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
Students Must Take Responsibility for Their Debt
Lending money is not, as they say, rocket science. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, in the last quarter of 2021, of the total of all outstanding business loans from all commercial banks, 1.08% were delinquent. Per the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, as of second quarter 2021, a little… -
opinion
Sean Spicer Blasts Jen Psaki’s Farewell Publicity Tour: ‘This Is So Unethical and Wrong’
Jen Psaki’s last day as White House press secretary will be this Friday, May 13. She’s expected to move next to a high-profile role at MSNBC, according to Axios, which reported April 1 “the deal is nearly final” even though no contract has been signed. “I’m glad that she’s found a soft landing,” says Sean… -
opinion
How Americans Became a Constitutional People
A new book by Gordon S. Wood, the great historian of the Founding, details how Americans drafted, ratified, and incorporated written constitutions into their politics and government as fundamental laws. “Instead of reforming the Articles [of Confederation], they throw them out and create an entirely new government—the federal Constitution that we have with us today,… -
opinion
Overturning Roe v. Wade Would Be Neither Radical Nor Conservative. It’s Just Right Thing to Do.
In a New York Times column published Tuesday, Bret Stephens argued that while Roe v. Wade was “ill-judged” when decided in 1973, overruling it today would be “a radical, not conservative, choice.” His premises and conclusion are both wrong. In a 2005 interview, then-Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia stated, “I do not think the Constitution,… -
opinion
To Defeat Mobocracy, Justices Must Plow Ahead and Overturn Roe
The scandalous leak of a full draft of Justice Samuel Alito’s five-justice-strong majority opinion in this term’s marquee Supreme Court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, is an event without precedent in the court’s history. If Alito’s coalition holds, the leaked majority opinion, a February-dated first draft whose authenticity has been confirmed by Chief… -
opinion
Somalilanders’ Quest for Independence Isn’t ‘Neocolonial’ Plot. It’s Self-Determination.
Salon.com ran a piece recently warning that the American right is “waging a stealth, neocolonial assault on Somalia.” The supposed “assault” is a growing campaign within the U.S. and elsewhere to recognize Somaliland’s independence from Somalia. The author, Mohamoud Gaildon, included as evidence a report that I wrote back in October. Gaildon’s piece is an… -
opinion
The Best Mother’s Day Gift: Overturning Roe
There is a universal truth felt deeply by every mom, found somewhere at the convergence of joy, pride, and heartbreak. The truth is our babies are not really our own. They are ours to raise, guide, care for and cherish—and above all, to love always—but they are unique persons, bearing the image of God, called… -
news
Biden White House Refuses to Condemn ‘Disgusting’ Efforts to Intimidate Supreme Court Justices
White House press secretary Jen Psaki refused to say if President Joe Biden condemned efforts to intimidate Supreme Court justices by posting their addresses online and protesting outside their homes. A left-wing group called Ruth Sent Us published the home addresses of the court’s six conservative justices online, called them “extremist,” and on Tuesday announced a May 11 protest outside their… -
opinion
Losing the People? Then Change the Rules
Court-packing—the attempt to enlarge the size of the Supreme Court for short-term political purposes—used to be a dirty word in the history of American jurisprudence. The tradition of a nine-person Supreme Court is now 153 years old. The last attempt to expand it for political gain was President Franklin Roosevelt’s failed effort in 1937. FDR’s… -
opinion
Christian Employers Push Back on Government’s Transgender Procedures Mandates
Now that a Democrat is back in the White House, at least two federal agencies have continued some of the commitments President Barack Obama had made to the transgender community—to the detriment of faith-based employers. The Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services has committed to continuing a gender identity mandate the department imposed… -
opinion
The Overdue Fall of Roe v. Wade
Nothing is normal about the way the public learned this week that Roe v. Wade is likely to be overturned by the Supreme Court, but then again, nothing is normal about taking the life of an unborn child. Roe v. Wade is the contentious 1973 high court ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. In a leaked… -
opinion
Oberlin College Gets Just Deserts for Smearing Bakery
Update: Legal Insurrection reported Aug. 30 that the Ohio Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from Oberlin College meaning that the Gibson Family Bakery is now entitled to collect approximately $36 million in punitive damages. While Oberlin College may appeal to have their appeal heard in federal court, William Jacobson says that strategy is… -
opinion
7 Reasons Roe v. Wade Should Be Overturned
In a stunning, unprecedented development this week, someone leaked a Supreme Court document suggesting that the justices soon will overturn the court’s Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion across the nation. The document—an initial draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito—was obtained and published by Politico. The draft opinion is an unflinching repudiation of… -
opinion
Utah Republicans Fight Credit Rating Company’s ‘Political Rating System’
A major credit rating company puts too much emphasis on so-called environmental, social, and governance factors in evaluating states, 11 of Utah’s top elected officials say in a letter to the company. Calling these ESG factors “credit indicators” is an absurd attempt “to legitimize a dubious and unproven exercise in developing a political ratings system… -
opinion
The Unintentionally Hilarious Anti-Tucker Term Paper
The New York Times has been alarmed by the existence of the Fox News Channel since it debuted in 1996. It developed a special fear and loathing of Bill O’Reilly when he hosted the top show in cable news. And now the paper is at it again, attacking Tucker Carlson. On Sunday and Monday, the… -
opinion
Pelosi Defends What the Church Correctly Calls Murder
Speaker Nancy Pelosi went to the House floor Sept. 24, 2021, to express her support for a bill that would enshrine a “right” to abortion in federal law. “For years, radical restrictions on women’s reproductive health freedoms have been pushed across the nation, with 2021 on track to be the worst legislative year for women’s… -
opinion
Here’s What to Watch Following Dobbs Draft Leak
Politico leaked a draft version of a Supreme Court decision for Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization late on May 2. It would uphold a Mississippi law protecting unborn children when they can feel pain—15 weeks of pregnancy—and overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Dated Feb. 10, the draft decision is not… -
opinion
Could Supreme Court Leaker Be Criminally Prosecuted? Maybe
Politico published a bombshell story late on May 2 that five Supreme Court justices had voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. Shockingly, the story even contained a link to an authenticated full draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito, which he apparently circulated to the other justices almost three months ago. This isn’t a final… -
opinion
The Age of the Absurd
The West has gone through many eras—the so-called Dark Ages, the Renaissance, the Age of Reason, the Enlightenment, the Industrial Age, and the Post-Modern. The present era is the Age of the Absurd. In terms of the absurdities the cultural elites believe, and have convinced masses of people to believe, there has never been a… -
opinion
Propaganda, American Style
As with many things, propaganda can be used for good or for ill, depending on who dispenses it. During World War II, American propaganda was considered a necessary tool in the pursuit of victory in a moral cause. Germany and Japan had their own propaganda machines to advance an evil agenda. The Nazi propaganda effort…