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
Here’s What Small Business Owners Like Me Need in Tax Reform 2.0
What’s even better than one federal tax cut bill? Two rounds of tax cuts. It just might happen this summer, according to House Speaker Paul Ryan. Tax Reform 2.0, as it’s being called, would aim to make the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s individual tax cuts permanent, extending them past their 2025 expiration date. But just as importantly, this second set of tax… -
opinion
Bernie Sanders Says the System Is ‘Rigged.’ Here’s What Adam Smith Would Say.
Adam Smith, the 18th-century intellectual founder of modern free-market economics, famously called the economic system he advocated “the obvious and simple system of natural liberty.” Smith defended natural liberty on the grounds that it offered the best chance for sustained economic growth. That was important to him because robust economic growth offered the best security… -
opinion
Rudy Giuliani Is Right: Settlement With Stormy Daniels Didn’t Violate Campaign Finance Law
Update: Appearing on The Daily Signal podcast Aug. 23, Hans von Spakovsky noted the relevance of this commentary to former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen’s guilty plea. “Whether or not it’s a violation of campaign finance law all depends on whether this can be considered a campaign-related expense,” von Spakovsky said. He added: I think the government… -
opinion
How a ‘Far-Left Propaganda Machine’ Got a Respected Legal Group Expelled by Amazon
Alliance Defending Freedom has won seven cases at the U.S. Supreme Court in as many years, including one that upheld an Arizona school choice program and another that prevented the state of Missouri from discriminating against a Christian preschool. The legal powerhouse, which fights for religious freedom, is awaiting decisions in two more landmark free… -
opinion
Problematic Women: New York Times Writer Calls Motherhood ‘Dumbest Job Ever’
Is motherhood “the dumbest job ever”? Just in time for Mother’s Day, that’s what one New York Times writer is suggesting. We talk about this, along with a new book detailing Hillary Clinton’s campaign hypocrisies, and the trend of members in Congress sleeping in their offices because they can’t afford rent (or so they say)… -
opinion
The Consequences of Historical Ignorance
America is suffering through a crisis in education, especially when it comes to history. Many were horrified when a poll, released in April, showed that two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is, despite the fact that it was the most notorious Nazi death camp in World War II. That was hardly the only worrisome… -
opinion
Podcast: The Dangers of Glorifying Marx
Incredibly, a New York Times op-ed praised Karl Marx this week. The Daily Signal’s Jarrett Stepman joins us today to discuss that, and the long-term implications of American students’ knowing little about history. Plus: Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaks about the Michelle Wolf jokes at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. -
opinion
I Was at the Correspondents Dinner. Here’s What It Felt Like When Wolf Spoke.
Cable television has continued to buzz in reaction to the remarks from comedian Michelle Wolf at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner this past weekend. Wolf has been on the receiving end of widespread condemnation for steering her monologue far over the line of what should be considered acceptable. Wolf hurled personal insults not only… -
opinion
California’s Next Step in the Sexual Revolution: Silencing Certain Beliefs
The same voices who claimed that the sexual revolution was about expanding personal choice are now seeking to strip away the freedom of people to pursue their self-chosen counseling goals. Instead, they want to force people into narrow boxes, whether they want to live in those boxes or not. At least that’s the direction things… -
opinion
The Perfect Parting Gift for Cecile Richards
When Planned Parenthood’s Cecile Richards walked out of her office for the last time Monday, fans gushed that her legacy wouldn’t be forgotten. They’re right—because Richards’ legacy is the brutal slaughter of 3.5 million unborn lives. In her 12 years at the top, Planned Parenthood destroyed a population bigger than Chicago’s—and somehow managed to convince Congress to… -
opinion
Boy Scouts Nix the Word ‘Boy,’ Showing They No Longer Believe in Masculinity
It seems the Boy Scouts of America would prefer not to exist. On Wednesday, the Boy Scouts announced that their signature program known simply as the “Boy Scouts”—which serves ages 10 to 17—will no longer bear the word “boy.” Beginning in February, it will be known as Scouts BSA. This change comes only months after… -
news
Afraid LGBT Speech Law Will Pass in California, Christian Ministry Cancels 2 Conferences There
A Christian educational organization has canceled two leadership sessions in California because a bill moving through the state Legislature would censor speech and religious freedom. California “is just about to ban Christians from giving advice about sexual ethics based on the Bible that has been followed by billions of people for thousands of years,” Summit… -
opinion
Podcast: Why This New Lawsuit Could Finally End DACA Program
The Heritage Foundation’s Hans von Spakovsky joins us to discuss why a new lawsuit, spearheaded by Texas and including six other states, could succeed. Plus: The Boy Scouts are dropping the “boy” part of their name. -
opinion
DACA Should Be Overturned. A New Lawsuit Might Succeed in Doing That.
A lawsuit filed Tuesday by Texas and six other states may finally result in the long-overdue termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which was created without legal authority by President Barack Obama in 2012 to allow children brought into the U.S. illegally to temporarily remain here under certain conditions. The lawsuit does… -
opinion
Liberals’ ‘Uncle Tom’ Card Is Dead
Here is a short list of prominent conservatives and independent thinkers who’ve been accused by their critics of being an “Uncle Tom” or some other vitriolic variation on the overplayed left-wing theme of being a traitor to their race or gender (“Aunt Tomasina,” “Uncle Juan,” “Aunt Jemima,” “Uncle Wong,” etc.): White House press secretary Sarah… -
opinion
Michelle Wolf’s Hate-Driven Jokes Highlight the Growing Divide in US
Humor is a good and important thing. The ability to laugh at life, to laugh at oneself, shows faith, optimism, and humility. Laughter in the face of adversity is a sign of a healthy spirit. In this sense, the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner was once a positive event. Poking fun at the highest… -
opinion
Here’s How Few Republicans Are On College Faculties
Just within the past week or so, some shocking professorial behavior has come to light. In the wake of Barbara Bush’s death, California State University, Fresno professor Randa Jarrar took to Twitter to call the former first lady an “amazing racist.” Jarrar added: PSA: either you are against these pieces of s— and their genocidal… -
opinion
Podcast: US Should Leave Iran Deal
The Heritage Foundation’s Jim Phillips, an expert in Middle Eastern affairs, joins us today to discuss the revelations about Iran’s behavior and what President Donald Trump should do about the Iran deal. Plus: a new study reveals many Americans leading lonely lives. -
opinion
The Left Is Merciless at Keeping Conservatives in the Closet
The dominant force in America and many other Western countries today is fear of the left. This is a result of the fact that the most dynamic religion of the past 100 years has been neither Christianity nor Islam. It has been leftism. Whoever does not recognize this does not understand the contemporary world. Leftism—in… -
opinion
5 Takeaways From Israel’s Massive Intelligence Operation on Iran
The Israeli government on Monday unloaded a massive intelligence data dump that demonstrated Iran’s efforts to hide its nuclear weapons program. The revelations come weeks before an anticipated decision by the U.S. to “fix or nix” the Iran nuclear deal. Reactions to the Israeli intelligence revelations ranged from “ding-dong the deal is dead” to “nothing…