Economics & Political Systems

Republicans Need To Grow Up About Taxes

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at Forbes.com. Republicans are flailing about these days, trying to rebrand themselves before the next election cycle. A certain amount of introspection and internecine debate is inevitable after suffering a stinging loss against an opponent with … Continue reading

Preserving Hugo Chavez

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at American Spectator. The gushing, almost angelic praise for Hugo Chavez by the left in America and around the world has been shocking to behold, but hardly surprising. I will not … Continue reading

Hugo Chavez: Faithful to Death

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at American Spectator. There’s an old joke from the Cold War. It went like this: Hardline East German communist Walter Ulbricht (who erected the Berlin Wall) died and went to hell. … Continue reading

The Pentagon Budget as Political Football

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at Forbes.com. The Pentagon’s budget occupies center stage in the sequestration drama. Defense spending comprises approximately 18 percent of the 2013 federal budget, but accounts for 50 percent of federal spending cuts stipulated … Continue reading

The Spendaholics’ Offensive

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at Forbes.com. A primary meme of the Democratic Party in 2013 is that the federal government doesn’t have a spending problem. That is what President Obama reportedly said to House Speaker John Boehner … Continue reading

Crossing the Rubicon

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at RealClearMarkets.com. The current global debt accumulations are unprecedented. In fact, it can be observed that at no time in the history of the human race, other than during periods of … Continue reading

Abraham Lincoln and Slavery

Stephen Spielberg’s masterful movie on Lincoln and the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation have recently brought even greater attention than usual to Abraham Lincoln. Holidays like Presidents Day remind us of Lincoln’s position on slavery and his role in … Continue reading

Is America’s House Divided Again?

Having just viewed Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” and knowing that Lincoln’s birthday is approaching, it seemed fitting to ponder one of Lincoln’s most famous speeches, and perhaps a lesson for Americans today. On June 17, 1858, Lincoln gave his famous “House … Continue reading

The End of the Reagan Era?

Editor’s note: A longer version of this article first appeared at American Spectator. With Barack Obama’s second inauguration, liberals are touting an altogether new epoch: the end of the Reagan era. Unfortunately, I believe they are largely correct. We are witnessing a period … Continue reading