In the past couple of days, Republicans in the Wisconsin legislature succeeded in passing legislation ending collective bargaining for public sector employees. Why did the GOP finally decide not to wait for the Democrats to return? How serious are the threats to recall some members of the state senate? What else is on the GOP agenda to reduce debt and grow the economy? We ask Wisconsin State Senator Glenn Grothman.
An 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Japan today, triggering a massive tsunami that has killed hundreds and rolled all the way to the west coast of the United States. What happened in the earth’s crust? Why did this quake trigger such a major tsunami? Was this along a major fault line? Is there a connection to the recent earthquake in New Zealand? We ask Linda Lastowka, geophysicist at the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Earthquake Information Center.
As Congress fails to find a long-term budget solution, the Capitol Steps have some fun with the Tea Party and its expectations of Republicans in the budget debate. Our guest is the Steps’ Elaina Newport.
Greg Corombos and National Review’s Jim Geraghty breate a sigh of relief that the GOP is not trying to get Joe Scarborough to run for Senate. We lament that the hearings on islamic radicalism turned into a media circus accusing the chairman of discrimination. And we wonder why President Obama thinks it would be easier to be the leader of China.
The House Homeland Security Committee finally held it’s much-debated hearings on the radicalization of Muslims and the link to terrorist plots. Why did the hearings generate so much protest? Why do the criticisms ring hollow? What did the committee learn today? And what is the best way to fight radicalization? We ask California Rep. Dan Lungren, a member of the Homeland Security Committee.
Earlier this week, President Obama quietly shifted course on his policy towards the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. Now he is in favor of indefinite detention of prisoners as well as the use of military tribunals. Louisiana Rep. John Fleming led a Congressional delegation to Gitmo earlier this week and tells us what is fact and fiction there. He also details pending legislation that would continue tribunals, current detention policies and forbidding the transfer of detainees to American soil. Listen here for our conversation with Rep. Fleming.
Illinois Rep. John Shimkus joins us to explain how the Obama administration is using financial sleight of hand when it comes to the budgeting for Medicare and the new health care plan. Specifically, he says Obama is trying to claim the same $500 billion for shoring up Medicare and for funding the new health care plan. So how did the administration get into this fiscal pinch? And what is the main GOP strategy for stopping the implementation of Obamacare? We discuss it all with Rep. Shimkus.
It’s been a week of fierce legislative battles on the federal and state levels. In Washington, Senate Democrats have killed the Republican plan to cut spending for the rest of the fiscal year but also couldn’t pass their own plan. So where does Congress go from here and will we see two-week spending bills for the next seven months? We ask John Gizzi of Human Events and also get his thoughts on Wisconsin Republicans moving forward on their agenda for tighter budgets and less collective bargaining. He also sounds off on the crisis in Libya and Thursday’s Congressional hearings focusing on the radicalization of Muslims.
Greg Corombos and National Review’s Jim Geraghty applaud Wisconsin Republicans for finding a way to pass their collective bargaining bill with Democrats still out of state. We also bemoan the momentum behind Gadhafi’s forces and Obama’s complete lack of interest in doing anything about it. And we wonder how Obama has time for an anti-bullying summit but not to lead on the budget or on the international stage.
On Thursday, the House Homeland Security Committee will probe the connection between radical Islam and terrorism. But rather than investigate the obvious link, many have loudly protested the hearings as discriminating against Islam. So why are these prominent Muslim groups really bent out of shape? Why has the Obama administration actively tried to court these questionable groups? Why are many Democrats equally vocal in denouncing the hearings before they even take place? And how much tougher is it to win a war when many don’t want to identify or discuss the motivation for many of our enemies? We discuss all these questions with Andy McCarthy, who served on the team of federal prosecutors that secured convictions for the blind sheik and others responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center attack.
