Featured Commentary category, Page 142
Jonah Goldberg: The conservative divide
The idea holding together the conservative movement since the 1960s was called “fusionism.” The concept, which always worked better as an organizing principle than a philosophical one, was that freedom and virtue were inextricably linked. Virtue not freely chosen wasn’t virtuous. Or as Frank Meyer, the foremost architect of fusionism,...
Colin McNickle: The Penn Hills predicament
The Penn Hills School District finds itself in dire financial straits. And it now must execute a state-overseen financial recovery plan. A significant tax increase and layoffs are possible. But had taxpayers been given the direct oversight they deserve, the situation might be different, say two researchers at the Allegheny...
Jonah Goldberg: Does reality change ideas, or vice versa?
The intellectual right is in the middle of a huge brouhaha, as some prominent right-wing commentators celebrate what they believe is the end of the “conservative consensus” around classical liberalism — free markets, limited government, the sovereignty of the individual and even in some cases free expression. Fox News’ Tucker...
Michelle Malkin: Exoneree, now a law grad, fights for justice
What would you do if you were falsely accused and convicted of a brutal rape and murder you didn’t commit? How would you handle a violent maximum-security prison, sentenced to 16 years to life, at age 17? And where would you go, what would you choose to do, if you...
Christopher Duncan: Community support will inspire future Army leaders
“Thank you for your service.” As an Army soldier living in Pennsylvania, I am grateful for these words, which I hear often when wearing my uniform in public. What many people do not understand is that I am the one who is thankful. I am thankful for the camaraderie, the...
Cosmo Servidio: EPA delivers on fuels promise
Last fall, President Trump promised the American people that the Environmental Protection Agency would bring consumers more choices at gas pumps across the country. In a federal rule finalized last week, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler delivered on that promise by clearing regulatory barriers to make it easier to sell fuel...
Peter Morici: Trump must run against Bernie Care & GOP in 2020
President Trump is the victim of his own success. Voters now rank health care above the economy as the top issue for Washington to address, and the president must run against his own party to win in 2020. American discontent stems from affordability. We pay 75% more for health care...
G. Terry Madonna & Michael Young: Hamlet on the Potomac
The angst in Washington over impeaching President Trump is producing a “Hamlet on the Potomac” moment that even Shakespeare might appreciate. Democrats want to do it, but most Republicans don’t, and voters overall, while divided along party lines, are mostly opposed. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, while fully occupied by her daily...
Walter Williams: Colleges committed to ideological diversity
When you send your youngster off to college, you might not mind that they will have to walk on eggshells, respect taboos, snitch on fellow students for politically incorrect jokes and learn to use ad hominem arguments as a means to attack ideas they find “disagreeable.” If that’s your preference,...
John Stossel: Paid time off for families not government’s business
Both Republican and Democratic politicians want government to “do more” to give parents paid time off. “This is not a women’s issue. It’s a family issue,” says Ivanka Trump. “(E)very worker in America should be guaranteed at least 12 weeks,” says Sen. Bernie Sanders. “That’s a very arbitrary number! Why...
Donald Boudreaux: Capitalism. Is. Working.
A Wayne State University student recently upbraided me by email for various offenses — each of which at bottom amounts to me using my blog, Café Hayek, to defend free markets. This livid young scholar ended his email by declaring that “Capitalism. Is. Not. Working.” His signature revealed that his...
Brad Schiller: Trump could win again in 2020. Here’s how
President Donald Trump isn’t that worried about potential impeachment hearings. He even tries to goad Democrats into starting the process, knowing that will enliven his base and distract Democrats from their legislative agenda. And he has emerged from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation seemingly unscathed, despite serious evidence of obstruction...
Cal Thomas: Virginia Hall, D-Day’s ‘forgotten’ woman
Observances of the 75th anniversary of D-Day are properly focusing on the troops and the architect of Operation Overlord, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who freed Europe from Hitler and his Nazi hordes. One person — a woman — has not received the credit she deserves for her efforts with the...
Pat Buchanan: We’ll pay price for Mueller’s indecisiveness
What is it about Special Counsel Robert Mueller that he cannot say clearly and concisely what he means? His nine-minute summary of the findings of his office, after two years of investigation, was a mess. It guarantees that the internecine warfare that has poisoned our politics continues into 2020. If...
Bill Miller: Casinos are job creators, community partners
In 2004, when the Pennsylvania Legislature passed the Race Horse Development and Gaming Act, it was hard to anticipate just how important the gaming industry would become to Pennsylvania’s economy. Throughout economic peaks and valleys of the past 15 years, gaming companies have consistently served as an anchor for state...
Neal Katyal: William Barr’s zealous defense of Trump makes it impossible to trust his legal judgment
There are two big questions about the now-completed investigation into President Trump, and the answers will determine what happens next. First, why didn’t former special counsel Robert Mueller render a judgment on whether Trump had obstructed justice? And second, since Attorney General William Barr did render such a judgment, why...
John Manzella: Critical issues that could kill U.S.-China trade progress
President Trump has called out China for unfairly subsidizing its state-owned enterprises, not enforcing intellectual property protections, placing trade restrictions on U.S. firms, and pressuring them to hand over technology in exchange for market access. If these problems are eliminated, more U.S. companies will invest there. But is this what...
Jonah Goldberg: Trump’s poor approval ratings have little to do with Mueller investigation
“Without the ILLEGAL Witch Hunt, my poll numbers, especially because of our historically ‘great’ economy, would be at 65%,” President Trump tweeted last month. In all likelihood, the president believes what he wrote. It’s a strongly held sentiment among many of Trump’s ardent supporters that if he hadn’t been stabbed...
S.E. Cupp: Want activism with your coffee?
How would you like your coffee — milk, sugar and a side of politics? In an era when it seems impossible to divorce politics from everything else, Dunkin’ Brands, the parent company of Dunkin’ Donuts, is betting you might just appreciate a break whilst in their stores. At an International...
Patrick Dowd: Two paths for a bold commitment to Pennsylvania schools
Pennsylvania’s school districts are under strain. Inequity, underfunding and lack of urgency to invest the funding necessary to enact any real progress toward educational excellence is taking its toll on students, teachers, taxpayers and communities. Good schools are the centerpiece of every vibrant neighborhood, the selling point for homebuyers and...
Peter Morici: Building taller cities to cope with climate change
Homo sapiens are unique in our ability to unlock the secrets of nature, build great civilizations and create technological wonders and radically alter the environment — not always for the better. Harnessing fossil fuels accelerated our ascent, but according to scientists, diplomats and the architects of the 2016 Paris agreement,...
Cal Thomas: John Walker Lindh, still a terrorist
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the release of self-admitted “American Taliban” member John Walker Lindh “unexplainable and unconscionable.” Lindh, who was paroled May 23 from a federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind., served 17 years of a 20-year sentence for illegally aiding Taliban forces. Lindh had joined the terrorist...
John Stossel: Today, ‘victims’ use their ‘trauma’ to dictate
“I don’t feel safe,” says a Harvard student in a video. What threatens her? The dean of her Harvard dormitory, law professor Ronald Sullivan, agreed to be part of accused sexual harasser Harvey Weinstein’s legal defense team. Sullivan and his wife were deans of the dormitory for years, but no...
Walter Williams: Slavery is neither strange nor peculiar
The favorite leftist tool for the attack on our nation’s founding is that slavery was sanctioned. They argue that the founders disregarded the promises of our Declaration of Independence “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are...
Daniel W. Drezner: Bye-bye Bolton?
We are far enough into the Trump administration to know how the script usually plays out when a Cabinet officer or high-ranking staffer is on the outs with the president. First, Trump asks everyone within his orbit what he thinks of the imperiled official. Second, reports of Trump’s dissatisfaction hit...
