Overview for National Post Archive

Bring on Stimulus II

In February, Obama offered voters a deal: If they would accept a massive increase in government spending and debt, he would hold unemployment below 8%. It's now 9.5% and still rising. There was a saying last year: "Flat is the new up." This year's saying: "Less bad than feared" is the new …

Written by David Frum on Monday July 13, 2009

Damaged Goods

Sarah Palin may yet try a run for the presidency in 2012. But if her political career is not quite ended, it now seems headed nowhere positive. Sarah Palin said on Friday that her decision to resign as Governor had been in the works "for a while" and "after much consideration." In that case, you …

Written by David Frum on Sunday July 5, 2009

Not Quite Splitting The Difference On Jerusalem

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will give a speech this weekend accepting President Obama’s call for a sovereign Palestinian state. Netanyahu will set some conditions for that acceptance, practical steps to safeguard Israeli security. Those conditions will get a sympathetic hearing …

Written by David Frum on Saturday June 13, 2009

What You Hear From Obama May Not Be What You Get

Critics mock Obama for so often speaking from a teleprompter. Obama does so because he parses his words so very exactly. It is never wise to listen to an Obama speech without the text in hand. June 4 must have some special place in the Barack Obama political calendar. On June 4, 2009, the …

Written by David Frum on Saturday June 6, 2009

The Moral Math Of Glowing Green Monkeys

Genetically engineer monkeys to make them glow green? It’s always cool when actual scientists do what 11-year-old boys think scientists do. Next thing, the marmoset monkey team will produce a working starship for Starfleet Command. The Japanese team got their results by encoding a fluorescen…

Written by David Frum on Saturday May 30, 2009

Obama Pledge Lends Validity To Extremist Islam

Candidate Obama promised to deliver a major speech to the Muslim world from a Muslim capital. On June 4, President Obama will make good on that promise in Cairo. What could go wrong with this heartwarming outreach? Barack Obama made an unwise commitment during his campaign. Actually he made …

Written by David Frum on Saturday May 16, 2009

The Earth, The Moon And The Stars All For A Mere $6.5-Trillion

Since his inauguration on January 20, 2009, President Obama has proposed new spending programs that will add, over the next 10 years, $6.5-trillion to the American national debt. Hey — anybody remember the origin of the phrase, “the hundred days”? If you guessed Franklin Roosevelt’s burst of …

Written by David Frum on Saturday April 25, 2009

If Nukes Are Outlawed...

...Only outlaw states will have nukes; This month, Barack Obama announced his desire to eliminate nuclear weapons from the face of the Earth. The bold gesture was widely applauded. But is such a dream possible -- or even desirable? The National Post has asked leading pundits and experts to weigh …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday April 15, 2009

When Are You Too Old To Become A Ski Bum?

American friends express amazement that I could have grown up in Canada without learning to parallel ski or slalom. I answered: "Growing up in Canada, I learned to minimize my exposure to snow and frost." "Life is difficult enough without throwing yourself off the side of a mountain." That was my …

Written by David Frum on Saturday April 4, 2009

A War You Can Stop

Mexico's violence has reached deeper and deeper into the United States and Canada. Guess which city leads the world in kidnappings? No, not Beirut. Not Baghdad. Mexico City. And guess who comes second? Ready? It's Phoenix, Ariz.: 370 recorded cases in 2008 alone, and who knows how many …

Written by David Frum on Saturday March 14, 2009

Living Large In D. C.

Back during the boom years, people who worked in government used to joke about the comparatively low pay. Now a government salary suddenly has all the appeal of a stack of cash money. "I'm heading down to Washington," said the sad-faced New York economist. "You know: the financial capital of the …

Written by David Frum on Saturday March 7, 2009

Raising The Alarm

Geert Wilders has become famous as a ferocious critic of Islam and of the Netherlands' large and growing Muslim minority. He may soon find himself the elected leader of a bitterly divided country on an angry and unstable continent. In a small room in Washington's National Press Club, a tall man …

Written by David Frum on Saturday February 28, 2009

China Over A Barrel

If the world is to sustain open trade -- and progress to the even freer trade we need for future prosperity -- China will have to change its ways. With global markets tanking and unemployment soaring, Canadians are pinching their pennies. But as National Post contributors explain in a new …

Written by David Frum on Saturday February 21, 2009

Yes, We Can (Even If They Can't)

President Obama's imminent visit to Canada presents Canadian conservatives with a great danger and a great opportunity. President Obama's imminent visit to Canada presents Canadian conservatives with a great danger and a great opportunity. The danger: Obama is pushing the United States hard …

Written by David Frum on Saturday February 14, 2009

China And India In The Balance

Scary as this recession is for the developed world, it poses a terrible and lethal threat to the world's two biggest emerging markets. More human beings have escaped poverty in the past 20 years than in any equivalent period in the history of the world. Since 1990, China and India have pulled …

Written by David Frum on Saturday February 7, 2009

An Unwelcome Revolution

With the election fo Barack Obama, American voters are about to get the sharpest left-turn in public policy since the middle 1960s. What did Americans want when they voted for Barack Obama in November? Some wanted an end to the war in Iraq. Some wanted the middle-class tax cut Obama offered. …

Written by David Frum on Saturday January 31, 2009

The Speech Obama Should Have Given

President Barack Obama's inaugural address was a sad, flat effort that cruelly wasted one of the grandest moments in American history: the swearing in of the first black president. President Barack Obama's inaugural address was a sad, flat effort that cruelly wasted one of the grandest moments in …

Written by David Frum on Saturday January 24, 2009

Two Books To Help You Understand America

Red State, Blue State, Rich State, Poor State by Andrew Gelman and The Big Sort by Bill Bishop are must-reads for understanding the inner workings of American politics. Good news: If you haven't already read any of the half-dozen books published about John McCain in 2008 -- or the many more …

Written by David Frum on Saturday January 10, 2009

For Its Own Survival, Harper Government Will Have To Feel The Pain

Stéphane Dion’s bid for unelected power has collapsed, Parliament is prorogued, and the Conservatives will remain the government for now. But the position of Canada's Conservatives has suddenly become much more precarious. The crisis is over; the danger continues. Stéphane Dion’s bid for …

Written by David Frum on Saturday December 6, 2008

Only The Losers Will Survive Ottawa's Game Of Competitive Suicide

What is going on in Ottawa is a game of competitive suicide. Whoever “wins” this parliamentary power play destroys himself. Only the “losers” will survive. What is going on in Ottawa is a game of competitive suicide. Whoever “wins” this parliamentary power play destroys himself. Only the “losers” …

Written by David Frum on Monday December 1, 2008