Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
National Pathetic Radio
If the resignations at National Public Radio continue at last week's pace, there may be no need for Congress to defund the aging dinosaur, because there will be no one left there to turn the lights on. The latest is Betsy Liley, NPR's director of institutional giving. Conservative activist James O'Keefe secretly recorded phone conversations between Liley and a man masquerading as a potential donor from a fictitious group called the Muslim Education Action Center, which the man said had ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. The fake donor said his group was worried about a government audit. Liley told him that a $5 million contribution might not have to be reported to the IRS. Liley has been placed on administrative leave.
GOP Fear That History Will Repeat Helps Ensure It Will
Why is it that despite the Republicans' resounding electoral victory in 2010 based on their promises for real change, many of us have a queasy feeling they're not quite measuring up to the task, even in the climate of Democratic infighting and President Obama's weaknesses? The Hill reports that there is developing dissension between Obama and Senate Democrats, whose respective "political fortunes ... are moving in opposite directions, complicating their efforts to win a titanic battle against Republicans over federal spending."
Who Won in Wisconsin?
Who won the battle of Wisconsin? Republican Gov. Scott Walker got a legislative victory. On the other hand, Democrats, with a wary eye on 2012 and noting the worrying drop in support for President Obama in union-heavy states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, claim to be delighted that Walker has picked this fight. "Republicans have done organized labor a great favor by putting the movement back in (the) labor movement, creating a level of passion and activism for workers' rights that hasn't been seen in generations," crowed Democratic strategist Mike Lux.
Monday, March 14, 2011
On Libya and Budget, President Obama Votes 'Present'
In the Illinois legislature, state Sen. Barack Obama voted "present" 129 times. Today, he seems to be voting present on two major issues, Libya and the budget. National Security Adviser Tom Donilon told reporters Thursday that the United States and other nations have "taken a range of steps ... to squeeze (Moammar) Gadhafi, isolate him, really turn him into a pariah." But the steps the United States has taken may well have bolstered Gadhafi's determination to crush the rebellion against his regime.
The Bully's Pulpit
On college campuses all over America, the 1st Amendment is trashed on a regular basis. Even when the courts weigh in, declaring that speech codes are unconstitutional, college administrators, professors and even students, find a way to curb free speech. At least free speech that expresses conservative sentiments. At the same time, those very same groups either remain silent or encourage Muslims and left-wingers who regularly shout down conservatives and Israeli diplomats who have been invited to be guest speakers.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
The Mandate Muddle
WASHINGTON -- When the Supreme Court considers whether Congress has the constitutional power to compel individuals to buy health insurance, the argument supporting Congress may rest on a non sequitur and a semantic fiat. A judge's recent ruling argues that the insurance mandate must be constitutional because Obamacare would collapse without it. A forthcoming law review article agrees with this and with the judge's idea that, regarding commerce, being inactive is an activity. Obamacare does indeed require the mandate: Because the law requires insurance companies to sell coverage to people regardless of their pre-existing conditions, many people might delay buying insurance until they become sick. But is the fact that the mandate is crucial to the law's functioning dispositive?
National Public Racket
Forget the recent scandals involving National Public Radio. Go back to the days before NPR chief exec Vivian Schiller resigned, before a conservative prankster videotaped NPR fundraisers disparaging tea party participants as "seriously racist, racist people" -- to even before NPR fired senior news analyst Juan Williams after he said on Fox News that he got "nervous" flying with passengers in Muslim garb. Banish from your mind the recent controversies involving NPR's perceived or (I believe) real liberal bias. Even then, fiscal conservatives in Congress had called for cuts in federal funding for the Corporation of Public Broadcasting.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
From The Comedy Store
The White House vowed to work with Congress to cut waste in spending after two GAO reports came out. The reports said it all. The first report said the U.S. spends ten billion a year on fifteen redundant government programs and the second report said the U.S. government spends ten billion a year on fifteen redundant government programs.
The World Through My Jaundiced Eyes
As I watched all those Wisconsin teachers proudly carrying on like louts and buffoons in Madison, I found myself wondering how they could ever again chastise their students for misbehaving in class. I also found it amazing that they could insist with a straight face that demonstrating for fat salaries and even fatter pensions translated into fighting for the kids. On the other hand, inasmuch as only about a third of Wisconsin's eighth graders have 8th grade reading proficiency, as revealed by standardized test scores, it probably doesn't make much difference if these teachers ever make it back to the classroom.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Time for War Against Democrats' Fiscal Sabotage
It is amazing that the American people would continue to elect Democratic politicians to national office, considering Democrats' cynical disregard for the federal budget crisis. They aren't even slightly serious about becoming part of the solution. Consider the Senate Democrats' most recent proposal for budget cuts to avert a government shutdown. Senate Republicans, following the House plan, proposed $61 billion in cuts for the current year, while Senate Democrats proposed a paltry $6.5 billion. (The Congressional Budget Office says it's actually only $4.7 billion.) Though Obama seems to be hiding in the bushes on this one, he is said to support the Democratic plan.
Contrary to Media Reports, GOP Has Strong Field in 2012
This past week, I've seen or read plenty of news analyses suggesting that the Republicans have a weak field of presidential hopefuls for 2012. Not so. I believe that many of the potential candidates who might seek the GOP nomination have strategically strong paths to the White House, assuming that President Obama is still vulnerable next year. Last week in this column, I put forth an explanation as to why Newt Gingrich is a stronger political force than many imagine. This week, let's consider the Republicans' other potential major candidates for the White House.
All Things Contemptible
James O'Keefe, who is now felling executives of National Public Radio as he previously trap-doored ACORN, must be a deeply cynical young man. How else could he have imagined that ACORN workers in several cities would cheerfully offer to help him set up brothels using underage Central American girls? How else could he have imagined that executives of National Public Radio (and apparently PBS, though that video has not surfaced as of this writing) would eagerly truckle to a front group of the Muslim Brotherhood?
Caution on Wisconsin Vote
The vote in Wisconsin to limit public-employee bargaining rights is a decisive turning point in American politics. On Wednesday, Republican state senators passed a stripped-down version of pending legislation to limit collective bargaining without a single Democrat present in the chamber. Democrats may challenge the vote in court, but for now, it looks like a huge defeat for public-employee unions. Did Wisconsin Republicans overreach? It's too early to tell, but public opinion polls are not going in their favor right now. A New York Times/CBS poll found that 60 percent of Americans oppose weakening public employees' bargaining rights, while Rasmussen reports that 52 of Wisconsin voters oppose such efforts.
Tina Misses the Story
Tina Brown wanted to create a big splash with the first issue of the "new" Newsweek -- the magazine Sidney Harmon bought for a dollar and put her in charge of returning it to relevance. What could be more original than putting a fresh face on the cover? So here's Hillary Clinton, 11 years older than the last time Tina Brown launched a magazine, called Talk, and put her there. You've come a long way, baby. Talk magazine was all about Bill Clinton's infidelities. The new Newsweek shows how the former first lady has risen on the world stage and has become a formidable presence on her own. It's Women's History Month, after all, and this year's theme is "Our History Is Our Strength." Hillary is one of 150 famous females "who shake the world."
Obama's New Ambassador to China: Not So 'Squeaky Clean'
Liberal media outlets did their best in 2009 to boost former Washington State Gov. Gary Locke, President Obama's third pick for the beleaguered Commerce Secretary job, as a "squeaky clean" appointee. Now, Locke's moving onward and upward to fill the ambassadorship to China vacated by potential GOP presidential candidate Jon Huntsman. Locke's "Do as I Say, Not as I Do" record makes him a good fit for the ethically impaired Obama administration. It's worth reminding Americans of Locke's whitewashed history of ethical scandals and conflicts.
Dems Wield Dull Budget Scissors
According to earth-logic, if you got a raise of 10 percent last year, but this year you're only getting a raise of 8 percent, you're still getting a raise. On Planet Washington, that qualifies as an indefensible slashing. So when the GOP actually cut $4 billion from the budget last week, the Democrats acted as if it was an involuntary amputation. Now the GOP wants to cut $61 billion of discretionary non-defense spending from the total budget of $3.7 trillion, and Democrats are responding as if this will spell the end of Western civilization.
Good Christian Women Should Boo
Today's installment of the Decline and Fall of Western Civilization comes from Hollywood -- as if that's a surprise. Tinseltown is demeaning Christianity again -- as if that's a surprise, too. But this time, it's not some gutter-mouthed punk. This time, it's a network doing it, formally. ABC has approved a pilot with the title "Good Christian Bitches." Is this what Christian women -- especially the good ones -- deserve?
Obama's Social Security Hoax
WASHINGTON -- Everyone knows that the U.S. budget is being devoured by entitlements. Everyone also knows that of the Big Three -- Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security -- Social Security is the most solvable. Back-of-an-envelope solvable: Raise the retirement age, tweak the indexing formula (from wage inflation to price inflation) and means-test so that Warren Buffett's check gets redirected to a senior in need. The relative ease of the fix is what makes the Obama administration's Social Security strategy so shocking. The new line from the White House is: no need to fix it because there is no problem. As Office of Management and Budget Director Jack Lew wrote in USA Today just a few weeks ago, the trust fund is solvent until 2037. Therefore, Social Security is now off the table in debt-reduction talks.
Crude Cruelty
WASHINGTON -- Fuel and food prices are up. So is unemployment. Officials in the Obama administration and their allies on Capitol Hill are stunned. They shouldn't be. It's O-Team policy -- or lack of it -- that got us here. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits for the first time jumped this week to 397,000 -- meaning there are more people looking for work than the private sector has jobs available. You don't have to be a government economist to see the direct connection between rising costs for essentials -- such as gasoline, home heating fuel, electricity and eating -- and layoffs.
Reality Begins to Dawn
When it comes to fighting the War on Terror, even though this administration doesn't call it that any more, you may have to shake yourself to remember that George W. Bush is no longer in the White House. Since his policies in that ongoing global conflict are being adopted, one after the other, by his successor. In the latest example, the current occupant of the Oval Office has announced that the military prison at Guantanamo Bay won't be shut down after all, at least not any time soon, despite his repeated vows to do just that.