China's Dark Turn
A country that was once making strides toward freedom slides further into oppression and authoritarianism.
Politics
Trump's Struggle To Win the Gary Johnson Vote
Sadly for the president, 2016 Libertarians are not "all Republican voters." Sadly for us, his opposition to "endless wars" doesn't translate into ending them.
California's Job-Killing A.B. 5 Scaled Back, but Only for Some Professions
Rideshare drivers and delivery people are still going to have to beg voters to let them work.
Bridget Phetasy Is Politically Homeless. You Probably Are Too.
Bridget Phetasy on why Trump and Biden fail to inspire and how new media are reshaping politics.
Will-to-Power Conservatism and the Great Liberalism Schism
By virtue of representing the correct vision of the good, these conservatives say, they have every right to use the coercive power of the state to interfere with others' choices.
The FIRST STEP Act Has Reduced Prison Terms for More Than 7,000 People
While that's nothing to sneeze at, it is a modest accomplishment in the context of a federal prison system that keeps more than 150,000 Americans behind bars.
A Very Interesting New Electoral College Work-Around
Those of you who dislike the Electoral College should find this idea of interest
Congress Could Postpone the Electoral College To Prevent Election Chaos
Voting during COVID means "we are not going to know who won this on election night," Utah's Republican gubernatorial nominee warns. Postponing post-election deadlines can help.
Bridget Phetasy: What American Politics Can Learn From Alcoholics Anonymous
The podcaster and comedian offers a 12-step plan for political independence and recovery.
Both Biden and Trump Plan to Spend Well Beyond the Government's Means
Whether Biden or Trump wins this November, we're in for big, unaffordable government. How much bigger and how unaffordable are the only real questions.
Colorado Supreme Court Dismisses Appeal From Housing Activists Who Claimed Inaccurate Election Guidance Doomed Their Ballot Initiative
City officials repeatedly gave activists false information about the requirements for getting their initiative on the ballot.
You Have Libertarian Alternatives to Biden and Trump This November
Libertarian Party candidate Jo Jorgensen will be on every state’s ballot.
Trump's Vague Commitment to Criminal Justice Reform
The president's daughter says "we’re just getting started." Some details would be nice.
Poll: Americans Worry COVID-19 Vaccine Approval Is Politicized
67 percent say they would get vaccinated as soon as an inoculation becomes available.
Everybody Is Losing Their Damn Fool Minds
The Reason Roundtable spits fire at street violence, poison politics, and the nationalization of every local story.
Joe Biden Condemns Riots: 'Setting Fires Is Not Protesting'
"Do I look like a radical socialist with a soft spot for rioters? Really?"
Nixon May Be Trump's 'Law and Order' Model, but He Was Smarter on Crime
He did not overpromise, and he had the good sense to stop talking about a country beset by violence when he ran for a second term.
The Republican Convention's Defense of Trump's Trade War Fell Flat
A Wisconsin business owner who spoke about losing business to China ended up inadvertently undermining the administration's argument for protectionism.
Can the Republican Party Survive Trump?
A political party can be destroyed by warring factions after it nominates a celebrity candidate and loses its coherence. That’s what happened…after 1848, when the Whigs backed Zachary Taylor.
Trump Warns America: 'Biden's America' Will Look Like Trump's America
Plus: Alice Marie Johnson's RNC speech, Twitter bans bots pretending to be disillusioned black Democrats, and more...
Trump's Attacks on Free Trade Have Actually Made It More Popular With Voters
Thanks to a paradoxical Trump bump, nearly 90 percent of both Democrats and Republicans now say they support international trade.
Biden Rejects Pelosi's Advice To Skip Debates with Trump
Better still: Let's have lots of debates that include all candidates who can technically win the election.
Bourgeois Libertarianism Can Save America
Reliance on persuasion, freedom, property, and markets might deliver both peace and justice where "No Justice, No Peace" has so far failed.
Remember When a Democratic Polling Firm Fired the Guy Who Thought Violent Protests Could Backfire Politically?
A pre-Kenosha poll shows support for Black Lives Matter plummeting among white voters in Wisconsin.
In Convention Speech, Pence Warns: 'You Won't Be Safe In Joe Biden's America'
Plus: What's the evidence for social distancing?, WeChat ban would be bad for businesses, and more...
In Convention Speech, Mike Pence Said Joe Biden Will Repeal Trump's Tariffs. If Only That Were True.
Unfortunately, Biden has carefully avoided committing to changing much of anything about Trump's trade policies.
Kenosha Doesn't Have To Be a Vision of America's Future
Neither does Portland. But the fact that the violence is continuous and seems to be escalating is cause for concern.
The Shaky Foundation of Trump's Pose As a Criminal Justice Reformer
The president's case rests on two accomplishments, while his plans for a second term echo the mindless toughness he intermittently condemns.
Melania Trump Wows With Lackluster Speech on Second Night of Republican National Convention
Plus: the RNC is a case study in why Big Tech is good, the GOP's libertarian purge, and more...
Trump's War on Economic Freedom
In the president’s mind, trade is not a right to be respected but a process to be managed by politicians.
Justifying a Moral Duty to Vote is a Lot Harder than You Might Think
Political philosopher Jason Brennan explains why.
Republicans Still Have No Idea How To Talk About Health Care
Even when they have a good idea, the argument gets muddled.
The Republican National Convention Isn't Out To Convert Anyone
Plus: Lawsuits challenge Trump's TikTok ban, the police abolition movement explained, and more...
Political Conventions Should Be NC-17
The Reason Roundtable assesses one convention, previews another, and pleads with everyone to get their kids out of politics.
The 2020 Republican Convention Doesn't Have a Platform—It Has Trump's Pet Peeves
Plus: Protesters could lose right to vote in Tennessee, Apple and Microsoft fight over Fortnite, and more...
Jo Jorgensen Is the 2020 Libertarian Party Presidential Nominee
What can libertarianism offer America in the midst of the economic crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic?
Mask Mandates and the Right to Vote
Would requiring masks for in-person voting infringe constitutional rights?
Democratic Convention Recap: Biden and Harris Vow To Make Government Even Bigger
We suffered through it so you didn't have to.
The Democratic Convention Was a Brief for Biden's Character. Policy Got Left Behind.
The focus on personality over policy obscures as much as it reveals.
What if Joe Biden Were a Libertarian? We Fixed His Acceptance Speech.
School choice, restrained executive power, no taxes, and less military fighting abroad!
Oregon Ballot Initiative Would Decriminalize Low-Level Possession of All Drugs
Measure 110 would reduce felony convictions for drug possession by an estimated 95 percent.
Post Office Expects $9 Billion Loss This Year, Will Prioritize Mail-in Ballots Before Election Day
Postmaster Louis DeJoy told members of Congress that the post office must make changes to survive. Will Congress let it?
A Vote for Joe Biden Is a Vote for a National Mask Mandate, Says Biden
Plus: Emoji law, food trucks, and more...
Did Joe Biden and the Democratic National Convention Forget About Trump's Tariffs?
The last time an incumbent president was defeated, the fact that he'd raised taxes on Americans played a major role. Trump's done the same thing, but the DNC didn't talk about it.
Tulsi Gabbard Says the DNC Didn't Even Ask Her To Speak
"I was not invited to participate in any way."
Lyft, Uber Get Last-Minute Reprieve Before They Would Have Canceled Services in California
Lawmakers and courts are trying to force them to put drivers on their payrolls. They're threatening to take a freeway out of the state entirely.
