The president suggested he would hold off introducing his own immigration bill as long as bipartisan Senate negotiations were proceeding apace — until his own immigration bill mysteriously leaked precisely as bipartisan Senate negotiations were proceeding apace. A naked political maneuver and a blunt warning to Republicans: Finish that immigration deal in Congress or I’ll […]

WASHINGTON — The nation’s vexation over the morality and legality of President Obama’s drone war has produced a salutary but hopelessly confused debate. Three categories of questions are being asked. They must be separated to be clearly understood. 1. By what right does the president order the killing by drone of enemies abroad? What criteria […]

For the first time since Election Day, President Obama is on the defensive. That’s because on March 1, automatic spending cuts (“sequestration”) go into effect — $1.2 trillion over 10 years, half from domestic (discretionary) programs, half from defense. The idea was proposed and promoted by the White House during the July 2011 debt-ceiling negotiations. […]

Immigration reform is coming. Let’s get it right. What counts as getting it wrong? The 1986 Simpson-Mazzoli Act, signed by President Reagan. It granted amnesty to 3 million illegal immigrants and promised border enforcement. Amnesty came. Enforcement never did. Reagan was swindled. Americans are a generous people. They don’t want 11 million souls living in […]

The media herd is stunned to discover that Barack Obama is a man of the left. After 699 teleprompted presidential speeches, the commentariat was apparently still oblivious. Until Monday’s inaugural address, that is. Where has everyone been these four years? The only surprise is that Obama chose his second inaugural, generally an occasion for “malice […]

It has become conventional wisdom that Republicans are suffering an internal split that President Obama is successfully exploiting to neuter the Republican House. In fact, the split is tactical, not philosophical; short-term, not fundamental. And therefore quite solvable. How do we know? Simple thought experiment: Imagine that we had a Republican president. Would the party […]

“This is my last election. After my election, I have more flexibility.” Barack Obama to Dmitry Medvedev, March 26, 2012 The puzzle of the Chuck Hagel nomination for defense secretary is that you normally choose someone of the other party for your Cabinet to indicate a move to the center, but, as The Washington Post […]

WASHINGTON – The rout was complete, the retreat disorderly. President Obama got his tax hikes — naked of spending cuts — passed by the ostensibly Republican House of Representatives. After which, you might expect him to pivot to his self-proclaimed “principle” of fiscal “balance” by taking the lead on reducing spending. “Why,” asked The Washington […]