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February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
January 6, 2012
January 5, 2012
Tom A. Peter: Taliban talks: In administration's push to negotiate with terrorists, was a key hurdle overlooked?
Pete Spotts: Time cloaking: How scientists opened a hidden gap in time
Karen Kaplan: Teens aren't too old to boost their IQ, study finds
January 4, 2012
Scott Baldauf: Islamist terror group giving Christians living in north Nigeria days to flee
Howard LaFranchi : An accelerating covert war with Iran: Could it spiral into military action?
January 3, 2012
Tom A. Peter: Release several Taliban leaders from Guantanamo Bay; give them headquarters as confidence-building measure?
Elaine Woo: Thomas T. Johnson, L.A. judge who ruled that Holocaust was a fact, dies at 88
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Jewish World Review
August 6, 2008
/ 5 Menachem-Av 5768
McCain's excellent British import
By
Nat Hentoff
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
For years, one of C-Span's most riveting regular programs is "Prime Minister's Questions," during which the head of the reigning political party faces criticisms of his government's policies and failures from members of the House of Commons. What fascinates those of us Americans who watch is direct democracy in action, not unlike our town meetings of yore where local officials could not hide.
In this country the president, when he chooses (not often in some administrations), holds a press conference. But most of the time, the president's surrogate, the press secretary, is held to account by reporters. However, these are fencing matches of little substance, except when the late Tony Show was in charge.
But the British prime ministers as Andrew Sparrow of The Guardian in London told National Public Radio (July 25) "have to devote several hours to preparing for all sorts of questions, and they go in there and they know that it's going to be live on television" while many citizens are watching, and remembering.
Former Conservative Party Leader Michael Howard emphasizes that this weekly breakthrough of government transparency when the House of Commons is sitting "ensures that, first of all, the prime minister knows what's going on."
Not only in the Bush administration, but in some previous administrations, it has been far from certain that our president does know all that's going on in his government's most controversial practices. If we had a regular "President's Questions" on C-Span (which its director, Brian Lamb, would be happy to schedule), it would be very beneficial for the president to have to bone up on what's actually going on in his administration. We The People would certainly benefit, as well.
To his credit, John McCain has pledged that, if elected, "I will ask Congress to grant me the privilege of coming before both houses to take questions, and address criticism, much the same as the prime minister of Great Britain appears regularly before the House of Commons."
One of the most astute and persistent questioners of federal government policies in his various newspaper columns and TV appearances is Jonathan Turley, professor of constitutional law at George Washington University.
In welcoming the Republican nominee's proposal, Turley said on National Public Radio: "McCain does have a long history of supporting transparency in government. And a president's session would be a very significant reform in adding a degree of transparency that we've never had before."
Does Barack Obama agree?
And to extend the number of participants in this unprecedented transparency at the top of our government, I expect many Americans would send their representatives and senators questions and criticisms for them to present to the president.
Some, for example, might ask President McCain what I, as a member of the press, was unable to find out satisfactorily from Sen. McCain's formal statements. Why, as a well-known opponent of official torture however often denied did he, in the Senate, vote against a bill that would have made the CIA adhere to the Army Field Manual, which mandates all the rest of our armed services NOT engage in such practices as the CIA has engaged in? He gave the often notorious CIA a pass.
I would also expect that in "President's Questions" on C-Span, either President McCain or President Obama would be asked to explain in plain language any "signing statements" he added to any act of Congress as he enacted it into law. President Bush made far too ample use of these "signing statements," which disabled parts of bills Congress sent to him.
Also, if President Obama or President McCain ordered his Justice Department to close down a court hearing before any evidence is presented on the questionable grounds of "state secrets" (as Bush's attorneys general have with unprecedented frequency), that draconian cutting off of due process might well arise in "President's Questions" to the instruction of the citizenry at large.
England is not the only country where the chief executive is held to account directly and regularly. There are "Question Periods" in Canada's Parliament as well as in the provincial legislatures.
In Australia and New Zealand, their national town meeting is called "Question Time." India's leader is confronted during "Question Hour;" and the equivalent in the Irish Dail is "Leader's Questions," while "First Minister's Questions" take place in Wale's National Assembly and the Scottish Parliament.
With such instant profusion and confusion of so-called news from ever-expanding sources, many of us are far from clear on what actually is being done in our name by our national government. Direct regular questions to the chief executive could help enable us to become the truly informed citizens that our founders expected us to be. And in view of the absence of civics courses in many of our schools struggling to meet No Child Left Behind mandates, having "President's Questions" also on YouTube could be an educational awakening for many future and present voters.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Nat Hentoff is a nationally renowned authority on the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights and author of several books, including his current work, "The War on the Bill of Rights and the Gathering Resistance". Comment by clicking here.
Nat Hentoff Archives
© 2006, NEA
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