Law & Government
New Law Finally Allows Conservationists To Clean Up Abandoned Mines
For decades, federal rules punished good Samaritans who tried to tackle toxic mine pollution. A new program removes barriers to restoring waterways across the West.
Third Time's the Charm?
Plus: House Speaker Elon Musk, the value of the debt ceiling, and D.C.'s shut down specials.
COVID-19 Lockdowns Unleashed a Wave of Murder
Researchers find that pandemic policies sparked a wave of violent crime.
The Spending Bill Would Fund Censorship
Republicans should not give any more money to the Global Engagement Center.
Disaster Spending
Plus: A failed return to regular order, COVID-era spending scandals, and yet another city tries to shut down a local church's homeless shelter.
Taxpayers Outside Maryland Shouldn't Pay To Rebuild a Toll Bridge Inside Maryland
Part of the 1,500-page spending bill Congress is expected to pass this week would obligate federal taxpayers to fund the Key Bridge replacement.
The SAFE SEX Workers Study Act, a Bill Aimed at Ultimately Repealing FOSTA, Is Back
The bill is meant as a first step toward repealing FOSTA, the 2018 law that amended Section 230 and criminalized hosting adult ads.
Raising the SALT Cap Is a Gift to High-Tax States
Capping state and local tax deductions sparked a tax migration that rewarded pro-growth states. Raising the cap now would stall reform where it’s needed most.
Holiday Spending Spree
Plus: More funding for the "disinformation" censors, more fines for cashless businesses, the link between pandemic shutdowns and murder rates, and more...
Trump's January 6 Pardons Could Address Some Real Injustices
The president-elect makes valid points in highlighting potential abuses of prosecutorial power.
North Carolina Passes Sweeping Surprise Ban on 'Downzoning'
To the bewilderment of many, North Carolina's hurricane relief bill includes the nation's strongest property rights protections against new zoning restrictions.
Social Security Is Deeply Unfair. The Social Security Fairness Act Won't Fix That.
What is paid out to Social Security beneficiaries is not a return on workers' investments. It's just a government expenditure, like any other.
Biden's Messy Mercy
Plus: A listener asks the editors to consider the tradeoffs of involuntary commitments to mental institutions.
Senate Tees Up $200 Billion Social Security Giveaway to Public Sector Workers
The Social Security Fairness Act will boost payouts to public sector workers who receive pensions and did not pay taxes to support Social Security.
The Return of the Women's Libbers
Plus: Israel in the Golan Heights, trouble in China's government, Whoopi Goldberg tries to explain health insurance, and more...
Amanda Knox Tells Her Own Story
"Our criminal justice system relies upon our own ignorance and the fact that we don't know what our rights are."
Supreme Court Adds Two Potentially Significant Cases to OT2024 Docket
December certiorari grants on standing and religion are early holiday gifts for Court watchers.
Mark Meador's Nomination to the Federal Trade Commission Is Bad News for Consumers
Meador’s nomination is a win for antitrust activism and a blow to economic freedom.
Was the Supreme Court Wrong About Presidential Immunity?
Glenn Greenwald and Elizabeth Price Foley debate Trump v. United States and its implications for presidential powers.
Biden Shouldn't Have Commuted the Sentence of a Judge in the 'Kids for Cash' Kickback Scandal
But that shouldn't detract from the many worthy people who received commutations after spending years on home confinement.
Federal Government Has 'Grown Too Big, Promised Too Much, Subsidized Too Many,' Warns Former GAO Boss
This week's House Budget Committee hearing showed bipartisan agreement about the seriousness of America's fiscal problems.
Congress Passes Legislation to Create Needed Judgeships, but Biden May Veto
There was bipartisan support for the JUDGES Act, but the election results appear to have changed that.
He Was Convicted of a Felony for Holding a Gun on the Sidewalk in Front of His House
Gabriel Metcalf argues that his prosecution under the Gun-Free School Zones Act violated his constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
Biden Issues More Pardons and Commutations Under Pressure From Criminal Justice Groups
Biden commuted the sentences of roughly 1,500 federal offenders who had been serving the remainder of their sentences on home confinement after being released from prison during COVID-19.
Keeping These Tax Cuts Is a Bad, Expensive Idea
Everyone loves lower taxes, but cutting them without reducing spending is bad news for the national debt.
The DOGE Daze of Regulatory Reform
Why Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are overestimating the extent to which the administrative state can be brought to heel through Presidential fiat.
Musk's Department of Government Efficiency Can—and Should—Tackle Medicare and Social Security
Doing nothing will lead to Medicare benefits being cut by 11 percent and Social Security Benefits being cut by 23 percent in less than a decade.
Bidenomics Goes Out With a Whimper
There's a good reason Biden eventually stopped saying Bidenomics. Americans didn't like the results of his economic policies.
Can You Sue Over Assurances Made by Company's Customer Service AI Chatbot?
Maybe, but not in this particular case, a federal court rules.
Supreme Court Punts on Racial Discrimination Case
The Supreme Court's refusal to hear Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence v. The School Committee for the City of Boston is bad news for equality under the law.
Mike Lee's App Store Accountability Act Would Make Google and Apple Check IDs
Lee says this is about "sexual and violent content." It goes far beyond that.
Kash Patel's QAnon Dalliances Reflect an Outlook That Pits Trump Against Evil Conspirators
The president-elect's pick for FBI director says he rejects some of the right-wing sect's bizarre beliefs but agrees with "a lot of what the movement says."
Biden Faces Mounting Pressure To Clear Federal Death Row and Issue More Commutations After Pardoning His Son
Civil rights groups, law enforcement officials, and religious leaders say Biden needs to use his pardon power to fulfill his campaign promises, not just help his son.
Justice Jackson Authors First Decision of OT2024
The junior justice authors a unanimous immigration law decision for the first of the term.
Webinar Today on My New Book on the Impeachment Power
Hosted by the Society for the Rule of Law
When Deciding Whether To Investigate His Opponents, Trump Says, He Will Defer to 'Very Fair' Kash Patel
Trump's pick to run the FBI has a long list of enemies he plans to "come after," with the legal details to be determined later.
The Meese Revolution: The Making of a Constitutional Moment (2024)
by Steven Gow Calabresi and Gary Lawson.
Intrusive Small Business Reporting Law Slapped With Nationwide Injunction
A judge says the federal law has no constitutional basis and threatens First and Fourth Amendment rights.
Donate Because Reason Is Consistent in the Chaos
Saturday is a great day to give to the magazine of free minds and free markets—and double your dollars!
Bye, Joe: Evaluating the Biden Presidency
From the war in Afghanistan to the war on drugs, Reason writers offer performance reviews of Joe Biden's single term as president.
D.C. Circuit Court Upholds TikTok Ban, Prioritizing 'National Security' Over Free Speech
The popular but beleaguered social media app will have until January 19 to find an American buyer or be banned.
Five Executive Orders To Unleash Markets in Space
Simple policy changes can unleash innovation, remove barriers, and secure U.S. dominance in the final frontier.
Trump vs. Cleveland: A Tale of Two Tariff Strategies
Grover Cleveland fought high tariffs as a “communism of pelf.” Trump embraces them as an economic cornerstone.
