| January-February 2006
Politics & Government: Bush Administration | Elections | Congress | Judicial System
Government Initiatives: Education Reform | Health Care
| Homeland Security | Tax Reform
Politics & Government:
C1 - Leadership by Definition: First Term Reflections on George W. Bush's Political Stance
Skowronek,Stephen
Perspectives on Politics, December 2005, v3, #4, pp817-831
"George W. Bush elevated the value of definition in presidential
leadership and made it central to his political stance. This was
as much a strategic calculation of political advantage in the
moment at hand as it was a reflection of the man’s innate character.
Accounting for Bush’s leadership posture in this way helps to
situate it on a larger historical canvas as a particular rendition
of a familiar type; reference to general characteristics of the
type facilitates, in turn, an assessment of the strengths and
weaknesses of Bush’s performance over the course of his first
term. Conclusions consider deviations from the patterned political
effects of leadership of this sort and weigh their possible significance."
Stephen Sokowronek is Professor of Political and Social Science
at Yale University. Fulltext
C2 - Expansive Citizenship - Voting beyond Territory and Membership
Bauböck, Rainer
PS, Political Science & Politics, Oct 2005, v38, #4, pp683-689
“Baubock discusses the dual restriction of electoral rights to citizens who are also residents has been, however, attenuated or abandoned in a growing number of democratic countries. This trend is symptomatic for a broader transformation of the territorial and membership boundaries that circumscribe democratic citizenship. Moreover, he describes the phenomenon and reasons for this trend and discusses alternative ideas for how it should be evaluated.” Rainer Bauböck is a senior researcher at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Institute for European Integration Research, and teaches at Vienna University and Central European University, Budapest. Fulltext
C3 - New Fight for Voting Rights
Gibeaut, John
ABA Journal, January 2006, v92, pp42-49
The Rehnquist court's view of federalism could carry heavy weight as precedent as some states seek to escape strict conditions the Voting Rights Act has placed on all parts of their electoral systems. The House overruled a Supreme Court decision requiring some plaintiffs to prove not only discriminatory effects of voting rights violations, but discriminatory intent, which can be difficult if not nearly impossible. A unanimous Supreme Court already had opened the schoolhouse doors to desegregation with the milestone decision in Brown v. Board of Education, holding that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." John Gibeaut is a senior writer for the ABA Journal. Fulltext
C4 - Original Intent
Susan Jacoby
Mother Jones, December 2005,v30, #7, pp28-34
"Jacoby remarks that confronted with the Constitution's silence on divine authority, revisionists repeatedly fall back in the specious argument that since everyone took God's omnipotence for granted in the 18th century, there was no need for the framers to make a special point of mentioning the deity. If that were true, there would have been no bitter debates in the states about the nonreligious language of the Constitution. Moreover, the line of reasoning is self-contradictory, coming as it does from a political/religious lobby that backs the appointment of originalist judges."
Historian Susan Jacoby is the author of "Freethinkers:
A History of American Secularism." Fulltext
C5 - Congress and the Naturalization of Immigrants
Bessette, Joseph
The Heritage Foundation, WebMemo #926, December 1, 2005
The following is an entry concerning the fourth section of Article I, Clause 8 of the Constitution as found in The Heritage Guide to the Constitution
“Few powers are more fundamental to sovereignty than the control over immigration and the vesting of citizenship in aliens (naturalization). According to the Declaration of Independence, “obstructing the Laws for the Naturalization of Foreigners” was one of the grievances that led the American colonists to break with Britain.” Joseph Bessette is Professor of Government at Claremont McKenna College. Fulltext
C6 - USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005
(H.R.3199): A Side-by-Side Comparison of Existing Law, H.R. 3199 (Conference), and H.R. 3199 (Senate Passed)
Yeh, Brian T. & Charles Doyle,
Congressional Research Report for Congress. December 28, 2005, 35p
"The version of the USA Patriot Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005, H.R. 3199, upon which the conferes agreed represents a compromise between the Senate version and the version passed by the House." Brian T. Yeh is Legislative Attorney, Charles Doyle is Senior Specialist; both work in the American Law Division of the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress. Fulltext
C7 - Rival Stem Cells Spawn Showdown
Munro, Neil
National Journal, December 10, 2005, pp3802-3804
"A relatively noncontroversial bill intended to subsidize the medical use of stem cells found in umbilical cord blood has been caught up in the high-stakes dispute over federal support for embryonic-stem-cell research."
Neil Munro covers the politics of the technology business for National Journal. Fulltext
C8 - Alito: A Sampling of Misleading Media Coverage
Taylor, Stuart Jr.
National Journal, December 10, 2005, pp. 3777-3779
The author discusses coverage of Judge Samuel Alito’s Supreme Court nomination in major news organizations. Stuart Taylor Jr. is a senior writer and columnist for National Journal anda contributing editor at Newsweek. Fulltext
C9 - Judging Alito
Gunther, Marc ; Levenson, Eugenia
Fortune, November 28, 2005, pp. 133-136
“Just hours after President Bush nominated Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the U.S. Supreme Court, the predictable rush to judgment began. Pro-life leaders called Alito a fast train to a world without Roe v. Wade. Liberals called him an opponent of fundamental rights and protections. And as for business, the verdict was unanimous. Big Business likes Alito. To ask whether Alito is pro-business is to pose the wrong question. Why? Consider some of the cases on the Supreme Court's docket this term. Three antitrust actions, including a price-fixing case brought by 23,000 gas station owners against a joint venture of Shell and Texaco, pit businesses against businesses. Alito has supported corporations consistently in some arenas, notably employment and discrimination law.” Marc Gunther is a senior writer at Fortune magazine who covers the media industry and writes about the impact of business on society. Eugenia Levenson is a reporter for Fortune magazine. Fulltext
C10 - The Right Justice
Whelan, Edward
National Review, December 5, 2005, pp22-24
“Notwithstanding the recent disclosure of Samuel A. Alito Jr.’s
1985 statement criticizing Roe, Alito’s defenders can show that
he has neutrally applied the law in cases involving abortion..
After the Supreme Court’s ruling in Stenberg vs. Carhart voided
Nebraska’s partial-birth abortion statute, Alito concluded that
Sternberg required the invalidation of New Jersey’s virtually
identical ban.” Mr. Whelan is president of the Ethics and
Public Policy Center. Fulltext
C11 - Supreme Court Nominations 1789-2005: Actions by the Senate, the Judiciary Committee and the President.
Rutkus, Denis Steven; Bearden, Maureen
Congressional Research Report for Congress, Janury 5, 2006, 45p
“The process of appointing Supreme Court Justices has undergione changes over two centuries, but its most basic feature – the sharing of power between the President and Senate – has remained unchanged.”
Denis Steven Rutkus is a specialist in American National Government; Maureen Bearden is an Information research specialist. Both work for the Government and Finance Division of the Congressional Research service of the Library of Congress. Fulltext
Government Initiatives:
Education Reform
C12 - Value-Added Assessment and Systemic Reform: A Response to the Challenge of Human Capital Development
Hershberg, Theodore
Phi Delta Kappan, December 2005, v87, #4, pp276-, 8p
In this current and historical review of the need for the reform
of American schools, the author disucses the minimum standard
established by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in
2001. He believes , however, that value-added models are also
necessary and "that the highly competitive global economy
of the 21st century requires dramatic improvements in America's
schools. While he sees merit in the basic intent of No Child
Left Behind, he suggests that a shift to value-added assessment,
if it is used as the foundation of a comprehensive school reform
model, will be the key to raising the achievement of all students."
Theodore Hershberg is a professor of Public Policy and History
and executive director of Operation Public Education, University
of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Fulltext
Health Care
C13 - Accelerating Transformation through Health Information Technology
Report by the Center for Health Transformation. November 28, 2005, 54p
The findings and recommendations of this 54-page report are summarized in the following paragraph: “Our goal is a fully interoperable, interconnected healthcare system where all stakeholders can exchange patient information in real time to use at the point of care. As industry stakeholders come together in communities across the country, we will find answers to the pressing questions of financing, interoperability, privacy and security, cultural change, and health management. Such a system will indeed improve consumer health, reduce costs, and build a brighter future for America.”
The Center for Health Transformation is a high-impact collaboration of private and public sector leaders committed to creating a 21st Century Intelligent Health System. Fulltext
C14 - U.S. Port Security Policy after 9/11: Overview and Evaluation
Haveman, Jon D., Shatz, Howard J.; Vilchis, Ernesto A
Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, 2005, v.2 #4, 26p.
This article provides an overview of current U.S. port security programs, discussing efforts both to protect ports as a target and to prevent international goods movement from being used as a vector for terrorists, their weapons, or their supplies. The authors provide an overview of U.S. government activities in the years leading up to 9/11, and evaluate the main port-security efforts after 9/11. Although much has been accomplished to secure the nation’s ports since 9/11, this analysis concludes that much is yet to be done. Haveman and Shatz are research fellows with the Public Policy Institute of California, Ernesto A. Vilchis is a graduate student at Princeton University. Request Article
Tax Reform
C15 - Transforming the Tax Code: An Examination of the President's Tax Reform Panel Recommendations
testimony by Leonard E. Burman
Urban Institute, February 1st 2006, online edition, 7p
This congressional testimony examines how the plans put forth by the President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform would affect small businesses, focusing on four areas: adopting a national retail sales tax and the viability of federal and state tax systems; health insurance and retirement coverage; disallowing state and local tax deductions; and certain simplification proposals. Fulltext
C16 - Tax Reform in 2006?
Hassett, Kevin
The American Enterprise, Jan/Feb 2006, v17, #1, pp3--33
"In a recent study of its member nations, analysts of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development offered strong advice for the U.S. Moving "from personal income taxation toward a consumption-based tax system" would encourage saving. If you are more interested in transferring income from upper to lower earners than in encouraging overall growth (and there are many such politicians), you might resist the idea that the growth and efficiency gains of tax reform are attractive enough to offset losing the strong income redistribution elements in our current system. [...] if you doubt that a shift from taxing income to taxing consumption would increase economic growth, yet care about the economic waste in today's burdensome tax compliance costs, there is also much to like in the vastly simplified tax code recommended by the advisory panel." Kevin Hassett is AEI's director of economic policy studies. Fulltext
|
