Daily Articles

Speaking Out for Freedom in War and Peace

by Richard M. Ebeling February 21, 2003

If war comes between the United States and Iraq, one of the first results right here in America will be the attempt to close off all further criticisms of U.S. foreign policy. Spokesmen for the Bush administration, various members of Congress, and many of the talking heads on the ...

Points to Ponder at Five Minutes before Midnight

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 21, 2003

On the eve of the U.S. government’s upcoming invasion of Iraq, we might want to ponder some important points: 1. The invasion will be illegal under the supreme law of the United States. Our Constitution, which is the law that binds the conduct of our public officials, requires a congressional declaration of war before the president can ...

The Iraqi Expulsion of Fox News

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 19, 2003

The Iraqi government is throwing Fox News out of Iraq, apparently in retaliation for the U.S. government’s expulsion of a correspondent for the Iraqi News Agency (INA) for engaging in actions “harmful to U.S. interests.” Since the INA is owned and operated by the Iraqi government, it ...

Economic Sanctions in Iraq as a Tool of Foreign Policy

by Robert W. McGee February 17, 2003

The United States has been imposing economic sanctions against Iraq since the early 1990s. Technically, they are UN sanctions, but the United Nations is involved in name only. The embargo would collapse within about 15 minutes if the United States withdrew its support for the sanctions. FACTS Since their inception, the ...

Taxing Dividends: Once Is Not Enough?

by Sheldon Richman February 14, 2003

Why is it controversial to propose an end to double taxation? The centerpiece of President Bush’s economic package is elimination of the tax on dividends. No one disputes that this is a double tax. A corporation pays taxes on its profits. Then if it distributes the after-tax profits ...

War with Iraq Is Dangerous Folly

by Howard Baetjer Jr. February 14, 2003

Suppose we do get proof that Saddam Hussein is producing banned weapons and hiding them from UN inspectors. Starting a war with Iraq on that account would be utter folly. It would very likely do far, far more harm than good. Those yearning to let slip the dogs of war, in ...

What Do Facts Have to Do with It?

by Sheldon Richman February 12, 2003

If Osama bin Laden, who condemns Saddam Hussein as a socialist and a bad Muslim whom hed prefer to see overthrown, is in cahoots with the Iraqi dictator, he has a strange way of showing it. Perhaps President Bush is an ally of Husseins also: he agrees with bin Laden on all counts. Most people who studied Secretary of State ...

Next, Pakistan … and Maybe Germany

by Scott McPherson February 10, 2003

According to President Bush, we must attack Iraq for five main reasons: (1) Saddam Hussein is a dictator; (2) he probably has weapons of mass destruction; (3) he is a supporter of international terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda; (4) his continued position as head of his country threatens ...

Tax-Cut Alchemy

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 7, 2003

In the midst of massive increases in federal spending and an enormous budget deficit, President Bush has proposed a large reduction in federal taxes. How’s that for political magic — lower taxes and more benefits? Unfortunately, however, it’s not ...

Mr. Bush Neglects the Constitution

by Sheldon Richman February 7, 2003

It isn’t entirely encouraging that the top man of the political party theoretically dedicated to the Constitution, limited government, and individual liberty thinks the government he runs should cure AIDS in Africa, create a hydrogen-powered car, pay for retirees’ medicine, and provide mentors to troubled kids. Ominously, President Bush’s state ...

Space Shuttles, Trains, and Postal Delivery

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 7, 2003

Isn’t the response of President Bush and other Washington officials to the NASA tragedy so very typical? Amidst charges that NASA officials have knowingly and intentionally ignored safety warnings for years, the knee-jerk response of Washington’s big spenders is: Increase the NASA budget immediately! Only in Washington ...

True Internationalism

by Scott McPherson February 3, 2003

Speaking to a Georgetown University audience on January 23, Sen. John Kerry of Massachsuetts, one of six Democratic hopefuls for the presidential nomination, called for a “bold, progressive internationalism” to combat terrorism against the United States. “What America needs today is a smarter, more comprehensive and farsighted strategy for modernizing the Middle East,” he ...