The Political Orphanage, 10/22/26
Source: The Political Orphanage
“Why Corporations Are People.” (10/22/26)
https://politicalorphanage.libsyn.com/why-corporations-are-people
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Kushner Rages Against “Completely Insane” Report of Hacked Phone, Secret Talks
Source: Newsweek
“Jared Kushner has strongly denied allegations raised in a new Vanity Fair report that Dutch intelligence monitored activity on his phone and uncovered purported secret financial arrangements involving Middle Eastern governments, calling the claims ‘completely insane’ and saying they ‘never happened.’ … The report, written by Matthew Cole and excerpted from his forthcoming book Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East, alleges that Dutch intelligence obtained screenshots of Kushner’s iPhone through files found on a Russian military intelligence operative’s server and subsequently monitored his phone activity. … The report alleges that roughly $750 million was transferred into an account at First Abu Dhabi Bank held by the Watani Al Emarat Foundation, a UAE government-funded charity. Kushner was allegedly a signatory on the account, giving him access to it, but was not its owner … The article also alleges that a separate account in Israel received roughly $1 billion intended for Kushner’s personal benefit.” (10/22/26)
Will Trump Suspend the Midterm Elections?
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“According to election polls, Democrats are fairly certain to take control over the U.S. House of Representatives. There is now also the possibility that they could take control over the U.S. Senate. Realizing the danger he faces of losing control over Congress, President Trump is barnstorming the country, doing his best to rally his MAGA supporters to go to the polls and vote. But a question naturally arises: If Trump becomes certain that he faces defeat next month, will he switch directions and simply suspend the midterm elections? After all, one cannot lose an election if no election is held.” (10/22/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/10/22/will-trump-suspend-the-midterm-elections/
Tibet: Earthquake kills at least 16
Source: Deutsche Welle [German state media]
“A strong earthquake struck [Chinese-occupied Tibet] on Thursday night, killing at least 16 people and injuring 65 others, Chinese state media reported. Hundreds of homes in the remote Himalayan region collapsed due to the magnitude 7.0 quake, Xinhua reported. … The earthquake’s epicenter is around 190 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Nagqu, a city around 300 kilometers north of the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, the US Geological Survey said.” (10/23/26)
Repairing Rothbardian Monopoly Theory
Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan
“After leading with the theory of perfect competition, economics textbooks standardly add a ‘corrective’ chapter on the evils of monopoly. While they occasionally mention government-created monopoly, the focus is almost always on the harm of free-market monopoly, and the necessity of antitrust laws to combat such monopoly. A free-market monopoly is a business that manages to control a whole industry, and uses its control to slash output and raise prices. Later textbook chapters move on to markets with varying degrees of ‘monopoly power’ – and broadly conclude that as monopoly power goes up, market performance goes down. The moral: Free markets are only optimal in an extreme polar case. The further the real world strays from that case, the more suboptimal they become – and the more regulation improves the free-market outcome. Murray Rothbard rejects this picture, using three different sets of arguments.” (10/22/26)
https://www.betonit.ai/p/repairing-rothbardian-monopoly-theory
American farmers are slammed by war 7,000 miles away
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Joseph Solis-Mullen
“American farmers are in crisis, facing rising costs, disrupted export markets, and mounting financial pressure. While farming has always faced unavoidable challenges, such as weather, pests, and the vagaries of demand, the present problems are entirely of Washington’s making. The Trump administration’s tariffs have damaged critical trading relations, and its war against Iran has disrupted energy and fertilizer trade through the Strait of Hormuz. Washington’s response to beleaguered American agricultural interests has been billions of dollars in emergency aid and promises that future trade deals will deliver additional relief. It is a familiar cycle: Washington creates new risks for American producers, taxpayers absorb part of the resulting losses, and the underlying policies remain in place. Farmers receive temporary assistance but are left to navigate the same uncertain markets and elevated costs that made the assistance necessary.” (0/22/26)
Venezuelans Call for Elections in First National Protest in Nearly Two Years
Source: US News & World Report
“Thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets on Thursday in the first nationwide opposition protest in nearly two years, as demonstrators demanded free elections and other political changes. The United States has been working closely with the interim government led by acting President Delcy Rodriguez since US forces captured President Nicolas Maduro in January. Both US President Donald Trump and Rodriguez, Maduro’s former deputy, have said there will be elections, but have not set a date either for a legislative vote or a national contest for president. Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, who has been outside the country for nearly a year after living in hiding following a contested 2024 election, has said elections must take place by July 2027. Her Vente Venezuela movement organized the protest, which took place in the capital Caracas, as well as cities including Valencia, Maracay, San Cristobal and Maracaibo.” (10/22/26)
A Better Way Than Bossing Europe
Source: The American Conservative
by Doug Bandow
“The United States continues to underwrite Europe’s security, forcing Washington to maintain an oversize military and risk American lives and wealth on behalf of prosperous, populous allies able to defend themselves. Yet the Europeans are ever less willing to follow American geopolitical dictates, despite enjoying a de facto subsidy for their more generous welfare states. And Trump’s commercial extortion hurts Americans more than it helps them, raising prices, distorting trade, and inflaming conflict. Washington should instead encourage the emergence of Europe as a friendly, if at times competitive, geopolitical player, able and ready to promote shared economic, political, and other international objectives.” (10/22/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/a-better-way-than-bossing-europe/
Politics Politics Politics, 10/22/26
Source: Politics Politics Politics
“The Inside Story Behind that Amy Acton Ad. The Hottest Data Center Party in DC (with Abby Turner and Ed Tarnowski).” (10/22/26)
https://www.politicspoliticspolitics.com/p/the-inside-story-behind-that-amy
Italy: Trucker blockades ramp up pressure on Meloni
Source: Politico
“Roadblocks by truckers in southern Italy are exposing the limits of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s hardline approach toward protests, as she concedes she will have to take a carrot-and-stick approach to demonstrators struggling with soaring fuel costs. The demonstrations across the south are fast spiraling into a full-blown economic crisis. Truck drivers and farmers protesting soaring diesel bills have blocked highways, ports and distribution centers this week, leaving supermarket shelves empty and petrol pumps dry. Airports in the south are also suffering from fuel shortages. After a cabinet meeting on Thursday, the right-wing Meloni vowed to use a security decree to clear the roadblocks, but also pledged to give financial relief to farmers and fishermen crippled by the price of diesel.” (10/22/260