Archives for September 2011

Not long after President Obama rejected the recommendations of Gen. David Petraeus on the pace of troop reductions in Afghanistan, the administration is now frustrating the top military brass in Iraq.  Commanders there want to keep 27,000 troops into next year while the Obama administration insists on drawing down to 3,000 troops.  How does a decision like that complicate plans for the commanders?  What does it say about the national security leadership in the administration?  Why does retired U.S. Army Gen. Paul Vallely believe all U.S. troops ought to be removed without announcing it as a withdrawal?  What does Vallely see as a more effective strategy and who does he believe to be controlling much of Iraq?  We discuss it all with Gen. Vallely.

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Arieh Eldad is a member of the Israeli Knesset and is very worried about the so-called “Arab Spring”.  How far does he believe relations between Israel and Egypt have deteriorated in just a few months?  Why does he see unrest in Jordan as a possible solution to the Palestinian statehood issue?  Why does he oppose the ‘two-state solution’ and what does he think about Prime Minister Netanyahu’s support of it?  And why does Eldad see President Obama as a weak leader who is not at all feared by anyone in the Middle East?  We discuss it all Israeli MK Arieh Eldad.

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Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review give tentative thumbs up to jobs plans offered by Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman – especially when compared to what the president is still peddling.  We also denounce the violent language, gutter profanity and atrocious grammar of Teamsters President James Hoffa.  And we urge Sarah Palin to decide one way or the other on a 2012 White House bid.

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Fresh off it’s demands for Boeing to scrap plans to hire a thousand workers in the right to work state of South Carolina, the National Labor Relations Board is on a new mission.  The panel is now mandating that all employers put up large posters reminding workers of their right to unionize.  What is the point of this mandate?  What problems will this present for employers?  What rights has the NLRB conveniently refused to include on the posters?  We discuss it all with Diana Furchtgott-Roth of the Manhattan Institute.  She wrote about this issue at realclearmarkets.com.

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2011 has been a huge year in the battle between organized labor and right to work advocates.  What did we really learn in the Wisconsin showdown between unions and the GOP?  Why did the National Labor Relations Board intervene in Boeing’s plans to create jobs in South Carolina?  And does the GOP House majority mean card check is dead or is it alive and well?  We discuss all of this with Mark Mix, president of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Inc.

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Michigan Rep. Thaddeus McCotter says he is the only presidential candidate in either party with a real plan to spark job creation.  So what is his plan and how is it different than what’s being advocated by his GOP rivals?  What is his reaction to being excluded from Republican debates?  How will he get out his message without much media attention?  What is he hearing most from voters in Iowa and New Hampshire?  And what parts of his message are resonating with voters?  We discuss it all with Rep. McCotter.

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On Friday, the Labor Department reported a net gain of zero jobs in August.  The unemployment rate remained at 9.1 percent.  So why are new jobs so hard to create.  What do business owners want?  What should Obama focus upon in his jobs speech?  We discuss all these questions with Diana Furchtgott-Roth of the Manhattan Institute.  She is also the former chief economist at the Department of Labor.

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Despite his messages of defiance, longtime Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi has essentially lost his grip on power.  But as he is isolated by the rest of the world, the Capitol Steps discover Gaddafi finding a connection with another figure with questionable sanity.  Our guest is Steps impressionist Mark Eaton.

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Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review like President Obama’s decision to rescind one of his burdensome regulations.  We also groan over the news that zero net jobs were created in August.  And we marvel at Silvio Berlusconi’s unvarnished thoughts about the country he leads.

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Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review are pleasantly surprised that new polls show a strong majority of women disapproving of President Obama’s performance.  We also dissect Obama’s pathetic attempt to upstage the GOP presidential debate with his jobs speech.  And we discuss how the bankruptcy of a ‘green jobs’ darling is the latest proof Obama’s economic agenda is impractical and very political.

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