Political Commentary & Opinion
Analysis, commentary, and opinion essays on politics and policy from The Daily Signal’s contributors and experts.
-
opinion
Our Government Spent $19,762 Per Person Last Year. That Compares to $780 Back in 1920.
Two years after World War I ended—in fiscal year 1920—the federal government spent approximately $6,358,000,000, according to Historical Table 1.1 published by the White House Office of Management and Budget. At the same time, the government collected approximately $6,649,000,000 in taxes—and ran a surplus of $291,000,000. When that federal spending of $6,358,000,000 is adjusted for… -
news
‘Subverts the Right and Duty of Parents’: Bowser, DC Sued for Allowing Children to Get Vaccinated Without Parental Consent
Multiple parents have filed lawsuits against Washington, D.C., for allowing children to receive vaccines without parental knowledge or consent. In a lawsuit filed Monday by the Children’s Health Defense and Parental Rights Foundation against D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, four parents call for a preliminary injunction prohibiting D.C. from enforcing the D.C. Minor Consent for Vaccinations Amendment Act of… -
opinion
Research Used to Justify California’s ‘Equity’ Math Framework Doesn’t Add Up
The push to create “equity” and more “social justice” in public schools in California, America’s largest state, rests on this basic premise: “We reject ideas of natural gifts and talents,” declares the current draft of the California Math Framework, which also states that it rejects “the cult of genius.” Informed by that fundamental idea, the 800-page… -
opinion
Zaila and the Bee
By any standard, Zaila Avant-garde is a remarkable 14-year-old girl with a positive and compelling outlook on life. Zaila (her father reportedly changed her surname from Heard in honor of jazz legend John Coltrane) recently won the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee, the first African American to win the highly competitive spelling contest. She told reporters… -
opinion
Is America Facing a Women’s Employment Crisis?
Vice President Kamala Harris has called the situation a “national emergency,” but is it really? Right now, America has a record number of jobs available. “Help Wanted” signs are everywhere. Yet, the labor participation rate remains low, and women in particular are slow to return to the workforce. Since February 2020, more than 1.6 million women… -
opinion
Why Repealing the Hyde Amendment Will Kill Black Lives
The Hyde Amendment is under attack. Before President Joe Biden even took office in January 2021, leading Democrats announced their plans to upset decades of bipartisan consensus and fight to repeal the Hyde Amendment. As Biden pursues his policy agenda this year, activists and Democratic legislators have only sharpened their calls to action, decrying the… -
opinion
Admission Fraud Shows Why Colleges Should Reward Hard Work, Not Race
Meritocracy ensures the proper functioning of our systems and institutions. Throughout history, various civilizations have concluded that merit-based systems best contribute to the flourishing of a society. Both the imperial and post-Mao Chinese states, as well as the United States, are clear examples. It is difficult to dispute that these nations both rose to prominence… -
news
Court Declares Laws Banning Handgun Sales to People Under 21 Unconstitutional
A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that federal laws banning firearms dealers from selling handguns to customers under the age of 21 were unconstitutional. The United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit said in the decision that there was no reason to treat the Second Amendment any differently from other constitutional rights citizens… -
opinion
Bogus Claims and Political Perfidy From So-Called Poor People’s Campaign
The Poor People’s Campaign has announced a “season of nonviolent, moral direct action,” targeting the U.S. Senate with disruptive activities every Monday, now through Aug 2. According to the campaign’s co-chair, the Rev. William Barber II, “The Senate must end the filibuster, protect and expand voting rights, and pass a minimum wage of $15 an… -
opinion
What Foreign Dissidents Understand About the American Flag
Thousands of Cuban dissidents marched Sunday against the repressive communist tyranny that has subjugated the Cuban people for three generations. They chanted “Libertad!” and called for the end of the regime. And they carried aloft a symbol of freedom: the American flag. This isn’t a rarity. It’s a common sight among protesters for freedom worldwide…. -
opinion
What’s Best Thing Most Americans Can Do to Make Country Better?
Some think tank or polling organization should ask 1,000 Americans: What is the best thing most Americans can do to make the country better? Presumably, those most influenced by their schooling and by the media would answer something along the lines of “fight racism” or “work to reduce inequality.” Whatever the specific answer, most young… -
opinion
She Was Imprisoned in Her Native Cuba. Here’s How She Describes Life Under Communism.
Lala Mooney, born in communist Cuba, was imprisoned there at age 19. As protests erupt in the Caribbean nation, Mooney, mother of Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to talk about what life there is like. “At the economic level, we lost everything,” Mooney says. “My mother’s family owned a sugar mill… -
news
Fact-Checking 6 Big Claims in Biden’s Partisan-Tinged Speech on Voting
In a major speech Tuesday, President Joe Biden linked voter ID requirements to repressive Jim Crow laws in the South after the Civil War, declaring it’s “not hyperbole” and insisting it’s time to ask: “Are you on the side of truth or lies?” Biden delivered his fiery remarks at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia… -
opinion
Biden on Track to Have Most Expensive White House Staff in US History
President Joe Biden has wasted no time filling out his White House staff, employing 567 people at a projected cost of $200 million over his four-year term. That is compared to the Trump administration, which spent $164.3 million between 2017 and 2020, and the Obama administration spending $188.5 million between 2009 and 2012, both of… -
opinion
Marking a Milestone With Manila: 75 Years of US-Philippines Relations
The United States and the Philippines will celebrate two important milestones in their bilateral relationship this year. Last weekend marked the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, signed on July 4, 1946, as well as the 70th anniversary of our mutual defense treaty with the Philippines. That makes the… -
news
What’s Really Going On Inside Cuba
Thousands of Cubans protested in the streets Sunday because of dire conditions brought about by the Caribbean nation’s communist regime. What is going on there, what will be the repercussions for protesters who have had the courage to gather in the streets, and how should the U.S. respond? “It’s a very dark moment right now,” says… -
opinion
Cuban Protests Are Reminders of Communism’s Evils—and of Why America Is Land of Hope
What’s ruined Cuba isn’t the coronavirus. The lethal virus of communism did. Massive protests erupted in Cuba over the weekend. Cubans, in dozens of cities, could be heard shouting “Freedom!” and “Down with communism!” Demonstrations have occurred in Cuba in the past, but these appear to be truly unprecedented in scope. They come as the… -
opinion
Leftists’ Applause for Texas Democrats’ Flight Shows Hypocrisy on Democracy
If democracy dies, does any leftist care? You’d think so: After all, we’ve had years of hand-wringing about the erosion of democracy in our nation, from The Washington Post’s “Democracy dies in darkness” motto to The New Yorker magazine fretting in a headline that “American Democracy Isn’t Dead Yet, but It’s Getting There.” No doubt,… -
opinion
Big Business Loves Big Government
Politicians say they pass laws to “protect Americans from big business.” People like hearing that. Many don’t like big business. Unfortunately, most people don’t realize that those laws often help big business while hurting consumers. “Big business and big government are not enemies like a lot of people think they are,” says American Enterprise Institute… -
news
This Cuban Dissident Hopes to See End of ‘Castro Tyranny’
Antonio Rodiles said he has lost count of how many times he was arrested in Cuba. The human rights activist in 2010 founded Estado de SATS in Cuba, a forum calling for political and economic reform in his home country. Rodiles, who is now visiting Florida and lives in Cuba, says he is watching the…