Jennifer Harper
Articles by Jennifer Harper
Inside the Beltway: Ready to rumble in the Granite State
Wearing a sincere grin and maybe a carefully ironed plaid shirt, Scott Brown will announce his intent to run for the U.S. Senate seat in New Hampshire at dusk on Thursday. He's already cultivating the image of a tough politician with a heart of gold, and plans a very public declaration at a seaside inn in historic Portsmouth. Published April 9, 2014
Americans say lawmakers who abuse power worse than those who cheat on their spouses
Well, looks like the cheating cad is better than the dubious schemer, according to a new Quinnipiac University Poll. Published April 9, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Mr. Norquist and friends take on the IRS
Consider that April 15 will dawn in a mere 144 hours, punctuated by the sound of rustling tax records and the gnashing of teeth. Some are preparing for this. Americans for Tax Reform, in fact, has organized, well, a tax conference at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday featuring a half-dozen financially-minded Republican lawmakers and an agenda that includes IRS "abuse of conservative nonprofit groups," among many things. Published April 8, 2014
The White House behaving badly: On the road to stinkburger
Is the nation now witnessing dignity of office, a sense of decorum and gravitas? No. America is now on "the road to stinkburger" says online news maven Lucianne Goldberg, who refers to the increasing tendency of the White House to lower the quality of the public discourse. Published April 8, 2014
Times staff wins 16 honors at 2013 VPA awards
The Washington Times has won 16 awards in the 2013 Virginia Press Association competition for writing, photography and design, an annual contest among multiple news organizations in several regions. The recognition included four first-place designations. Published April 7, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Viguerie’s vigorous conservative opus
Into the insta-world of contemporary politics comes the weighty "Takeover: The 100-Year War for the Soul of the GOP and How Conservatives Can Finally Win It" — a new book by veteran conservative activist Richard Viguerie, a man with much institutional knowledge. He's also been an eyewitness to all the machinations for more than four decades. But it goes beyond that. Published April 7, 2014
STUDY: ‘Ranking RINOs: Who does the tea party hate most?’
Disagreements between grassroots tea partyers and establishment Republicans continues to draw an intense and curious audience. Now here comes the analysis. "Ranking the RINOs: Who does the tea party hate most?" asks new research by the Center for Responsive Politics. Published April 7, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Selfies and stinkburgers test a casual White House
Is the nation now witnessing dignity of office, a sense of decorum and gravitas? No. America is now on "the road to stinkburger" says online news maven Lucianne Goldberg, who refers to the increasing tendency of the White House to lower the quality of the public discourse. Published April 6, 2014
A governor’s journey: Rick Perry in the South Pacific seeking answers about World War II MIAs
It is a long flight, but one Texas governor has a singular calling. Rick Perry has departed for the Republic of Palua, where many thousands of U.S. forces saw fierce fighting during the Pacific campaign of World War II on the islands of Peleliu and Angaur. Published April 5, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Obamacare — A Republican’s best friend
Strategists have pointed out that a Republican candidate's best friend this fall is Obamacare. Public disapproval of the health care law could be just the helping hand for GOP hopefuls in tight races. Published April 3, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Shave the way to a balanced budget
The tea party realm is not exactly thrilled with Rep. Paul Ryan's 102-page federal budget proposal, a meticulously crafted document open to interpretation. The Republican National Committee frames it as evidence that the GOP is the "party of solutions." Published April 2, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Division — the lingering symptom of Obamacare
Obamacare could be the ultimate gauge of partisan politics. Consider: Republicans are 22 times more likely than Democrats to believe that health care reform could foul up the America's future. So says a new Gallup analysis of a year's worth of health care polls, and the responses of close to 14,000 people. Published April 1, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Allen West’s call to America
He is still a faithful and forthright man with a mission: that would be Allen West, who has a new book out Tuesday. "Guardian of the Republic" provides ample evidence that the former U.S. Army officer and Florida congressman has never given up on conservative values that he says have driven him for decades — family, faith, tradition, service, honor, fiscal responsibility, courage, freedom. He is unapologetic and enthusiastic about it all. Published March 31, 2014
Prudent presidential ‘un-candidates’ bide their time until America actually pays attention
Even pundits often reluctantly agree that the presidential election is more than two years away, and that American voters are barely engaged with the 2014 midterms at this point. Some politicians realize this as well. Published March 31, 2014
Inside the Beltway: The governors strut their strategy
There are 29 Republican governors out there. But only three of them had a mighty big say in the last 48 hours by appearing at the Republican Jewish Coalition's spring leadership meeting, a very swell affair staged in Las Vegas this weekend with all the trimmings. Published March 30, 2014
Duck and cover? The majority of Americans say the U.S. is headed into another Cold War with Russia
Air raid sirens, dank fallout shelters, Operation Looking Glass and B-52s on high alert: those were the cultural hallmarks of the Cold War at one point in history. Is the United States embarking on another one as the Ukraine matter continues? That depends on who you talk to. The majority of Americans say yes, this is the case. President Obama, however, insists there is no Cold War. Published March 28, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Hot air over a Cold War
There has been much clever talk among journalists about President Obama and his no-drama "Cool War" with Russia. Mr. Obama himself, meanwhile, insists there is no "Cold War" in the making, reasoning that contemporary Russia is no Soviet Union with hulking and aggressive ideology. But wait. The citizenry think otherwise. Published March 27, 2014
Geezer Power: Voters over 65 have turned ‘reliably Republican’ says Gallup
After two decades, the older and wiser among us have tired of the Democratic Party and made a big switch. Those over age 65 are now Republicans, according to a major new Gallup study. Published March 27, 2014
Inside the Beltway: Christie’s appetite for the White House
He is one of the headliners during a glittering GOP gathering that begins Thursday in Las Vegas. That would be a decidedly slimmer, more cheerful New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a featured speaker during the Republican Jewish Coalition's spring leadership meeting, staged at the swank Venetian Hotel and shepherded by billionaire and major party donor Sheldon Adelson. Published March 26, 2014
‘Minimized, spun or ignored’: Broadcast news shushes up on Obamacare
Hush, hush, and more hush. That seems to be the case with Obamacare on the broadcast news: The "big three" networks are simply not giving the health care law much coverage: NBC, CBS and ABC gave the law just over 31 minutes of time from Jan. 1 to March 24, according to a Media Research Center analysis Published March 26, 2014
