Author: Darnell Thompkins

This piece argues that heavy taxation on high earners backfires by encouraging avoidance, reducing investment, and weakening economic growth, while also urging a focus on spending restraint and fair enforcement rather than bigger tax burdens. There’s a simple political truth about high tax proposals: the people they target have options and they will use them. Wealthy individuals and businesses can relocate, reclassify income, or deploy sophisticated tax strategies that shift the burden away from where politicians intend it to land. That reality changes the arithmetic of what a tax hike actually achieves once you factor in behavior and mobility. “The…

“Forty-seven Democrats voted against a photo ID amendment on Thursday despite Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer previously claiming that he was supportive of photo ID.” Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) introduced an amendment to the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act that would simply require photo ID to vote. The vote exposed a clear split between rhetoric and action. Republicans framed the amendment as a straightforward guard against confusion and fraud, while many Democrats opted to block the change despite prior statements of support. Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) offered an amendment to the SAVE America Act that focused on one…

The Senate passed a partial Department of Homeland Security funding bill early Friday, producing sharp criticism from conservatives who say Republicans yielded to Democrats on funding for ICE and border patrol. The Senate early Friday passed a partial Department of Homeland Security funding bill, as Republicans caved to Democrats’ refusal to fund ICE and border patrol. The vote came after weeks of tense negotiations and public pressure from border-state lawmakers demanding stronger support for enforcement. For many conservatives, the result felt like a surrender, not a solution, and it left serious questions about how Washington prioritizes security. The timing—late and…

Kristi Noem left the Department of Homeland Security and handed leadership to Markwayne Mullin, touted a set of enforcement achievements, faced personnel and optics controversies, and is moving into a new hemispheric security role while Republicans gauge what comes next. Kristi Noem posted a farewell statement on X as she handed over the reins at the Department of Homeland Security to former Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin, who was sworn in the same day. In her post she thanked President Trump “for entrusting me to lead the department leading the fight to Make America Safe Again.” The move closes one chapter…

Former CIA Director John Brennan told a cable panel he trusted Iran over President Trump amid conflicting accounts about U.S.-Iran communication, sparking sharp reactions and follow-up reporting that complicated the narrative. On a recent MSNBC panel, John Brennan said he believed Iran over the president when the two accounts about talks diverged. The exchange took place during a discussion on whether Washington and Tehran were actually in contact, and it raised immediate eyebrows because Brennan is a former director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Brennan’s public siding with a regime that has chanted “Death to America” for decades surprised many…

More than two-thirds of Americans support reinstating the abortion pill’s in-person medical visit requirement, the longtime Food and Drug Administration safety protocol that was jettisoned during recent policy changes, and that public backing matters for how we approach patient safety and regulatory standards. Voters across the country are signaling a clear preference for restoring a commonsense safety step that had been standard for years. From a Republican viewpoint, this is about protecting patients and upholding sensible medical oversight, not about creating unnecessary barriers. The idea that a medication with potential complications can be prescribed without an exam feels out of…

The Pentagon has revised its press-access rules after a federal judge blocked the previous policy, shutting the long-standing Correspondents’ Corridor and planning a new workspace on Pentagon grounds while announcing an appeal. The announcement came from Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell, who confirmed the Department moved quickly to comply with the court order while signaling it will challenge the decision. The most visible change was not more access but a new arrangement for reporters: the old corridor is closed and a workspace outside the building will be set up. In public remarks Parnell said, “The Department always complies with court orders…

Summary: An 18-year-old Loyola student was fatally shot near campus; a 25-year-old illegal Venezuelan migrant has been arrested, and a Chicago alderwoman’s comments minimized the killing. An 18-year-old Loyola University Chicago student, Sheridan Gorman, was shot dead while walking with friends along the lakefront near campus. Police arrested 25-year-old Jose Medina-Medina, described as an illegal Venezuelan migrant, and charged him in the killing. The city’s response has focused more on calming political narratives than on calling out the violence and the person who pulled the trigger. Sheridan was a college freshman from Yorktown, New York, doing what college freshmen do:…

Republicans are watching a lively primary season unfold while warning that big government never stops asking for more, and this piece looks at the political energy and the fiscal pressures that follow. The primary calendar has kicked off with a burst of activity and sharper lines between candidates vying to represent conservative values. Voters are showing up energized, and that turnout is translating into clear demands for smaller government, lower taxes, and tougher stances on regulation. Campaign rhetoric now mixes culture issues with budget discipline, and Republicans are framing the debate around returning power to citizens instead of expanding the…

Recent polling, gathered just days before the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Watson v. RNC, shows an overwhelming majority of voters oppose counting mail ballots that arrive after Election Day, and the court signaled clear skepticism about allowing late-arriving ballots. The Supreme Court’s questions on Monday made it obvious that justices worry about the legal and practical consequences of accepting ballots after Election Day. That skepticism aligns with a poll completed shortly before the oral arguments showing most voters do not want election results stretched past the deadline. For many Americans, Election Day is a firm cutoff that preserves…