Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) is the Liberal Lion of the US Senate. The longest serving member of that institution, he has been a champion of big government and spending programs for years. He is also a philosophical ally of President Obama, an ally who has been at odds with that President.

In addition to his love for big government, Byrd also has a history of demonstrating a great passion about the protocol of the US Senate. Few members of Congress understand the unique role that body plays in the legislative process and he is infuriated by an Administration that is so passionate about its policy agendas that it is disregarding legislative integrity.

About a year ago, in a statement, Byrd made it clear that he agrees with the President when it comes to policy, stating, "I like this budget. I support many of the policies that the President's budget embraces - in...

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If you read the fairy tale weaved by the major media and our history books, we would believe that liberal policies are beneficial to everyone, whether those policies are popular are not.

The upper classes can complain all they want, but they sleep better at night knowing that the government is generous with their wealth, even if those wealthy are actually "quite greedy." The middle class who aspire to be rich might have to face tougher regulations and taxes that might prevent them from meeting their dream, but at least they know their "fundamental needs" are being met. This would never happen, we are told, without the benevolent hand of the government. Then there are those who are poor and they are obviously the biggest beneficiaries of a big and generous government. These people would surely be found lying dead in the street without the generosity of a redistributing government.

The reality is, the only ones who benefit at all from a government that is growing out of c...

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We have all heard the saying that "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." This saying could not be more true than when it comes to minimum wage. Liberals determine whether a policy is "good" entirely on what it should do, rather than what it actually does. Liberal policy makers decide they want to raise the incomes of individuals (salaries), when they should seek to increase the spending power of individuals (which would happen from increased productivity and the lower costs that follows).

Increasing the minimum wage, which is intended to raise the living standards of millions of Americans holding unskilled and entry level positions, finds itself playing a much different role. Instead of making individuals more financially well off, minimum wage increases always lead to massive layoffs. In fact, a new study from Ball State University suggests that the most recent minimum wage increase may have led to the elimination of 550,000 jobs. This level of lost jobs makes an e...

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How much would the income of US households have dropped without being propped up by government benefits, welfare, and tax cuts last year? According to Patrice Hill of the Washington Times, it would have been a breathtaking $723 billion. This amount is more than five times the record $167 billion drop reported last month by the Commerce Department.

Most of the dependence is linked to the huge number of job losses in the last year. A major priority of government should be to eliminate the barriers between people and jobs. This should be done, not only in order to improve the situation of those who are unemployed, but to help provide relief for a government that finds itself supporting such people. The impact of unemployment is devastating in a way not found by other economic problems. The economists are claiming that we a...

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Calvin Coolidge oversaw one of the greatest expansions in the history of the US economy. When Coolidge took office, he believed tax rates were too high. With top rates at over 70% following World War I and facing a protracted recession, Coolidge believed it was time to take serious actions. The combined top marginal normal and surtax rate fell from 73 percent to 58 percent in 1922, and then to 50 percent in 1923 (for incomes over $200,000). In 1924, the top tax rate fell to 46 percent (for incomes over $500,000). The top rate was just 25 percent (for incomes over $100,000) from 1925 to 1928, and then fell to 24 percent in 1929.

The reduction in tax rates fueled the productivity engine of the US during these years, leading to inflation rates below 2 percent, unemployment below four percent, and the number of people who made over $100,000 a year actually quadrupling over his years in office. In addition to leading to economic expansion, these policies led to a dramatic increase ...

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Back when I worked for Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R-NH) in the 1980s, there was a saying among members of the Budget Committee he served on and the staff: "A million here and a million there, and eventually you are talking about serious money." Those now appear to be the "good old days" compared to the fiscal mayhem we see today.

Last week President Obama signed a law authorizing the United States Treasury to borrow an additional $1.9 trillion, during that time he did another one of his favorite paradoxical quips in a speech in which he discussed his commitment to frugality. Terrence P. Jeffrey of Human Events, suggests we all review the White House website and review the President's Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) own figures.

I love the title on the top of the OMB page: "A new era o...

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Fox News recently reported that "The House of Representatives ... voted to raise the debt limit by $1.9 trillion. That vote raises the debt ceiling to $14.3 trillion, a new high for the amount of debt the U.S. has ever carried." It goes on to say that "As recently as 2001, the U.S. debt was only at $5.7 trillion. But exploded throughout the past decade after Sept. 11, 2001, amid record spending by the Bush and Obama administrations." Furthermore, it noted that "If Congress doesn't hike the debt ceiling; the U.S. would be unable make good on Social Security and Medicare payments.

"It certainly makes sense to be opposed to raising the debt ceiling. The vast majority of it was in areas that the government has no business being in. Yet, I'm disgusted to see where some of the "nay" votes came from. The Senate approved the debt limit increase in mid-January on a 60-40 party-line vote. Meanwhile, the House vote was much closer, 217-212. All Republicans and more than 30 Democrat...

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I grew up in a suburb of Detroit, Michigan and thought it was a great place to live at the time. We had four seasons, beautiful trees, and it was a wonderful place to be a kid. However, it was also a place in significant economic decline and, by the time we left in the mid 1970s, Detroit was a place on the ropes. Like the many "Michiganders" that flew south to escape the economy of Detroit, we often joked, "Would the last person to leave Detroit, please turn off the lights?" With many economists indicating that real unemployment in the Motor City is around 50 percent, the day this city dies seems to be drawing near.

Detroit has reached such a dire status that its own demise has become a description for the decline of other economies. The Michigan based Mackinac Center discusses "Detroitification," which is defined as the "hollowing out of the private economy to prop up unsustainable (and ofte...

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There is a major shift going on in American politics. In November of 2008, following elections that brought Obama to the White House and significant majorities for the Democrats in the House and Senate, it seemed likely that the Democrats would dominate the Executive and Legislative branches for years to come. Republicans hoped that there was a chance they could take back the House, but the Senate, in the near future, was a pipe dream. In recent weeks, that dream has become a nightmare for the Democrats.

It became very scary for Democrats when a Senate seat held by a Kennedy for almost 50 years found itself in Republican hands. Scott Brown won a race, in spite of the fact that the state is 3 to 1 Democrat. Even before this upset, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) announced he would not seek reelection. Christopher Dodd (D-CT), one of the most influential and longest serving members of the Senate, decided not to run after a year of accusations of political improprieties rocked his campa...

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President Barack Obama's health care bill is on the fast track to no where. He made a radical, socialized medicine, health care bill the center piece of his legislative agenda in 2009, even though unemployment had reached a high we have not seen in a quarter of century. Those who opposed a bill that would lead to higher unemployment, higher taxes, health care rationing, and injury to innovation have won the battle. This was seen in the rapidly falling approval ratings of many moderate Democrats who voted for the bill the first time around. This was also clear as the state of Massachusetts, which is 3 to 1 Democrat, voted Republican on a Senate seat held by a Kennedy for a half of a century. What is the connection?

Massachusetts had a government health care program very similar to the President's plan for five years now and it has failed in virtually all of its policy objectives. The special election became a referendum on Obamacare and that agenda failed.

Presiden...

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