Boehner: Repealing Birthright Citizenship ‘Worth Considering’
Appearing on Meet The Press, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said that the idea of repealing birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants should be discussed. “Well, David, I’m not the expert on this issue. I have read the–these comments here over this past week. But I think that we do have–there is a problem. To provide an incentive for illegal immigrants to come here so that their children can be U.S. citizens does, in fact, draw more people to our country. I, I do think that it’s time for us to secure our borders and enforce the law, and allow this conversation about the 14th Amendment to continue,” said Boehner, also adding: “Listen, I think it’s worth considering. But it’s a serious problem that affects our country. And in certain parts of our country, clearly, our schools, our hospitals, are being overrun by illegal immigrants, a lot of whom came here just so their children could become U.S. citizens.”
Ted Olson: Gay Marriage Decision Not ‘Judicial Activism’
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, anti-Proposition 8 attorney Ted Olson rejected the charge that Judge Vaughn Walker’s decision constitution judicial activism. “It’s not judicial activism when judges do what the Constitution requires them to do and they follow the precedent of previous decisions of the Supreme Court. This is what judges are expected to do,” said Olson, a Republican who served as Solicitor General under President George W. Bush. He also added: “Most people use the term judicial activism to explain decisions that they don’t like.”
Allen: Relief Well In Gulf Will Be Finished And Sealed
Appearing on Face The Nation, retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said that the government will require BP to pump cement down its relief well in order to form a final plug, rather than keep it open for further oil drilling. “There was an inference early on that there might be an option,” Allen said. “That is not the case. I’ve discussed this with [incoming BP CEO] Bob Dudley. The relief well will be finished.”
Allen: BP ‘Don’t Naturally Have A Capacity Or A Competency’ For Communication
Appearing on State of the Union, retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen gave BP “fairly good marks” for the technological handling of the oil spill, but also said they lack communications abilities. “What BP is not good at: they’re a large global oil production company. They don’t do retail sales or deal with individuals on a transactional basis. Anything’s that involved that has been a real struggle for them,” said Allen, also adding: “He added, “It’s something they don’t naturally have a capacity or a competency in their company and it’s been very, very hard for them to understand. And that’s the lens by which the American people view them and that’s the area where they need to improve the most.”
Odierno: Iraqis ‘Ready To Assume Full Operations’
Appearing on This Week, Gen. Ray Odierno said that the Iraqi government was prepared for the drawdown of U.S. combat forces: “Well, this is something that we’ve been working for a very long time with the Iraqi security forces. For the last 20 months, we’ve been slowly and deliberately turning over more and more responsibility to them, and they have stepped up. They continue to do broad-scoped operations across all of Iraq. We continue to help them as they do these, and that will continue after 1 September, our assistance. But we do believe they are ready to assume full operations in Iraq.”
Pence Rejects Paying For Tax Cuts: ‘It’s Apples And Oranges’
Appearing on Meet The Press, House Republican Conference Chair Mike Pence (R-IN) rejected the idea that tax cuts would have to costed in order to avoid extra deficits: “I mean, the reality is that I think it’s apples and oranges. It’s something that John Boehner was talking to you about. Here in Washington, D.C., they, they talk about tax cuts the same way they talk about spending increases as though the government owned all of the money. They say, “Are they paid for?” Well, I think, I think deciding on a government spending increase is very different on whether or not we allow the American people to keep more of their hard-earned tax dollars.”
Mitch Daniels: ‘We Would Love To Be Back’ At Bush Deficit Levels
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Gov. Mitch Daniels (R-IN) compared the current deficits to those under the Bush administration, during the first two years of which he had served as budget director. “Those deficits — we would love to be back at those levels today,” said Daniels, who also defended the Bush-era record. “I agree that more money was spent (during the Bush administration) than needed to be, but have a look around,” Daniels said. “The deficit before this recession started … was one-sixth the size of the ones we are running now and told to expect for the next few years.”
