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President Barack Obama is walking, talking, and acting like a conservative. There’s daily footage of him as the devoted husband and doting dad. He speaks reverentially about the founders of the nation and the need to serve the country and each other. He wears his faith on his sleeve, even inviting famed Pastor Rick Warren to the inauguration to ask for God’s blessing. But the conservative symbols and imagery stand in stark contrast to the left-of-center agenda emerging from his administration: executive orders that weaken America’s national security and safety, taxpayer funding of abortions, three-quarters of a billion dollars in...

Ever since Decision 2008 wrapped up, the media have spewed a bunch of bilge about how during the Great Depression President Franklin Roosevelt saved the U.S. economy with gobs of government “stimulus,” aka "central Planning." Imagine a movie script that told the true story of how FDR’s New Deal didn’t put an end to the Depression but instead actually prolonged the pain of the worst economy in American history.

Apparently, the No. 1 mid-August movie hit in the U.S. is not going to make it to the big screen in China. The communist Chinese government has tagged Jackie Chan's "Rush Hour 3" with a "fundamentally anti-Chinese" label and banned the big box-office hit. Chinese officials claim to be upset with a family that is depicted in the film as having links to organized crime. It could be the real reason the Chi-coms are peeved is the fact that Chan is living proof that dreams really do come true — in a free market, that is. The action movie comic...

Ice Cube Raps Schwarzenegger in New Album Ice Cube, aka O’Shea Jackson, used to be known chiefly as a rapper. But the performer has since appeared in many movies, including “Barbershop” and “Three Kings.” Apparently, Ice Cube doesn’t like the way fellow thespian Arnold Schwarzenegger is carrying out his governor duties. On his latest album, Ice Cube slams Schwarzenegger for engaging in self-promotion rather than focusing on poverty. The rapper-actor’s main reason for chewing out Arnold is because Arnold won the election. “He pisses me off just by the fact that he is the governor of California. That's enough,” Ice...

It is a maxim: Bigotry is wrong. It is an evil whether it is expressed by world leaders or inebriated actors. Unlike some who have made untoward statements without regret, the day after his arrest in Malibu on suspicion of DUI Mel Gibson issued what amounted to a comprehensive and humble apology. Predictably the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) deemed insufficient Gibson's sorrowful and blanket apology. With the apparent ability to peer into the human soul, National Director of the (ADL) Abraham Foxman proclaimed the following: "His [Gibson's] tirade finally reveals his true self and shows that his protestations during the debate...

Ready for a shocker? Oliver Stone has made a movie that is sure to please cops, fire fighters, red-staters, the military, and even the GOP. Yes, you read the name correctly. It's that Oliver Stone. I recently had the chance to screen Stone's latest film "World Trade Center." The movie I saw was not a final cut; it was a high-definition video version with a temporary score. Stone had prepared a written statement, which was read to the audience prior to the screening and explained the unfinished state of the preview cut. Notwithstanding, what came through on the screen was...

Oscar Blinks James Hirsen, NewsMax.com Monday, March 6, 2006 Remember when Hollywood had mystique and glamour and was the wellspring of entertainment? That now seems a relic of another era. In its place sits a town where self-absorption has taken a lead role and superficial social messages predominate. When it wasn't embarrassing, the 78th Annual Academy Awards show was generally a bore. Host Jon Stewart was probably a bit surprised at the tepid response to his jokes, especially the one where he quipped about the awards show being a "place where you can watch all your favorite stars without having...

Gayety at the Golden Globes James Hirsen, NewsMax.com Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2006 In contrast with the Academy Awards, where approximately 6,000 voters pick the winners, about 80 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association determine the outcome of the Golden Globes. The Globes are thought to be fairly reliable predictors of the Oscars. We'll have to wait until March 5 to see if the pattern holds true. The 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards show proved to be a politically charged affair. The first award set the tone for the evening. It went to George Clooney for Best Supporting Actor in...

"Munich," Steven Spielberg's latest release, is a long way off from the high-minded certitude of "Schindler's List." Spielberg has referred to the movie as his "prayer for peace." But an apparent attempt at even-handedness causes the film to fall short of its potential due to a compromised moral perspective. The film tells the story of the hostage crisis that occurred during the 1972 Olympics (known prior to the tragedy as "The Olympics of Peace and Joy") and a chain of nightmarish events that followed. The world watched in real time as a Palestinian group (referring to itself as "Black September")...

Interestingly, the newly released book by Edward Klein, "The Truth About Hillary: What She Knew, When She Knew It, and How Far She'll Go to Become President," leaves no one on the fence. Liberal editorials rant about how the former editor of the New York Times' Sunday Magazine, former Newsweek staffer and contributor to Vanity Fair has now shed his Dem credentials and joined the "vast right-wing conspiracy." For example, Tina Brown christened Klein "Ed Slime" and referred to the book as "bio-porn." (As an aside, Klein responded to the New York Post by labeling Brown a "has-been.") Negative comments...

These days it seems that whenever Hollywood meets history, history gets the squeeze. Last year "King Arthur," "Troy" and "Alexander" were put through the revisionist wringer. Today it's the factually challenged movie "Kingdom of Heaven" whose historical content appears to have been schmushed. "Kingdom of Heaven"'s director Ridley Scott recently took a cue from Cecil B. DeMille and chose the Crusades as the subject of his latest epic. This is the same fellow who brought us "Gladiator" and "Blade Runner," which makes me wonder: How did a talented filmmaker like Scott get stuck with an incoherent script like this? It's...

'Kingdom of Heaven' – Truth in Limbo - - James Hirsen These days it seems that whenever Hollywood meets history, history gets the squeeze. Last year "King Arthur," "Troy" and "Alexander" were put through the revisionist wringer. Today it's the factually challenged movie "Kingdom of Heaven" whose historical content appears to have been schmushed. "Kingdom of Heaven"'s director Ridley Scott recently took a cue from Cecil B. DeMille and chose the Crusades as the subject of his latest epic. This is the same fellow who brought us "Gladiator" and "Blade Runner," which makes me wonder: How did a talented filmmaker...

No two people could be more different than Mel Gibson and Michael Moore.     Still, some in the media seem intent on matching up "The Passion of the Christ" filmmaker with the onewhofashioned "Fahrenheit 9/11." Roger Friedman of Fox News reported that the Golden Globes asked Mr. Gibson to co-present an award with Mr. Moore at this year's ceremonies.     Rumors ran rampant that a major national newsmagazine was attempting to feature the two together on its cover. Many in the print media barely touched upon the inexplicable Golden Globe snub of Mr. Gibson and "ThePassionofthe Christ." When mention of the slight...

While the rest of the country was paying tribute to our beloved former president, Hollywood stars were turning up at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills to watch Michael Moore’s latest flight of fancy. A Who’s Who of Hollywood libs flocked to a special screening of Moore’s upcoming celluloid rant called “Fahrenheit 9/11.” Apparently, two screenings of the documentary had to be arranged to satisfy the paranoid palate of the Hollywood elite. Viewers included Martin Sheen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jodie Foster, Ellen DeGeneres, David Duchovny, Sharon Stone, Meg Ryan, Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, Mark Wahlberg, Drew...

A Political Look at Hollywood By James Hirsen Tuesday, May 25, 2004 A NewsMax Report Headlines (Scroll down for complete stories): 1. P. Diddy on the Squirm Beat 2. Bing Bucks for John Kerry 3. Judge Slaps Down Non-environmental Yentl 4. Renegade Chic Lara Flynn Boyle 5. Moore Conspiracy Theories Advertisement Inspirational Newsletter wins prestigious award Ms. Li Ying is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence in China for her work with an 'unofficial' Christian magazine. She continues to stand firm in her faith and is a daily inspiration to those around her. But her influence and inspiration has gone...

A Political Look at HollywoodBesides looking like Sen. John Edwards' older bro, John Grisham is one of the best-selling fiction writers of our generation. He has taken the legal thriller genre to new heights. His best-selling books "The Firm," "The Client," "The Pelican Brief," "A Time to Kill" and "Runaway Jury" were lobbed onto the big screen, too, each generating lots of dough for Hollywood insiders. With that kind of leverage one would think Grisham would have no trouble finding a distributor for his latest flick, called "Mickey." Not so. Mel Gibson's recent experience proved that Hollywood clout isn't necessarily...

Well, I just got the call from MSNBC, they want me to appear on Scarborough Country again to discuss what's going on with Hollywood. James Hirsen of Newsmax will be the other guest...Tonite, 10PM EST. Hope you can tune in!

We may soon see if the same detractors who have been subjecting every frame of Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" to unprecedented scrutiny will do the same for Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code." Brown's best-selling novel is headed to the big screen. Former Mayberry resident Ron Howard is listed as director, with Russell Crowe and Kate Beckinsale being talked about as having possible starring roles. Brown's book outlines a conspiracy by the Roman Catholic Church to cover up a marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. On the book's first page, the author claims, "All descriptions of artwork,...

The Forgotten Amendment Dr. James Hirsen April 8, 2002 "The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." Nowhere in the Constitution is the principle of limited government more focused than in that rarely discussed amendment of the Bill of Rights: Amendment IX. But this "forgotten" amendment is one that makes evident the underlying basis of the highest law of our land. The Declaration of Independence, the footing upon which the Constitution was built, states that rights are "endowed by our Creator." This is an acknowledgment that inalienable...

The sports talk radio host who interviewed Mel Gibson's father last week is denying that he tricked the 85-year-old man into giving him a series of explosive quotes attacking Jews. "He knew exactly what was going on," Steve Feuerstein, who interviewed the elder Gibson for the Talkline Communications Network, told WABC Radio's Steve Malzberg on Sunday. "When I air my show, people will hear me talk to him . . . about airing the show and about how much I'm looking forward to sharing his views with my listeners," Feuerstein said. "This man knew 100 percent what was going on."...