Here is the Heritage Take on the top issues today.Please reply to this email to arrange an interview.
Democrats’ Massive Spending Bill Would Hasten America’s Fundamental Transformation <[link removed]> – In a larger sense, Democrats’ spending bill is a testament to where their party is right now. Perhaps the most egregious element, on top of everything else, is how they tried to use it to jam through amnesty for illegal immigrants. During a historic surge at the southern border that even Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas called “one of the toughest challenges we face,” Democrats apparently are eager to ensure that even more people come across
the border illegally. An earlier version of the spending bill would have given amnesty to 8 million illegal immigrants, the largest grant of amnesty in American history. “This Russian-nesting-doll approach may be a clever legislative strategy, but it is terrible democratic accountability,” wrote the editors at National Review. “There is no way that this immigration proposal would pass if it were a stand-alone measure subject to normal scrutiny and debate.” This provision was struck down, not because Democrats balked at how extreme it was, but because the Senate parliamentarian said it violated the chamber’s Byrd rule. The Senate parliamentarian may have stopped this bout of stealth
amnesty, but the fact that Democrats tried to lodge it in a massive spending bill reveals the falsehood of prominent Democrats’ rhetoric that they aren’t for open borders. Heritage expert: Jarrett Stepman <[link removed]>
Costly Energy, Climate Policies in Democrats’ Spending Bill Lack Transparency <[link removed]> – Many of the programs that liberals are pushing forward are “temporary,” hiding their true long-term cost. Just as important are costs in the loss of decision-making power of American
families, businesses, and states as the size and scope of the federal government grows. Along with the administration, Congress is trying to frame and narrow the choices Americans are allowed to make. For example, there’s nothing wrong with electric vehicles as a choice Americans can make, but federal
policies are trying to make it hard to choose anything else. Instead, robust competition in the marketplace has served Americans well for centuries and driven innovation to newer and better technology. Right along with free enterprise being a foundational piece of what has made the U.S. a great country to live in is the idea of federalism; namely, that California can run its experiment, Texas can try something else, as can Rhode Island and every other state while they learn from these laboratories of democracy. But the proposed expansions of the federal government in these bills further destroy that system of diversity within
unity. Heritage expert: Katie Tubb <[link removed]>
Health Policy Changes in Democrats’ Spending Bill Would Reduce Patients’ Choices, Raise Taxpayer Costs <[link removed]> – To intensify the competition, traditional Medicare should be forced to compete directly with private health plans on a level playing field in a modernized system of retiree coverage based on consumer choice and competition. Such a modernization, based on patient choice and market
competition, would stimulate innovation in benefit design and care delivery, control health care costs, and deliver better value for seniors’ health care dollars. The spending bill, aggrandizing more federal power and control over Americans’ health care, is yet another step in the direction of government-run national health insurance. That’s a dead end with no choice and no exit. The next Congress should reverse course and open up the health care markets, break down barriers to plan and provider competition, and maximize the opportunity for all Americans—including the poor—to choose the coverage and care that they want. Heritage expert: Bob Moffit <[link removed]>
What Democrats Say When Ted Cruz Asks Whether Voter ID Is Racist <[link removed]> – Hans von Spakovsky, a senior legal fellow at The Heritage Foundation, later responded “no” to Cruz’s question about whether
voter ID laws are racist. Von Spakovsky specifically noted that the Obama administration’s Justice Department approved the Texas law. “Particularly because every single state that has passed an ID law has put in a provision to provide a free ID to anyone who doesn’t have one,” von
Spakovsky said, adding: The turnout numbers show it has no effect. I would remind everyone that [as for] the current version of the Texas voter ID law for its in-person voting, the Obama administration agreed in court, in a court filing, that they were satisfied with it and it was not
discriminatory. Heritage expert: Hans von Spakovsky <[link removed]>
Russia And Saudi Arabia Are Getting Closer. America Should Worry. <[link removed]> – Now is the time for U.S. leaders to address key questions that fundamentally shape how the nation conducts its foreign policy and national security missions around the globe. How can the U.S. brand of security cooperation become more competitive without compromising on its core principles? As a tool that is fundamentally designed to support our national defense, any recasting of our security cooperation efforts would do well to ensure that the practical realities of these programs align with their stated strategic objective – security of the U.S. Heritage expert: Brent Sadler <[link removed]>
Afghanistan’s Hazaras likely targets of Taliban wrath <[link removed]> – In recent months Tehran has made very sympathetic statements about the Taliban and has all but welcomed their return to power. This is not surprising. In recent years the Iranians armed certain groups of Taliban to kill and maim U.S. and international forces. Clearly, any ideological struggle that existed between Iran and the Taliban in the 1990s became less of a priority when dealing with a common enemy: the U.S. Many Hazaras feel abandoned by the international community and thrown to the wolves by Iran. However, the Hazaras are part of Afghanistan‘s history, culture and people. They are woven into the social fabric of the country and, absent complete genocide by the Taliban, this will remain the case. But make no mistake. With the Taliban back in power, all minority groups in Afghanistan face dark days ahead. And the darkest of all may be awaiting the Hazaras. Heritage expert: Jim Carafano <[link removed]>
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