The American Conservative
Contributor to The American Conservative and TheWeek.com, among other publications; former contributing columnist to US News and World Report; former aide to House Speaker John Boehner and a former reporter for the Washington Times
Budget Crisis Fallout: What's the Damage? Government workers are returning. The United States will continue to pay its bills. The President says there are no winners and that all Americans lost. Polls show Republicans and the Tea-Party dropping in public opinion, while the Affordable Care Act has gained some popularity. Did the President and the Democrats really win? Will there be a next round? What can Washington do now to regain the confidence of the American people—and the rest of the world? In today’s speech at the White House, President Obama said the threat of default has increased America’s borrowing costs and that, “the American people’s frustration with what goes on [in Washington] has never been higher…” The President said, “those who pushed for the shutdown and threatened default claim their actions were needed… to make America strong.”
The Republican Race for President: More Unsettled than Ever Establishment Republicans and other political pros think Mitt Romney is the most likely candidate to unseat President Obama a year from now. We get the latest with the Iowa caucuses less than two months away. In the meantime, a fourth woman has made sexual harassment charges against Herman Cain , this time in a public statement with the ugly details. Sharon Bialek, a former employee of the National Restaurant Association, then run by Herman Cain, said she'd been fired from her job and that her boyfriend suggested she ask Herman Cain how to get a new one. Facing a bank of cameras in New York City, she gave a graphic account of what happened. We hear what she said and what the impact might be and look at how the Republican presidential field is shaping up.
The Republican Race for President: More Unsettled than Ever Barack Obama is in trouble with American voters, but his re-election might well depend on the identity of his GOP challenger. Establishment Republicans and other political pros think Mitt Romney is the most likely candidate to unseat President Obama a year from now. But the Iowa caucuses could change things, as they did four years ago, and they're less than two months away. Will Mitt Romney go all out despite being clobbered in Iowa four years ago? Will a fourth woman damage Herman Cain with sexual harassment charges? Can Rick Perry spend his way out of a collapse in the public opinion polls? We look at some potential scenarios for Iowa and 11 other swing states, which could ultimately decide if there's going to be a change in the White House.
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.
How was the trip? President Trump's travels got less fun as he went from the Middle East to Europe.
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.