Source: The UnPopulist
by Shikha Dalmia
“The aggressive protectionism of Trump 2.0 will make the country poorer, more corrupt, and globally isolated, warns trade policy expert Scott Lincicome.” (06/25/25)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/free-trade-is-flourishing-just-not
Source: Financial Times [UK]
“The UK’s largest Jewish representative body has suspended five of its deputies for two years and issued a warning to more than two dozen others after they signed an open letter criticising the Israeli government’s war against Hamas in Gaza. The decision by the Board of Deputies of British Jews comes after it launched a probe into 36 deputies who signed a letter published in the Financial Times in April that was highly critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government. … the board, which has about 300 deputies, said the signatories to the letter had breached the body’s code of conduct, adding that the ‘presentation and promotion of the letter’ created ‘the misleading impression that this was an official document of the board as a whole.'” (06/26/25)
Source: Lions of Liberty
“Are NYC Voters Dumb Enough to Elect a Socialist Mayor?” (06/25/25)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/madd-are-nyc-voters-dumb-enough-to-elect-a-socialist-mayor
Source: The Volokh Conspiracy
by Ilya Somin
“The Supreme Court’s ruling striking down laws banning same-sex marriage was a great victory for liberty and equality. But it should have been based on better legal reasoning.” (06/26/25)
Source: Orange County Register
by Sabith Khan
“The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ that the House of Representatives passed on May 22 includes a 3.5% tax on outbound remittance money sent primarily by immigrants to their families abroad. At first glance, this may seem like an easy way to generate revenue. But in reality, it’s a short-sighted, harmful policy that will hurt the very people who can least afford it, push money transfers into the shadows and ultimately damage the state and U.S. economy.” (06/25/25)
Source: The New Arab [UK]
“The Trump administration is escalating its battle with the US judiciary over rulings that have stymied his agenda by filing a lawsuit with an unusual set of defendants: The judges themselves. The Justice Department late on Tuesday sued the federal court in Maryland and all 15 of its judges over an order last month that automatically blocks for two business days the deportation of migrants in the state who file a new lawsuit challenging their detention. The court is formally called the US District Court for the District of Maryland. The administration’s lawsuit, filed in Baltimore, argues that the standing order runs afoul of US Supreme Court precedent governing the standards for how courts can issue injunctions and flouts congressional intent.” (06/26/25)
https://www.newarab.com/news/trump-admin-sues-federal-judges-blocking-deportations
Source: Washington Monthly
“LGBTQ Rights Are More Precarious Than Ever.” (06/25/25)
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2025/06/25/lgbtq-rights-are-more-precarious-than-ever/
Source: Foreign Policy
by Howard W French
“It is becoming harder than ever to imagine that Iran will abandon nuclear ambitions.” (06/25/25)
Source: Brownstone Institute
by Josh Stylman
“We used to share the same lies. Now we each get our own. Soon, we may not even agree that reality exists. Reality has been shattered into billions of pieces, each one perfectly tailored to fit someone’s worldview. The same event triggers completely different movies in our heads. The same evidence proves opposite truths. We’re not just disagreeing — we’re living in different universes, each one feeling absolutely real to the person inside it. This didn’t happen by accident. Someone broke it. Someone profits from the pieces.” (06/26/25)
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“The Thai government is moving to tighten rules around the sale of cannabis, just three years after the kingdom decriminalised recreational use of the popular substance. Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health on Tuesday night ordered that cannabis use be restricted to medical use only, throwing the estimated $1bn industry into a state of uncertainty. Government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsub said cannabis had created serious social problems for young people, and the industry, which has boomed in recent years, needed to be scaled back. … The order, however, is not law yet. It will need to be published in the official Royal Gazette to come into force, and the government has not indicated when that will happen.” (06/26/25)