Opinion
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In Illinois, Allegations of Inappropriate Use of Taxpayer Funds Trail Obama Ally
Opinion -Dr. Eric Whitaker, a former adviser to President Barack Obama in Illinois, is under public scrutiny after his Illinois Department of Public Health lavished state money on a nurse who is accused of taking half of it for personal use. -
States Eye Taxes on Sweets, but Research Says to Expect Sour Results
Opinion -States are increasingly extending higher tax rates to products such as candy and soda, ostensibly to fight obesity, but such moves are unlikely to have an impact on obesity rates and health outcomes, according to a new study by the Tax Foundation. -
Supreme Court Ruling on Obamacare Expected in Spring
Opinion -The U.S. Supreme Court has accepted a lawsuit against President Obama’s health care law, allotting five and a half hours for oral argument in the spring of 2012 on a key challenge to the law. -
2010 Elections Motivated Obama’s Solyndra Decisions
Opinion -The Washington Post reported today that officials in the Obama Energy Department successfully pressured Solyndra to delay layoffs that were planned for October 2010 until after the November 2010 mid-term elections. -
Rejecting Union Curbs Leaves Ohio in ‘Fiscal Crisis’
Opinion -Ohioans by a 61 percent majority rejected a statewide ballot measure written to help state agencies balance their budgets and avoid excessive tax increases by giving them more flexible bargaining rights on worker pay and benefits. -
Heartland Institute Reacts to Supreme Court Taking Obamacare Case
Opinion -The U.S. Supreme Court is taking on the major issues raised in litigation against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, issuing an order today granting review in three such cases. -
Stupid Lawsuit Tricks
Opinion -SeaWorld has been sued by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) for violating the U.S. Constitution by enslaving killer whales. -
End to Federal Terrorism Insurance Called For
Opinion -While some organizations are calling for an end to government backstopping of terrorism losses, the Risk & Insurance Management Society and the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies are among several advocating extension of the Terrorism -
Heartland Institute Reacts to Cook County Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Hike Votes
Opinion -A committee of the Cook County Board of Commissioners on Monday approved a 50 percent hike in alcohol taxes, from 6 cents per gallon to 9 cents per gallon, and an extension of the cigarette tax to other tobacco products, such as smokeless tobacco, -
Consumer Power Report: Headed to the Supremes
Opinion -The Supreme Court has undertaken the incredible span of five-and-a-half hours for argument in the cases against President Barack Obama’s health care law. -
One Way Virginia can Ensure Higher Premiums and More Bureaucracy
Opinion -Is Bob McDonnell about to become Barack Obama's favorite governor?He has become one of the most popular governors in the country by pursuing good-government policies and largely avoiding controversial or divisive issues. -
Senate Bill Would Retain Federal Tutoring Requirements
Opinion -As bills to reauthorize No Child Left Behind multiply, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has proposed legislation to preserve a provision requiring failing schools to offer federally funded tutoring to poor students. -
Time to Rethink Clinical Trials
Opinion -The biomedical industry spends over $50 billion per year on research and development and produces some 20 new drugs. One reason for this disappointing output is the byzantine U.S. clinical trial system that requires large numbers of patients. -
The Donkey Got Prettier at Closing Time
Opinion -A Zimbabwe man is in legal trouble for having sex with a donkey tied to a tree. But he told the court there’s actually a “simple explanation” for what he did.He said he met a prostitute in a nightclub and paid $20 to have sex with her. -
Obama Administration May Wipe Out Daniels’ Healthy Indiana Plan
Opinion -News -The Healthy Indiana Plan, a vaunted state-sponsored health insurance plan for uninsured low-income adults, has been denied an extension by the Obama administration, forcing Indiana to reapply through a more complex waiver process. -
Temperatures Flat Despite Record Rise in Emissions
Opinion -Legacy Climate Change Weekly -Climate Change Weekly #27The U.S. Department of Energy has just published its estimates of global carbon dioxide emissions for the year 2010, concluding emissions rose by 6 percent from 2009 to 2010. -
Derivatives Trader Sees ‘Danger and Immorality’ in Bank of America Move
Opinion -Is Bank of America shifting trillions of dollars of potential losses onto the backs of taxpayers? -
Solo Commuting Climbs, Carpooling Plummets
Opinion -Solo automobile commuting reached an all-time record high in the United States in 2010, increasing by 7.8 million commuters. Carpooling showed huge losses, and the largest gain was in working at home, including telecommuting. -
Education Tax Roundup from Tuesday Elections
Opinion -Ohio Voters Reject Education Tax Increases In approximately two-thirds of northeastern Ohio districts, voters renewed existing tax levies for schools but refused to increase them. -
Obama Puts Election Politics Ahead of Jobs, Energy Security
Opinion -The New York Times and other media outlets are reporting that the Obama administration is likely to delay an approval decision on the Keystone XL pipeline until after the 2012 presidential elections. -
Heartland Institute Rips Into NCOIL Cat Fund Model: ‘It Should Be Ceremonially Burnt’
Opinion -Experts at The Heartland Institute today strongly urged the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) to allow its Natural Disaster Catastrophe Fund Model Act to sunset during its meeting next week. -
Heartland Institute Climate, Energy Experts React to Keystone XL Pipeline Decision
Opinion -The Obama administration today announced it was putting off until after the 2012 election a decision on whether to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Alberta, Canada to refineries in the United States. -
Flat Tax? Fair Tax? Broader Tax Base? Heartland Experts Discuss
Opinion -Can any tax be fair? Multi-billionaire Warren Buffett has been decrying what he says are unfair tax policies that let the “mega-wealthy” off easy, including himself. His premise comes into question, however, when reviewing tax data. -
Consumer Driven Health Care Remains Popular Despite Obamacare Assault
Opinion -Consumer driven health plans, which allow individuals to discover the best health services at the lowest cost through health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts, are increasingly popular even though President Obama’s health care law creates
