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
Why the Cancellation of ABC’s ‘Nashville’ Is Good for Taxpayers
There was some big news in the entertainment industry recently as the television show “Nashville” was cancelled after four seasons. As a casual fan of the show and a Nashville resident, I enjoyed watching the show. It allowed me to brag to my friends about where I live, plus the music was always on point. Obviously,… -
news
Phoenix Artists Threatened With Jail Time If They Don’t Serve Gay Weddings
A lawsuit filed in Arizona claims a city ordinance forces local artists to use their talents to promote same-sex weddings and does not allow them to express freely their belief that marriage is between one man and one woman. Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative, Christian legal organization, filed a pre-enforcement challenge to Phoenix’s city code… -
news
Conservative Group Fights California AG’s Attempt to ‘Chill’ Speech
Though a federal judge recently ruled that a conservative nonprofit group doesn’t have to disclose its donor list to California’s Democratic attorney general, conservatives believe this case is just the latest in an ongoing fight related to political activity and free speech. “This was a great victory for free speech for everyone in this country,”… -
opinion
Why We’re Falling Behind in World Trade
You may not know it, but May is World Trade Month. According to Stefan M. Selig, U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade: Every year, World Trade Month—designated for the month of May—gives us the opportunity to acknowledge the importance of global trade, and look back at the economic advancements we have made as… -
news
Is It Time for Criminal Justice Reform? 2 Law Enforcement Groups Are at Odds
While the unusual coalition of President Barack Obama and conservative groups hold out hope for the chance at what they call the most meaningful reform to criminal sentencing laws in a generation, frontline law enforcement officials are debating what the changes would mean for their communities. Steven Cook, whose organization represents more than 5,500 assistant… -
opinion
An Interactive Timeline of the 85 Islamist Terror Plots Since 9/11
South Florida Synagogue Plot On April 29, James Gonzalo Medina was arrested for attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction to attack a Florida synagogue. While the investigation has shown no direct affiliation to an international terrorist group, Medina desired to attribute the attack to an international Islamist terror organization. This is the 85th… -
opinion
We Don’t Need a National Zoning Board
The Obama economy has been tough on America’s working families. Just last week Pew Research Center reported that in the last 15 years “the middle class lost ground in nearly nine-in-ten U.S. metropolitan areas.” One cause of this 15-year squeeze of hardworking Americans? Rising housing prices. Regulatory fees on home builders have increased a whopping 30 percent… -
news
How Maine’s Time Limit on Welfare Pushed One Woman to Pull Herself Out of Poverty
Jill Rothrock knows the moment she hit rock bottom. It was 2007, and Rothrock went into the pharmacy in Bucksport, Maine, to pick up a prescription for Vicodin that she had called in herself. Her two daughters were in the car, and after she had picked up the pills, Rothrock got back into a car… -
news
The Deadly Crossing on the US-Mexico Border
Today on “Full Measure,” we have a report on “The Missing”—the hundreds of illegal immigrants who cross the border, never to be seen alive again. Their remains are found in remote desert areas. For this story, I traveled to the Tucson, Ariz., morgue where advanced forensic science is used to identify the remains, and let… -
news
Louisiana Republicans Move to Punish ‘Sanctuary’ Cities
Louisiana Republicans and the state’s attorney general are aiming to deter cities and localities from having “sanctuary” immigration policies by threatening to withhold funding from those that do. While the designation of a “sanctuary city” is informal, it generally refers to jurisdictions where local officials refuse to fulfill requests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement… -
opinion
Union Giveaways in Air Traffic Control Bill Set a Bad Precedent
The Aviation Innovation Reform and Reauthorization Act contains several reforms that move in the right direction. Notably, it removes America’s air traffic control system from the Federal Aviation Administration and establishes it as a federally chartered, nonprofit corporation. But the legislation includes troubling labor provisions. Its supporters seem intent on buying government union support by… -
opinion
Rousseff’s Downfall Punctuates Brazil’s ‘Lost Decade’
Brazil’s senate voted to begin impeachment trails for President Dilma Rousseff on Thursday. Rousseff, who is accused of breaking federal budget laws, will be suspended from her position while the trial takes place. The suspension provides an opportunity for Brazil—Latin America’s largest country—to bring to an end a “Lost Decade” during which misguided policies resulted… -
news
Judge Faces Removal, $40K Fine Because of Her Beliefs About Marriage
A state agency wants to remove a small-town judge in Wyoming from two posts because she told a reporter that her religious beliefs would prevent her from solemnizing same-sex marriages. In her full-time responsibilities, Municipal Judge Ruth Neely isn’t authorized to preside over marriages. In part-time duties on the local Circuit Court, though, she could… -
news
What Does ‘We the People’ Really Mean? A Constitutional Scholar Explains
Do you know the difference between a democracy and a constitutional republic? Georgetown University law professor Randy Barnett wants to clear up any confusion. Barnett, director of Georgetown’s Center for the Constitution, wrote the book “Our Republican Constitution” to explain what the founders really meant by “We the People” in the U.S. Constitution. During a… -
opinion
Stoned Drivers Are Killing More and More Innocent Victims
Blake Gaston, 23, killed while riding his motorcycle in Seattle. He played the piano, guitar, drums, wrote music, and developed websites. Elizabeth Kemble, 46, was killed by a car while walking across the street in Portland, Ore. She previously survived three kidney transplants, and dedicated her life to helping dialysis patients and hungry seniors. Debra Majkut, 34, mother… -
opinion
Yes, Iran Is Still Hostile to the US
The Obama legacy is already unraveling. Last week, President Barack Obama’s deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes, revealed that the nuclear deal with Iran was based on a giant lie he sold to the American public. Rhodes admitted to concocting a narrative about the U.S.-Iranian negotiations in order to create the impression that the U.S…. -
opinion
A Career Litigation Track Is Necessary for Army and Air Force JAGS
This week, the armed services committees in the senate and house consider an amendment requiring the Army and Air Force JAG Corps to establish career litigation tracks for uniformed attorneys. The Army and Air Force oppose such legislation and are furiously lobbying congress against the creation of career military prosecutors and defense attorneys, despite the… -
news
Sexual Abuse Survivors Talk About ‘Devastating Implications’ From Transgender Bathroom Laws
Policies allowing a person who is biologically male to access women’s restrooms and locker rooms can create negative, unintended consequences, according to some sexual abuse survivors. “The presence of a male of any variety, whether he’s somebody who identifies as a trans or not, whether he has deviant motives or not, that’s irrelevant to the… -
opinion
MACRA Implementation Should Reflect the Original Intent of the Legislation
On April 27, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its proposed rule regarding the implementation of the provisions outlined in the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). The basic goal of the MACRA was to repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) mechanism of Medicare physician payment and replace… -
news
‘People Are Going to Get Hurt’: America’s Quiet War in Iraq
U.S. ARMED FORCES, Iraq—The aircraft parked on the ramp at this military base in northern Iraq offer a symbolic counterpoint to the White House narrative that U.S. forces are on the sidelines of the ground war against the Islamic State. U.S. Army medevac Blackhawk helicopters are based here, including the one that picked up mortally…