If Trump wants the credit, he must also take the blame. The post The President’s Irresponsible Power appeared first on The American Conservative .
Politics The President’s Irresponsible Power If Trump wants the credit, he must also take the blame. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) President Donald Trump’s popularity is suffering badly from another seemingly endless Mideast war. Amid rising prices, even some MAGA voters are turning against him, after supporting him due to the “affordability” crisis under the Biden administration. Since returning to the White House, Trump has dismissed the issue, claiming that prices are falling, and offered a $5,000 “dividend”—but only if Republicans retain control of Congress after the midterm elections. Of…Open
Outspent and lacking a big profile, Gina Hinojosa has made the Texas governor race unexpectedly competitive. The post Can Hinojosa Win Texas? appeared first on The American Conservative .
Politics Can Hinojosa Win Texas? Outspent and lacking a big profile, Gina Hinojosa has made the Texas governor race unexpectedly competitive. (Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News via Getty Images) Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) couldn’t believe what he was about to do. Less than three months out from the midterms, Kennedy was leaving for a trip to Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa. States that, as the Louisiana senator colorfully put it, “ought to be fat-guy layups for us.” His travel was a response to a very real and deeply uncomfortable situation facing the Republican Party: the looming prospect of electoral…Open
Ingratitude may revive socialist repression—but at least the political jokes might get better. The post The Dictator Who Laughs Last appeared first on The American Conservative .
Culture Culture The Dictator Who Laughs Last Ingratitude may revive socialist repression—but at least the political jokes might get better. TakiMag Photo by Miguel Palacios/Cover/Getty Images In the good old days of the late Hosni Mubarak’s dictatorship, he was known as la vache qui rit, the cow that laughs, because of his uncanny resemblance to the trademark animal of the French cheese brand of that name. (The best political jokes always emerge from dictatorships—they are the thing that one misses most about the Soviet Union.) Now it so happens that I bought…Open
One of the greatest things President Donald Trump has done for the country is to begin the long project of stripping our national parks and museums of anti-American bile. Earlier this year, I wrote about the New York Times’s special Fourth of July interview with Jia Lynn Yang, former national editor—and apparently quite an expert […] The post Who’s Telling ‘Yarns’ Now? appeared first on The American Conservative .
Culture Culture Who’s Telling ‘Yarns’ Now? The New York Times and other elite institutions are protective of their own myths about the past. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) One of the greatest things President Donald Trump has done for the country is to begin the long project of stripping our national parks and museums of anti-American bile. Earlier this year, I wrote about the New York Times’s special Fourth of July interview with Jia Lynn Yang, former national editor—and apparently quite an expert on U.S. history . Her main point was that Americans who are…Open
Preventing future blowback requires a foreign policy of peace. The post Did Bin Laden Defeat America? appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs Foreign Affairs Did Bin Laden Defeat America? Preventing future blowback requires a foreign policy of peace. Photo by CNN via Getty Images On September 11, 2001, al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four planes. Two of these were flown into the Twin Towers, one into the Pentagon, and the fourth—en route to Washington, D.C.—crashed in a Pennsylvania field after its passengers heroically overpowered the hijackers. All told, 2,977 Americans were killed on that day. Shortly thereafter, the Bush administration would launch the invasion of Afghanistan and begin laying…Open
The Fed chair’s remarks suggest he may be willing to buck the president who appointed him. The post At Jackson Hole, Warsh Set Up a Potential Showdown With Trump appeared first on The American Conservative .
Economy Economy At Jackson Hole, Warsh Set Up a Potential Showdown With Trump The Fed chair’s remarks suggest he may be willing to buck the president who appointed him. Photo by Natalie Behring/Getty Images Kevin Warsh gave his first major speech as chairman of the Federal Reserve on August 28 at this year’s Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium. He followed his predecessors in giving clues about the Fed’s future direction—as much as he might prefer not to—and perhaps even set himself on a collision course with President Trump. Hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank…Open
TAC staffers discuss the week's events. The post TAC Right Now: Why ‘Economic D-Day’ (Probably) Won’t Work appeared first on The American Conservative .
Andrew Day, Luke Nicastro, and Spencer Neale discuss the Trump administration’s new economic strategy to force Iran’s capitulation. Then, they talk about recent elections and whether the Democrats will sweep the midterms. Recorded August 26, 2026. The post TAC Right Now: Why ‘Economic D-Day’ (Probably) Won’t Work appeared first on The American Conservative .Open
State of the Union: Vice President Vance said the Trump administration had inherited a troubled economy. The post U.S. Debt Tops $40 Trillion for First Time appeared first on The American Conservative .
The U.S. gross national debt exceeded $40 trillion on Wednesday. Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the Trump administration had inherited a troubled economy. “The issue that we’ve had under the Biden administration, and what we’re still dealing with, is that the debt was growing faster than American GDP,” Vance said, adding that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent “is very much on top of it.” According to the New York Times , the United States is set to borrow more than $2 trillion this year to cover obligations including the Iran War and tax cuts enacted in 2025. Net interest costs on the national debt approached $1 trillion in 2025, nearly 14 percent of federal spending. The national debt has risen under both…Open
A history lesson from the First World War shows how munition shortages are less of a problem than military groupthink. The post The Pentagon’s ‘Missile Crisis’ Distracts From Deeper Problems appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs The Pentagon’s ‘Missile Crisis’ Distracts From Deeper Problems A history lesson from the First World War shows how munition shortages are less of a problem than military groupthink. Recent headlines about U.S. weapons in the Persian Gulf are somewhere between ominous and confusing. Are we running low? Or are we being manipulated? Reuters , August 4: “US has used ‘virtually all’ of its long-range precision missiles during Iran war.” CNN , same day: “Nearly 80% of interceptors for a key missile defense system depleted.” And on Fox News, Jennifer Griffin reported, “A growing reality after months…Open
TAC staffers talk to William LeoGrande. The post TAC Right Now: Rubio’s Cuban Regime Change Obsession appeared first on The American Conservative .
Andrew Day and Joseph Addington talk to William LeoGrande about the Trump administration’s regime change plans, some risks of war, and the best path forward for U.S.-Cuba relations. Recorded July 29, 2026. The post TAC Right Now: Rubio’s Cuban Regime Change Obsession appeared first on The American Conservative .Open