Political Commentary & Opinion
Analysis, commentary, and opinion essays on politics and policy from The Daily Signal’s contributors and experts.
-
opinion
The Pursuit of Happiness
Summary How can I achieve happiness? This is a crucial question in human life, but it can be a difficult one to answer. Thankfully, we can learn much from the great philosophers and theologians of the Western tradition when trying to understand how to be happy. For many of these figures, including the ancient Greek… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: Why Do They Despise Musk?
As the midterms approached, the Left went nearly berserk in its hatred of trillionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk. Yet its escalating venom would have been almost inconceivable before 2022, when Musk publicly declared that he would be voting Republican. Before Musk’s recent political reversal (he voted for both Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in… -
opinion
Blue Wave Embarrasses Leftist Claiming Trump Would End Elections
We had a midterm election in which the Democrats and the Left were wildly successful. There is one way in which this makes some of them look either deeply stupid or dishonest. Many of them who rejoice now tried to claim there wouldn’t be any more elections if Donald Trump won in 2024, or that… -
opinion
How the Parthenon Became a Temple to Democracy
Summary For 30 years after the Persians burned Athens in 480 B.C., the rubble sat untouched atop the city’s great stone Acropolis. The Greeks had sworn to leave it there as a reminder of what they had lost and what might come again. The great statesman Pericles, however, finally persuaded his fellow citizens that the… -
opinion
Is Texas America’s Next Sanctuary State?
Summary AUSTIN, Texas—Operation Linebacker. Operation Rio Grande. Operation Border Star. Operation River Watch. Operation Strong Safety. Operation Secure Texas. Those names cover more than 20 years of state-led operations along the 1,254-mile Texas-Mexico frontier. Successive Republican governors and Republican-majority legislatures in Texas ordered all these operations. They also ordered “Operation Lone Star,” which is in… -
opinion
The Midterms’ Silver Lining: Conservative Ideas Win Big
Summary There will be oceans of ink spilled describing the extinction-level event for Republicans in Tuesday’s midterm elections. Ruby red states and districts across the nation quickly fell to a Democrat takeover, flipping seat after seat and toppling politicians many thought would die in office. Though the largest story of the night was understandably the… -
opinion
Election Integrity Scored Big Wins Despite the Blue Wave
Summary The blue wave did not wash away support for election integrity. Voters backed voter-ID protections in Nevada, North Carolina, and Ohio and citizen-only voting measures in Alaska, Arkansas, Kansas, West Virginia, and South Dakota—a clear reminder that support for election safeguards can transcend party fortunes. Those decisions deserve the attention of legislators and governors…. -
opinion
The Northwest Passage Needs Icebreakers and a Business Use Case
Summary For the last two decades, the Arctic ice cap has had more seasonal variance in ice thickness and scope, making shipping routes and bountiful resources more accessible. Two routes stand out: the Northwest Passage, crossing northern Alaskan and Canadian coasts, and the Northern Sea Route, transiting Russia’s northern coast. These promise shorter global shipping… -
opinion
Gender Madness and the Midterms
Summary As the saying goes, politics is downstream of culture. But the opposite can also be true. We should keep this in mind when thinking about the path forward in the battle against gender madness. It wasn’t too long ago that Americans were flooded with pronouns in signature lines, rainbow flags outside churches, and a… -
opinion
The Socialists Won More Than Just Elections on Tuesday
Summary Five new candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America won House seats Tuesday. Together with reelected Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., that brings the number of DSA-backed members in the next House of Representatives, as of this writing, to at least seven. This marks a significant expansion for a movement… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: What the Midterm Election Results Mean for 2028
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of a portion of a Victor Davis Hanson interview on “The Tony Kinnett Cast” on Nov. 3. Read the excerpt below, or watch the full interview above. Victor Davis Hanson: We have to remember that, in the last 126 years, since 1900, when the party in the… -
opinion
Lawfare Is the Democrats’ Real Postelection Priority
Summary During and after the most recent edition of the “most important election of our lifetimes,” it is important to take stock of what is really on the ballot. What issues are animating voters, and what are the candidates going to deliver if they win? Ask any Democrat running for office at the federal, state,… -
opinion
Sitting This Election Out? Weigh a Few Things, Then Go Vote
Summary Republicans and MAGA supporters who hope to avoid voting today should overcome their qualms with high gas prices and President Donald Trump’s quirks. If balloting continues in your area, flood the polls. America needs you. For a quick reminder of what’s at stake, watch a political ad called “Stand Up for America.” I co-created… -
opinion
Want to Know What Congress Will Do? Look at What It Has Done
Summary For the past few months, Americans have been bombarded with hundreds of millions of dollars in political ads. Some address policy, while others make grand promises. Far too many make nasty accusations about their opponents, leaving many Americans caught in the middle, frustrated and confused. It seems nigh impossible to cut through the noise…. -
opinion
Midterms Will Shape the Future of the States—and Our Day-to-Day Lives
Summary Much ink has been spilled about the ramifications of the 2026 midterms, often with a focus on which party will end up with majorities in the U.S. House and Senate. But this election is about far more than who will control Congress. At the state level, voters in 36 states will elect governors, and… -
opinion
How China Landed in the Midterms and What Congress Does Next
Summary In Texas, a super PAC backing Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton put $15 million behind a buy that included an ad titled “Chinese Toy,” hitting Democrat candidate James Talarico for voting against the 2025 state law barring buyers tied to China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea from acquiring Texas property. Talarico answered with… -
opinion
After 6 Months of Jones Act Waivers, What Do We Know?
Summary Since March 17, 2026, the federal government has implemented a monthslong Jones Act waiver. This waiver allows foreign-flagged vessels to transport specified cargo between U.S. ports, easing shipping disruptions caused by the Iran conflict. As such, the waiver offers an opportunity to examine the Jones Act’s effectiveness in safeguarding and growing American shipping using… -
opinion
When the Text Matters: Textualism, Religious Liberty, and AI
Summary We are entering an age in which Americans increasingly turn to artificial intelligence for questions that previous generations would have taken to a pastor, priest, rabbi, imam—or directly to Scripture. What does the Bible say about forgiveness? What does the Torah teach about marriage? Which interpretation of a difficult passage is correct? Large language… -
opinion
My Experience as an American Censored by French Authorities
Summary On Halloween in Paris, a video went viral of an angry protester throwing a Molotov cocktail at the French police. It was an egregious act, and though the violence drew deserved condemnation, the French government had taken a very different approach to another controversy that same day: Rather than confront political violence, it had… -
opinion
Election Integrity Is on the Ballot in 2026
Election integrity will be on the ballot in the 2026 midterm elections. Voters will decide not only who controls Congress, but whether the election integrity reforms advanced by the Trump administration and the House of Representatives will continue. Because elections determine who governs, ensuring that only eligible citizens participate is fundamental to preserving self-government and…