Operation Eternal Darkness Threatens Iran Ceasefire Deal
Robby Soave and Christian Britschgi play a little war vs. music game before they go back over COVID craziness and the joys of Pokémon.
Defense
Trump's New Budget—Which Proposes $1.5 Trillion for Defense—Is Unserious. You Should Still Take It Seriously.
It would be easy to wave it away and move on. But that's how the U.S. got in such a dire fiscal situation.
'Every Bridge in Iran Will Be Decimated'
Plus: Artemis astronauts set record, D.C.'s terrible electricity policy, Ye returns, and more...
Why Does Trump Want the Biggest Defense Budget Ever?
Plus: Trump’s budget ignores the deficit, NASA’s Artemis program faces delays and rising costs, and a listener asks about libertarian alternatives to Medicare for All.
Trump's Call for a $1.5 Trillion Military Budget Is Irresponsible, Wasteful, and Unrealistic
The proposal is "an enormous waste of taxpayer dollars and would make Americans less, not more, safe." Thankfully, Congress is unlikely to adopt it.
Judge Rejects 'Orwellian Notion' That Anthropic Is a Supply Chain Risk for Disagreeing With the Government
Judge Rita Lin's preliminary injunction confirms what government officials had implicitly acknowledged: The supply chain risk designation was punishment, not policy.
How Will Congress Fund a $300 Billion War With Iran?
Lawmakers used to offset its emergency spending. They don't anymore.
'What Are the Goals?' Some Republicans Questioning $200 Billion for Iran War.
With the Pentagon's track record, lawmakers are right to be skeptical.
$200 Billion War?
Plus: boots on the ground, The Bachelorette cancels season, Meta reverses itself on virtual reality, and more...
A First Amendment Right Not To Use AI for Evil?
Anthropic sues the federal government—and kicks off a debate about free speech for artificial intelligence systems.
War Rations
Plus: Pete Hegseth spends millions on lobster tail and rib-eye steak, oil prices go for another roller-coaster ride, no inflation increase, and more...
The Federal Government's Crusade Against Anthropic Raises First Amendment Concerns
Trump administration officials openly seek to punish the AI company for its corporate philosophy.
Yes, the Iran War Is a 'War of Choice,' and a Bad One
Supporters of Trump's actions want to create an aura of necessity to shield the president from urgent criticism.
Anthropic Labeled a Supply Chain Risk, Banned from Federal Government Contracts
OpenAI has entered a contract with the Defense Department allowing all lawful use of ChatGPT after Anthropic refused to remove its restrictions on domestic mass surveillance and fully autonomous weapons systems.
Anthropic CEO Refuses Pentagon Demands To Remove Safeguards on Military AI
Dario Amodei penned a public letter explaining the danger of the Defense Department's request to remove certain constraints from Claude, and refusing them outright.
Pentagon to Anthropic: If You Won't Let Us Use Your AI for Mass Surveillance or Autonomous Weapons, Expect Punishment
Pete Hegseth has threatened to invoke the Defense Production Act to force Anthropic to come around.
Alienated by Trump, Europeans Finally Take Responsibility for Defense
Spurred by a hostile U.S. president, Europe struggles against stagnant economies to rearm.
Americans Are Increasingly Skeptical of Foreign Military Intervention
Nicolás Maduro’s removal should be welcomed by anyone who values liberty. Yet data show Americans—led by the youngest adults—are turning noninterventionist.
Reason Vs. Breaking Points: Does Big Tech Do More Good Than Harm?
Reason's Robby Soave and Elizabeth Nolan Brown go head to head with Emily Jashinsky and Ryan Grim from Breaking Points in a thought-provoking debate about Big Tech.
A Divided Fed
Plus: Cocaine and mustard gas, U.S. seizes oil tanker, billionaires in the White House, and more...
Why Elizabeth Warren and Donald Trump Hate the Netflix Deal
Plus: Trump’s economy shows new signs of strain, Congress pushes a $900 billion defense package, and Kalshi stirs backlash over “financializing everything”
America's $30 Trillion Publicly Held Debt Is 42 Times Larger Than It Was in 1980
Democrats defend every entitlement and dream up new benefits. Republicans demand more defense spending and still more tax cuts.
Trump's 'Golden Dome' Missile Defense Could Cost $3.6 Trillion: Report
The pie-in-the-sky space system promises to be a government spending bonanza—and might be a very bad idea.
Let Europe Defend Europe
Debt-ridden and challenged around the world, the U.S. should encourage Europe to defend itself.
Pentagon's Foolish Press Policy Might Encourage Tougher Journalism
The military establishment’s efforts to quash leaks could encourage them instead.
How the Military Exposed the Tools That Let Authorities Break Into Phones
The Marine Corps is trying to close a no-bid contract with Cellebrite, a company that helps police get into locked phones. The specs weren’t supposed to be public.
The U.S. Military Is Helping Arab Dictatorships Run Psyops
The Pentagon spends a lot of taxpayer money on propaganda worldwide. Some of it is coordinated with Middle Eastern dictators, The Washington Post revealed.
The Government Was Lying to You About Afghanistan. Dan Krauss Has the Receipts.
Reason is sharing an exclusive clip from Bodyguard of Lies, an upcoming documentary about the failed war in Afghanistan.
The GAIN AI Act Looks More Like Protectionism Than National Security
Tucked into the defense bill, the GAIN AI Act would force Nvidia and other firms to prioritize domestic sales at the cost of global competitiveness.
Inside Jeffrey Epstein's Spy Industry Connections
Leaked emails show Epstein’s attempts to dabble in security tech—across borders—in the last years of his life.
$500 Million To Paint the Border Wall? 5 of Trump's Strangest, Most Expensive Vanity Projects
Donald Trump is no stranger to wasteful spending. But these examples are especially egregious.
America's Reliance on Boeing Is a National Security Liability
With over 3,200 workers off the job, the military’s reliance on one politically connected contractor threatens innovation, accountability, and national security.
Pentagon Awards up to $200 Million to AI Companies Whose Models Are Rife With Ideological Bias
The Department of Defense awarded contracts to Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI. The last two are particularly concerning.
Superman Is About the Anti-War Vibe Shift
Supervillains used to be foreign enemies. Now the villain is a defense contractor who wants to start a regime change war.
3 of the Worst Examples of Military Spending in the 'Big, Beautiful Bill'
It spends $34 billion to subsidize shipbuilding, supply chains, and drone technology.
Taxpayers Are Supposed To Shell Out $150 Million for Next Year's July 4th Celebrations
Yet another wasteful expense in the "big, beautiful bill."
The F-35 Ages Worse Than the Planes It's Meant To Replace
House Republicans' budget would spend billions of dollars on the F-35's successor before the current model is even up to par.
Parades Are Great, but We Shouldn't Venerate the Military
America’s founders were deeply suspicious of a standing army.
Trump's 'Big, Beautiful' Military Parade Is a Big, Ugly Waste of Millions of Dollars
Most Americans, it turns out, do not think it is a good use of taxpayer money, according to a recent poll.
Ukraine's Drones Just Took Down a Chunk of Russia's Bomber Fleet. What Does That Mean for America?
When anyone can have an air force, superpowers aren't as powerful as they used to be.
David Stockman: Trump Is a 'Faker' on the Debt
Reagan's budget chief warns that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act could balloon the national debt to $60 trillion, risking a catastrophic bond market crisis.
The Pentagon Is Getting $150 Billion From the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Giving the Defense Department even more taxpayer money is a recipe for waste, not security.
In Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning, Tom Cruise Does What the U.S. Government Can't
To protect America, maybe what we really need to fund is more Tom Cruise.
Trump's New Budget Is Another Blueprint for Big Spending
We don't need more of the same. We need evidence of a serious turnaround.
Trump Wants To Increase Military Spending by $113 Billion
The president wants to develop the F-47 fighter jet 60 years before the F-35 is scheduled to retire.
U.S. Navy Accidentally Throws $64 Million Jet Overboard Off the Coast of Yemen
Washington is dumping valuable resources—literally—into a Middle Eastern war of choice.
Why Trump's China Tariffs Won't Work
Plus: A listener asks whether or not Thomas Jefferson was right.
