Barack Obama News
Read news, analysis, and commentary on Barack Obama, his administration’s legacy, and his continuing impact on national debates.
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- News
Justices Hint That Obamacare May Survive Another Legal Challenge
Most of the Affordable Care Act appeared likely to survive yet another legal challenge as five justices indicated that they were not inclined to strike down the law. The court on Tuesday heard Texas v. California, a suit brought by multiple Republican attorneys general that argues that the individual mandate, a signature part of the…Andrew Trunsky -
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4 Things to Know About the Prosecutor Who’s Probing ‘Obamagate’
A federal prosecutor in Texas is drawing a new kind of attention by digging into the “unmasking” of Trump campaign associates that occurred in the waning days of the Obama administration. Attorney General William Barr last month revealed to the House Judiciary Committee that he had assigned U.S. Attorney John Bash of the Western District…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
Barack Obama’s Filibuster Hypocrisy
In April of 2005, Sen. Barack Obama took to the floor of the United States Senate and passionately spoke out against Republican efforts to end the filibuster. Then a rising star in the Democratic Party, Obama noted that despite the pressure partisans might feel, it was imperative to “rise above an ‘ends justify the means’…David Harsanyi -
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Barack Obama and His Race Card
Former President Barack Obama once again pulled out the race card for political gain, consequences be damned. This time at the funeral of civil rights icon John Lewis, Obama compared President Donald Trump to not one but two racial segregationists—former Birmingham, Alabama, Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor and former Alabama Gov. George Wallace. The…Larry Elder -
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Obama Encourages Senate Democrats to Eliminate Filibuster
Democrats are looking again at eliminating the filibuster so that they can pass legislation in the Senate without difficulty if they retake the majority, and they gained an ally this week in former President Barack Obama. Obama said during a politically charged eulogy Thursday at the Atlanta funeral service for Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., that…Rachel del Guidice -
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Taking a Look at the Obama Record on Closing Guantanamo
Guantanamo Bay is back in the news, and it may become an issue in the presidential race. A few days ago, former Vice President Joe Biden told a reporter that if he was elected, he would close the terrorist detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The New York Times said Guantanamo would have been closed…Cully Stimson -
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Obamacare 2.0 Bill Would Be a Windfall, but Pyrrhic Victory, for Insurance Lobby
In December 2013, 11.8 million Americans had individual health insurance coverage. The federal government provided no subsidies for that coverage. Six years later, in December 2019, enrollment in individual health insurance coverage stood at 12.4 million. According to Congressional Budget Office data, the federal government sent $248 billion in premium and related subsidies to health…Doug Badger -
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A Decade After Obamacare Became Law, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers Is Working to Fix Issues It Created
The Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, was supposed to cut insurance premiums, reduce the uninsured population, and provide the option to keep your plan and your doctor, but it has fallen short in all these areas. “We have 30 million Americans today that will tell you that they cannot afford their health insurance,” says Rep….Virginia Allen -
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Obamagate Isn’t a Conspiracy Theory
Those sharing #Obamagate on Twitter would do best to avoid the hysterics we saw from Russian-collusion believers, but they have no reason to ignore the mounting evidence that suggests the Obama administration engaged in serious corruption. Democrats and their allies, who like to pretend that President Barack Obama’s only scandalous act was wearing a tan…David Harsanyi -
- Opinion
How the Obama Administration Shattered the Rule of Law
This week, former President Barack Obama reemerged from hibernation to lecture Americans about the threat to rule of law posed by the Trump administration. After Attorney General William Barr announced that the Department of Justice would be dropping its case against President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who had pled guilty to…Ben Shapiro -
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Supreme Court Won’t Rush Obamacare Case, Dealing Setback to Democrats
The Supreme Court will not fast-track two petitions that ask the high court to again review the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act’s mandate for individuals to buy health insurance. The order Tuesday morning means the high court will defer a decision on the future of the Affordable Care Act until the fall, if the…Kevin Daley -
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How Obamacare Made Things Worse for Patients With Preexisting Conditions
One of the strange features of the national health care conversation is how it has evolved. What is often referred to as Obamacare began as an attempt to insure the uninsured. In fact, the initial Congressional Budget Office estimates predicted the Affordable Care Act would be largely successful in doing just that. Yet it was…John Goodman -
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Democrats Press Supreme Court for Quick Decision to Save Obamacare
A coalition of blue states and congressional Democrats has asked the Supreme Court to salvage the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, after a federal appeals court declared it unconstitutional. The petitions filed Friday also urged the justices to hear the appeal on an expedited basis and ensure the Obamacare dispute is resolved by the end…Kevin Daley -
- Opinion
An Appeals Court Rules Against Obamacare. Here’s What Lawmakers Should Do Next.
A divided panel of judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit on Wednesday declared part of Obamacare unconstitutional—but the case is far from over. The court sent the case back to a federal district court in Texas to decide whether that means the rest of the law should be thrown out…Marie Fishpaw -
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Spending Deal Would Make Obamacare More Fiscally Irresponsible
In selling Obamacare before Congress a decade ago, President Barack Obama promised that he “would not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits, either now or in the future.” From her perch behind the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi leaped out of her seat applauding at this line. So did Vice President…Brian Blase -
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Trump’s EPA Rolling Back Obama-Era Anti-Coal Regulation
The Environmental Protection Agency will propose easing rules on disposal of coal ash, the residue from burning coal, to make it less likely the federal government would shutter a coal-fired utility plant, in an announcement set for Monday. The move is part of what has been a larger deregulation push by the Trump administration to…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
Obamacare Caused Premiums to Spike. Here’s How States Are Lowering Them Again.
Throughout much of last year, critics of the White House darkly warned that “Trump sabotage” of Obamacare would result in steep increases in premiums for Obamacare plans. They predicted that Congress’ repeal of the tax penalty on the uninsured, coupled with an administration rule lifting federal restrictions on short-term policies, would lead to double-digit premium…Doug Badger -
- Opinion
How the Obama Administration Made the Military More Politically Correct
During the Obama administration, political appointees, not military members, drove the agenda. James Hasson, who served in the military during President Barack Obama’s presidency, talked to generals and other military leaders to get the inside scoop on what really happened in the military in the Obama era. Read the interview, posted below, or listen on…Katrina Trinko -
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It’s Lights Out for Obama-Era Bulb Ban That Would Have Curbed Consumer Choice
The Department of Energy announced this week that it’s withdrawing the Obama administration’s energy-rationing mandate for certain lightbulbs. Opponents criticized the rule change, arguing that the move would be bad for consumers and the climate. The reality, however, is that families and businesses will be better off, and the change will have a negligible impact on…Nicolas Loris -
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Civil Rights Panel Wants to Bring Back Obama’s Race-Based School Discipline Policies. Bad Idea.
Washington late last year reversed a policy that was micromanaging the way teachers and principals kept order in classrooms. Now, a federal commission wants to limit local educators’ control again. Teachers should be feeling whiplash. In December, the U.S. Department of Education and the Justice Department rescinded federal directives that said Washington would investigate schools…Jonathan Butcher