Source: Law & Liberty
by James Valvo & Ryan Mulvey
“The Presidential Records Act (PRA) has lately been a source of controversy. The Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) published an opinion at the beginning of April that concluded the PRA is unconstitutional because it ‘exceeds Congress’s enumerated and implied powers’ and ‘aggrandizes the Legislative Branch at the expense of the constitutional independence and autonomy of the Executive.’ OLC’s opinion has raised eyebrows. It may even be wrong on the law. Nevertheless, it is good to see the political branches jockeying for position over the constitutionality of one another’s actions. A healthy, antifragile government requires occasional interbranch battles over the structure of our government.” (06/23/26)
“Here in the States, the major attention to borders and potential threats has long been the border with Mexico, and the Gulf Coast with access to the Caribbean and all its little island nations. The States’ border with Canada has long been demilitarized – indeed, for pushing 150 years. But in recent years, as Canada has gone more Woke, more Tranzi, and opened the Provinces to mass immigration from not just the Commonwealth but apparently everywhere else? Some people think we need a wall up there, too. (That disgusts us both politically and personally, even more than the idea we must fortify the border with Mexico.) But things are not good – and the Canada we once knew – even the Prairie Provinces – is long gone.” (06/22/26)
“I’m skeptical that term limits, as envisioned by their promoters, would do much to restrain or improve the quality of government, and as a political matter their opponents aren’t wrong when they point out that ‘we already have term limits, they’re called elections.’ … But if we want to give term limits a real try, I have some ideas on the matter. First, the limit should be one term. Second, the term should be fairly short — say, two years. Third, once a person has been elected to a particular office, that person becomes ineligible for election to any other office, and for employment by any branch of the government in question … ever, for life.” (06/23/26)
“On Tuesday, New York City’s Democratic voters will decide whether Zohran Mamdani controls the future of their party. With equal parts perfidy and chutzpah, Mamdani has broken with party leaders who supported his rapid rise in last year’s mayoral race to endorse three House candidates. Three-decade incumbent Nydia Velázquez, esteemed by progressives and Hispanic voters alike, was the first member of Congress to endorse Mamdani last April. ‘It’s just beautiful to have someone so authentic,’ she gushed in July. With Velázquez retiring from her NY-7 seat, she thought she could count on Mamdani to repay the favor for her chosen successor, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso — a union-backed progressive who isn’t part of the Democratic Socialists of America. But Mamdani, authentic to himself, failed to follow through.” (06/22/26)
“Britain’s problems stem from no one being able to ever do anything. Therefore we’re short of things that have been done. Sorting this out so that more people can do more things seems sensible, for then we’d all enjoy more things that have been done. The New Manchesterism then suggests that government should do all those lovely long term things that markets can’t or don’t and thus will the land of milk and honey return. We do tend to think that the long term isn’t something that politics is going to look to. Not when a Prime Minister with a stonking majority gets – well, likely will – killed off by a chippy northerner after 2 years and how many days is it?” (06/23/26)
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“I’m always amused whenever I read some criticism of America’s ‘capitalist’ system by some leftist. Leftists rail against the evils of capitalism and cite American ‘capitalism’ as a prime example of such evil. I’m sure that such leftists are thoroughly confused when they encounter a libertarian. That’s because libertarians also condemn the economic system under which we Americans live. I’m sure that the leftists just don’t get it. How can a libertarian, they think, criticize and condemn America’s ‘capitalist’ system when libertarians are deeply committed to capitalism? The answer is very simple, but one that all too many leftists are loathe to consider: America doesn’t have a genuine capitalist system.” [editor’s note: Actually, it does. What it does not have is a free market system. There’s a difference – TLK] (06/23/26)
“Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas is talking in circles. The city is suffering under a $55 million operating deficit. The mayor pointed out in a 2023 budget letter that ‘The demands of a City this size in square miles and infrastructure age far exceed affordable options for residents and available resources.’ What to do? The answer is obvious: dedicate more public tax dollars to private corporations. And not just baseball, but women’s soccer, too! Kansas City leaders are once again proposing public subsidies for a sports facility.” (06/22/26)
“The view that an increase in the money supply could revive an economy is based on the idea that money transmits its effect through the aggregate expenditure. With more money in their pockets, people will be able to spend more and the rest will follow suit. Money, however, only enables one producer to exchange his produce with another producer.” (06/23/26)
Source: Common Dreams
by Medea Benjamin & Nicolas JS Davies
“The 60-day extension of the ceasefire between the United States and Iran may lead to lasting peace or it may be over within a week, doomed by the dysfunctional alliance between the US and Israel. If it holds, it could mark the beginning of a transition away from the doctrine of ‘low-intensity conflict’ that has shaped US foreign policy for decades. Talks between the US, Iran, Pakistan, and Qatar began in Switzerland on June 21. But Iran was firm that it holds the United States responsible for Israel’s violations of the US-Iran memorandum and cannot move forward with other parts of the agreement until the US fulfills its part in Article 1, which requires an actual Israeli ceasefire and withdrawal from Lebanon.” (06/23/26)
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Wanjiru Njoya
“Mark Twain popularized the phrase, ‘There are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.’ This phrase could equally well be adapted to depict the role of socialist narratives taught as ‘history’—narratives that wreak even more economic havoc than outright lies. Lies can be debunked with facts, but socialist narratives appeal to political and moral ideologies that are less easily dislodged once they take root.” (06/23/26)
