Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Reassuring Anxious Asian Allies
Obama's soothing words at war with his uncertain commitment to defense
Gov't Waste: Where Has All the Money Gone?
Most people, perhaps even the super-wealthy, who are usually accountable to auditors, want to know where their money goes. This is especially true when they detect money for which they can't account. Not so with the federal government. Some recent headlines reflect a disturbing pattern that has contributed to our $17 trillion debt and to a growing cynicism among the public, which increasingly regards government in a negative light. Here are just a few recent gems gleaned from reading newspaper stories and wire service reports: "Pentagon to destroy $1 billion in ammunition." This USA Today story says, "It is impossible to know what portion of the arsenal slated for destruction ... remains viable because the Defense Department's inventory systems can't share data effectively, according to a Government Accountability Office report..."
Obama's Phony Ambivalence on Keystone
Don't trouble yourself trying to figure out whether President Obama is more political than ideological. He's an expert at straddling both and getting his way without compromise. Analysts have long debated whether partisan Obama would prevail over ideological Obama in his decision to approve or reject the Keystone XL pipeline, but in the end, it may be a false choice, as both could win under the overarching dominance of Saul Alinsky-Obama. Keystone XL is intended to carry crude oil from Alberta to refineries in the Gulf of Mexico. Environmentalists have long opposed construction of the pipeline, arguing it would do great damage to the Sandhills region of Nebraska. Supporters have contended that the project would have little, if any, negative environmental impact, is critically important for U.S. energy independence and would be a great boon to the economy and create thousands of jobs.
Say 'No' to Bad Science
The headline looks like a hoax-- saturated fat does not cause heart disease -- but it's real. This news is more than just another example of changing health guidelines; it's a cautionary tale about trusting the scientific consensus. For more than 50 years, the best scientific minds in America assured us that saturated fat was the enemy. Animal fat, we were instructed, was the chief culprit in causing obesity, Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Throughout my adult life, I have conscientiously followed the guidelines dispensed by the health arbiters of our age. Trusting utterly in the scientific research of the American Heart Association, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, I accepted the nearly universal wisdom of the medical and nutritional experts.
Saving Grace in Greece: SCOTUS Sides With Prayer
Yesterday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling wasn't just an answer on prayer -- it was an answer *to* prayer! In what experts are calling one of the biggest religious liberty wins in the last half-century, the Court gave its blessing to an American tradition more than 200 years old: legislative prayer. In cities across America, secular activists have come to legal blows with dozens of local governments over the freedom to open meetings with a prayer recognizing the Author of our liberty. And while they may have scared the prayers out of some city councils, the town of Greece, New York refused to be one of them. After a lengthy tug-of-war, the case finally landed at the steps of the Supreme Court, where the justices ruled 5-4 to continue a practice as old as the nation itself. For as long as anyone can remember, Greece had allowed any citizen of any religion (or lack thereof) to kick off the meetings with prayer. And while the policy was wholly inclusive, Christian prayers were the most popular. Despite the town's efforts to recruit other faith groups, only four of the 127 invocations were offered by non-Christians.
Obama Blows Off Deals With GOP, Creating Era of Bad Feelings
Second-term presidencies are an opportunity for bipartisan compromise. The institutional stars are in alignment to address long-range problems not amenable in other circumstances. The president is barred from running for a third term and thus does not have to worry about his next campaign. In Congress, members of the president's party, with some reason to fear losses in the off-year election, may be willing to compromise before their bargaining leverage weakens. Members of the opposition party may be more willing also, since their hopes of getting a new president of their own party have been at least temporarily dashed.
Monday, May 5, 2014
'Houston, We Have a Dumb&#% Problem'
I'm truly sorry about the title, but nothing else really describes the ridiculousness of the pronouncement by the White House aide John Podesta over these two satellite images in a maddeningly idiotic story from the Washington Post.
The Prison Door Keeps Revolving
The United States jails more prisoners than any nation on earth -- about 2.3 million, or more than 1 percent of all American adults. Our gigantic penal system is regularly characterized as a national disgrace. I've applied the label myself. Plainly there is something deeply disquieting about a democratic superpower locking up so many people that 25 percent of the world's reported prisoners are housed in US cells. How can a country with an incarceration rate of 716 inmates per 100,000 residents, roughly five times the global average, think of itself as "The Land of the Free?" Yet whether America's vast prison population really represents such a scandalous failure depends on what prison is supposed to do. In that light, consider a trove of data released last month by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, an agency of the US Department of Justice.
Secretary Kerry at the Water's Edge
>*"I will not allow my commitment to Israel to be questioned by anyone, particularly for partisan, political purposes, so I want to be crystal clear about what I believe and what I don't believe," Kerry said after U.S. lawmakers and pro-Israel groups criticized him, with some demanding his resignation or at least an apology…"I have been around long enough to also know the power of words to create a misimpression, even when unintentional, and if I could rewind the tape, I would have chosen a different word [than Apartheid] to describe my firm belief that the only way in the long term to have a Jewish state and two nations and two peoples living side by side in peace and security is through a two-state solution," Kerry said. [From Breitbart news.]* The Secretary of State admits he was "inarticulate." And he proceeds to prove it daily.
The Truth Matters – Dude
Most Americans know we are a divided nation. Yet last week offered a rare glimpse as to where the real fault line in that division lies. In two separate interviews on the subject of Benghazi, we saw the glaring difference between an America where concepts as respect, honor and decency still have real meaning, and one invested in the kind of terminal adolescence that breeds contempt, arrogance and, ultimately, a poisonous indifference to American exceptionalism. Retired Air Force Brigadier General Robert Lovell is a man of great courage. He was the deputy intelligence director at U.S. Africa Command, and stationed in Germany when the Benghazi attacks unfolded.
The Dividends of Racial Politics
Suddenly we can't seem to get race out of the news. Congressman Paul Ryan's tour around America's cities, trying to get a handle on America's persistent problems with poverty, turns into a racial incident, as a member of the Congressional Black Caucus calls remarks he made in a radio interview "a thinly veiled racial attack that cannot be tolerated." A simpleton law-breaking rancher in Nevada, egged on by reporters, says stupid things about black Americans, and suddenly he becomes a national figure with serious views about race.
Fight at the Museum
You can't put a price tag on women's contributions to America -- but Congress is trying. For almost 20 years, liberals have batted around the idea of building a National Women's History Museum in D.C. as a way to draw attention to the untold stories and accomplishments of America's daughters. Who could be opposed to that? Plenty of people, once they see who's being honored and how much it could cost. Right now, the House is considering a bill (H.R. 863) that many believe is the first step to making that museum a reality. If it passes, Congress would create a special task force (four Republicans and four Democrats) to analyze possible fundraising options and building sites. For now, the museum exists as an online organization whose current roster of "heroes" raises plenty of questions about the kind of women its Board would push to include. If the website is any indication, the half-million dollar venture has the potential to be a permanent monument to radical feminism and abortion.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
You Can't Buy Insurance Until Next November
Here's something that's really odd. Let's say at the end of last year there were almost 50 million uninsured people in the United States. Averaging over all the different estimates, let's say that 5 million of them have now acquired insurance because of ObamaCare. But now it's April and the open enrollment period is over. That means that 90% of the uninsured are still uninsured and *they won't be able to buy an individual insurance plan until next November.*
An Origination Question for the ACA
If the president wants to witness a refutation of his assertion that the survival of the Affordable Care Act is assured, come Thursday he should stroll the 13 blocks from his office to the nation's second-most important court, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. There he can hear an argument involving yet another constitutional provision that evidently has escaped his notice. It is the Origination Clause, which says: "All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills." The ACA passed the Senate on a party-line vote, and without a Democratic vote to spare, after a series of unsavory transactions that purchased the assent of several shrewdly extortionate Democrats. What will be argued on Thursday is that what was voted on -- the ACA -- was indisputably a revenue measure and unquestionably did not originate in the House, which later passed the ACA on another party-line vote.
Taiwan: Beware!
The world has watched in dismay as Russia's ruler, Vladimir Putin, has gobbled up Crimea. Now, he seems bent on dismembering Ukraine. Much of our attention has been focused on Putin and his next targets. Perhaps Taiwan is next. In the East, China's Communist leaders are watching, too. They pay close attention to the actions of this former KGB agent. Putin is increasingly popular in Russia as he seeks to restore some of the power and prestige of the old USSR. For its part, China has been rattling a saber over Japan's Senkaku Islands. Concerned, President Obama recently rushed to Tokyo. There, he reminded the world of the U.S.-Japanese Defense Treaty.
If I Were a Fox Contributor
Recently, Laura Ingraham was a guest on Howard Kurtz's Sunday Fox show, "Media Buzz." She offered what I thought was an intelligent solution to a problem that has been annoying me for some time. As we all know, Fox remains an oasis on TV, the only news network that isn't in the tank for Obama and the liberals. However, in attempting to comply with Roger Ailes' desire that Fox be "fair and balanced," too many shows have fallen into the habit of teaming up a liberal and a conservative, and having them spend five or ten raucous minutes shouting over each other and trading insults. We wind up with a lot of heat and absolutely no light.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Game-Changer Jobs Report?
Does a solid jobs report change the overall economic picture and offer the beleaguered Democratic party a new leg up for the midterm elections? My answer is no and no. Even with all the political slicing and dicing that accompany these big reports, the April employment survey was a lot stronger than virtually anyone expected. Nonfarm payrolls surged by 288,000. Private payrolls gained 273,000. The unemployment rate registered a big decline, dropping from 6.7 percent to 6.3 percent. Some are arguing that lower unemployment is a function of 806,000 dropouts from the labor force. But that's a reach. In the prior three months, the small-business-related household survey gained over 1.2 million jobs. So these month-to-month bumps have no meaning. But the trend is clear: The unemployment rate is falling and more jobs are being created.
From The Comedy Store
Joe Biden addressed the country of Ukraine in a pep talk. He told Ukrainians to stand firm, that they won't walk alone, and he urged them to walk knowing we are walking with them. This is usually the point in Joe's act when he notices that everyone is in a wheelchair.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Trafficking Bill Gets Green Light from House
"I thought it only happened in poor countries," Sister Gladys Leigh told reporters. But, like too many people, the St. Louis nun underestimated the strong grip of sex trafficking. Now a volunteer at St. Louis's shelter for recovering sex slaves, Leigh and others know all too well the dark and horrifying world of forced prostitution. Over and over again, she's heard stories like Christine McDonald's. "I'd been branded like an animal, stabbed, held at gunpoint, chained to a leash in a closet. With a life like that," she said wistfully, "all you can do is pray for death."