Cato Today

Presidential Power


Op‐​Ed: “New President Won’t Tame Presidential Power,” by Gene Healy in the Orange County Register.

After seven years of an administration that has recognized few, if any, limits on executive power, it’s only natural that many people look to the Obama‐​Biden ticket to put the presidency back in its proper constitutional place.

Article: “Obama’s the Candid Candidate on Energy,” by Jerry Taylor and Peter Van Doren in Forbes.

Sen. Obama’s frank confession about what his climate change policies will mean to electricity consumers is one very good reason why so many conservative and libertarian intellectuals are gravitating toward his candidacy. It’s not that right‐​wing thinkers necessarily endorse his climate change policies. It’s that right‐​wing thinkers are increasingly tired of Republican hypocrisy and make‐​believe policy fights.

Article: “Obama’s Tax Deceptions,” by Alan Reynolds in National Review Online.

Barack Obama famously claims, “I’ll give a tax break to 95% of workers and their families.” The Obama team never explained that figure, because they made it up.…Obama said, “If you work, pay taxes, and make less than $200,000, you’ll get a tax cut.” That too is flatly false. Single workers who make more than $80,000 (or joint returns above $155,000) would not get a tax cut under Obama’s plan.

Podcast: “The Obama Agenda: Free Political Speech,” featuring John Samples