Heritage prepares for the State of the Union
January 23, 2007 | By Nathaniel Ward
In his State of the Union address this evening, President Bush will speak to Congress and the nation on the challenges facing the country and his vision to meet them.
Heritage’s experts are ready. They’ve already prepared a number of papers to help guide Congress and the President on the important issues expected to come up. In fact, these papers were so powerful that Human Events ran many of them on its website in a special State of the Union section. Look to Heritage’s website tomorrow morning for a complete breakdown of the issues President Bush raises.
The media turn to Heritage
Concerned that, with a new, more liberal Congress setting the agenda, the press would forsake Heritage for more left-leaning experts? Well, fear not. Early returns indicate journalists have lost none of their appreciation for Heritage analysts and analyses.
Consider Jan. 4: On that day, Heritage figured prominently in Wall Street Journal and Washington Post stories about excessive federal spending, as well as a USA Today report on fighting terrorism with warrantless mail searches.
Five days later, The New York Times, Financial Times, Investor’s Business Daily and USA Today cited Heritage experts on health reform and various national security issues.
In the first three weeks of January, reporters for the nation’s top five newspapers (USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post) have cited Heritage experts 13 times to help keep their readers informed about the most pressing issues of the day.
On the right track for health care reform
In his radio address Saturday, President Bush announced a proposal to allow individuals to claim the same tax deductions for health care as those who purchase coverage through their employer. The plan, which would allow individuals to purchase health care without penalty, is also expected to feature in tonight’s State of the Union address.
In a paper released yesterday, Heritage Vice President for Domestic and Economic Policy Stuart Butler and senior health policy analyst Nina Owcharenko praised the President’s bold move. “President Bush’s proposal to reform the tax treatment of health care,” they argue, “takes a bold step toward fixing America’s health care system by widening the availability of affordable and ‘portable’ health plans available to Americans and by defusing some of the pressure that currently leads to higher health costs.”
Click here to read more about this “big step toward sound tax and health policy.”
Intact families and poverty
“Living in a non-married household increased the likelihood of experiencing poverty during childhood,” reports Heritage’s FamilyFacts.org. The finding continues:
By age six, 68 percent of children in non-married households had experienced at least one year of poverty, compared to 12 percent of children in married households. By age twelve, 78 percent of children in non-married households had experienced at least one year of poverty compared to 18 percent of children in married households; and by age seventeen, 81 percent of children in non-married households had experienced at least one year of poverty compared to 22 percent of children in married households.
Click here for more findings on the importance of family.
In other news
- Yesterday was the 34th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, perhaps the ultimate example of judicial overreach. In their ruling, the majority used creative new interpretations of the Constitution to invent dubious new rights.
- New recommendations for dealing with global warming will be written by bureaucrats from around the world, the AP reports. These government officials will almost certainly recommend measures that increase spending on government programs—no matter what the cost.
- Speaking of global warming hysteria, Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth was nominated for an Academy Award, and Heritage today hosted an event with author John Berlau, who explained how “eco-freaks” have destroyed the lives and property of millions of Americans. Watch the event online in Windows Media format.
- In an interesting twist on the drug-reimportation battle, Canadian pharmacists are urging their government to prohibit drug exports to the United States. They worry that American drug firms would stop selling to Canada at the artificially-low prices imposed by their government, thereby depriving Canadians—and reimporting Americans—of price-controlled medicines.
- A California Assemblywoman has proposed a law making it illegal for parents to spank their children.
Coming up at Heritage
To attend these or any other Heritage Foundation events, RSVP at Heritage’s events website. Or you can watch these events live online at Heritage.org. All times are Eastern.
- On Thursday, January 25 at 11:30 AM, a panel of Heritage experts will address Congressional proposals to deal with Iraq and the military, geo-political, and Constitutional implications of these plans.
- On Monday, January 29 at noon, Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) will discuss the Chinese anti-satellite test and what threats it poses to American national security.
- On Tuesday, January 30 at noon, author Kay Hymowitz looks at the consequences of undermining traditional marriage, and how it hurts minorities especially hard.
Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation.
