Weekly Columns

  • Politics Per Usual in President Obama’s State of the Union Address
    Feb 13, 2013  - In his fifth State of the Union address, President Obama underscored the importance of creating jobs and promoting economic growth, addressing the upcoming sequester, making investments in education and infrastructure, and passing comprehensive immigration reform. While most can agree these things a... More
  • Now is the Time to Balance the Budget
    Feb 6, 2013  - Families across the United States have tightened their belts as a result of high unemployment and underemployment, a slow economic recovery and unprecedented uncertainty around their tax burden. What families do when faced with these challenges is set a budget and have a plan to deal with the uncert... More
  • Overly Burdensome Regulations Stifle Economic Growth
    Jan 30, 2013  - During President Obama’s second inaugural speech and in the days since, he laid the groundwork for a very liberal agenda. He has called for a path to citizenship for immigrants in the country illegally, a cap-and-trade system to address climate change, and comprehensive gun control measures. The rhe... More
  • Protecting Seniors’ Access to Medicare
    Jan 23, 2013  - President Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA), which ironically is unaffordable, is also bad medicine for America. The president predicted that after passing the ACA premiums would be cut by $2,500, but instead the average premium has increased by more than $3,000. You’ve probably read about the 21 ne... More
  • Congress Must Pass a Budget
    Jan 16, 2013  - Did you know that if the federal government completely zeroed out spending on national defense, education, foreign aid and infrastructure, we would still be operating in the red? The U.S. spent nearly $40 billion on foreign aid last year, and that’s just over one percent of our total spending. Even... More
  • Washington Needs a Balanced Budget, Not More Blank Checks and Higher Taxes
    Jan 9, 2013  - Tennessee was recently named in the U.S. Business Policy Index as one of the twenty friendliest policy environments for small business and entrepreneurship in 2012. It’s easy to see why. First, we don’t have a state income tax. Second, unlike the federal government, Tennessee requires a balanced bud... More
  • Looking Ahead
    Dec 19, 2012  - This holiday season, as we enjoy time with our families and loved ones, let’s all take a moment to say a prayer for those in Newtown, Connecticut. In difficult times like these, it’s human nature to search for causation and look for someone or something to blame, but we may never be able to explain ... More
  • The Affordable Care Act Proving Unaffordable For States
    Dec 12, 2012  - In 2010, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi famously said to find out what was in President Obama’s health care bill Congress would have to pass it. After nearly three years, it has become obvious why Congressional Democrats wanted to hide the facts from the public before the president’s health care bill bec... More
  • If the President Expects Compromise, He Must Set the Table for Negotiation
    Dec 5, 2012  - It’s past time for President Obama to offer concrete, realistic solutions to our nation’s fiscal crisis and to prevent the tax increases and arbitrary spending cuts set to go into effect on January 1, known as the fiscal cliff. While the president continues to reject serious proposals from Republica... More
  • Tax Increases Alone Won’t Avert Fiscal Cliff
    Nov 28, 2012  - Tennesseans could wake up to find a lump of coal in their stockings if the fiscal cliff isn’t addressed before the holidays. According to a new report from the White House, taxes on middle class families will increase by $2,200 per year, resulting in a loss of $200 billion in consumer spending, if t... More