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We need to know who is coming to America

National Columnists

Following the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington the day before Thanksgiving, President Trump announced he wants to “permanently pause migration” at least until he is satisfied that those from Afghanistan and other unstable countries have had their backgrounds thoroughly investigated. The president also wants to revoke the legal status of many of them and expel those who don’t measure up to his standard, which is “loving America.” Vetting is usually a detailed process for those seeking entry to the U.S., especially when they are from countries associated ...

Jobs give affordability to young people

National Columnists

Polls show that the age group of Americans most worried about “affordability” are the 20- and 30-somethings. That’s young millennials and Gen Z. Why are they so financially stressed out? One reason things seem so unaffordable to young people is that too many aren’t working hard — they are hardly working. The latest Labor Department data indicate that fewer and fewer males between the ages 16 and 24 are in the labor force. It used to be that more than 70% had a job; now less than 60% do. Labor force participation for men even into their 30s is at or near an all-time low. ...

American industrial policy is just bad economics

National Columnists

American industry has been getting a lot of hands-on direction from Democrats and Republicans for quite some time now. Every few years, someone looks at the underwhelming results of this economic maneuvering and insists that real “industrial policy” has never been tried. The truth is that the Left’s call for a “mission-oriented” state and the right’s yearning for a nationalist industrial revival may sound different, but they share the same conceit: that their own intentions can finally succeed where decades of intervention have failed. The latest person to revive this ...

What is going on with our economy?

National Columnists

The fate of the Trump administration — and perhaps Republicans in Congress — is tethered to how Americans feel about the economy. And right now, it’s hard to find anyone who can say with confidence what is going on. Thursday offered a fresh reminder of the chaos. As The Wall Street Journal noted, “Stocks surrendered gains and closed sharply lower after a whirlwind day of trading that began after Nvidia posted strong results. The Nasdaq composite led indexes lower after being up on the day more than 2%. It closed 2.2% lower. Nvidia gave up an even bigger gain and finished the ...

Europe has made itself an afterthought

National Columnists

In the contention over the U.S. peace plan for Ukraine, the Europeans are in their accustomed role — carping from the sidelines. Not only can the once-great European powers no longer dictate the fate of far-flung parts of the world, they can’t even dictate the end of a war involving a European country whose fate they deem crucial to their own future. We’re a long way from the British controlling about a quarter of the globe’s territory in the early 20th century; a long way from British and French diplomats, Mark Sykes and François Georges-Picot respectively, drawing the ...

Leaked ‘wish list’ hardly ‘America First’

National Columnists

Last week, a 28-point “peace plan” for the Russia-Ukraine war surfaced. It was apparently fleshed out in Miami over cocktails by President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Witkoff’s Russian counterpart Kirill Dmitriev. Many critics immediately derided it as a “Russian wish-list.” In a closed-door session with senators, Secretary of State Marco Rubio even described it as a “wish-list for the Russians” and “not the administration’s plan.” On his way to Geneva for peace talks, Rubio scrambled to deny he ever said that. ...