Free Republic

The Great Social Security Debate, Proposition 1: Of course it’s a Ponzi scheme. In a Ponzi scheme, the people who invest early get their money out with dividends. But these dividends don’t come from any profitable or productive activity — they consist entirely of money paid in by later participants. This cannot go on forever because at some point there just aren’t enough new investors to support the earlier entrants. Word gets around that there are no profits, just money transferred from new to old. The merry-go-round stops, the scheme collapses and the remaining investors lose everything. Now, Social Security...

What does post-Zionism mean in practice? It means that Israel should be not a Jewish state, but a "state of its citizens," a democracy like any other with no particular commitment to the survival or advancement of any one culture or people. Thus the most fundamental law in the Israeli canon, "the Law of Return" that guarantees refuge and citizenship in Israel for any Jew in the world (and which David Ben-Gurion considered the most important law of the land) is under attack for being nationalist, particularist, even racist. A democratic state, it is said, would have no such ethnic...

With a GOP-controlled House of Representatives, the prospects of President Barack Obama’s “Americans Jobs Act” making it into law may be slim. Nevertheless, the Obama administration is adamant with its claim that the proposal is not a political ploy to promote the president’s 2012 re-election bid. On Monday’s “Special Report” on the Fox News Channel, syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer expressed skepticism about that claim. In fact, he called the president cynical and cited the components of the legislation that are centered around the 2012 election.

Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer and the Washington Post's Colby King got into a heated debate about Barack Obama on Friday's "Inside Washington." After King compared the current White House resident to Harry Truman, Krauthammer struck back with a list of Obama's shortcomings concluding, "He would be a good professor...He can do a lot of things, but run the United States he can't" (video follows with transcript and commentary): CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER: Colby, I knew Harry Truman. Harry Truman was a friend of mine. Barack Obama is no Harry Truman. It’s not that complicated. Obama is over his head. He is a...

As President Barack Obama’s approval rating reaches new lows with seemingly every tracking poll, the question of how he is going to win re-election is a high priority for the president and his administration. However, based on Thursday night’s address to a joint session of Congress, it appears Obama could be attempting to mimic former President Harry Truman’s 1948 campaign against a “do-nothing Congress.” But on this weekend’s broadcast of “Inside Washington,” Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer was doubtful that would be an effective strategy because the so-called independents that voted for him in 2008 are realizing he isn’t all...

Teamsters President James Hoffa isn’t backing down from his Labor Day remarks, and there are very few on his side calling on him to do so. Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer says there is something to be learned from the episode. On Tuesday’s “Special Report” on the Fox News Channel, Krauthammer said the lack of a backlash was the latest evidence of hypocrisy from President Barack Obama’s party. “The real story is [the] cosmic hypocrisy of the Democrats,” Krauthammer said. “We had the shooting in Tucson all of a sudden that was obviously the act of a psychotic mad man…...

Charles Krauthammer on Fox News's "Special Report" Friday offered Republicans a 2012 campaign slogan to defeat Barack Obama. "President Zero: zero economic expansion, zero jobs, zero ideas on how to cure the economy" CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER, SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: That assumes the speech he thinks will turn the economy around. This is not that speech. This is to frame the debate for his reelection. This is not a serious jobs proposal. It will include things he knows Republicans will reject. And thus he sets up the premise, because his own White House has now said we are going to be nine percent...

To understand the workings of American politics, you have to understand this fundamental law: Conservatives think liberals are stupid. Liberals think conservatives are evil. — Charles Krauthammer Even liberals who've accomplished a lot in their lives and have high IQs often say things on a regular basis that are stunningly, profoundly stupid and at odds with the way the world works. Modern liberalism has become so bereft of common sense and instinctually suicidal that America can only survive over the long haul by thwarting the liberal agenda. In fact, liberalism has become such a toxic and poisonous philosophy that most...

Almost every Friday, Washington Post columnist and Fox News Channel regular Charles Krauthammer takes on a different role. Krauthammer tapes a program where he is the lone conservative on a panel. The show: The weekend broadcast of the nationally syndicated program “Inside Washington.” During this weekend’s edition, an unyielding Krauthammer went after President Barack Obama and his failure to “change how Washington works” in terms of putting forth a so-called jobs agenda. “[H]e came in on ‘hope and change’ and he said he would change the way Washington works,” Krauthammer said. “And we just heard him in the sound bite...

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s victory in Saturday’s straw poll in Ames, Iowa has earned her a lot of media attention for her 2012 presidential bid. But nipping at her heels only 152 votes behind was Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who has gotten little-to-no attention from the media for his feat on Saturday. And although one might think attention is deserved for Paul, according to Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer, Paul is being ignored for one reason: He doesn’t stand a chance. Krauthammer explained this on Monday’s “Special Report” on the Fox News Channel. “Ron Paul is not going to be...

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s victory in Saturday’s straw poll in Ames, Iowa has earned her a lot of media attention for her 2012 presidential bid. But nipping at her heels only 152 votes behind was Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who has gotten little-to-no attention from the media for his feat on Saturday. And although one might think attention is deserved for Paul, according to Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer, Paul is being ignored for one reason: He doesn’t stand a chance. Krauthammer explained this on Monday’s “Special Report” on the Fox News Channel. ...more (w/video)...

There are very few things the left is really good at, but one of them is propaganda, its bread and butter, the biggest arrow in its quiver. While extolling "the working class", the socialist movement has always been an almost exclusive preserve of radical intellectuals. These people, whose primary habitat is the ivory towers of academia, are far removed from reality. They spend their lives talking non-stop, engaging in verbal games and coming up with slogans and catch-words and phrases, sometimes quite ingenious. You have to admit that the NYT's headline "General Betray Us" mocking Gen. Petraeus, while sickeningly impudent,...

<p>We’re in the midst of a great four-year national debate on the size and reach of government, the future of the welfare state, indeed, the nature of the social contract between citizen and state. The distinctive visions of the two parties — social-democratic versus limited-government — have underlain every debate on every issue since Barack Obama’s inauguration: the stimulus, the auto bailouts, health-care reform, financial regulation, deficit spending. Everything. The debt ceiling is but the latest focus of this fundamental divide.</p>

We're in the midst of a great four-year national debate on the size and reach of government, the future of the welfare state, indeed, the nature of the social contract between citizen and state. The distinctive visions of the two parties — social-democratic vs. limited-government — have underlain every debate on every issue since Barack Obama's inauguration: the stimulus, the auto bailouts, health care reform, financial regulation, deficit spending. Everything. The debt ceiling is but the latest focus of this fundamental divide. The sausage-making may be unsightly, but the problem isn't that Washington is broken, that ridiculous cliche. The problem...

Charles Krauthammer unloaded on Obama tonight after his stale poll-driven speech to the nation. Obama still has no plan. “I thought I was cynical until I heard that speech. It was purely partisan. It was meant as a campaign speech. And I think it was a speech from yesterday.”

Wow. I said it the other day and I say it again. What in the world is come over Charles Krauthammer? Some of you guys said he sees the "writing on the wall". Maybe. However, this is the 3rd time in the last few days that I've counted where he's made some really refreshing commentary. First he says Gov. Sarah Palin has a good chance of winning the Presidental election & he didn't diss her. Then, he slammed Obama for "summoning" the Speaker of the House to the White House and schooled Obama that the three branches of government are...

“This is Obama at his most sanctimonious, demagogic, self-righteous and arrogant,” Krauthammer said. “And given the baseline, it wasn’t a pretty sight. Look, he started out by summoning the leaders of Congress – summoning on them at 11:00, who does he think he is? In the American system, the executive and Congress are coequal … The way he demanded their appearance in the Oval Office I thought was disgraceful,” Krauthammer said. He said the president’s consternation was curious because Obama has yet to publicly offer his own plan. “As Steve [Hayes] indicated the Republicans have offered a detailed plan –...

"...The actual significance of what has taken place in this incident is being misinterpreted. Pundits like O’Reilly, Kudlow, Charles Krauthammer and old guard Senators like James Coburn are championing the status quo. Krauthammer is contending that Republicans have “over played their hand” and “appear as unreasonable”. The fundamental problem with all of their melodrama is they are all making the mistake of assuming that the proffered opinion of S&P and Moody’s is somehow an axiom. Nobody is asking the question, who are these people and –why- should we give their opinions automatic credence? I take issue with the very premise....

Charles Krauthammer on Friday marvelously demonstrated just how in the pockets of Barack Obama America's news media are. After claiming on PBS's "Inside Washington" that we now have a "completely compliant, pliant, supine press accepting every leak out of the White House," he silenced the entire panel by asking them to name one specific cut to entitlements the President has proposed (video follows with transcript and commentary): VIDEO CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER: [The President] talks a good game. “Oh, I’m prepared to do entitlements, I’m ready to do entitlements.” Not once has he ever enunciated in public - other than all these...

President Obama is demanding a big long-term budget deal. He won't sign anything less, he warns, asking, "If not now, when?" How about last December, when he ignored his own debt commission's recommendations? How about February, when he presented a budget that increases debt by $10 trillion over the next decade? How about April, when he sought a debt-ceiling increase with zero debt reduction attached? All of a sudden he's a born-again budget balancer prepared to bravely take on his own party by making deep cuts in entitlements. Really? Name one. He's been saying forever that he's prepared to discuss,...