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Articles by Publius

Palin Targeting Rep. Etheridge, Slams Him for 'Turning Violent'

From the Hill: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) rolled out a new slate of endorsements of Republican women on her Facebook page Wednesday, including congressional candidate Renee Ellmers in North Carolina. Ellmers gained some brief national attention earlier this

Actually, 'Atlas Shrugged' Explains Much

Scott Powell, in today’s Investors Business Daily: ‘Atlas Shrugged” — Ayn Rand’s fourth and last novel, published in 1957 — may be second to the Bible as the most influential book read in America, according to a Library of Congress

Wednesday Open Thread: Meredith Edition

Today, in 1963, James Meredith became the first black man to graduate from the University of Mississippi. (Yes, we had to read over that a couple times, too.)

Tuesday Open Thread: Clarity Edition

It is impossible to overstate how much we love Ronald Reagan. May we live long enough to see another leader like him. This video is from the Republican Study Committee. Whether they are up to the task will be determined

ObamaCare Rationing: FDA Considers Denying Leading Cancer Drug

From the Washington Post: The FDA is not supposed to consider costs in its decisions, but if the agency rescinds approval, insurers are likely to stop paying for treatment. “It’s hard to talk about Avastin without talking about costs,” said

Muslim Leaders Abandon Plans for Ground Zero Mosque?

UPDATE: A New York Daily News correspondent reports the Hareetz story is untrue: UPDATE from our Sam Goldsmith, who’s been following this issue and just got off the phone with Sharif El-Gamal, the developer of the project: “That’s complete misinformation.

Monday Open Thread: Arabia Edition

Today, in 1888, T.E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence of Arabia, is born. His Seven Pillars of Wisdom is still an indispensable guide to the Middle East.

Feds to Guarantee Million Dollar Condos in Manhattan

From Bloomberg: Whitney Gollinger, marketing chief for a Manhattan condo building with an outdoor movie theater and panoramic city views, is highlighting a different amenity to spur sales: the financial backing of the federal government. The Federal Housing Administration agreed

Sunday Open Thread: VJ Day Weekend

Today, in 1945, Americans were greeted with a two-word newsflash, “Japan Surrenders” World War II was over. (Note: It was August 15th in Japan, but, because of time zone differences, it was August 14th in the US. Consider this VJ

Saturday Open Thread: Solidarity Edition

Today, in 1980, Lech Walesa led strikes at the Gdansk shipyards. It was the beginning of freedom in Eastern Europe. We may need to find our own Lech…

Obama Backs Ground Zero Mosque

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama on Friday forcefully endorsed building a mosque near ground zero, saying the country’s founding principles demanded no less. “As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice

The Stunning Decline of Barack Obama

From the UK’s Daily Telegraph: Can it get any worse for President Obama? Undoubtedly yes. Here are 10 key reasons why the Obama presidency is in serious trouble, and why its prospects are unlikely to improve between now and the

Federal Appeals Court Rules Against ACORN

From the Associated Press: A federal appeals court on Friday threw out a decision that had barred Congress from withholding funds from ACORN, the activist group driven to ruin by scandal and financial woes. The ruling by the 2nd Circuit

The Coming Bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

From the Boston Globe: Fannie and Freddie were once the most powerful forces in the US housing industry. They pumped liquidity into the sector by buying up mortgages written by banks and mortgage companies. That kept the cost of capital

Friday Free for All: Recovery Blunder Edition

Another week, another new round of bad jobs’ data. For two years we’ve tried the Keynesian silliness and it hasn’t worked. We thought we had already learned this lesson. Can we finally put the ‘aggregate demand’ BS to rest?

Recovery Blunder: Jobs Picture Gets Worse

From the Associated Press: The employment picture is looking bleaker as applications for jobless benefits rose last week to the highest level in almost six months. It’s a sign that hiring is weak and employers are still cutting their staffs.

Thursday Open Thread: IBM Edition

Today, in 1981, IBM released the first personal computer. Never has there been a more accomplished 29 year old.

Wednesday Open Thread: Gibbs Edition

Yesterday, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs lashed out at the “professional left,” for their criticism of President Obama. The “professional left” was predictably and very professionally outraged. For once, we kinda feel Gibbs’ pain.

Prager: Black Murders Eight Whites; Media Blames Whites

From Prager’s column today: The title of this column seems unbelievable, but it is in fact what happened in America this past week. And almost no one has noticed. After 50 years of being inundated with stories of white racism,

Former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens Killed in Plane Crash

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Former Sen. Ted Stevens, an uncompromising advocate for Alaska for four decades who delivered scores of expensive projects to one of the nation’s most sparsely populated states, has died in a plane crash at the age

Tuesday Open Thread: Bailout Edition

Today, the U.S. House returns from recess to pass a fresh bailout of state government. Billions of dollars we don’t have will be shoveled to politicians in state capitals around the nation. All in time for the midterms! The Age

Freddie Mac Posts $6 Billion Quarterly Loss

From AFP: Troubled US mortgage firm Freddie Mac reported Monday a second quarter net loss of six billion dollars and sought another 1.8 billion dollars from the Treasury to contain the red ink. The government-backed company said its strategies to

Monday Open Thread: Spain Edition

Not only did Spain win the World Cup, but they’ve been privileged to host FLOTUS Michelle Obama for her rather odd, extravagant holiday jaunt. Yesterday the First Lady had lunch with the Spanish King and Queen before jetting back to

Freddie, Fannie and the Third Rail of Housing Policy

From today’s New York Times: With midterm elections near, though, there will be talk aplenty about dealing with the companies precisely because Dodd-Frank didn’t address them. Unfortunately, if past is prologue, this talk is likely to be more political than

The Next Bubble to Burst: Higher Education?

From Glenn Reynolds’ latest column in today’s Washington Examiner: Right now, people are still borrowing heavily to pay the steadily increasing tuitions levied by higher education. But that borrowing is based on the expectation that students will earn enough to

Voters Are Fed Up with Washington

From the Associated Press: Ah, the cruelty. Veteran lawmakers who toiled for years in Congress waiting for a chance at political promotion have discovered an inconvenient truth: This election year, Washington experience is a career-ender. Four House members who abandoned

Saturday Open Thread: Greene Edition

Today, in 1742, Revolutionary War hero Nathanael Greene was born. At the beginning of the war he was a militia private but rose to be both a Major-General and one of Washington’s most dependable officers. Happy Birthday!

Friday Free-For-All: Hiroshima Edition

Today, in 1945, the United States used the first atomic bomb, dropping it on Hiroshima, Japan. In about a week, World War II would be over.

Editorial Note

Earlier this week, we read an on-line column which provided one of the most thorough and well-researched examinations of the many controversies surrounding former USDA employee Shirley Sherrod. We asked the author of the column for permission to reprint his

Senate Confirms Kagan as 112th Justice

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate has confirmed Elena Kagan as the 112th justice and fourth woman to serve on the Supreme Court.The vote was 63-37 for President Barack Obama’s nominee to succeed retired Justice John Paul Stevens. Five Republicans joined

August Surprise (Bribe): Massive Mortgage Bailout

From James Pethokoukis at Reuters: Main Street may be about to get its own gigantic bailout. Rumors are running wild from Washington to Wall Street that the Obama administration is about to order government-controlled lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

House Returns Next Week to Pass State Government Bailout

From The Hill: Speaker Nancy Pelosi threw lawmakers’ summer plans into chaos Wednesday, announcing the House will interrupt its six-week recess and return to Washington next week to act on Medicaid and education funding for states. Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced the

Thursday Open Thread: PACTO Edition

Today, in 1981, President Ronald Reagan fired over 11,000 air-traffic controllers who refused a federal order to return to work. More leaders like that would be a start.

AP: Black Members of Tea Party Dispute Racist Claims

WASHINGTON (AP) – Black members of the tea party movement on Wednesday rejected charges that the group’s activists are racist, saying they oppose President Barack Obama because of his policies not his skin color. The members gathered at a Washington

Judge Overturns California Gay Marriage Ban

From AFP: A federal judge overturned California’s ban on same-sex marriage US media reported Wednesday, the latest twist in a legal saga which could have nationwide implications for the divisive social issue. In a written opinion, Judge Vaughn Walker found

Wednesday Open Thread: Free Speech Edition

Today, in 1987, the FCC rescinded the Fairness Doctrine, ushering in an era of diverse and robust viewpoints on the nations’ airwaves. Ever since, the Left has dreamed of reinstating the federal regulation of speech, but that dream seems more

Breitbart: Enemy of the Left with a Laptop

From the Associated Press: Andrew Breitbart strips off his blazer, windmills it over his head and lets it fly to the stage with a matador’s flourish. He booms into a microphone, sneering, taunting. Breath sprints to keep up with words.