Overview for News

Is There a Conservative Case for Same-Sex Marriage?

Despite my misgivings about the lawsuit that led us to this point, the court decision striking down Prop. 8 looks like a win for basic human rights and fairness. I don't know why, but I can't get Marvin Liebman's voice out of my ear. Liebman, the veteran conservative activist and close friend …

Written by D.R. Tucker on Friday August 6, 2010

Personal Note

A health update for those readers who have kindly asked: I've regained enough strength that postings will soon return to normal frequency. A health update for those readers who have kindly asked: I'm recovering nicely from the facial paralysis, although I still scare small children in the …

Written by David Frum on Friday August 6, 2010

Don't Overhype Missouri's Anti-Health Reform Vote

Nothing about Missouri's Proposition C vote suggests that the GOP will be able to rally support for a repeal of the individual mandate. The Proposition C vote in Missouri may be a classic case of there being less than meets the eye. To begin with, independents did not vote in the primary, so we …

Written by Andrew Pavelyev on Friday August 6, 2010

Congress' Empty Budget-Cutting Promises

This week, Democrats rebuffed four party members who proposed modest spending cuts. Both parties though are guilty of avoiding the hard fiscal decisions ahead. Democrats have angrily rebuffed a group of four party members intent on proposing a reasonably modest budget rescission package to cut …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Thursday August 5, 2010

The Tea Party's Growing Slavery Obsession

The controversial meme identifying taxation with slavery seems to be spreading amongst Tea Party followers. A scandalous new video has been circulating among conservative blogs . It shows Rep. Pete Stark announcing that there are no constitutional limits on what the federal government can do. …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Thursday August 5, 2010

Recharging Iraq's Electricity Grid

Critics of the reconstruction effort point to Iraq's continuing electricity shortages. Can anything be done to solve the problem? On August 2, The New York Times ran an article by Steven Lee Meyers, titled " A Benchmark of Progress, Electrical Grid Fails Iraqis ". As a former member of the …

Written by Harold Bonacquist on Thursday August 5, 2010

The Senate: Sluggish in a Good Way

Every year in which “good ideas” failed to pass the Senate were years in which I was thankful for the rules of the U.S. Senate. Well, it has now become officially fashionable inside the nation’s capital to bash the United States Senate. Last year, the lament de jour was how partisan …

Written by Steve Bell on Thursday August 5, 2010

Electoral Consequences of Same-Sex Marriage

Now that the ruling in the Proposition 8 case has been handed down, conservatives should take note that the same-sex marriage issue did NOT help the GOP in 2004. I make this point in my 2007 book, Comeback , but it's worth repeating now: The same-sex marriage issue did NOT help the GOP in 2004. …

Written by David Frum on Thursday August 5, 2010

Is the Senate Broken?

George Packer's recent New Yorker essay argues that the Senate is horribly broken. But the real problem may not be Senate rules, but increased partisan animosity. George Packer has an interesting article up at the New Yorker about the (supposedly) broken Senate. Packer's article assumes that …

Written by Fred Bauer on Thursday August 5, 2010

Dems Running Against Bush, Again

2010 will be the third straight election cycle in which Democrats campaign against George W. Bush. Yet it’s Republicans who are said to be bereft of new ideas. Greg Sargent recently wrote on The Washington Post’s “Plum Line” blog: “Democrats have lately been banging away harder than ever at …

Written by Jay Gatsby on Thursday August 5, 2010

The Dems' Misguided Rust Belt Stimulus

The Democrats new "pro-manufacturing" agenda might help the party rally their supporters in the labor movement, but it isn't a good idea for the economy. The Democratic Party has pinned a lot of its hopes on a “pro-manufacturing” agenda. It’s a bad idea. Promoting manufacturing is an unachievable …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Don't Take the Anti-Islamic Bait

The controversy over the so-called "Ground Zero mosque" reveals the growing problem with anti-Islamic bigotry within the conservative movement. “Whatever you may think of the proposed mosque and community center, lost in the heat of the debate has been a basic question: Should government attempt …

Written by Dennis Sanders on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Why Are So Many Falling for Birtherism?

A new CNN poll finds that 27% of Americans still wonder whether the president was born in the United States. A new CNN poll finds that 27% of Americans still wonder whether President was born in the United States. No, that was not a typo. 11% of those surveyed responded that they were …

Written by Jeb Golinkin on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Is the Senate to Blame for Obama's Stalled Agenda?

George Packer's newest essay depicts a paralyzed Senate. But is the Senate to blame for the stalled Obama agenda? George Packer's essay on the U.S. Senate is a characteristically superb piece of reporting. He presents an institution paralyzed by a droning uselessness that depresses and …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday August 4, 2010

A Bad Night for the Tea Party Caucus

With Rep. Tiahrt and Rep. Hoekstra’s primary losses, yesterday's results mean that two Tea Party caucus members won’t be back in Washington. With Rep. Jerry Moran winning the Kansas senatorial primary last evening, the state will likely get another Republican Senator next January to replace …

Written by Tim Mak on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Can Graham Survive as a Maverick?

This week, a third GOP county organization in South Carolina voted to censure Senator Lindsey Graham. Is Graham in real political trouble? Greenville County is the largest county in South Carolina. On Tuesday, the Republican organization in Greenville County passed a resolution condemning Senator …

Written by Jeb Golinkin on Wednesday August 4, 2010

The RNC's Bizarre Foreign Outreach

Why did the RNC try to set up meetings between Chairman Steele and foreign ambassadors. And even more puzzling: how did the email messages get released? Politico reported last evening that the Republican National Committee tried to set up meetings between Chairman Michael Steele and foreign …

Written by Tim Mak on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Whatever Happened to "Enforcement First"?

Instead of focusing on enforcing our immigration laws, Sen. Graham is attacking birthright citizenship. The GOP should not follow him off this cliff. Until about five minutes ago, Senator Lindsey Graham was one of the chief proponents of comprehensive immigration reform. Today he supports the …

Written by Henry Clay on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Refudiate the 9/11 Mosque Boycott

Whatever questions we have about the 9/11 mosque's promoters, we should remember the mosque's users: the Muslims entitled to pray as any other citizen. National Review editorialized today against the so-called Ground Zero mosque. More than that: It urged a kind of secondary boycott, public …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday August 4, 2010

Lebanese Troops Ambush IDF

Tuesday's fatal border clash was the most serious escalation of violence between Israel and Lebanon since the end of the war four years ago. Earlier today, the Lebanese Armed Forces fired at IDF troops positioned along the Lebanese border in northern Israel, killing one Israeli soldier and …

Written by Arsen Ostrovsky on Tuesday August 3, 2010