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
GOP Legislative Agenda Faces Daunting Hurdles
When members of Congress return from recess this week, they will face challenges in their efforts to effect legislative change. The GOP is attempting to codify President Donald Trump’s ambitious agenda with narrow majorities in the House and Senate, all while a growing faction of Democrats is pushing for leadership to resist Trump even more. The…George Caldwell -
- Opinion
The Sky Will Not Fall and America Won’t Grind to a Halt Because Some Federal Employees Are Losing Their Jobs Due to DOGE
Fear is a strong motivator—especially when it’s given a political megaphone. And Democrat officials, public employee unions, and their minions in the media have no qualms about trying to terrify the public with ridiculous claims in an attempt to counter President Donald Trump’s swamp-cleansing initiatives through the work of the Department of Government Efficiency. Just…Hans von Spakovsky -
- Opinion
The Conservative Push to Reclaim Corporate America From Leftist Agendas
For decades, leftist activists deftly navigated corporate shareholder meetings, successfully bullying risk-averse corporate executives into submission on everything from irrational climate mandates to divisive race and gender-based initiatives. Conservatives played catch up, with The Heritage Foundation at the tip of the spear against corporate wokeism in publicly traded companies. With decades as an influential think…Carrie Sheffield -
- Opinion
John Roberts Is Responsible for the High Court’s Self-Delegitimization
At his 2005 Senate confirmation hearing to be chief justice of the United States Supreme Court, John Roberts famously invoked America’s national pastime in describing his view of the judicial role in our constitutional order: “Judges are like umpires. Umpires don’t make the rules, they apply them. The role of an umpire and a judge…Josh Hammer -
- Opinion
How Some Drugs Got to Pelosi’s District
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi lives in one of San Francisco’s poshest neighborhoods—that nonetheless sits only about 2 miles from the Tenderloin, one of the most drug-infested corners of the city. In 2019, when President Donald Trump was in his first term and Bill Barr was serving as attorney general, David Anderson, who was then…Terence Jeffrey -
- News
Oklahoma Debates How to Fight ESG, Amid AG-Treasurer Clash
Oklahoma lawmakers advanced legislation that could gut a three-year-old anti-ESG law and leave state taxpayers vulnerable to environmental, social, and governance-based investing, critics contend. The Oklahoma Senate Energy Committee recently advanced SB 714, sponsored by state Sen. Dave Rader, which amends the existing law on state contracts and transfers enforcement authority from the state treasurer…Fred Lucas -
- News
USAID Coordinated With Censorship Agency, Documents Show
The U.S. Agency for International Development coordinated closely with a State Department program to block what it considered “misinformation,” “disinformation,” and “malinformation,” according to newly released government documents. America First Legal, a conservative legal group, obtained more than 200 pages from the State Department through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit about the Global Engagement…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
On the Left, They Knew They Were Lying to Us All Along
For years, the Left has advanced utter untruths for cheap partisan purposes that they knew at the time were all false. And now when caught, they just shrug and say they were lying all along. They damned as incompetent, racist, and conspiratorial any who dared follow logic and evidence to point out that the Chinese…Victor Davis Hanson -
- News
EXCLUSIVE: Chip Roy’s New Bills Aim to Ensure No One Is ‘Indoctrinated to Hate Our Country’
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, introduced two bills Friday aimed at empowering parents and defunding schools that promote racial division. He frames the legislation as combating critical race theory, a lens by which teachers tell students to view America as institutionally racist in favor of whites and against blacks. While proponents either…Tyler O’Neil -
- News
Democrat Town Hall Shouting Matches Expose Intraparty Rift
Editor’s note: This report contains language some readers might find offensive. Democrat lawmakers are feeling pressure from the left flank of their party at town hall meetings across the country, with a series of outbursts from attendees urging them to take a more radical left-wing approach in Congress. The series of shouting matches comes shortly…George Caldwell -
- News
‘The Pendulum Has Shifted’: San Francisco Pride Loses Several Corporate Sponsors
It’s one thing for irritated Americans to pressure companies into abandoning progressive LGBT agendas; it’s another for long-time Pride sponsors in San Francisco to bail on their own. This year, several of San Francisco Pride’s major donors—Comcast, Anheuser-Busch, La Crema, Diageo, and Smirnoff—have pulled back from the 2025 Pride Parade and Civic Center Celebrations, leaving organizers scrambling…Sarah Holliday -
- News
Historian Barry Strauss Honored as 2025 Bradley Prize Winner
The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation announced Thursday that classicist, military, and naval historian and bestselling author Barry Strauss as the second 2025 Bradley Prize winner. Strauss, the Corliss Page Dean Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, will receive the award at the Bradley Prizes ceremony on May 29 in Washington, D.C. The award carries…R.E. Wermus -
- News
Inspector General Report Backs DOGE, Reveals Unused IRS Space Wastes Millions
The Department of Government Efficiency’s cutting of Internal Revenue Service office space is consistent with the federal government’s earlier findings about excessive expenses within the tax collecting agency. The Trump administration will reportedly close more than 110 IRS offices across the country. In June, during the Biden-Harris administration, the Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
What More Can Musk Do?
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. Elon Musk is in the news, again. It should be triumphant news accounts of what he’s…Victor Davis Hanson -
- Opinion
Musk Is Helping America Blast Off Into Space While Leftists Are Blasting Tesla Dealerships
The summer of joy is long over. After the Democrat Party’s attritional winter of defeats, we are seeing the Left spring into action in the worst possible way. In just the last few weeks there’s been an explosion of vandalism carried out on Tesla cars. Axios reported on Thursday that the Justice Department and FBI are investigating widespread attacks…Jarrett Stepman -
- News
DAR Chapters Continue Fight to Keep Men Out
During the American Revolutionary War, soldiers penned heartfelt letters to their wives or tactical missives to troop commanders. Today, some members of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR)—an organization founded in 1890 to honor those patriots—are writing letters of their own. Only now, they’re written to President Donald Trump in a desperate plea for…Sarah Holliday -
- Opinion
Is ‘Severance’ a Stealth Critique of the Pro-Choice Movement?
Spoiler alert: This article will assume the reader has already seen the first season. Is hit series “Severance” subtly making the case we should consider what we owe to unborn babies? Apple TV+’s “Severance,” Ben Stiller’s darkly comedic psychological thriller starring Adam Scott (“Parks and Recreation,” “The Good Place”), lends itself to interpretations, most proposing…Chris Decaen -
- Opinion
Here’s Why America Needs the HALT Fentanyl Act, and Why It Won’t Lead to Overcriminalization
I worked with President Donald Trump on the First Step Act and am acutely aware of the damage that unnecessarily tough-on-crime laws can do, but I am glad to vouch for the HALT Fentanyl Act, which advances both public health and just enforcement. Trump visited the Justice Department Tuesday, reaffirming his commitment to combating the…John Koufos -
- News
How Los Angeles Is Getting Scorched by Its Homeless Problem
VENICE, Calif.—Francesca Padilla was awakened by the sound of screaming people and breaking glass. Soon she could hear the tortured howls of her neighbor’s dog Togo as the bungalow right next to her Venice home was engulfed in flames. “It was yelping so loud—the sound isn’t the usual dog sound—it was suffering,” another neighbor told…Ana Kasparian -
- Opinion
Get Out Your Handkerchiefs for Kennedy Center Crybabies
WASHINGTON—Last week, audience members loudly booed Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha, at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The crowd was telling the Second Couple: You don’t belong on our turf. Ah, but there’s a new sheriff at the opera. President Donald Trump is now chairman of the Kennedy…Debra Saunders