Campaigns Can't Get Worse, Can They?
Plus: A listener asks the editors about President Joe Biden holding up arms shipments to Israel.
Republican Party
Reason Is a Finalist for 14 Southern California Journalism Awards
Nominated stories include journalism on messy nutrition research, pickleball, government theft, homelessness, and more.
Worst 4/20 Ever
Plus: A listener asks the editors to steel man the case for the Jones Act, an antiquated law that regulates maritime commerce in U.S. waters.
Democrats and Republicans Unite To Give Weapons Manufacturers $59 Billion
House Speaker Mike Johnson worked with President Biden to push through a $95 billion foreign military aid package—most of which goes to the American military-industrial complex.
Congress Does Not Come Back With a Warrant
Plus: A listener asks the editors for examples of tasks the government does well (yikes).
J.D. Vance Thinks U.S. Steel's Shareholders Weren't Adequately Warned of J.D. Vance's Efforts To Block Sale
Vance's latest gambit is pretty nonsensical, intellectually embarrassing, and obviously self-serving. But that doesn't mean that it's not dangerous too.
Republicans Split on Whether FBI Should Be Able To Snoop Without a Warrant
A Section 702 reauthorization moving through Congress could actually weaken privacy protections.
Kari Lake Doesn't Know What To Do
Plus: Defunding NPR, defending Lionel Shriver, and more...
Trump's Abortion Stance Is Convenient, but That Does Not Mean He's Wrong
His embrace of federalism is one of those rare instances when political expedience coincides with constitutional principles.
Marco Rubio Is Wrong About Industrial Policy
Breaking down Rubio's factually flawed and logically incoherent call for more government involvement in the economy.
Politicians Are Showering Manufacturing Companies With Crony Subsidies for 'Job Creation.' It Won't Work.
These handouts will flow to businesses—often big and rich—for projects they would likely have taken on anyway.
Are New Jersey Voters Too Dumb for Normal Ballots?
Democratic Party bosses in the Garden State say that a court order to design better ballots will make it harder to tell voters what to do.
Trump and Biden Both Get Globalization Wrong
Free trade brings us more stuff at lower prices.
Biden's Antitrust Case Against Apple Is Truly Stupid
Plus: A listener asks about the absurdity of Social Security entitlements.
Marjorie Taylor Greene Introduces Measure To Oust Mike Johnson as House Speaker
Johnson could lose the speakership for the same reasons Kevin McCarthy lost it just five months ago. Who will be next?
A GOP Plan To Raise the Retirement Age Reveals How Unserious Washington Is About Social Security
An obvious, tepid reform was greeted with shrill partisan screeching.
Partisan Post-Game (Episode 2)
Republican and Democrat coaches take questions from the press.
Democrats Are Once Again Boosting MAGA Republicans
Even if successful, the strategy demonstrates how little interest politicians have in standing for something, rather than against something else.
Senate Race Revealed Shortcomings of California's 'Top Two' Primary Reform
A change that promised to be a moderating influence on politics has instead made campaigns more vicious than ever.
What Republicans and Democrats Can Learn From the Jacobins' Spiraling Crisis
At every stage, a breach on one side provoked an even more extreme response on the other.
Biden's Proposed Corporate Tax Hike Will Punish the Average American
The president wants to raise the rate from 21 percent to 28 percent, despite it being well-established that this is the most economically-destructive method to raise government funds.
A Bipartisan Tax Hike Won't Fix This Deficit
The government needs to cut back on spending—and on the promises to special interests that fuel the spending.
Nikki Haley Presented an Off-Ramp from Trumpism. Republican Voters Didn't Care.
On some issues, Haley offered a fleeting glimpse of what a serious Republican party could look like.
Donald Trump Dominates Super Tuesday State Primaries
Despite voters' continued disgust at the idea of a Trump/Biden rematch, the former president is poised to carry nearly every state.
The Justice Department Quietly Ends Reprosecution of Man Who Received Clemency From Trump
Philip Esformes was sentenced for charges on which a jury hung. After receiving a commutation, the federal government vowed to try to put him back in prison.
Expanding the Child Tax Credit Would Perpetuate Systemic Poverty
The policy is a true budget buster and is ineffective in the long term.
Shrinkflation Is Real—and It's Largely Biden's Fault
The president criticized companies for selling "smaller-than-usual products" whose "price stays the same." But it was his and his predecessor's spending policies that caused the underlying issue.
Biden's Cognitive Shrinkflation
Plus: A listener asks if the state of Oregon’s policy on drug decriminalization should be viewed as a success.
Peter Meijer: Can the GOP Change?
Peter Meijer talks about his run for Senate, his Trump impeachment vote, and possibly competing against Justin Amash on the latest episode of Just Asking Questions.
The Best of Reason: Can Free Markets Win Votes in the New GOP?
As the party grows more populist, ethnically diverse, and working class, will Republicans abandon their libertarian economic principles?
Can Free Markets Win Votes in the New GOP?
As the party grows more populist, ethnically diverse, and working class, will Republicans abandon their libertarian economic principles?
What Javier Milei Could Teach Democrats and Republicans About Capitalism
His speech in Davos challenged the growing worldwide trend of increased government involvement in economic affairs.
Goodbye to Haley the Hawk
Plus: The most boring write-in campaign, some heat in the Argentine streets, Brooklyn's penchant for vehicular manslaughter, and more...
New Hampshire Takes Us Closer to a Trump-Biden Rematch
Donald Trump won an unsurprising victory in the New Hampshire primary against his hawkish rival Nikki Haley.
New Hampshire Might Be the Only Competitive Primary in 2024
And the Democratic votes won't even count. Get ready for what might be a weird night.
Republican Presidential Nomination
DeSantis Down and Out
Plus: Javier Milei’s powerful speech on economic prosperity in Davos
Oklahoma Bill Would Ban Sending Sexy Selfies Unless You're Married
It could also outlaw any sort of sexualized image, play, or performance, pornographic or not.
Ron DeSantis Could Have Run on a Message of Freedom
His political makeover into a Trumpy cultural warrior undermined what could have been a compelling campaign about the value of freedom.
Interest Rates Are High. GOP Presidential Candidates Need To Get Serious About It.
They will either reduce the ability to spend money or to cut taxes.
Trump Romps Through Iowa Caucuses, Calls for GOP to 'Come Together'
DeSantis appears to be on track to claim second place, a distant 30-ish percentage points behind Trump.
On Economic Issues, the Populist Right and Left Share a Lot of Common Ground
That's bad news for Americans.
Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out
Plus: Jacobin tries to read Hayek, Houthis try to strike more ships, S.F. politicians try to order businesses around, and more...
Chris Christie Tried To Break Trump's Hold on the GOP. It Didn't Work.
The former New Jersey governor was the only candidate in the Republican primary field with the courage to attack former President Donald Trump.
Most Iowans Don't Care About the Caucuses. You Shouldn't Either.
How do the Iowa caucuses work? The fact that people have to ask every four years shows why this tradition should end.
DeSantis Wants To 'Eliminate the IRS' and Implement a Flat Tax
DeSantis says the new, single tax rate would mean "lower taxes for everyone" but that only demonstrates that he hasn't thought too deeply about how a flat tax would work.
A Bad Year for Drag Queen Foes
New anti-drag laws were deemed unconstitutional in every state where they were challenged this year.
Removing Trump From the Colorado Ballot Won't Make Things Better
You're not going to save democracy by kicking people out of elections.
The GOP's Bogus Linkage Between Aiding Ukraine and "Border Security"
The analogy between Russia's invasion of Ukraine and illegal migration to the US is nonsensical. And many of the GOP's demands are intended to make legal migration more difficult, a policy likely to actually increase the illegal kind.
