"In 1988, Michael Dukakis famously said, 'This election is not about ideology; it’s about competence.' He lost. If Republicans want to win, Obama’s deeply revealing, teleprompter-free you-didn’t-build-that confession of faith needs to be hung around his neck until Election Day. The third consecutive summer-of-recovery-that-never-came is attributable not just to Obama being in over his head but, even more important, to what’s in his head: a government-centered vision of the economy and society, and the policies that flow from it. 

"Four years of that and this is what you get. 

"Make the case and you win the White House."

"The welfare reform of 1996 stands as perhaps the most important entitlement reform in the nation’s history. Its successes stem from a core requirement that able-bodied parents must work, search for work, or train for work to be eligible for public assistance.
 
"But now, under the guise of providing states greater 'flexibility' in operating their welfare programs, the Obama administration claims unjustifiable authority to weaken or waive the work requirements at the heart of the reform law. There’s just one problem: The law is clear that those requirements can’t be waived. ... 

"To waive those requirements is to violate the 'workfare' law, the Constitution’s vesting of legislative power in the Congress, and the president’s fundamental duty to faithfully carry out all the laws."

"Lately President Obama has done everything except seduce an intern in his attempt to morph into Bill Clinton. In virtually every speech, he invokes Clinton’s name, trying to link his policies with those of the popular former president. He has even called upon Clinton to place Obama’s name in nomination at the Democratic National Convention. 
 
"But, try as he might, Barack Obama, is no Bill Clinton. ... 
 
"In the end, President Obama would increase taxes more than Bill Clinton did, and cut spending a lot less. ... 

"Given the last twelve years, a little Clinton nostalgia is understandable. But Bill Clinton will not be on the ballot this fall. Barack Obama will be, and that is a big difference."

"There’s something liberating about not caring about your reputation, your institution or the truth.
 
"By those standards, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is a blissfully free man.

"The Nevada Democrat maintains that Mitt Romney didn’t pay taxes for 10 years. Reid’s charge is an intellectual and moral mess that makes the notorious question 'When did you stop beating your wife?' seem rigorous by comparison. ... 

"Republicans have condemned Reid’s unsupported allegations as modern-day McCarthyism. Old Tail Gunner Joe was deflated at the Army-McCarthy hearings when he was confronted with the famous question, 'Have you no sense of decency, sir?' In the case of Harry Reid, it isn’t even worth asking."

"If there is any justice in this world, the name Solyndra will live on through the years as the exemplar of crony capitalism gone wrong in America, even after President Obama is safely away from the White House.

"Ever since the solar manufacturing firm went bankrupt, sinking last year with Obama's $527 million investment aboard, it has been generally acknowledged as a policy and public relations disaster. ... 

"And all this time, Solyndra's private owners were laughing their way to the bank. Solyndra investor Tom Baruch described 'getting business from Uncle Sam' as 'a principal element of Solyndra's strategy' and Solyndra CEO Chris Gronet referred to the Obama administration as the 'Bank of Washington.'"

"From a friend watching the Olympics: 'How about that Michael Phelps? But let's remember he didn't win all those medals, someone else did. After all, he and I swam in public pools, built by state employees using tax dollars. He got training from the USOC, and ate food grown by the Department of Agriculture. He should play fair and share his medals with people like me, who can barely keep my head above water, let alone swim.'

"The note was merry and ironic. And as the games progress, we'll be hearing a lot more of this kind of thing, because President Obama's comment — 'You didn't build that'— is the political gift that keeps on giving. 

"They are now the most famous words he has said in his presidency. And oh, how he wishes they weren't."

"If Democrats are so supportive of Obamacare’s trillion dollar price tag, its devastating impact on jobs, its assault on religious freedom, its suffocating impact on small businesses, its middle class tax hike, and the higher health care costs that it’s already delivering, then vote against repeal. 
 
"If, on the other hand, they think all these things are an argument to start over, join us in voting it down. 
 
"This week, we learned Obamacare will also exacerbate a shortage of doctors nationwide. One would think lawmakers would welcome a chance to reevaluate their original votes in light of reports like this. 
 
"Sadly, the Democrats who worked so hard to pass Obamacare are now afraid to reaffirm — or repudiate it — with a vote. 
 
"They’re simply too afraid to cross the president, and they’re afraid to show the voters who sent them here that they continue to support this terrible law despite everything we’ve learned about it."

"The Tea Party trumped the institution in Texas on Tuesday, propelling attorney Ted Cruz to an upset victory over Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in the nationally watched Republican primary for the Lone Star State's open U.S. Senate seat. 

"Cruz, a 41-year-old Cuban-American who is expected to win the general election in November (Texas hasn't elected a Democrat statewide since 1994), has pledged to bring his unbending conservatism to the upper chamber. The Tea Party’s upset win is significant given the widespread rumors of its demise. But Cruz’s victory signals that the grassroots movement has not just endured but is now woven into the fabric of the Republican Party, some observers say.

"In the race to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Cruz defeated Dewhurst by an impressive 14 points in the runoff election for the GOP nomination."

"Mitt Romney’s trip to Israel was spun by most commentators as an attempt to appeal to American Jewish voters. More importantly, though, it sent a message that under Mr. Romney’s leadership, the United States would no longer be ashamed to seek peace through strength.

"President Obama’s theory of Middle East peace is based on the standard leftist critique that U.S. favoritism toward Israel is the major impediment to reaching an agreement. His fawning outreach to Muslim states was intended to level the playing field, to allow America to act — in his view — as an honest broker. That effort has been a stunning failure."

"At the urging of Valerie Jarrett, President Barack Obama canceled the operation to kill Osama bin Laden on three separate occasions before finally approving the May 2, 2011 Navy SEAL mission, according to an explosive new book scheduled for release August 21. The Daily Caller has seen a portion of the chapter in which the stunning revelation appears.
 
"In 'Leading From Behind: The Reluctant President and the Advisors Who Decide for Him,' Richard Miniter writes that Obama canceled the 'kill' mission in January 2011, again in February, and a third time in March. Obama’s close adviser Valerie Jarrett persuaded him to hold off each time, according to the book.
 
"Miniter, a two-time New York Times best-selling author, cites an unnamed source with Joint Special Operations Command who had direct knowledge of the operation and its planning."