Scale of Pandemic Relief Fraud Grows Larger
Thursday February 27, 2025 | Craig Eyermann

There’s no question that billions of dollars in pandemic relief aid was stolen by fraudsters in 2020. Here’s a quick tally of the estimates of how many billions were stolen: (more…)

President Trump’s Ukraine Policy: The Art of the Deal
Wednesday February 26, 2025 | Randall G. Holcombe

When President Trump was running for election in 2024, he said he’d end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office. That hasn’t happened. Lately, he’s called Ukraine President Zelensky a dictator and even blamed him for starting the war with Russia. It seems he’s tilting toward Russia in his attempt to negotiate an end to the war. (more…)

Canada Doubles Down On Diversity, Equity And Inclusion
Tuesday February 25, 2025 | Francis Crescia

The Trump presidency has forced Canada to examine its political beliefs. The country has become a hub of left-wing liberalism. Medically assisted-suicide is the fifth leading cause of death. There are no federal laws restricting abortion, and open-door immigration has increased the population to such an extent that the government no longer knows how many hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants are in the country. The court system has become a revolving door for criminals where repeat offenders do not fear punishment, and the court views criminals as victims. Drug consumption sites proliferate, providing users with their high with no hope of recovery. While President Trump signed an executive order to dismantle all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, Canada is doubling down on its vision of equity.  (more…)

Senseless Energy Policy in the Land of Enchantment
Friday February 21, 2025 | Kenneth W. Costello

This commentary addresses the grave problem of energy policies originating from a political or quasi-religious agenda propelled by climate zealots, misinformation, and obliviousness to basic economic principles. Such a policy is inescapably destined to jeopardize the public to benefit special interests. Appeasing competing special interests at the expense of the general public has been the hallmark of past government-driven energy policies. (more…)

Is There a United New Right?
Friday February 21, 2025 | Alvaro Vargas Llosa

The emergence of right-wing leaders in various parts of the world and their counter-offensive against wokeism, global elites, and liberalism has given rise to a narrative according to which the “far right,” the “nationalist right,” or the “populist right” (whatever you want to call them) is taking over from the left and establishing itself as the dominant force in the West and its periphery. Argentina’s Javier Milei, for instance, has talked about a “right-wing international,” while several speakers at a recent gathering of “Patriots for Europe”, a parliamentary bloc made up of various European parties in Brussels, held in Madrid, spoke of a new era. (more…)

Bureaucrats Tossing Gold Bars off the Titanic
Thursday February 20, 2025 | Craig Eyermann

During its last four months in power, the Biden-Harris administration opened the U.S. government’s money spigots as wide as they could. Appointed officials and bureaucrats across the federal government frantically spent money at a rate never before seen outside of pandemics and wars. (more…)

The European Union Signals New Age of Antitrust
Tuesday February 18, 2025 | Ethan Yang

Last November, the European Union confirmed Spain’s Teresa Ribera as Executive Vice President and Commissioner for Competition to replace the outgoing Margarette Vestager. The move will likely bring about a notable shift in antitrust doctrine. Vestager’s time in office saw the aggressive use of competition enforcement against American as well as European firms, often to the frustration of domestic leaders. However, alongside Vestager’s iconic use of aggressive antitrust enforcement came calls from European leaders to support the continental economy and produce homegrown companies that could compete with the Americans and Chinese. In particular, the end of her administration saw the emergence of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a law targeting individual U.S. and Chinese tech firms with discriminatory obligations. Given these realities, combined with public statements from Ribera about the need to support European firms, her nomination suggests that the E.U. intends to openly use antitrust as a tool for industrial policy.  (more…)