The controversy surrounding the Trump administration’s decision to reverse the Veterans Affairs abortion policy has been framed as a dispute over healthcare access, administrative authority, or political ideology. But those framings, while convenient, are ultimately evasions. At its core, this debate concerns whether the federal government should actively participate in the deliberate ending of innocent…
The “Golden Fleet,” Deism, and the Perils of Designing a World You Refuse to Govern
The U.S. Navy’s so-called Golden Fleet initiative sketches a vision that is at once ambitious and revealing. At the surface level, the story is about ships: numbers, readiness, industrial capacity, and the strategic anxieties of an increasingly dangerous world. But beneath the steel and spreadsheets lies a deeper question about how America understands power, responsibility,…
Power, Pressure, and President Trump’s Pharma Deal
President Trump’s agreement with major pharmaceutical companies to reduce drug prices deserves more than a quick partisan reaction. It sits at the crossroads of health-care economics, executive power, and moral responsibility, and it raises a question Americans should keep asking long after the headlines fade: will this actually help patients, or is it merely another…
Why Cutting Federal Funding for Gender-Affirming Care Is the Right and Necessary Step
The federal government’s recent move to restrict Medicare and Medicaid funding for so-called “gender-affirming care” for minors has ignited predictable outrage. Activists describe it as discriminatory. Advocacy groups frame it as a moral emergency. Critics accuse policymakers of ignoring “settled science.” But beneath the noise is a quieter, more sobering reality: for the first time…
A Time of Strategic Boldness and Consequential Questions
As we approach the 2026 midterm elections, President Trump is not retreating to the customary presidential sidelines. Instead, he has made clear — through his own advisers and actions — that he intends to play a front-and-center role in influencing Republican outcomes. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles stated publicly that Trump will be…
Syria, Sacrifice, and the High Cost We’re Too Quick to Call “Waste”
The deadly attack on American personnel in Syria—and President Trump’s pledge of a decisive response—has once again forced the country to confront a question we never seem to settle: What is worth the cost? Every time U.S. service members are killed abroad, the debate begins almost instantly. Why are we there? What are we gaining?…
A Reflection on the GOP’s Health-Care Rift
Washington, D.C., never lacks for drama, but every now and then the Republican caucus serves up an episode spicy enough to make daytime television blush. This time, the plot centers on something far more consequential than committee assignments or who accidentally unplugged the espresso machine in the Capitol cafeteria. House Republicans have found themselves in…
A Wake-Up Call from Miami, Georgia, and… Joshua?
Every so often, American politics serves up a moment that jolts both parties like a divine tap on the shoulder, something between a gentle nudge and a holy smack with a rolled-up newspaper. The recent Democratic win in Miami and the unexpected flip of a Georgia district that President Trump previously carried by double digits…
Washington Needs Less Drama and More Decency
If you’ve glanced at the headlines lately, you may have noticed that Washington is starting to look less like the capital of the world’s greatest republic and more like a crossover episode of CSI, Survivor, and The Office. We’ve got Congress hauling in Jack Smith for a closed-door testimony that he wanted to give in…
Two Political Earthquakes and What They Say About American Power Today
Every once in a while, American politics hands us two stories that seem unrelated but actually rhyme like Psalms and Proverbs. Yesterday gave us exactly that: Matt Van Epps squeaking out a narrower-than-expected win in deep-red Tennessee, and President Trump issuing a full pardon to Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, whose corruption case involved some eyebrow-raising…
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