House and Senate Cloakroom Report: February 7th-11th

Analysis provided by Heritage Action for America House Cloakroom Report: February 7th – 11th Analysis: The House returns from their district work period week to discuss a variety of issues. Deliberations will begin on the Continuing Resolution package under the guidelines that the House Budget Committeeunveiled last week and what spending cuts will need to be made. […]

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CIFTA: Treaty Without a Purpose

The Organization of American States (OAS) is an enthusiastic backer of its CIFTA treaty, the Spanish-language abbreviation for the Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials. President Clinton signed CIFTA in 1997, but it has not been ratified by the Senate. That is fortunate, for […]

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Obamacare In Serious Condition

A large number of Senators went on record tonight opposing ObamaCare.  The House spoke on a bipartisan basis on a measure to fully repeal the President’s health care law by 56 votes last month.  Just yesterday, a Florida federal court issued a decision declaring the individual mandate, and the whole law, unconstitutional.  If one of […]

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I’m Just a Bill, Yes, I’m Only a Bill: The Constitutional Way to Make Laws

Under the Progressive notion of a “living” Constitution, almost every aspect of the Constitution has been subject to reinterpretation.  One section that would seem to defy a new interpretation, however, is Article I, Section 7, Clause 2 – or the “Presentment Clause” – which clearly outlines the process by which a bill becomes a law. […]

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Sen. Rand Paul: Medicare Chief Berwick Is Qualified to Run Health Care System — In England or Sweden

(CNSNews.com) – Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said that Dr. Donald Berwick, re-nominated this week by President Obama to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), is qualified to oversee a nationwide health care system in England or Sweden. “I think Don Berwick would be a great head of health care in maybe England […]

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Defense Spending: What Would Reagan Do?

In his State of the Union address to Congress, President Obama acknowledged the problems of massive deficit spending and mounting debt and offered a general plan that he said would restore fiscal health. It includes cuts to the defense budget. With two ongoing wars, numerous asymmetrical threats to our security, and the depleted state of […]

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Hands Off My Purse! Why Money Bills Originate in the House

The House of Representatives is not merely a larger Senate. The Constitution divided the legislative branch into two Houses, with different constituencies, term lengths, sizes, and functions for each house. For example, only the Senate offers advice and consent on treaties and appointments of judges and executive officials. And as Erik M. Jensen explains in […]

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