John Gizzi of Human events tackles the week’s biggest issues. Why does he see the latest terror threat more as luck than good government prevention? How will the politics of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill play out? How will the Greek debt crisis impact the U.S.? Which party will win the British parliamentary elections? Did David Obey retire from Congress on his own terms or because he thought he would lose? And which veteran Dems might follow his lead?
Thursday is the National Day of Prayer, an event proclaimed by the government for generations. But as hostility towards people of faith intensifies and a federal judge even declares the day unconstitutional, what should we really know about the founding fathers and their beliefs? How important was faith in the public square to the likes of George Washington and John Adams? What about supposed deists like Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson? What have presidents had to say about faith throughout our history? How did the movement to stifle religious expression gain momentum? And how vital is it for the American people to pray for our nation? We ask Mathew Staver, chairman and founder of Liberty Counsel, a leading defender of religious freedom.
Last week, the House of Representatives approved legislation calling for a non-binding vote of Puerto Ricans on the issue of statehood. Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz is leading the fight against the bill. Why is he concerned? Why would voters on the mainland be allowed to vote on Puerto Rican statehood? How have Puerto Ricans voted in the past? What’s the real reason for this push? How are supporters using a convoluted process to accomplish their goals? And what happens next? We ask Rep. Chaffetz.
Election Day has arrived in the United Kingdom. The majority Labour party is fighting furiously to keep control of parliament, Conservatives are confident they will return to power for the first time in 13 years and the upstart Liberal Democrats threaten to throw everything into chaos. So which party has the momentum? Why is the public so upset with Labour? Will any party win a majority or will it take a coalition to rule? We ask former British diplomat Jonathan Clark, now a senior fellow with the Carnegie Council.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey announces he will not seek re-election, California Rep. Dan Lungren rips terrorism interrogation and prosecution policies. Greek debt could begin devastating domino effect in Europe. Baseball legend Ernie Harwell dies.
On Wednesday, Wisconsin Rep. David Obey announced he will not seek a 22nd term in the House of Representatives. So why might Obey be leaving Congress? What issues were working against him? What kind of candidate do Republicans have in that district? And just how many seats could the GOP gain this year? We ask Tom Erickson of the National Republican Congressional Committee.
In recent days, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank extended $156 billion worth of bailout assistance to Greece. Now rioters are in the streets protesting the aid and other possible solutions. So how did Greece get in this dilemma? What is the smart way to get out of it? Which countries could be next? How endangered is the U.S. given our mounting debt? We ask Ted Bromund, senior fellow in the Thatcher Center at the Heritage Foundation.
California Rep. Dan Lungren is a member of both the House Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees. He explains why government officials should not be quick to mirandize terrorism suspects whether they are citizens are not. What should be the policy? Where should terrorism trials be held? Are we getting really good at thwarting attacks or are we just lucky? And what lessons should we learn from this and other recent attempts to strike the U.S.? We ask Rep. Lungren.
Feds nab the Times Square bombing suspect just minutes his plane was set to leave the U.S. Major charges coming against Faisal Shahzad. A furious effort continues in the Gulf of Mexico to cap a ruptured oil well.
Louisiana Sen. David Vitter says many efforts have been made to shut off the flow of oil from the offshore rig that exploded last week – but none of them have worked. So what might work? How can the existing oil slick be contained? What is the extent of damage to the Louisiana economy? And how does Vitter react to the political controversies concerning BP, offshore drilling and more?
