Free Republic

The political scientist who applies the ‘rational choice’ theory of economics to voters says there was a method to the GOP’s primary madness. Go to the source:

When Bill Clinton was president, he allowed Hillary to assume authority over a health care reform. Even after threats and intimidation, she couldn’t get a vote in a Democrat controlled congress. This fiasco cost the American taxpayers about $13 million in cost for studies, promotion and other efforts. Hillary 1 Then President Clinton gave Hillary authority over selecting a female attorney general. Her first two selections were Zoe Baird and Kimba Wood – both were forced to withdraw their names from consideration. Next she chose Janet Reno – husband Bill described her selection as “my worst mistake.” Some may not...

Ben Wattenberg died this week at the age of 81. He gave me my first job in Washington, as his research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington think tank. (I returned to AEI as a fellow a few years ago, my office just a few doors down from where Ben used to work.) Ben was one of the last star pundits of what might be called the Old Order, before cable news and the Internet transformed the landscape. When everyone was rushing to CNN to shout at each other on "Crossfire," he launched a PBS show called "Think...

Kennedys honor George H.W. Bush's ‘read my lips’ flip-flop with Profile of Courage award The Kennedy foundation is praising George H.W. Bush for risking “his reputation and ultimately his political career by forging an important compromise on the budget in 1990.” Jack Schlossberg, President Kennedy’s grandson and a Yale University student, will present the award to Bush at a ceremony in May. George H.W. Bush’s epic “read my lips: no new taxes” promise cost him a second White House term, but it’s earning him a 2014 Profile in Courage award from the Kennedy clan. Despite his fervent pledge against a...

Twenty years ago, millions of Americans were cocking their ears — waiting to hear a "giant sucking sound."They feared Mexico would begin vacuuming up U.S. manufacturing jobs as soon as President Clinton signed the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, on Dec. 8, 1993. The "sucking sound" famously had been forecast in 1992 by Ross Perot, the businessman turned independent presidential candidate.Clinton won the election, and began pushing for NAFTA's passage. He promised the sprawling trade agreement would become a wealth generator as it pulled together the economies of Canada, the United States and Mexico.Who turned out to be...