It would hardly be International Women’s Day without a speech from an elected official repeating the mistaken notion that American women still suffer under systematic discrimination in the workplace as evidenced by the statistic that women, on average, earn 77 percent of what men earn.

Yesterday, President Obama included this statistic during his remarks to celebrate International Women’s Day: “The statistics of inequality are all too familiar to us — how women just earn 77 cents for every dollar men make.” This was dutifully parroted by those covering the event, including Dan Robinson’s Voice of America … Continue Reading

David Noonan, writing for ABC Australia on March 3rd argues that nuclear power is too expensive and too dangerous for Australia, giving the United States as an example:

Nuclear energy is not only hazardous, but reliant on government subsidies to survive. Australia would spend its money more wisely on renewables. The employment benefits that flow from government investment in renewable energy are far, far greater.

Attacks on the safety of nuclear waste are all too common. Nuclear power releases dangerous amounts of radiation into the atmosphere. Nuclear reactors are vulnerable to a terrorist attack. Nuclear power results in nuclear weapons proliferation. … Continue Reading

Stephen Dinan’s March 5th Washington Times article entitled “Climate scientists plot to fight back at skeptics” allows a climate alarmist  to assert that scientists “will never be able to compete with energy companies” when it comes to pushing their side of the debate.

The claim is false for several reasons:

• Energy companies have funded research on both sides of this debate, but spent more funding those “alarmists” who support claims of anthropogenic (man-made) global warming (“AGW”).
• No

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Reporting on the White House’s final push to pass their health care reform bill, Lori Montgomery and Shailagh Murray write in the March 3rd Washington Post:

Reconciliation is a procedure created in 1974 to help lawmakers advance politically difficult budget legislation, particularly measures that reduce the deficit. It has been used 22 times by both parties since 1980 to promote a variety of policies, including overhauling the welfare system, creating COBRA health benefits for people who lose their jobs, and cutting taxes in two huge packages championed by President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003.

This is all true but … Continue Reading

Writing about the mainstream climatologists’ attempt to restore their credibility on March 2nd, John Broder of The New York Times all but dismisses the flaws in the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2007 report:

No scientific body is under more hostile scrutiny than the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which compiles the climate research of hundreds of scientists around the globe into periodic reports intended to be the definitive statement of the science and a guide for policy makers. Critics, citing several relatively minor errors in its most recent report and charges of conflict of interest

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Tim Padgett has an item at Time titled “Chile and Haiti: A Tale of Two Earthquakes” that notes:

The 8.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Chile early on Feb. 27 was 500 times stronger than the 7.0 quake that killed an estimated 200,000 Haitians last month. And yet the number of casualties in Chile appears to be exponentially smaller, with the official death toll still in the hundreds. Far fewer people were rendered homeless than in Haiti, and much of the telephone service in Santiago and parts of central Chile had been restored within five hours.
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Both Chile and Haiti sit atop large,

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Politico’s Marin Cogan and James Hohmann try and “truth-squad” Rep. Paul Ryan’s claims at the February 25th Blair House health summit writing:

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) claimed that under the Democrats’ plan, millions of seniors will lose their Medicare Advantage plans.

Not quite.

According to health policy experts, it’s fair to say that if the Democrats have their way, the benefits provided by Medicare Advantage will be reduced — which means that a number of seniors might choose not to enroll in the program in the future. That doesn’t mean people are going to “lose” their plans, exactly — just that fewer

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Covering the health summit for Politico, Carrie Budoff Brown asserts under the headline “The big bipartisan lie” on February 25th:

If President Barack Obama really wanted to show he’s serious about winning over Republicans on health care reform, he could offer up some key concessions at Thursday’s summit, like caps on malpractice awards or allowing insurers to sell across state lines.

And if Republicans wanted to reciprocate, they could at least acknowledge the congressional scorekeepers are right — the Democratic plans cut the deficit in the long term and rein in health care costs.

But Brown has her facts wrong. … Continue Reading

The February 18th Los Angeles Times reports that U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer is seeking re-election. Under the bland title “U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer files papers to run for reelection,” Seema Mehta explains, “The Democrat faces a tough battle amid an anti-incumbent backlash.”

Is what Sen. Boxer really faces an “anti-incumbent” backlash? Hardly. The Politico describes the current political terrain as seen by the famed (and non-partisan) Charlie Cook. The Politico reports:

Highlighting the GOP’s continued momentum, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report made ratings changes in 25 House races Thursday, all of which favor Republican candidates….

The respected political publication now rates

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When Washington Post reporter Alec MacGillis tries to explain complex issues in a neutral voice, somehow the results always favor the Left.

In an August 16th guide to the health-care debate, MacGillis wrote, “Fixing [the system] could be very simple: a single-payer system. To the dismay of many liberals, President Obama and congressional Democrats think it’s more realistic to build on what’s already there, which is why legislation overhauling it comes in the form of 1,000-page tomes.” No substantive criticisms of single payer were offered anywhere in the piece.

On Sunday February 21st Post MacGillis purported to expose “five … Continue Reading

A new Washington Post-ABC News poll claims that a large majority of Americans in both parties oppose the Supreme Court’s recent Citizens United ruling that loosened some of the rules in campaign finance law. The February 17th Dan Eggen WaPo story reports that “Eight in 10 poll respondents say they oppose the high court’s Jan. 21 decision to allow unfettered corporate political spending, with 65 percent ‘strongly’ opposed. Nearly as many backed congressional action to curb the ruling, with 72 percent in favor of reinstating limits.”

But a quick look at the actual poll questions shows that the Post

… Continue Reading

In a February 16, 2010 article entitled “Party Gridlock in Washington Feeds Fear of a Debt Crisis”, New York Times reporter Jackie Calmes erroneously suggests that Congress’ lack of ability to address the national debt is due to “(t)he unwillingness of the two parties to compromise.”

While it is true that Republicans have hardly been in the mood to work with Democrats to pass major legislation, that position has been precisely because every measure brought forward by Democrats, from health care “reform” to cap-and-trade to “jobs” bills will add to

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Writing in the February 17th Los Angeles Times, Jim Tankersley and Michael Muskal report:

Seeking common ground with Republicans on energy and climate issues, President Obama on Tuesday pledged $8 billion in loan guarantees needed to build the first U.S. nuclear reactors in nearly three decades.

Industry groups and Republican leaders praised the announcement, which has been expected for months, but some environmentalists and free-market think tanks protested.

It is welcome that Tankersley and Muskal note that free-market think tanks have reservations about the loan guarantees, but when detailing those objections this is all LAT readers get:

Free-market groups complained that the

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The February 13th Washington Post has an article by Walter Pincus titled: “Under Plan, Intelligence Agencies Would Be Consulted Before Reading of Rights.” But is not until the third paragraph that Pincus informs readers that the “plan now under review in the White House” involves “new procedures.” But this begs the question: what were the old procedures? Pincus never says.

Instead, Pincus goes on to report: “Republican lawmakers have criticized the administration for not consulting the heads of U.S. intelligence agencies before FBI agents read the 23-year-old Abdulmutallab his Miranda rights. ”

But did the Administration consult with the heads of … Continue Reading

Josh Gerstein and Kasie Hunt’s February 10th Politico article, GOP, White House go to war over terrorism does a fair job clipping from press releases sent between the White House and Congressional Republicans, but completely fails to get at the core reasons why Obama administration Deputy National Security Adviser for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan has lost all credibility with Capitol Hill GOPers.

Hunt and Gerstein do report that Republicans are partially upset because “Brennan said that those who make politically motivated criticism over national security ‘only serve the goals of Al Qaeda.’” But that is just the beginning … Continue Reading

In the February 8th New York Times, under the headline Bills Stalled, Hospitals Fear Rising Unpaid Care, Reed Abelson reports:

President Obama says he aims to keep trying. But what happens if the health care legislation cannot be revived, and tens of millions of uninsured Americans continue without coverage?

For the nation’s hospitals, at least, the cost of doing nothing in Washington translates into tens of billions of dollars each year in medical bills that go unpaid by patients with little or no insurance.

Abelson then goes on to report that “The number of people without insurance in this country could increase … Continue Reading

Reporting on President Barack Obama 2011 budget for McClatchy Newspapers, James Rosen writes on January 31st:

With women’s advocacy groups voicing growing unease with administration policy, President Barack Obama will propose a $3.8 trillion budget on Monday that would exempt programs for women and girls from spending restrictions he’s proposed for other programs.

The budget unveiled Monday would exempt those programs from the freeze.

Among the programs targeted at women are $8.1 billion in food aid for low-income pregnant women, infants and children up to 5 years old and $3.9 billion for child care and Head Start meals.

What Rosen fails to report … Continue Reading

The banner over Roger’s, a Senior Congressional Correspondent at POLITICO, front-page piece for February 1, 2010 reads, “War Squeeze Obama Budget,” puts an erroneous political spin on the news surrounding the release of the President’s proposed federal budget. It may not be David Rogers’ fault. Editors pick headlines. Still, article’s skews the truth about proposed federal spending for the upcoming year.

Suggesting that defense spending on war-related costs for operations in Afghanistan and Iraq are the principle factors driving a growing federal budget and exploding national debt … Continue Reading

Reporting on new criticisms from China of US “protectionism,” Reuters reporter Chris Buckley states:

China has accused the United States of straining their vast economic relationship through a slew of anti-dumping measures, adding to growing tensions between the two global powers….

The warning reflected the increasingly testy trade relations between China and the United States.

Buckley demonstrates a basic misunderstanding of how trade remedies (i.e., anti-dumping, countervailing duty or safeguards) cases are initiated and decided in the United States.  Under US law, an anti-dumping investigation results from a petition filed by a private firm (or firms) and/or its union pursuant to commercial … Continue Reading

“The Department of Defense’s new proposed budget would dwarf military spending sought during President Ronald Reagan’s time in office, concludes Michael O’Brien of The Hill in a January 25th articel titled “Obama spending more on defense than Reagan had at peak.” O’Brien cites a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report. He also reports Director Douglas Elmendorf wrote in a post on the CBO Blog defense spending “exceeds the peak of about $500 billion (in 2010 dollars) during the height of the Reagan Administration’s military buildup in the mid-1980s.”

On the surface O’Brien’s report makes defense spending seem … Continue Reading

The January 26th Washington Post carried a Rob Stein story on a new Guttmacher Institute study that found, between 2005 and 2006, the pregnancy rate among teenage girls rose for the first time in more than a decade. At two points in the story, Stein mentions some possible causes for the rise:

The cause of the increase is the subject of debate. Several experts blamed the increase in teen pregnancies on sex-education programs that focus on encouraging abstinence. Others said the reversal could be due to a variety of factors, including an increase in poverty, an influx of Hispanics and

… Continue Reading

Covering President Barack Obama’s upcoming State of the Union proposals, Sheryl Gay Stolberg writes in January 25ths New York Times:

For example, the president is calling on Congress to nearly double the child care tax credit for families earning less than $85,000 — a proposal that, if adopted, would lower by $900 the taxes such families owe to the government. But the credit would not be refundable, meaning that families would not get extra money back on a tax refund.

What exactly does Stolberg mean by “extra”? If, come April 15th, a family has had more taken out of their paychecks … Continue Reading

In the January/February 2010 2010 issue of The Atlantic, David Frum writes:

Almost every concept in Obama’s intensely controversial health plan has at one point or another been advanced by a senior Republican, from Bob Dole to Mitt Romney.

Frum appears to buy himself some wiggle room when says “almost ever concept” … but the numbers do not lie. In both the House and Senate versions of the bill, over half of those who gain health insurance do so through a Medicaid expansion.

According to the President’s own Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under the House … Continue Reading

The Washington Post’s Alec MacGillis reported on January 13th:

The $787 billion economic stimulus package has created or saved between 1.7 million and 2 million jobs, but its impact on the economy ebbed slightly in the final quarter of 2009 compared with prior months, the White House said Tuesday night.
…
Congressional Republicans have questioned the administration’s claims about the stimulus’s impact, pointing to the 10 percent unemployment rate nationwide. Romer’s new figures are based on macroeconomic estimates, not reports filed by stimulus funding recipients, the next round of which is due later this month.

Separately, the White House has announced a change

… Continue Reading

Covering the ongoing health care negotiations between the House and Senate, Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Steve Greenhouse report in January 12th New York Times:

President Obama told union leaders at a private White House meeting on Monday that he remained committed to taxing high-cost insurance policies as a way to drive down health costs.
…
The 40 percent excise tax would apply to any cost above $8,500 for individual policies and $23,000 for family plans; the Congressional Budget Office has estimated it would generate $149 billion in tax revenues over 10 years, which would help Mr. Obama meet his goal of passing

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A January 12th Associated Press article carries the headline “Employer health mandate may be dropped” and Erica Werner reports:

The House-passed bill included an income tax increase on individuals making more than $500,000 a year and couples making over $1 million, as well as a requirement for large businesses to cover their workers. The Senate bill contained neither. It included a tax on high-value insurance plans and a modest increase in the Medicare payroll tax. Instead of requiring employers to offer health coverage, the Senate bill penalized businesses if any of their workers obtained government-subsidized health care.

The House and Senate … Continue Reading

On January 11th, Matt Apuzzo and Brett Blackledge reported on an Associated Press analysis of federal government infrastructure stimulus spending writing:

Spend a lot or spend nothing at all, it didn’t matter, the AP analysis showed: Local unemployment rates rose and fell regardless of how much stimulus money Washington poured out for transportation, raising questions about Obama’s argument that more road money would address an “urgent need to accelerate job growth.”
…
AP’s analysis, which was reviewed by independent economists at five universities, showed that strategy hasn’t affected unemployment rates so far. And there’s concern it won’t work the second time. For

… Continue Reading

In the January 2, 2010 Washington Post Ariana Eunjung Cha reports:

China’s state-owned banks have become a main engine of the global recovery, financing the construction of copper mines, purchase of airplanes, expansion of retail stores and other projects even as their U.S. and European counterparts scale back lending.
…
Over the first nine months of 2009, new lending by Chinese banks has injected $1.3 trillion into the world economy, according to statistics from the People’s Bank of China, which functions as China’s central bank.

But as Heritage Foundation Asian Studies Center Research Fellow Derek Scissors points out, it is a stretch … Continue Reading

Reporting on President Barack Obama’s damage control meeting with U.S. intelligence agencies, Karen DeYoung and Michael Fletcher write in the January 6th Washington Post:

But [Obama] said he will continue with already delayed plans to close [Guantanamo Bay], which he said “has damaged our national security interests and become a tremendous recruiting tool for al-Qaeda.”

“In fact,” he added, “that was an explicit rationale for the formation of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.”

The Yemen-based group, known as AQAP, was founded in part by prisoners released from Guantanamo Bay during George W. Bush’s administration.

DeYoung and Fletcher are technically correct that AQAP “was … Continue Reading

On December 29th, Mary Carmichael reported for News week on What Health-Care Reform Will Mean for You. She writes:

Two changes will affect people with current private insurance in 2010. One is that they won’t have to worry about maxing out their lifetime medical benefits, because as of six months after enactment, insurance companies won’t be allowed to impose those maximums on anyone. … A second is that people who are frustrated with their plans will have someone to gripe to other than their congressmen: the Senate bill calls for the immediate creation of new state offices that will handle

… Continue Reading