Morning Briefing: Not Obama, But Gov't

Morning Briefing For May 17, 2013 >> Today's Sponsor 1.  The Obama Scandals Aren't About Bad Government, but Big Government When scandal rocks any administration, its partisan opponents smell blood in the water and move in to inflict as much political damage on the president as possible. Consultants assure us it'll "gin up the base." It makes headlines. And it's always easy to kick someone when he's down. But for conservatives, especially in the case of the various scandals enveloping the Obama Administration this month, it's also unwise. For these scandals present conservatives a much greater opportunity than the chance to win a few news cycles or claim a few bureaucratic scalps. The ballooning Obama scandals – IRS, HHS, DOJ, EPA – are not really about character or competence, but the danger of big government itself. The more power any government has, the more power it will abuse. The more money it spends, the more money it will mis-spend. Dysfunction and corruption grow on government like mold on otherwise perfectly good bread. It has nothing to do with party or ideology – it has to do with human nature. . . . please click here for the rest of the post → 2.  Don't Make it About Barack Obama Republicans must remember that the problem is not Democrats in charge of government, but government itself. The argument falls flat if Republicans revert to "big government conservative" arguments of "put us in charge" and we'll do better with the same. No they won't. Government is the problem. The vastness, complexity, and nefarious encroachment into our personal lives should be fought, not just blamed on the other side. Once we have actual evidence that the White House was involved, then the story can shift. For now, this is big government out of control, which is what the Democrats — not just Obama — want. . . . please click here for the rest of the post → 3.  Meet the Partisan Union Behind The Partisan Internal Revenue Service At a protest in downtown Manhattan last week, a group of federal workers chanted: "Hey, hey, ho, ho, sequestration has got to go!" Where do the anti-sequester, federal government workers-turned-protestors work? They work at the Internal Revenue Service–and they are unionized. . . . please click here for the rest of the post → 4.  IRS targeted the Leadership Institute I worked at the Leadership Institute in Arlington for a little more than four years; it was my first job out of college and one of the most important times of my career. I learned a tremendous amount about the conservative movement, the nature of coalitions, and how political technology was philosophically neutral. I also learned about character and left with a hero: Morton Blackwell. Today, I'm proud to be a Leadership Institute donor, and readily recommend LI to every young conservative I meet. All that is to say, the news that the IRS targeted LI is absolutely outrageous. . . . please click here for the rest of the post → 5.  White House: All Americans Can Opt-Out Of ObamaCare Believe it or not, RedStaters, the White House has just announced that every American with private health insurance can opt-out of ObamaCare! Yes. In a response to my petition on the White House website, the administration states very clearly: "If you currently have private health insurance, you should be able to keep it, and that's exactly what the health care law says. It's not a question of opting out of health reform — the idea that individuals who like their insurance should keep it is a central part of the law." The White House repeats their assurance that no American with private insurance will be forced to join an ObamaCare exchange.  . . . please click here for the rest of the post → 6.  Finally, A Bi-Partisan Solution on Term Limits Many in our country and in the districts we represent feel that Congress is out of touch and that members are more focused on re-election than on providing real solutions to our nation's biggest challenges. We hear from constituents all the time that there is a lack of urgency and focus when it comes to solving our country's toughest issues like tackling the deficit and putting policies in place that will lead to economic growth. . . . please click here for the rest of the post → >> Today's Sponsor Sincerely yours, Erick Erickson Editor-in-Chief, RedState Forward This Email to a Friend Take me to RedState

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