The Keystone XL pipeline could have provided Americans more economic, energy, and job security. However, in January 2012, President Obama announced he would not permit TransCanada to build a $7 billion pipeline from Alberta, Canada across international borders to the US Gulf Coast. Since then, Canada’s Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, has turned to China to … Continue reading
Category Archives: America
Weekly Graphic: Government Spending – 40 Year Comparison
Data from CBO 2012. All numbers are in FY 2005 dollars adjusted for inflation. © Joseph Chrisman Continue reading
What America Should Learn About Hispanics
Much of the tragedy that is the loss of 17-year old Trayvon Martin’s life has become politicized in the media. There is an overarching and underlying racial narrative that has been present from the beginning of the coverage of the young man’s death. Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenage, lost his life as a result of … Continue reading
The Supreme Court’s Difficult Decision
As marked by the uncommon three days of oral arguments, totaling six and a half hours, the decision of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) constitutionality will not be an easy for the nine Justices of the Supreme Court. Lawyers argued four issues in front of the bench: the Anti-Injunction Act, the Individual Mandate, the severability … Continue reading
America / Constitution / Other / Politics / Rule of Law
Our Constitution: Absolutely Not A “Living Breathing Document”
Is our Constitution a “Living Breathing Document?” Well, what is a “Living Breathing Document?” In The American Constitution and The Debate over Originalism, Dennis Goldford defines the concept of a living breathing document. He quotes Harlold Koh, legal expert, as defining the concept as a “flexible pragmatism that views the Constitution as a living document … Continue reading
Is it too hard to amend the Constitution?
By Will Portman On Monday, I went to a talk at the Brookings Institution entitled “America’s Dysfunctional Politics: Is the Constitution to Blame?” Professor Sanford Levinson of the University of Texas School of Law discussed his new book, Framed: America’s 51 Constitutions and the Crisis of Government, which argues that the 225-year-old U.S. Constitution is … Continue reading
Ravenous Cookie Monsters and Higher Education
In a recent New York Times piece, Robert H. Frank attempts to explain the dynamics behind the continued growth in college tuition in the United States. Using elegant analogies, Frank points to rising costs for universities, such as increasing salaries for professors and technological degrees.[1] Responding to the President’s recent call to tie subsidies to … Continue reading
Martin O’Malley Manages a Multitude of Regulations to Maximize Maryland’s Markets
At a time when unemployment is skyrocketing and the economy is dwindling, I can’t help but be filled with the smallest amount of joy and hope when I see the government making changes that will actually benefit the public instead of harming them. On March 9th, Governor Martin O’Malley of Maryland submitted to the Administrative … Continue reading
America / Economy / Fiscal policy / Politics / Tax / U.S. Domestic Policy
Weekly Graphic: The Tax Burden
The fight over income inequality and a fair tax code has dominated the recent political debate. The White House, along with all the GOP presidential candidates, and every think tank in Washington has submitted their blueprint of what a reformed tax code should look like. Obama’s tax plan focuses on eliminating distortions and loopholes and … Continue reading
Latin American Drug Legalization and US National Security
True to form, the American media has continued its focus on domestic politics leading up to the November presidential election. So far, the GOP primary and the fallout from Rush Limbaugh’s comments about Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke have dominated this week’s media attention. Lost in this news coverage were Vice President Joe Biden’s … Continue reading
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