Source: Washington Monthly
by Garrett Epps
“Thanks to conservative justices, the law doesn’t allow him to compel cities, like Minneapolis, to bow to his immigration orders, and so he used ICE thuggery. It backfired. Now what?” (02/02/26)
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2026/02/02/trumps-ice-problem-and-ours/
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
“After Friday, when I worried about robots taking over, I was glad to read a debunking of the AI Will Destroy Us All meme, so in vogue. In ‘Superintelligent AI Is Not Coming To Kill You,’ from the March issue of Reason, Neil Chilson argues that we shouldn’t freak out. Not only do I not want to freak out, I don’t want to use AI very much — though I understand that, these days, sometimes it makes sense to consult the Oracles.” (02/02/26)
Source: Foreign Policy
by Julian E Zelizer
“The president’s decision to send troops to Los Angeles received broad national, bipartisan support.” (02/02/26)
Source: Reason
by JD Tuccille
“Missouri lawmakers are considering a proposal to abolish the state’s income tax and replace it with a sales tax. They’re not alone: Last year, Mississippi approved legislation that will decrease the state income tax over several years until it’s eliminated. That follows in the footsteps of Kentucky and Oklahoma. New Hampshire, which has no income tax, phased out its tax on interest and dividends. Several states making the move are considering sales taxes to fill the revenue gap, and they have the backing of the White House. But a new report warns that sales taxes may have to be higher than anticipated to make up the difference — unless state governments shrink in size and expense.” (02/02/26)
Source: Common Dreams
by Julia Norman
“The Trump administration’s latest threat to impose secondary tariffs on any nation selling oil to Cuba represents a dramatic and catastrophic tightening of the six-decade-long, deliberate chokehold the United States has maintained on Cuba’s access to essential resources. This act of collective punishment against the Cuban people, for alleged crimes the US government has scarcely attempted to substantiate, will be felt across every aspect of daily life. According to Trump’s January 29 executive order, this latest escalation in economic warfare is framed as a response to the ‘unusual and extraordinary threat’ the Cuban government allegedly poses to US national security.” (02/02/25)
Source: Quillette
by Stephan Jensen
“Trump’s threat to annex Greenland has revealed the shakiness of America’s commitment to NATO. Europe urgently needs to create its own alternative.” (02/02/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/02/02/europe-needs-a-new-alliance-nato-greenland-eu-trump-defence/
Source: Bitcoin.com
by Jamie Redman
“President Donald Trump has nominated former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to lead the U.S. central bank, instantly reviving an old debate with real market consequences: Is Warsh a hard-money hawk, a quiet dove, or something closer to a modern-day Paul Volcker? The answer matters, because investors are already trading the nomination as if Volcker himself just walked back into the Federal Reserve building.” (02/02/26)
Source: The Daily Economy
by Emile Phaneuf III & Rahim Taghizadegan
“Governments claim monopoly, but we can choose between them. Flag theory explains how mobility, diversification, and ‘exit’ create a real marketplace for governance.” (02/02/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/jurisdiction-shopping-the-forgotten-logic-behind-flag-theory/
Source: Big Head Press
by Scott Bieser
Cartoon. (02/02/26)
Source: Hoover Institution
by Rebecca E Wolfe
“The education ecosystem does not currently create an environment conducive to innovation for those on the front lines of teaching and learning.” (02/02/26)