Politics
1776 All-Stars: Samuel Adams Was the Most Libertarian Founder
The libertarian rabble-rouser who helped ignite the American Revolution
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Native Americans Taught Colonists How To Fight—and To Live Without Kings
Unlike in Europe, native rulers had little formal authority; they had to persuade others to follow their ideas.
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Trump's Failed Kennedy Center Takeover Shows Why Art and Government Don't Mix
The president's remedy for a "woke" Kennedy Center was to replace one alleged strain of ideological capture with another.
Short Circuit: An inexhaustive weekly compendium of rulings from the federal courts of appeal
Bleak House, wellness checks, and forfeiture interrogatories.
Graham Platner Has Made #MeToo Democrats and Their Enemies Switch Sides
The Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine is accused by The New York Times of abuse and toxic behavior.
Add It to the Tab
Plus: Graham Platner scandal, L.A. can't get all their votes counted, Gowanus rezoned, and more...
Review: Visit Independence Hall, Where Founders Signed Their Own 'Death Warrants'
Modern visitors to the site where they signed the Declaration of Independence can still feel a sense of uncertainty and trepidation.
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Republican Hawks Don't Want an Iran Deal—and Opportunist Democrats Are Helping Them Along
Bipartisan pressure is keeping the war alive.
Do You Trust the Government to Control AI?
Donald Trump wants to give it a little more control. Bernie Sanders wants to give it a lot.
The Draft Is Unpopular. Registration Becomes Automatic in December Anyway.
The federal government will now dig through databases to register 18-year-olds for conscription.
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Upcoming Speaking Engagements - Summer 2026 [Updated]
Ilya Somin's upcoming speaking engagements for the summer of 2026. Most are free and open to the public.
America, 250 Years Ago: July 2026 Puzzle
"City where the Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776"
Trump's Ennui
Plus: California's races, how not to blow an inheritance, life extension hits the wall, and more...
How To Sell a War
Presidents use a web of private influence to garner support for foreign invasions.
1776 All-Stars: Benjamin Franklin Reminds Us To Just Do Things
Franklin was fundamentally an optimist, and his life reminds us that politics is not what really matters.
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Spiraling Out of Control
Plus: Jerome Powell talks, courtpacking watch, medical advancements, and more...
The Federal Government Botched the Bicentennial Too
There's a lesson laying there: Make it local, embrace the commercial, and ignore the president.
Introducing Reason's America 250 Issue
America was a bicentennial basketcase. For the sestercentennial, we're in shambles. But there are still many reasons to celebrate.
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Trump Loves Accusing Critics of Treason. U.S. Law Makes That Charge Hard To Prove—for Good Reason.
The president’s habitual attempts to criminalize dissent hark back to tyrants of yore.
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Trump's Proposed $250 Bill Is Everything the Founders Despised
George Washington actively opposed the U.S. Mint putting his face on coinage, as it would've resembled the reverence reserved for monarchs.
Is Private Equity Really 'Buying Up the Rituals of American Childhood'?
Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy says that capitalism is killing youth hockey and fueling a "crisis of resentment." But who exactly is pissed?
My New Liberalism.Org Article on "Liberalism's Uneasy Relationship with Democracy"
The article addresses the interlinked problems of widespread voter ignorance, tyranny of the majority, and illiberal anti-democratic movements coming to power through elections.
The Libertarian Party's New Leader Has No Interest in Playing Kingmaker
"There's no deals that can be made for a cabinet position when you're sacrificing our set of principles in our platform," says Evan McMahon.
James Talarico vs. Ken Paxton, the Pope on AI, and Caves
Robby Soave and Christian Britschgi discuss James Talarico changing his tune and how the Pope views artificial intelligence.
