Political Commentary & Opinion
Analysis, commentary, and opinion essays on politics and policy from The Daily Signal’s contributors and experts.
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- Opinion
Grounded by Bureaucracy: Trump’s Chance to Ditch the Feds, Commercialize the Skies
Air travel in America isn’t great—and that’s putting it lightly. Our nation’s antiquated air traffic control systems cost Americans tens of billions of dollars annually. That includes tens of thousands of years of lost time annually due to flight delays and cancellations, as well as higher prices caused by preventable limits on the supply of…Rachel Greszler -
- Opinion
With Michael Ledeen Gone, the World Lost One of Its Great Minds
The world has lost a towering intellect, a fearless thinker, and a deeply principled man. Michael Ledeen’s passing on May 18 marks the end of an era in which ideas were not just debated but lived, tested, and acted upon. The list of problems Michael solved over his 83 years was impressive, but it pales…Diana Furchtgott-Roth -
- Opinion
Abigail Spanberger Is No Moderate
Virginia gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger is busy trying to portray herself as a moderate, but her policy record proves she’s far from that. With a 5% lifetime score on the Heritage Action for America scorecard, Spanberger spent six years in Congress voting for policies like restricting economic freedom, weakening U.S. border security, and blocking voter…Carrie Sheffield -
- News
Attorneys Fight ‘Censorship, Plain and Simple’ Over Reparative Therapy Bans
First Amendment advocates appeared in court this week to overturn two laws aimed at trapping minors in the LGBTQ lifestyle by barring counselors from having consensual discussions with children who do not want to identify as transgender. Attorneys from the Alliance Defending Freedom sued Kansas City, Missouri, and Jackson County—the county-level government overseeing Kansas City—after…Ben Johnson -
- Opinion
‘People You Should Know’ Is a Love Letter to Bottom-Up Solutions
FREDERICKSBURG, Virginia—Steve Hotz started Black Horse Forge, a nonprofit organization that provides support for veterans, active-duty military personnel, and first responders through the ancient art of blacksmithing. The retired sergeant, who served 17 years in the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army, said he started the endeavor to teach the arts of blacksmithing, toolmaking….Salena Zito -
- Opinion
Afrikaner Double Standard Reminds Me Why I Left The Episcopal Church Behind
Thank God I left The Episcopal Church. After decades of partnering with the U.S. government to serve refugees, The Episcopal Church ended the relationship this past week, because the Trump administration asked them to serve refugees whose plight contradicts the woke Left’s grand narrative. Episcopal Migration Ministries had resettled almost 110,000 people across the U.S.,…Tyler O’Neil -
- Opinion
Democrats and Journalists Still Avoid Biden’s Decline
The first excerpts of the Jake Tapper-Alex Thompson book on denying former President Joe Biden’s obvious mental decline have been posted, and you can already sense Democrats don’t want to deal with what they have done. The book’s title is “Original Sin.” Why the biblical title? The authors write: “The original sin of Election 2024…Tim Graham -
- Opinion
Distrust and Accountability
CNN’s Kasie Hunt interviewed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer the other day. She confronted him about allegations of a meeting with former President Joe Biden that should have raised alarms about Biden’s fitness for office. “We’re moving forward,” Schumer replied. He would not answer the question. Chuck Todd, speaking afterwards on CNN, said, “He is…Erick Erickson -
- Opinion
Qatari Jets and Golden Threads
This week, controversy emerged when President Donald Trump announced that the Emirate of Qatar had offered him a gift: a $400 million jet, a modernized “flying palace” complete with all the fixings. The gift will be presented to the Department of Defense to be retrofit for Air Force One; after a short period of use,…Ben Shapiro -
- Opinion
‘Net Zero’ Is Ravaging Britain, But Its Populists Are Waking Up
A new conservative political party is rising in Britain, and it echoes President Donald Trump’s success in the United States, according to a veteran political observer who has lived in both countries. “I know the [United Kingdom] and Europe seem lost and adrift, but there are great movements happening at the local level in the…Tyler O’Neil -
- Opinion
End the ‘Nationwide’ Injunction Racket Once and for All
On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of Trump v. CASA, Inc. Though the case arises out of President Donald Trump’s January executive order on birthright citizenship and the 14th Amendment, Thursday’s oral argument had very little to do with the hotly contested substantive issue of whether the children of…Josh Hammer -
- News
Exclusive: CBO Halves Estimated Savings From Medicaid Ban on Child Sex Changes
A new preliminary estimate from the Congressional Budget Office that measured the impact of blocking Medicaid dollars from funding child sex-change procedures is causing Republicans to cast doubt on the CBO score. A preliminary estimate from the CBO obtained by The Daily Signal claims the savings from prohibiting Medicaid funds for those gender-transition procedures amount…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
- Opinion
When Posting a Bible Verse Cost a Realtor His Career
In the wake of U.S. Supreme Court victories in favor of Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop who had been targeted because he refused to bake a custom cake for a gay wedding, and high school football coach Joe Kennedy, who was fired for going against a school order not to kneel in prayer…Joe Thomas -
- Opinion
Biden’s Enablers Never Told Us Why They Did It
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal Senior Contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for The Daily Signal. I’d like to do something a little different in this video, and that is to ask…Victor Davis Hanson -
- Opinion
Exposed: A Week of the High and Mighty Showing Their True Colors
The start of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ trial has exposed how sick and seedy the music mogul is. As profane as that exposure is, it’s not as profound as the true colors exposed this week of some of the nation’s elite and esteemed institutions and individuals. We start with the former top law enforcement officer in…Al Perrotta -
- News
‘Not Given Full Picture’: Democrats Revise History of Their Remarks About Biden’s Condition
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., now says former President Joe Biden should not have run for reelection last year. Khanna told The Daily Signal that he had not been given the full picture on Biden’s declining health condition. “I only saw Biden a few times and was not given the full picture. In light of the…Jacob Adams -
- News
Judge Strikes Down EEOC’s Attempt to Force Businesses to ‘Deny Biological Truth’
The Biden administration unconstitutionally attempted to rewrite federal law to effectively force companies employing more than 14 people to allow men who claim to be transgender in women's restrooms and to use employees' preferred pronouns, a federal judge ruled Thursday. Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, an appointee of President Donald Trump, threw out a 2024 “guidance” document…Tyler O’Neil -
- News
Trump’s Lifting of Sanctions on Syria Wins Cautious Approval
The Trump administration made a bold announcement this week, declaring it would lift sanctions on Syria, earning bipartisan praise in doing so. “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness,” the president said on Tuesday in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh. The move…Jacob Adams -
- Opinion
The Real First 100 Days
Pundits are confused about what to make of the first 100 days of the second Trump administration. Supporters talk of “flooding the zone,” believing President Donald Trump is making so many changes so quickly that his opposition is reduced to deer-in-the-headlights infancy. They must be right when the nation suffers daily Democrat pottymouth videos, vandalism…Victor Davis Hanson -
- News
What’s Next for Comey in Secret Service Investigation
The Secret Service may try to force former FBI Director James Comey to answer pointed questions about a social media post he issued depicting an image of “8647,” but a U.S. attorney whom President Donald Trump appointed will determine whether to prosecute Comey over the post. If Comey refuses to comply with their request for…Susan Crabtree