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Paul Jacob is president of Citizens in Charge, a non-profit, non-partisan group working to protect and expand voter initiative rights, and the Citizens in Charge Foundation, a charitable foundation conducting research on the initiative process, educating the public and litigating to defend the petition rights of Americans.
“The best way to assure freedom of expression, no matter where it may be threatened,” Pulitzer-prize winning columnist, Paul Greenberg, wrote recently, “would be to have an army of utterly determined Paul Jacobs fighting for it.”
For more than a decade, Paul was the term limits movement’s leading voice, running U.S. Term Limits, the nation’s largest such group. For his work to bring term limits to Congress, columnist Robert Novak good-naturedly called Jacob “the most hated man in Washington.”
Campaigning for term limits, as well as for spending caps, property rights measures and candidate ballot access, Paul has been involved in over 175 statewide petition drives.
Currently, Paul Jacob hosts Common Sense, an online, radio, and print opinion program, which reaches tens of thousands of e-mail subscribers and is aired daily by more than 125 radio stations nationwide. Paul writes a weekly column for Townhall.com that appears each Sunday.
His writing has also been featured in USA Today, The Washington Times, The New York Daily News, Roll Call, Human Events, The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Examiner and other publications. He has appeared on numerous television programs and is a consistent guest on talk radio.
Paul has been named “a rising star in politics” by Campaigns & Elections magazine, received the Society for Individual Liberty’s “Phoenix Award” for “contributions to the advancement of liberty in America,” and was dubbed one of “The Best and the Rightest” by National Journal.
Paul lives with his wife Rhonda and their three children in Woodbridge, Virginia.
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Paul Jacob (Dec 31, 2006)
The outgoing Congress — including the lame-duck Republicans of the House — didn’t do a whole lot for the nation. Our representatives didn’t limit government. They didn’t halt... more
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Paul Jacob (Dec 24, 2006)
Stealing is wrong. Stealing from a 95-year old widow is despicably wrong. But somehow, when the stealing is done by the very folks pledged to serve and protect — by one’s own... more
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Paul Jacob (Dec 17, 2006)
Our liberties have not been safe in Washington for quite some time. Perhaps it shouldn’t surprise us that neither are our children.
By dollars and body counts, the... more
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Paul Jacob (Dec 10, 2006)
John F. Kennedy once declared, “I look forward to an America which will not be afraid of grace and beauty.” Whatever JFK was talking about — perhaps Marilyn Monroe? — it... more
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Paul Jacob (Dec 03, 2006)
Nearly everybody loves a “Top Whatever” list, “whatever” being a number, like ten, and a ranked subject, like “Greatest Statesmen” or “Most Annoying Politicians.”
This... more
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Paul Jacob (Nov 26, 2006)
Americans voted for change. So, why does the incoming Congress kick up enough déjà vu to set Denzel Washington spinning all over again?
We’ve seen these guys before — both... more
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Paul Jacob (Nov 19, 2006)
A few days ago, Milton Friedman’s 95th year of life — a long and productive life — was . . . cut short. The 1976 winner of the Nobel Prize for Economics died, leaving the... more
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Paul Jacob (Nov 12, 2006)
Few election results were less surprising than last Tuesday’s. It’s not as if there was no reason for a general backlash against Republican Party dominance in Washington,... more
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Paul Jacob (Nov 05, 2006)
Are voters stupid? The Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and the city’s League of Women Voters apparently think so. Both groups are pushing Proposition R on L.A.’s ballot next... more
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Paul Jacob (Oct 29, 2006)
Do you believe political ads? Do you? Then, you might think our congressmen are driven by a malevolent desire to deny life-saving body armor to our sons and daughters... more
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Paul Jacob (Oct 22, 2006)
A tremor of hysteria can be detected in the headline: “Is the U.S. Losing Its Competitive Edge?” In the article, Peter Coy, Economics Editor for Business Week, elaborates how... more
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Paul Jacob (Oct 15, 2006)
There’s no money in my freezer. I just checked. Not $90,000. Not a penny. Just some ground beef, frozen pizza, and ice cream.
I must not be a congressman.
Congressman... more
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Paul Jacob (Oct 08, 2006)
Majority rule. Within constitutional limits for the protection of individual freedom, it’s the American way.
But in Florida, legislators and powerful special interests... more
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Paul Jacob (Oct 01, 2006)
When isn't a 20-million-dollar-paying client "always right"? When the seller is the government.
Anousheh Ansari is on the ground again, and yet I'm afraid I'm still... more
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Paul Jacob (Sep 24, 2006)
On the last day of August, California's legislature and governor made a new law. Instead, they should have gone to the movies.
In particular, they should have gone to see... more
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Paul Jacob (Sep 17, 2006)
America's public schools aren't all that funny. Yet there's something Kafkaesque about their very nature — and Kafka, I'm told, is supposed to be funny.
Consider: our vast... more
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Paul Jacob (Sep 10, 2006)
Full disclosure is all the rage in Congress these days. Congress makes increasing demands on the presidency for full disclosure on all sorts of matters . . . most especially... more
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Paul Jacob (Sep 03, 2006)
Really, I'm not obsessed. Sure, I talk about it some. Okay, a lot. I'm a big fan. But the thing is, the doggone subject just won't go away.
Just the other day I was minding... more
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Paul Jacob (Aug 27, 2006)
What's the difference between science and politics?
Normally, I'd say science tends to add to the wealth of the world, while politics detracts. On Thursday, a quasi-quorum... more
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Paul Jacob (Aug 20, 2006)
Let us now praise the underpaid, selfless civil servant.
Wait — does such a person exist in federal employ?
Excuse me while I chortle.
Oh sure, union officials, civics... more
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Paul Jacob (Aug 13, 2006)
The media reported earth-shattering results this week at the polls in Connecticut and around the country — the colossal defeats of congressional incumbents of both parties.... more
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Paul Jacob (Aug 05, 2006)
Football coach Nick Saban is too busy to have dinner with the President of the United States. Is this a great country or what?
Saban is the head coach of the National... more
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Paul Jacob (Jul 31, 2006)
Many Democrat politicians talk a good game about democracy. They bill themselves as the defenders of the little guy. They have all the soundbites on empowerment down pat.... more
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Paul Jacob (Jul 23, 2006)
I don't mind puzzlement. I don't have to have the answer for everything.
Here's one: Google. Not only do I not know how Google's technology works, I have only the faintest... more
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Paul Jacob (Jul 16, 2006)
In a small county in a far corner of this great land of ours, a local politician is doing something not unheard of. He's running as an Independent. In classic American style,... more
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Paul Jacob (Jul 09, 2006)
By the time you reach 80, even strangers begin to notice your birthdays. It's natural. The older you get, the more your life resembles a contest — almost a sport — with Grim... more
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Paul Jacob (Jul 02, 2006)
Vermont is the only state in the union to boast a U.S. representative who openly calls himself a socialist. That sure says something odd about Vermont.
But what's really... more
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Paul Jacob (Jun 25, 2006)
When the felonious Duke — that is, Duke Cunningham, former U.S. Rep from California's 50th District — left office last December, we had every reason to hope for something... more
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Paul Jacob (Jun 18, 2006)
The evidence is in: The Republican Party has completely failed to reduce federal spending. It hasn't even controlled growth. It has done the opposite. It has sent spending... more
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Paul Jacob (Jun 11, 2006)
The other day I discovered a tax token amongst my stuff. It was worth, in its day, a quarter of a cent, and was minted during the Depression. That's when so many sales taxes... more
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Paul Jacob (Jun 04, 2006)
Not all knowledge is created equal. Some facts, some theories, are more important than others. And in America, there are few things more important to know than the... more
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Paul Jacob (May 28, 2006)
If everybody says it, it must be true, right? Money in politics is bad. Capital-B, Capital-A, Capital-D, BAD! The judgment can be stated above the level of a high-school... more
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Paul Jacob (May 21, 2006)
If you are against something, you should know what it is, right? So why do today's professional anti-racists have trouble identifying the basic concept of racism, and why do... more
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Paul Jacob (May 14, 2006)
Congress has become uncompromising. Legislators no longer know how to deal with each other. No give and take remains. If this is so, then why does the majority party find it... more
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Paul Jacob (May 07, 2006)
The way politicians talk, it's as if we all agree on oil. And we're all stupid. They talk as if we all demand low prices, for starters. You may want lower prices and I may... more
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Paul Jacob (Apr 30, 2006)
A man's life hangs in the balance. Whose judgment do you trust, twelve duly appointed jurors or one lone blogger? Normally, I'd say "the jury," but in the case of... more
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Paul Jacob (Apr 23, 2006)
On March 27th, a pioneering thinker died at the age of 82. Somehow I missed the news when it was new. His obituary didn't appear on front pages, or on extended segments on... more
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Paul Jacob (Apr 16, 2006)
It's easy to find a $49.99 meal in our nation's capital. That may soon change. The reason for the current price? Demand, of course. There's a lot of politicians in... more
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Paul Jacob (Apr 09, 2006)
The Writers Guild of America this week offered to the world a list of the "101 Greatest Screenplays," naming Casablanca the best script ever written. Great movie.... more
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Paul Jacob (Apr 02, 2006)
You can now blog to your heart's content on the Internet. The Federal Election Commission says so. Yippee! In a unanimous ruling, the FEC "gave" Internet bloggers... more
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Paul Jacob (Mar 26, 2006)
Hillary Clinton would be an icon of the Democratic Party, except that an icon stands for something by resembling that something. That's its literal meaning. What does Hillary... more
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Paul Jacob (Mar 19, 2006)
It is not exactly unheard of for governments to levy and collect taxes for one purpose, and then use the funds for another. It's a despicable abuse of power, but many... more
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Paul Jacob (Mar 12, 2006)
Here's how you draw the map of today's political divide: Take a common-sense idea. If it shocks those in charge, but not you, you know where to draw the line. Say you are in... more
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Paul Jacob (Mar 05, 2006)
For decades Democrats squandered our tax dollars like a bunch of drunken sailors. Now that Republicans control government nationally as well as in many states, they too have... more
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Paul Jacob (Feb 26, 2006)
For a price, the mob offers protection. So do many politicians. The latest example comes from Colorado's Senate District 21, where Senator Deanna Hanna (D-Lakewood) appears... more
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Paul Jacob (Feb 19, 2006)
William Donald Schaefer has been a politician for the last 51 years — a member of the Baltimore city council, mayor for 16 years, governor of Maryland for eight years... more
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Paul Jacob (Feb 12, 2006)
Ah, the good old days! When the word "poverty" really meant something! In the Middle Ages, thousands of city dwellers might starve to death during a drought.... more
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Paul Jacob (Feb 05, 2006)
Something must be done — and now, on Super Bowl Sunday, before it's too late. The threat is not Al Qaeda. Not illegal aliens, bug-eyed aliens, or even global warming.... more
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Paul Jacob (Jan 29, 2006)
Congress is a mess — and so is the federal government it controls. But this is nothing new. The realization that Congress is a cesspool of corruption may have been... more
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Paul Jacob (Jan 22, 2006)
Marion Barry's audience has come to expect a little extra from the man, like when he proudly proclaimed that crime was down in DC . . . "except for the murders."... more
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Paul Jacob (Jan 15, 2006)
With all the whining and carping about the balance of power between this branch of government and that, why is there nary a peep about the most fundamental of constitutional... more
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Paul Jacob (Jan 08, 2006)
The "smoking debate" exhausts me. Anti-smoking activists may oppose smoking on health grounds, but their attempts to stamp out smoking are making our political... more
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Paul Jacob (Jan 01, 2006)
Okay, so it's 2006. Is this really news? Did we think that 2007 might somehow slip in first? For most, it's "another day, another holiday"; for columnists, it's an... more