Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
The Real Debt Ceiling
Why the full faith and credit of the United States is hanging by a thread.
A Blessing for the GOP
Let the crisis continue. Let the standoff between the Democrats and the Republicans over Obamacare drag on for as many weeks or months as necessary to wake up the American people. Let millions struggle daily to sign up online for the government health care that they -- but not their elected representatives in Congress -- are being forced by their government to buy.
'Breaking Bad': A Christian Parable
For readers interested in an Obamacare column this week, please refer to the 40,000 columns I've written on the subject from 2008 to last week. This one's about AMC's smash TV series "Breaking Bad" -- the most Christian Hollywood production since Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ." (Not surprisingly, both were big hits!)
If Schultz Can Change on Guns, Dems Can Switch on Obamacare
Note to congressional Democrats: You can change your mind on Obamacare. It's allowed. Really. You can. We won't tell. If MSNBC's anti-gun lefties like Ed Schultz can do a 180 on a hot-button issue like guns, then Democrats can change their minds about President Obama's signature Obamacare. More on this later.
A Republican Response to Obamacare
If Republicans were smart (I know, but stay with me) their focus during the Obamacare debate should have been less on blocking its implementation and more on a page they might have taken from the Democrat's playbook, which is to rally the country to its side by use of sentimentality and the threat of impending doom. The good news for Republicans is that there's still time. It's a sure bet Democrats are right now writing sob stories of tearful children barred from the Lincoln Memorial because of the government "shutdown." The National Zoo in Washington inexplicably turned off its unmanned Panda Cam, which showed video of the newborn panda cub on the Internet. Boohoo.
Politics, Guns & Surgery
One of the basic problems with those on the Left is that they become infatuated with certain words while choosing to ignore their meanings. For instance, one of their favorites is equality. Unfortunately, equality is merely a concept. No two individuals are really the same; human beings, after all, are not robots, although liberals come close. For sane people, equality translates to equality under the law and equal opportunity to achieve one's goals.
Binding Arbitration Is a Sucker's Game for Taxpayers
Is mayoral candidate Martin Walsh for or against binding arbitration for public-sector labor contracts? He certainly is. Like presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004, who voted to fund the war in Iraq before he voted not to fund the war in Iraq, Walsh -- a state legislator and longtime union official -- would like to have it both ways on binding arbitration. In January Walsh filed a bill giving third-party arbitrators the power to impose "final and binding" terms for police and firefighters' contracts, stripping municipal councils of their legal authority to approve the award before it can take effect. It wasn't the first time Walsh supported such a measure. If it ever became law, public-safety unions would have even more of an incentive than they already do now to make extreme demands and then hold out for arbitration.
'Game Changers'
In 2008, presidential candidate Barack Obama on two occasions went out of his way to warn the Iranians that the development of a nuclear weapon "would be a game-changing situation, not just in the Middle East, but around the world." Obama later added, "It is unacceptable for Iran to possess a nuclear weapon; it would be a game changer." Strong language. And Obama twice this year again used "game changer" in reference to Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, warning him not to dare use chemical weapons. In March, Obama announced to Assad that "the use of chemical weapons is a game changer." A month later, Obama again warned Assad not to resort to WMD use: "That is going to be a game changer."
For GOP in 2016, Some Medicine
WASHINGTON -- "If Reince Priebus from Kenosha, Wisconsin, is the Republican 'establishment,' God help us," says the chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus. His physical presence is almost as unprepossessing as James Madison's was, and his demeanor is self-deprecating. But with meticulous -- Madisonian, actually -- subtlety, he is working to ameliorate a difficulty that has existed for two centuries and in 2012 wounded the GOP.
What Is the President Willing to Give Up?
WASHINGTON -- It is the most thunderous proof of the Taranto Principle to date. I am speaking of the Senate's rejection of the House of Representative's proposal to delay the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act for a year, along with the federal subsidy for Congressional lawmakers and their staffs if and when these selfless public servants enter health care exchanges. You cannot have such subsidies and neither can I, but Congress and its aides can. The Senate will not even negotiate over it.
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Open Eyes on a Shutdown Government
For the first time in 17 years, the federal government has partially shut down. House Republicans offered the Senate three different compromises on ObamaCare, only to be rebuffed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) three times. After attempting to defund ObamaCare and fund the government, Republicans passed a bill Sunday morning to fund the government and delay ObamaCare, only to be rejected again.
Obama Prohibits Practice of Catholicism in US
Beginning now, with the opening of government-run health-insurance exchanges, President Barack Obama will be prohibiting American Catholics from practicing their faith in the way they live their daily lives. This is an act of tyranny. Yet, many Americans in positions of public authority and influence have greeted it with silence and inaction.
The Old Media and the New Sheriffs
Once again, we've reached a government shutdown over irresponsible government spending. Once more, the media are proclaiming the world is coming to an end and blaming conservative Republicans for everything. They are working hand in glove with the Never Enough Government lobby that dominates Washington, without a shred of shame. Anchors and editors continue to insist that if the GOP were smart, it would bow to "conventional wisdom" and put its foot on the fiscal accelerator. That's what this is about. The elites fully expected Republicans "led" by McConnell and Boehner to fold and are stunned -- furious, really -- that they are being disobeyed.
Seedco: Obamacare's Fraud-Stained Navigators
Welcome to ObamaWreck! Americans nationwide spent Tuesday struggling with the much-hyped "Affordable Care Act" health insurance exchanges. Server meltdowns, error messages and security glitches plagued the federal and state government websites as open enrollment began. But when taxpayers discover exactly who will be navigating them through the bureaucratic maze, they may be glad they didn't get through. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius controls a $54 million slush fund to hire thousands of "navigators," "in-person assisters" and counselors, who are now propagandizing and recruiting Obamacare recipients into the government-run exchanges. As I warned in May, the Nanny State navigator corps is a serious threat to Americans' privacy. Background checks and training requirements are minimal to nonexistent. A history of fraud is no barrier to entry.
Marissa Alexander Deserves the Benefit of the Doubt
A year before George Zimmerman was acquitted in the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin at a townhouse complex in Sanford, Fla., Marissa Alexander was sentenced to 20 years in prison for firing a shot into the ceiling during a 2010 confrontation with her husband at their home in Jacksonville. Since Alexander is black, critics of the Zimmerman verdict cite the contrasting outcomes as evidence of racial bias in the application of Florida's "stand your ground" self-defense law.
Are Teens or Parents the Problem?
Teen-age vandalism. It's a common, typically local problem that doesn't generally garner much attention. But when [300 teens](http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/6-arrests-made-in-vandalism-of-ex-nfl-player-brian-holloways-ny-vacation-home-more-expected/2013/09/27/179dbccc-2733-11e3-9372-92606241ae9c_story.html) broke into a former NFL player's vacation home and trashed it, it created headlines -- but not for the reason you might suspect.
Mariano Rivera for President
If you're not a baseball fan, you might not know who Mariano -- Mo to his friends, fans and teammates -- Rivera is. He is the closer for the New York Yankees, the fellow they've been calling on since the mid-90s to protect leads in the late innings. Nobody has ever come close to being as good at what he does as Rivera. This past season, as he's announced his retirement, every team the Yankees have played against has honored him. Even the Boston Red Sox gave him testimonials and gifts. Several teams have given him checks for his foundation. And every member of the opposing teams has stood and applauded the man and his accomplishments.
Bloomberg's Puppets
By now, you really would have thought Michael Bloomberg would have learned his lesson. The out-of-touch New York City mayor has lately made it his business to be in everyone else's business -- whether that means trying to decide for New York residents what they are allowed to eat or drink, or trying to tell people from other states what to think of their elected officials.