Opinion and commentary on news, politics, culture, and policy impact.
Last week, the U.S. government hosted its annual SelectUSA Investment Summit just outside of Washington, D.C. The event often draws a good crowd of potential foreign investors looking for opportunities to invest in America. With the president’s cuts to the corporate tax rate and regulations, the United States will continue to be a prime destination…
As the Supreme Court strikes blows against compelled speech and restrictions on free speech, California is doing its best to resist. One of the latest legislative proposals from California aims to make government the arbiter of truth. Senate Bill 1424 would create an advisory group on “fake news” to work with social media companies to…
On the last day of its 2017-18 term, the Supreme Court’s decision in Janus v. AFSCME on Wednesday strengthened the First Amendment right to free speech and showed how the court should analyze whether to overrule one of its previous decisions. In the labor context, a “bargaining unit” is a group of employees with clear…
“No ban. No wall. No borders at all.” That is the radical rallying cry of the Democratic Socialists of America. Waving desecrated U.S. flags, grubby fists, and ratty anarchy banners, DSA’s professional protesters are targeting Trump administration officials, threatening immigration enforcement agents, and blockading detention facilities and processing centers nationwide. On a similar note, Rep….
In a win for individual liberty, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled, in a much-anticipated decision in Janus v. AFSCME, that public employees will no longer be required to pay involuntary agency fees to special-interest groups. The 5-4 decision overturns the 1977 Supreme Court ruling in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, which upheld agency…
The Heritage Foundation’s legal fellows Hans von Spakovsky and Elizabeth Slattery discuss the impact Justice Anthony Kennedy has had on the court, and what the long-term impact could be if President Donald Trump replaces Kennedy with a more Constitution-minded judge. Plus: One lawmaker says he received more death threats last year than in any of…
Justice Anthony Kennedy has announced his intention to retire from the Supreme Court, giving President Donald Trump a second opportunity to nominate a solid constitutionalist justice. Here’s a look at Kennedy’s jurisprudence and what’s at stake in the Senate’s confirmation of his successor, who undoubtedly will face fierce resistance from the left. When President Ronald…
The Congressional Budget Office’s latest long-term budget outlook, released this week, shows that the nation is still on an unsustainable budget path, with no improvement since CBO’s last long-term report. Without swift action to reverse the current course, the nation is headed toward a fiscal disaster. CBO projects that over the next 30 years, debt…
Mergers and acquisitions in the converging communications, media, and internet industries dominated news earlier this month. Following the decision in the AT&T-Time Warner trial and Comcast’s bid for 21st Century Fox, there was a tsunami of speculation about the next big deal. But while the press is understandably preoccupied with newly announced deals, downstream regulatory…
Why would any conservative support the current Senate farm bill? It’s a failure when it comes to food stamps and farm subsidies. This may come as a surprise to some, but the farm bill should really be called the food stamp bill. Food stamps account for about 70 percent of farm bill costs. The Senate…
Last week, on the MSNBC show “Morning Joe,” MSNBC contributor Donny Deutsch said that every American who votes for President Donald Trump is a Nazi. His exact words: “If you vote for Trump, then you, the voter—you, not Donald Trump—are standing at the border like Nazis going, ‘You here. You here.’” Now, as virtually every…
Suggesting that many of the world’s most grave problems have been solved, experts in women’s rights from around the world rank the United States among the 10 most dangerous countries for women. Sadly, however, issues such as female genital mutilation, arranged marriage, rape as a weapon of war, honor killings, and maternal mortality haven’t stopped….
The Trump administration got a big win Tuesday when, by a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court issued a decision in Trump v. Hawaii upholding the so-called travel ban. Under the ban, President Donald Trump has suspended, at least temporarily, the admission of individuals from seven countries—Syria, Iran, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, North Korea, and Venezuela—subject to case-by-case…
The Trump administration is struggling to figure out how to enforce U.S. laws and keep keeping families together. The matter is made more complex and difficult because of loopholes and restrictions in current law. But it doesn’t have to be difficult and confusing. Congress can and should ensure that families are kept together and U.S….
Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the “Little House on the Prairie” books, is apparently too controversial for an award to be named after her in 2018. We discuss with The Daily Signal’s Jarrett Stepman. Plus: what the scene was like among the protesters this morning at the Supreme Court.
The Senate is expected to take up its farm bill this week, and if the Senate follows the House’s lead, there will be a relatively closed amendment process, making it impossible for legislators to reduce the waste and abuse in the farm subsidy system. In the House, agricultural special interests and the House Agriculture Committee…
The House Budget Committee last Thursday approved a budget resolution for fiscal 2019. The House budget, dubbed “A Brighter American Future,” would achieve balance in 2027. Importantly, the House budget proposes about $300 billion in spending reductions by using a powerful fiscal tool called reconciliation. The Senate needs to follow suit to unlock those savings…
The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in favor of free speech in NIFLA v. Becerra, a case regarding California’s attempt to force pro-life pregnancy centers to advertise the state’s free or low-cost abortion program. The court rightly held that the California law in question, the Reproductive FACT Act, “likely violates the First Amendment” and “unduly burdens…
Corporate America, take note: Relying on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “hate” and “extremist” labels could make a liar out of you—and cost you millions of dollars. It wasn’t always like this. Decades ago, SPLC built its reputation as a trusted civil rights watchdog by valiantly fighting the Ku Klux Klan. But it has wandered…
As Sen. Bob Dole once said, the judges a president appoints may be his most profound legacy. Federal judges have become increasingly powerful, much more so than America’s Founders intended. For our system of government to work as designed and to produce the liberty it promises, presidents must appoint the right kind of judges. President…