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The Inside and Outside of CPAC 2012

Posted on February 10, 2012

"The Occupy movement, if it weren't so dangerous to the American ideal, would be comical," says John Thompson, a Rick Santorum supporter who attended The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), which kicked off in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, February 9th, 2012.

CPAC is the premier annual gathering of the conservative movement, but this year not all the action was inside the convention center. Occupy D.C. was joined by the AFL-CIO, SEIU, National Nurses United, Metro Labor Council, and OurDC for a demonstration right outside. The group says it was protesting a "gathering of bigots, media mouthpieces, corrupt politicians, and their 1 percent elite puppet masters."

Reason's Lucy Steigerwald was on hand to see what all the fuss was about.

Produced by Jim Epstein, with help from Joshua Swain and Julie Ershad.

Approximately 4.30 minutes.

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Chef Geoff Tracy vs DC Speed Cameras

Posted on February 10, 2012

Over a three day period in January, Washington, D.C. celebrity chef Geoff Tracy received three $150 tickets from a single newly installed traffic camera. In an attempt to alert other motorists of the speed trap, Tracy hired a sign spinner for a full week to caution passing drivers. But helping people avoid costly tickets doesn't sit well with at least one fan of D.C.'s $43 million revenue generating traffic cameras .

About 2:25 minutes. Written and produced by Rob Raffety

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Halftime in America: Remy Chrysler Ad Parody

Posted on February 9, 2012

It's halftime.
Both teams are listening to a Madonna performance that sounds eerily similar
to a Lady Gaga song they'll hear 10 years from now.
It's halftime in America too.
People are out of work and they're hurting.
And they're wondering where all their money went.
Well, $12.5 billion of it went to Chrysler. In the form of a bailout.
But it's okay, because Chrysler is all-American.
Though technically 58.5% of Chrysler is owned by an Italian corporation.
And Chrysler manufactures many of it's vehicles in Canada. And Mexico.
But I guess that doesn't make for a great commercial.
Unlike polar bears. Or dogs.
Or that digestive yogurt.
Yeah Americans are hurting.
And their dollars are being used to bail out the chosen ones.
Instead of themselves.
What happened to freedom?
What happened to choice?
Yeah.
We need to guard them like Ben Roethlisberger's friend guards a bathroom door.
Allegedly.

Written by Remy and produced by Meredith Bragg.

About 1.30 minutes.

"Halftime in America" is one of a series of collaborations between Remy and Reason.tv. To watch Remy's other videos, go to youtube.com/goremy

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Will More Federal Money Help Our Schools? Peter Suderman on Fox Business

Posted on February 8, 2012

President Obama wants more federal tax-dollars going to teachers as a way of improving education. Reason associate editor Peter Suderman appeared on Fox Business' Power and Money says the problems are not in spending but in heavy-handed bureaucracy and regulation. Airdate Feb 7, 2012.

Aproximately 4 minutes.

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Nick Gillespie Talks Politics of Homeownership on Freedom Watch

Posted on February 7, 2012

Reason.tv editor in chief Nick Gillespie appeared on Freedom Watch to discuss government intervention in the housing market and the inevitably disastrous results of such intervention. Air Date: January 17, 2012.

About 4:30 minutes.

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Mike Riggs Discusses MegaUpload, Niall Ferguson, & Tim Tebow on Alyona's Happy Hour

Posted on February 7, 2012

Reason Associate Editor Mike Riggs appeared on the Alyona Show's Happy Hour to discuss the torrent site BTJunkie voluntarily shutting down after learning MegaUpload's fate, genetically modified babies, Niall Ferguson's comments on war with Iran, and Tim Tebow's political side. Airdate: Feb 6, 2012.

8.44 minutes.

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Jim DeMint: Why Republicans Must Become More Libertarian

Posted on February 7, 2012

"The new debate in the Republican party needs to be between conservatives and libertarians," says Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.). "A lot of the libertarian ideas that Ron Paul is talking about...should not be alien to any Republican."

Yet right after the 2010 midterm elections, the influential Tea Party favorite proclaimed that "you can't be a fiscal conservative and not be a social conservative," a comment that was widely viewed as a slap at libertarians. And South Carolina's junior senator is also a staunch pro-lifer, has favored a constitutional ban on flag burning, and is on the record saying that gays shouldn't be allowed to teach at public schools.

More recently, DeMint has been leaning libertarian. His new book, Now or Never: Saving America from Economic Collapse, is a warning to the nation that we need radical spending cuts (including putting defense spending on the table) or else face economic oblivion. And he was instrumental in getting Tea Party Republicans elected in 2010, including the most libertarian member of the caucus, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who also wrote the foreword to DeMint's book.

Reason's Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch sat down with DeMint for a wide-ranging discussion about fiscal vs. social conservatism, cutting spending, the GOP presidential nomination, whether the Tea Party still matters, and much more.

Approximately 29 minutes.

Shot by Meredith Bragg and Jim Epstein; edited by Epstein.

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Arab Spring Update: Freedom House's Arch Puddington on How 2012 Will Be Like 1989.

Posted on February 6, 2012

"As significant as 1989 when the Berlin wall came down, overwhelmingly the story of 2012 is centered in the Middle East,” says Freedom House's Arch Puddington. "People were inspired by events in Egypt, they started demanding their rights.” 

Puddington has helped record the long-overdue revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria, and countries in the Freedom in the World 2012 index. Founded in 1941, Freedom House quantifies and ranks the political freedom and civil liberties of every country in the world as "Free," "Partly Free," or "Not Free." 

Though the Arab Spring has led some regimes to respond with arrests and killings, Puddington remains confident political rights and civil liberties will succeed in the longer run. Since the first Freedom in the World index was published in 1973, he notes, free countries have doubled in number and not-free countries have declined. In the 2012 edition, 87 countries are listed as Free, 60 as Partly Free, and 48 as Not Free.

Approximately 5 minutes.

Interview by Matt Welch. Camera by Meredith Bragg and Joshua Swain; edited by Swain.

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Brian Doherty Talks Ron Paul Campaign Updates on CNN's Out Front with Erin Burnett

Posted on February 6, 2012

Reason Senior Editor Brian Doherty appeared on CNN's Out Front with Erin Burnett to discuss how Ron Paul has transformed the Republican Party, and what can be expected from him in upcoming primaries and caucuses.

Approximately 5 minutes

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