Arnold Ahlert

Rand Paul Fights for Conservative Principles—And Wins

On Wednesday, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul valiantly opposed the nomination of John Brennan for CIA Director, engaging in a lone filibuster for nearly 13 hours. Though Brennan was ultimately approved Thursday, Paul's courageous stand brought much-needed attention to the Obama administration's refusal to rule out carrying out drone strikes against U.S. citizens on American soil.

Reign of Evil: A Look Back at the Vicious Rule of Hugo Chavez

It is no accident that the death of Hugo Chavez, while mourned by the usual suspects on the left, was celebrated by thousands of his fellow countrymen.

North Korea Threatens War

On Tuesday, North Korea vowed it would cancel the 1953 cease-fire that ended the Korean War. Soon-to-be-imposed sanctions by the United Nations regarding the nation's recent nuclear test and U.S.-South Korean joint military drills were cited as the reasons for the threat. Without going into details, the Korean People's Army Supreme Command warned of "surgical strikes" aimed at unifying the Korean Peninsula and that they possessed a "precision nuclear striking tool."

Obama’s Billion-Dollar Giveaway to the Muslim Brotherhood

In the past few weeks, Americans have been subjected to a barrage of doomsday predictions regarding the disaster that would befall us should the sequester come to pass. Many were rightly incensed, then, that last Thursday, only one day before the "devastating" sequester cuts were scheduled to kick in, newly appointed Secretary of State John Kerry announced that the Obama administration will be giving $60 million to a group of Syrian rebels fighting Bashsar Assad.

How the Democrats Destroyed Detroit

Last Friday, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican, announced that the state will proceed with a takeover of Detroit's Democratic city government. "The current system has not been working. We have not stopped the decline," said Snyder. "This is time for us not to argue or to blame, but to come together as Detroit, Mich., not Detroit vs. Michigan, and bring all of our resources to bear." Snyder may not want to point the finger, but it is obvious that decades of Democratic rule and economic policies have brought this once great city to its knees.

The Obama-Media vs. Bob Woodward

As the result of his efforts to recount the genesis, and likely effects, of sequestration, the across-the-board spending cuts slated to begin Friday, Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward is getting a taste of what happens to those who challenge the Obama-Democrat-media machine.

Obama Terrorizes Public with Illegal Alien Releases

In one of the most politically despicable moves ever perpetrated by a sitting administration, federal immigration officials have released hundreds of illegal aliens from prison in anticipation of budget cuts produced by the sequester. “As fiscal uncertainty remains over the continuing resolution and possible sequestration, ICE has reviewed its detained population to ensure detention levels stay within ICE’s current budget,” said agency spokeswoman Gillian M. Christensen in a statement. Immigration officials further warned that even more releases are possible, if the anticipated cuts are realized.

Obama’s ‘Non-Profit’ Sells Political Access

Last weekend, the New York Times revealed that President Obama's campaign apparatus, Organizing for Action (OFA), has reinvented itself as a 501c 4 tax-exempt non-profit advocacy group offering access to the president in return for a large donation. "Giving or raising $500,000 or more puts donors on a national advisory board for Mr. Obama's group and the privilege of attending quarterly meetings with the president, along with other meetings at the White House," reports the Times.

Latino & Black Students Prisoners of Dem-Run L.A. Schools

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is the next school district to be examined in this multi-part series. Unfortunately, it bears a striking resemblance to all the other big-city districts in terms of lagging graduation rates, a large achievement gap, marginal grade-level competency and entrenched Democratic Party control. The one exception: it is Latino, rather than black American students, who comprise 73.4 percent of the student population. Black American students are the next largest group at 10 percent. Both groups are lagging behind their white and Asian counterparts at every turn.

Dem-Controlled Atlanta Schools Rob Minority Students of Their Futures

The Atlanta Public School system (APS) bears a strikingly depressing resemblance to all the other big city school systems chronicled in this series. Yet it does stand out in one respect: APS was the epicenter of the biggest cheating scandal in the nation. And once again, in a Democrat-controlled school district where more than eight-in-ten children are black Americans, it is those children who bear the burden of a system enmeshed in a culture of corruption and failure.

China Weaponizes Cyberspace

A damning, 60-page report released by American computer security firm Mandiant reveals that a 12-story building on the outskirts of Shanghai is most likely the epicenter of ongoing cyber attacks perpetrated against a number of American corporations and government agencies, as well as entities such as power grids, gas lines and water works. The building, located in a run-down section of the city, is the headquarters of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Unit 61398. A 2010 report by Mandiant questioned whether the Chinese government was directly involved in such hacking. No longer. "The details we have analyzed during hundreds of investigations convince us that the groups conducting these activities are based primarily in China and that the Chinese Government is aware of them," the report states.A damning, 60-page report released by American computer security firm Mandiant reveals that a 12-story building on the outskirts of Shanghai is most likely the epicenter of ongoing cyber attacks perpetrated against a number of American corporations and government agencies, as well as entities such as power grids, gas lines and water works. The building, located in a run-down section of the city, is the headquarters of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Unit 61398. A 2010 report by Mandiant questioned whether the Chinese government was directly involved in such hacking. No longer. "The details we have analyzed during hundreds of investigations convince us that the groups conducting these activities are based primarily in China and that the Chinese Government is aware of them," the report states.

Sequester Hysteria

Obama administration and Democrat hysterics are once again out in force. Coordinating with their media propaganda pushers, they are attempting to convince the American public that "sequestration," as in the mandatory spending cuts engendered by the budget ceiling debacle of 2011, amount to nothing less than economic Armageddon.

Hagel Derailed —– For Now

Defying a furious White House and Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans successfully filibustered Chuck Hagel’s nomination for Secretary of Defense. The tally was 58-40, with one “present” vote. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) switched his vote from “yes” to “no,” a procedural move that allows him to revisit Hagel’s nomination after the Senate recess. The move was historic, in that a Cabinet Secretary has never been successfully filibustered before. Republicans claimed they will allow an up-or-down vote on Hagel only after they get more information about the debacle in Benghazi. For the moment, Obama’s dangerous foreign policy agenda, personified by the Hagel nomination, has been slowed. But it will not be for long.

Obama Continues Radical Social Engineering of the Military

The progressive revamping of the military has gotten another boost. Outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has offered an array of new benefits to the same-sex partners of service members, both active and retired, whether they are married or not. They include child care services, member-designated hospital visits, and the issuance of military ID cards to same-sex partners, granting them access to on-base commissaries, movie theaters and gyms.

Minority Students in Chicago: Hostages of the Democratic Party

In 2009, the Chicago Public School system (CPS) was rocked by a grade inflation scandal. A Chicago Sun-Times report revealed that one-fifth of the CPS teachers felt "pressured" to change grades. "There's definitely a sense of, 'We've gotta move these kids through.' Even though they're not even close to grade level," said English teacher Caitlin Ring at the time. Apparently no one learned their lesson. In 2010, led by Hyde Park Academy High, a number of schools in Chicago changed the grades of thousands of students once again. NBC Chicago speculated the moves were made to avoid another round of controversial closures of failing schools similar to those that occurred in 2010. Such failure is endemic to the CPS--and once again, it is black and Hispanic students who overwhelmingly suffer the consequences of another failing Democrat-run, major metropolitan school system.

Obama’s Middle East: Iranian Arms Flow to Syria Via Iraq

In early September, U.S. officials revealed they had been asking Iraq about the flights, with then-Senator John Kerry threatening a review of U.S. aid to Iraq if the flights were not stopped.

Obama Administration Offers Direct Talks with Iran

On Saturday, the Obama administration's efforts to maintain the fantasy that diplomatic efforts will get Iran to abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons was again on display for all the world to see, courtesy of Vice President Joe Biden. During a speech at the Munich Security Conference, Biden contended that the United States "would be prepared to meet bilaterally with the Iranian leadership." "There has to be an agenda that they are prepared to speak to," Biden added. "We are not just prepared to do it for the exercise." The Iranians, meanwhile, are hailing the new approach the Obama administration is taking with Tehran and are no doubt looking forward to the extra time it will afford them to continue on the trajectory of their nuclear weapons program.

Israel Threatened by Syria and Iran

The presumed Israeli airstrike within Syrian territory on Wednesday has elicited threats of retaliation from both Syria and Iran. Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul-Karim Ali, quoted at al-Ahd, a Hezbollah-run news website, contended that his nation could make “a surprise decision to respond to the aggression of the Israeli warplanes,” adding that ”Syria is engaged in defending its sovereignty and its land.” In Iran, a deputy foreign minister was quoted by English-language Press TV as saying the “strike on Syria will have serious consequences for Tel Aviv.” He did not elaborate.

Detroit Public Schools: Bankrupting Minority Students’ Futures

Editor's note: The following is the second in a series of FrontPage articles that will unmask the racial injustice of Democrat-controlled education by examining some of the nation's worst (and biggest spending) school districts. To read about the Washington, DC public school system, click here. In 2009, when the Detroit Public School (DPS) system was facing bankruptcy engendered by huge operating deficits and widespread corruption, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan characterized it as a "national disgrace." The disgrace, unfortunately, is much more than meets the eye: For all of the bankrupting spending, the school system's educational results for the 88 percent black student population remain abysmal. And yet the DPS is but a microcosm of the silent scandal haunting the Left, which controls the district and countless others across the nation in precisely the same circumstances. Throughout America, minority students find themselves conscripted into these institutions of misery, while the architects of their prisons remain accountable to no one.

Stonewalling Benghazi Into Irrelevancy

Last week, the dwindling number of Americans who believe this administration owes them an honest explanation regarding the murders of ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi were likely expecting that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be forced to shed some light on the issue. What they got instead was a well-rehearsed theatrical presentation, complete with tears, anger and self-righteous indignation.