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Cato Dispatch for May 22, 2009

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(Links to outside sources were active as of the date of this dispatch; however, not all news sources maintain links to current stories indefinitely. Some links also may require registration.)

Obama vs. Cheney Smackdown

In a speech at the National Archives Thursday, President Obama said he would try some of the Guantanamo Bay prison inmates in federal courts and place them in U.S. prisons. The president said that "strict adherence to the rule of law combined with an embrace of civil liberties is the most effective way to defeat America's enemies," reports The Washington Post.

Cato scholar Doug Bandow agrees, and says it is time to close the Guantanamo Bay facility and try the detainees:

Guantanamo may be a handy dumping ground for detainees, but it has become a symbol of everything wrong with U.S. anti-terrorism policy. Closing the facility would help the administration start afresh in dealing with suspected terrorists. The fact that Republicans are using the issue to win partisan points is to be expected. But the instant, unconditional Democratic surrender surprises even a confirmed cynic like me.

Immediately after Obama's speech, former Vice President Dick Cheney delivered a speech refuting Obama's comments about how to handle the Guantanamo detainees. David Rittgers comments on the two speeches:

On torture: "Torture is incompatible with our values and our national security interests. When we break our own rules (read: laws) against torture, we erode everyone's faith that America is the good guy in this global fight."

On moving detainees to federal prisons: "We held hundreds of thousands of prisoners of war in America during World War II. The detainees we have now are not ten feet tall and bulletproof, and federal supermax prisons hold the same perfect record of keeping prisoners inside their walls as the detainment facility in Guantanamo Bay."

On criminal prosecution: 'Obama basically said that we will try those we can, release those who we believe pose no future threat, and detain those that fit in neither of the first two categories. That's not a change in policy and that pesky third category isn't going away."

On messaging: "Terrorism is about messaging. America finds herself in the unenviable position of fighting an international terrorist group, Al Qaeda, that is trying to convince local insurgents to join its cause. Calling this a "War on Terror" can create a war on everybody if we use large-scale military solutions for intelligence, law enforcement, and diplomatic problems. We have to tie every use of force or governmental power to a message: drop leaflets whenever we drop a bomb, hold a press conference whenever we conduct a raid, and publish a court decision whenever we detain someone. Giving the enemy the initiative in messaging gives them the initiative in the big picture."

Congress Moves to Limit Access to Credit

Congress sent President Obama a bill Wednesday that would limit credit card issuers' ability to raise interest rates, charge fees, and extend credit to consumers under the age of 21. Cato scholar Mark A. Calabria disapproves, and argues, "To limit credit solely to the financially stable leaves those most in need outside of our formal financial system, instead forcing such households to borrow from less efficient, and often more costly, sources, such as friends and family, or pawn-shops and loan sharks."

Calabria says that in the midst of the recession, this is about the worst possible time to restrict credit access:

Congress should keep in mind that credit cards have been a significant source of consumer liquidity during this downturn. While few of us want to have to cover our basic living expenses on our credit card, that option is certainly better than going without those basic needs. The wide availability of credit cards has helped to significantly maintain some level of consumer purchasing, even while confidence and other indicators have nosedived.

In a recent Cato Daily Podcast, Calabria expanded on his belief that the availability of credit cards has been a major source of liquidity throughout the recession.

"Obamacare" on the Rise

President Obama has made it clear that reforming the American health care system will be one of his top priorities, and congressional leaders have promised to introduce legislation by this summer.

In a new study, Cato scholar Michael D. Tanner breaks down the key components of any plan likely to emerge from Congress, and explains how those proposals would "dramatically transform the American health care system in a way that would harm taxpayers, health care providers, and — most importantly — the quality and range of care given to patients."

At National Review Online, Tanner explains the potential pitfalls of Obama's plan, all of which could be coming to a hospital near you:

The plan would not initially create a government-run, single-payer system such as those in Canada and Britain. Private insurance would still exist, at least for a time. But it would be reduced to little more than a public utility, operating much like the electric company, with the government regulating every aspect of its operation.

In Thursday's Cato Daily Podcast, he described what health care will look like in years to come.

In an analysis of Barack Obama's beliefs about health care, Cato scholar Michael F. Cannon says that Obama's plans will take us even closer to a system of socialized medicine:

A reasonable definition of socialized medicine is possible. Socialized medicine exists to the extent that government controls medical resources and socializes the costs. Notice that under this definition, it is irrelevant whether we describe medical resources (e.g., hospitals, employees) as "public" or "private." What matters-what determines real as opposed to nominal ownership-is who controls the resources. By that definition, America's health sector is already more than half socialized, and Obama's health care plan would socialize medicine even further.

Chris Moody, editor, cmoody@cato.org