Bruce Bartlett

Bruce Bartlett

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Of debts and deficits

By Bruce Bartlett (Dec 26, 2006)

On Oct. 11, George W. Bush went before the television cameras to proudly announce that the budget deficit for fiscal year 2006, which ended on Sept. 30, was only $248... more

Libertarian or libertarian

By Bruce Bartlett (Dec 19, 2006)

In a recent column, I discussed the disaffection of libertarians within the conservative coalition, suggesting that many might be more at home on the political left. A number... more

Libertarian GOP defection?

By Bruce Bartlett (Dec 12, 2006)

For many years, those who consider themselves to be libertarians have been fairly reliable members of the Republican coalition. Although no libertarian would consider himself... more

Rating the Presidents

By Bruce Bartlett (Dec 05, 2006)

In Sunday's Washington Post, a group of historians tried to predict what history will ultimately say about George W. Bush's presidency. One said that he is the worst... more

Democrat victory, Conservative gain?

By Bruce Bartlett (Nov 28, 2006)

Leading up to the election, many conservatives were wailing about how the world was going to come to an end if Democrats won. Well, the world is still here, and we are even... more

Death of the Master

By Bruce Bartlett (Nov 16, 2006)

"And now this great master has left us. No one who has been close to him both professionally and scientifically would be able to describe the feeling that lies heavy on all... more

Post-election autopsy

By Bruce Bartlett (Nov 15, 2006)

Both Democrats and Republicans are still busy figuring out what happened in the Nov. 7 elections. The former are trying to understand why they won so that they can repeat... more

Election aftermath

By Bruce Bartlett (Nov 07, 2006)

As this is written, we do not know the outcome of Tuesday's elections -- and may not for some days, due to recounts and court challenges. Nevertheless, we can safely predict... more

A vote for Gridlock

By Bruce Bartlett (Oct 31, 2006)

As we move into the campaign homestretch, Republicans and their talk radio friends are doing everything they can to browbeat every last right-leaning voter into pulling the... more

Pelosi's moment

By Bruce Bartlett (Oct 24, 2006)

Republican partisans are ratcheting up predictions of doom if Democrats get control of Congress on Nov. 7. They have also been laying a guilt trip on any Republican... more

God and government

By Bruce Bartlett (Oct 17, 2006)

When future historians try to explain the presidency of George W. Bush, his religious fundamentalism unquestionably will be a central focus. It has made him certain about the... more

Bush agonistes

By Bruce Bartlett (Oct 10, 2006)

With victory in the November elections now in jeopardy, the Republican establishment has finally noticed the party's significant weakness at its base -- especially within the... more

Evolving democracy

By Bruce Bartlett (Oct 03, 2006)

When the Founding Fathers designed our system of government, one of their key ideas was that some of its components should be more accountable to public opinion and others... more

Wages of Stagnation

By Bruce Bartlett (Sep 26, 2006)

Lately, there has been a big debate going on among Democrats about why workers aren't outraged by their economic condition, and therefore more hostile to Republican economic... more

Democrats in power?

By Bruce Bartlett (Sep 12, 2006)

Although Republican fortunes seem to have picked up a bit from their mid-August lows, Democrats are still in a strong position to take control of the House of Representatives... more

Is the Reagan coalition breaking up?

By Bruce Bartlett (Sep 06, 2006)

This week, New York Post columnist Ryan Sager, one of the most thoughtful young conservatives writing today, publishes an important new book, "The Elephant in the Room:... more

Court ruling shakes ground under IRS

By Bruce Bartlett (Aug 29, 2006)

Last week, a federal appeals court in Washington handed down an important decision relating to the definition of income for tax purposes. What is important about the decision... more

Kind words for Bush

By Bruce Bartlett (Aug 22, 2006)

Regular readers of this column know that earlier this year, I published a book highly critical of George W. Bush for his deviations from conservative principles, which got me... more

Democratic purge(s)

By Bruce Bartlett (Aug 15, 2006)

Last week's defeat of Sen. Joe Lieberman in Connecticut's Democratic primary is being treated as a purge by both Democrats and Republicans. Those on the Democratic Party's... more

Tax cut anniversary

By Bruce Bartlett (Aug 08, 2006)

August 13 marks an important anniversary in American economic history. Twenty-five years ago that day, Ronald Reagan signed into law the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981,... more

The death of Doha

By Bruce Bartlett (Aug 01, 2006)

Last week, the Doha Round of trade talks collapsed. Future historians may well conclude that of all the Bush administration's economic mistakes, this one was the biggest.... more

A veto at last

By Bruce Bartlett (Jul 25, 2006)

On July 19, President Bush issued the first veto of his presidency on a bill to provide federal funding of stem-cell research. It is a good example of why presidents were... more

The cause of close elections

By Bruce Bartlett (Jul 18, 2006)

In a recent column, Michael Barone commented on the closeness of recent elections and wondered what may be behind it. He concludes that it is a trend resulting from... more

Paulson's special tax deal

By Bruce Bartlett (Jul 11, 2006)

On Monday, Wall Street financier Henry Paulson was sworn in as the new secretary of the treasury, replacing railroad executive John Snow, who stepped down. Paulson and Snow... more

The shame of the Times

By Bruce Bartlett (Jul 04, 2006)

The New York Times is very upset that it has been singled out for revealing a government program that tracks terrorists through financial transactions. The Times notes that... more

The Democrats' problem

By Bruce Bartlett (Jun 27, 2006)

From what I read on the blogs these days, most Democrats believe that their party's single biggest problem is that it is not tough enough. Their solution is to be ever more... more

Estate tax questions

By Bruce Bartlett (Jun 20, 2006)

On June 8, defenders of the estate tax won a victory when the Senate failed to break a filibuster against H.R. 8, which would permanently repeal the tax. Future debate will... more

Castro's inventor

By Bruce Bartlett (Jun 13, 2006)

Feb. 17, 2007 will mark the 50th anniversary of one of the most famous interviews in the history of journalism. On that date in 1957, Herbert L. Matthews of The New York... more

A Democratic party coup?

By Bruce Bartlett (Jun 06, 2006)

In 1898, one of the most shameful episodes in American political history occurred. Today called a coup d'etat, it is the only known case in the United States in which a... more

Bentsen led to shift in thinking

By Bruce Bartlett (May 30, 2006)

The recent death of former Senator and Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen brought forth many laudatory obituaries. Most concentrated on his long career in Texas politics and... more

Control of Congress: Winning by losing or losing by winning in November

By Bruce Bartlett (May 23, 2006)

A number of political analysts are saying that enough congressional seats are now in play to give Democrats a realistic chance of retaking control of the House of... more

Shades of grey

By Bruce Bartlett (May 16, 2006)

One of the problems with our political system today is a tendency to views things as totally good or totally bad, with no middle ground. Among the problems with this... more

Congress isn't blame-free

By Bruce Bartlett (May 09, 2006)

In my new book, "Impostor," I am highly critical of President Bush for failing to stand up for conservative principles. One of the main criticisms I have heard is... more

Snow can be an honest broker in the press room

By Bruce Bartlett (May 02, 2006)

The appointment of Tony Snow as White House press secretary has generated more than the usual amount of media chatter. I don’t recall anything similar when current... more

Is a crack-up coming?

By Bruce Bartlett (Apr 25, 2006)

With George W. Bush's popularity down to just 33 percent in the latest Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll, liberals like Paul Krugman are starting to salivate at the possibility... more

Bush: Two-thirds conservative

By Bruce Bartlett (Apr 18, 2006)

In every administration, there is always one journalist that the White House trusts above the others to represent its point of view. In this administration, it is Fred Barnes... more

How much tax is too much

By Bruce Bartlett (Apr 11, 2006)

Last week, the Tax Foundation released new polling data on Americans' attitudes toward taxation. As always, it is interesting reading. The most intriguing question to me is... more

Finding the right man

By Bruce Bartlett (Apr 04, 2006)

According to press reports, the first job for Josh Bolten, the new White House chief of staff, will be to find a new treasury secretary. President Bush believes that he has... more

Conservatives need a better argument than Laffer

By Bruce Bartlett (Mar 29, 2006)

Belatedly, Republicans in Congress have become concerned about the federal budget deficit. But this is making it harder for them to find the votes to extend previously... more

The port crisis didn't have to happen

By Bruce Bartlett (Mar 03, 2006)

Now that the Dubai ports crisis has been resolved, it’s important for people to understand how it arose and... more

Why I wrote the book

By Bruce Bartlett (Feb 28, 2006)

Last week, I published a new book, Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy. A lot of my friends are not happy with me for writing it... more

Another commission?

By Bruce Bartlett (Feb 21, 2006)

One of the more amusing lines in President Bush’s State of the Union Address last month was his call for yet another commission to study the problem of entitlement... more

It's dynamic

By Bruce Bartlett (Feb 14, 2006)

In this year’s budget, President Bush is requesting an additional $513,000 for the Treasury Department’s Office of Tax Analysis in order to create a new division... more

The Democrats' own history with race

By Bruce Bartlett (Feb 07, 2006)

NAACP Chairman Julian Bond probably spoke for most blacks and liberals last week when he said the Republican Party is equivalent to the Nazi Party.  "The Republican... more

Media's coverage of scandal exposes bias

By Bruce Bartlett (Jan 24, 2006)

One of the things that drives Republicans crazy is the media’s enormous double-standard in how it covers various scandals. While day after day we read on the front... more

Changing the culture of Congress

By Bruce Bartlett (Jan 10, 2006)

One of the unstated causes of the unfolding lobbying scandal swirling around Jack Abramoff is the extensive changes to the nature of both the membership and staffing of... more

Progressive doublespeak

By Bruce Bartlett (Jan 04, 2006)

According to a Dec. 25 report in the Boston Globe, the Democratic Party is joining forces with the activist group ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform... more