Author: Rana McCallister

The Supreme Court’s posture on transgender classification left a wide legal gap, steering disputes back to legislatures, state courts, and the court of public opinion rather than settling constitutional standards once and for all. Much like in Skrmetti, the B.P.J. majority opinion declined to definitively resolve the issue of whether transgender qualifies as a suspect or quasi-suspect class. That restraint matters because it avoids a sweeping national rule but also keeps a big legal question open for future fights. Conservatives welcome limits on judicial lawmaking, and many see this as a chance to let voters and their representatives set policy.…

A new documentary asks whether the republic can survive if it loses the very thing the Founders believed made self-governance possible? That is, virtue. This piece looks at how that question lands in today’s politics, institutions, and daily life without taking a side beyond noting what’s at stake. The film at the center of this discussion frames virtue not as a quaint idea but as a practical requirement for self-government, and it traces how habits, customs, and local institutions build the character that makes democratic liberty workable. From families to schools to religious communities, the documentary argues that those networks…

A tanker off the coast of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz caught fire early Tuesday morning after being struck by a projectile, the British military said. Early reports say a commercial tanker in the Strait of Hormuz caught fire after being hit by a projectile while traveling off the coast of Oman. The incident occurred early Tuesday morning and was reported by the British military. Details remain limited as officials assess damage and the situation at sea. The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important shipping lanes, and incidents there immediately raise concerns about commercial and…

The Philippine Senate has convened as an impeachment court to begin the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, launching a high-stakes legal and political process that comes amid sharp tensions in the country’s political scene. The opening session took place on Monday and signals a months-long proceeding that will test institutions, parties, and public patience. Observers are watching for how evidence, procedure, and political calculation will shape the outcome. The Senate acting as an impeachment court is a constitutional mechanism meant to resolve extraordinary claims against high officials, and its activation for Vice President Sara Duterte marks a rare and…

The piece looks at a July Fourth moment when visiting fans, comedians, and polls revealed a divide: many strangers and even critics saw an America worth celebrating, while a vocal slice of elites and some Democratic voices treated patriotism like an embarrassment. Scots in kilts arrived in Boston, marched to the games behind bagpipes, and joked about calling the city New Scotland. Japanese travelers filmed themselves eating Texas barbecue, and in Lawrence, Kansas, locals carved a foreign flag into a lawn for visitors who had never been there before. Those small scenes became the story no one on television expected.…

As Americans mark 250 years, a loud faction is choosing to mourn the country instead of join the celebration, insisting the anniversary proves the nation has failed while most citizens keep flying the flag and gathering with family. There’s a clear cultural tug-of-war playing out around America 250, and the left’s narrative leans hard into gloom. The New Yorker cover titled “Red, White, and Kinda Blue” captured that tone by showing an unusually melancholy George Washington. The illustrator’s aim was obvious: suggest the founders would be disappointed with the present day. The magazine’s depiction included the exact visual note that…

Iran signaled willingness to resume negotiations with the United States during talks with Chinese and Belarusian officials, a move that shifts regional diplomacy into focus and raises questions about leverage, verification, and allied security. Iran’s parliament speaker and lead negotiator in diplomatic talks with the U.S., Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, told representatives from China and Belarus Friday that Tehran was prepared to restart talks. That statement landed in a region already jittery about Iran’s intentions and its expanding partnerships. The timing matters because negotiations can change incentives on the ground, for better or worse. Seeing Tehran sit down with distant mediators…

That a court with six Republican-appointed justices could hand down such a patently un-American decision is an indictment of America’s rogue legal system.

Justice Clarence Thomas filed a 91-page dissent this week after the Supreme Court struck down President Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship, warning that the majority’s reading of the 14th Amendment cheapens the meaning of American citizenship and will not hold up over time. The Court’s decision, which invalidated the executive order Trump signed on his first day in office, drew a sharp constitutional objection from the longest-serving conservative currently on the bench. Thomas argued the majority got its history wrong, and that the consequences will outlast the current political moment. The ruling marks one of the most significant constitutional…

A Justice Department criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday charges Peter Stokes, 19, a dual U.S.-Estonian citizen, with conspiracy, computer intrusion and fraud for his alleged membership in Scattered S