Michael Tanner, Tft Blogger
MICHAEL TANNER heads research into a variety of domestic policies with a particular emphasis on health care reform, social welfare policy, and Social Security. His most recent book, Leviathan on the Right: How Big-Government Conservatism Brought Down the Republican Revolution (2007), chronicles the demise of the Republican party as it has shifted away from its limited government roots and warns that reform is necessary to avoid continual electoral defeat.
Recent Stories By Michael Tanner, Tft Blogger:
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Obama’s and Paul Ryan’s Conflicting Budget VisionsApril 6, 2012
With his speech to news editors and executives this week, President Obama has made it clear that he plans to run a starkly ideological campaign, contrasting his vision for the future of the country...
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Ryan’s Budget Proposal: Anything But ExtremeApril 6, 2011
The ritual denunciation of House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s 2012 budget proposal has already begun. It is “extreme,” we are told, “radical” even. It “slashes” spending “indiscriminately...
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A Good Effort Falls ShortDecember 2, 2010
The Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson deficit reduction plan doesn’t go far enough in reducing spending, something fiscal commission members should consider before Friday’s vote. In fact, the plan...
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Elections Augur Change for Social SecuritySeptember 16, 2010
You can tell it's election season because Democrats are once again attacking Republicans for daring to propose reforms to Social Security. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid can hardly get through...
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Enough Already with Stimulus SpendingJuly 7, 2010
When it comes to government spending, “stimulus” apparently means never having to say “enough.” You may not realize it to listen to, say, Paul Krugman, but Congress has already passed three...
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Obama’s Health Care Reform Still a Very Tough SellJune 10, 2010
Apparently still convinced that just a bit more lipstick will make this pig look better, the Obama administration has launched yet another sales effort to try to convince voters that they really...
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The Evil of TaxationApril 13, 2010
Tax Day is upon us. As we prepare to hand more of our hard-earned money over to the government, some are making the case that we should be happy, even proud, to do it; it is "our patriotic duty," in...
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A Warning from MassachusettsMarch 17, 2010
If Congress passes President Obama's health care reform, it will "bankrupt this country" and "wipe out the American economy within four years." That comes not from a speaker at a Tea Party rally...
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Bipartisan Indifference to Controlling Health Care CostsFebruary 25, 2010
If President Obama’s health care summit showed anything it is that when it comes to controlling health care costs there is bipartisan agreement in favor of looking for the easy solution. Both sides...
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Runaway Spending Is the Real CulpritFebruary 11, 2010
The problem with a budget commission is not just that it won’t work, but that it targets the wrong problem. The conventional wisdom in Washington these days is that the exploding budget deficit is...