Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Realtor report: Existing US home sales dropped 8.4% in January

Source: United Press International

“Sales of existing homes greatly declined in January despite mortgage rates coming down, a report from the National Association of Realtors released Thursday says. Existing home sales, sales of homes that were previously owned and occupied, fell 8.4% in January on a seasonally adjusted annual rate. Sales were 4.4% lower than January 2025. The median sales price of existing homes was $396,800 for all housing types, nearly a 1% increase over a year ago.” (02/12/26)

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/02/12/existing-home-sales-decline-january-2026/8131770930457/

Thomas L. Knapp

Ed Crane, 1944-2026

Source: Independent Political Report

“Edward H. ‘Ed’ Crane III, co-founder and president emeritus of the libertarian Cato Institute and a former chair of the Libertarian National Committee, died Tuesday, February 10, 2026. He was 81. The Cato Institute announced Crane’s passing this week. Born in Los Angeles, California, on August 15, 1944, Crane played a significant role in both the institutional development of the modern libertarian movement and the growth of Cato into one of the country’s most prominent libertarian public policy think tanks. … As a member of the Libertarian Party, Crane was active from its earliest years.” (02/12/26)

https://independentpoliticalreport.com/2026/02/cato-co-founder-former-lnc-chair-ed-crane-dies-at-81/

Thomas L. Knapp

Do Construction Workers Have Fourth Amendment Rights? A Federal Court Will Decide.

Source: Reason
by Agustina Vergara Cid

“Immigration agents have intensified raids on construction sites across the country as the Trump administration pursues mass deportations. The raids often involve federal agents entering worksites without warrants, chasing workers, and detaining them (including U.S. citizens) for identity and immigration status checks. Now, the federal government is defending some of those tactics in court and asking a judge to throw out a lawsuit challenging them. In one such defense, the Trump administration basically argued that Fourth Amendment rights do not apply here: An attorney representing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) argued that federal agents don’t need warrants to enter construction sites, in a motion filed on January 29 in the Southern District of Alabama.” (02/12/26)

https://reason.com/2026/02/12/do-construction-workers-have-fourth-amendment-rights-a-federal-court-will-decide/

Thomas L. Knapp

US colleges received more than $5 billion in foreign gifts, contracts in 2025

Source: National Public Radio [US state media]

“U.S. colleges received more than 5 billion dollars in reportable foreign gifts and contracts in 2025, according to a new website from the U.S. Education Department. The release is part of a push by the Trump administration to make foreign influence in colleges and universities more transparent. Among the biggest recipients, the data show, are Carnegie Mellon University, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University. Qatar was the largest foreign source of funds to schools, making up more than 20% — or about 1.1 billion. Other sources include the United Kingdom, China, Switzerland and Japan.” (02/12/26)

https://www.npr.org/2026/02/12/nx-s1-5711359/us-colleges-5-billion-in-foreign-gifts

Thomas L. Knapp

The Problem with America First Global Health

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Roger Bate

“The America First Global Health Strategy is an operating model that emerged after the United States withdrew from the World Health Organization and needed a way to remain active internationally without WHO governance. Instead of working primarily through multilateral institutions, the US is now signing five-year bilateral health memoranda with dozens of low- and middle-income countries, overwhelmingly in sub-Saharan Africa. These agreements bundle longstanding programs on HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and surveillance into large government-to-government compacts, often involving hundreds of millions — or billions — of dollars. In substance, this is continuity more than rupture; what has changed is the structure.” (02/12/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/the-problem-with-america-first-global-health/

Thomas L. Knapp