Chris Slavens

Budget - Chris Slavens - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Liberals - Taxes

Debt-O-Crats Are Spending U.S. Into Depression

July 23, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

Should the U.S. government, which has amassed a staggering debt of $14.5 trillion (about $4 trillion of that since President Obama took office), increase its debt limit? The question ought to be rhetorical; $47,000 per citizen is quite enough, thank you. Polls indicate that many voters don’t fully understand the ongoing debt ceiling debate, but even the least sophisticated laborer knows that spending more than he makes will eventually get him into trouble. Big trouble.

The Democratic Party, which still controls the federal government despite Republican gains last fall, seems to have missed the memo. This is hardly the first time they’ve been at odds with reason, but one would think they’d have learned by now. After failing miserably to stifle the Tea Party movement, which sprang up in opposition to excessive taxation, irresponsible
spending, and the unconstitutional expansion of government, frantic Democrats have developed an astonishingly unlikely comeback strategy: Raise the debt limit, raise taxes, and spend more.

During last year’s campaign season, Obama compared the U.S. to an automobile. Put it in “D” to move forward, or “R” to move backwards, he joked. The car is moving forward, all right–towards the edge of a cliff. Instead of changing course, or slowing down to get a good look at the road ahead, Democrats are mashing the accelerator. Those who want to increase the debt limit are comparable to irresponsible consumers who max out their credit cards, and, instead of cutting back, apply for more. The word “unsustainable” is overused in politics, but it is the correct adjective for describing liberal policies.
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Debt-O-Crats Are Spending U.S. Into Depression”

Budget - Chris Slavens - Conservatives - Constitution - Economy/Finances - GOP - Government - House of Representatives - President - Republicans - Taxes

Like Him or Not, Ron Paul is Relevant

April 23, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

At age 75, Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) is the oldest of a crowd of potential Republican presidential challengers, if only by a few years. If elected in 2012, he would be the oldest president in U.S. history; the record-holder, Reagan, assumed office at age 69. The uninformed reader might jump to the incorrect conclusion that Paul, who is old enough to be President Obama’s father, is hopelessly out of touch with the young voters who turned out in 2008 and ignorantly propelled a dangerous radical into the highest office of the land, but as anyone who pays attention to political chatter knows, Paul is wildly popular with the under-thirty crowd.

Paul won a GOP presidential straw poll on April 16 in South Carolina, easily beating Mitt Romney and Donald Trump, who tied for second place. Paul has been winning such polls left and right since the libertarian-rooted Tea Party became a political force in 2009, but his popularity among Republicans continues to be underemphasized by mainstream media outlets, which frequently (and probably intentionally) identify him as a libertarian rather than a Republican.

According to the talking heads, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, and Gingrich are the Republicans worth paying attention to as the 2012 election cycle approaches. Hesitant to take Trump’s candidacy seriously, they laughingly praise his ability to generate publicity, and might or might not remember to mention Paul, Bachmann, Pawlenty, and a handful of others. The fixation on Romney and Huckabee is somewhat understandable, as they hold impressive leads in most of the polls, but might prove to be unjustified as the race heats up.
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Like Him or Not, Ron Paul is Relevant”

Chris Slavens - Constitution - Delaware - Democracy - Democrats/Leftists - Freedom - Government - Liberals - Liberty

Operation March Sadness

April 2, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

It’s not every day that state employees are caught on video threatening, lying to, and blatantly stealing from innocent citizens—but that’s exactly what happened on March 25 in a quiet neighborhood in Claymont, Delaware.

With the help of the Delaware State Police, a horde of Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) workers rumbled through two subdivisions early Friday morning, uprooting street-side basketball hoops with a front-end loader and roughly piling them into a dump truck. Operation March Sadness, as it has been nicknamed by outraged locals, was the state’s response to the complaints of a neighborhood grouch, who felt that games of street ball were hazardous to children and drivers alike.

Melissa McCafferty, who lives in a peaceful cul-de-sac, scrambled up her kids’ basketball pole to protest its removal. After unsuccessfully trying to persuade her to come down, and, she claims, threatening to tear the pole down with her on it, the crew moved on. But as her husband, John, was being interviewed by a reporter for the News Journal, the posse returned. The video of the resulting confrontation, posted on YouTube.com, immediately went viral.
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Operation March Sadness”

Chris Slavens - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Government - Liberals

Nullify the Real ID Act

March 14, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

House Republicans seem to be confused about which side they’re on, again. Roughly one month after voting overwhelmingly in favor of extending certain unconstitutional provisions of the so-called Patriot Act, they are urging the Obama administration not to delay the implementation of the Real ID Act of 2005, which will otherwise take effect on May 11.

The Real ID Act, an unfunded federal mandate which requires all fifty states to issue federally compliant identification cards, was swiftly signed into law by President Bush after being passed with no debate. Proponents claim that it will make it easier to combat terrorism and crime, though when asked for specifics, they tend to fall back on nonsensical Bush-era neoconservative talking points.

Critics on both sides of the aisle point out, correctly, that Real ID will make it easier than ever before for identity thieves to obtain personal information, while foisting an utterly unnecessary financial burden onto states that are already strapped for cash. And, of course, government programs always evolve, so what will the next step be? As the U.S. regresses into the ideological darkness of statism, the very authoritarianism our heroic founders left behind, how could future administrations—worse than the current one, unimaginable as that seems—abuse and exploit a national identification card?
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Nullify the Real ID Act”

California - Children - Chris Slavens - Democrats/Leftists - Education - Government - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Teachers Unions - Unions

Public School to Parent: We’re in Control

March 7, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

His father, an Army commander, was being deployed to Iraq, and 6-year-old Jack Dorman didn’t want to be in school in the first place. He suffers from separation anxiety and had been visiting a therapist. Sadly, the boy’s day got a lot worse after he drew a picture of a scene from one of his video games, which featured zombies and stick figures, wrote that he wanted to die, and was forced into a psychiatric ward by school administrators against his mother’s wishes.

“They said it was out of my hands,” said an outraged Syndi Dorman. “They said they were in control and they could do this and had already called an ambulance.”

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Ramon Cortines refused to apologize for the incident, which occurred on February 7, and continues to insist that the staff of Taper Avenue Elementary, located in San Pedro, California, acted appropriately.
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Public School to Parent: We’re in Control”

Abortion - Children - Chris Slavens - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Government - Liberals - Planned Parenthood - Taxes

Planned Parenthood, the Parasite

March 3, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

According to the propagandists of the radical left, the GOP launched a “war on women” last week when the House overwhelmingly agreed to yank Planned Parenthood’s federal funding. Democrats are accusing their political rivals of everything from forcing poor women to suffer, to attempting to shut the organization down. Of course, these are hollow lies designed to herd uninformed voters onto the liberal bandwagon, and are—like most Democratic arguments—easily disproved.

The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is a group of eighty-five independent affiliates that provide a variety of services to women, including contraception, STD testing and treatment, and abortions. It’s also an extremely political organization, lobbying against parental consent laws and pharmacists’ refusal clauses (both of which are protected by the Tenth Amendment), and supporting Democratic candidates in elections. Planned Parenthood was a strong supporter of candidate Obama in 2008.

What’s wrong with that? They’re a private organization and can do what they want, right? Er, not exactly. Although Planned Parenthood receives about one-fourth of its funding from private donors, it receives a whopping one-third from the federal government; the organization raked in $363.2 million from the taxpayers in the 2008-2009 fiscal year. Federal law prohibits federal funding of abortions (with some exceptions), but Planned Parenthood openly calls for the removal of this reasonable restriction.
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Planned Parenthood, the Parasite”

Chris Slavens - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Elections - GOP - Government - Liberals - Nanny State - Patriot Act - President - Republicans

GOP reveals hypocrisy with Patriot Act vote

February 26, 2011 by

-By Chris Slavens

Both parties in the House failed to muster enough votes to extend controversial provisions of the Patriot Act on February 8, which required a two-thirds majority. Some commentators have chosen to focus on the lack of discipline within the parties; both the Obama administration and GOP leadership favor the extension, but neither was able to whip enough congressmen onto the bandwagon. However, the bigger story is how many Republicans—including a number of “tea party” freshmen who campaigned last year as defenders of the Constitution—voted against the Fourth Amendment, as though it is somehow less important than the others.

Specifically, the provisions permit the federal government to spy on U.S. citizens (perhaps “subjects” would be more appropriate in this case) by using roving wiretaps in the name of combatting terrorism, allow monitoring of noncitizens, and give broad authority over records and private property.

After two years of frantic shrieking about the Obama administration’s shredding of the Constitution and unprecedented expansion of the federal government, one would think that Republican lawmakers, entrusted with control of the House of Representatives by the American people, would view such a vote as a golden opportunity to restrict government’s ability to intrude into innocent citizens’ private lives.
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GOP reveals hypocrisy with Patriot Act vote”

Chris Slavens - Christmas - Democrats/Leftists - Liberals - PCism - Society/Culture - Western Civilization

ACLU wages war on Christmas

December 22, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Chris Slavens

It’s that “most wonderful time of the year” again. Children eagerly await a visit from jolly Santa Claus, while their parents try to squeeze shopping into a schedule already filled with parties, parades, church programs, and visiting relatives. Grandmothers bake dozens of gingerbread and sugar cookies, while rascally uncles down too much eggnog. Wealthy northerners travel to Florida to escape cold weather, while everyone else yearns for a white Christmas.

And the ACLU—that staunch defender of American traditions and values—threatens to sue public schools for acknowledging what all the excitement is about.

Each Christmas season is marked by a series of spirit-dampening stories of towns forced to disassemble nativity scenes, retail stores intimidated into requiring employees to use generic greetings like “Happy Holidays,” and similar Scroogish travesties. This year, one such story comes from Tennessee, where the American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to 137 public school administrators, supposedly in response to complaints from families, reminding them not to focus on any one religious holiday.
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ACLU wages war on Christmas”

9/11 - Anti-Americanism - Chris Slavens - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Ethics - Federalism - Government - Islamofascism - Liberals - Nanny State - PCism - Security/Safety - Society/Culture - Terrorism - TSA - Western Civilization

Abolish the Transportation Security Administration

December 8, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Chris Slavens

Democrats’ favorite strategy is to blame George W. Bush for everything from high unemployment to Hurricane Katrina, so it should come as no surprise that some on the left are attempting to pin the abuses of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on the former president, despite the fact that the Obama administration—with the exception of Hillary Clinton, who has political reasons to distance herself from her boss—is fully supportive of pat-down procedures that would, as one protesting passenger correctly noted, constitute sexual assault if performed by anyone other than government employees.

Strangely, however, a majority of liberals (at least those in the media) have chosen not to assign blame at all, and are instead diligently pretending that groping innocent citizens is the niftiest thing since solar panels, patiently reminding the unwashed masses that it’s perfectly acceptable to trade liberty for security.

The TSA was created during Bush’s presidency, two months after the tragic 9/11 attacks, but it was Democrats who insisted that airport security be handled by federal employees, rather than private firms. And, of course, the screening procedures in question were implemented a few weeks ago with the approval of a federal government controlled entirely by Democrats.
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Abolish the Transportation Security Administration”

Budget - Capitalism - Chris Slavens - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Energy - Government - Liberals - Oil - Taxes - Tea Party

Dems’ Gas Tax Hike Would Fuel Tea Party Anger

November 30, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Chris Slavens

The average price of a gallon of gasoline is $2.87, a number which will continue to climb as the Federal Reserve’s “quantitative easing” scheme lowers the value of the dollar. That’s a 50% increase from only two years ago; in the weeks following the presidential election, the average price was about a dollar lower. But according to some Democrats, today’s price isn’t high enough.

Senator Thomas “Tom” Carper (D-DE) wants to raise the federal gasoline tax by twenty-five cents over a period of two years, increasing the current rate—18.4 cents per gallon—by 136% to 43.4 cents per gallon. The last time the tax went up, in 1993, it was increased by a mere 4.3 cents.

Has Carper filled up recently? Does he drive? Or are his vehicles powered by pixie dust and wishes?
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Dems’ Gas Tax Hike Would Fuel Tea Party Anger”

Budget - Chris Slavens - Congress - Conservatives - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Earmarks - Economy/Finances - GOP - Government - House of Representatives - Republicans - Senate - Taxes

GOP Must Return to Consistent Conservatism

November 16, 2010 by

-By Chris Slavens

Republicans are feeling pretty good about themselves. In addition to picking up sixty-one seats in the House and gaining control of that legislative body for the first time in four years, they now control a majority of the states, and are poised to give themselves a long-term advantage by redistricting next year. The White House and Senate are still in Democrats’ hands, but the voters overwhelmingly rejected one-party rule, and Republican politicians clearly believe that the American people are on their side.

They couldn’t be more wrong. The GOP is fractured, like a fragmented vase held together by tape. It made it through the election by riding a wave of antiestablishment anger; many voters, especially independents, did not so much vote for Republicans as they voted against Democrats. Americans wanted to say “no” to liberal socialism, and did, but Republicans now have to offer the electorate something to say “yes” to. Unfortunately, they can’t seem to agree on what that something should be.

There is an ideological rift in the Republican Party, a division that could prove to be fatal if those in control refuse to release their stranglehold on power. There are the old Republicans—the establishment—who first feared the Tea Party, then attempted to infiltrate and control it, and the new Republicans, a far more ideological bunch who would rather drive their own party into the ground than see it head in the wrong direction. These conservative idealists want the best for their country, and view the GOP as a means to an end. Like a tool, the party will be used to complete a task. And, like a tool, it will be discarded if it doesn’t get the job done.
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GOP Must Return to Consistent Conservatism”

Chris Slavens - Christianity - Constitution - Democrats/Leftists - Education - Government - Liberals - Religion

Want a Christian Roommate? Don’t Say so in Michigan

November 2, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Chris Slavens

Do we have the right to choose who we live with?

It’s a valid question, now that the Fair Housing Center of West Michigan is attacking an unnamed woman for seeking a Christian roommate. The 31-year-old, who is single, posted the advertisement at her church last July.

“Christian roommate wanted,” she wrote, and included her contact information. Seems harmless enough, right? What churchgoer could possibly find such an ad to be offensive? And what government agency could possibly take such a complaint seriously?

The case is in the hands of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, and the woman could be required to pay hefty fines and take what FHCWM Executive Director Nancy Haynes describes as “fair housing training.”
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Want a Christian Roommate? Don’t Say so in Michigan”

California - Chris Slavens - Constitution - Crime - Democrats/Leftists - Elections - Liberals - Marijuana - Regulation - War On Drugs

Will Conservatives Defend Californians’ Right to Legalize?

October 26, 2010 by

-By Chris Slavens

California might become the first state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, if voters there approve Proposition 19 next month. Though poll results differ, most indicate that a majority of voters favor the ballot proposition; if it passes, it will take effect on November 3.

Enter the Obama administration. In a letter to former heads of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Attorney General Eric Holder wrote that the administration “strongly opposes” the proposition, and “will vigorously enforce” federal drug laws if it passes. This comes about a year after the same administration announced that it would stop prosecuting medicinal marijuana users. Confusing?

By adopting a hypocritical stance when it comes to enforcing federal drug laws, the president has, perhaps unwittingly, provided the tea party movement with a rare opportunity to add hordes of young, left-leaning voters to its ranks.

Huh?
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Will Conservatives Defend Californians’ Right to Legalize?”

Barack Obama - Budget - Chris Slavens - Democrats/Leftists - Elections - Government - Liberals - President - Taxes

Obama: President or Campaigner-in-Chief?

October 19, 2010 by

-By Chris Slavens

The president’s job description, found in Article II of the Constitution, is a simple one. He is the Commander in Chief of the armed forces. He may nominate judges and ambassadors, and make treaties, with the Senate’s approval. He may “give to Congress information of the state of the union,” and “take care that the laws be faithfully executed”—and that’s about it.

Compare this short list of duties to President Obama’s actual activities this month: flying from state to state on Air Force One, attempting to persuade a disillusioned base that Democrats’ policies have helped the country despite all evidence to the contrary, blaming his predecessor for everything from the recession to the weather, and urging voters to get behind Democratic candidates on November 2. For the remainder of October, he will spend few, if any, full days in Washington.
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Obama: President or Campaigner-in-Chief?”

Barack Obama - Chris Slavens - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Government - House of Representatives - Jobs - Liberals - Nancy Pelosi - Regulation - Senate - TV

Unable to solve real problems, Congress takes on loud commercials

October 4, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Chris Slavens

(Ed’s note: Welcome Chris Slavens as a new contributor to Publius Forum.)

With the unemployment rate at a depressing 9.5 percent, millions of Americans are stuck at home every day, unable to afford a tank of gas, left with no choice but to endure the injustices of daytime television. The Democrat-controlled Congress couldn’t care less about getting them back to work, but never fear; last week, it tackled a controversial issue that is at least as important as rising unemployment: the volume of television commercials.

The reader probably expects a punch line at this point, but it’s no joke. The Senate’s version of The Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act (The CALM Act) will require television stations and cable companies to broadcast commercials at the same volume as that of the programs they interrupt. The differences between the conflicting House and Senate versions of the legislation are expected to be worked out during the post-election “lame duck” session, in which Democrats who will have been rejected by their constituents will enact controversial legislation.
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Unable to solve real problems, Congress takes on loud commercials”