Free Republic

In The Republic, Plato argued that philosophers must be made kings for the ideal city-state to be born. In the pages of The New Republic, Cass Sunstein argues for the benevolent paternalism of the nanny state and its philosopher-kings. It’s an old Sunstein theme and the one that brought him to the attention of politicians who dearly love to imagine themselves in the roles of those philosopher-kings. One of those politicians, Barack Obama, even made Sunstein his Regulatory Czar. Sunstein debuted as the philosopher-king of the technocrats with his book Nudge. Now having left his D.C. Czardom, Sunstein is back...

The Nanny State is Underrated by ‘Homer Simpson’ Americans Sunstein is Not a Socialist He Just Wants Gov to Control How Much You Can Buy Sunstein Wants Superpower President, Just Go Around that Pesky Constitution

Cap-and-trade energy tax legislation appears stalled, at least for now, in the U.S. Senate. But that doesn’t mean the cap-and-trade energy tax isn’t imminent. Senate Environment Committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer hasn’t even introduced the bill yet; new Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Blanche Lincoln has declared the House bill dead on arrival; and there are several other cross-cutting controversies that divide Democrats on the bill. The Obama administration is unfazed. They are moving full steam ahead with an even more costly regulatory scheme in the name of global warming—shoehorning the regulation of greenhouse gases into the 1970 Clean Air Act, a...

Our proposed regulatory czar, Cass Sunstein wants to ban hunting, animal agriculture and give animals the right to sue in court. His notion is that more can be accomplished by tweaking regulations like the Endangered Species Act to achieve his aims than straightforward attempts to give animals rights to sue in court and be represented by a lawyer as he has proposed. Senators Chambliss and Cornyn have put holds on his nomination, but they and our other representatives need to hear from us. The relevant part is 48 minutes into the video. You only need to listen to about two...

Recovering liberal Democrat Carrie Hudson discusses the difference between her democratic values and the insanity embraced by the Obama administration. She responds to the nomination of Cass Sunstein as "regulatory czar," a man who believes lawyers should be able to sue farmers on behalf of animals. We discuss the rational end to irrational public policy. Plus, clips of Congressman Alan Grayson, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, and the great Ted Nugent.