http://www.realclearpolitics.com/ en Copyright 2008 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:37:19 -0600 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/?v=3.33 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss CEDAR CREEK, Texas -- As Barack Obama began crafting his administration last year, the term "competence over ideology" was often used to describe the incoming president's approach. Fast forward past another election: as the top Democrat's job approval rating dipped below 50 percent and his signature first-year initiatives face increasing doubts, a bullish group of Republican governors emphasized results over rhetoric as they predicted continued success in 2010.In Washington, Republicans have been branded as the party of no for achieving near-constant unanimity on major... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/gop_governors_emphasize_results_over_rhetoric__99260.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/gop_governors_emphasize_results_over_rhetoric__99260.html Mike Memoli Mike Memoli 2009/11 11/21/2009/00/00/00 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:34:31 -0600 Oh, how the international community loves Barack Obama - loves to stiff him, play him along, and manipulate him. He's the world's celebrity ingenue, the slender naïf perpetually undone by the recalcitrance of foreign leaders. Earlier this year, in a touching exercise in diplomatic and civilizational outreach, he sent two letters to Iran's mullahs and a new year's message to the Iranian people. How mannerly, how unthreatening. When the Iranian government beat protesters in the streets after it stole the election for Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June, Obama kept his... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/obamas_chump_diplomacy_99259.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/obamas_chump_diplomacy_99259.html Rich Lowry Rich Lowry 2009/11 11/21/2009/00/00/00 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 07:53:16 -0600 The "reformers" in the White House and the House of Representatives have made all too plain their vision of the federal government's power to coerce individual Americans to make the "right" health-care choices. The highly partisan bill the House just passed includes severe penalties for individuals who do not purchase insurance approved by the federal government. By neatly tucking these penalties into the IRS code, the so-called reformers have brought them under the tax-enforcement power of the federal government. The Congressional Budget Office stated on October 29... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/criminalizing_health_care_freedom_99258.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/criminalizing_health_care_freedom_99258.html Brian Walsh & Hans Spakovsky Brian Walsh & Hans Spakovsky 2009/11 11/21/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:26:37 -0600 WASHINGTON -- Critics of Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to bring the self-proclaimed mastermind of the 9/11 attacks and four other accused terrorists to New York for trial can't seriously believe the city will have trouble handling the expected "Trial of the Century" hoopla. The critics can't really think a judge is going to give Khalid Sheik Mohammed an open microphone to spew his jihadist views, or fear that a jury -- sitting just blocks from Ground Zero -- will look for reasons to let an accused mass murderer off on some technicality. Everyone knows that... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/civilian_trials_help_win_war_of_ideas.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/21/civilian_trials_help_win_war_of_ideas.html Eugene Robinson Eugene Robinson 2009/11 11/21/2009/00/00/00 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:26:55 -0600 The U.S. Senate recently released its long-awaited proposal for a government-run hostile takeover of the entire U.S. health care system. Predictably, it includes a barrage of higher taxes to pay for the bill's immense price tag. An important addition to the list of tax hikes included in the Senate bill was an increase in the Medicare portion of the payroll tax. The current Medicare tax is 2.9 percent, paid half each by workers and employers. The proposal in the Senate bill raises this to 3.4 percent for workers making more than $200,000 a year ($250,000 for joint filers). Under a... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/taxes_proposed_to_pay_for_health_care_reform_99241.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/taxes_proposed_to_pay_for_health_care_reform_99241.html Curtis Dubay Curtis Dubay 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:04:37 -0600 Slate magazine is just one of the countless media outlets convulsing with St. Vitus' Dance over that demonic succubus Sarah Palin. In its reader forum, The Fray, one supposed Palinophobe took dead aim at the former Alaska governor's writing chops, excerpting the following sentence from her book: "The apartment was small, with slanting floors and irregular heat and a buzzer downstairs that didn't work, so that visitors had to call ahead from a pay phone at the corner gas station, where a black Doberman the size of a wolf paced through the night in vigilant patrol, its jaws... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/palinophobes_hate_first_ask_questions_later_99240.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/palinophobes_hate_first_ask_questions_later_99240.html Jonah Goldberg Jonah Goldberg 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:36:31 -0600 WASHINGTON -- For late-19th-century anarchists, terrorism was the "propaganda of the deed." And the most successful propaganda-by-deed in history was 9/11 -- not just the most destructive, but the most spectacular and telegenic. And now its self-proclaimed architect, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, has been given by the Obama administration a civilian trial in New York. Just as the memory fades, 9/11 has been granted a second life -- and KSM, a second act: "9/11, The Director's Cut," narration by KSM. September 11, 2001 had to speak for itself. A decade later, the deed will... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/travesty_in_new_york_99224.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/travesty_in_new_york_99224.html Charles Krauthammer Charles Krauthammer 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:49:18 -0600 The Boy Scouts' motto is: Be prepared. Who knew it meant preparing to defend themselves against purple-shirted union thuggery over community service? Kids, pay attention. This is a teachable moment for all of you on power, politics and Big Labor's culture of corruption. Last week at a city council meeting in Allentown, Pa., a top official of the local Service Employees International Union chapter ranted about 17-year-old Scout Kevin Anderson's park cleanup work. Anderson devoted some 200 hours to the job in order to earn an Eagle Scout badge. He picked up trash and helped clear... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/when_big_labor_bullies_and_volunteers_collide_99237.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/when_big_labor_bullies_and_volunteers_collide_99237.html Michelle Malkin Michelle Malkin 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:07:12 -0600 WASHINGTON -- In the beginning, the Obama administration directed a spotlight toward its careful, thoughtful decision-making process on Afghanistan. National security meetings were announced, photographed and highlighted in background briefings to the media. President Obama would apply the methods of the academy to the art of war -- the University of Chicago meets West Point -- thus assuring a skittish public that deliberation had preceded decision. Now the president and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates are desperately trying to jerk the spotlight away from a dysfunctional Afghan... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/obamas_dysfunctional_decision_making_99223.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/obamas_dysfunctional_decision_making_99223.html Michael Gerson Michael Gerson 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:47:52 -0600 ‘The mood of America is glum. Two-thirds of the public is dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country" and voters' anti-incumbent mood is approaching 1994 and 2006 levels, when control of Congress changed hands. So reported the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press on Nov. 11, summarizing its latest poll. I think there's reason to believe that the public's anger is even deeper than Pew's estimate because voters believe - correctly - that "the way things are going" is not getting better. If so, and with Republicans and... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/economy_is_weak_voters_are_angry__time_for_third_party_99222.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/economy_is_weak_voters_are_angry__time_for_third_party_99222.html Mort Kondracke Mort Kondracke 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:46:09 -0600 WASHINGTON -- This week, while "the most traveled president in history" was on his latest foreign adventure and bowing to Japanese Emperor Akihito, the rest of the O-Team was busy kowtowing to political correctness. The headlines tell the story: "(Defense Secretary Robert) Gates Condemns Leaks on Fort Hood Investigation," and "Gates Says 'Shut Up' About Fort Hood." "Attorney General Eric Holder Announces Terror Trials in New York City for 9-11-01 Plotters." "Guantanamo Detainees to Illinois Prison." All three of these actions -- the... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/suicide_pact_99238.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/suicide_pact_99238.html Oliver North Oliver North 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:09:42 -0600 As George W. Bush famously asked, "Is our children learning?" Apparently not in the twin capitals of liberalism, D.C. and New York. In a ranking of 50 states and D.C. by how much each spent per pupil in public schools in 2005, New York ranked first; D.C. third. The state spent $14,100, and New York City just a tad less. And the bountiful fruits of this massive transfer of taxpayers' wealth? In D.C., nearly half of all black and Latino students drop out. Of those who graduate, nearly half are reading and doing math at seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade levels. D.C. academic... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/dumbo_univeristy__99236.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/dumbo_univeristy__99236.html Pat Buchanan Pat Buchanan 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:06:17 -0600 Sarah Palin arouses venom from the left like Hillary Clinton from the right. On the day after her Oprah interview, Richard Cohen in The Washington Post said it was time for "Palintolgy," punning ungallantly on the study of fossils. In the New York Times, the television critic, writing about her appearance on Oprah, said "she still had the hunted look and defensive crouch" she demonstrated in the campaign. This is pretty much politics as usual. The dominant liberal media can't see beyond their stereotypes. Dylan Ratigan on MSNBC put Sarah Palin's face atop several... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/polishing_the_palin_mettle__99235.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/polishing_the_palin_mettle__99235.html Suzanne Fields Suzanne Fields 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:05:33 -0600 WASHINGTON -- For Sarah Palin, with her personality and history, to tell Rush Limbaugh that Republicans should welcome primary fights within their own ranks is hardly surprising. As much as it may pain her many critics, she also has a lot of history on her side. Many Republicans, looking at the recent fiasco in New York's 23rd Congressional District, argue that the endorsement by Palin and her talk-radio buddies of a rigid right-winger running on the Conservative Party cost Republicans a House seat they had held for more than a century. They worry that the populist anti-establishment... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/picking_a_fight_is_gop_tradition_99226.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/picking_a_fight_is_gop_tradition_99226.html David Broder David Broder 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:25:59 -0600 Attorney General Eric Holder adopted a tough guy pose when he announced that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others will be tried in federal court for the most heinous terror attack on Americans in history. "After eight years of delay," he intoned, "those allegedly responsible for the attacks of September 11 will finally face justice. It is past time to finally act." Where to begin? The claim that the Bush administration was somehow dilatory sets a new standard for gall, particularly coming from Eric Holder. As former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy points out,... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/holders_true_motive_99239.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/20/holders_true_motive_99239.html Mona Charen Mona Charen 2009/11 11/20/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:10:44 -0600 BILL O'REILLY, HOST: Let's begin this interview with a phone call you actually made to me to my house in late October 2008. We had been trying to get you on "The Factor" for months. Do you remember that? SARAH PALIN, FORMER GOVERNOR OF ALASKA: I do. Shhh, that was part of that going rogue stuff nobody was supposed to know about in the campaign. O'REILLY: So you were going rogue, calling O'Reilly at home. I don't know how you got my home number. But you basically said to me "I want to do the show," but why didn't you do it? PALIN: Whatever the... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/interview_with_sarah_palin_99255.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/interview_with_sarah_palin_99255.html The O'Reilly Factor The O'Reilly Factor 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:56:08 -0600 (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID, D-NEV.: This reform plan deals with health care. It saves lives. It saves money and it saves Medicare. We're going to do a bill. We hope that we don't have to do it with Democrats, but if we have to, we will. SEN. JOHN THUNE, R-S.D.: Nothing has really changed in terms of the basic elements of this proposal. They have tried to figure out a way to wrench it into a budget window that somehow makes it look like it costs less, but at the end of the day, it actually costs more than the Senate Finance Committee bill. (END VIDEO... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/roundtable_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99254.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/roundtable_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99254.html Special Report With Bret Baier Special Report With Bret Baier 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:54:14 -0600 GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: What's up with Senator Orrin Hatch? He's fired up! Why? Well, we know you love the inside story, and as always, we are giving it to you. We went to Senator Hatch's office, and he has a copy of the Senate health care bill printed out on his desk. He does not like what he sees. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) VAN SUSTEREN: Senator, nice to see you, sir. SEN. ORRIN HATCH, R - UTAH: Well, it's nice to see you. VAN SUSTEREN: I love that you have the U.S. code in your office. HATCH: Yes, we -- we -- I used to spend a lot of time in the U.S. code, and still... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/sen_hatch_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99253.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/sen_hatch_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99253.html On the Record On the Record 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:52:58 -0600 WOLF BLITZER: Let's go to Congressman Peter Hoekstra right now. He is the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. Congressman, thanks very much for coming in. I know you're getting ready to catch a flight. Are you satisfied with the answers you're getting so far from the executive branch of the U.S. government, whether the Pentagon or -- or the administration, the Army, as far as this investigation is concerned? REP. PETE HOEKSTRA (R), MICHIGAN: No, Wolf, I'm really not. And I think I probably share some of the same frustrations that Senator Lieberman has. I... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/rep_pete_hoekstra_on_nyc_terror_trials_99252.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/rep_pete_hoekstra_on_nyc_terror_trials_99252.html The Situation Room The Situation Room 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:51:34 -0600 I was in the worst possible place to hear of the worst possible idea for bringing the 9/11 plotters to justice. A dreary rain pelted New York City as tabloid headlines shouted from beneath tarpaulin-covered newsstands. "Evil Returns," proclaimed the giant New York Daily News headline plastered across the face of avowed mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. The New York Post featured a sunny postcard depicting a Manhattan skyline featuring the twin towers adorned by the words, "Welcome to New York." "NOW DIE!" is plastered below. "9/11 fiends coming here for... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/we_are_slowly_dismantling_our_war_on_terror.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/we_are_slowly_dismantling_our_war_on_terror.html Mark Davis Mark Davis 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:58:12 -0600 Chairwoman Maloney, Vice Chairman Schumer, I am pleased to appear before the Joint Economic Committee today. The House and the Senate are both making rapid progress toward the goal of comprehensive financial reform, and I appreciate the opportunity to talk about why that reform effort is so essential for the health of our economy and what, in our view, is necessary to make the effort successful. The United States is in the process of recovering from the worst financial and economic crisis in generations. After an extended and painful contraction, we saw solid annualized GDP growth of 3.5... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/geithners_testimony_to_the_joint_economic_committee_99233.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/geithners_testimony_to_the_joint_economic_committee_99233.html Timothy Geithner Timothy Geithner 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:29:57 -0600 SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you all very much for being here. I want to start by thanking Ambassador Eikenberry and General McChrystal and all of the dedicated men and women of the U.S. and NATO ISAF missions here in Afghanistan. The work that Ambassador Eikenberry and General McChrystal are doing together, both their personal collaboration and the joint efforts of their teams, is a model for civilian-military cooperation and a source of confidence that we will make progress toward our objectives. I also want to thank Ambassador Holbrooke and his team in Washington, who have provided vision and... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/secretary_clintons_press_conference_in_kabul_99227.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/secretary_clintons_press_conference_in_kabul_99227.html Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:12:59 -0600 I'm sure I would like Sarah Palin if I got the chance to meet her. We share many things in common. She is still married to her first spouse, as am I. She has a Down syndrome son. I have a brother with Down syndrome. We share the same faith and we both like the outdoors. She is conservative on economic and social issues, and so am I. In her new book, "Going Rogue," Palin complains about her running mate's handlers, whom she says kept her from being herself. I have similar complaints. Those handlers also kept me from interviewing her. The handlers are long gone, of course,... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/palin_and_the_future_of_conservatism_99221.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/palin_and_the_future_of_conservatism_99221.html Cal Thomas Cal Thomas 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:45:58 -0600 Gov. Rick Perry of Texas recently joined commentators Rush Limbaugh, Patrick Buchanan and others in using the word "socialist" to describe President Barack Obama and his policies, and we all know what's coming: a verbal bombardment. Critics will call him hysterical, paranoid and stupid. They will say he is a scaremonger misusing the language for political effect. Instead of looking at where Obama's policies are taking us, we'll have another fight over the meaning of a word and its connotations. So fine. Let's drop the s- word and simply agree instead that... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/taking_governmental_invasiveness_too_far_99220.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/taking_governmental_invasiveness_too_far_99220.html Jay Ambrose Jay Ambrose 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 07:38:55 -0600 On his recent trip to Asia, President Obama found China, Japan and South Korea - like many nations these days - in no mood to hear more American lectures. Beijing is worried about owning so much American debt. Tokyo is tiring of an American military base in Okinawa, and wants to redefine its relationship with us. Seoul is starting to doubt American commitment to keep it safe from North Korea. Why all the sudden pushback to our charismatic president? Our dollar is crashing, while the price of gold is soaring. The budget deficit has never been worse - and the president wants to float even more... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/circling_sharks_smell_american_blood_99205.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/circling_sharks_smell_american_blood_99205.html Victor Davis Hanson Victor Davis Hanson 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:22:34 -0600 WASHINGTON -- Normal human beings -- let's call them real Americans -- cannot understand why, 10 months after President Obama's inauguration, Congress is still tied down in a procedural torture chamber trying to pass the health care bill Obama promised in his campaign. Last year, the voters gave him the largest popular vote margin won by a presidential candidate in 20 years. They gave Democrats their largest Senate majority since 1976 and their largest House majority since 1992. Obama didn't just offer bromides about hope and change. He made quite specific pledges. You'd... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_gops_no-exit_strategy_99206.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_gops_no-exit_strategy_99206.html E.J. Dionne E.J. Dionne 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:18:28 -0600 PHOENIX -- In 2006, long before there was an Obama administration determined to impose a command-and-control federal health care system, a young orthopedic surgeon walked into the Goldwater Institute here with an idea. The institute, America's most potent advocate of limited government, embraced Eric Novack's idea for protecting Arizonans from health care coercion. In 2008, Arizonans voted on Novack's proposed amendment to the state's Constitution: "No law shall be passed that restricts a person's freedom of choice of private health care systems or private plans... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/fighting_a_coericion_clause_99203.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/fighting_a_coericion_clause_99203.html George Will George Will 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:11:05 -0600 Amtrak riders passing through New London, Conn., can catch an odd sight in an otherwise picturesque New England setting: a fancy corporate center standing next to a street grid emptied of nearly all its buildings. This used to be the Fort Trumbull neighborhood, a working class enclave that would have been largely forgotten had it not been central to a controversial 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on eminent domain -- the government's right to take private property for public use. New London had wanted to replace the area's weathered cottages and auto-body shops with a cityscape more... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_civic_price_of_courting_corporations__99217.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_civic_price_of_courting_corporations__99217.html Froma Harrop Froma Harrop 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:57:16 -0600 If you are planning on reading a column about former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's presidential prospects, you will be deeply disappointed. I don't know whether Palin will run for president in 2012, and right now I don't really care. Most in the media do care, of course, which is why they can't seem to stop buzzing about her book, her book tour and her political intentions. You'd think the Iowa caucuses were right around the corner. Even "real" news programs, such as CNN's "State of the Union," hosted by John King, spent too much time for my taste... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_nations_focus_is_on_obama_not_palin_99219.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/the_nations_focus_is_on_obama_not_palin_99219.html Stuart Rothenberg Stuart Rothenberg 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:35:28 -0600 A recent Gallup poll found that 55 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of the mass media. Hence, many readers may have felt little outrage when they read a few weeks ago that Scott Gerber, then communications director for California Attorney General Jerry Brown, recorded interviews with reporters -- most notably, my friend and colleague Carla Marinucci -- without notifying them. The unauthorized recordings, however, were sufficiently serious to result in Gerber's resignation -- as his actions conflicted with a California law requiring that all parties consent to a recording of... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/brown_ensnared_in_his_own_tapegate_trap_99212.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/brown_ensnared_in_his_own_tapegate_trap_99212.html Debra Saunders Debra Saunders 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:49:53 -0600 On his 10-day trip to Asia and in his 10th month in office, Barack Obama is beginning to encounter limits on his ambition to change the world. Even as he bowed to the king of Saudi Arabia last April and to the emperor of Japan last week, the world refuses to bow back. This is not how it was supposed to be. "I am absolutely certain that generations from now," he said on the night he clinched the Democratic presidential nomination in June 2008, "we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/obama_bows_but_the_world_refuses_to_bow_back__99214.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/obama_bows_but_the_world_refuses_to_bow_back__99214.html Michael Barone Michael Barone 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:05:46 -0600 RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Looking at this city, you can imagine what a Palestinian state could someday be like if folks got serious: The streets are clean, there's new construction in every direction, and Palestinian soldiers line the roads. A visitor sees new apartment buildings, banks, brokerage firms, luxury car dealerships, and even health clubs. These are "facts on the ground," as the Israelis like to say. And they are the result of a determined Palestinian effort, with U.S. and Israeli support, to begin creating the institutions of a viable Palestinian state. Even Israeli... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/a_lesson_from_ramallah_99204.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/a_lesson_from_ramallah_99204.html David Ignatius David Ignatius 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:53:10 -0600 "The political risks of failure are pretty high." A former congressional aide offered this ominous assessment following the House of Representatives' passage of "health care reform." Warning to the Senate: President Obama and his party face political catastrophe if you fail to do your part so that the President can sign a bill! Nonsense. The political risks of success are much, much higher. Taxes would go up -- and not just on "the rich." And since "the rich" provide jobs, they would hire fewer people, spend less on their businesses, and take fewer... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/senate_help_your_president_--_deep-six_obamacare_99215.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/senate_help_your_president_--_deep-six_obamacare_99215.html Larry Elder Larry Elder 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:43:52 -0600 The 19th century American writer Henry Adams said the descent of American presidents from George Washington to Ulysses S. Grant was enough to discredit the theory of evolution. The same could be said of the pantheon of conservative political heroes, which in the last half-century has gone from Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan to Sarah Palin. That refutation may be agreeable to Palin, who doesn't put much stock in Darwin anyway. You can confirm all this by looking at what the three wrote. Goldwater, the 1964 Republican presidential nominee, made his reputation four years earlier with an... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/palin_and_the_conservative_descent_99213.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/palin_and_the_conservative_descent_99213.html Steve Chapman Steve Chapman 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:46:54 -0600 The loudest voices on the right never tire of telling us that they are the truest patriots. They claim to be the deepest believers in our system, the strongest defenders of our Constitution, the most upbeat, bold and courageous Americans anywhere. But now that the government is finally prepared to put the perpetrators of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on trial, these same patriots are the first to spread doubt, instigate anxiety and abandon constitutional principles. When did fearmongering in a time of war become an act of patriotism? Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to try al-Qaida... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/what_is_so_patriotic_about_fearmongering__99216.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/19/what_is_so_patriotic_about_fearmongering__99216.html Joe Conason Joe Conason 2009/11 11/19/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:26:03 -0600 GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: How much? $849 billion, with a B -- $849 billion. The Congressional Budget Office estimates Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid's health care bill will cost $849 billion over the next 10 years. Now, according to the CBO, the bill would reduce the deficit by $127 billion the next decade. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham joins us live. And Senator Graham, before we even get to this health care, I want to talk about Attorney General Eric Holder. You roughed him up a little bit today. SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, R - S.C.: Well, he's a good man. I just think... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/sen_graham_on_his_question_of_ag_holder_99230.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/sen_graham_on_his_question_of_ag_holder_99230.html On the Record On the Record 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:45:45 -0600 RACHEL MADDOW: Joining us now is Senator Tom Harkin, chairman of the Senate Health Committee. Senator Harkin, we‘ve been really looking forward to getting you on the show. Thank you so much for your time tonight. SEN. TOM HARKIN (D-IA), HEALTH COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Rachel, good to be with you. MADDOW: You need 60 votes to overcome the Republican filibuster and start debating this bill. Do you think you have the 60 votes? HARKIN: Rachel, to put it in baseball terms, we rounded third and we‘re heading to home. (LAUGHTER) HARKIN: And I‘ve got to tell you: no... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/senator_harkin_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99232.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/senator_harkin_on_the_senate_health_care_bill_99232.html Rachel Maddow Show Rachel Maddow Show 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:27:09 -0600 (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ERIC HOLDER, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: When the 9/11 conspirators are brought to trial, I have every confidence that the presiding judge will ensure appropriate decorum. And if Khalid Sheikh Mohammed makes the same statements he made in his military commission proceedings, I have every confidence that the nation and the world will see him for the coward that he is. (END VIDEO CLIP) MATTHEWS: Welcome back to HARDBALL. That was attorney General Eric Holder on Capitol Hill today. Well, did he make the right call by sending that trial up to New York? Are critics like Rudy... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/reps_nadler__lungren_debate_nyc_terror_trials_99231.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/reps_nadler__lungren_debate_nyc_terror_trials_99231.html Hardball Hardball 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:25:34 -0600 BRET BAIER, HOST: This is a Fox News alert. You're looking live at Capitol Hill. In just a moment Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is expected to discuss his healthcare reform bill, and also the Congressional Budget Office's price tag that they put on it of $849 billion. As you wait for the senators to walk in here, we are getting some news from our producer up there, Trish Turner up on Capitol Hill. She says there have been changes to the Senate bill, and they have done some changing to the taxes on the Cadillac plans, the high-cost plans, the individual plans worth $8,500. There... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/panel_on_reids_health_care_bill_99229.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/panel_on_reids_health_care_bill_99229.html Special Report With Bret Baier Special Report With Bret Baier 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:22:41 -0600 HENRY: Well, since the last time we have interviewed you, you have won the Nobel Peace Prize. And, by the end of this week, you will have visited 20 countries as president... OBAMA: Yes. HENRY: ... the most of any U.S. president in his first year what. Have you accomplished? OBAMA: Well, a couple of key things. Number one, I think that we have restored America's standing in the world. And that's confirmed by polls. I think a recent one indicated that, around the world, before my election, less than half of the people, maybe less than 40 percent of the people, thought that you could... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/interview_with_president_obama_99228.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/interview_with_president_obama_99228.html The Situation Room The Situation Room 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:17:24 -0600 SECRETARY CLINTON: How are you? QUESTION: Good. How are you? Did you get some rest? SECRETARY CLINTON: I got a little bit. How about you guys? QUESTION: Yeah. QUESTION: Not enough. QUESTION: Could I start off? STAFF: Yes. QUESTION: I guess maybe I'll ask a general question. What message are you going to bring to President Karzai, both over dinner tonight and in any other meetings? Is there anything specifically the President has asked you to relay to him? SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, this is a specific opportunity for everyone to take stock of where we are and to determine how we're... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/secretary_clinton_takes_questions_en_route_to_kabul_99209.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/secretary_clinton_takes_questions_en_route_to_kabul_99209.html Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:44:01 -0600 Bill O'Reilly is mad at me because I'm not mad enough about taxes. Last week on "The O'Reilly Factor", we talked about California's and New York's enormous budget deficits and planned tax increases. Those states would have big surpluses had they just grown their governments in pace with inflation. But of course they didn't. Now the politicians act like their current deficits are something imposed on them by the recession. But that's nonsense. They created the problem with their reckless spending. Let's look at the particulars. Had the... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/worse_than_taxes_99199.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/worse_than_taxes_99199.html John Stossel John Stossel 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:54:07 -0600 These days, where you fall on the crucial issue of Sarah Palin tells the rest of us all we need to know about your character. You're either A) a scum-sucking, terror-loving elitist or B) a radical, tea bag-loving simpleton. Yet believe it or not, one can (as I do) admire Palin's charisma and roots, appreciate her dissent on the policy experiments brainy folks in Washington are cooking up and, at the same time, believe she has no business running for president in 2012. In fact, all you haters out there motivate me to root for her. There's nothing wrong, for instance, with The... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/the_palin_experience_99201.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/the_palin_experience_99201.html David Harsanyi David Harsanyi 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:01:14 -0600 WASHINGTON -- Let's dispense with three fallacies swirling about the question of abortion coverage in health care reform. Two are being peddled by anti-abortion forces. One, perhaps the most relevant, is being pushed by the pro-choice side. To be clear about where I am: Firmly pro-choice. Firmly opposed to the amendment from Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., which would effectively prevent women who purchase insurance on the newly created exchanges from obtaining abortion coverage. But also: Respectful of the convictions of those who disagree. And, consequently, sympathetic to the notion that... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/fallacies_on_abortion_coverage_99195.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/fallacies_on_abortion_coverage_99195.html Ruth Marcus Ruth Marcus 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:43:38 -0600 In the past few days, the White House has made it clear that the president wants specific exit strategies for all his Afghan war options. That brought to mind the advice almost a century ago of an American geopolitician describing the only exit strategy worth considering: Over there, over there Send the word, send the word, Over there That the Yanks are coming, The Yanks are coming, The drums rum tumming every where So prepare, Say a prayer Send the word, Send the word to beware We'll be over, we're coming over. And we won't be back till it's over over there! The... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/if_were_not_in_to_win_bring_our_troops_home_99188.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/if_were_not_in_to_win_bring_our_troops_home_99188.html Tony Blankley Tony Blankley 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:31:45 -0600 I get where President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder are coming from. They think that if we change our way of life, the terrorists will have won. In principle, I agree. If upholding our values makes fighting the war on terror harder, then it should be harder. That's why I don't care much that it will cost more money to try suspected terrorists in the Big Apple than it would in the state-of-the-art facility at Guantanamo Bay. Similarly, while the security concerns stemming from a trial in New York are real, I think we can handle them. And, again, just because something is... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/terrorists_should_face_military_tribunal_99202.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/terrorists_should_face_military_tribunal_99202.html Jonah Goldberg Jonah Goldberg 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:28:13 -0600 TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- The presidential election that will take place Nov. 29 is the legitimate way to solve the crisis that has given this country a disproportionate international presence since President Manuel Zelaya was deposed in June. This is an obvious conclusion after talking at length with interim President Roberto Micheletti, judicial and legislative authorities, members of the opposition, business leaders and foreign observers during a recent visit. Nobody in the current government is interested in a fraudulent election, nor is one likely given safeguards that include a widely... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/time_to_support_honduras_elections_99198.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/time_to_support_honduras_elections_99198.html Alvaro Vargas Llosa Alvaro Vargas Llosa 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:31:52 -0600 WASHINGTON -- Eric Holder -- distinguished prosecutor, judge, foe of public corruption, basketball enthusiast, mentor to disadvantaged youth -- seemed a reassuring choice for attorney general. When Holder affirmed during his confirmation hearing that America remains at war with terrorists, Sen. Lindsey Graham enthused, "I'm almost ready to vote for you right now." So how did Holder become the most destructive member of Barack Obama's Cabinet? Holder launched his tenure by showing disdain for the work of career federal prosecutors when it fit his ideological... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/eric_holders_grave_mistake_99197.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/eric_holders_grave_mistake_99197.html Michael Gerson Michael Gerson 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:36:43 -0600 If General Stanley McChrystal's request of President Obama for 40,000 additional troops for Afghanistan is to be met, the cost would be $40 billion to $54 billion a year, according to an internal government estimate published by The New York Times on November 15. The General originally requested 80,000 additional troops. The Times reports, "The rough formula used by the White House, of about $1 million per soldier a year, appears almost constant." The same Times article quotes Congressman John Murtha (D-PA), chairman of a subcommittee on defense appropriations, as saying that... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/mr_president_bring_the_troops_home_99196.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/mr_president_bring_the_troops_home_99196.html Ed Koch Ed Koch 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:40:39 -0600 President Obama took his declining dollar to the Asia-Pacific economic conference, and he added to it a declinist opinion of America's economy. His big message? Don't count on American consumers to lead the world from recession to recovery and beyond. His second big message? In the U.S., we must save more and spend less. Huh? This is the same limits-to-growth, central-planning wisdom we hear so often these days at home. It's also tone deaf, to say the least. Despite a sinking greenback that is wreaking havoc among the Asian economies, and in the face of repeated currency... http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/president_zero_sum_goes_to_asia_99194.html http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/18/president_zero_sum_goes_to_asia_99194.html Larry Kudlow Larry Kudlow 2009/11 11/18/2009/00/00/00 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:46:14 -0600