Overview for News

The Fat Diaries: Drinking Away the Cold

Why is it that when the weather outside is frightful, all of our favorite drinks seem to be crammed with sugar and caffeine? Cold enough for you? If you’re like me, or anyone else in the D.C. metro area, you’ve been appalled by the unseasonably cold December we’ve been having. It’s not the …

Written by Monica Marier on Friday December 17, 2010

Help! I Don't Believe in True Love

David Eddie hears from a reader, who after two divorces, has soured on love. Can she save her latest relationship? Should she even try? Writing in the Globe and Mail , David Eddie hears from a reader in a relationship. After two divorces, she's soured on love, but her new girlfriend says she's …

Written by David Eddie on Friday December 17, 2010

How the Funding Fight Could Hurt the GOP

Tea partiers and talk radio are urging the GOP towards another government shutdown. But what voters really care about are jobs, not the deficit. It’s déjà vu all over again. 15 years ago the Gingrich Revolution fizzled out almost immediately after it started because the budget-cutting zeal of many …

Written by Andrew Pavelyev on Friday December 17, 2010

Are American Jews an Obstacle to Peace?

In his latest column, the New York Times' Roger Cohen accuses Israel's American Jewish supporters of delaying peace in the region. But is his charge valid? Are American Jews who support Israel responsible for the lack of peace in the region? Reflecting long-standing “group think” among journalists …

Written by Martin Krossel on Friday December 17, 2010

How Would President Romney Govern?

Ross Douthat raises an interesting question: What does Romney's campaign-style reveal about how he might govern? Do we know the "real" Romney? "Sincerity is everything - once you can fake that, you've got it made." There's Mitt Romney's problem in 1 sentence. He cannot fake sincerity. His …

Written by David Frum on Friday December 17, 2010

Top Dem: White House Needs Fresh Blood

President Obama's inner circle seems to be smaller and tighter than almost any I can recall. After the midterm "shellacking", it's time for a shake up. News that the Obama White House staff may soon experience a shake-up is hardly surprising. Changes in personnel and assignments are to be expected …

Written by Les Francis on Thursday December 16, 2010

Live Chat With Frum

Join David Frum tomorrow at 3pm for his last Frum Forum livechat of the year. You can ask your questions live on Friday or submit them in advance. Join David Frum today, Friday December 17th, at 3pm for a live-chat here on Frum Forum . You can ask your questions live on Friday or submit …

Written by FrumForum Editors on Thursday December 16, 2010

You Read it First at FrumForum

Robert Nelson in the Weekly Standard notes that the Gulf suffered less damage from the oil spill than feared, a development first reported by FF's Tim Mak. Robert Nelson in the Weekly Standard notes that five months after the Gulf oil spill was capped, it’s turning out that the region has …

Written by FrumForum Editors on Thursday December 16, 2010

Congress Grandstands Over Christmas

Sen. DeMint claims pushing the START vote at Christmas is sacrilegious, while Dems are labeling the GOP's delay on the omnibus anti-Christian. Who cares? So Senator Jim DeMint said that it was sacrilegious of Senate Democrats to push through the START treaty at Christmas. Who cares? Is this any …

Written by Henry Clay on Thursday December 16, 2010

Why the Mandate Fight Won't Sink Romney

Romney's received flak for allegedly flip-flopping on the health mandate. But he can use the issue to redirect attention to a larger problem: weak health cost controls. Mitt Romney’s support for Judge Henry Hudson’s ruling against the Obamacare insurance mandate has led to predictable howls over …

Written by Stanley Goldfarb on Thursday December 16, 2010

Insiders Blame Financial Panel Rift on Dem Chair

Members of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission are pointing the finger at Chairman Phil Angelides for the panel's missteps. The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission was supposed to provide a bi-partisan explanation of the causes of the financial crisis, in a style similar to the 9/11 Commission …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Thursday December 16, 2010

How to Fight the 21st Century Pirate

A century ago, the world had no trouble combating piracy. Why then do the Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden still pose such a threat today? Partly because no Americans or Canadians are involved at the moment, the issue of Somali pirates marauding the Gulf of Aden into the Indian Ocean, does not …

Written by Peter Worthington on Thursday December 16, 2010

A Better Tax for Inherited Wealth?

A proposal in today's NYT that would require inheritors to pay income tax on what they receive in place of an estate tax deserves a closer look. Hard to argue that this doesn't make sense... Instead of a tax on estates, inheritors pay income tax on what they receive at ordinary income tax …

Written by David Frum on Thursday December 16, 2010

Sanctions Bite

Reports suggest that Iran has cut aid to Hezbollah by 40%. Could this strain explain the recent burst in defiance from Hezbollah's leaders? The Jerusalem Post is reporting that Iran has cut aid to Hezbollah by 40%. Maybe that’s why there were no armed militiamen in front of Hezbollah's …

Written by David Frum on Thursday December 16, 2010

Why No Labels Makes Sense

The launch of the centrist group "No Labels" provides a new way to address issues that can't be reduced to party dogma. The launch of the new centrist group "No Labels" has sparked much criticism from the right and the left. But as I argue in my latest column for The Week , the project provides a …

Written by David Frum on Thursday December 16, 2010

RNC Candidate's Firm Got Clients Stimulus Funds

F F has learned that RNC Chair candidate Reince Priebus' firm lists him as a lawyer on a team which helps clients secure federal stimulus funds. Frum Forum has learned that Reince Priebus, the state chair for the Wisconsin GOP and a current RNC Chair candidate, is listed as working as a …

Written by Tim Mak on Wednesday December 15, 2010

How Gridlock is Created

With 1,177 presidential appointments already needing Senate confirmation, are we asking Congress to do too much? Maybe we're just asking Congress to do too much? From a new report by EJ Dionne and Bill Galston on the calcification of the presidential appointments process: When Ronald Reagan …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday December 15, 2010

How Fox News Got Climategate Wrong

When reporting on climate change, journalists should be wary of the swarm of axe-grinding interest groups trying to coax them into buying their spin. In journalism, context is everything. That goes for quotes and for facts, especially on an issue with facts as layered with complexity and nuance as …

Written by Jim DiPeso on Wednesday December 15, 2010

The Dems' (Last Minute) Estate Tax Gamble

The Dems had two years to craft an estate tax plan. Why then wait until the last moment to make the issue their tax policy line in the sand? The Democratic members of the House of Representatives are upset that the negotiations between the President and the Republican leadership will result in the …

Written by Hank Adler on Wednesday December 15, 2010

Lame Duck Senate Goes on an Earmark Spree

After looking at the Senate's new $1.1 trillion omnibus bill, one could forget that in November, Americans voted for smaller government and fiscal restraint. Did the November elections really happen? Did Americans, in fact, vote for smaller deficits, smaller government, and fiscal restraint? …

Written by Steve Bell on Wednesday December 15, 2010