Political Commentary & Opinion
Analysis, commentary, and opinion essays on politics and policy from The Daily Signal’s contributors and experts.
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news
Scott Walker Casts Himself as Champion of ‘Hard-Working Taxpayers’
When a heckler briefly broke into his speech this evening, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker had a ready comeback. Walker joked that the man must be a union activist who followed him from Wisconsin to the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, where the Republican governor was speaking outside Washington, D.C. Then he added, to hearty… -
opinion
New House Bill Unlikely to End Amtrak’s Habit of Losing Taxpayer Money Selling Food
Don’t expect Amtrak to stop selling $16.15 burgers for $9.50—and asking taxpayers to subsidize the loss. In a 2012 House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing, then-chairman Rep. John Mica, R.-Fla., expressed outrage about Amtrak’s $16.15 hamburgers: $9.50 is paid by passenger and the rest subsidized by taxpayers. He went on to say that Amtrak’s $84… -
news
How Twitter Reacted to Conservative Presidential Pitches at CPAC
The Conservative Political Action Conference opened today with a star-studded ensemble of 2016 presidential hopefuls. The day began with Ben Carson, the celebrated neurosurgeon, delighting a conservative audience, both in-person and on Twitter. https://twitter.com/AlexPappas/status/570956964227883008 https://twitter.com/dhrxsol1234/status/570994053338124288 – @RealBenCarson says GOP should oppose Obama's executive amnesty: "Defund everything including his golf" Crowd goes wild. —… -
opinion
Supreme Court Justices Agree: Overcriminalization Is a Problem in America
On Wednesday, a closely-divided Supreme Court issued a decision holding that tossing a few undersized fish back into the ocean from a boat is not the same thing as shredding a document. While that might be common sense for some, there was a serious legal debate whether a fisherman should be prosecuted under a law… -
news
Chris Christie, ‘Not Worried,’ Draws Laughs and Cheers at CPAC
In his trademark blunt style, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie today breezed through an onstage interview with conservative talk-radio host Laura Ingraham, drawing cheers from a sometimes skeptical crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Asked specifically about his low standing as a prospective Republican presidential candidate in the latest polls, and about the fundraising… -
news
Should Wisconsin Pass a Right-to-Work Law? These 2 Charts Explain the Debate.
Some Wisconsinites are pushing for a right-to-work bill in their state capitol this week, in hopes to have their state join 24 others in making union dues voluntary. Though union membership rates have steadily dropped since the 1950s, the bill is drawing a heated debate. Tuesday morning, supporters and opponents of right-to-work laws testified before… -
news
Ben Carson Tells CPAC Crowd He Wants to ‘Get Rid of Dependency,’ Not Welfare Programs
Ben Carson, the celebrated neurosurgeon who has excited many grassroots conservatives, said today that if he were president he would not be an enemy of welfare programs but of “dependency” on government. “I’m not interested in getting rid of the safety net; I’m interested in getting rid of dependency,” said Carson, the lead-off prospective candidate… -
opinion
US Is Focusing on Creating, Distributing Anti-ISIS Messages in Middle East
The U.S. government’s plans to strengthen and coordinate its counterterrorism communications is a ray of good news. Last week, Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Rick Stengel announced that the State Department will increase the staff and funding of its Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communication, the spearhead of the U.S. government against the propaganda… -
opinion
Once Again, the Government Is Pushing ‘Affordable’ Home Loans—at Taxpayers’ Risk
The Federal Housing Administration, a primary government mortgage insurance guarantee agency, is leading a renewed push for government-insured “affordable” home loans. In an attempt to spur the stagnant first-time home buyer market, the FHA has moved to reduce the standard fee they charge for risk on the loans they insure. The FHA does not issue home… -
news
Illinois Republican Introduces Bills Aimed at Protecting Taxpayers from the IRS
In the aftermath of the targeting scandal at the Internal Revenue Service, one Republican lawmaker is working to protect taxpayers from the agency’s intrusive practices. Rep. Peter Roskam of Illinois, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Oversight subcommittee, reintroduced two bills today aimed at ensuring taxpayers’ rights, The Daily Signal has learned. The… -
news
The Conservative Problem With the Latest Version of No Child Left Behind
This week, the House of Representatives will vote on an ambitious rewrite of the No Child Left Behind Act, which is the most far-reaching K-12 federal education law ever created. Under consideration is a 620-page proposal called the Student Success Act (H.R. 5), which Republican leadership says will scale back Washington’s involvement in local education…. -
news
The Daily Signal Taps Veteran Journalist Ken McIntyre as Chief Political Correspondent
Ken McIntyre, a veteran reporter and editor with more than 30 years in journalism, is taking on a new role as chief political correspondent for The Daily Signal. As news director, McIntyre concentrated on building and developing The Daily Signal's news team before and after its launch in June 2014. Now, as The Heritage Foundation’s… -
news
How a Free Clinic Is Saving Health Care in America
Every time Alan Davide passes the intersection of Weston Canal Road and Chapel Drive in Somerset, N.J., he sends a prayer up to God. “God bless these people,” Davide repeats. For the last three years, the intersection in the small central New Jersey town has taken on special meaning for Davide, who found himself “in… -
opinion
Time to End Too Big to Jail
Should an individual be able to commit fraud and not face jail time or at least serious civil consequences? Too often we have seen multi-billion dollar fraud at large banks or investment banks, yet the individuals who engineered the fraudulent schemes are not held accountable for their actions. Shareholders pay huge fines, but the individuals… -
opinion
8 Conservative Movies Hollywood Should Make
As I listened to the acceptance speeches at the Academy Awards, I was struck by the constant references to a long litany of human and other rights now denied. Each charge brought the black-tied, silk-gowned audience to their feet, wildly applauding and cheering. Nearly every imaginable right was mentioned—women’s rights, civil rights, incarceration rights, immigration… -
opinion
EPA’s Clean Water Act: A Flood of Uncertainty
Earlier this month, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a joint hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers’ proposed rule defining “waters of the U.S.” under the Clean Water Act (CWA). This proposed rule is an attempt to define… -
news
Sean Hannity to Put Jeb Bush on Hot Seat in CPAC Treat for Conservatives
Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush will take questions from conservative commentator Sean Hannity in what sounds like a must-see matchup Friday at the Conservative Political Action Conference outside Washington, D.C., The Daily Signal has learned. The move by the former Florida governor to face his conservative critics head-on through Hannity, a longtime champion of “bold… -
opinion
Millennials Dropping Out of Labor Force, While More Seniors Are Working
In recent years, fewer Americans have been working. That’s the finding from new research conducted by The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis. The new report shows there has been a shift in the composition of the labor force by age and marital status. It’s true that there has been a recent decrease in unemployment…. -
opinion
Executive Encouragement
President Obama’s new executive order, “Promoting Private Sector Cybersecurity Information Sharing,” issued on February 13, attempts to address the lack of a central hub or of uniform standards for sharing information on cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities. However, in order to produce actionable results, improvements to information sharing must increase the ability of Information Sharing and… -
news
New Poll Shows Strong American Support for Israel
Despite the controversy surrounding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming address to Congress, a new poll shows that American support for Israel remains strong. According to a new Gallup poll, 70 percent of Americans view Israel favorably. When asked who they were most sympathetic to in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, 62 percent of respondents said that…