By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
In political battles to raise the minimum wage, activists love to trot out a handful of business owners who support new mandates. These so-called "high road" employers - part of an umbrella group called Business for a Fair Minimum Wage - act as a foil for other businesses who warn of the consequences of forcing higher labor costs on low-margin employers.
In a potential replay of last year's stand-off, more than 7 million college students could again be threatened with a doubling of the interest rate on their school loans July 1 if Congress fails to act.
Sen. Tom Harkin and Rep. George Miller's proposal for a $10.10 minimum wage -- a 39 percent increase over the current level -- is a recipe for employment disaster ("Democrats propose measure to raise minimum wage," Web, Tuesday).
Democrats in Congress proposed legislation Tuesday to boost the federal minimum wage to more than $10, going beyond what President Obama has proposed and arguing the working poor need the extra support amid a sour economy.
Fresh from the November elections in which both parties complained that voters' rights had been curtailed, House Democrats are pushing election reforms as a central tenet of their legislative agenda for the new Congress.
On strict party-line votes, a key House panel on Tuesday cleared the final two pieces of the Republican education-reform agenda.
Despite signs that federal school reform legislation is all but dead until at least next year, House Republicans have released the final two pieces of their proposed replacement for the decade-old No Child Left Behind law.
The top aide to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney says Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick is using his office as "an opposition-research arm" of President Obama's re-election campaign.
House Republicans on Thursday pressed to rein in the National Labor Relations Board in its fight against aerospace giant Boeing, pushing forward a bill that would eliminate the agency's authority to regulate private business decisions on investment and plant relocations.
Over fierce objections from Democrats, a key House panel Wednesday passed the third in a series of five reform bills aiming to lift restrictions on how school districts and states can use federal money.
Some congressional leaders on Tuesday said they fear the Obama administration's "Plan B" education-reform proposal could be seen not as a call to action on Capitol Hill, but instead as an excuse for lawmakers to take the summer off.
The federal government must reduce its footprint in education and give local school systems more flexibility to craft curricula and measure student performance, school leaders from across the country told a House committee hearing Thursday.
Despite President Obama's portrayal of Tuesday's congressional elections as a "shellacking" for Democrats, the party's congressional leadership team is shaping up to be more of the same.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates says he has no doubt that the nation's war strategy in Afghanistan is sound.
House Democrats are moving forward on first lady Michelle Obama's vision for healthier school lunches, propelling legislation that calls for tougher standards governing food in school and more meals for hungry children.
Rep. George Miller, California Democrat, said the GOP's obsession with the law is "bordering on the absurd."
House GOP rejoices in vote to repeal 'Obamacare,' Democrats see insanity →
"It's time to move on, for goodness sakes," he said.
House GOP rejoices in vote to repeal 'Obamacare,' Democrats see insanity →
