Reason Roundtable, 07/20/26
Source: Reason
“Is the War in Iran Spiraling Out of Control?” (07/20/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/07/20/is-the-war-in-iran-spiraling-out-of-control/
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Trump announces latest scheme to raise Americans’ taxes
Source: Austin American-Statesman
“President Donald Trump on Monday imposed 50% tariffs on [American buyers of] most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products. … The new 50% tariffs would exclude energy products, potash, fish and critical minerals, but they would include goods that had previously been protected from import taxes by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. That 2020 trade pact was not renewed by the U.S., triggering a new set of negotiations that could run until 2036. The White House said in a fact sheet that the tariffs would go into effect in 30 days, meaning there is time for negotiations as Trump has not always followed through on his announced tax hikes on [American buyers of] imports.” (07/21/26)
Is It Really Socialism?
Source: Liberalism.org
by Matt Zwolinski
“So socialism is back, and the commentary has arranged itself in the usual formation. On the right, alarm: the reds are at the gates. On the left, a banner: the future has arrived. What is striking is how little of the excitement and the horror attaches to anything the new mayors actually propose. The same rent freeze, the same municipal grocery, would pass almost unnoticed under another name. It is the word that thrills the one side and frightens the other, and so the question everyone hurries to argue is a question about the word. Is this really socialism, or just New Deal liberalism with sharper slogans? Does a city-owned grocery store cross the line, or is it ordinary municipal housekeeping? The fixation is a mistake, and an instructive one.” (07/20/26)
Hamas names Khalil Al-Hayya as new overall leader
Source: Reuters
“Hamas has named Khalil Al-Hayya as its overall leader, according to a statement from the Palestinian militant group on Monday, in a move an analyst says could signal a tougher stance by the group towards disarmament calls. Hayya replaces Yahya Sinwar, who was killed in combat with Israeli forces in October 2024 as Hamas fought a full-scale, two-year war with Israel in the Gaza Strip. Hayya, the group’s exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator, has become an increasingly central figure in the leadership of Hamas since the deaths of Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran in July 2024. He is seen as more hardline than Khaled Meshaal, the head of the group’s office in exile and the other frontrunner for the leadership.” (07/20/26)
Suing Stephen Miller
Source: The Watch
by Radley Balko
“It’s time to put everyone from Stephen Miller and Tom Homan to the most recent ICE hire on notice: a reckoning is coming.” (07/20/26)
Court document: US regime thugs sought phone records of journalists, relatives in effort to punish transparency
Source: Associated Press
“President Donald Trump’s administration sought phone records of several New York Times journalists and even those of some of their relatives, according to a motion unsealed Monday — an unusually aggressive attempt to unmask the confidential sources of reporters who wrote about Trump’s Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet. The efforts by the Republican president’s administration to compel the identity of sources in the form of additional subpoenas come at a time when the executive branch’s relationship with the press is increasingly contentious. The efforts, described in a letter-motion filed by the Times over the weekend, were more expansive than previously known, the newspaper noted. They also covered a time frame that exceeded the news articles in question.” (07/20/26)
https://apnews.com/article/new-york-times-justice-department-trump-88f5ceca88dcdd19779e6f61abedf337
The Odyssey has transcended the culture war
Source: spiked
by Maren Thom
“Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is a commercial and artistic triumph, opening to widespread critical acclaim and collecting $264million in global ticket sales during its opening weekend. Indeed, it is reassuring that Hollywood still has some artistry and ambition left in it. But alongside the legitimate plaudits, the film’s juggernaut success has produced two other, more philistine reactions. The liberal left is relieved. After months of controversy over the supposedly woke casting, the film has received ecstatic reviews and attracted huge audiences, leading progressives to declare victory. … Much of the right is furious for precisely the same reason. Having condemned The Odyssey before seeing it, the anti-woke warriors cannot forgive it for being magnificent.” (07/20/26)
Ten killed as Russian attacks on merchant ships in Black Sea intensify
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“The death toll of a Russian strike on a cargo ship off the coast of the Ukrainian city of Odesa has risen to 10. The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship was hit by Russian cruise missiles on Sunday, the Ukrainian Air Force said, causing a fire. A search and rescue operation was launched and lasted all night. By Monday morning, Ukraine’s seaports authority said nine crew members had been killed, as well as one of its pilots. India later said four of its citizens died in the attack. In recent weeks, the Odesa region has come under sustained attack. Twenty-eight people died in Russian strikes on the region in July alone, regional head Oleh Kiper told Ukrainian TV on Monday. Russian attacks on cargo ships in the Black Sea have also increased.” (07/20/26)
Flag on the play: First Amendment problems with NIL regulation
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Amuda Balu
“NIL agreements are about more than money. They are also about expression. Student athletes earn compensation by appearing in advertisements, promoting products on social media, and publicly associating themselves with brands. These activities therefore qualify as speech, which receives First Amendment protection. Yet many of our current state and university NIL laws do not seem to withstand constitutional scrutiny. Two types of common restrictions in particular are concerning: restrictions for contracts in vice industries and those relating to institutional values.” (07/20/26)
https://www.fire.org/news/flag-play-first-amendment-problems-nil-regulation
Trump Is Ready for All-Out War in Iran. There’s Just One Catch.
Source: The New Republic
by Edith Olmsted
“Forget writing a check you can’t cash; President Donald Trump is escalating a war that the U.S. military can’t wage. Trump has made it more than clear that he’s done negotiating with Tehran, after the U.S. military launched yet another wave of strikes against Iran Saturday in retribution for the deaths of at least two U.S. military service members in Jordan. … ‘The U.S. is planning for a wider war,’ one U.S. official familiar with the matter told The Washington Post Monday. The official warned that U.S. military operations would be kneecapped by dwindling stockpiles of air defense and long-range munitions, as well as widespread damage to U.S. military bases in the Middle East. ‘We do not have enough to safely sustain operations, and I don’t think the White House is aware of that,’ the official added.” (07/20/26)
https://newrepublic.com/post/213240/donald-trump-war-iran-weapons-stockpile