Barack Obama:  “Governor Romney believes that with even bigger tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer regulations on Wall Street, all of us will prosper.  In other words, he’d double down on the same trickle-down policies that led to the crisis in the first place.”  Washington Post:  “Retire this talking point…

“The data paints a bleak picture, with a majority of respondents saying in the last three years, the national economy is in a worse position for American small businesses and manufacturers…  The theme of government being a barrier rather than a help is clear throughout this data.” That was the sobering executive summary of…

You never want to catch whatever Bill Clinton is spreading.  Accordingly, here’s some precautionary intellectual inoculation.  This week, Clinton attempted to rescue the political fortunes of a current president whose policy choices contrast sharply with his own.  Instead of a rescue, however, Clinton may have simply highlighted…

In his most petulant and desperate demeanor yet, Barack Obama this week doubled down on blaming his own fiscal failures on George W. Bush.  Speaking at a fundraiser – what else? – in Baltimore, Obama also unveiled a new pet metaphor, substituting “steak dinner” for his familiar “slurpee” and “car in the…

This country is still spending itself into oblivion, and not even the Republican House is putting up enough of a fight. But some individual House and Senate members still are battling, for the interests of both taxpayers and good social policy, and their efforts merit support. Red State reported the other day that the House wouldn’t even…

“The man with no plan.” That’s what Jeff Sessions of Alabama, ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Budget Committee, calls the man Occupying the Oval Office. “The biggest deficit in our country right now is that leaders won’t get out and take a stand,” said U.S. Senator Tom Coburn. “That’s cowardice…

In campaign speeches, Barack Obama sermonizes endlessly against “giving tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans like me.”  According to his own IRS return, however, Obama himself gladly exploits them.  Alongside Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Rep. Charlie Rangel (D – New York) and so many other champagne liberals,…

“From Mesaba to Titanic:  In latitude 42° N to 41° 25’, longitude 49° W to longitude 50° 30’ W, saw much heavy pack ice and great number large icebergs, also field ice, weather good, clear.”  One hundred years ago this week, that heavy ice admonition was one of several transmitted but unheeded by…

In California, Governor Jerry Brown is pushing for a “Millionaire’s Tax” that hits people earning well below that threshold.  President Barack Obama is stumping across the nation for a “Buffett Rule” that raises taxes but makes no impact on the deficit.  Both are showcasing why liberals can’t win a serious…

Americans businesses were turned into April Fools on Sunday when a cut in Japan's top corporate income tax rate left the United States with the highest such rate in the developed world -- including Communist China's. With Great Britain also slicing rates this month from 26 percent to 24 percent, the U.S. average top rate (federal and state combined…

Barack Obama seems to assume that “The 99%” stand with him when he hypocritically campaigns for higher taxes on employers and individuals.  (“Hypocritically” because he doesn’t practice what he preaches by filing his own taxes at the same rate he claims is “fair” for millionaires such as himself.) …

The most damning indictments against Barack Obama as he furiously seeks reelection are his own false promises.  “That’s why today, I’m pledging to cut the deficit we inherited by half by the end of my first term in office.”  That categorical pledge occurred exactly three years ago this week, February 23, 2009. …

A little learning is a dangerous thing. Unfortunately, it’s also all that’s required of a professional politician. While stammering, inarticulate candidates tend to have short shelf lives, a political aspirant who manages to recite a crisp bullet point without giving its content much thought can make a career out of the exercise (as testified…

On February 2, 2009, Barack Obama confidently announced the following performance standard for himself in an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer:  Lauer:  “At some point, will you say, ‘Wait a minute – we’ve spent this amount of money, but we’re not seeing results, we’ve got to change course dramatically…

In his State of the Union speech, Barack Obama lectured those whom he hadn’t already bored to stupor with his usual onslaught of platitudes – you probably had no idea that “teachers matter” until he said so – that anyone earning over $1 million should pay at least 30% to government.  Oh, and another thing –…

To hear the political media tell it, Bill Daley’s failure as White House Chief of Staff was due to his inability to communicate President Barack Obama’s policies effectively to Congress and Wall Street.  But the messenger wasn’t the problem.  Just like other high-profile has-beens Obama has cast aside when reality undermined…

When it comes to underutilized federal properties, Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA) offers a simple solution: “It’s time to stop sitting on our assets.”  As Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, Denham has jurisdiction over nearly 14,000 federal properties that have already…

No good reason exists, none whatsoever, for Congress’ budgetary “supercommittee” to fail to identify at least $1.2 trillion in ten-year cuts without raising taxes. Wisconsin’s freshman Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson alone has recommended ways to save $1.4 trillion over ten years just by more sensible management of the federal…

By any fair estimate, the 2012 Republican presidential contest has been whittled down to four serious contenders: Mitt Romney, who retains de facto frontrunner status; Rick Perry, who’s still alive despite a halting entrance into the race; Herman Cain, who was won the affections of conservative voters with his no-nonsense style, and Newt Gingrich…

Herman Cain’s vaunted 9-9-9 tax proposal is brilliant in theory, and in a political vacuum. In principle, there is good reason to admire it. We don’t live in a political vacuum, however, and in practice it could cause major problems. The first problem is, common sense says 9-9-9 can’t raise enough revenue even for the slimmed down…

The world is an upside-down place when Mitt Romney is supporting a policy championed by Paul Krugman. Yet that’s precisely what’s happening as a bill that seeks to deter China from manipulating the value of its currency winds its way through Capitol Hill. The legislation, which passed the Senate on Tuesday, may still fail to secure passage…

With President Barack Obama threatening to raise taxes on corporate jet purchases, members of private aviation unions are wondering why their manufacturing industry is being singled out for punishment.  In a June 29 speech about cutting the deficit, President Obama said six times that buyers of private jets should pay more for the privilege.&…

When President Obama appeared before a joint session of Congress last week, he pitched his newest supposed economic panacea – the American Jobs Act – as a plan to “provide a jolt to an economy that has stalled, and give companies confidence that if they invest and if they hire, there will be customers for their products and services…

As if American voters needed additional confirmation of the failure of Barack Obama’s economic agenda, consider the following.  In 1947, the federal government began tracking quarterly gross domestic product (GDP), the broadest measure of overall economic vitality.  Since that date, not one President has failed to enjoy a quarter of…

The liberal politicization of economics continues unabated with President Barack Obama’s nomination of a labor economist to chair his Council of Economic Advisors (CEA).  A look at the nominee’s record shows that his expertise is promoting liberal policies using economic language, not job creation.  Alan Krueger, a Princeton…

Want to silence a liberal?  Simply ask anyone demanding higher taxes to produce copies of their own tax returns.  Many who insist on tax increases most loudly and sanctimoniously, including Barack Obama himself, didn’t themselves pay Uncle Sam at the rates they advocate.  So try it.  You’ll likely witness an amusing…

Ever heard of “bracket creep”?  It’s the scourge of middle-class families, and one of the favorite weapons of tax-and-spend liberals.  Just ask Barack Obama.  On his Midwestern bus tour this week, the president hammered Republican presidential candidates for pledging not to raise taxes if elected.  In his view…

During the recently concluded debt ceiling debate, prominent liberals like Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) were fond of saying that reforming Social Security was unnecessary because the program “has nothing to do with the deficit.”  Is that true? Here’s an excerpt from an opinion column Senator Sanders wrote on July 21, arguing…

Try this thought experiment: You are sitting on a pile of cash or cash-equivalents. You are worried about the overall economy, and particularly about your nation’s debt. Inflation is almost nonexistent right now, but you know the most common way for nations to pay off debt is to inflate their currency. Your cash, therefore, may lose value &ndash…

There was no shortage of disappointment in last week’s dénouement to the months-long fight over raising the nation’s debt limit. President Obama was predictably petulant. The news media was issuing apocalyptic pronouncements, but for all the wrong reasons. And the final resolution staved off immediate dangers, but ignored the long…