Opinion and commentary on news, politics, culture, and policy impact.
“It is my strong belief that if we engage, that that offers the greatest prospect for escaping some of the constraints of the past. I think the Cuban people are extraordinary and have huge potential. And what’s encouraging is, is that the overwhelming majority of Cubans are interested in ending … the last vestige of…
Getting Americans to agree on anything isn’t easy. So let’s hand it to our tax code. When asked in a recent survey to rate it, only 5 percent of the public said it’s “working just fine.” When 95 out of every 100 Americans say you’ve got a problem, well—you’ve got a problem. Even Congress averaged…
The interim Iranian nuclear framework is a vague accord with significant shortcomings. Moreover, the ink had barely dried before Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei disputed the Obama administration’s depiction of what had been agreed to. Khamenei declared that all sanctions against Iran must be removed immediately upon signature of a final accord in three months. He…
On the surface, abortion and same-sex marriage may seem unrelated. However, as explained in an amicus brief of 100 scholars of marriage, filed in the pending Supreme Court marriage cases and summarized here, the two are closely linked in a short and simple causal chain that the Supreme Court would be wise not to set…
Not even the week of Hillary Clinton’s announcement of her presidential candidacy could pass without further revelations emerging on her use of email when she was secretary of state. We found out this week Congress demanded an accounting of her email habits more than two years ago, but Clinton simply ignored the query. But the…
One of the ways that low taxes promote economic growth is by attracting people with valuable ideas. In a new working paper, economists from the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University measured how many “superstar inventors” are attracted by low taxes. They found that if top tax rates were cut 10 percentage points, the number…
The Heritage Foundation's David Kreutzer wrote about President Obama's attitude toward oil in a column earlier this week: Though environmental impact statement after environmental impact statement from his own Department of State concludes that the Keystone XL Pipeline would not have a significant environmental impact, President Obama said the impact “could be disastrous.” The alleged…
Next week will be cyber week in the House of Representatives, and the Senate is set to act soon on cybersecurity legislation. In recent months the growing cyber threat has caused the federal government to take steps to enhance cyber protection. On Wednesday, the House Committee on Homeland Security unanimously passed the bipartisan National Cybersecurity…
States continue to wrest their way from the Common Core national standards and tests. Considering the problems that have plagued implementation, along with ongoing concerns from parents, teachers, and state policymakers over loss of state and local control of education, they are right to do so. Among the implementation issues, yesterday the Associated Press (AP)…
In a recent hearing on “The Need to Reform Asset Forfeiture,” the Senate Judiciary Committee focused on how the property of ordinary citizens could be seized without them even being charged with a crime. Because current forfeiture laws treat property as “guilty until proven innocent” and often subject innocent owners to oppressive legal costs, Congress should…
Should a separated couple’s frozen embryos be allowed to survive? “Modern Family” actress Sofia Vergara and her ex-fiancé Nick Loeb have two frozen embryos created from when they were still in a relationship and were pursuing in-vitro fertilization. At the time, the couple, who planned to use a surrogate to carry the children to term, reportedly…
A U.S. president reaches a nuclear agreement with a rogue state. He steps before the microphones and declares, “This is a good deal for the United States.” The pariah nation will, he continues, “freeze and then dismantle its nuclear program” and the “entire world will be safer as we slow the spread of nuclear weapons.”…
The House voted to repeal the death tax on Thursday. There are lots of persuasive reasons to kill this odious tax. The money in a person’s estate has already been taxed over the lifetime that it was earned. The tax breaks up family-owned businesses. It reduces capital investment and lifetime savings. It encourages people with…
Any day now, a major debate will commence in Congress over legislation to grant Trade Promotion Authority to the executive branch. Among the more controversial issues to be debated will be proposals to include “currency manipulation” provisions in the Trans-Pacific Partnership and other future free trade agreements. These provisions would require the United States to…
First appeared in beyondbrics, the Financial Times blog on April 14, 2015 On the African continent, peaceful transitions of power through free and fair elections are a true rarity. Despite the odds, General Muhammadu Buhari delivered an impressive victory over incumbent president Goodluck Jonathan in last month’s presidential election in Nigeria and is set to…
The Washington Post followed Heritage Foundation’s Ryan T. Anderson as he went to Harvard Law School to debate same-sex marriage and why he fights for marriage and against the legal redefinition of marriage. >>> Read the full Washington Post profile of Ryan T. Anderson.
If you’ve ever looked into nutrition, you’d know it is a contentious area. What’s healthy and trendy one decade is verboten the next. And, vice versa, what’s banned one decade is embraced the next. Just consider eggs and red meat. When I was growing up in the 90s, my mom vigilantly made sure we didn’t…
On Tuesday, President Obama suggested he would support legislation passed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee requiring congressional review of any deal with Iran. We talk to Heritage’s Steven Bucci about what that means. Was this a victory for those who feel Congress should have a larger voice on the issue? Unfortunately no. The mark…
Congress is at odds with the Obama administration over the framework for a proposed deal with Iran regarding its nuclear program. The administration says its approach to a negotiated deal is the best path to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapon capability … at least for the next 10-15 years. The deal under negotiation would…
It’s tax day—time to send those income tax payments to your federal and state governments. While tax withholding throughout the year means that many individuals actually receive tax refunds when they file, most people cringe at the total amount of state and local income taxes they pay each year. As burdensome as income taxes are,…