Now, as President Obama confronts enormous difficulties in rallying a reluctant Congress and a skeptical world to punish the Syrian government with a military strike over what is said to be its apparent use of deadly nerve agents last month, he appears to be facing a similar challenge to the one that allowed the Assads…
Category: News & Opinion
Nine facts about terrorism in the United States since 9/11
It’s the 12th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Both Washington D.C. and New York City are commemorating the occasion with ceremonies this morning. And this seems like an apt time to go back through the history of terrorist attacks in the United States and see how things have changed since Sept. 11. First,…
Why the Push for Syrian Intervention Is About More Than Just Assad
This is the dilemma facing Obama today. If the United States cannot extricate himself from the geopolitical imperatives posed by Iran’s continuing threat to Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the safety of Persian Gulf oil supplies, it cannot extricate itself from the turmoil in Syria. Because a failure to confront Assad’s excesses could be viewed as…
The Good News About Race And Crime In America
Civil rights leaders and progressive activists have cited Zimmermans acquittal and the proliferation of robust self-defense laws as evidence of a “war on black men” — or, similarly, that its now “open season on black men.” Meanwhile, Zimmerman supporters and many on the political right have used the case to bring up old discussions of…
Banks Are Doing Better Than Ever. The Middle Class, Not So Much.
The nation’s banks are reporting record profits, according to new numbers out Wednesday from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Most of the rest of us aren’t faring quite so well. Bank profits topped $40.3 billion in the first three months of the year, according to the FDIC, attesting to a strong recovery… in the…
Supreme Court Upholds Warrantless Collection Of DNA
By a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a Maryland law that allows police to collect DNA, without first getting a warrant, from persons who are arrested. “When officers make an arrest supported by probable cause to hold for a serious offense and bring the suspect to the station to be detained…
WSJ Editorial Board Member: NYC Bike-Share Program Has ‘Begrimed’ Best Neighborhoods
Dorothy Rabinowitz, an editorial board member for the Wall Street Journal, disparaged New York City’s recently launched bike-share program. “Do not ask me to enter the mind of the totalitarians running this government of the city,” Rabinowitz said when asked what she thought was the motivation behind the program. The program is privately funded,…
Kansas Gov. Doubles Down On Taxing The Poor More Steeply Than The Rich
Gov. Sam Brownback R will soon sign what he calls the “fabulous package” of sales tax hikes and income tax cuts passed by the Republican-dominated legislature over the weekend. The sales tax rate increase will apply to food as well as other purchases, making it even more targeted at the lower end of the…
GMO Wheat Found In Oregon Field. How Did It Get There?
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says its investigating, trying to find out how this wheat got there. The USDA says there’s no risk to public health, but wheat exporters are worried about how their customers in Asia and Europe will react. In fact, worry about export markets is the main reason why genetically engineered wheat…
Wonkbook: If austerity is so bad, why is the economy doing so well?
The economy is holding up well in an age of austerity. “Housing prices rose faster over the past year than they have in the past seven, according to data out Tuesday. Consumer confidence hit its highest level in five years. The stock market rallied another 0.6 percent as measured by the Standard & Poor’s 500, leaving…
Republican Court Unpacking Plan Takes Judicial Manipulation to a New Level
Republicans in the Senate have made no secret of their efforts to block the President’s constitutional responsibility to appoint federal judges. They have filibustered unquestionably qualified nominees, like Caitlin Halligan. And their obstruction of the confirmation process kept several nominees waiting more than a year for a vote. In fact, on average, our judicial nominees…
Study Finds Rise in Accidental Marijuana Ingestion By Children In Colo.
The report in JAMA Pediatrics looked at children who accidentally ate marijuana and needed emergency treatment. Health Policy Solutions (a Colo. news service): Accidental Pot Ingestion Spikes In Babies, KidsSince medical marijuana has become legal in Colorado, doctors have seen a dramatic spike in the number of babies and children who accidentally ate marijuana and…
The GOP’s dangerous Obamacare strategy
In today’s New York Times, Jonathan Weisman and Robert Pear report on a peculiar problem faced by the Affordable Care Act: Republicans who’re unable to repeal it also refuse to permit any tweaks or technical correction that would help it work better. In fact, they’re creating new problems by withholding implementation funds. This is…
Chinese hackers access major weapons systems: Washington Post
Chinese hackers have gained access to designs of more than two dozen major U.S. weapons systems, a U.S. report said on Monday, as Australian media said Chinese hackers had stolen the blueprints for Australia’s new spy headquarters. Citing a report prepared for the Defense Department by the Defense Science Board, the Washington Post said the…
Texas legislature passes tax cuts for businesses
Texas lawmakers sent Governor Rick Perry more than $1 billion in proposed business tax cuts shortly before the end of the biennial legislative session on Monday. The tax-cut package – the final piece of which was approved by the House and Senate late on Sunday – includes an extension of a business franchise tax…
Oklahoma Senator Won’t Support Tornado Relief Without Budget Cuts
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who has long objected to federal funds being spent on everything from veterans benefits to relief in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, is already insisting that any additional appropriations should be paid for with cuts elsewhere. “That’s always been his position [to offset disaster aid],” Coburn spokesman John Hart said….
Opinion: If democracy dies, we will have killed it
A recent nonpartisan Pew Research Poll finds our knee-jerk partisanship has increased dramatically. This road were on will lead us step-by-step to an extreme: either an autocratic government that functions, or a dysfunctional anarchy. The petty squabbles, bilge in the name of party or principle, will dissolve our self-government. Abraham Lincoln felt no foreign…
Canadian Government Pursuing Aggressive Lobbying Push On Keystone XL
The Canadian government has nearly doubled its spending to promote the Keystone XL pipeline to $16.5 million, up from $9 million a year ago. This dramatic spending increase is a result of an increased lobbying effort the government is planning, which includes high-profile ad buys and dispatching a series of officials to reiterate talking…
Yet Another Piece Of Evidence That Obamacare Is Already Positively Impacting The Health Sector
There’s new evidence to suggest that Obamacare is impacting the health industry for the better by successfully encouraging a greater emphasis on primary care. Ensuring that Americans are receiving regular preventative care is an important tenant of the health law, since it can ultimately help lower costs by preventing people from delaying medical treatment…
Virginia GOP Nominee For Attorney General Would Force Women To Report Their Miscarriages To Police
If a woman in Virginia has a miscarriage without a doctor present, they must report it within 24 hours to the police or risk going to jail for a full year. At least, that’s what would have happened if a bill introduced by Virginia state Sen. Mark Obenshain R had become law. And yet,…