Breaking News

Opinion

America is surviving, not living

National Columnists

Life in America doesn’t feel like life right now. It feels like triage. People get up, commute, grind through work, juggle kids and side hustles, scroll through their phones in bed until their eyes burn, then do it again tomorrow. They are surviving, but they are not living. The numbers explain why. The average American now carries around $100,000 in total consumer debt once you add mortgages, credit cards, auto loans and student loans, according to recent Experian data. Total household debt has reached a record $18.6 trillion, up more than $4 trillion since just before the ...

All human beings do not think same way

National Columnists

One of the most persistent mistakes in modern politics is the insistence on flattening all ideologies — pretending that all human beings think the same way, want the same things, and are motivated by the same forces. Every time policymakers fall into this trap, the result is not compassion or clarity but some of the worst public policy imaginable. The assumption usually begins with a comforting but false premise: that all people harbor the same yearning for freedom in precisely the same way. That belief animated much of the George W. Bush administration’s foreign policy, when the ...

Property tax revolt explodes across US

National Columnists

“Affordability” is the Democrats’ battle cry to win elections these days. But Republicans are ready to flip the script to woo homeowners, who make up the majority (65%) of American households. Across the nation, these homeowners are angry and ready to fight against soaring property taxes. Their homes have appreciated, but they don’t have more cash in their pockets to pay the rising taxes that come with rising home values. A property tax revolt, with silver-haired payers leading the charge, is likely to shape the political map for November 2026. Steve Moore, cofounder of the ...

Does either party want to win Senate race in Texas?

National Columnists

One of the worst features of the election primary system in our polarized “Red vs. Blue” time is the tendency of primary voters to flock to the candidate they most want to “destroy” the other party, not the candidate best positioned to do so. Let’s say a zombie is scratching at your door. You’ve got a shotgun, a handgun and your favorite frying pan. The shotgun has the greatest chance of success, the handgun — if one is careful and skilled — has a solid chance of working, and the frying pan? It probably won’t dispatch the threat but, come on, how cool would it be to ...

Are mandated digital IDs next?

National Columnists

Politicians push government IDs. In a TSA announcement, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem sternly warns, “You will need a REAL ID to travel by air or visit federal buildings.” European politicians go much further, reports Stossel TV producer Kristin Tokarev. They’re pushing government-mandated digital IDs that tie your identity to nearly everything you do. Spain’s prime minister promises “an end to anonymity” online! Britain’s prime minister warns, “You will not be able to work in the United Kingdom if you do not have digital ID.” Queen Maxima of ...

Why Johnny can’t read or do math

National Columnists

Reading and math scores are abysmal across the country, as national testing results keep documenting. Illiteracy rates are rising: The number of 16- to 24-year-olds reading at the lowest literacy levels increased from 16% in 2017 to 25% in 2023, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics. In some inner-city schools, less than half of kids are reading or doing math at grade-level proficiency. Many high school grads can’t read their diplomas. As an economist, I would submit that this is our greatest crisis. It puts the future of American prosperity in grave ...