By Andrew P. Napolitano
The president's men trash the Constitution to pursue antagonists
The national debate over gun control has spilled over into New Hampshire where Sen. Kelly Ayotte is defending her vote against stricter gun laws and deriding the Mayors Against Illegal Guns group that is attacking her as carpetbaggers who don't understand her state's voters.
Like a bad restaurant, the Obama administration attracts scathing reviews from Republicans and conservative critics who are tired of what's on the policy menu, and repelled by the signature "culture" of White House operations. The trio of scandals centered on Benghazi, the IRS and the Justice Department has ramped up the tirade, and until facts and conclusions emerge, the talk of the moment is culture-centric.
Sen. Marco Rubio's office circulated a list this month of ways to toughen security in the immigration bill he helped negotiate, including potential amendments to cut down on chain migration, to require newly legal immigrants to show financial self-sufficiency and to build 700 miles of double-tier fencing along the border.
"These are the tactics of the Third World." — Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican,on the combined effects of the Benghazi matter, the Justice Department seizure of Associated Press phone records and the IRS probe of conservative groups, before the Senate.
Senators fended off changes to the immigration bill in committee on Tuesday, but the first cracks emerged in the carefully crafted compromise between business groups and labor unions, leaving even some supporters frustrated at the defensive votes they had to cast.
While President Obama said Monday that he is withholding judgment on the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative groups, angry congressional leaders from both parties aren't waiting — they plan to begin hearings on the matter this week.
Sen. Marco Rubio said Monday the head of the Internal Revenue Service should resign in the wake of reports that the agency has been targeting conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status.
The Senate immigration bill survived its first tests Thursday as a core group of Republicans and Democrats held together, killing efforts to require full border security requirements before legalizing illegal immigrants.
Sen. Marco Rubio on Thursday disputed the recently released study from the conservative Heritage Foundation that warned comprehensive immigration reform would cost taxpayers $6.3 trillion, saying the findings in the report are "deeply flawed."
The Senate immigration bill would put about 8 million illegal immigrants on a path to citizenship, boost the economy and stop about 2 million would-be illegal immigrants — about half of the expected total over the next decade — from entering the U.S., according to the first government evaluation of the proposal released Wednesday.
Sen. Marco Rubio says the Boston bombing attacks shows the United States must be more engaged in shaping world events and that it is "misguided" to limit the tools the government has in its arsenal to fight radical Islamic jihadists.
Border security is a key sticking point in this year's immigration debate, but only a little more than one-third of senators have been to the southwestern border during their time in office to get a firsthand look at the security situation, according to a survey of the chamber's members by The Washington Times.
The Congressional Budget Office said Thursday it will use a type of "dynamic scoring" to evaluate the new Senate immigration bill, dealing a major victory to the legislation's backers.
Before the Boston Marathon bombings, the Obama administration argued for years that there is a big difference between terrorists and the tenets of Islam.
News organizations are debating what to call those who are in the U.S. illegally, but for voters the answer is in: They are "illegal immigrants."
He said the U.S. should be more engaged with Syria's rebels, and he's taken a more forceful tone than Mr. Paul on Iran.
"This is trying to deal with reality," Mr. Rubio said.
