Entries

Looking North For Ideas

If conservatives were given a free-hand to re-write the stimulus bill, what should they press for? Here’s a simple check list: Agree with spending money now, but in a more restrained manner. No to massive spending commitments years into the future. No to any new …

Written by David Gratzer on Monday February 9, 2009

A Look At What Is Left

A review of Alan Wolfe's em> The Future of Liberalism

Written by David Frum on Sunday February 8, 2009

After Daschle's Demise

Ceci Connolly, blogging at washingtonpost.com , describes “proponents of overhauling America’s heath care system” as being “shocked” when Mr. Daschle withdrew his name from nomination. Reading the The New Republic Online , that would seem to be an understatemen…

Written by David Gratzer on Sunday February 8, 2009

Conservatism's Greatest Failure: The Academy

The conservative revolution was supposed to be a revolution. It has not been. It has been an insurgency. And while that insurgency captured a vast swath of open territory, it failed utterly to capture the key citadels of American culture, beginning with American higher education. The academic …

Written by Allen Guelzo on Sunday February 8, 2009

Score One For The Little Guys

I realize that trying to convince Republicans that class action lawyers are sticking up for the little guy is a bit like trying to convince Democrats to court the NRA (notwithstanding Senator Gillibrand), but as a lifelong vaguely Scoop Jackson-y registered Democrat, I’ve often found …

Written by Joshua Glatter on Sunday February 8, 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

Pakistan Frees A.q. Khan

This is a gigantic disaster: Emblematic of what I am worried about . What can we do about this? Well, for starters, how about we send a démarche to Islamabad that says, "Congratulations, chappies, you just elevated yourselves to the top of our targeting list in the event of a terrorist …

Written by Michael Anton on Saturday February 7, 2009

What Went Wrong in Iraq - The Definitive Account, Part 6

This is the last installment of a six-part series. Read part one here , part two here , part three here , part four here and part five here . The past two years have seen an impressive turnaround in Iraq. Violence has abated, economic activity has recovered. Americans usually …

Written by David Frum on Friday February 6, 2009

You Call This Discipline, Mr. President?

Am I the only one baffled and a little bit disappointed in the speech by President Obama last night? Let’s recall that House Democrats wrote their version of the stimulus bill without any pretense of soliciting Republican input, and were happy to pass it without a single vote from across …

Written by Douglas Holtz-Eakin on Friday February 6, 2009

Elliot Spitzer Whiffs On Social Security Reform

There is one statement in Elliot Spitzer's Slate.com article on Social Security personal accounts that I fully agree with: "'We told you so' is just about the most annoying sentence one can utter." Sure is. Beyond that, though, Spitzer's argument that stock market declines over the past year just …

Written by Andrew Biggs on Friday February 6, 2009

California Republicans Prepare For 2010

It's Ronald Reagan's birthday. Born February 6th, 1911, 98 years ago. California's greatest political son remains the only California Governor ever to serve as U.S. President. With Ronald Reagan ever in the background, California Republicans attempt in the 2009-2010 election cycle to pick …

Written by Larry Greenfield on Friday February 6, 2009

The Obama Party

It hardly came as a surprise to anyone on election day when Barack Obama cruised to a 2-1 landslide victory over Senator McCain among voters younger than 35. The youth vote had long been considered an arrow that solely belonged in Obama's quiver. It was the secret to his upset in Iowa, the source …

Written by Zac Morgan on Friday February 6, 2009

The Chicago Way

From February 4, in the Chicago Tribune 's " Clout Street " blog: " Daley mum on stimulus project list " Mayor Richard Daley said today Chicago has compiled a wish list of "shovel-ready projects" to spend federal economic stimulus funds should Congress approve them. Unlike hundreds of …

Written by FF Political Report on Friday February 6, 2009

Is Conservatism Dead? No - Its Resting

In the current New Republic , Sam Tanenhaus offers a long analysis of the state of conservatism under the provocative heading: “ Conservatism Is Dead ” – minus the customary editorial precaution of a protective question mark. There are two obvious rebuttals to Tanenhaus’ claim. The first is that …

Written by David Frum on Thursday February 5, 2009

Much Ado About (almost) Nothing

President Obama generated huge headlines yesterday by announcing caps on senior executive pay at large financial institutions. The Wall Street Journal reported this morning that President Barack Obama laid out strict new regulations on executive compensation Wednesday, strafing Wall …

Written by Stanley Jevons on Thursday February 5, 2009

"i Had To Get Some Ghetto In Me"

When she first started working as a hall monitor and secretary at one of the local city high schools, my favorite co-worker, Ms. K, said she dressed up real fancy for work and tried to befriend the children. “They tore the fur off me,” she said of her first few weeks. “But then …

Written by Thomas Gibbon on Thursday February 5, 2009

Good News For Republicans In Cook County

The Chicago Sun-Times CST-NWS-Carol04.article"> announced on Wednesday that education reformer extraordinaire, Paul Vallas, has decided to leave his position as New Orleans superintendent and return to his suburban Cook County home, register as a Republican, and run for Cook County Board …

Written by Jeffrey Singer on Thursday February 5, 2009

As Fairfax County Goes...

Pat Herrity's loss on Tuesday for a position of which most Americans have never heard -- Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Fairfax County, Virginia -- is an unfortunate setback for Republicans and a sharp illustration of the problems the GOP faces coming back in the suburbs, especially in the …

Written by John S. Gardner on Thursday February 5, 2009

What Went Wrong in Iraq - The Definitive Account, Part 5

This is part five of a series. Read part one here , part two here , part three here , and part four here . Stuart Bowen’s IG operation has thus far convicted 35 Americans on charges of fraud. Yet as appalling as fraud is, it occurs in all wars. What most sapped American …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday February 4, 2009

Optimism At Kansas Gop Convention

With this report from the Kansas GOP convention, FF launches a new feature: occasional reports on the proceedings of state and local Republican organizations and conventions. “Nationally, Republicans lost much ground and were swamped by a wave of enthusiasm for Obama, but you …

Written by FF Political Report on Wednesday February 4, 2009