“Someone, somewhere is making a lot of money. It’s the most brazen plunder since Hillary Clinton was trading cattle futures in Little Rock. Or since Nancy Pelosi was placing stock trades. Come to think of it, there seems to be a whole lot of plunder going on in the world of politics. It’s not just oil in the ‘Age of Trump.’ As President Ronald Reagan’s budget director and a Wall Street veteran, David Stockman is a seasoned observer of political plunder. When Donald Trump suddenly offered up the suggestion that ‘we’ (the taxpayers) buy struggling Spirit Airlines, Stockman wrote a piece called, ‘Was It You, Barron? Someone Made 3.5X On The Donald’s Spirit Airlines Socialism.’ This chart shows Spirit Holdings share price spiking when Trump started his takeover talk on April 21 (and then quickly collapsing).” (05/15/26)
“The International Criminal Court (ICC) has denied that it had issued new arrest warrants for Israeli political and military officials, following a Haaretz report published on Sunday claiming the Hague has quietly sought arrest warrants against several Israeli officials. According to the Haaretz report, citing a diplomatic source, the warrants target three Israeli politicians and two IDF officials. ICC spokesperson Oriane Maillet said in a note to journalists that the report, in Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, was not accurate, and the court ‘denies the issuance of new arrest warrants in the situation in the state of Palestine.'” (05/17/26)
“I’m not, alas, in Paris right now. But I can certainly imagine myself in a Parisian cafe, enjoying some steak frites and a glass of wine while taking in the glorious streetscape. What’s harder to imagine is soaking in all that ambiance and thinking, ‘Yeah, this place is definitely poorer than Mississippi.’ No, seriously, that’s what gross domestic product statistics suggest. In 2024, France had a per capita GDP of $46,103. Mississippi’s was $55,876. As recently as 10 years ago, French GDP was ahead ($37,024 versus $36,184), but since then U.S. GDP and productivity have grown significantly faster than Western Europe’s. This fact has caused much social media friction between smug Americans and defensive Europeans (allied with American progressives) who argue that you can’t measure what makes their way of life better.” (05/17/26)
“After decades of parental rights victories, Connecticut may become the first state to go backwards on homeschool freedom in the past 50 years. The Connecticut Senate advanced a bill attacking homeschooling families by a vote of 22 to 14, mostly along party lines. Three Democrats joined all Republicans in opposition. The measure cleared the House 96-53 last week, with four Democrats crossing the aisle to stand with Republicans. Those margins fall short of the two-thirds supermajority required in both chambers to override a gubernatorial veto. Connecticut families now have only one remaining safeguard. Leadership should respect the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children and block this Orwellian legislation.” (05/15/26)
“President Donald Trump on Saturday blasted Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., a longtime ally of the president, and threatened to back a primary challenger after she campaigned for one of his top Republican rivals. Trump lashed out on Truth Social against Boebert, whom he previously endorsed for reelection, just hours after she campaigned with Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., one of Trump’s most vocal GOP critics in Congress. ‘Is anyone interested in running against Weak Minded Lauren Boebert in Colorado’s Fourth Congressional District?’ Trump wrote. The president criticized Boebert for supporting Massie, whose primary challenger, retired Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, has Trump’s endorsement.” (05/17/26)
“he grim circumstances behind the death of George Washington (1732-1799), America’s first president and popularly known as the Father of the Country, are not wholly unknown. The details have been reported by historians for more than two centuries. What’s strange about this dry biographical knowledge is that it is not reported with shock and alarm and hence never conveyed to popular culture with lessons for our lives. This is because Washington’s physicians were following standard protocols when they bled him to death.” (05/15/26)
“Congressional redistricting — or pejoratively, gerrymandering — has dominated the headlines lately. This is a big deal in the primary-election season with an unpopular president and midterms right around the corner. Few issues provoke such animosity. Each side accuses the other of trying to stack the deck and rig the elections. … What most people refuse to understand is that if the public sees the government as a 24/7/365 bazaar offering virtually any benefit demanded of it to those with clout, then those who want what they cannot acquire through persuasion and voluntary exchange will work overtime to gain advantage from political power.” (05/15/26)
