Political Commentary & Opinion
Analysis, commentary, and opinion essays on politics and policy from The Daily Signal’s contributors and experts.
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news
Labor Department Rule Broadens Religious Protections in Federal Contracting
The Labor Department on Wednesday announced a new rule to grant the “broadest protection permitted by law” to religious organizations contracting with the federal government. The proposed rule to clarify civil rights protections for religious groups will be added to the Federal Register on Thursday, but is now open to public comment. “Today’s proposed… -
opinion
Why We Embrace Conspiracy Theories
This week, convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was found unresponsive in his jail cell from an apparent hanging, the day after a court unsealed a cache of documents from a lawsuit against his alleged procurer, Ghislaine Maxwell. Those documents included affidavits from Virginia Roberts Giuffre, the plaintiff, that allege Epstein trafficked her to major figures, including… -
news
California Parents Powerless Against School District’s LGBTQ Content, Emails Show
A California school district will not allow parents to opt their children out of classes containing LGBTQ content, figures, or historical references, emails show. Murrieta School District says parents have the ability to opt their children out of comprehensive sexual health, but parents are still not able to opt their children out of LGBTQ content… -
opinion
Ignoring the Debt Will Come Back to Bite Us
Shrinking the national debt would do a world of good for the country. For one, it would allow us to ensure a strong national defense in the face of rising global threats. It would allow us to preserve and build on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to keep taxes low and unleash further investment…. -
news
Christian Women’s Shelter Doesn’t Need to Admit Trans Woman, Court Rules
An Anchorage civil rights panel cannot enforce an anti-discrimination ordinance against a battered women’s shelter that refused to admit a trans woman, a federal court in Alaska ruled. “Downtown Hope Center serves everyone, but women deserve a safe place to stay overnight,” said lawyer Kate Anderson of the Alliance Defending Freedom, a public interest law practice… -
opinion
Gillette’s Political Correctness Backfires
“Your stupid boycotts will never make a dent in a company like P&G,” one liberal scoffed back in January. Turns out, they didn’t just make a dent. After a string of male-bashing, transgender shaving ads, the parent company of Gillette got nicked so badly, market experts wonder if the brand will survive. Gillette’s CEO insists… -
opinion
Terrorist Attacks in Southern Yemen Complicate Civil War Peace Process
Two separate terrorist attacks earlier this month struck the Yemeni governorate of Aden, and those were followed by a third attack in Abyan. All told, the attacks reportedly killed at least 68, including security personnel from the United Arab Emirates-backed Security Belt Forces, shaking the relative calm in one of the deadliest eruptions of violence… -
opinion
Why Blacks Should Ignore the Liberal Agenda
There is discrimination of all sorts, and that includes racial discrimination. Thus, it’s somewhat foolhardy to debate the existence of racial discrimination yesteryear or today. From a policy point of view, a far more useful question to ask is: How much of the plight of many blacks can be explained by current racial discrimination? Let’s… -
opinion
Podcast: Protests Escalate in Hong Kong
Pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong are intensifying, with the city’s main airport getting shut down. The big question: Will Beijing get involved? In today’s episode, we discuss that and more with Mike Gonzalez, a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation. Plus: Miley Cyrus is getting a divorce, and her rationale doesn’t reflect too well on… -
news
Nurses Accuse Union of Pressure Tactics in Hospital Organizing Drive
MIDDLETOWN, Pennsylvania—Staffers who took down pro-union signs posted without authorization in their hospital were injured by staples “turned around backward” and “held in place by mustard,” nurses say. The nurses, who spoke with The Daily Signal about a union rally last week near the entrance to St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, said the… -
opinion
Congress Poised to Give Unions a Massive Bailout
A new report from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. shows that the private union pension crisis is only getting worse, and now Congress is poised to make it worse still. Not only are many multiemployer pension plans rapidly approaching insolvency, but the situation is so bad that even the pension safety net—the PBGC’s Multiemployer Program—will be bankrupt in just… -
opinion
3 Ways Trump’s New Regulations Will Better Protect Endangered Species
The Trump administration has just taken an important step in the effort to protect threatened and endangered species. On Monday, the administration published final regulations that will improve implementation of the Endangered Species Act. This law simply hasn’t worked. Over the law’s more than 45 years, only about 3% of the species listed as threatened… -
opinion
This Sheriff Was Sued for Cooperating With ICE. Now, He’s Vindicated.
What should we do with illegal aliens who break local criminal laws? Most people would agree that, once they’ve served their time, they should be removed from the country rather than sent back into the community where they can commit more crimes. But the Legal Aid Justice Center of Falls Church, Virginia, disagrees. So when… -
opinion
Questions Swirl Around Epstein’s Death
After the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, investigators discovered that the lone man assigned to guard the president, John Parker, had abandoned his post to watch the play from an adjacent box at Ford’s Theater. Worse, at intermission, Parker adjourned to a nearby saloon to have drinks with some friends. It was during the second act… -
opinion
What’s Next for Epstein Investigation
What’s going to happen in the Justice Department investigation of the death of Jeffrey Epstein? Is there any hope for his victims to get justice yet? And what about the high-profile figures with ties to Epstein? Heritage Foundation’s John Malcolm joins us to discuss. Read the transcript, posted below, or listen on the podcast: We… -
news
How Charlottesville ‘Resistance’ and Violence Felled a Rising Political Star
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia—Days after President Donald Trump’s inauguration in January 2017, then-Mayor Michael Signer held a press conference at this city’s outdoor downtown mall that turned into a political rally drawing hundreds. That’s where the mayor declared to a cheering crowd that Charlottesville was a “capital of the resistance.” Signer’s stand that Jan. 31 was in… -
news
William Barr Has a Message for Jeffrey Epstein’s Co-Conspirators
Attorney General William Barr said Monday that he was “appalled” by Jeffrey Epstein’s apparent suicide over the weekend, but urged that the millionaire pedophile’s co-conspirators “should not rest easy.” “This sex trafficking case was very important to the Department of Justice and to me personally,” Barr said during a speech before the National Fraternal Order… -
opinion
Have You Talked to a Liberal Lately? You Might Have More in Common Than You Think
You've heard it before—on TV, in the halls of Congress, and maybe in your own hometown: America is more divided now than at any point in our lifetime. But is this perception reality? On today's episode of The Daily Signal Podcast, we examine why America is so polarized—or if it's actually just our perception. Research… -
news
2 Years After the Riot, Charlottesville Struggles to Move Forward
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia—Both hands holding shopping bags at the outdoor Historic Downtown Mall, Denzel Clark says he doesn’t want the city to get rid of Confederate statues. “I honestly don’t,” Clark, a 23-year-old African American, tells The Daily Signal, even as he remembers the violence exchanged by white supremacists and “anti-fascists” in the city two years… -
opinion
Boeing’s Dropping Bid for Next-Generation ICBM Represents Shrinking Industrial Base
In late July, Boeing dropped out of the running for the new intercontinental ballistic missile competition. Boeing chose to remove itself with the expectation it will be unable to provide the system at a competitive price. Nuclear weapons and the missiles that carry them are key elements of the United States’ overall ability to…