NEWS AND OPINION:
So how would Ronald Reagan have handled the ongoing Israel-Gaza war? Presidential historian and author Craig Shirley weighs in on this question.
“If Reagan was president today, I don’t think the invasion of Israel would have happened in the first place. A president must be many things — including competent, decisive, principled and yes, feared. Reagan was feared by bad people such as the Ayatollah Khomeini because his rhetoric in the 1980 presidential campaign made clear when he would do to get hostages out of Tehran — which is why the hostages were released only after Reagan was sworn in,” Mr. Shirley tells Inside the Beltway.
“I interviewed Bruce Langdon — our charge d’affaires in Iran for my book on the 1980 campaign and was himself a hostage. He told me the Iranians did not respect Jimmy Carter but were terrified that Reagan would send in the 82nd Airborne,” he said in a statement.
“Carter was a good man who cherished peace above all else. But the Iranians did not cherish peace. Peace can only be achieved between honorable countries — or through the utter defeat of an adversary, as in the case of Nazi Germany. Terrorists and bullies only respect strength. Hence, peace through strength.
“As Reagan once quipped,” Mr. Shirley concluded, “no one ever picked on Jack Dempsey,” referring to the legendary heavyweight boxer who was world champion from 1919 to 1926.
ON THE MOVE
“The latest tranche of tax migration data from the IRS provides the first glimpse into how taxpayers’ residency decisions have changed during the pandemic. Covering the change between returns filed in 2020 and 2021, the data effectively shows which states taxpayers chose to use their newfound freedom to move to — and away from,” writes Andrew Wilford, a senior policy analyst at the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, a nonpartisan, nonprofit group found at NTU.org/foundation.
“This data shows a clear pattern of taxpayers fleeing high-tax states and heading towards lower-tax states. Seven of the ten biggest net loss states from tax migration in terms of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) were among the states with the highest taxes (California, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia), while all ten assessed tax burdens above the national median,” Mr. Wilford said.
“Similarly, all but one of the biggest net gain states from tax migration in terms of AGI assessed state-local tax burdens below the national median (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas),” Mr. Wilford wrote.
“It’s worth noting that while the biggest tax migration ‘losers’ should respond to this information by trying to make their tax codes more competitive, many have already shown that they prefer a different path. States have shown increasing interest in reaching across state borders to tax nonresidents in recent years, in part because it allows them to nullify taxpayers’ residency decisions. Failure to rein in these efforts will squander a one-of-a-kind opportunity to let taxpayers make their voices heard.”
THE BOBBLE FACTOR
The White House — the actual building, that is — has received some unique recognition.
“To celebrate the anniversary of the opening of The White House, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum has unveiled the first White House Bobble,” the museum informs Inside the Beltway.
Bobble? We’re talking bobbleheads here — those small statuettes with bouncy heads, modeled after sports figures, and famous folks — and buildings as well.
“The bobble features a replica of the White House along with the United States flag, which is displayed from the rooftop flagpole 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The bobble base includes the North Lawn, which borders Pennsylvania Avenue. There are bushes at the front of the base along with ‘The White House’ in raised text,” the release said.
It also noted that the actual construction of the White House took place between 1792 and 1800, and that the famed building has 132 rooms, 32 bathrooms, 147 windows and 28 fireplaces.
“The iconic White House is one of the most significant and recognizable landmarks in the world,” museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said in the statement.
The bobble in question is expected to ship in January, Find information at Bobbleheadhall.com.
FOXIFIED
White House press secretary Jen Psaki has a book arriving in a few months.
It’s titled “Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World” and it’s set to be published by Scribner Books on May 7. The author covers the last two Democratic presidents and a well-known Fox News star.
“So I wrote a book, coming out next year. Lots of stories (Obama, Biden and yes, even Peter Doocy are in there). Lots of lessons learned over my time in politics and government,” Ms. Psaki said in a post on X.
Meanwhile, Fox Business Network continues to trump its competition. The Republican primary debate — which aired Sept. 27 on the network — drew an audience of 1.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. The network also aired the two highest-rated business news programs — “Kudlow” and “Varney & Co.” — for the 20th straight month. Find them at FoxBusiness.com.
POLL DU JOUR
• 46% of U.S. adults say they are “worse off financially” now than they were a year ago; 67% of conservatives, 41% of moderates and 28% of liberals agree.
• 38% overall say they are financially “about the same” as they were a year ago; 25% of conservatives, 44% of moderates and 51% of liberals agree.
• 10% say they are now “better off financially” than a year ago; 6% of conservatives, 11% of moderates and 17% of liberals agree.
• 5% are not sure about the issue; 1% of conservatives, 4% of moderates and 5% of liberals agree.
SOURCE: An Economist/YouGov poll of 1,500 U.S. citizens conducted Oct. 28-30.
• Contact Jennifer Harper at [email protected].
