Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe says supporters of ending the ban on gays in the military may or may not have the votes to pass the bill, but he the impact of passing it would be extremely negative. Why would a repeal complicate and hamper training and combat missions? How much could it dent the military’s recruiting and retention numbers? And why didn’t the strong opposition of the U.S. Marines and others at least trigger a pause in the Democratic march to repeal this policy during wartime? We discuss it all with Sen. Inhofe, a military veteran and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Archives for December 16, 2010
Cuccinelli vs. Obamacare
On Monday, a federal judge ruled the individual mandate in the new health care laws is unconstitutional. It’s a victory for the Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and the Virginia law forbidding the federal government from ordering residents to purchase health insurance. So why did Cuccinelli have a stronger case than other groups and states challenging the mandate? How does he respond to Obama administration officials who say the mandate is necessary to provide health care access to everyone while keeping costs down? What does he say to their claim that everyone will need health care at some point so forcing us to buy insurance now is legitimate? What power will the government have if Virginia does not win this case? And what does Cuccinelli make of the voter backlash against the health plan? We discuss it all with Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
Too Much Pork
Republicans across Capitol Hill are gagging at the amount of earmarks in the new omnibus spending bill unveiled by Senate Democrats. And many House conservatives have also decided that too much pork has been added to the bipartisan tax compromise too. Will either bill make it to the president’s desk? What about START and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell? We discuss it all with John Gizzi of Human Events.
Three Martini Lunch 12/16/10
Greg Corombos and National Review’s Dan Foster are both fascinated and alarmed by President Obama allegedly wooing House Democrats to back the tax compromise by saying his presidency is doomed if it fails. They also bemoan the increasingly unacceptable contents of the tax compromise and consider the audacity of Joe Biden to suggest Senate Republicans need to get out of the way on Democratic priorities like the START agreement.