Overview for News

It's Not About The Economy, Stupid

Karl Rove criticizes the President in the June 4 Wall Street Journal for citing a specific number of jobs "saved," especially in light of how little of the stimulus bill has been spent. He then brings up a much more important point: If the Obama administration were more serious about growing …

Written by Tom Church on Friday June 5, 2009

A Wise Latina's Unwise Words

Even though Sonia Sotomayor’s empathy and background were at the center of her tightly messaged nomination , by Friday the White House was backing away from her statement that a “wise Latina” might be better equipped to dispense justice than a white male. But not all …

Written by Henry Clay on Tuesday June 2, 2009

They Are Obama's Detainees Now

When I watched Obama's speech at the National Archives, it occurred to me that Obama has an opportunity that he is not willing to truly invest in. Instead of embracing the reality that fear has altered our culture and fueled an intense debate questioning the limits of one's right to privacy, due …

Written by John S. Wilson on Tuesday June 2, 2009

A Powerful Statement On The Tiller Shooting

From Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary : In October of 1859, John Brown led a violent attack upon the United States Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. A radical abolitionist, Brown had already proved himself capable of violence for his cause. In 1856 he had …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday June 2, 2009

Wanted: Dead Or Alive

He was born into a prominent Kentucky slave-holding family. He strongly supported slavery. And yet John Marshall Harlan would go on to fight in the Union army and become the lone justice on the Supreme Court to dissent in Plessy v Ferguson , which upheld Jim Crow laws. Harlan, who …

Written by Frum Forum Editors on Tuesday June 2, 2009

No To The Radio Station Bailout

On May 19, The Hill reported that numerous lawmakers were urging the Treasury department to “prop up” struggling minority-owned broadcasters. House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ways and Means …

Written by Dustin Siggins on Tuesday June 2, 2009

Here's A Trillion: Spend It Wisely

…NOT! Before President Obama was responsible for making sure trillions of dollars are spent wisely, he was an Illinois state senator who only had to make sure $100, 000 of taxpayer money was spent wisely on a “community garden”. Guess how well he did?

Written by Jeffrey Singer on Tuesday June 2, 2009

What The Gop Can Learn From The British Tories

Six months on from their election defeat, nobody is quite sure who leads the Republican Party. Across the Atlantic, British Conservatives have no doubt who is in charge. David Cameron has turned what should be an embarrassing scandal involving MPs’ expenses into another opportunity to …

Written by Jamie Boulding on Monday June 1, 2009

Crist The Better Bet For Florida Republicans

Are conservatives nuts? I keep hearing wild enthusiasm about Marco Rubio’s challenge to Charlie Crist. But why make the perfect the enemy of the good? This is not merely about the next election. That seat will be up for reelection in 2016. By that time Fidel will be 90 and almost certainly …

Written by Andrew Pavelyev on Monday June 1, 2009

Wanted: Dead Or Alive

Today's pick: Oliver Wendell Holmes. Despite being perhaps the least empathetic person ever to sit on the United States Supreme Court [1902-1932], Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. remains a progressive icon. Holmes’ less-than-compassionate disposition did not prevent him from penning famous …

Written by Frum Forum Editors on Monday June 1, 2009

Did I Err?

Last week, I did a broadcast on Marketplace that the justices of the current Supreme Court collective have "strikingly little" experience of business law. The broadcast defined what I meant by business experience - and why it matters in today's context. The Obama administration is challenging …

Written by David Frum on Monday June 1, 2009

Is $50 Bn The Limit For Gm?

Mickey Kaus convincingly argues that the Obama administration has left the spigot open.

Written by David Frum on Monday June 1, 2009

O'Reilly And Tiller

Gawker has a summary of the Fox News anchor's denunciations of the assassinated abortion doctor George Tiller: apparently 28 separate incidents.

Written by David Frum on Monday June 1, 2009

Ilan Halimi's Murderer: "I Am Proud"

Given that the trial has been closed to both the public and press, it is difficult to know what exactly has been going on in the trial of Youssouf Fofana and the other members of his so-called “Gang of Barbarians.” As discussed in my earlier FF report here , Fofana and twenty six …

Written by John Rosenthal on Sunday May 31, 2009

Capitalists Of Little Faith

The New York Times ran an irritating piece about a new trend at American business schools. It appears that b-school students are pledging to behave ethically when they're launched into the waiting arms of the world's companies, many of which will presumably still be struggling to survive by the …

Written by Ken Kurson on Sunday May 31, 2009

A Future Republican Star?

I have just returned from the nominating convention of the Republican Party of Virginia. The Virginia Republicans long ago united around Attorney General Bob McDonnell for Governor. He is going to give whoever is the Democratic nominee fits. There were contested races for Lt. Governor, Party …

Written by John Vecchione on Sunday May 31, 2009

Olson: Latecomer On Gay Rights?

So suggests a letter writer to Andrew Sullivan, here I can attest first-hand that Ted Olson has been involved with this issue for a long time. I remember a spirited conversation on this subject just before he went into the Bush administration as solicitor general, over dinner at the Caucus …

Written by David Frum on Sunday May 31, 2009

Human Genetic Engineering? Why Not?

My weekend column for the Nationa l Post sees human hope in those glowing green monkeys.

Written by David Frum on Sunday May 31, 2009

Sotomayor: It's Not About Race

Michael Kinsley goes over the top with this one: It's clear that the one paralyzing fact about Sonia Sotomayor, to Republicans, is the color of her skin. If she weren't Latino, they would be in full revenge-for-Clarence-Thomas mode. Instead, they are in an agony of indecision, with GOP …

Written by Andrew Gelman on Saturday May 30, 2009

Just Say "No" To New Gop Voters

New contributor Crystal Wright yesterday posted a debut piece here at FF explaining why she now regrets her vote for Barack Obama in November 2008. A healthy political movement and political party enthusiastically welcomes new supporters. And unless those new supporters are just emerging from …

Written by David Frum on Friday May 29, 2009