Political Theater, 12/18/25
Source: Roll Call
“A most consequential year for Congress.” (12/18/25)
https://chrt.fm/track/D3F8DG/traffic.megaphone.fm/FISCAL1660042117.mp3
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Reason Interview: Jeff Flake
Source: Reason
“Jeff Flake on Free Trade, Immigration, and Trump’s GOP.” (12/18/25)
Opportunity by design: How states turn immigration into economic advantage
Source: Niskanen Center
by Denise Bell
“The American labor market is undergoing a profound structural transformation, driven by an aging population, rapid technological change, and persistent mismatches between worker skills and employer needs. In response, states have been modernizing their workforce systems to expand labor force participation, align education and training with evolving industry demands, and future-proof their economies. As part of these efforts, policymakers, the private sector, and civil society are increasingly recognizing immigrants as a vital yet underutilized segment of the labor force and harnessing their contributions as workers, entrepreneurs, and community leaders.” (12/17/25)
Trump’s Venezuela oil obsession doesn’t make sense
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Karthik Sankaran
“The president accused Caracas of ‘stealing’ the commodity and vows to take it back. First, we don’t need it, second, invading for it would be a blunder.” (12/17/25)
US regime sues Virgin Islands regime for violating gun rights
Source: ABC News
“A Second Amendment clash has erupted between the federal government and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The U.S. government sued the U.S. territory, its police department and Police Commissioner Mario Brooks on Tuesday, accusing them of obstructing and systematically denying American citizens the right to possess and carry guns. The U.S. Virgin Islands requires that applicants demonstrate ‘good reason to fear death or great injury to his person or property,’ and to have ‘two credible persons’ to vouch for their need of a firearm. Local law also requires that someone have ‘good moral character’ to obtain a gun permit, which is valid for up to three years and applies to a single weapon.” (12/17/25)
Capital Record, episode 275
Source: National Review
“The Common Grace in Scott Galloway’s Wisdom for Young Men.” (12/18/25)
The Tom Woods Show, episode 2718
Source: The Tom Woods Show
“Robert Barnes on the Mistakes of the Israel Lobby, and Whether MAGA Can Be Put Back Together.” (12/18/25)
Abundance as a Foreign Policy
Source: Foreign Policy
by Max Yoeli
“Across advanced economies, a new axis of politics is emerging: scarcity versus abundance. Rising prices, stalled infrastructure, and eroding industrial competitiveness reflect constraints on building and innovation. Trade disruptions and inadequate state capacity compound the challenge. In response, a cross-partisan abundance movement offers a path to expand the supply of vital goods and services—infrastructure, energy, health care, and housing—while responding to voters’ growing affordability concerns. Abundance is both a goal and a lens for overcoming the regulatory and capacity barriers that constrain supply. Yet the debate has focused mainly on domestic issues, such as zoning and permitting, even though its success depends on international flows of goods, capital, knowledge, and energy.” (12/17/25)
Trump’s Attempt to Deport Chinese Dissident Guan Heng is Part of an Awful Pattern
Source: The Volokh Conspiracy
by Ilya Somin
“The Trump Administration’s effort to deport Chinese dissident Guan Heng has rightly drawn widespread outrage and condemnation. Guan is a hero for his exposure of the Chinese government’s oppression and persecution of the Uyghur minority, and he faces near-certain imprisonment or death if he is deported to China, or to Uganda (a Chinese-aligned state to which the Trump administration may be trying to send him). Legally, he has an rock-solid case for asylum. Sadly, the effort to deport Guan is part of a broader pattern of Trump administration efforts to deport dissidents and victims of persecution back to the regimes that oppress them.” (12/17/25)
Judge lifts Trump administration limits on lawmaker visits to ICE gang lairs
Source: Politico
“A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s attempts to limit members of Congress from visiting detention facilities operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb ruled Wednesday that ICE cannot enforce newly adopted policies that require lawmakers to provide seven days notice before visiting detention facilities and entirely barring congressional visits to field offices being used to detain immigrants. Those policies, adopted in June, appear to violate explicit language in federal funding laws — adopted annually since 2020 — that prohibit ICE from restricting lawmakers’ access to its facilities, Cobb concluded.” (12/17/25)