In 1915 Harvard University established one of the first ROTC programs in the country, but in 1969 the faculty voted 207-125 to deny course credit for ROTC and revoke faculty status of ROTC instructors. Nearly four decades later, the animosity of the Ivy League towards the military remains… Read more

Delivered June 14, 2007 As obvious is this may seem, every analysis of economic policy at the federal level in the United States must begin with recognition of the comprehensive, record-setting strength of the national economy. By almost every indicator, the American economy is prosperous, but especially so in comparison to other advanced economies. More Working Americans… Read more

The $1 billion Trade Adjustment Assistance program (TAA) will expire at the end of September. The job training program was first adopted in 1962 to help Americans who were losing manufacturing jobs in an increasingly globalized economy. Despite its faulty design and poor track record, some Members of… Read more

On Wall Street, there is a widening gulf between bulls and bears, and today's GDP report has surprises for both sides. On its face, the overall real growth rate of 3.4 percent in the second quarter of 2007 was higher than expected and higher than the average of… Read more

The Congressional Budget Office has released a major study[1] of the U.S. military's demographics under an all-volunteer framework versus the draft. The idea of reinstating the draft was a hot-button issue last November when Congressman Charlie Rangel (D-NY), a leader and committee chairman in the… Read more

Delivered May 24, 2007 The particular question facing the Subcommittee today is whether or not to reauthorize the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), presumably for another four years. OPIC's mission is "to mobilize and facilitate the participation of United States private capital and skills in the economic and social development of less developed countries… Read more

According to the logic of protectionism, Michigan has been stealing jobs from other Midwestern states for years. By stealing automobile production that could be evenly spread around the country, the state has acquired an unfair advantage. One state over which Michigan has acquired such an advantage is Ohio. With… Read more

On May 10, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson led a small panel discussion about the importance of foreign direct investment in the American economy. Just a few hours earlier, a government report was released showing a trade deficit of $63.9 billion in March, nearly 10 percent higher than in… Read more

The Democratic Party under the leadership of President Bill Clinton was largely pro-trade and pro-globalization. Witness the 102 Democratic votes for NAFTA in November 1993 or the 105 Democratic votes in favor of normalized trade relations with China in July 1999. But after major losses in 2000, the… Read more

The U.S. Congress recently voted to increase the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 over a two-year period-a dramatic 40 percent increase. Final action on the minimum wage increase has not yet been cleared due to differences in the Senate bill and the House bill. Congress should… Read more