Trump Promised To Lower Prices. Will Congress Help Him Deliver?
At the current rate of inflation, the dollar will lose 33 cents of purchasing power within a decade.
Law & Government
Banning Diet Supplements Won't Stop Teen Eating Disorders
Dietary supplement bans for minors may spread—but they’ll be costly, confusing, and ineffective.
District Judge Blocks Trump's Refugee Resettlement Pause, Saying It 'Crossed the Line'
“I cannot ignore Congress’ detailed framework for refugee admissions and the limits it placed on the president’s ability to suspend the same,” said Judge Jamal Whitehead.
"Want a Hot Shower? Call Your Congressman," But Not Just to Support a CRA Resolution.
A useful example of how meaningful regulatory reform requires legislative action--and not just the passage of Congressional Review Act resolutions.
Will Absorbing the ATF Into the FBI Rein in Each Agency's Abuses?
The ATF, charged with regulating firearms, has a history of abuse and incompetence.
Elon Musk, Who Supposedly Is Running DOGE, Is Not Officially in Charge of Anything
The presidential adviser's lack of formal authority complicates his cost-cutting mission.
A SWAT Team Raided This Innocent Family's Home. The Supreme Court Won't Hear Their Case.
Whether or not a reasonable police officer violates clearly established law when he declines to check the features and address of his target house before raiding it is thus still up for debate.
D.C.'s U.S. Attorney Is a Menace to the First Amendment
Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin puts loyalty to Donald Trump ahead of loyalty to the Constitution.
Trump Administration Moves To Streamline Environmental Reviews
From forest restoration to energy infrastructure, NEPA delays projects that would benefit the economy and environment.
Fresh Starts on Starter Homes
Lawmakers in Arizona and California are attempting to overcome local resistance to meaningful starter home reforms.
The House GOP Budget Blueprint Promises More Borrowing, More Debt, and Not Enough Spending Cuts
"If the Republican budget passes, the deficit gets worse, not better," says Rep. Thomas Massie. He's right.
Trump's Love-Hate Relationship With Big Tech
If Trump wants to encourage domestic investment, his antitrust appointees should ditch their Big Tech prejudice.
Trump's ICE Detains Afghans Who Helped U.S. Forces
A former Afghan intelligence officer who worked alongside U.S. forces sought safety in America. Now, under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, his parole has been revoked, and he’s been detained without explanation.
Where Did All the Summary Reversals Go?
Why is the Supreme Court issuing fewer summary reversals? Is Justice Barrett the reason?
What Did You Do Last Week?
Plus: German elections, how I almost got arrested this weekend, and more...
Research Says Big Federal Grants to Local Governments Breed Corruption
DOGE may not just save money; it may encourage honesty.
RIP to Government Acronyms
One perk that may materialize from Elon Musk upending the federal bureaucracy is the downfall of the government’s obsessive use of abbreviations.
The Sunny Side of Donald Trump's Power Grabs
The president is positioning himself to have much greater control over a smaller, enfeebled federal bureaucracy.
Trump Will Create 520,000 More Illegal Immigrants by Undoing Haitians' Protected Status
The move effectively retcons J.D. Vance's claim that legal Haitian immigrants were actually here illegally.
The Progressive Betrayal of Trans Americans
How well-intentioned laws created new cultural conflicts—and eroded personal liberty
Best Executive Order Yet?
Plus: The Democratic Party's insecurities, protesting Trump via interpretive dance, the Yosemite locksmith, and more...
Has the Imperial Presidency Arrived?
There's little question that Trump is taking the concept of the imperial presidency to its apogee.
The New Republican Budget Plan Is Unserious
It tries to offset as much as $4.8 trillion—mostly for tax cut extensions—with only $1.5 trillion in supposed spending reductions.
Rand Paul Wants DOGE To Build a $500 Billion Rescission Package for Congress To Approve
"The only way you get less waste is to give them less money to spend," says the libertarian-adjacent senator from Kentucky.
Social Security's Insolvency Is Driven by Benefits for the Living, Not Fraud by the Dead
Elon Musk claims to have uncovered massive fraud within Social Security, but those data are already well known and not a major problem.
Trump Has Good Reason To Complain About Limits on His Ability To Fire Executive Officers
His position is grounded in concerns about the separation of powers that presidents of both major parties have raised for many years.
Justin Amash on Why the President Isn't Above the Law
Plus: A listener asks the editors to guess if the real reason Donald Trump is so passionate about tariffs is because he sees them as a deal-making tool rather than a purely economic instrument.
In DOGE Lawsuit, Judge Declines To Block White House Emailing Federal Employees
Citing Reddit posts and podcast interviews, pseudonymous government employees are arguing that DOGE violated federal privacy regulations when setting up a government-wide email system.
DOGE Can't Slash Government Without Congress
The federal leviathan can’t be dismantled by executive action alone. To truly cut spending and rein in the bureaucracy, the administration needs buy-in from the branch that built it.
Bad To Worse
From insurance to affordable housing mandates, California's regulatory noose tightens over wildfire rebuilding efforts.
Hawaii Can Auction Off Your Car Without Ever Convicting You
Civil forfeiture allows the government of Hawaii to take your property and sell it for profit without proving you did anything wrong.
The 5 Worst Things About the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The agency—an unelected regulator with a blank check—has spent much of its short life making things harder for the consumers it set out to protect.
DOGE Needs Data To Survive. These Lawsuits Are Trying To Starve It of Information.
Nearly a dozen lawsuits allege that DOGE's access to government payment and personnel systems violates a litany of federal privacy and record-handling laws.
The New Captain America Film Has Important Lessons for Trump and Biden Stans
In Captain America: Brave New World, a power-hungry president makes reckless choices and withholds vital information—but even he looks competent compared to Biden and Trump.
Sell Flavored Tobacco in Massachusetts, Go To Jail
Massachusetts outlawed flavored tobacco. Now, just as criminal justice groups warned, a vape shop owner is serving time.
California's Terrible Wildfires Exposed a Variety of State Policy Failures
The wildfires will be one of the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history. Hopefully they will also teach policymakers some lessons.
I Tried To Fix Government Tech for Years. I'm Fed Up.
Maybe DOGE will succeed where the U.S. Digital Service (mostly) failed.
DOGE Is Good. It's Not Enough.
Even if the Department of Government Efficiency eliminates all improper payments and fraud, we'll still be facing a debt explosion—which requires structural reform.
Presidents Should Not Ignore Court Rulings
Vice President J.D. Vance believes presidents can ignore the courts in some situations. Are we heading for a constitutional crisis?
The DOGE Bait and Switch
The pretend department’s downgraded mission reflects the gap between Trump’s promise of "smaller government" and the reality of what can be achieved without new legislation.
The Danger of Trump Disobeying Court Orders [Updated]
The administration may be moving in that direction. If it does so and gets away with it, the consequences are likely to be dire.
Will Trump and the New GOP Congress Get to the Bottom of COVID-19's Origin?
It's a good sign that the president is calling on critics of the federal government's lack of transparency to staff his administration.
