03 | February | 2012

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Foreign and Defense Policy, Europe and Russia

Despite the cold, Russian protesters’ message is loud and clear

Leon Aron | February 3, 2012, 4:37 pm

It is cold in Moscow. On top of the record snowfall that blanketed all Eastern Europe, it has been 15-20 degrees (Celsius) below average. Yesterday, Moscow was frozen at -33 C, or -27 Fahrenheit. I know because a distant relative, … read more >

Economics

Pushing back against the CBO report on federal pay

Andrew Biggs | February 3, 2012, 4:28 pm

Writing for the Washington Post, Colleen Kelley of the National Treasury Employees Union pushes back against the recent CBO report finding that federal employees are, on average, overpaid by around 16 percent. Kelley notes that the CBO “compared characteristics of … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

Islamabad needs to acknowledge the existence of drone program

Ahmad Majidyar | February 3, 2012, 3:54 pm

Earlier this week, President Obama laid out a strong defense of using drone aircraft to target al Qaeda and Taliban militants inside Pakistan, and thus for the first time officially acknowledged the CIA’s “worst-kept secret” program that has increased significantly … read more >

Economics, U.S. Economy

Obama’s confusion over American excellence

Daniel Hanson | February 3, 2012, 3:45 pm

President Obama’s trade policy is a mess. It seems he doesn’t know precisely what he wants. On the one hand, we see very positive signs, like this, from the State of the Union: Congress should make sure that no foreign … read more >

Economics, Energy and the Environment

Defending Sierra Club (really!)

Kenneth P. Green | February 3, 2012, 3:30 pm

So it turns out that Sierra Club took a heap of money ($26 million) from natural gas giant Chesapeake, and proceeded to use that money to slag coal power. My guess is that people on the right, and those who … read more >

Society and Culture

Coming Together—the need for a liberal book club

Nick Schulz | February 3, 2012, 3:07 pm

Charles Murray’s new book has been getting lots of attention, and I wanted to take a look at what liberals who disagree with him had to say (believing I’ll learn more from the critics than I will from those who … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

Best of the foreign policy blogs (Week of Jan. 28-Feb. 3)

Marc Thiessen | February 3, 2012, 3:00 pm

Here’s what AEI’s foreign and defense policy scholars are reading for the week of Jan. 28 to Feb. 3: • Daniel Byman at ForeignPolicy.com warns that reports of the impending death of Bashir Assad’s regime are premature in Finish Him. … read more >

Economics, Entitlements

When Medicare wipes out Social Security: Healthcare fact of the week

Christopher J. Conover | February 3, 2012, 2:30 pm

Attention, children and grandchildren of Baby Boomers: save early and save often. Within 75 years, the average monthly premiums required for Medicare and out-of-pocket spending for Medicare-covered services (i.e., deductibles and coinsurance) will equal the average monthly Social Security check … read more >

Carpe Diem

Highlights from Today’s Employment Report

Mark J. Perry | February 3, 2012, 2:22 pm

Some highlights of today’s employment report: 1. Temporary employment reached a 3.5-year high in January of 2.4 million jobs, the highest level since May 2008 (see chart). 2. Manufacturing overtime hours, at 4.3 hours in January, were at the highest … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy, Middle East and North Africa

Banter #42: The one about Iran’s nuclear capabilities

Andrew Rugg | February 3, 2012, 2:00 pm

In the 42nd episode of Banter, Maseh Zarif, AEI research manager and Iran team lead for the Critical Threats Project, talks with us about Iran’s current nuclear capabilities. Maseh lays out a chilling picture of Iran’s current capabilities, what Iran … read more >