Overview for FF Spotlight

The Problem with Medicaid

Arizona’s plan to severely restrict Medicaid eligibility reflects the real problem with American medical care: its cost. Arizona’s plan to severely restrict Medicaid eligibility reflects the real problem with American medical care and that is its cost. I am a nephrologist and Medicaid actually …

Written by Stanley Goldfarb on Tuesday January 25, 2011

Thomas’ Financial Forms: No Scandal Here

Liberal groups are crying "gotcha!" after news that Justice Thomas failed to report his wife's income, but the lapse is more overblown than serious. The LA Times , at the urging of Common Cause, is running a story headlined "Clarence Thomas Failed to Report Wife's Income." It goes on to report …

Written by Austin Bramwell on Tuesday January 25, 2011

Will Leaks End Mideast Peace Process?

Leaked documents showing the Palestinian Authority open to concessions could lose them the support of the Palestinian people. The leaked documents published by Al-Jazeera and The Guardian show the Palestinian Authority considering concessions in exchange for big gains. But, as I discuss in my …

Written by David Frum on Monday January 24, 2011

2012 GOP Race: Off to a Slow Start

Kevin Drum raises an interesting question: why has no Republican formally declared their candidacy for president? Jim Geraghty reminds that today is the fourth anniversary of Barack Obama's declaration for presidency. Kevin Drum follows up with a question: why has no Republican yet formally …

Written by David Frum on Monday January 24, 2011

How Do You Put a SOTU Together?

How do you decide what goes into a State of the Union speech and what is unnecessary padding? Combine one part Speech from the Throne. One part campaign ad. And one part Oscar Night. That’s the formula for a presidential State of the Union address. While working in the Bush White House, I had …

Written by David Frum on Saturday January 22, 2011

Abramoff: Hero or Villain?

Casino Jack certainly presents a great satirical indictment of lobbying. But Jack Abramoff, as sweaty and sleazy and crude and rude as he was, was right. In her recent book, Third World America, columnist Arianna Huffington observed, "Some people look at laws and say, 'Why' or "Why …

Written by Telly Davidson on Friday January 21, 2011

China and America can Forge an Energy Partnership

China and America normally view each other with suspicion, but on energy policy, there is space to cooperate. Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit has raised the usual narrative about the numerous ways in which the U.S. and China annoy each other. One is energy. Anxiety over China's …

Written by Jim DiPeso on Friday January 21, 2011

Frum: The SOTU Obama Will Never Give

What should President Obama say for his State of the Union speech? In the latest issue of Esquire magazine, I give my suggestions for what President Obama should say at his State of the Union address next Tuesday: It's a weird feeling of gender bending to imagine writing a major speech for …

Written by David Frum on Friday January 21, 2011

How Serious Are the GOP Budget Cuts?

The GOP has unveiled its list of proposed budget cuts. Frum Forum asked some contributors whether the proposals are truly serious. The Republican Study Committee has released its guide to exactly what government programs the GOP wants to cut. David Weigel reports that a lot of the cuts …

Written by FrumForum Editors on Thursday January 20, 2011

US Should Avoid Emulating Canadian Healthcare

The US needs to worry about emulating Canada's healthcare system, not the United Kingdom's. I am mostly on the same page as Dr. Goldfarb in the health care debate, although I’m a lot more skeptical that there’s much to learn from reforms to the UK’s National Health per se. In his most recent …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Thursday January 20, 2011

Was Lieberman Good for the GOP?

Joe Lieberman came into power because conservatives in Connecticut dethroned liberal Republican Senator Lowell Weicker. Was it worth it? Noah Kristula-Green writes that "Joe Lieberman’s retirement is a great time to reflect on the benefits of big tents and broad coalitions," and "the fact that …

Written by Thomas J. Marier on Thursday January 20, 2011

Clean Air Act Under Attack

Its safe to say nobody wants dirty air. Yet the new House Energy and Power Subcommittee Chair Ed Whitfield is calling to reopen debate on the Clean Air Act. Typically, when politicians stake out a position against laws that limit pollution, they are careful to indicate support for the underlying …

Written by David Jenkins on Thursday January 20, 2011

Learning to Live with Obamacare

Don't let Wednesday's repeal vote fool you. The GOP's already signaling that an apocalyptic showdown over health care isn't in the works. Reminisce with me for a moment on the summer of 2009. Remember it? Swine flu? Protests in Iran? The Hangover ? Think back now on another memory from that …

Written by Shawn F Summers on Thursday January 20, 2011

Where Was the Left's Civility in the Bush Years?

The Left likes to claim that political discourse has become less civil since Obama's election. Have we forgotten how bad things were during the Bush administration? Underlining the current concerns about political civility is the assumption that the discourse has become coarser since Barack Obama …

Written by Martin Krossel on Thursday January 20, 2011

With Repeal Vote Over, the Real Work Begins

Republicans have urgent concerns with the healthcare bill. But the only way to fix those problems will be by cooperating and compromising with the Dems. Okay, so we got that out of our system. Fine. Now, some serious work. As I see it, Republicans have 2 most urgent concerns with the healthcare …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday January 19, 2011

What's With the Left's Hate for Lieberman?

Over at Slate, Emily Bazelon is listing the reasons she “hates” Joe Lieberman. Apparently the left's call for civility in politics stops with the Senator from Connecticut. Over at Slate, Emily Bazelon is listing the reasons she “hates” Joe Lieberman. The reasons illuminate the mind of what …

Written by John Vecchione on Wednesday January 19, 2011

What the GOP Could Learn from Lieberman

Joe Lieberman's retirement provides a great opportunity for the GOP to reflect on the benefits of big tents and broad coalitions. Joe Lieberman's retirement is a great time to reflect on the benefits of big tents and broad coalitions. For many liberals and Democrats, Lieberman is the closest thing …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Wednesday January 19, 2011

Don't Import Britain's Healthcare Missteps

For many on the left, the endgame for American healthcare is a system similar to Britain's National Health Service. I appreciate Mr. Lehrer’s comments but I must beg to differ with his characterization of the desires of President Obama or “anyone else on the American left” (a very large cohort, …

Written by Stanley Goldfarb on Wednesday January 19, 2011

CFR's Anti-Israel Letter: Emoting, Not Thinking

A group of foreign policy heavyweights is urging the U.S. to vote at the UN to condemn Israeli settlements on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem as illegal. Yesterday, a group of foreign policy heavyweights released a letter urging that the United States break from past precedent and cast a …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday January 19, 2011

Is Italy the Next Tunisia?

One can't help but wonder after the most recent revelations from the police investigation of Silvio Berlusconi. You are left wondering after the most recent revelations from the police investigation of Silvio Berlusconi. Topless women dressed in nurse and police costumes stripped for the …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday January 19, 2011