| January-February 2007
Politics & Government: Bush Administration | Elections | Federal Government | Congress | The Courts
Government Initiatives: Crime & Law Enforcement | Social Security & Welfare
Politics & Government:
C1 - Legacy Time
Cannon, Carl
National Journal, January 6, 2007, v39, #1, pp24-29
Now that the 2006 midterm elections are over, President Bush is concerned with how his presidency will be remembered when he leaves office. Many believe his legacy will hinge on success in the unpopular Iraq war. However, the author offers five developments that could overshadow or at least share space with the Iraq War in the history books. These include capturing Osama bin Laden, executing an Israeli peace plan, outlining an effective energy policy, passing immigration reform legislation and curtailing federal spending. Carl M. Cannon is a staff writer with the National Journal. Order Article
C2 - The Home Front
Ponnuru, Ramesh
National Review,
February 12, 2007, v59, #2, pp17-26
"It has become a bit of a conservative cliché to say that we are victims of our own success. Like a lot of clichés, this one contains some truth. We had a hand in defeating Communism, ending inflation, reforming welfare, cutting tax rates, and reducing crime, and so the public no longer needs us to accomplish these objectives. But we are also, and less paradoxically, victims of our own failure. We have failed to cut the federal budget, or rein in entitlements, or reduce the level of regulation; we have failed to uproot racial preferences or control the borders; we have largely failed to bring school choice to many of our cities; and it has been a while since we have even tried to do any of these things. The opportunities for conservative reform have not been exhausted..." This article discusses the domestic policy of the Bush's administration, arguing that the conservative party could regain control of the United States Congress by
placing an emphasis on ideals rather than political victories, focusing energy
on solving problems, and paying more attention to the realities of American
life. Ramesh Ponnuru, is a senior editor at National Review. Fulltext
C3 - Opportunities for Bipartisan Consensus - 2007: What Both Republicans and Democrats Want in U.S. Foreign Policy
Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA), Center for International and Security Studies in Maryland (CISSM) and Center on Policy Attitudes (COPA). January 2007, online edition, 34p
"Entering 2007, President Bush and Democratic leaders in the newly-elected U.S. Congress have promised to try to work together in a bipartisan manner. But most observers are bracing for battles between Democratic and Republican lawmakers over contentious questions such as the conduct of the war in Iraq, the best way to contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions and how to deal with the North Korean nuclear threat. It is widely assumed that partisan differences within the government reflect deep divisions in the American public. But is this necessarily the case? To find out WorldPublicOpinion.org conducted a study of US public opinion on international issues, looking for areas of agreement among Republicans and Democrats. This included a new WorldPublicOpinion.org/Knowledge Networks poll (WPO/KN), as well as an analysis of numerous other polls conducted over the last year and a half." Fulltext
C4 - Barack Obama Inc. - The Birth of a Washington Machine
Silverstein, Ken
Harper's Magazine, November 2006, v313, #878; pp31-40
The article discusses the political machine building around the U. S. Senator and possible presidential candidate Barack Obama. Obama entered Congress as an advocate for
the poor and for reform. He has since built up the contacts and support that are
necessary for a sustainable political career, but these very assets may put an
end to the reforming spirit that inspired his campaign and his current
popularity. Ken Silverstein is the Washington editor of Harper's Magazine.
Fulltext
C5 - Gender Gap at The Ballot Box
Nather, David; Cochran, John
CQ Weekly, January 29, 2007, v65 #5, pp310-317
The article focuses on the influence of the candidacy of U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton as U.S. president and the appointment of Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the U.S. House on women voters. It discusses the possibility that a wave of interest could be generated by Clinton and Pelosi which would persuade more women to vote in the 2008 election. An active outreach effort to women's group for 2008 is being planned by Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland. David Nather and John Cochran are staff writers at CQ Weekly. Order Article
C6 - A Massachussetts Conservative
Gilgoff, Dan
U.S. News & World Report, February 12, 2007, v142, #5, pp51-53
This article profiles former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Romney is discussed as a candidate for the U.S. Presidency for the 2008 U.S. elections. The article examines Romney's stance on abortion, noting that while he was once pro-choice, he has switched to pro-life beliefs during the 21st century. The article also examines Romney's Mormon faith, and speculates how popular a Mormon candidate may be in a U.S. national election. Fulltext
C7 - Elections: Reliability Trumps Competence: Personal Attributes in the 2004 Presidential Election
Wattenberg, Martin P.
Presidential Studies Quarterly, December 2006, v36, #4, pp705-714
This paper presents data demonstrating that George W. Bush enjoyed a substantial advantage over John Kerry in terms of how voters perceived personal attributes like reliability, integrity, and strength of leadership. The dimensions of personal character on which Bush had the greatest edge were
the most related to voting choices, even after controlling for factors such as
presidential performance and party identification. Martin P. Wattenberg is professor of political science at the University of California, Irvine. Fulltext
C8 - Upgrading America’s Ballot Box: The Rise of E-Voting
Arrison, Sonia; Vasquez, Vince
Pacific Research Institute (via Heartland Institute), October 2006, online edition, 25p
"The digital revolution has left an imprint on virtually every aspect of society, including the process by which Americans choose their leaders. On Election Day 2004, voters cast more than 40 million votes, nearly one third of the total, on approximately 175,000 electronic voting machines. Relatively few complaints about e-voting systems were received, and those that were could be attributed to user error. For the first time, thousands of handicapped and special-needs voters, who in the past have been turned away from their precincts, were allowed to vote at a polling booth... This policy briefing examines the rise of
e-voting, what its critics say,how to answer them, and what the future might
hold." Fulltext
C9 - Budget Option: Taming the Deficit
Frenzel, Bill; Sawhill, Isabel V.
Brookings Institution, January 2007, online edition
“How can we balance the budget in the next five years? In a series of papers on budget choices, Brookings analysts examine options for reducing domestic discretionary spending, pruning the defense budget, raising revenues, and investing additional resources in children. An overall deficit reduction plan uses the ideas developed in this series to balance the budget in the next five years.” Bill Frenzel is Guest Scholar, Economic Studies, and former U.S. Representative (R-Minn.).
Other paper in the series:
- Cost-Effective Investments in Children - Isaacs, Julia B.
Fulltext
C11 - When Congress Checks Out
Ornstein, Norman J.; Mann, Thomas E.
Foreign Affairs, November/December 2006, v85,#6, pp67
"Over the past six years, Congress' oversight of the executive branch on foreign and national security policy has virtually collapsed. Compounding the problem, the Bush administration has aggressively asserted executive prerogatives -- sometimes with dire consequences. Ornstein and Mann argue that the oversight problem must be fixed, ideally as part of a more fundamental effort to restore the balance between the two branches." Norman J. Ornstein is a Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. Thomas E. Mann holds the W. Averell Harriman Chair and is a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution.
Fulltext
C12 - Getting to 60
Victor, Kirk
National Journal, January 13, 2007, v39, # 2, pp36-43
"The U.S. Senate's new Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada, is seeking to find new ways to engage Republicans and Democrats in bipartisanship and to celebrate independent-mindedness among his Democratic colleagues in order to keep his members united. Because the new Democratic majority is slim -- 51 Democrats to 49 Republicans -- it is widely believed that nothing will get done on the Senate floor without 60 votes. In an interview with the National Journal, Reid said he believes that Senate Republicans would ultimately hurt Bush's presidency if they oppose everything the
Democrats want to accomplish. "If we are able to stand for bipartisanship, openness, and results," Reid said, "we don't need to stand for anything else. The rest will just fall in." As author Victor recounts a Capitol Hill truism that it is "easier for a leader to keep a party's members united in the minority than in the majority," Reid said he is humbled by the fact that majorities are fleeting as he works to keep his party together. Kirk Victor is a staff writer at the "national Journal". Fulltext
The Courts
C13 - Judging Politics
Vaida, Bara
National Journal, February 5, 2007, v39,#3, pp36-41
"Americans are losing faith in the partiality of judges, something legal scholars and lawyers blame on corporate lobbying and conservative activists. More money is being pumped into state judicial races, with at least $40 million spent on state Supreme Court races in 2006. The increase in spending has lead to politicized campaigning, including TV attack ads. Also, in 2002 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that judges have the right to announce their political views, something that business groups and think tanks have jumped on, pushing judges to publicly declare their views on politicized issues like abortion and gay marriage. The conservative group, Focus on Family, even sent out questionnaires to judges, asking about political views and judicial philosophy. This shift has caused backlash from voters and in 2006 four states voted on initiatives to limit the power of the judiciary. The American Bar Association is trying to fight the backlash, advocating for the public financing of judicial races and developing universal standards to evaluate judges." Bara Vaida is a staff writer at "the National Journal" Order Article Government Initiatives:
C14 - Overcoming the Fear of Guns, the Fear of Gun Control, and the Fear of Cultural Politics: Constructing a Better Gun Debate
Braman, Donald; Kahan, Dan M.
Emory Law Journal, 2006, v55, #4, 39p
“Gun [control] debate appears to hinge on a narrow factual question: whether more guns make society less safe or more. Control supporters, we are told, believe that the ready availability of guns diminishes public safety by facilitating violent crimes and accidental shootings; opponents, that such availability enhances public safety by enabling potential crime victims to ward off violent predation. Hoping to settle this disagreement, social scientists employ a wide array of empirical methods... Their prominent (and in many respects fabled) role in American history imbues guns with a surfeit of social meanings... Competing cultural visions, argue the authors, are what drive the gun control debate." Braman is Irving S. Ribicoff Fellow at Yale Law School. Kahan is the Elizabeth K. Dollard Professor of Law and Deputy Dean at Yale Law School. Fulltext
C15 - Welfare Reform and the "Platonic Master Science": An Interview with Lawrence Mead
Kosar, Kevin R; Lampe, David
Public Administration Review, Nov/Dec 2006, v66, #6, 7p
"In this conversation with the author of the 2005 Brownlow Book Award winner Government Matters, Lawrence Mead underscores the indispensable role of government in implementing effective welfare reform in Wisconsin. When policy makers and administrators work together conscientiously, according to Mead, old institutions can be revitalized and new ones built with remarkable speed and efficiency to achieve public purposes. Mead also shares his perspectives on the major failings of contemporary policy research." Fulltext
C16 - The Check Is in the Mail
Lawrence M. Mead
First Things, October 2006, #166, pp55-59
Mead reviews In Our Hands, a recent book by Charles Murray. "In his 1984 book, "Losing Ground," Murray attacked the welfare system
for tempting the poor into dysfunction. In 1994, however, Murray joined Richard Herrnstein to write The Bell Curve, arguing that social problems were most common among the less intelligent and that low IQ was largely rooted in biology, including race... In the furor about the book's racial argument, few noticed this reversal of Murray's earlier position. In In Our Hands, Murray extends that idea of a guaranteed income into a dramatic proposal to replace the entire welfare state. All national social programs - Social security, Medicare, Medicaid, welfare, and all other means-tested benefits - would be replaced by a single grant of $10,000 to be given annually to all adults, from age twenty-one to the end of their lives. The amount would be indexed to rise with inflation. The grant would guarantee support for those who are unable to succeed even if they work. The idea may sound expensive, but Murray calculates that it would cost less than the existing programs within a few years, chiefly due to the ballooning cost of Social Security and Medicare for the baby boom." Lawrence M. Mead is professor of politics at New York University. Fulltext
C17 - Health Care in Three Acts
Cohen, Eric; Levin, Yuval
Commentary, Feb 2007, v123, #2; pp47-54
This article discusses health care in America. Public opinion polls show that
health care is an extremely important issue for many voters, and many
politicians are attempting to bring health care to everyone. It is difficult, however, to speak of health care as a single coherent challenge and to propose a single workable solution. The authors describe the three distinct predicaments regarding health care, affecting three fairly distinct portions of the
population - the poor, the middle class, and the elderly. Eric Cohen is the editor of the New Atlantis and director of the program in
Bioethics and American Democracy at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in
Washington, D.C. Yuval Levin is a fellow at the Center, formerly served on the
White House domestic-policy staff and as chief of staff of the President's
Council on Bioethics. Fulltext
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