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
What 10 Republican Presidential Candidates Said in Iowa This Weekend
AMES, Iowa—“How many of you by show of hands are better off today than your parents were when they were your age?” Frank Luntz, a national political consultant, polled the audience at the Family Leadership Summit on Saturday. “It’s almost everybody.” Luntz, who moderated discussions with 10 Republican 2016 presidential candidates while onstage at Stephens… -
opinion
Why I Refuse to Acknowledge the US Embassy in Havana
Today a Cuban embassy will open in the United States, and an American embassy will open in Cuba. While the Obama administration fawns over its latest concession to the Castro regime, I will be honoring the legacy of a Cuban democratic martyr. On July 22, 2012, the Cuban government murdered my friend’s father, Oswaldo Payá,… -
news
Two Business Owners Fight the IRS to Get Their Seized Money Back
On the last day of Ramadan, which ended Friday, Khalid (Ken) Quran was headed to work. The owner of a convenience store in Greenville, N.C., Quran works seven days a week with little opportunity for vacation, and has been since he first arrived in the United States in 1997. The ending of the month of… -
news
Kicking off Iowa Bus Tour, Scott Walker Declares Biggest Threat as ‘Radical Islamic Terrorism’
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – With a goal of hitting all 99 counties here traveling by Winnebago bus, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker introduced himself Sunday to Iowans. “The rest of the world needs to know that there is no greater friend and no worse enemy than the United States of America,” Walker told voters here, who… -
opinion
The Key Similarities Between Greece and the US
In June, Greece defaulted on a €1.73 billion payment to the International Monetary Fund. In a national referendum shortly thereafter, the Greeks strongly rejected European conditions for receiving yet another bailout. For the first time in the eurozone’s history, the exit of one of its member countries became a very real possibility. This week, Athens… -
opinion
The Deal From Tehran’s Perspective
Want to judge the value of an international deal? Grade it not by measuring what it means to the United States, but what it means to the other guy. That’s the standard that ought to be applied to the recently reached Iran deal. Remember the Paris Peace Accords? They were anything but. In 1973, all… -
opinion
Reagan’s Understanding of a Fair Tax System
President Reagan had a gift for proving his critics wrong. Almost none of the leading economists of the late 1970s thought that his supply-side, tax-cutting agenda, along with stable monetary policy and deregulation, could revive the U.S. economy. But the prosperity of the 1980s, with growth rates higher than 6 percent, proved the Gipper correct. An economics… -
opinion
Entrepreneurs Are Better Than Government, Even When Building Infrastructure
Some in Washington appear to be convinced that government spending can fix all the world’s ills, from underemployment to human error. Last month’s fatal Amtrak wreck in Philadelphia sparked the usual knee-jerk demands for more federal spending to prevent future tragedies. A spate of articles lamented the allegedly insufficient public “investment in transportation infrastructure” —… -
news
The Kitchen of Second Chances
For Marianne Ali, life started simply enough. Born to a big, “pretty normal” family in Glenarden, Md., Ali remembers helping her mother cook dinner for her father and six brothers and sisters each night after school. She was 17 when she tried heroin for the first time. Her addiction wasn’t immediate, but it was vicious…. -
opinion
4 Big Red Flags in the Iran Deal
Once a major diplomatic agreement is inked, the world typically reacts by holding its breath, waiting to see if it will all turn out alright. Some deals, like the Munich Pact, crumble quickly. Others, like the Camp David accords, hang in there. But, rarely has there been a deal like the one reached in Vienna… -
news
Is This the Real War on Women? Looking at Porn’s Effects
Pornography is the public health crisis of the digital age. This is what a panel of experts concluded at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation’s Capitol symposium as they discussed the harmful ramifications of pornography. Specifically, they evaluated pornography’s influence on sex trafficking, child exploitation and sexual violence. “This is not only a public health… -
opinion
Will Gay Marriage Dissidents Be Treated Like Racists?
With its decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court has brought the sexual revolution to its apex—a redefinition of our civilization’s primordial institution, cutting its link to procreation and declaring sex differences meaningless. The court has usurped the authority of the people, working through the democratic process, to define marriage. And it has shut down… -
news
Chattanooga Shooting Aftermath in Photos: A Community Comes Together
On Thursday, in an act of "domestic terrorism," a man identified as Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez opened fire on two separate military centers in Chattanooga, Tenn. Authorities said the 24-year-old shot through the glass doors of a recruiting center, before driving to a naval reserve center where he killed four Marines. A wounded sailor died early… -
news
Here’s What 5 Democratic Presidential Candidates Told Their Party Faithful in Iowa
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa—All five 2016 presidential candidates on the Democratic ticket spoke from the same stage Friday evening in the first-in-the-nation caucus state. Lincoln Chafee, Hillary Clinton, Martin O’Malley, Bernie Sanders and Jim Webb addressed more than 1,200 Iowa Democrats during a dinner celebration honoring hall of fame inductees into the Iowa Democratic Party. The… -
opinion
No, We Can’t Say It’s Only Up to the Arabs to Fight ISIS in Iraq
Some argue that ISIS in Iraq is an Arab problem. Ergo, it should be Arab boots on the ground that kick the land-grabbing insurgency from the field. That argument has an undeniable appeal here in the United States. America is exhausted with wars. Leading from behind seems an attractive option. There is also the matter… -
opinion
How Reagan’s Five Little Words Helped Change a Nation
On July 17, 1980, 35 years ago, when he accepted the Republican presidential nomination, Ronald Reagan—the great communicator—outlined what he intended to do as president with five little words—family, work, neighborhood, peace, and freedom. Family. Reagan was always outspoken about pro-life issues such as the need to protect the unborn child. In 1984, for example, he… -
news
Young Family Remains Positive Despite Incurable Cancer Diagnosis
For Jessica Herbert and her young family, this should be a very happy time. The mom of two is scheduled to deliver baby number three today. But after her baby is born, instead of spending time with her newly expanded family, the Utah resident will be rushed to undergo an MRI, and then begin chemotherapy… -
opinion
Government Persecution of Wisconsin Conservatives Finally Comes to an End
In a lengthy decision issued on July 16, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has finally put an end to the secret, unconstitutional, “John Doe” investigation of conservative nonprofits in Wisconsin, such as Wisconsin Club for Growth. This legal harassment was engineered by a Democratic local prosecutor, John Chisholm, and the head of the state’s “Government Accountability… -
opinion
4 Reasons Iran Deal Would Take Us Closer to Nuclear War
President Obama finally got his long sought after nuclear deal with Iran. But as many have said from the very beginning, no deal is better than a bad deal – and The Heritage Foundation believes this is a very bad deal. There are numerous flaws in the agreement. But it’s because of the following four… -
news
The Fight to Defund Planned Parenthood: An Interview With Rep. Diane Black
The fight to defund Planned Parenthood is ramping up in Washington following the release of an undercover video showing a top official discussing prices for body parts from aborted babies. In a statement released after the video, Planned Parenthood said the “heavily edited, secretly recorded videotape … falsely portrays Planned Parenthood’s participation in tissue donation…