<![CDATA[ - Articles - RealClearPolitics]]> http://www.realclearpolitics.com/authors/rss/archive/17502.xml Author <![CDATA[A Plan for Central America]]> Fri, 30 Jan 2015 00:00:00 -0600 AS we were reminded last summer when thousands of unaccompanied children showed up on our southwestern border, the security and prosperity of Central America are inextricably linked with our own.

]]> <![CDATA[Iraqis Must Unite Against Terror]]> Sat, 23 Aug 2014 00:00:00 -0500 <![CDATA[Obamacare Fixes Broken System]]> Sun, 29 Sep 2013 00:00:00 -0500 <![CDATA[GOP Holding Middle-Class Tax Cuts Hostage]]> Thu, 13 Dec 2012 00:00:00 -0600 On Friday, I had the chance to sit down with a group of middle-class Americans at a diner in Arlington, Va. Their stories were different, but they shared the same concerns: money is tight, and a potential tax hike at the end of the year would be devastating for them.

One man told me that his wife recently lost her job, that he had one son in college and another on his way. A higher tax bill would mean he may not be able to pay his mortgage, buy gas, or provide for his family’s basic needs.

]]> <![CDATA[China's Rise Isn't America's Demise]]> Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0500 I FIRST visited China in 1979, a few months after our countries normalized relations. China was just beginning to remake its economy, and I was in the first Senate delegation to witness this evolution. Traveling through the country last month, I could see how much China had changed in 32 years — and yet the debate about its remarkable rise remains familiar.

Then, as now, there were concerns about what a growing China meant to America and the world. Some here and in the region see China’s growth as a threat, entertaining visions of a cold-war-style rivalry or great-power confrontation. Some Chinese worry that our aim in the Asia-Pacific is to contain China’s...]]> <![CDATA[Next Steps in U.S.-Russia Reset]]> Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0500 When we came into office two years ago, our relationship with Russia had reached a low point. The war between Russia and Georgia played a role in that decline, but even before that conflict erupted in August 2008, a dangerous drift was under way.

While we no longer considered each other enemies, you couldn’t always tell that from the rhetoric flying back and forth. Ironically, this came at a time when American and Russian security interests, as well as economic interests, were more closely aligned than ever.

]]> <![CDATA[Payroll Tax Cut Will Create Jobs]]> Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:00:00 -0600 This year, January shouldn't be the month of the post-holiday doldrums. That's because starting this week, across America, people will notice that, thanks to the payroll tax cut included in the tax package signed by the president in December, their paychecks will be bigger.

The tax cut decreases the federal payroll tax by 2 percentage points, increasing the take-home pay for American workers everywhere. That is real money for real people. For a couple making $60,000 each, their take-home pay will climb $2,400 in 2011. That is $2,400 more in their pockets, and $2,400 more that could go into our economy creating jobs and growth.

]]> <![CDATA[The Case for Ratifying New Start]]> Thu, 25 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0600 In September 2009, when President Obama decided to alter his predecessor's plans for missile defense in Europe, some critics claimed that we had sacrificed our allies in the interest of the "reset" with Russia. Others thought that we would derail the reset by proceeding with the new plan. The skeptics were wrong on both counts.

]]> <![CDATA[What We Must Do for Iraq Now]]> Sun, 21 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0600 EIGHT days ago, Iraqi political leaders agreed on a framework for a new government to guide their country through the crucial coming years. Since the elections there in March, our administration has said that the Iraqi people deserve a government that reflects the results of those elections, that includes all the major blocs representing Iraq’s various communities and that does not exclude or marginalize anyone. That is what they will now have.

]]> <![CDATA[A Comprehensive Nuclear Arms Strategy]]> Wed, 07 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0500 When I joined the Senate in 1973, crafting nuclear policy meant mastering arcane issues like nuclear stability and deterrence theory. With the end of the Cold War and a new relationship between our country and Russia, thankfully these subjects no longer dominate public discourse. Today, the danger of deliberate, global nuclear war has all but disappeared, but the nuclear threats we face from terrorists and non-nuclear states seeking to acquire such weapons are graver than ever.

On Tuesday, President Obama took an important step toward addressing these threats by releasing a plan that will reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy while ensuring...]]> <![CDATA[Assessing the Recovery Act]]> Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

A weekly series explores the issues of faith that are shaping our world.

In Washington today, politicians too often just stand their ground. Liberal strategist Bob Beckel and conservative columnist Cal Thomas provide a better model.

An at-a-glance look at online conversations selected for the newspaper.

Readers discuss their personal experiences.

Readers share the impact Hurricane Katrina has had on their lives.

What people are saying about the news of the week.

Editorials, Debates |  Columns |  Letters

Editorials, Debates |  Columns |  Letters

Editorials, Debates |  Columns |  Letters

Editorials,...]]> <![CDATA[Obama Will Maintain Our Nuclear Arsenal]]> Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0600 The United States faces no greater threat than the spread of nuclear weapons. That is why, last April in Prague, President Obama laid out a comprehensive agenda to reverse their spread, and to pursue the peace and security of a world without them.

He understands that this ultimate goal will not be reached quickly. But by acting on a number of fronts, we can ensure our security, strengthen the global nonproliferation regime, and keep vulnerable nuclear material out of terrorist hands.

For as long as nuclear weapons are required to defend our country and our allies, we will maintain a safe, secure and effective nuclear arsenal. The president's Prague vision is central to this...]]> <![CDATA[The Senate Should Vote Yes on Health Care]]> Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0600 Washington

IF I were still a United States senator, I would not only vote yes on the current health care reform bill, I would do so with the sure knowledge that I was casting one of the most historic votes of my 36 years in the Senate. I would vote yes knowing that the bill represents the culmination of a struggle begun by Theodore Roosevelt nearly a century ago to make health care reform a reality. And while it does not contain every measure President Obama and I wanted, I would vote yes for this bill certain that it includes the fundamental, essential change that opponents of reform have resisted for generations.

We have been here before. In the past, as the moment of...]]> <![CDATA[A New Era of Cooperation]]> Sat, 07 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0600 (Ed note: The following is a text of Vice President Biden's speech delivered today at the 45th annual Munich Conference on Security Policy.)

Mr. Ambassador, thank you very much. Ladies and gentleman, it's an honor to be back in Munich. I've attended this conference many times as a United States senator, and three of my congressional colleagues are here with me today. But I am honored to be back here, as well, as the Vice President of the United States, representing a new administration and, hopefully, a new day.

Today I am especially honored to represent this administration. And we've gone through the oldest of our traditions: that is the peaceful transfer of power. ...]]> <![CDATA[Time to Put Middle Class First]]> Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0600