Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review are happy that Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich had a substantive debate and hope that more candidates do that. They also mock President Obama’s new web ad for suggesting that his primary accomplishment in the past three years is getting elected the first time. And they cringe as Gloria Allred injects herself into the Herman Cain sexual harassment saga.
On Friday, we learned that a net of 80,000 jobs were created in October and the overall unemployment rate ticked sown to 9.0 percent. While both are headed slightly in the right direction, Texas Rep. Kevin Brady says there is no reason to cheer. As the top Republican on the Joint Economic Committee, Brady quizzed the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics about these numbers. Are we growing jobs at a rate that will get us to pre-recession unemployment levels? Why does he consider this proof the Obama economy is a failure? What facts did he learn with respect to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s claim that the private sector is doing fine and it’s the public sector that is suffering? Why won’t Brady back the Obama jobs agenda and what are Republicans pushing instead? We discuss it all with Rep. Kevin Brady.
The 2012 Florida U.S. Senate race will be one of the most closely watched in the nation. Four Republicans are running for the chance to unseat Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson. After interviewing Adam Hasner and George LeMieux, we now visit with Col. Mike McCalister. The longtime U.S. Army officer tells us why he’s running, why his military experience would be a plus in jump-starting the economy, where he stands on critical issues and why he believes he’s the best choice for conservative voters. Listen here for our full conversation with Col. McCalister.
With less than three weeks before the vaunted Super Committee has to agree upon a deal to reduce the debt by $1.2 trillion, the two parties still seem far apart. Not to worry, the Capitol Steps are here to add some levity to our fiscal crisis. Our guest is Steps star Elaina Newport.
Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review react to a pretty stagnant jobs report and flimsy explanations for why the numbers aren’t better. They also unload on Nancy Pelosi for suggesting that unemployment would be at 15 percent without the Obama stimulus in 2009. And they appreciate John Boehner’s concise reaction to President Obama’s claim that America is better off now than we would have been without the stimulus.
The recent debt ceiling deal mandated that a bipartisan super committee must find another $1.2 trillion in debt reduction by November 23. But as committee members struggle to find common ground on that goal, a bipartisan group of House members is asking the committee to reduce the debt by four trillion dollars. Why is that an important figure? Is there any bipartisan consensus on how to do this? What are Republicans ready to do on taxes and entitlements to get a deal done? And what happens if no deal is done and defense spending gets gashed by $800 billion? We discuss it all with Florida Rep. Tom Rooney, a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Israeli leaders have very openly discussed a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities as Iran moves closer to developing a nuclear weapon. Why is the Israeli government so open about these plans? Will all this talk damage the effectiveness of any future attacks? How would the rest of the Middle East respond? And why could an Israeli strike mean great things for President Obama’s political fortunes? We discuss it all with Dr. Mike Evans, longtime Middle East expert and personal friend of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review are pleased that some justice may be headed towards former New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine after some very questionable decisions doom his commodities firm. They also lament how the Cain campaign has pointed the finger of blame at Rick Perry for the sexual harassment controversy. And they wonder what the Greeks are thinking with their cavalier approach to impending default.
Earlier this year, we learned that $535 million in taxpayer-funded energy loans were not enough to keep solar panel-maker Solyndra afloat. In just the past few days, we’ve learned of three more firms meeting similar fates and discovered evidence of general fraud in the loan program. What do these multiple examples of wasted money tell us? Is the administration just guilty of making poor investments or did it deliberately spend money on failing firms because they fit an ideological agenda? What answers do lawmakers want from Energy Secretary Steven Chu when he testifies later this month? We discuss it all with Colorado. Rep. Cory Gardner, a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and it’s investigations subcommittee.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is poised to consider a bill to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage for the federal government as the union of one man and one woman. It also codifies that no state will be forced to accept gay marriage or any other definition of marriage that conflicts with its own statutes. So why are Senate Democrats doing this? Are Democrats being honest when they say repeal will only impact those states where gay marriage is already legal? Does this effort matter since the law has virtually no chance of being overturned in the House? We discuss all this and much more as we visit with Matt Barber, director of cultural affairs at Liberty Counsel.
