Daily news coverage of politics, policy, and issues shaping the nation.
With six Republicans officially in the presidential race for 2016 and more to join soon, the party’s chairman is gearing up for a busy year. The Daily Signal spoke to Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus about the policy issues at the forefront of the debate. “On the policy side, we’re going to have plenty…
When Lindsay Franks received a letter from the Department of Health and Human Services’ health insurance marketplace in January, she was certain it was a scam. “Important,” the letter read. “Respond within 60 days to keep your Marketplace health coverage.” The message, dated Jan. 13, 2015, looked official, with the federal marketplace’s logo pasted in…
I’m four months out of college, living halfway across the country from where I grew up. I graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a degree in public relations. And sometime this summer, as I search for a full-time job to take the place of my internship, I’ll begin the daunting task of paying…
For the first time in five years, Congress has passed a budget. However, it does not repeal Obamacare. According to Paul Winfree, director of the Roe Institute at The Heritage Foundation, Republicans could use reconciliation to keep their promises to voters to repeal the Affordable Care Act. >>> Key Facts About Congress’s Budget, Which Will Repeal…
On a hot day in Washington, D.C., a federal agency issued 11 pages of new regulations on Christmas lights and other holiday decorations, calling certain products “a substantial product hazard.” “The Consumer Product Safety Commission … is issuing a final rule to specify that seasonal and decorative lighting products that do not contain any one…
For two groups on opposing sides of the political spectrum, requests to the Export-Import Bank for records under the Freedom of Information Act yield different results. In November 2013, Americans for Limited Government filed a Freedom of Information Act request for correspondence between a consulting firm with ties to the Clinton administration and Export-Import Bank…
BALTIMORE—At the end of the most hopeless of weeks, after Freddie Gray’s tragic death in the custody of police led to violent—and peaceful—protests, and the arrests of six police officers, Pastor Harold Carter Jr. called for unity, peace and revival. Carter preached for the congregation to use Gray’s memory to keep sight of the opportunity…
Hillary Clinton argued for “a path to full and equal citizenship” for illegal immigrants during a roundtable discussion in Las Vegas, Nev., on Tuesday. She called comprehensive immigration reform both a “family” and an “economic” issue, and the notion of deporting 11 million people “absurd.” Clinton argued for a path to citizenship for the family…
Mike Huckabee, who announced his candidacy for president this morning in Hope, Ark., tells The Daily Signal this election will be dominated equally by foreign policy and the “economics of the working-class people” in America. Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, spoke with The Daily Signal during a recent trip to Iowa. He is the sixth…
Every time you fill your car with gas, a portion of what you pay at the pump goes to a federal program called the Highway Trust Fund. Soon Congress will consider the fund’s financial future — and there are big implications for transportation spending hanging in the balance. Since 2008, the Highway Trust Fund has…
Hours after the Senate allowed a controversial anti-discrimination law to officially take effect in the nation’s capital, a group of pro-life organizations released a joint statement pledging to continue operating in accordance with their beliefs—thereby putting themselves at risk of violating the law. “Despite the enactment of this unjust law, we will continue to hire…
A majority of physicians report that they have seen an increase in emergency visits since Obamacare went into effect, according to a new poll by the American College of Emergency Physicians. According to the poll, 28 percent of respondents reported that the number of emergency room patients has “increased greatly,” and 47 percent responded that…
Now that retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson has officially thrown his hat into the ring as a Republican candidate for president in 2016, he is rolling out his policy proposals. In an interview at his West Palm Beach, Fla., home last November, Carson said entitlement programs don’t need to be touched until the economy is back on the…
GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina says that Democrats are playing politics with women’s issues, especially when it comes to abortion. “The Democrats have used this issue to scare women to death, and sometimes when men talk about this issue it seems a little scary to women because it seems judgmental.” Fiorina’s presidential run will be…
After expanding to do business on the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges last year, a Wisconsin-based health insurance company founded in 1892 has announced it will close its doors. Assurant Inc. announced last week one of its subsidiaries, Assurant Health, an insurance company, will either be sold or shuttered after losing tens of millions of dollars…
A bill has been passed by the New Hampshire state Senate that would require voters to reside in the state for 30 days before becoming eligible to vote. Senate Bill 179 was passed by the Republican-controlled state Senate in a party-line vote, and is currently in committee in the House. New Hampshire law currently permits…
CHERKAS’KE, Ukraine—It takes about 10 minutes to drive to the highway from the Ukrainian army base in this small town. From there it is 130 miles, about a three-hour drive over Ukraine’s pothole speckled roads, to the front lines in the Donbas. The war is close, both in distance and in the futures of the…
Policymakers are currently considering the future of the Export-Import Bank, a little-known government agency that provides taxpayer-backed loans and loan guarantees to foreign countries and companies for the purchase of U.S. products. The bank’s charter expires June 30, and as Congress inches closer to its deadline on whether Ex-Im should be reauthorized, the debate over…
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has represented Vermont as an independent in the House and Senate for nearly 25 years, has provided Hillary Rodham Clinton with a challenger for the Democratic nomination for president. In his characteristic get-to-the-point style, Sanders earlier this week skipped over a formal declaration of candidacy – he had hinted at it for months…
Last December, the Ohio State treasurer, Josh Mandel, launched OhioCheckbook.com, a website specifically dedicated to showing taxpayers exactly where their dollars are going. However the journey to this new endeavor wasn’t as simple. “I identified a problem in our state government that everyday taxpayers couldn’t see how money was being spent,” Mandel said at a…