President, Americans for Tax Reform
President of Americans for Tax Reform, a highly influential, Washington, DC-based coalition of taxpayer groups, individuals and businesses opposed to higher taxes at both the federal and state levels; political columnist for the American Spectator
The Candidates and the 'Vision Thing' The stock markets are down again, with the Dow Jones Industrial average falling below 10,000 for the first time in four years. With exactly a month to go before the election, the John McCain and Barack Obama campaigns are close in the polls and increasingly negative. Amid increasing concern about the economy, the two candidates are scheduled to face off again tomorrow night with undecided voters asking the questions. We look for "the vision thing." Do the candidates have any big ideas for the 21st Century? Does either want to leave a stamp like Roosevelt's New Deal , the Reagan Revolution or Clinton's New Democrat centrism? How does each see the role of government? Would the economy allow either one to fulfill his promises?
Rove Exit Creates Crucial Vacancy at the Bush White House Much of the White House staff reportedly was surprised today when the Wall Street Journal reported that, after 14 years as the President's top political advisor, Karl Rove would resign at the end of the month. Some Democrats say Rove acted above the law. Some Republicans say he should have left before last November's elections. We talk with reporters who've tracked the relationship that helped shape six and a half years of American history.
Top Strategist Karl Rove Announces His Resignation After 14 years as the President's top political advisor, Karl Rove announced his resignation today . The President's top political strategist will leave the White House at the end of this month. We talk with reporters who've tracked the relationship that helped shape six and a half years of American history. Some Democrats say Rove acted above the law. Some Republicans say he should have left before last November's elections.
GOP Candidates Face Off in Presidential Debate Last night at the Reagan Library in California , ten candidates got a total of 90 minutes to make their cases for the Republican presidential nomination. The name of Ronald Reagan was invoked 19 times. President Bush was hardly mentioned. Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Senator John McCain , who lead in the polls, faced off with Mitt Romney and seven lesser-known hopefuls trying to get into the top tier. The former Massachusetts Governor is included in the top tier because he has so much money. Where would they take the country on Iraq, Iran, illegal immigration and Roe versus Wade ? We hear from the Christian, moderate and fiscal-conservative wings of the party. Who said what they wanted to hear? Who would appeal to Democrats and Independents?
Politics and the Economy in the Mid-Term Elections President Bush's upper-income tax cuts have helped grow the economy, but even Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson concedes that "many Americans simply are not feeling the benefits" of that economic expansion. Nevertheless, President Bush says the economy is a Republican issue in next month's elections--more important than the war in Iraq. Some Democrats want to exploit the growing gap between rich Americans and everyone else, but "class warfare" has not been a winner in past campaigns. Is there a "war against the middle class?" Are President Bush's tax cuts a part of the problem or the solution? What about the cost of healthcare and the price of gasoline?
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.
Human Rights in the era of Donald Trump President Trump’s UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, said today the US might pull out of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Serious violators of human rights are members of the Council itself–and a US resignation could make things worse. Later on today’s show, now that he’s into his second term, comedian turned US Senator Al Franken is telling jokes again.
Will the Senate write a healthcare bill in secret? While Democrats and Republicans argue White House relations with Russia, another question is being decided behind closed doors: who gets help buying health insurance and who doesn't? We hear how the pros and cons are being shrouded in secrecy.
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.