Abstract: Early Progressives co-opted Abraham Lincoln’s legacy to justify their program of expansive government powers over American life. In so doing, they obscured how their philosophy of government broke with Lincoln and the Founding to which he was heir. Nevertheless, much conservative and libertarian… Read more
Abstract: The American commitment to equality of opportunity, economic liberty, and upward mobility is not tried in days of prosperity. It is tested when times are tough—when fear and envy are used to divide Americans and further the… Read more
Abstract: Attempts at passing a balanced budget amendment (BBA) date back to the 1930s, and all have been unsuccessful. Both parties carry some of the blame: The GOP too often has been neglectful of the issue, and the Democratic Left, recognizing a threat to… Read more
Abstract: Republicans in the House and Senate have announced that they will force votes on balanced budget constitutional amendments. While the Senate and House versions of the current BBA are similar, there are some important differences that Members of Congress and the American people… Read more
Abstract: Government anti-poverty programs share the flawed assumption that poverty in America is primarily a material problem that can be solved by increased welfare and entitlement spending. Poverty in America is often the result of a relational problem, such as fatherlessness or community breakdown,… Read more
On March 30, 2011, Senator Charles Schumer (D–NY) with 15 cosponsors, including the Senate Majority and Republican Leaders, as well as six other Democratic Senators, six other Republican Senators, and an Independent Senator,[1] introduced in the Senate the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011 (S. 679).… Read more
Government Relations Director Brian Darling and investigative reporters Rob Bluey and Tina Korbe discuss Senate rules reforms of the filibuster. David Weinberger hosts. To get regular updates on Heritage in Focus podcasts, visit our RSS feed or subscribe on iTunes. … Read more
When President Barack Obama takes the podium to deliver his State of the Union address on January 25, he has an opportunity to turn the page on a foreign policy and national security agenda. The Obama Doctrine, which guided the first two years of his Administration, put a premium on… Read more
Democrats return to Washington this week hoping to rewrite Senate rules on the filibuster. But a closer analysis of congressional action reveals… Read more
Last summer, the Obama administration asked the Business Roundtable to provide a list of regulations that slowed economic growth and job creation. The result was a 54-page document from some of America's leading companies.Yet when House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., recently did the same… Read more
INTRODUCTION The movement to limit political terms is steamrolling through American politics. Voters have approved term limits for Congressmen in each of the fifteen states where referenda have been held, with votes averaging over 66 percent in support, and another four to ten states will permit their citizens to vote on congressional term limits this November.… Read more
Ideas matter. America's ability to promote its beliefs and ideals to citizens of other nations and societies, known as public diplomacy (PD), can enormously advance the national interest. America's leaders should draw on the country's informational activities during the Cold War to lay the foundation for the next generation of public diplomacy. America's informational campaigns were… Read more
Abstract: The filibuster in the U.S. Senate protects the rights of Senators to debate and amend legislation, thereby protecting the interest of the American people. The filibuster actually realizes the Founders’ intent that the Senate slow the legislative… Read more
OVERVIEW The 2000 presidential election sparked a firestorm of debate relating to election reform in the United States. Since then, academics, the media, and elected officials have proffered opinions and implemented policies related to this important political issue. Topics that have been addressed in recent years range from modernizing voting machines and updating voter registration rolls to… Read more
Today the White House released its after-action report on the federal response to Hurricane Katrina. The report, over 200 pages long and with 125 recommendations, takes the right approach, focusing on the appropriate role of the federal government: building a national response system that supports state and local governments and increases federal capacity to respond… Read more
INTRODUCTION I want to thank Chairman Allard for the invitation to testify today on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's use of performance-based management, with a particular focus on their first required Performance Report, from the 1993 Government Performance and Results Act, to tell the taxpayers what their programs are accomplishing. My name is Virginia… Read more
Congress is considering directing that the Special Inspector General for Relief and Reconstruction (SIGR) play an oversight role in the Katrina Reconstruction effort. That makes a lot of sense. Residents of the Gulf Coast should not have to face the additional disaster of an array of federal projects marred by inefficiency, waste, and red tape.… Read more
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd's (D-CT) draft financial reform package is so filled with bad policies that it is hard to decide where to start. Rather than trying to break up the financial regulatory reform proposed by the Obama Administration into six or seven smaller chunks like his House… Read more
WASHINGTON, DEC. 3, 2008-Seeking common ground, The Heritage Foundation today reached out to President-elect Barack Obama with a series of policy memos on subjects where his words line up with the think tank's vision of how to solve critical issues facing America. Heritage experts examine taxes, health care, missile… Read more
On November 12, senior House Republican leaders sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to amend Rule X, the rule governing how committees are organized. This letter is a positive step toward changing the chaotic system of congressional oversight of homeland security. The fact that the letter came from Members of Congress… Read more
President Obama’s illegal non-recess appointments are unconstitutional and defy the process the Founding Fathers...… Read more
Attorney General Eric Holder used his testimony before a House committee on Thursday to tout the supposed need for...… Read more
Members of Congress will vote Wednesday to freeze their salaries through 2013 and impose the same pay limitation on...… Read more
As part of President Obama’s economic stimulus, the federal government has doled out $230 million for communities to...… Read more
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee meets Thursday to consider the most substantive postal reform plan...… Read more
A conservative congressman today called on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign after new revelations surfaced about...… Read more
The U.S. Postal Service faces a bleak future without reform. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), a successful businessman before...… Read more
A new poll from the Manhattan Institute reveals 77 percent of Hoosiers rate Indiana's government as "efficient."...… Read more
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) visited Heritage earlier this week for The Bloggers Briefing and stuck around to chat in our...… Read more
Social Security took center stage at last night’s Republican presidential debate, emerging as a key issue among...… Read more