Republicans

2:14 PM, May 15, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

Pablo Pantoja made news this week by publicly leaving the Republican party to become a Democrat. "In a letter released by The Florida Nation on Monday, RNC State Director Of Florida Outreach Pablo Pantoja announced that he is changing his political affiliation to the Democratic Party," the Huffington Post reported.

"It doesn’t take much to see the culture of intolerance surrounding the Republican Party today," he wrote. "I have wondered before about the seemingly harsh undertones about immigrants and others. Look no further; a well-known organization recently confirms the intolerance of that which seems different or strange to them."

The weird thing is, Pantoja is said to have been seeking employment by the Republican National Committee only months earlier. And only when those efforts failed did Pantoja apparently decide that the Republican party was too intolerant for him to call himself a member.

Reached by the phone this afternoon, Pantoja confirmed that he did recently seek a job with the Republican National Committee. But, citing complications with his current employer, Pantoja said he was unable to discuss the matter on the record.

He worked for the Republican party in Florida for about 12 weeks, ending employment there almost a year ago, back in July. He is said to have quit when his portfolio wasn't expanded, and tried almost immediately to get his job back. That effort was not successful.

Pantoja is currently employed by the LIBRE Initiative, a group devoted to economic freedom. A spokesman for LIBRE called the matter "personal."

10:00 AM, May 14, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

In a couple minutes, the top Republican in the Senate will say that "we’ve only started to scratch the surface of this scandal." Mitch McConnell will say those words in reference to the IRS-targeting-conservatives scandal, and will make those remarks on the Senate floor.

7:14 AM, May 8, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

House speaker John Boehner might support the Internet tax bill. But it isn't too likely, he indicated in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

12:00 AM, May 4, 2013 • By IRWIN M. STELZER

A funny thing happened to our dysfunctional government. It functioned, unwittingly perhaps, but function it did. President Obama forced Republicans, unwilling to risk the political consequences of taking America over the fiscal cliff, to accept a $180 billion tax increase.

11:01 AM, Apr 29, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

The editors of National Review write:

10:51 AM, Apr 25, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

In response to reports that congressional leaders from both parties are seeking exemptions from Obamacare, Speaker John Boehner's spokesman released the following statement.

9:47 AM, Apr 25, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPER

Congress is reportedly trying to exempt itself from Obamacare. "Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks" to figure out how to do this, Politico reports.

7:32 AM, Apr 25, 2013 • By JERYL BIER

Congress is preparing to take action on a bipartisan proposal to raise taxes on flu vaccines. This is not a tax on the wealthy, but rather on a broad swath of Americans, or at least those who choose to be immunized against the flu.

Apr 29, 2013, Vol. 18, No. 31 • By FRED BARNES

Things are looking up for Republicans. President Obama’s agenda is collapsing before our eyes. Obama is pointing to the 2014 midterm elections to capture the House and revive his presidency. “My job is not simply to occupy the Oval Office,” he said at a San Francisco fundraiser. “My job is to make sure we move the country forward, and I think we can best do that if Nancy Pelosi is speaker of the House once again.” Obama said Pelosi is “thought ful” and “visionary” and “never lets ideology cloud her judgment.”

Apr 29, 2013, Vol. 18, No. 31 • By FRED BARNES

Things are looking up for Republicans. President Obama’s agenda is collapsing before our eyes. Obama is pointing to the 2014 midterm elections to capture the House and revive his presidency. “My job is not simply to occupy the Oval Office,” he said at a San Francisco fundraiser. “My job is to make sure we move the country forward, and I think we can best do that if Nancy Pelosi is speaker of the House once again.” Obama said Pelosi is “thought ful” and “visionary” and “never lets ideology cloud her judgment.”

12:00 AM, Apr 13, 2013 • By IRWIN M. STELZER

To understand the American economy, you have to answer four questions. How can it be that unemployment remains high at the same time the number of job vacancies is rising? Will consumers keep buying cars and houses at anything like the current pace despite the recent increase in payroll taxes? How long will Ben Bernanke’s Fed keep printing money to keep interest rates close to zero? Finally, will Washington do what the president asks and get out of the way of an economy “poised for progress”?

The secret to the Republicans' House majority.

Apr 22, 2013, Vol. 18, No. 30 • By JAY COST

The 2012 national election continues to be a puzzle. Barack Obama won reelection with a solid 51 percent of the vote, and Democrats picked up 2 Senate seats, expanding their majority to 55-45. Yet the House of Representatives remained in Republican control, 234-201, yielding the divided government we have today.

The secret to the Republicans' House majority.

Apr 22, 2013, Vol. 18, No. 30 • By JAY COST

The 2012 national election continues to be a puzzle. Barack Obama won reelection with a solid 51 percent of the vote, and Democrats picked up 2 Senate seats, expanding their majority to 55-45. Yet the House of Representatives remained in Republican control, 234-201, yielding the divided government we have today.