Op-Eds

Op-eds 04/28/2014
The Washington Post: It is time for the West to move ahead without Russia
<b>Originally printed in The Washington Post, April 25, 2014 </b> We recently visited Norway, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Moldova. In each country, our allies want a stronger immediate response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its ongoing subversion of Ukraine. They also believe, as we do, that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s latest acts of aggression require an enduring strategic response from the United States, Europe and NATO. It should be clear to all that Putin’s Russia has taken a dark turn. There is no resetting this relationship. We cannot return to business as usual. Western countries had high hopes for our relationships with Russia after the Cold War and acted on that basis. We provided billions of dollars to help Russia’s transition from communism. We created new mechanisms for consultation. We expanded trade. NATO committed not to deploy significant military capabilities onto the territory of new alliance allies, even as it expanded. In short, the West sought to include Russia in the promise of a Europe whole, free and at peace — a vision we still believe would benefit all participants.
Op-eds 02/25/2014
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Reform federal program to connect classrooms
<b> Originally printed in Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, February 21st, 2014 </b> Based on how much we spend, every child in America should be getting a world-class education, which would include connecting our classrooms to digital opportunities. To get there, the federal government doesn't need to spend more money — the Federal Communications Commission already runs a program called E-Rate that distributes over $2 billion to schools and libraries to purchase communications services each year. What we <em>do</em> need is real reform in Washington and an end to the waste, fraud and abuse inherent in the current program.
Op-eds 02/5/2014
The Hill: Congress, not the FCC, should set Internet policy
<b>Originally published in The Hill, February 2nd, 2014</b> Today, Americans access broadband Internet almost everywhere. We are using it to talk, view, tweet, post and pin at home, at work, in our cars and on the move. As much as broadband is changing the way we live, it also challenges the decades-old assumptions behind the regulation of communications networks in the United States. For years, the federal government regulated telecommunications providers as if confining them to lanes on a racetrack: one lane for traditional telephone service, another for wireless and yet another for cable. Each lane was assigned different rules by the government because it came along at a different time, operated with a different business model and utilized service-specific technologies.
Op-eds 01/6/2014
Wall Street Journal: I'm Suing Over ObamaCare Exemptions for Congress
<b>Originally printed in The Wall Street Journal, January 6th, 2014 </b> On Monday, Jan. 6, I am filing suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin to make Congress live by the letter of the health-care law it imposed on the rest of America. By arranging for me and other members of Congress and their staffs to receive benefits intentionally ruled out by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the administration has exceeded its legal authority.
Op-eds 07/24/2013
USA Today: Say no to Detroit bailouts
<b> Originally published in USA Today, July 14th, 2013 </b> The dominoes have been falling for years: 36 municipalities have gone bankrupt since 2010. Last Thursday, the biggest domino yet fell. The City of Detroit – with debt of $18 billion-- filed for protection to reorganize under Chapter 9 of the federal bankruptcy code. American taxpayers need to watch their wallets. Next will come a call for a federal bailout to alleviate Detroit's pain. Congress should act now to ensure taxpayers aren't forced to pay for decades of mismanagement by liberal politicians and public sector unions.
Op-eds 05/15/2013
Wall Street Journal: How to Prevent Another Benghazi
<b> Originally printed in The Wall Street Journal, May 15th, 2013 </b> In January, for the first time since the Benghazi terrorist attack of Sept. 11, 2012, Hillary Clinton faced the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to testify about the attack. In response to my persistent questioning about what the State Department knew about the nature of the attack, the former secretary of state famously exclaimed: "What difference, at this point, does it make?" New testimony by State Department whistleblowers and an Interim Progress Report prepared by five House Committees show what a huge difference it makes when members of the administration ignore repeated warnings of growing danger, deny requests for additional security and then attempt to cover up their negligence. That dereliction of duty ultimately resulted in the death of four Americans.
Op-eds 03/1/2013
Investor's Business Daily: Burning Questions About Benghazi Still Abound
<b> Originally printed in Investor's Business Daily, March 1st, 2013 </b> Over five months ago, terrorists in Libya successfully assaulted the American diplomatic post in Benghazi. Four brave Americans died: Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods. On Jan. 23, I asked then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a simple question: Why didn't she just pick up the phone and call the survivors to determine what actually happened in Benghazi? Instead of providing a simple answer, she displayed exasperation, launched into an indignant reply, and ultimately dismissed my question with one of her own: "What difference, at this point, does it make?"
Op-eds 02/12/2013
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: What the president won’t say tonight
<b>Originally printed in Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, February 12th, 2013 </b> Throughout its history, the federal government has properly used debt to help overcome threats to the nation and to build necessary and longstanding infrastructure. Much of the American Revolution was financed with borrowed money, as were World War II and the Cold War against the now defunct Soviet Union. The interstate highway system, coastal ports, and the locks and dams that make our inland waterways navigable are examples of valuable debt financed infrastructure. Failure to incur debt to finance these worthy, constitutionally allowed activities would have made the establishment of our prosperous nation more difficult, or maybe even brought our history to a premature end.
Op-eds 01/25/2013
USA Today: Secretary Hillary Clinton, you failed
<b>Originally printed in USA Today, January 25th, 2013 </b> During her Senate testimony, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated that approximately 25 Americans who were on the ground or who witnessed the terrorist attack in Benghazi were immediately evacuated. Secretary Clinton also revealed that neither she, nor her senior people, debriefed or spoke with those people immediately after the attack, or for months afterward, to understand what happened. She stated that she didn't want to be later accused of playing politics.
Op-eds 10/31/2012
The Washington Times: Five unanswered questions about Benghazi attack
<b>Originally printed in The Washington Times, October 31st, 2012 </b> Nearly two months after the murder of four American citizens in Benghazi, Libya, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, there remain many more questions surrounding this tragedy than credible answers provided by the Obama administration. The American people want to know what happened on Sept. 11, 2012, and they deserve to hear an explanation directly from the president. Among the many questions that still need to be answered about the Benghazi attack, here are five of the most important ones.