South Carolina Court Strips Families of Educational Freedom

South Carolina Supreme Court

South Carolina dad David Warner is afraid to tell his sixth-grade son that he will have to leave his school, teachers, and friends because the state Supreme Court struck down the Palmetto State’s school voucher program.

“Today definitely felt like a kick in the stomach,” Warner said.

Read More

Biden DOJ Dropped Nearly Half of Pending Obstruction Charges for January 6 Defendants After Supreme Court Ruling

January Six

The Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) dropped nearly half of pending obstruction charges against Jan. 6 defendants since the Supreme Court issued a major ruling in June, according to recent data.

The Supreme Court ruled in June that in charging Jan. 6 defendants, the DOJ had interpreted too broadly a statute that carries up to 20 years in prison for anyone who corruptly “obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding.” Since the Fischer v. United States ruling, around 60 of 126 defendants had the pending obstruction charges dropped, DOJ data from Sept. 6 shows.

Read More

Commentary: Kamala Harris’ War on Housing

Kamala Harris

As Kamala Harris campaigns to become the most powerful person in the world, her detractors claim, among other things, that she has no idea how to manage the economy. She has certainly demonstrated that with her recent pronouncements. Even her usual supporters have been critical of her economic policy suggestions. Price controls on groceries. $25,000 grants for first-time homebuyers. A tax on unrealized capital gains. But while Harris backpedals from some of her most economically illiterate schemes, it’s only to attract more votes. Don’t be fooled. She hasn’t changed.

To demonstrate Harris’s long-standing record of waging economic war on productive citizens, consider her actions while serving as California’s Attorney General. She used that office to support policies that made homes unaffordable. Those policies roll out from California and infect the rest of the country.

Read More

Federal Government Could Slash Oil Lease Opportunities in a Top Producing State

Oil Rig

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s updated Resource Management Plan for North Dakota could cost the state $34 million a year for the next 30 years, North Dakota officials said in a protest filed with the agency.

The plan announced in August bans oil and gas leased on 4 million acres, which is about 99% of federal lands in the state, according to Gov. Doug Burgum. Forty-four percent of federally-owned fluid mineral acreage would also not be available for leasing.

Read More

Generous Benefit Plans Leading Government Employees to Be Nearly 40 Percent More Expensive than Private Sector

Office Work

State and local government workers were roughly 40% more expensive to employ than private sector employees in the second quarter of 2024, largely due to generous benefit plans, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released Tuesday.

Total compensation costs, including wages, salaries and benefits, averaged $43.94 per hour for private sector employees, approximately 40% less than the $61.37 average hourly compensation cost for state and local government workers, according to the BLS data. The disparity was primarily driven by pricey government benefit plans, with costs averaging $13.04 per hour for private industry workers, over 80% less than the $23.57 per hour in benefit costs for their state and local government counterparts.

Read More

Bipartisan Group of 42 Attorneys General Demand Health Warning on Social Media

Kid on phone

A bipartisan group of state attorneys general sent Congress a letter Monday, urging lawmakers to pass a bill that requires a U.S. surgeon general on every algorithm-driven social media platform.

Forty-two state attorneys general, led by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, signed onto the letter. Rosenblum serves as the President of the National Association of Attorneys General.

The move comes as United States Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy called for this to happen in June.

Read More