Overview for obama

He Went to Kansas to Say That?

In my column for The Week , I discuss how Obama's speech on income inequality fell short: The Kansas speech was composed of two main parts: a critique of the performance of the U.S. economy over the past generation, and a program for "rebalancing" in the years ahead. The trouble is that …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday December 7, 2011

Obama Can't Bring Back the 1900's.

Walter Russell Meade captures something about the current moment that can be overlooked to easily. Ron Paul and Barack Obama are forces for Americas that don’t and can’t exist anymore. The America where 90% of the people farm is not coming back. But less acknowledged is that the post-war …

Written by John Vecchione on Wednesday December 7, 2011

Government Gives Up on Basic Tasks

All you really need to know about the state of Washington, D.C. are three facts: A--a majority of Republicans in the Senate defeated a bill to extend the payroll tax holiday that was introduced by their own Senate Minority Leader last week; B--President Obama has decided that the only real …

Written by Steve Bell on Tuesday December 6, 2011

SCOTUS Could Force Obama's Hand on Jerusalem

In my column for the National Post, I discuss how a Supreme Court case might force the White House to explain its policy towards Jerusalem: Two can play at this game. Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority have abandoned negotiations with Israel. They are seeking UN recognition of …

Written by David Frum on Saturday November 5, 2011

I Come Not to Bury Obama But to Praise Him

“Vene, Vidi, Mori” Forgive the mangled Latin in both tense and person. Hilary Clinton’s delighted expression yesterday that “ We came, We saw, He died ,” echoing Caesar, delighted me. It is time for conservatives and Republicans to follow Pete Wehner at Commentary and begin praising Nobel …

Written by John Vecchione on Saturday October 22, 2011

Good Riddance for Gaddafi

The most noteworthy aspect of the rebellion in Libya and today's death of Muammar Gaddafi is that it took so long. When the rebellion started last February -- catching the world by surprise, since it was spontaneous and without advance planning -- it was initially expected to be quick and …

Written by Peter Worthington on Thursday October 20, 2011

'Democracy Denied' is the Guide to Fighting Over-Regulation

Phil Kerpen’s Democracy Denied ($24.95 in hardcopy; $9.99 for Kindle) Is a none-too-long book that, if widely read (which it deserves to be) would provide something that’s absent from today’s politics: a coherent and useful agenda for the Tea Party and its fellow travelers. Kerpen’s manifesto-l…

Written by Eli Lehrer on Thursday October 13, 2011

Getting to No

Watching the President's press conference yesterday was again desperately dispiriting. The President's supporters say he is "framing" a choice for the country: my way or their way. To support that frame, however, the President needs Republicans to say "NO" to his jobs proposals. The surest way to …

Written by David Frum on Friday October 7, 2011

Hips Don't Qualify

Things are sure to get spicier at the White House as pop-starlet Shakira is set to join the ranks of thePresident's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. Jokes aside, how dismal does the state of the U.S government and its department of Education have to be, in order for …

Written by Robin Tim Weis on Friday October 7, 2011

How to Fix Obamacare

In my column for The Week , I discuss ways in which the Affordable Care Act could be streamlined into a workable solution for health care reform: If the election were held today, President Obama would probably lose. The Republicans would very likely score gains in the Senate, but …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday October 5, 2011

Obama Won't Indulge Black Frustrations

When it comes to issues of race, the nation’s first black president makes us question one of the hoariest axioms in American politics: If both the left and the right are mad at you, are you doing something right? On September 29th, em> Politico

Written by Jay Gatsby on Friday September 30, 2011

AJC Survey Confirms: Obama Losing Jewish Vote

A new poll from the American Jewish Committee shows further erosion of President Obama’s Jewish support. Only 45 percent of American Jews approve of “the way President Barack Obama has handled his job as President, ” and 48 percent disapprove. This is an even worse statistic than the 40 percent …

Written by Stephen Richer on Monday September 26, 2011

How Left-Wing is Obama?

America is engaged in a dual-track conversation about the President's core beliefs. Conservatives by and large express conviction that he is a fervent radical, certainly a socialist, perhaps a Marxist - even (in the telling of the old Glenn Beck TV show) a Maoist! Self-described leftists, on the …

Written by David Frum on Sunday September 25, 2011

Repeat After Me: 2012 is an Uphill Battle for Republicans

The economy is in the dumps, President Obama's latest plans for taxes seem dead on arrival and his approval ratings are near the low point of his presidency. As a result, it's becoming conventional wisdom--at least among over-eager Republicans--that the President is a dead duck and sure to lose in …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Tuesday September 20, 2011

Attack the Plan, Not the Man

In my column for CNN, I explain why the GOP needs to focus on attacking Obama's economic plan, or risk alienating many voters: Republican partisans loathe Barack Obama even more viscerally than core Democrats despised George W. Bush. Yet as with Democrats in 2004, it's hard for Republicans to …

Written by David Frum on Monday September 19, 2011

The Jewish Vote Can be Decisive in Close Races

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Written by Stephen Richer on Thursday August 11, 2011

Obama's Ugly Campaign Plan

In my column for The Week , I discuss a possible reason why Obama's campaign staffers leaked their strategy against Mitt Romney to Politico : Pessimism about the economy is rife, and Obama's job approval is sagging. He could well lose the next presidential election to a candidate who can …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday August 10, 2011

Too Soon Old, Too Late Wise

I wish my defense hawk friends at the American Enterprise Institute and the Weekly Standard had discerned before it was too late that a budget framework that calls for: (1) no additional revenues and (2) big cuts in discretionary spending, is not a hospitable climate for a robust defense budget. …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 1, 2011

Obama Fails His Test of Strength

Obama adviser David Axelrod offered up a sad little whistle through the graveyard after the debt ceiling deal: “In the short term, everyone suffers politically .... In the long term, I think the Republicans have done terrible damage to their brand. Because now they’re thoroughly defined by …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 1, 2011

#Winning!

I listened to about 45 minutes of the first hour of Rush Limbaugh in the car today. The dominant theme of the hour, repeated over and over: "You" - meaning, Limbaugh listeners - are not "losers." It's Obama's who's a "loser." The word "loser" must have been repeated dozens of times, half as …

Written by David Frum on Friday July 29, 2011