Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

What to Watch for at The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

What to Watch for at The Department of Veterans Affairs – by Allison Gill The Contrarian “During Donald Trump’s first term, it took a while for me to get fired” . . . Allison Gill an employee of the Department of Veterans I had worked at the VA for over a decade when I was […]

Executive Orders for Trump and Private Industry

This was from May 2023. I have been reading the OilPrice website just to keep up with what the other side of the room was thinking, Not that I would get all the detail. However, you can surmise what is taking place after a brief read. I do not believe industry finds Trump and his […]

Three reasons Ezra Klein will not become a libertarian

Over at Cato, Michael Cannon tells us that Ezra Klein will become a libertarian.  As evidence, he cites the following passage by Klein: The thing I’ve changed my mind most on in politics in recent years is how destructive bad regulations can be and how seriously I take it now when I hear that regulations […]

Trump and national security

Trump has charged the DoJ and FBI to focus on his political enemies. That means that the focus of these “law and order” agencies will be on Trump’s political security and not our national security. Expect terrorist attacks and domestic violence, which will then be used as an excuse for martial law. Trump has pardoned […]

Paranoia “Striking Deep” Early on In This Administration with Immigration

Early this morning I stepped outside into the thirty-degree weather we are experiencing in the Arizona desert. My across-the-street US Citizen Mexican neighbor was loading up his pickup truck to go do some landscaping work. His is one of the few pickup trucks I have seen with the backend box filled with the essentials needed […]

Attempting to Extend the 2017 TCJA Tax Breaks

What is Necessary for Republicans to Extend 2017 Tax Cuts? The tax cuts in the 2017 TCJA were supposed to pay for itself in stimulation of the economy. The TCJA was passed using the Reconciliation Act. It never did pay for itself. So now Republicans are working on cuts to social programs to keep the […]

The Stasi comes to the United States

The former German Democratic Republic (“East Germany”) was a police state in which neighbors spied on neighbors and family members spied on one another. If you were named by a friend or colleague as a potential subversive, the Stasi—the secret police—would arrest you and you could be imprisoned for years on trumped-up charges. After your […]

ACA Marketplace Healthcare Plan Renewals

ACA Marketplace Reflections on Retention and Year-round Enrollment – by Andrew Sprung xpostfactoid Writing about the ACA marketplace at this point has an elegiac feel (as does writing about almost any not-depraved or degraded aspect of American life). As of 2026, coverage is likely to be far less affordable, out of pocket costs will rise […]