Hour 1: Marc Thiessen - Former Bush Administration Chief Speechwriter
Hour 2: Michael Ledeen - National Review Online Contributing Editor and Foreign Policy Expert, Freedom Scholar for the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies
Marc Thiessen served as Chief Speechwriter to President George W. Bush, and a member of the White House Senior Staff. He was the lead writer on the President's 2007 and 2008 State of the Union addresses, helping the President navigate his first appearances before a Democratic Congress. Before coming to the White House, Marc served as Chief Speechwriter for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld from 2001 to 2004. Marc's writing has appeared in dozens of publications including the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Foreign Policy, Weekly Standard, National Review, New York Post, and Cigar Aficionado. He has appeared frequently on television and radio, including Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, the BBC, NPR, and other news outlets.
Dr. Michael Ledeen is the Freedom Scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He is also a contributing editor at National Review Online. Previously, he served as a consultant to the National Security Council, the State Department, and the Defense Department. He has also served as a special adviser to the Secretary of State. He holds a Ph.D. in modern European history and philosophy from the University of Wisconsin, and has taught at Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Rome.
He is author of more than 20 books, the most recent include: The War Against the Terror Masters; The Iranian Time Bomb; Machiavelli on Modern Leadership: Why Machiavelli's Iron Rules Are As Timely and Important Today As Five Centuries Ago, Tocqueville on American Character: Why Tocqueville's Brilliant Exploration of the American Spirit Is As Vital and Important Today As It Was Nearly Two Hundred Years Ago; and, Freedom Betrayed: How America Led a Global Democratic Revolution, Won the Cold War, and Walked Away. His forthcoming book (Spring, 2009, St. Martin's Press) is Accomplice to Evil; Iran and the War Against the West.
Dr. Ledeen regularly appears on Fox News, and on a variety of radio talk shows. He has been on PBS's NewsHour and CNN's Larry King Live, among others, and regularly contributes to the Wall Street Journal and to National Review Online. He has a blog on Pajamasmedia.com.
Messages are displayed in reverse chronological order, with the most recent posts displayed first. Add a comment and share your thoughts with other FredThompsonShow.com Fred Heads.
I understand that there was a comment on your show about statistics, that 54% of U.S. think we should not change the Health Care Reform Bill; 24% think we should change the bill, and a final 24% think we should not be doing anything. Your interpretation is interesting but I believe, erroneous. Given the information you presented, 78% of the U.S. believe we need health care reform, but 54% believe the current bill is the answer, while 24% believe the current bill needs change (too much pork, too many concessions, etc.). The truth is, given these numbers, only 24% of the U.S. believe that we should do nothing about health care.
This is the danger of statistics, they are easily manipulated and few people understand the numbers. I am one of the few, with a doctorate in research and statistics and the director of a community, non profit health care program. I used to teach social welfare policy and legislation, so I assure you, I understand the entire question. If you would like accurate, non-partisan information, go to AARP website, where they care only about the elderly, regardless of party affiliation, or the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, who care only for the health care of America, or even the American Public Health Association. Any one of these websites can fully inform you. I can tell you that locally, we have 40% uninsured. Now someone has to help with their health care, and I keep finding ways to do it, but I have to rely on the goodness of people's hearts to pay the bill. There is no free health care, it costs someone something every time. If there was a national health care plan, I could immediately give all of my employees a 450 dollar per month raise (what I pay for each of them in health insurance). Now, how would that be for an economic stimulus package, every person had an additional 4 or 5 hundred dollars per month to spend.
Posted by phil f. on February 08, 2010 at 12:19 PM
