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
Remembering a Great Man and Important Conservative Leader
And the King said unto his servants, “Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel.” (II Samuels 3:38) This is the feeling about my oldest friend, Dr. Lee Edwards, who went to his heavenly reward Dec. 12, 2024. A prince and a great man. In the…Richard Viguerie -
- Opinion
Freeing People From the Left Starts With the US Census
Any day now, President-elect Donald Trump will nominate a new director of the U.S. Census Bureau, replacing President Joe Biden’s man, Robert L. Santos. Whoever Trump’s nominee will be needs to grasp how vital the job is for the long-term unity of the United States and for the need to free people from the Left’s balkanizing mission….Mike Gonzalez -
- News
Congresswoman Sounds Alarm on Fundraising Platform Under Scrutiny for Raking in Millions With Thousands of Tiny Donations
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—How did fewer than two dozen people give almost $1 million through controversial Democrat fundraising platform ActBlue with political donations as small as $5? Federal Election Commission records show that in recent elections, some elderly Americans made thousands of small donations to Democrat fundraising political committees through ActBlue—which currently is under…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
- Opinion
Time for Justice for Pro-Life Prisoners and the DC 5
Can you imagine being thrown in jail for peacefully protesting the deaths of babies in the womb? Well, you don’t have to, because it has happened. Today, the Left’s weaponization of a federal law called the FACE Act has led to exactly that, unjustly persecuting pro-life advocates who are its ideological opponents. But finally, after…Jamie Dangers -
- News
Building the Iron Dome
This is an excerpt from Victoria Coates’ new book, “The Battle for the Jewish State: How Israel—and America—Can Win.” President Ronald Reagan’s rationale for launching SDI [the Strategic Defense Initiative] in his 1983 speech could have been written by any Israeli Prime Minister: “I’ve become more and more deeply convinced that the human spirit must…Victoria Coates -
- News
HOSTAGE: Siblings Recount Day Their Sisters Were Taken
The free world is in a fight against terrorism, according to Yarden Gonen, the big sister of Romi Gonen who has been held hostage in Gaza for over 14 months. If action is not taken soon to release her sister and all the hostages still in Gaza, “maybe they won't stay alive, and then…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
Latest Woke Triumph: Feminist Spelling for Third Graders
The team behind the Scripps National Spelling Bee whacked a hornet’s nest when it identified specific words for potential competitors to ponder. Its list of “50 challenging third grade words” includes giraffe, groceries, and jigsaw. So far, so good. But beneath the “preferred spelling” of women, a permitted option appears: “womyn.” Naturally, this feminist twist…Deroy Murdock -
- Opinion
Proposed Bill Risks $196B Hit to Social Security, Accelerating Insolvency
Lame ducks never make for good policy. Having passed a lame-duck vote in the House, HR 82, the so-called Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 is now set for a lame-duck Senate vote. Despite its name, the Social Security Fairness Act is neither fair, nor accurate, nor fiscally responsible. It violates Social Security’s progressive…Rachel Greszler -
- Opinion
Many Unhappy Returns: Journalists Deserve All the Angst Trump’s 2nd Term Brings
The reelection of Donald Trump has created overwhelming angst among the press. With Trump, they have been like the opposite of the Humpty Dumpty rhyme. The media are all the king’s horses and all the king’s men—and they couldn’t tear Humpty Dumpty apart. All their screeching about his menace only makes him successful. Longtime CBS…Tim Graham -
- Opinion
No, Billionaires Like Elon Musk Don’t Run American Politics
Some prominent Democrats are suggesting that the U.S. is becoming an oligarchy or kleptocracy, where billionaires like Elon Musk have the real power and essentially elect presidents after President-elect Donald Trump’s victory. Billionaires like Musk do play a role in American politics, but it is far more limited than it appears. For every SpaceX founder…Tyler O’Neil -
- Opinion
It’s Time for a National Conversation About Left-Wing Violence
Even before we knew the targeted killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson by Luigi Mangione was politically motivated, many leftists were justifying, celebrating, and rationalizing the shooting. There’s a real debate going on in some quarters of the progressive Left over whether slaying CEOs is a bad thing. And it’s unsurprising. Of course, if any…David Harsanyi -
- Opinion
No ‘Buts’ About It: Leftist Democrats Are Wrong in Excusing Violence
Democrats are slowly, but surely, building a permission structure for progressive activists to kill those they determine are bad. From the rise of antisemitism to, now, the killing of an insurance CEO, few Democrats seem capable of condemning violence without adding a “but.” To their credit, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Sen. John Fetterman, both D-Penn.,…Erick Erickson -
- Opinion
Why Is American Health Care So Bad?
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of the accompanying video from professor Peter St. Onge. How did American health care get so bad? Why do we tolerate a system where you go bankrupt for a hip replacement? Compared to socialized medicine, on almost any metric the U.S. has one of the best medical…Peter St. Onge -
- Opinion
‘Gladiator II’ Is a MAGA Metaphor
Hollywood sequels rarely achieve the magic of the original, but “Gladiator II” comes close. Except for the familiar populist framework of a lone man taking on “the system” against all odds, the echoes to the original are sufficiently distant that the new movie feels fresh and original. Plus, it turns out that Ridley Scott’s blockbuster…Richard Porter -
- Opinion
Trump’s George Washington Moment
Months before the November election, a research study with which I was involved asked respondents which of 10 historical presidents they wished were in the Oval Office today. To prevent “recency” bias, we kept the list to former presidents whose legacies are largely defined: George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore…Steve McKee -
- Opinion
How Vietnam Can Be Key to America’s Strength, Stability in Indo-Pacific
Forget “Made in China.” There’s a much better alternative that puts America first. Born in 1975, the same year the Vietnam War ended, I witnessed Vietnam’s profound struggles under socialism and its remarkable transition toward a market economy. My father, who served alongside U.S. forces during the war, brought our family to the United States,…Allison Huynh -
- Opinion
Stop the Smear
Young blood is here. President-elect Donald Trump has gone full throttle for a new generation of leaders. Consider these Trump nominees for Cabinet posts: Though Matt Gaetz, 42, withdrew his bid to lead the Justice Department, he fit the profile as well—young, outspoken, willing to cut against the grain. Not everyone welcomes the generational change. When smears and media…Citizen Soldier -
- News
Major Democratic State Faces Devastating Population Bomb
THE CENTER SQUARE—New York’s population could decline by more than 2 million people over the next 25 years as fewer people are born in the state and more people move out, according to a new report. The study by Cornell University’s Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy’s Program on Applied Demographics projects that New…Chris Wade -
- Opinion
Inside ‘the Blob’: How Bureaucrats Brought Down Britain’s Leader
A new documentary from Palladium Pictures and The Wall Street Journal examines how Britain’s permanent bureaucracy—nicknamed “the Blob”—played a pivotal role in ending Liz Truss‘ brief tenure in late 2022 as prime minister. Through interviews with Truss and other key players, director Michael Pack, a former CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, reveals…Rob Bluey -
- News
What Role Did Ex-FBI Head Andy McCabe’s Wife Play in Gov’t Weaponization Against Parents? Conservative Group Demands Answers
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—A conservative group is demanding documents from the Justice Department that could shed light on whether former FBI Deputy Director Andy McCabe or his wife played any role in the campaign to sic federal law enforcement on parents who protested school boards in 2021. In a statement to The Daily Signal…Tyler O’Neil