from being the dominant party, at both the state and national levels, just a few years ago, and got clobbered at the polls by the Democrats two elections in a row, some people think the Republicans are "due" to make a comeback in this fall's elections. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Is a U.S. Default Inevitable? 1.14.10

Pat Buchanan — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:32:17 -0500

We were blindsided. We never saw it coming. So said Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein of the financial crisis of 2008. He likened its probability to four hurricanes hitting the East Coast in a single season. Blankfein was reminded by the chairman of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Committee, Phil Angelides, that hurricanes are "acts of God." Financial crises are manmade. Yet Blankfein was backed up by Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan, who said, "Somehow, we just missed ... that home prices don't go up forever." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Best Medicine To Prevent Another Recession 1.14.10

Linda Chavez — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:28:42 -0500

Could we be headed for a double-dip recession? The numbers on employment, sales, and other indicators suggest the recovery is shaky at best. Unemployment is holding steady at 10 percent, and retail sales were actually down .2 percent in December compared to the previous month. And when it comes to the confidence of the American people that the country is headed in the right direction, those numbers have declined significantly from the spring. A recent poll by the National Journal shows 55 percent of Americans believe that things are going the wrong way, compared with 42 percent who thought so in April. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's Alternative Foreign Policy Universe 1.14.10

David Limbaugh — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:27:46 -0500

There are definitely two Americas, but not the two that fallen former presidential candidate John Edwards had in mind. There's the real America, and there's the imaginary America President Barack Obama has boasted of creating. Ben Rhodes, deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, tells us on the White House's alternative universe blog that "President Obama inherited unprecedented challenges at home and abroad," including "diminished American standing in the world. ... A year later, America is stronger because of the President's leadership." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Phony Fruits in the Obama White House Garden 1.14.10

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:26:07 -0500

Hold on to your hoe. It turns out that the fruits and veggies used in a special edition of the popular Food Network TV show “Iron Chef America” featuring first lady Michelle Obama did not, in fact, come from the White House garden. Could there be a more deliciously fitting symbol of Obama White House fakery than Garden-Gate? Some may shrug at this tempest in a colander. But as we approach the one-year anniversary of the Hope and Change inauguration, the first lady’s little horticultural hoax serves as a handy metaphor for a cornucopia of Obama fraud. They’ve stocked health care town halls with partisan goons and benefactors. They’ve provided lab coats to doctor donors to make their health care lobbying look more authentic. And they’ve treated soldiers, in President Obama’s own words, as “pretty good photo ops.” From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Two Cheers for China’s Climate Obstruction 1.13.10

Bjorn Lomborg — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 09:46:43 -0500

Since the Copenhagen climate summit’s failure, many politicians and pundits have pointed the finger at China’s leaders for blocking a binding, global carbon-mitigation treaty. But the Chinese government’s resistance was both understandable and inevitable. Rather than mustering indignation, decision-makers would do well to use this as a wake-up call: it is time to consider a smarter climate policy. China is unwilling to do anything that might curtail the economic growth that has enabled millions of Chinese to clamber out of poverty. This development can be seen in the ever-expanding Chinese domestic market. In the next six months, one-quarter of young Chinese consumers intend to buy new cars – the main source of urban air pollution – up an astonishing 65% from a year ago. A poll by China Youth Daily revealed that eight of ten young Chinese are aware of climate change, but are prepared to support environmental policies only if they can continue to improve their living standards – including acquiring new cars.
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I Forgive You, Mark 1.14.10

David Harsanyi — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:23:11 -0500

Tucked in among the compelling news items focusing on Tigers Woods' prodigious appetite for female companionship was a nugget relaying how the greatest golfer of all time had visited a Canadian doctor now under investigation for providing performance-enhancing drugs to his clients. Tiger wasn't alone. Noted Olympic swimmer Dara Torres and other prominent athletes also felt an uncanny urge to venture northward to partake in the vaunted Canadian health care system -- all of them, naturally, innocent until proven otherwise. Then, of course, there was predictable news that one-time Major League slugger Mark McGwire had admitted to using steroids when breaking baseball's single-season home run record in 1998. He has asked for forgiveness. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's Rapturous Style Versus Tea Party Substance 1.13.10

Michael Barone — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:08:24 -0500

In his New York Times column last week, David Brooks contrasted "the educated class," which supports Barack Obama and his liberal worldview, with the tea party movement, "a large, fractious confederation of Americans who are defined by what they are against ... the concentrated power of the educated class." Many conservatives read Brooks as putting down the tea partiers. I think he was indicating distaste for both sides. "I'm not a fan" of the tea party movement, he wrote, but he also noted, "Every single idea associated with the educated class has grown more unpopular over the year." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Is Obama a Republican? 1.13.10

Steve Chapman — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:07:24 -0500

Anyone who was hoping the current administration would bring a modest downsizing of the nation’s defense establishment and global military role has to be feeling like Bernard Madoff’s investors. Escalation is underway in Afghanistan, the Army is expanding, and the Pentagon is on the all-you-can-eat diet. The American political system is set up to persuade citizens that they must choose between starkly different policies. In reality, campaigns are mostly a showy exercise in what Sigmund Freud called the “narcissism of small differences.” From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Harry Reid Apologizes to Blacks for ... What? 1.13.10

Larry Elder — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:06:14 -0500

Tough week. As for Simon Cowell's impending departure from "American Idol," NBC/Jay Leno's failure at 10 p.m. and Democratic Sen. Harry Reid's "Negro dialect" comment, which incited more angst? According to a new book about the '08 presidential campaign, Reid, the Senate majority leader, said that then-Sen. Barack Obama appealed to voters as a "light-skinned" black man with "no Negro dialect" -- that is, "unless he wanted to have one." Egad! Faster than you could say "Tawana Brawley," "civil rights leader" Al Sharpton popped up on Fox News Channel to pronounce himself "offended" but willing to accept Reid's apology. The host exercised commendable restraint in not bringing up the time Sharpton, the moral arbiter of all things offensive to blacks, called a black former mayor of New York a n----- whore. But let us stay focused. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Memo to Chairman Mike: GOP Will Win 1.12.10

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:00:00 -0500

Pessimism is no more attractive in a party leader than it is in a high school cheerleader. And, in the case of Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele, it is unwarranted as well. Despite his prediction, on Fox News, that GOP congressional control will not come "this year," the Republican Party has a very, very good chance of taking control of both houses of Congress in 2010. We are in the midst of a political tsunami. To judge that the water will only ascend 100 feet or 200 or 300 is entirely speculative. Generally, once these things start, they go farther than anyone would have though likely. Only rarely do they fall short. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Roeder's Rescue 1.12.10

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:58:14 -0500

Why is killing abortionists wrong? Scott Roeder, whose trial begins this week in Wichita, Kan., wanted to argue that killing the abortion doctor George Tiller was necessary to prevent a greater evil: the murder of unborn children. Since that is not how the law views what Tiller did for a living, it is not surprising that the judge would not let Roeder present a "necessity" defense. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Do Three People Have a Right to Marry Each Other? 1.12.10

Terence P. Jeffrey — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:56:07 -0500

Any inquiry aimed at discovering the nature of marriage must ultimately arrive at one of two conclusions: Either marriage is something with an absolute nature ordained by God and thus unchangeable or it is an artificial thing, created by human beings on their own authority, and thus changeable according to the whims of whatever members of the human race happen to gain the political power needed to define it for the rest of the species. If the first conclusion is correct, the rules of marriage are as inflexible as the rules of mathematics. Just as 1 plus 1 always equals 2, so must marriage always equal the union of one man and one woman. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

God to Palin: 'You Go, Girl' 1.12.10

Ben Shaprio — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:51:26 -0500

Over the weekend, former John McCain campaign strategist Steve Schmidt told "60 Minutes" something shocking about McCain's former running mate, Sarah Palin. It seems that when Schmidt met Palin after McCain selected her, he was surprised that she was so calm. Schmidt apparently asked her how she could remain so tranquil in the face of such a monumental life change. She responded, "It's God's plan." Naturally, the media went bonkers over this revelation. The New York Times approvingly reported comic Jimmy Fallon's one-liner: "God responded: 'What? Really? Don't bring me into this.'" The Week asked whether Palin was "simply devout -- or delusional?" The Nation suggested that Palin was "a little bit dimmer than we thought." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Faux Recovery 1.12.10

David Harsanyi — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:33:50 -0500

One glorious day, all of us will awaken in our mixed-use neighborhoods, rustle up nutritious garden-grown breakfasts and pedal our bikes to "green-collar" jobs using paths generously provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. As of this moment, however, the "green energy economy" is incapable of spurring the taillights on a motor scooter (much less an economic recovery) without a backup gas-powered generator and government subsidy. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Reject Politically Correct "Educated Class" 1.12.10

Tony Blankley — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:31:39 -0500

Anti-anti-Islamic radicalism is growing amongst Western elites. In the aftermath of the Fort Hood Islamist terror attack on our troops by United States Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan and the Christmas day airline Islamist terror attack attempt, it is becoming ever more obvious that there is a widening gap between public common sense and governing class idiocy when it comes to spotting Islamist danger in our midst -- and doing something about it. Against all evidence, it has become an idee fixe in the collective mind of European and American governments, academe, journalism and foreign policy establishments that radical Muslims in the West are the victims of Western bigotry and cultural hostility -- rather than, primarily, the other way around. Dangerously, these attitudes continue to shape both the premises and procedures of government policies even after nine years of post-Sept. 11 evidence to the contrary. The slaughtered American troops at Fort Hood are just among the early few in what will surely become whole legions of the dead victims of political correctness -- if the public does not soon succeed at overruling the Western governing elite's unconscionable moral blindness to the malign danger in our midst. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Martha Coakley: The Voice for Fat Cats and Corruptocrats 1.12.10

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:29:15 -0500

Democrat Martha Coakley is the voice of the "little people" the way Ted Kennedy was the voice of sobriety. If Massachusetts voters want another privileged liberal who talks a good "social justice" game while ignoring public corruption, pocketing gobs of money from Beltway fat cats and pandering to corporate special interests, Coakley’s the one. Coakley, the Bay State’s attorney general, has campaigned to replace the late Sen. Kennedy on a law-and-order platform. But she has consistently turned a blind eye to both. When a top aide to Boston Mayor Tom Menino was caught deleting thousands of e-mails in violation of public records law last fall, Coakley punted. Democrat Menino was in the middle of a re-election bid; Coakley was wrapped up in her own senatorial bid. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Media's Democrat Dialect 1.12.10

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:26:34 -0500

Mark Halperin and John Heilemann are laughing all the way to the bank at the mess Harry Reid is facing. The hottest backstage tidbit of their new campaign chronicle, "Game Change," is that Reid praised Barack Obama's political appeal as a "light-skinned" black man with "no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one." The prestige these authors have among their media colleagues was weightier than the Democrats pleading to be spared the headache. (Halperin is now at Time after many years at ABC; Heilemann is at New York magazine.) For his part, President Obama quickly proclaimed, "The book is closed," even if the uproar was just beginning. Obama did not comment on the book's report that Ted Kennedy was furious at Bill Clinton after Clinton sneered that Obama was so inexperienced that "a few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Reid Punished by Liberal Preoccupation with Private Comments 1.11.10

Dennis Prager — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:12:47 -0500

I think that Harry Reid is a left-wing ideologue who is doing serious harm to a great country. I think that Harry Reid would charge any Republican colleague with racism and ask for that person's resignation if he or she said what Reid is reported to have said about Barack Obama's color and accent. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

How Harry Got His Groove Back 1.11.10

Debra J. Saunders — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:10:30 -0500

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spent the weekend trying to finesse the news that he told "Game Change" authors Mark Halperin and John Heilemann in 2008 that he believed Barack Obama could win the White House, as he was a "light-skinned" African-American "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one." Reid opined that Obama's race would help him more than hurt him win the Democratic nomination. Some liberals have come to the defense of the pasty-faced white guy who speaks with his foot in his mouth, even when he doesn't want to. They say that Reid simply was saying what many people think, with no racist intent. Others argue that the matter is settled, as President Obama accepted Reid's apology. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Global Warming Is a Religion 1.11.10

Walter Williams — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:08:34 -0500

Manmade global warming, for many, is an Earth-worshipping religion. The essential feature of any religion is that its pronouncements are to be accepted on the basis of faith as opposed to hard evidence. Questioning those pronouncements makes one a sinner. No one denies that the Earth's temperature changes. Millions of years ago, much of our planet was covered by ice, at some places up to a mile thick, a period some scientists call "Snowball Earth." Today, the Earth is not covered by a mile of ice; a safe conclusion is that there must have been a bit of global warming. I don't know the cause of that warming, but I'd wager everything I own that it was not caused by coal-fired electric generation plants, incandescent light bulbs and SUVs tooling up and down the highways. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama Must Know His Spending Yields Bankruptcy, Not Growth 1.11.10

David Limbaugh — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:06:28 -0500

Could we all agree that we are doomed as a nation if President Barack Obama continues his deficit spending at unprecedented levels? Can you think of any reason, then, to justify this spending? Oh, our president says it's to jump-start the economy? Sorry, that dog won't hunt. So what's his real motive? Obama has been saying from the beginning that his stimulus plan was for the purpose of spurring economic growth -- though when we did have economic growth during the George W. Bush administration, the likes of which Democrats can only fantasize about during Obama's term, they trashed it as a "jobless recovery." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's Secret Vault 1.11.10

Chuck Norris — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:03:31 -0500

On Glenn Beck's Jan. 7 show, he was rightly puzzled regarding the exact purpose of President Barack Obama's Dec. 16 signing of an executive order "DESIGNATING INTERPOL AS A PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION ENTITLED TO ENJOY CERTAIN PRIVILEGES, EXEMPTIONS, AND IMMUNITIES." Beck spoke for a host of other government watchdogs when he said on the air: "We've been asking ever since it was signed: Why? Who can tell me what special interest group asked for this? If it were about terror, why not tell us that when he signed it? This Congress attacks our CIA and FBI, but Interpol gets immunity? Why? It makes no sense." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Your Negro, My Macaca 1.11.10

Mona Charen — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:01:39 -0500

Welcome to America's longest running hit show -- the race farce, in which feigned shock and outrage lead to fawning apologies and bumbling explanations to all the wrong people. Taking offense has been reduced to low comedy in America -- as hypocrites play out their assigned parts. S. Harry Reid was quoted in a new book as enthusing in 2008 about Obama's candidacy because he is "light-skinned" and speaks without a "Negro dialect, unless he wants one." Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post called it "beyond stupid" to use the word Negro in 2008. Liz Cheney labeled Reid's words "fairly racist." And Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele opened up to full throttle, calling on Reid to step down as majority leader. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

"Notional" Security 1.11.10

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:59:04 -0500

The latest "screw-up" that let a man with explosives get on a plan on Christmas day is only part of a larger laxness and irresponsibility when it comes to national security. This administration pays lip service to national security and gives out with a lot of rhetorical notions that makes it notional security instead of national security. The Muslim major who was arrested for the murders of American soldiers at Fort Hood had left so many clues to his hatred of this country that all you had to do was count the dots, without even connecting them, to see where he was coming from. But for a fellow officer to alert higher authorities to the danger would have meant risking damage to his own career moreso than to that of Major Nidal Hasan. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Imagine Waugh Writing About the Christmas Bomber 1.8.10

Michael Barone — Sat, 9 Jan 2010 08:27:56 -0500

In Evelyn Waugh's novel "Scoop," the best book on journalism ever written, Lord Copper, proprietor of the Daily Beast, is followed around by a flunkie who responds to every statement he makes. When Lord Copper says something that is true, the flunkie says, "Absolutely, Lord Copper." When he says something that is false, the flunkie says, "Up to a point, Lord Copper." American politicians and public officials are not followed around by such aides. But the press and public opinion can and often do perform the function of Lord Copper's flunkie. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Time to De-Stimulate 1.8.10

Larry Kudlow — Sat, 9 Jan 2010 08:27:01 -0500

That's right. Get rid of the Obama stimulus monster, including the government takeover of health care, cap-and-trade and all this nonsensical talk of creating green jobs. Get rid of the increase in marginal personal tax rates and capital-gains tax rates. Get rid of the payroll tax hike from the health care talks. Get rid of the spending that is a counterweight to growth. Get rid of it, every part of it. It's creating so much uncertainty that even profitable businesses are afraid to hire new workers and expand. It's like business is on hold as it waits for the next Washington shoe to fall. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

More Dems Will Call It Quits 1.8.10

Dick Morris — Sat, 9 Jan 2010 08:26:09 -0500

Other than the H1N1 virus, the most contagious disease in our nation's capital is retirement. It is catching. The more Democrats that quit, the more others are also encouraged to hang it up. Retirements like those of Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., turn off donors to Democratic incumbents, encourage viable Republican challengers to get in races around the nation and lead other incumbent Dems to think about spending more time as lobbyists making money in Washington. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

His 'Highness' or His 'Highhandedness'? 1.7.10

David Limbaugh — Thu, 7 Jan 2010 21:48:09 -0500

The more we read about Obama's health care scheme and his handling of it the more obvious his arrogance and contempt for the people become. This is stunning behavior, really, for any administration (and his party), but especially one that holds itself out as a servant of the people and a model of transparency. Just consider headlines from the past few days: "Obama Reneges on Health Care Transparency: As a Candidate, President Obama Promised to Put Health Care Reform Negotiations on C-SPAN," "White House REFUSES To Discuss Broken C-Span Promise," "Dems Will Bypass Conference Committee To Get Health Care Passed," "Sources: Obama, Dems to sidestep GOP on health care," "Hatch: Healthcare bill 'rich' for challenges on constitutionality," "AP sources: Obama OKs taxing high-end health plans," "Obama Pushes for Quick Health Care Deal," "Conference Committee Bypassed," "House Will Vote on Pro-Abortion Senate Bill" and -- get this one -- "Pelosi: 'There Has Never Been a More Open Process.'" From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Why Is Hillary’s State Department Getting UndyBomber Pass? 1.7.10

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 7 Jan 2010 21:47:12 -0500

Forget about no-fly lists, full-body scanners and air marshals. All the loud recriminations about who should have done what to stop the UndyBomber from boarding a plane to Detroit on Christmas Day miss a more fundamental point: Young, single, rootless foreign Muslim Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab should never, ever have received a temporary visa into our country in the first place. No visa, no plane ticket. No ticket, no passage to airline jihad. Even absent the intelligence we had on this al-Qaida-trained operative before his fateful trip, Hillary Clinton’s State Department was required to know better than to issue a coveted entrance pass to a globe-trotting, Nigerian-born nomad. Under federal law (section 214(b) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act to be precise), State Department consular officials must determine that foreigners applying for temporary visas (students, tourists and business people) will in fact return to their home countries as required and will not abuse their visa privileges. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

It's Freezing: Must Be Global Warming 1.7.10

Mona Charen — Thu, 7 Jan 2010 21:46:20 -0500

Great swaths of Britain are buried under more than a foot of snow as the country shivers through the coldest winter since 1981. Airports have been shut down, trains have been canceled, and the army had to be called out to rescue more than 1,000 motorists stranded in Hampshire. In Germany, most of which is also blanketed in white, temperatures have dipped to record lows of -7.6 F degrees. In Norway, reports the AP, the thermometer read -42 F degrees Jan. 5, the coldest reading since 1987. The eastern two-thirds of the United States are coping with unusually severe cold. Atlantic, Iowa posted a temperature of 29 below zero, breaking a record set in 1958. Florida's $9.3-billion citrus crop hangs in the balance as the coldest weather in years is draping palm fronds with icicles and causing iguanas to drop frozen from the trees. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Can Cocksure Obama Change Course -- and Keep His Nerve? 1.6.10

Michael Barone — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:31:32 -0500

A year ago, I was privileged to be one of several guests at a dinner with President-elect Barack Obama. One thing that struck me and others, aside from his courtesy and fluency, was his air of self-confidence. The man who had risen in just four years from state senator to president of the United States seemed sure he could master the job. I wonder if he is as sure now. It seems to me that two assumptions that Obama carried into the White House -- assumptions that were shared by many who hadn't voted for him -- have proved to be unfounded. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Schwarzenegger -- What Might've Been 1.6.10

Debra J. Saunders — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:29:09 -0500

Mention Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger -- you need only say his first name -- and many Californians respond with a long sigh, then with words like "squander" or "waste" or "missed opportunity." Those in the political class look at Schwarzenegger and see what might have been. Close your eyes and think back in time six years. There was excitement as Schwarzenegger delivered his first State of the State address in 2004; international, Washington and Southern California media flocked to sleepy Sacramento in such numbers that Capitol workers had to put up a tent to contain the overflow. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Sarah Palin: Wrong Prescription for America? 1.6.10

Larry Elder — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:27:26 -0500

"Sarah Palin, do you guys really like her?" My dad's doctor asked me this a couple of weeks ago. His smile seemed to shout, "Are you guys crazy?" I had taken my 94-year-old Republican father to see him several times, but politics never came up. Did the doc really want to go there? It went something like this: "What's the problem with her?" I said. "Well, she's, she's --" "Stupid?" "All right." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Flying With the Enemy 1.6.10

David Harsanyi — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:25:43 -0500

When comedian Joan Rivers was booted off a flight from Costa Rica to Newark, N.J., this past weekend, it was not because she had perpetrated crimes against the human appearance. Rather, it was because she was a potential security risk. In a recent column, my assertion that airport security should ignore most of us and focus on bad actors (not the Joan Rivers variety of bad actor, though one sympathizes), who tend to originate from disagreeable locales (not Hollywood) and affiliate themselves with a religious denomination (not Scientology), provoked a torrent of livid e-mails to land in my inbox. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama and the Vampire Congress 1.6.10

Michelle Malkin — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:23:54 -0500

Meet the Beltway bloodsuckers. They convene in the dead of night, when most ordinary mortals have left work and let their guard down or are lying asleep in bed. Pale-faced and insatiable, the nocturnal thieves do their nefarious business in backrooms and secret chambers. Their primary victims? Taxpayers, the free market and deliberative democracy. Democratic leaders have been promising the most ethical, transparent, open and engaged administration for years. Instead, they have delivered a bleak and creepy legislative environment that could double as a "Twilight" movie set. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

For Obama, Global Warming Trumps National Security 1.6.10

Ben Shapiro — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:21:41 -0500

On Christmas Day, a Nigerian-born terrorist named Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to blow up a Detroit-bound passenger airplane. Only the bravery of a fellow passenger prevented the catastrophe. President Obama called the terror attempt a "systemic failure" on the part of American national security agencies. In particular, he blamed the CIA for the foul-up. There is no doubt that the CIA should have done something more to prevent this attack. But, then again, President Obama has been keeping them busy. With global warming. Seriously. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

DHS Decided It Was OK Not to Check Passengers Against Full Terror Watch List 1.6.10

Terence P. Jeffrey — Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:19:57 -0500

Even if Umar Farouq Abdulmuttalab had never boarded that Christmas flight from Amsterdam to Detroit wearing explosive underpants, a passage on page 17 of a report published in July by the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security would still be eye-popping. "Not all known or reasonably suspected terrorists are prohibited from boarding an aircraft, or are subject to additional security screening prior to boarding an aircraft," says the passage. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Winston Churchill Still Instructs 1.5.10

Tony Blankley — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:19:24 -0500

Over the Christmas holiday, I read a couple of books that, at least for me, may provide some guidance in the upcoming tumultuous and probably consequential year. The first book was "Munich, 1938" by David Faber (grandson of former British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan), by far the most authoritative book on that world-changing event. Beyond the obvious policy point that appeasement is generally bad, the value of the book is in its dissection of how the experienced leadership class of the then-leading power -- the British Empire -- was able to think, talk and deceive itself to a catastrophically bad policy decision. The author reveals in minute example how domestic politics, leaks and counter leaks to major newspapers shaped -- and misshaped -- both vital foreign policy judgment and how the world construed and misconstrued British strategic thinking. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Kicking Rush When He's Down 1.5.10

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:15:32 -0500

The news that Rush Limbaugh had entered a Hawaii hospital over the New Year's weekend complaining of chest pains triggered a volcanic Internet eruption for the hard left -- the likes of which we've never seen before. If Mt. Vesuvius could vomit in a literal sense, this would be it. This time, these radicals let their guard down and showed their true colors. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

No More Conservative Democrats or Liberal Republicans 1.5.10

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:13:54 -0500

The very public way in which the existence of a center-right in the Democratic Party proved to be a mirage has done more to undermine the party's chances for victory in 2010 than any other aspect of the health care debate. When liberal Republicans failed to rally to Bill Clinton's 1993-1994 agenda -- including his failed health care proposal -- they laid the basis for their total demise in subsequent years. Sen. Jeffords, Chaffee, D'Amato, Packwood, Hatfield and Specter (as a Republican) are gone. Sens. Snowe and Collins are all that remain of the once dominant Nelson Rockefeller wing of the GOP. They have been replaced by real Democrats. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

If the Price Is Right 1.5.10

Chuck Norris — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:11:21 -0500

At almost 80 years old, Thomas Jefferson foresaw the corruption of a federal government with too much power, when he wrote to William T. Barry in 1822, just a few years before his death: "If ever this vast country is brought under a single government, it will be one of the most extensive corruption(s), indifferent and incapable of a wholesome care over so wide a spread of surface." "Wholesome care" like universal health care? I waited until the new year to write this column because Washington was hoping its Christmas corruption would evade the majority of holiday revelers or become old news to even political junkies and pundits, who now are moving on to new issues. (This White House astutely understands and utilizes news cycles and calendars far better than any previous administration.) From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Meaning of "Ists" 1.5.10

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:09:37 -0500

What's the difference between Barack Obama's anti-terrorism policies and George W. Bush's? One of the Bush administration's most pernicious legacies is the never-ending War on Terrorism, a perpetual state of emergency that supposedly authorizes the president to break the law, abridge civil liberties and ignore due process, all under a cloak of secrecy. Last week, former Vice President Dick Cheney accused the Obama administration of forsaking Bush's War on Terrorism. If only it were true. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Nuclear Poker with Iran 1.5.10

Patrick J. Buchanan — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:07:12 -0500

On New Year's Day, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki issued an ultimatum to the West: Accept a swap of part of our 2 ton stockpile of low-enriched uranium for your higher-enriched uranium for our U.S.-built reactor, or we start enriching to 20 percent ourselves. Though the White House is on the defensive for its initial nonchalant response to al-Qaida's attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day and has a need to show toughness, to dismiss Iran's proposal out of hand may be a mistake. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Another Entitlement That's Unsustainable 1.4.10

Debra J. Saunders — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 20:10:42 -0500

Inside the House and Senate health care bills lurks a ticking time bomb -- a new federal entitlement, under the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act, which would allow Americans to buy into a voluntary federal long-term care insurance program. The main problem, as Josh Gordon, policy director for the fiscal-watchdog group the Concord Coalition, noted is that CLASS, which has passed "below the radar" of most Americans, is a poorly designed "gimmick." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

War on Terror? What War? 1.4.10

David Limbaugh — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 20:02:44 -0500

Can you imagine an administration so arrogant that it will not reconsider its decision to return Yemeni terrorists now being held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility back to Yemen, much less its decision to close Gitmo in the first place? President Barack Obama is obviously a man who won't permit any facts to penetrate his airtight ideological force field, from deficit spending to health care to global warming to his non-prosecution of the war on terror -- I mean "overseas contingency operations." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Intellectuals and Society 1.4.10

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 20:00:51 -0500

There has probably never been an era in history when intellectuals have played a larger role in society. When intellectuals who generate ideas are surrounded by a wide range of others who disseminate those ideas-- whether as journalists, teachers, staffers to legislators or clerks to judges-- the influence of intellectuals on the way a society evolves can be huge. Trying for years to understand the nature of that influence eventually led me to write the book "Intellectuals and Society," which has just been published. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Controlling When You Relieve Yourself, Not Body Scan, Invades Privacy 1.4.10

Dennis Prager — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 19:58:34 -0500

If the government prohibits airline passengers from getting out of their seats during the last hour of a flight, I hereby announce that I will get out of my seat either to escort someone who needs to use the lavatory or because I do. I understand that I may be arrested, but I am willing to make this a cause celebre. Aside from a genetic incapacity to be directed by irrationality, I will make this protest on behalf of fellow passengers who are in pain because of this idiotic rule. What are diabetics, for example, supposed to do? And considering the fact that "the last hour of a flight" is always more than an hour, often considerably more -- given the frequent delays in approaching airports and given the approximately 15-20 minutes between landing and passengers actually disembarking. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Untrue Beliefs 1.4.10

Walter Williams — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 19:57:00 -0500

Here's a sample of last week's news reporting: "A new decade is about to start ...", "What better way to start a new year and decade ...", and "ABC 'World News' Decade Look-Back." One would think that the first decade of the third millennium came to an end midnight Dec. 31 and the new decade began a minute after midnight. The truth of the matter is that we must wait another year before the new decade begins at 12:01 a.m. Jan. 1, 2011. Just do the math: The end of 2001 was the first year of the decade; the end of 2002 completed the second year and so forth. The end of 2009 completes the ninth year and the end of 2010 completes the 10th year and the end of the decade. One minute after midnight Jan. 1, 2011 begins the second decade of the third millennium. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Democratic Payoffs, Er, Stimulus 1.4.10

Mona Charen — Mon, 4 Jan 2010 19:51:14 -0500

When a non-American scholar I admired let slip a casual reference to "American corruption" a few years ago, my chauvinistic pride was wounded. This isn't Mexico, after all, or even Italy, where bribes are the normal social lubricant. Still, an unsentimental examination of government dollars at work seems to confirm my friend's observation. A small example: The U.S. government has announced plans to spend $340 million on an advertising campaign to promote the Census, including $2.5 million for ads during the Super Bowl. Though the nation has been collecting this data for 220 years, it seems we now need commercial jingles to complete the forms. Or could there be another agenda? From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Deconstructing Christmas 12.23.09

L. Brent Bozell III — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:36:16 -0500

Inside the studios of talk radio and cable news, the hot talk about a "war on Christmas" has cooled somewhat in 2009. But the controversies over Christmas, which seem as eternal as religion itself, continue on a number of different levels. There's the schoolhouse war over politeness to religious minorities -- and even more unnecessarily, the altogether non-religious. This is the kind where many parents sit through inane "winter" chorus concerts at both public and private schools where there are more songs about sleds and skis than about herald angels and newborn kings. In some cases, students even salute the holidays of religious minorities (including the recently invented Kwanzaa) while excluding any mention of Christmas. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Year of Living in Everybody's Face 12.23.09

Debra J. Saunders — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:30:58 -0500

It was the year of the Octomom, the balloon boy and the White House party crashers. The year of "Jon & Kate Plus 8" -- minus Jon. The year Tiger Woods ran into a tree, revealing a scandal that linked him not so much to another woman as duplicates of a pouty-lipped prototype. 2009 started with Octomom, a single 33-year-old mother of six who, thanks to an unfettered fertility industry, gave birth to octuplets. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

ObamaCare: Freedom on Life Support 12.23.09

Larry Elder — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:10:40 -0500

Ignore, for the moment, the ludicrous claim that giving 30 million Americans health insurance actually lowers the cost of health care. What happened to freedom, to the opposition to an intrusive federal government? Ask a liberal what he most dislikes about the "right"? "I resent the attempt to tell me how to live my life," he'll say. He'll mention abortion and say that the decision belongs to a woman and her doctor. He'll mention same-sex marriage and say that government should not prevent two people of the same sex from marrying, especially if one objects based upon religious grounds. He'll argue that a Supreme Court "stacked" with right-wingers threatens his liberty. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

When Legerdemain Is Used to Pass an Unpopular Bill 12.23.09

Michael Barone — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:08:12 -0500

It's time to blow the whistle on two erroneous statements that opponents and proponents of the health care legislation being jammed through Congress have been making. Republicans have been saying that never before has Congress passed such an unpopular bill with such important ramifications by such a narrow majority. Barack Obama has been saying that passage of the bill will mean that the health care issue will be settled once and for all. The Republicans and Obama are both wrong. But perhaps they can be forgiven because the precedent for Congress passing an unpopular bill is an old one, and the issue it addressed has long been settled, though not by the legislation in question. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Yield Curve Is Signaling Bigger Growth 12.23.09

Lawrence Kudlow — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:01:08 -0500

What's a yield curve, and why is it so important? Well, the curve itself measures Treasury interest rates, by maturity, from 91-day T-bills all the way out to 30-year bonds. It's the difference between the long rates and the short rates that tells a key story about the future of the economy. When the curve is wide and upward sloping, as it is today, it tells us that the economic future is good. When the curve is upside down, or inverted, with short rates above long rates, it tells us that something is amiss -- such as a credit crunch and a recession. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Nanny State Gone Wild: Defining Dependency Up 12.23.09

Michelle Malkin — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 18:58:41 -0500

The greatest gifts you can give your children can't be boxed and bowed. Consider the timeless gift of self-sufficiency -- a stubborn thirst to leave the nest, make it on your own and live as a free-willed adult. It's a concept that Big Nanny Democrats are sabotaging at every legislative turn. Several times during the sneaky debate on the government health care takeover bill this past Sunday, Democrats hailed a provision requiring insurance plans that cover dependents to provide benefits to children up to age 26. Democratic Sens. Ben Cardin and Tom Harkin both specifically championed the unfunded mandate in their floor statements. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Bill of Goods, Maybe 12.22.09

David Harsanyi — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:01:14 -0500

For many, the health care reform debate has only reinforced a number of richly deserved stereotypes regarding the workings of Congress and the synergetic crookedness of big government and big business. There's a little something for everyone, really. (And for the utterly gullible, there is a shimmering new make-believe birthright to go along with the mess.) This week, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa claimed passage of reform would mean our nation had crossed the "demarcation line" that would transform health care from a "privilege" to a "right." Which is absolutely true if your definition of a "right" happens to be "do it or else." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Three-Step Plan to Stop Nationalized Health Care 12.22.09

Ben Shapiro — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:59:33 -0500

Congressional Democrats, after all their faux wrangling, open bribery and bully tactics, are poised to reach agreement on a massive makeover of the American health system. This makeover will bankrupt the insurance companies, raise premiums, and eventually lead to the full nationalization of health care. That's what it is intended to do. By forcing insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions, the Democrats destroy all profit margin for the insurers, expecting that the healthy insured will pay for the unhealthy insured. To prevent the healthy insured from opting out of the system, the Democrats levy the threat of fines and jail time. And when the insurers go under, as they surely will, the Democrats will be waiting. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

There Ain't No Such Thing as a Free Lumpectomy 12.22.09

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:57:49 -0500

This week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid declared that his chamber's health care bill "demands for the first time in American history that good health will not depend on great wealth." Reid said the legislation "acknowledges, finally, that health care is a fundamental right -- a human right -- and not just a privilege for the most fortunate." Since more than four-fifths of Americans already have medical insurance, and even those without "great wealth" have been known to enjoy "good health," Reid was laying it on a little thick. But his premise, which is shared by President Obama, explains the moral urgency felt by supporters of the health care overhaul that is making its way through Congress. It also reveals a radical assault on the traditional American understanding of rights. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Year of Obama Love 12.22.09

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:39:02 -0500

The year 2009 might be classified as the year Barack Obama came down to Earth. The latest NBC-Wall Street Journal poll found that 47 percent approve of the job Obama is doing, and 46 percent disapprove. Those are not exactly Messiah numbers. And that's the big difference between the public and the press. The media do believe he's God. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Beltway Christmas: Cash for Corruptocrats 12.22.09

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:37:06 -0500

The Democrats are right. Sleazy bribes and pork payoffs didn't start with their government health care takeover bill. They've been doling out taxpayer-funded goodies for votes all year. Harry Reid's latest Cash for Cloture deals are the culmination of Washington's 2009 shopping spree at our expense. Go back to January and February. The multitrillion-dollar stimulus bill was the mother of all legislative Christmas trees. The ruling party used the economic downturn to redistribute wealth from struggling Americans to favored congressional districts, phantom districts and special interests from golf-cart makers to fly-by-night beauty salons. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Day One: How Obamacare Will Alienate Americans 12.22.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:35:12 -0500

Obama's health care bill, the poisoned Kool-Aid making its way through the Senate, will not confer any of its supposed benefits on Americans until 2013. But they will find themselves chafing at its restrictions and paying its taxes immediately after the law takes effect. Then, they will see no gain, but plenty of pain, for the next three years. This odd juxtaposition of "suffer now, benefit later" is the byproduct of the administration's sleight of hand in specifying 10 years worth of cuts and taxes in the legislation, but deferring its benefits for the first four years. By comparing six years of spending with 10 years of taxing, it managed to appear deficit neutral under the rules of the Congressional Budget Office. In fact, the annual revenues fall far short of covering any single year's worth of spending, adding to the deficit for each of the last six years over the next 10 -- but, viewing the decade as a whole, it appears deficit-neutral. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obamacare Slaps $15,000 Annual Fee on Middle Class Families 12.22.09

Terence P. Jeffrey — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:32:42 -0500

The Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the final Senate health care bill indicates it would slap a mandatory annual fee of about $15,000 on middle-class families that earn an annual income greater than 400 percent of the federal poverty level ($88,200 for a family of four) and are not provided with health insurance by their employer. On Dec. 19, the CBO sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., analyzing the fiscal impact of the bill the Senate is poised to vote on before Christmas. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

'Yet, Freedom!' 12.22.09

Tony Blankley — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:46:09 -0500

Taking stock this second Christmas after the election of Barack Obama to the presidency -- as a conservative Republican (with growing "tea party" tendencies) -- I'm filled with a thrilling, unexpected hopefulness that the president may be well on his way to losing his battle for the hearts and minds of the American people -- tempered by a shocked disbelief that so much long-term damage could be perpetrated on our economy, national security and way of life in just 11 months of ill-judged governance. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Democrats Ensure America Will No Longer Be the Last Best Hope of Earth 12.22.09

Dennis Prager — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:09:47 -0500

As the passage of the bill that will start the process of nationalizing health care in America becomes almost inevitable, so, too, the process of undoing America's standing as The Last Best Hope of Earth will have begun. That description of America was not, as more than a few Americans on the left believe, made by some right-wing chauvinist. It was made by President Abraham Lincoln in an address to Congress on Dec. 1, 1862. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Silent Night, Sordid Night 12.21.09

William Murchison — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 23:53:29 -0500

Americans sick over Congress' "health care" outrage should be glad to sniff the generally unpolluted air of Christmas Eve in order, at last, to hear the angels sing. Because if anyone ever took a political vote-counter for one of the heavenly host, it had to be a long time ago: not in the eight or nine months we've been anguishing over plans to overhaul the way 300 million-plus Americans pay for their health care. If men were angels, President James Madison remarked with great discernment, no government would be necessary. What does the health care outrage tell us about human nature? Nothing complimentary. We learn that, carried away by the lust for power, particular politicians are prepared to cram their particular point of view down any and all throats. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Cool Wind Braces the Hot-Air Crowd 12.21.09

Deborah J. Saunders — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:46:37 -0500

For years, global warming alarmists have pointed to every drought and heat wave as proof that global warming was a real environmental threat. They had few qualms about blurring the line between weather and climate to make a PR point. Perhaps, then, it was karma that brought a blizzard and freezing temperatures to the U.N. climate change Conference of Parties confab in Copenhagen (or COP-15 for short) last week. You may have read about the 1,200 limos and 140 private planes commissioned to transport COP-15 dignitaries in style. Critics love to point to the hypocrisy of world leaders -- such as Prince Charles and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown -- touching down in separate private planes to a conference ostensibly dedicated to curbing greenhouse gas emissions. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Away With the Manger 12.21.09

Chuck Norris — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:40:47 -0500

I'm willing to bet that President Barack Obama's Christmas address this week will shine with a religious significance that's about as bright as what was in his unusually short Thanksgiving proclamation, which gave a token reference to God via a quote from George Washington. Even in the Obamas' superstar Christmas interviews with Oprah Winfrey and Gloria Estefan, there were discussions about Santa Claus, Christmas trees, ornaments, gingerbread houses and even their dog's Christmas stocking. Obama even gave a Christmas shout-out to all Hispanics. But there was not one mention of religion or a hint of the real reason for the season. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Black Education 12.21.09

Walters Williams — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:38:11 -0500

Detroit's (predominantly black) public schools are the worst in the nation and it takes some doing to be worse than Washington, D.C. Only 3 percent of Detroit's fourth-graders scored proficient on the most recent National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) test, sometimes called "The Nation's Report Card." Twenty-eight percent scored basic and 69 percent below basic. "Below basic" is the NAEP category when students are unable to demonstrate even partial mastery of knowledge and skills fundamental for proficient work at their grade level. It's the same story for Detroit's eighth-graders. Four percent scored proficient, 18 percent basic and 77 percent below basic. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The "Science" Mantra 12.21.09

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:36:04 -0500

Science is one of the great achievements of the human mind and the biggest reason why we live not only longer but more vigorously in our old age, in addition to all the ways in which it provides us with things that make life easier and more enjoyable. Like anything valuable, science has been seized upon by politicians and ideologues, and used to forward their own agendas. This started long ago, as far back as the 18th century, when the Marquis de Condorcet coined the term "social science" to describe various theories he favored. In the 19th century, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels distinguished their own brand of socialism as "scientific socialism." By the 20th century, all sorts of notions wrapped themselves in the mantle of "science." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obamacare Hazardous to America's Health 12.21.09

David Limbaugh — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:33:04 -0500

At least common thieves don't destroy an entire health care system and socialize the American economy when they commit their felonies. Too bad we can't say the same for our illustrious Democratic senators who sold out the nation. In exchange for criminally unconstitutional favors for their respective states, they voted to pass the Senate health care bill just 38 hours after it had been made available to the public for review. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

America's Party 12.21.09

Patrick J. Buchanan — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:30:14 -0500

For Democrats like Harry Reid, who called them "evil-mongers," and Nancy Pelosi, who called them "un-American," the NBC News poll must have hit like a sucker punch at a Georgetown wine-and-cheese. The Tea Party movement, those folks rallying against spending last spring and Obamacare in the summer town halls, are viewed more favorably than the Democratic Party. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Maximum Achievable Damage 12.21.09

Mona Charen — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:28:04 -0500

Does anyone remember the TV show "Supermarket Sweep"? Contestants would compete with one another by careening through a supermarket and grabbing as many products as they could toss into a basket. The winner was the shopper whose cart carried the biggest price tag when the bell sounded. It's a fitting image for the way Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have handled the most important domestic issue of the decade. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

How Obamacare Will Hurt Young People 12.18.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:40:30 -0500

A detailed analysis of the Obama health care program now before the Senate indicates that it will force big premium increases for all families, especially for those under 30 years of age. The study, by the consulting firm of Oliver Wyman, concludes that premiums for individuals will rise by $1,576 and $3,341 for families by under the bill. Young people will be hit the hardest. The study predicted that premiums for new health insurance policies purchased by the youngest third of the population would rise by 35 percent under the bill. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

How To Make Enemies on Health Care 12.18.09

Steve Chapman — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:37:34 -0500

Barack Obama hoped to unify the nation, and he is making impressive progress toward that goal. Last week, he created common ground between Howard Dean and conservatives. They agree on one thing, which is that the health care reform package produced by the Senate and endorsed by the president richly deserves to be voted down. Conservatives have always opposed ObamaCare because it involves too much government. Now liberals are abandoning the administration's plan because it involves too little. Dean and Co. are bitter that the bills in Congress offer neither a "public option" -- a government-run insurance program -- nor a provision letting those from age 55 to 64 buy Medicare coverage. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

When Liberal Dreams Collide With Public Opinion 12.18.09

Michael Barone — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 10:07:35 -0500

In the Bella Center on the south side of Copenhagen and in the Senate chamber on the north side of the Capitol, we're seeing what happens when liberal dreams collide with American public opinion. It's like what happens when a butterfly collides with the windshield of a speeding SUV. Splat. The liberal dreams may have seemed, on those nights in Invesco Field and Grant Park, as beautiful as a butterfly. But they are still subject to the merciless laws of political physics. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Without Bipartisan Support, Bernanke Should Withdraw 12.18.09

Lawrence Kudlow — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:27:55 -0500

Helicopter Ben Bernanke passed his reconfirmation vote in the Senate Banking Committee this week. But he passed by 16 to 7. Most of the Republicans voted against Bernanke, as did one Democrat, Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon. The reconfirmation now goes to the floor of the Senate, where it's going to be held up for a while. (Sen. Jim DeMint and others are insisting that a vote on the Government Accountability Office's audit of the Fed occur first.) But when the final vote happens, I think Bernanke could be in trouble. Mirroring the Banking Committee vote, most of the 40 Senate Republicans may vote against Bernanke, and they will be joined by a number of Democrats. If Bernanke were to be opposed by as many as 35 or 40 votes, it would substantially undermine his credibility. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Be Afraid, Very Afraid 12.17.09

Oliver North — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:16:51 -0500

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is Time magazine's "Person of the Year." Twelve months ago, the "honor" went to then-President-elect Barack Obama. Notably, the 1932 recipient was President-elect Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who asserted in his March 4, 1933, inaugural address, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Mr. Roosevelt went on to describe the economic anxieties of millions left jobless in a deepening depression as "nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." He then served notice that if the "national emergency" required it, he would "ask the Congress for the one remaining instrument to meet the crisis -- broad executive power to wage a war against the emergency, as great as the power that would be given to (him) if we were in fact invaded by a foreign foe." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Radical Is as Radical Appoints 12.17.09

David Limbaugh — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:15:44 -0500

I'm wondering whether there's anyone out there with the guts to pretend that it's insignificant that President Barack Obama keeps appointing radical after radical to his czar positions. Can anyone honestly say Obama's appointments don't tell us a great deal about Obama himself -- as if we needed any further proof he is a left-wing extremist? I don't need to make a list of his radical appointees and detail proof of their extremism. Anyone paying attention knows it's irrefutably true that this has become a deliberate pattern. Statistically, Obama couldn't accidentally appoint this many radicals in two political lifetimes. Is he rubbing these people in our faces or just surrounding himself with like-minded soul mates -- or both? My educated guess is "both" because his general attitude toward governance has been utterly dictatorial. He knows what's best for America -- the type of America he envisions, anyway -- and he will proceed to implement it, full well knowing that he's violating the will of the majority every step of the way. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Welcome to the Democratic Party's Civil War 12.17.09

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:14:34 -0500

Seems like only yesterday the Washington establishment had proclaimed the death of the GOP. Pundits churned out public autopsy reports faster than the L.A. County Medical Examiner. Liberals gloated over the supposedly irreparable fissures between right-wing populists and Beltway Republican elites. Conservatism, we were told, was suffering brain death and heart failure. My, how quickly things -- ahem -- change. Social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, the GOP leadership, Sarah Palin's heartland supporters, conservative think-tank intellectuals, D.C. and Manhattan conservatives, Big Business and small-business conservatives, Joe the Plumber conservatives, and every stripe and flavor of conservative in between are all united against the Democrats' proposed government takeover of health care. All. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Climate Hubris 12.17.09

Linda Chavez — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:12:30 -0500

Climate change is one of those issues I know enough about to know how little I really know. And I certainly haven't learned much more during the 193-nation climate talks that concluded in Copenhagen this week. I'm one of those agnostics willing to accept evidence that the earth is warming but not yet convinced that scientists fully understand why. And my skepticism has grown greater in light of the recent climategate scandal involving leaked e-mails that suggested prominent climate-change scientists have manipulated data and tried to stifle dissent in the scientific community. But while the Copenhagen talks didn't shed much light on the climate issue per se, they certainly revealed much about the motivations of those involved in the debate. It was clear, both in the meetings and among protestors outside, that the most vociferous advocates for imposing limits on greenhouse emissions are motivated only tangentially by concern for the planet. The real target of radical environmentalism is capitalism. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Giving Thanks for Life 12.17.09

Mona Charen — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:07:53 -0500

Mia's story is good holiday fare. That must have been what the Washington Post editors were thinking when they put her smiling face on the front page. Whether they considered the deeper implications is not so clear, as we shall see. Mia Fleming is a 20-year-old college student who was adopted as an infant. This year, she set out to find not her birthparents, but the two teenagers who found her on a Fairfax, Va., townhouse's front steps. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Amid Rumbling Discontent, Dems Head for the Exits 12.16.09

Michael Barone — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:06:57 -0500

While Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid scrambles to assemble 60 Democratic votes for health care legislation that, according to the realclearpolitics.com average of recent polls, is opposed by a 53 percent to 38 percent margin, several Democratic members of the House are scrambling for the exits on what is starting to look like a sinking ship. You may have noticed that I avoided using the cliche "rats leaving the sinking ship," because the four Democratic House members who over the last three weeks announced their decisions to retire rather than run for re-election cannot fairly be characterized as rats. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

DINOs and the Next Endangered Species 12.16.09

Deb Saunders — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:05:21 -0500

The most endangered species in Washington may well be the moderate. Consider the long knives pointed at the heart of Sen. Joe Lieberman. The Connecticut Democrat-turned-independent (but caucusing with the Dems) announced that he would not support Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's plan to pass Obamacare by allowing Americans who are 55 or older to buy into Medicare. Given that Medicare is, as Lieberman put it, "on the verge of insolvency," he made the right call -- and for that, the left wing of his party has savaged Joe the Senator as a sellout and turncoat. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., told Politico.com, "No individual should hold health care hostage, including Joe Lieberman, and I'll say it flat out, I think he ought to be recalled." There is no mechanism for recalling a U.S. senator. As a congresswoman, DeLauro really ought to know that. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

ObamaCare: Does It Cover 'Stupidity'? 12.16.09

Larry Elder — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:01:39 -0500

Most Americans, up to 85 percent, already have health insurance and are satisfied with it. Lacking health insurance is different from lacking health (SET ITAL) care (END ITAL) -- which, by law, emergency rooms must supply. Millions go without health insurance by choice and not due to lack of resources. Deduct from the number without insurance those who have access to it via entitlement programs, those temporarily without it while between jobs, those here illegally and those who could go on their parents' insurance plans by paying affordable amounts -- and you're down to 10 million to 15 million people without health insurance for longer than a year. This represents 5 percent of Americans. To address this, the President and the Democrats are this close to a complete government takeover of health care. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Terrorists in the Heartland? Chill. 12.16.09

Steve Chapman — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:00:41 -0500

The idea of having an al-Qaida presence in Illinois, even locked up behind bars, is a horrifying prospect. That's what we have to confront now that the Obama administration has decided to move some Guantanamo inmates to a prison in Thomson, a small town in the northwest corner of the state. How will we sleep nights with terrorists in our midst? Probably about like we do right now. From the shrieks of alarm, you'd think no bloodthirsty jihadist had ever occupied a cell in one of our correctional facilities. As it turns out, there are already some 35 domestic and international terrorists privileged to reside in the Land of Lincoln. Run into any at Wal-Mart lately? Seen one cut in line at Dunkin' Donuts? Me neither. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Paying Off 'La Raza' 12.15.09

Ben Shapiro — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:46:42 -0500

If you were president of the United States, would you hire an alleged former spy for Fidel Castro to be ambassador to El Salvador, a country teetering on the brink of hard-core socialism? President Obama just did. On Dec. 9, Obama nominated Mari Del Carmen Aponte to be ambassador to El Salvador, despite the fact that in the late 1990s, the FBI discovered that she was working with Cuban intelligence officers. According to Insight Magazine, "When the FBI eventually questioned her about her involvement with Cuban intelligence, she reportedly refused to cooperate." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Hide the Decline ... and More 12.15.09

David Harsanyi — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:56:22 -0500

In this country, even a global warming denialist with a carbon fetish and bad intentions has the right to see the inner workings of government. Or, at least, he should. When leaked e-mails recently exposed talk of manipulating scientific evidence on global warming, Kevin Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Section at The National Center for Atmospheric Research, argued that skeptics and other evildoers had cherry-picked and presented his comments out of context. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Puritans Don't Make Good Lottery Winners 12.15.09

Roger Simon — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:54:12 -0500

The first thing the winner of last week's $111.2 million Powerball lottery did after winning was go into seclusion, and I think I know why: He is ashamed of himself. He has become wealthy in a country that despises wealth. On TV and in movies, the wealthy are portrayed as greedy, grasping and awful. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Predator War 12.15.09

Austin Bay — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:52:01 -0500

In November 2002, a Hellfire missile launched from a CIA-operated Predator hit a vehicle on a road in Yemen's Marib province. The strike killed six al-Qaida terrorists, among them Qaed Senyan al-Harthi. Al-Harthi organized the October 2000 terror attack on the USS Cole (in the Yemeni port of Aden), which left 17 American sailors dead. I wrote a column about the Predator attack shortly after it occurred, noting that the Predator-B's successes against al-Qaida, (including the November 2001 attack against al-Qaida bigwig Mohammed Atef) demonstrated how "arming the persistent sensor" creates opportunities to ambush even the most elusive targets. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Preferring Liberals in Both Parties 12.15.09

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:49:15 -0500

Liberal newspaper people are so predictable when it comes to internal party fights. If it's inside the Republican Party, it's the conservative Republicans who are wrong. If inside the Democratic Party, it's the conservative Democrats who are wrong. The Washington Post recently gave us a case study in this slanted worldview. On Dec. 14, they splashed across the front page an article by reporter Michael Leahy on an obscure California Republican assemblyman named Anthony Adams. The charge: He betrayed his no-new-taxes vow and supported a $12 billion tax increase. The Post analysis: Adams was savaged by the "toxic infighting" of nasty conservatives, who moved (unsuccessfully) to recall him from office. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama Brings the Gitmolympics Home 12.15.09

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:44:56 -0500

President Obama's hometown cronies lost their bid to bring the 2016 Olympic Games to the Windy City. But this week they got a consolation prize: the Gitmolympics. On Tuesday, the White House went public with its official plans to purchase the Thomson Correctional Facility from financially strapped Illinois to house Guantanamo Bay detainees. The War on Terror meets the Chicago Way. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Unchurched, Unmarried, Poor, Inexperienced and Pro-Obama 12.15.09

Terence P. Jeffrey — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:34:51 -0500

A strategist casting a cold eye on the Gallup poll tracking President Barack Obama's job approval rating might be tempted to give our president the following advice: Sir, you need more unmarried, unchurched, poor and inexperienced Americans. Given the polling trends, the more people who are devout, married and prosperous and have seen more than a few decades of life, the worse it will be for the president. What's good for America is bad for Obama. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Emperor Obama's Health Bill Has No Clothes 12.15.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:32:34 -0500

Due to pressure from enraged Americans, the most pernicious features of Obama's health care legislation have, for now at least, been stripped from his bill. This is no time for complacency, however, since the liberals are trying to push back and get the provisions back in. As the bill now stands, it doesn't have any teeth. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Do you Fear Carbon Dioxide? 12.15.09

Joseph Farah — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:30:01 -0500

For two decades now, politicians, pseudo-scientists and the media have made a concerted effort to persuade us that the biggest threat to mankind comes from man-made, catastrophic global warming resulting from a precipitous increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Are you afraid yet? I'm not afraid of carbon dioxide, a naturally occurring gas vital to all life on planet Earth. But I am afraid that, despite the obvious hoax designed to convince Americans to give up their liberties and transfer their wealth to others, so many are willing to go along with the dangerous, well-orchestrated charade. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Clarity of False Choices 12.15.09

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:28:05 -0500

"There are those who claim we have to choose between paying down our deficits ... and investing in job creation and economic growth," President Obama said last week. "This is a false choice." During the same speech, he asked his audience to "let me just be clear" that his administration, having racked up the biggest budget deficits ever, is embracing fiscal responsibility, as reflected in his vow that "health insurance reform" will not increase the deficit "by one dime." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Three Undemocratic Temptations 12.15.09

Tony Blankley — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:26:14 -0500

As the Democrats in Congress approach the end of a frustrating first year's legislative effort, their leaders and the White House are being tempted by three possible shortcuts around the regular lawmaking process. Though the Democrats have a majority of 20 seats in the Senate and 79 seats in the House, now, just a week before Christmas, the speaker of the House, the Senate majority leader and the White House have failed -- so far -- to pass into law their desired legislation in the matters of 1) health care provision and financing, 2) public debt and deficit reduction, and 3) carbon regulation and taxation. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Fat City 12.14.09

Patrick J. Buchanan — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:39:10 -0500

"It's time to stop worrying about the deficit -- and start panicking about the debt," the Washington Post editorial began. "The fiscal situation was serious before the recession. It is now dire." The editorial continued: "In the space of a single fiscal year, 2009, the debt soared from 41 percent of the gross domestic product to 53 percent. This sum, which does not include what the government has borrowed from its own trust funds, is on track to rise to a crushing 85 percent of the economy by 2018." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

If B's Were F's, Obama Still Wouldn't Deserve a B-Plus 12.14.09

David Limbaugh — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:37:13 -0500

It's bad enough for America that President Barack Obama is a committed far-left ideologue, but when you couple that with his narcissism, you've got a recipe for a major disaster. He told Oprah Winfrey he deserves "a good solid B-plus" for his first year in office. The only things standing in his way for that coveted A are -- for the most part -- other people, such as evil Republicans who oppose socialized medicine. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Have We Stopped Trying to Make Good People? 12.14.09

Dennis Prager — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:35:22 -0500

The most important question any society must answer is: How will we make good people? That is the question Judeo-Christian values have grappled with. There are many and profound theological and practical differences between Judaism and Christianity. But in the American incarnation of Judeo-Christian values -- and America is really the one civilization that developed an amalgamation of Jewish and Christian values -- the emphasis has been on individual character. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Kind Word for King George 12.14.09

William Murchison — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:32:17 -0500

Possibly the best reason for not understanding what's in the Senate health case bill is that no senator knows for sure, not even Harry Reid, without whose subservience to the Obama White House we might have some idea what's up; but let that go... Few legislative spectacles of our time, and there have been some, gross out the viewer more surely than the Senate Democrats' race to pass a bill they don't understand -- and that in about a week's time, counting Sundays -- in order to "fix" 16 or 17 percent of the U.S. economy. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Electoral Dysfunction from Barbara Boxer 12.14.09

Debra J. Saunders — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:30:17 -0500

The U.S. Senate defeated an amendment last week to restrict taxpayer funding of abortions under Obamacare. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., voted against the measure, arguing that it would require women to buy special riders to purchase abortion coverage. In defending her no vote, Boxer argued that male senators were doing to women something they would never do to men. Quoth Boxer: "The men who have brought us this don't single out a procedure that's used by a man, or a drug that is used by a man that involves his reproductive health care, and say they have to get a special rider. There is nothing in this amendment that says if a man someday wants to buy Viagra, for example, that his pharmaceutical coverage cannot cover it, that he has to buy a rider. I wouldn't support that." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

What if Mother Mary Had Obamacare? 12.14.09

Chuck Norris — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:28:31 -0500

Washington is up to its old political shell game again, this time in an unprecedented way. While Americans are focused upon the Christmas season and the mainstream media on health care and President Barack Obama's two trips to Europe (last week to Oslo and this week to Copenhagen), the Democrats in Congress have slipped major pro-abortion legislation under the radar. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Collusion Against Our Youth 12.14.09

Walter Williams — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:26:11 -0500

I've grown somewhat weary writing about the devastating effects of minimum wage laws but The Wall Street Journal's "Black Youths Miss Out on Good Job News," (Dec. 4, 2009) warrants another try. Today's overall teenage (16-19) unemployment rate, at 25 percent, is the highest since World War II. Black teenage unemployment, at 50 percent, is also the highest since World War II. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Christmas Books 12.14.09

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:24:23 -0500

One way to reduce the wear and tear of Christmas shopping at the mall is to give books as presents. Books can be bought on the Internet, and they can be matched to the person who receives them without having to know that person's measurements. Dick Morris' new book -- "Catastrophe"-- is an education in itself, on politics, on economics and on foreign policy. It is a strong antidote to the pious rhetoric and spin that come out of Washington and the media. Partly this is because Dick Morris was once a Beltway insider-- an adviser to President Bill Clinton-- who knows first-hand the ugly realities behind the pretty words that politicians use and that much of the media repeat. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Civil Rights Commission Blunders Again 12.14.09

Mona Charen — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:09:04 -0500

The U.S. Civil Rights Commission (yes, it's still around and yes, it's outlived its usefulness) is about to subtract from national wisdom about college admissions by focusing on exactly the wrong problem. The commission has undertaken an inquiry to determine whether colleges may be discriminating against female applicants. The question turns on whether admissions officers, in an attempt to maintain rough gender parity on campuses, are putting a thumb on the scale in favor of underrepresented male applicants, thus disadvantaging the more qualified females. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

First, the Good News on the Economic Recovery ... 12.12.09

Lawrence Kudlow — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:57:11 -0500

First, the good news on the economic recovery that everybody loves to hate: Retail sales totally beat Wall Street estimates with a huge 1.3 percent gain in November. Core retail sales have increase 5.6 percent at an annual rate over the past three months. Family net wealth has rebounded $5 trillion over the past six months. Jobless claims keep trending lower. Business sales, up 1.1 percent in October (the latest data), have jumped 10.1 percent annually over the past three months. And business inventories, led by manufacturing, also rose in October. The data suggest that fourth-quarter real gross domestic product could come in at 4 percent or stronger. And the powerful rise in business sales -- leveraged off big productivity gains -- suggest a very strong profits picture. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

New Health Care Deal: They're on the Run! 12.12.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:57:09 -0500

First, a brief congratulations to all on having seemingly killed the public option. Without our efforts, it would be en route to becoming law. Now there will not be a government owned, government run and government subsidized insurance company that will put all others out of business. But the current proposal Sen. Harry Reid is loudly trumpeting is horribly flawed, as well. It has all of the old flaws (minus the public option) in that the government, through the secretary of health and human services, will decide who gets what treatment at what cost and will force rationing through an artificial scarcity on all people, particularly the elderly. And it still has such high premiums for young uninsured people that it will compete with student loans for the honor of being their number one headache. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Could Obama's Speeches Reflect a Foreign Policy Shift? 12.12.09

Michael Barone — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:57:07 -0500

"Evil does exist in the world." This bald assertion is probably not what the Norwegian grantors of the Nobel Peace Prize expected to hear from Barack Obama. It sounds like something that the definer of the axis of evil might say, without the Texas twang. This was not the Obama who told the crowd in the Tiergarten in July 2008 that the Berlin Wall came down because the world stood as one, when of course the wall had remained in place for 28 years precisely because the world didn't. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Losing Bet in Afghanistan 12.12.09

Steve Chapman — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:54:13 -0500

President Obama has outlined his new Afghanistan strategy, and the critics have had a lot to say. Things will be tougher than they were in Iraq, warned one opponent. The American general in charge doesn't understand Afghanistan very well, said another. Afghans won't be ready to take over security for their country for at least five years and will demand U.S. financial help for 15 or 20, predicted a third. Oops. My mistake. Those forecasts didn't come from people who oppose Obama's decision to expand the war. They came from people who support it -- no less than Gen. David Petraeus, Gen. Stanley McChrystal and President Hamid Karzai. In this war, even the optimists are wreathed in gloom. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Win One for the Griper 12.11.09

David Harsanyi — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 15:45:42 -0500

Congress is at it again, battling unfairness wherever it pops up. This time, it's taking on college athletics, a world in which a conniving cartel spins backroom deals and then foists injustice on vulnerable football fans. Who but politicians could stand up to these bullies? No worries, though. The collegiate football business, we are told, has interstate commerce implications, so the Constitution allows busybodies to regulate it. Leading the charge is Rep. Joe Barton, a Republican -- the party that doggedly refuses to stick its nose into other people's business unless that business leads to gruesome things, such as skewed playoff systems. Barton has decided that Congress should try to eliminate the Bowl Championship Series. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Hollywood and Howard Zinn's Marxist Education Project 12.10.09

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:46 -0500

The two most important questions for society, according to the Greek philosopher Plato, are these: What will we teach our children? And who will teach them? Left-wing celebrities have teamed up with one of America's most radical historians to take control of the classroom in the name of "social justice." Parents, beware: This Hollywood-backed Marxist education project may be coming to a school near you. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama Reducing the Debt? Dream On 12.10.09

David Limbaugh — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:44 -0500

Two recent news stories illustrate, more clearly than ever, the Obama Democrats' contempt for the free market and individual economic liberty. If given the chance, they will expand government and spend as much of our money as they can get away with. First we learn that Obama and his party simply will not agree to keep their grubby government hands off the estimated $200 billion the banks are going to repay under TARP. Just when we finally receive this glimmer of good news to ameliorate our reasonable panic over the ever-increasing national debt, Obama announces that he intends to intercept a good portion of the debt repayments and spend it on job creation and assistance to certain debtors. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Democrats Whistling Past Graveyard 12.10.09

Mona Charen — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:42 -0500

The unexpected victory of Republican Jimmy Higdon in the Kentucky state Senate special election -- despite a 2-to-1 Democratic registration advantage -- is another fire bell in the night that national Democrats are going to ignore. Marking the 33rd Republican win in the 50 or so special elections since 2008, the Kentucky race was a referendum on health care reform. Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear acknowledged that "The Republican Party was successful in … national(izing) this race." The winning margin was 12 points in a district that was supposed to drop into the Democrat's lap like a ripe peach. But the Democratic Party is not listening to actual voters any more than it is heeding a string of polls showing declining support for a health care overhaul and for politicians who push it. A new Quinnipiac poll finds that 52 percent of respondents oppose the health care reform under consideration in Congress, while only 38 percent support it. The same poll found that only 38 percent approve of the way President Obama is handling the issue, while 56 percent disapprove. Graveyard? What graveyard? From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Get Serious 12.10.09

Oliver North — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:39 -0500

When I was a young Marine, we were encouraged to read Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" as a primer on conflict. Our mentors were officers and senior noncommissioned officers who had served in World War II, Korea and the early days of the conflict in Indochina. These were serious men for whom the profession of arms was no trivial matter. They taught us that Sun Tzu's tome, from the sixth century B.C., was relevant to the fight we were headed for in Vietnam and would serve us well in the future. According to Sun Tzu, "The art of war is of vital importance to the state. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Therefore, it is a subject that must be seriously studied." The most recent recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize appears to have ignored this sage advice. Prior to President Barack Obama's departing for Oslo this week, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was asked whether Mr. Obama would be "accepting the Nobel Peace Prize as a war president." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Color of Recession 12.10.09

Linda Chavez — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:37 -0500

If Jesse Jackson is mad at Barack Obama, the president must be doing something right. Jackson complained this week that President Obama wasn't doing enough to help blacks in a recession that has disproportionately affected black workers. Jackson's major beef, however, seems to be that he was not invited to the White House job summit earlier this month. Join the crowd. The White House didn't invite anyone from the Chamber of Commerce or the National Federation of Independent Businesses either, instead choosing labor union bosses and CEOs that are already reliably in Democratic ranks. Jackson and black leaders in Congress are becoming increasingly unhappy with President Obama over his failure to play the race card during the recession. In early December, members of the Black Congressional Caucus boycotted a vote in the House Financial Services Committee to express their anger that their colleagues and the White House have not targeted assistance on helping blacks during this recession. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Ron Paul's Hour of Power 12.10.09

Pat Buchanan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:35 -0500

The decades-long campaign of Ron Paul to have the Government Accountability Office do a full audit of the Federal Reserve now has 313 sponsors in the House. Sometimes perseverance does pay off. If not derailed by the establishment, the audit may happen. Yet, many columnists and commentators are aghast. An auditors' probe, they wail, would imperil the Fed's independence and expose it to pressure from Congress to keep interest rates low and money flowing when the need of the nation and economy might call for tightening. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Combination of Bad Tax Cuts and More Spending Hastens President's Decline 12.10.09

Matt Towery — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:33 -0500

Wow. It was just last week that this pollster wrote about my belief that President Obama's approval ratings would drop to somewhere in the mid-40 percentiles by early next year. It only took a matter of days. By the second week in December, Obama's approval had slipped to somewhere around 46 percent to 48 percent, depending on the poll. Those Americans who disapprove of the president's job performance had edged closer to being equal to those who approve. If the White House wants to know why this has happened, and so fast, here goes. (Free advice from a pollster can be useful, if perhaps unwanted. That goes even for unsolicited advice to Democrats from a pollster with Republican roots.) From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Frosty the Pervert? 12.10.09

Brent Bozell — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:04:31 -0500

Some memories that still define the warmest moments of American television are the long-running animated Christmas specials. There's "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (first aired in 1964), "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (1965) and "Frosty the Snowman" (1969). Many grown-ups remember all of those shows once aired just on CBS. So somehow, it's still shocking that the soulless, cynical people running CBS today would find a way to trash that memory. An online video has surfaced called "Frosty the Inappropriate Snowman," a mash-up of classic "Frosty" scenes (and clips from the less-than-classic 1992 cartoon "Frosty Returns") along with a collection of audio graffiti -- smutty sex lines voiced over by actor Neil Patrick Harris, a star of the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's Fantasy Jobs Plan 12.9.09

Steve Chapman — Wed, 9 Dec 2009 21:14:31 -0500

This is that wonderful time of year when a roly-poly, white-bearded fellow descends from the North Pole to lavish us with presents. So when President Obama follows suit, maybe it's just his way of getting into the spirit of the season. He sounded uncannily like Santa Claus the other day in a speech taking credit for creating and saving 1.6 million jobs and vowing to do even more. The recent uptick in the economy and dip in unemployment, the president announced, came about because of the $787 billion economic stimulus package he signed last February. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Government Giveth and Taketh Away 12.9.09

Emmett Tyrrell — Wed, 9 Dec 2009 19:33:03 -0500

Do my eyes deceive me? Did I really see President Barack Obama this week calling for a vast increase in government spending? He is promising to "spend our way out of this recession." He plans to build highways and bridges. There will be tax cuts for small businesses. There will be tax incentives for making our homes more energy-efficient. Economic stimulus will be extended for unemployment insurance. Checks for $250 will be sent to senior citizens and veterans. More money will be sent to state and local governments so they will not have to lay off teachers, firefighters and police. It is estimated that the president's eruption of generosity will cost an additional $170 billion, perhaps more. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Lessons of Tiger Woods 12.9.09

Larry Elder — Wed, 9 Dec 2009 19:31:57 -0500

"Tiger's finished." "Define 'finished,'" I said to a friend in response to her assessment. Will Tiger Woods lose endorsements? Yes. How many and for how long remain open questions. Has the carefully groomed image of the contented family man who "has it all" gone supernova? Absolutely. Will he lose his wife, given her public humiliation and her shattered trust in her husband? Strong possibility. But the history books are full of Act Twos. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Misusing Knowledge to Expand Government Power 12.9.09

Michael Barone — Wed, 9 Dec 2009 19:30:55 -0500

"Knowledge is becoming more specialized and more dispersed, while government power is becoming more concentrated," writes economist Arnold Kling in his new book, "Unchecked and Unbalanced." "This discrepancy creates the potential for government to become increasingly erratic and, as a result, less satisfying to individuals." "Less satisfying to individuals" is a mild way to put it. In a recent Annenberg focus group, pollster Peter Hart asked Philadelphia suburbanites to write the name that came to mind when they thought of Congress. A retired auto executive and 2008 Obama voter wrote, "Satan." When asked why, he said, "Because I wasn't sure of the correct spelling of 'Beelzebub.'" From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Our Way or ... Well, Our Way 12.8.09

David Harsanyi — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 21:52:15 -0500

We don't need a cap-and-trade deal. What we need is a RICO trial. Every now and then, apparently, history challenges us with a crisis far too important to be left to the democratic process or the vagaries of public opinion. In these instances, the enlightened, the powerful, the moral must act swiftly. So sayeth the Obama administration this week, empowering the Environmental Protection Agency to police greenhouse gases as a danger to public health and welfare, thus giving the agency discretion to regulate ... well, anything it pleases -- or, I should say, whatever is left. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Depths of Demcare Demagoguery 12.8.09

Michelle Malkin — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 21:49:52 -0500

How low can they go? The desperate Democratic peddlers of a government health care takeover have proclaimed an insurance "holocaust in America" (Fla. Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson), lambasted conservative health care town hall protesters as "political terrorists" (Indiana Democratic Rep. Baron Hill), sent SEIU thugs to demonstrate outside Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman's private residence, and derided senior citizens questioning President Obama's fuzzy math savings claims (California Democratic Rep. Pete Stark: "I wouldn't dignify you by peeing on your leg. It wouldn't be worth wasting the urine.") Now, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is leading them deeper into demagogic mire. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Redistributing America's Wealth at Copenhagen 12.8.09

Terence P. Jeffrey — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 21:47:13 -0500

The Obama administration has a habit of waiting until late on Friday to release news it believes to be unpopular. Such was the case last Friday when White House spokesman Robert Gibbs put out a statement announcing that President Barack Obama was changing the date of his visit to the United Nations Climate Conference in Copenhagen from Dec. 9 to Dec. 18 -- when a deal on a climate-change treaty is more likely to be announced -- and that the president is now promising to hand out billions in new foreign aid. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Racism of the Black Community 12.8.09

Ben Shapiro — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 20:57:28 -0500

According to allies of President Obama, all opposition to Obama's policies is driven by racism. "We think all of it is!" shouts Gwen Dawkins, a Democratic "activist" from Michigan. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) explains that "As far as African-Americans are concerned, we think most of it is." Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) agrees, stating that "There's a very angry, small group of folks that just didn't like the fact that Barack Obama won the presidency. With some, I think it is [about race]." As Jimmy Carter famously stated, "I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's African-American." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

How a New York Times Columnist Hurts Fellow Blacks 12.8.09

Dennis Prager — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:16:50 -0500

If you had hope that the election of a black president might improve black-white relations in America, reading the column by Charles M. Blow in Saturday's New York Times will effectively crush it. Mr. Blow, who is black, wrote of his despair that the election of Barack Obama will achieve anything positive for blacks or for black-white relations. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Climate Skeptics Need Mental Help? 12.8.09

L. Brent Bozell III — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:14:56 -0500

Talk about an inconvenient truth. In ever-increasing numbers, Americans are becoming skeptical about the scientific argument that there's a man-made global-warming crisis that requires immediate and drastic government action. The media's enablers of the radical environmental left have a response: Maybe America just isn't smart or curious enough to save the planet. In fact, they say our growing denial is making us nationally irrational. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Call it Carbonhagen 12.8.09

Joseph Farah — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:11:08 -0500

Sometimes it's difficult to accuse liberals of hypocrisy because they don't believe in standards -- or, at least, the standards are always changing. But not so with the climate alarmists like those meeting in Copenhagen this week. There they are -- the elite of the world -- making pronouncements about the way the rest of us have to live in the future: No big cars and trucks. No more power plants. No more refineries. It will be a future of windmills and solar panels as far as the eye can see. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

U.S. Halfway to Kyoto Goals ... With No Government Regulation 12.8.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:06:47 -0500

The worst nightmare of the left is about to come true: The United States is about to achieve the carbon emissions goals set by the 1997 Kyoto Accords. Once seemingly beyond reach, the United States is already halfway toward meeting the stringent Kyoto goals for reduction in carbon emissions without a cap-and-trade law or a carbon tax or carbon dioxide being declared a pollutant. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Charge of the 280 Democrats in Congress 12.8.09

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:03:23 -0500

Let's first channel Alfred, Lord Tennyson from his poem the Charge of the Light Brigade: Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the 600 (280) "Forward the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns," he said Into the valley of Death Rode the 600 (280). From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Big Blighters 12.8.09

Jacob Sullum — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 18:59:07 -0500

After Kelo v. City of New London, the 2005 decision in which the U.S. Supreme Court approved the forcible transfer of property from one private owner to another in the name of "economic development," 43 states passed reforms that were supposed to curb eminent domain abuses. But most states still allow condemnation of property deemed to be "blighted," and many of them define that condition so broadly that it has become a synonym for "coveted," as illustrated by two recent New York cases. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Too Few Troops, Too Much Spin 12.8.09

Tony Blankley — Tue, 8 Dec 2009 18:52:04 -0500

A sense of unreality overshadows our debate on Afghan war policy across the spectrum of opinions. The unreality derives from the simple fact that we do not have enough troops to rationally implement an adequate defense of our national interests. So every argument for Afghanistan policy tends to seem unserious, perhaps pointless. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

A Bad Year for the Experts 12.7.09

William Murchison — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 21:31:57 -0500

As if policy "experts" were not growing almost daily in disrepute, along came the Environmental Protection Agency Monday to fortify, in a backward way, the case for just plain old, you know, common sense in public policy. No 2,000-page congressional bills; no international conferences; just homely intuition, leading to the conclusion that, Pa, this whole thing don't sound right. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Why Import Workers Now? 12.7.09

Patrick J. Buchanan — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:37:43 -0500

At last week's Job Summit, there was talk of a second stimulus package, of tax credits for small businesses that hire new workers, of an Infrastructure Bank to select national priority pubic works projects like the Hoover Dam and TVA of yesteryear. But no one, it seems, advanced the one obvious idea that would have the most immediate and dramatic impact -- a moratorium on all immigration into the United States. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

We've Been Had 12.7.09

Walter Williams — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:35:25 -0500

Last year, my column "Global Warming Rope-A-Dope" (12/24/08) started out: "Americans have been rope-a-doped into believing that global warming is going to destroy the planet. Scientists who have been skeptical about manmade global warming have been called traitors or handmaidens of big oil." New evidence proves that climatologists and environmental policy advocates have not only fed us lies, engaged in scientific and academic fraud but committed criminal acts as well. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Jobs or Snow Jobs? 12.7.09

Thomas Sowell — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:33:42 -0500

President Obama keeps talking about the jobs his administration is "creating" but there are more people unemployed now than before he took office. How can there be more unemployment after so many jobs have been "created"? Let's go back to square one. What does it take to create a job? It takes wealth to pay someone who is hired, not to mention additional wealth to buy the material that person will use. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Defenseless Enviro-thugs Go on Offense 12.7.09

David Limbaugh — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:31:34 -0500

At a time when leftist enviro-tyrants ought to be hanging their heads in shame, they are, instead, taking the offensive. They are not only dismissing the staggering ClimateGate scandal as insignificant but also redoubling and accelerating their push to enslave the world with their progress-swallowing treaties, laws and regulations. It's the same old leftist playbook: Approach every desired major policy change as a crisis, and demand immediate action. If the public begins to wise up to the distortions and exaggerations, elevate the threat warning from dire to urgent. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Torquemada in East Anglia 12.7.09

Mona Charen — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:28:09 -0500

Though professional hysterics may seek to "hide the decline," there has been a noticeable drop in the number of Americans who believe that global warming is a man-made phenomenon. Pause on that for a moment. Though Americans have been harangued about global warming for more than a decade, only 35 percent told a recent Pew survey that global warming is a serious problem, compared with 44 percent the previous year. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Chestnuts Roasting on a Copenhagen Fire 12.7.09

Chuck Norris — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:26:23 -0500

Copenhagen is on fire this week, and there's far more heating up than just the climate. Heads of state and others are gathering this week at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, but bonfires already have been blazing for weeks on that European front. Let me see whether I can summarize the chestnuts roasting on that Copenhagen fire. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Professor Obama as Dutiful Commander in Chief 12.7.09

Michael Barone — Mon, 7 Dec 2009 13:35:20 -0500

Every time I visit the White House, I am struck by its military environment. Military guards are on duty, the staff has lunch in the White House mess and there's a helicopter pad for Marine One out on the lawn. You see nothing like this in any governor's office I have visited or in the offices of members of Congress, and certainly not in the headquarters of a political campaign or a community organizer. This military atmosphere may have seemed congenial to a president who made a career in the military like Dwight Eisenhower, and it was not unfamiliar to those who served in World War II, as his seven successors did. But it can be off-putting to those without military experience, such as the Bill Clinton staffer who refused to speak to Gen. Barry McCaffrey, a snub that required an apology from the president, who had once declared that he loathed the military. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The Black Caucus War Against Obama 12.4.09

Dick Morris — Sat, 5 Dec 2009 11:04:58 -0500

A civil war is breaking out within the left of the Democratic Party pitting the Congressional Black Caucus against the first African-American president. The battle began when California Rep. Maxine Waters complained publicly about the administration's failure to do more to help minority-owned businesses in the current recession. (Translation: In the new stimulus of "jobs" bill making its way through Congress, they want a larger take.) It continued yesterday when 10 members of the Black Caucus refused to participate in a meeting of the House Banking Committee that was considering the bill to restructure financial regulations, forcing Chairman Barney Frank to push the bill through by the uncomfortable margin of only 31-27. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Boobs in Congress 12.4.09

Steve Chapman — Sat, 5 Dec 2009 11:04:05 -0500

One of the ostensible reasons for reforming our health insurance system is the need to halt the growth of spending on medical treatment. So it may be a surprise to learn that in its first major vote on the health care overhaul, the U.S. Senate took a clear and simple position: Cost is no object. In November, the United States Preventive Services Task Force, a federally sponsored panel of medical experts, announced that it was recommending against routine mammography among women younger than 50. The proposal, coming amid the health care debate, was taken as a gruesome attempt to sacrifice lives to save pennies. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Declaring War on Another "War President" 12.4.09

Deb Saunders — Sat, 5 Dec 2009 11:03:02 -0500

As soon as President Obama had finished his West Point speech in which he pledged to send 30,000 more U.S. troops to Afghanistan, conservative pundits started poking at the president's demeanor and message. Big mistake. If Obama's delivery seemed, well, unenthusiastic, so be it. What is important is that Obama delivered a policy that will keep Afghanistan from devolving into a terror pit. He offered the best plan that conservatives possibly could expect. Before the speech, documentary filmmaker Michael Moore wrote an open letter to Obama warning him not to become a "war president." And: "With just one speech tomorrow night you will turn a multitude of young people who were the backbone of your campaign into disillusioned cynics." From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

We-don't-want-to-talk-about-it-gate 12.3.09

David Harsanyi — Fri, 4 Dec 2009 10:03:08 -0500

Americans honor the courageous informant, the gutsy citizen who stands against the savagery of the profit-mongering conglomerate. Well, sometimes. It appears, believe it or not, that there are those who aren't religiously tethered to this sacred obligation. For now -- because of revelations of the ClimateGate scandal, in which hacked e-mails revealed discussions among top climate scientists about the manipulation of evidence -- Phil Jones, head of the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit in Britain, has stepped down from his position. Michael Mann, architect of the famous "hockey stick" graph, is now under investigation by Pennsylvania State University. Similar inquiries (SET ITAL) should (END ITAL) follow. Yet Barbara Boxer, the Democratic chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, is off hunting bigger game. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Mission Impossible 12.3.09

Oliver North — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 21:44:44 -0500

The commander in chief's Dec. 1 lecture at the U.S. Military Academy has to go down in history as one of the strangest presentations ever offered by a wartime president. The robotically delivered address is defended by administration officials as the culmination of a carefully thought-out "strategy review," in which Mr. Obama proffered the "rationale" for deploying additional troops and explained "The Way Forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan." Unfortunately, it failed to do any of this. Though he was standing before West Point's Corps of Cadets, the president's remarks were devoid of strategic vision, lacking any definition of victory and empty of the rhetoric elected leaders employ to rally democratic people to a cause requiring the sacrifice of blood and treasure. The speech did, however, provide another Obama "first." Giving the enemy a timetable for withdrawing American troops while committing additional combat forces to a war zone is unprecedented. No commander in chief has done such a thing before -- because it makes no sense from a political or military perspective. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

The War on Cops 12.3.09

Michelle Malkin — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 20:04:38 -0500

The left's police-hating chickens are coming home to roost. While partisan liberals have gone out of their way to blame conservative media and the Tea Party movement for creating a "climate of hate," they are silent on the cultural and literal war on cops that has raged for decades -- and escalated tragically this year. The total number of law enforcement officers shot and killed this year is up 19 percent over last year, according to the Christian Science Monitor. More officers have died in ambush incidents this year than in any other since 2000. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Gibbs: Don't Confuse Copenhagen-bound Obama With Global Warming Facts 12.3.09

David Limbaugh — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 20:03:45 -0500

Despite the unfolding international "climate change" scandal involving the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit, President Barack Obama's ideological presuppositions on global warming remain unshaken, and he will still happily attend the Copenhagen global warming conference. This unprecedented fraud by a "team" of politicized scientists whose research has generated some $20 million in research grants for the CRU hasn't deterred Obama from his energy- and economy-destroying agenda any more than double-digit unemployment figures have dissuaded him from his failed Keynesian policies. Nor is Obama bothered by the incestuous relationship among the CRU, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Copenhagen summit. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Does Obama Listen to Himself? 12.3.09

Mona Charen — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 20:02:47 -0500

Barack Obama is demonstrating bottomless reservoirs of gracelessness. A full 13 months after his election, in the course of justifying the deployment of 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, President Obama could not spare a word of praise for George W. Bush -- not even when recounting the nation's "unified" response to 9/11. To the contrary, throughout his pained recitation of the choices we face in Afghanistan, he adverted at least half a dozen times to the supposed blunders of his predecessor. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Cut Taxes To Create Jobs 12.3.09

Linda Chavez — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 20:01:54 -0500

The president's job summit this week may be good public relations, but it won't do anything to help create jobs in this depressing economy. Despite the $159 billion the administration claims to have already spent on job creation (and hundreds of billions more in the pipeline), jobs continue to disappear, with no end in sight. And the only thing that could help turn the situation around isn't even being discussed: major tax cuts for investors and businesses. Instead of cutting taxes for those individuals and businesses with money to invest in creating new jobs, President Obama and Democrats in Congress want to impose a host of new taxes and higher tax rates on the so-called wealthy. The idea is as old as Robin Hood -- take from the rich to give to the poor -- but redistributing wealth doesn't work for long. Instead of growing the economic pie, it ends up shrinking it. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com

Obama's Exit Strategy 12.3.09

Pat Buchanan — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 20:01:00 -0500

If actions speak louder than words, President Obama is cutting America free of George Bush's wars and coming home. For his bottom line Tuesday night was that all U.S. forces will be out of Iraq by mid-2011 and the U.S. footprint in Afghanistan will, on that date, begin to get smaller and smaller. Yet the gap between the magnitude of the crisis he described and the action he is taking is the Grand Canyon. From OutloudOpinion - For Podcasts of IBDeditorials, The New Republic, and Over 30 Syndicated Columnists, go to www.outloudopinion.com