Free Republic

You may have seen that map of nearly half the states in the union resisting Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate. It almost feels like the GOP realized its true power, but no, their largely symbolic actions should only make all America Firsters demand more. From the outset, let’s be clear that any and all state and local pushback against the vaccine mandate is welcome. Even symbolic action can grow popular support and morale. The real point, however, is that without the rightful and duty-bound exercise of power on top of what’s already in motion, the traditional American life will die and...

Not long after the November 2020 election, it seemed federalism in America was finished. Not only had the state legislatures in 2020 rolled over to the governors on the lockdowns and mask mandates, but Republican legislatures folded faster than overcooked pasta when it came to addressing the fraud in President Donald Trump’s election. In Georgia and Arizona, governments stood aside or willingly pitched in to ensure that Joe Biden “won” their states. Courts did nothing, whiffing on dozens of fraud suits. I thought federalism was finished. But the old line from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” comes to mind....

States that consistently grew faster than the national average over the past ten years are in line to gain representation in Congress. Democrats will work to undermine people's vote with their feet.The U.S. Census Bureau released its once-in-a-decade national census on April 26. Most of the discussion about the census has focused on states losing or gaining seats in the U.S. House, a process known as reapportionment.For the 2022 midterms, seven states will be down one member of the House: California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina, and Oregon each gained one...

There’s a powerful argument to be made that a majority of Americans -- despite labels -- share similar values and virtues, and that they’re most amenable to living and letting live… that they might welcome a reset that significantly decentralized government, if doing so meant appreciably decreasing tensions and minimizing conflicts. A majority may be open to re-empowering states and the flourishing of localism. Lift the heavy hand of national government. Let Californians and Texans live as they wish. Allow local communities to be reflections of their citizens and, therefore, each unique in the constellation of communities. Give Americans the...

President Ronald Reagan used to refer to our country as "these United States," not "the United States." That may seem to be an inconsequential grammatical difference, but a whole different philosophy of our system of government is embedded in that phraseology. Reagan reinforced the traditional notion of American federalism: that the states created the federal government, not the other way around. The states are to serve as "laboratories of democracy." Our Founding Fathers' ingeniousness was recognizing that healthy competition among the states was the best way to devise policy solutions. This brings us to President Joe Biden. No president in...

Despite numerous arguments against the effort, the push to make Washington, D.C. a state just won't die./em>D.C. statehood is not a novel idea. As the Department of Justice concluded in 1987 in a highly detailed report totaling more than 80 pages: “Efforts to admit the District of Columbia to the Union as a state should be vigorously opposed.” Still, the idea lingers, although never nearing 60 votes in the Senate (or a constitutional amendment for that matter).The passage of time has not brought D.C. statehood closer to 60 votes. But statehood has suddenly become plausible to propose. Indeed, the forceful...

Given the depth of the cultural and political divide, there is only one hope for healing our nation: A return to our foundational principles—for if there is no federalism, there will be no unity.Last week’s decision by Major League Baseball to move the All-Star Game out of Atlanta in response to the passage of the Election Integrity Act, and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s defiant response, provides but the latest proof that our country is no longer the “United” States of America. Given the depth of the cultural and political divide, there is only one hope for healing our nation: A...

Source: Townhall Media/Julio Rosas"This is not politics," President Joe Biden said last week. "Reinstate the mandate if you let it down." Give him credit for consistency: When Gov. Greg Abbott ended Texas' mask mandate last month, Biden called it "Neanderthal thinking." But maybe the Neanderthals got it right. COVID-19 deaths in Texas plunged in March, and as National Review's Philip Klein points out, there's no relationship between mask mandates and coronavirus levels. Biden is clearly wrong on another point. This is not "not politics." America's constitutional federal system, and the latitude that both former President Trump's administration and the Biden...

The modern movement to rationally deal with accelerating tyranny picked up steam in 2013 upon publication of Mark Levin’s Liberty Amendments. Between the thunder of his radio show, and eleven prescriptions to restore free government, Levin reminded us that federalism was the foundation of the unique and proven American system. Federalism is the means to put the ends of the Declaration of Independence into practice. The bold declaration that government exists to secure unalienable rights was refined in the Preamble of the Constitution: We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice,...

Given its campaign of outright hostility toward the American people and general dereliction of duty to protect and defend the states, is the American government intentionally trying to provoke civil conflict? “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” — Kierkegaard Democrats know so much that isn’t so: Has there ever been a more disastrous beginning to an American presidency? I think not. Democrat enclaves throughout the country are still using the pretext of the China virus to keep businesses, schools, and churches closed....

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden wants to vaccinate teachers to speed school reopenings, but more than half the states aren't listening and haven't made educators a priority — highlighting the limited powers of the federal government, even during a devastating pandemic. "I can't set nationally who gets in line, when and first — that's a decision the states make," Biden said while touring a Pfizer plant in Michigan on Friday. "I can recommend." Under the Constitution, the powers of the federal government are far-reaching but not all-encompassing. States have always retained control over public health and safety, from policing crimes...

As Joe Biden makes massive moves in every progressive direction possible with overreaching executive orders, several states are setting the stage to stop Democrat-led Washington DC from going beyond their enumerated powers. Federalism is back, baby!Limited-government federalism is what most of the founders envisioned as a permanent ideology guiding this nation through history. They wanted power divided not only between branches of government but also between the jurisdictions. Thomas Jefferson wanted a government in which states were supreme. Alexander Hamilton wanted states and the national government to share powers. What we have today would be opposed by both as Washington...

Freedom from income taxes is among New Hampshire's delights: The Granite State is one of just nine that don't tax ordinary income. Of course, that benefit doesn't apply to New Hampshire residents who commute to work across the Massachusetts border. Income earned inside Massachusetts by an out-of-state resident is subject to Massachusetts taxes.What about a New Hampshire resident who used to commute to Massachusetts?A no-brainer, surely. If you don't live in Massachusetts, and you no longer work in Massachusetts, then Massachusetts has no right to tax your earnings. What could be more self-evident?Until last spring, that was the law. The...

There are some things we should ALL be able to agree on, left or right. Murder and rape are bad, love and kindness are good, and what happened last Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol should never, ever happen in a democratic society. While conservatives are more than correct to drag the media for downplaying the Black Lives Matter summer of riots, er, love, none of us should fall into the trap of in any way justifying the mob action that took place. It was dangerous, illegal, counter-productive to any intent to help Trump or the cause of election reform, and...

Democrats won the popular vote in this year’s presidential election yet again, marking seven out of eight straight presidential elections that the party has reached that milestone. And, for some Democrats, that’s worrisome. What alarms many Democrats is a growing gap between their popular vote tallies and their political power. Democrats may be winning over more supporters, but as long as those votes are clustered on the coasts or in cities and suburbs, they won’t deliver the congressional victories the party needs to enact its policies. “There’s a massive structural challenge to the majority of Americans having any political power...

In February and early March, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the surgeon general, the experts on television and others were adamant that only sick people need to wear masks. It would do the public no good to have a run on masks, and if they did, first responders would be deprived of masks. The claim continued until it did not. When experts shifted their opinions, the media failed to fully explain why the information had changed, how it had changed and what was different. Instead, the press decided to shame those who would not wear...

This week, the Supreme Court struck down a Montana constitutional provision barring religious schools from benefiting from the state's tax dollars. There are similar now-unconstitutional laws on the books across the nation -- many of them borne of anti-Catholic bigotry -- that subvert religious liberty and further empower government, rather than parents, to make educational choices for their kids. In most cases, those laws are now dead. Some of us happen to believe that this development is more consequential than another tax cut or better trade policy. For us, school choice and the meaningful protection of religious liberty are non-negotiable....

There’s an ages-old problem with republics: majoritarian tyranny. If the law is whatever the fifty percent plus one of the people or their reps determine, then the legislative body is little different in practice from the typical Florida Homeowners Association, and the nation should expect similar results. Thanks to the 17th Amendment, the Senate long ago abandoned its deliberative nature and adopted the passionate, popularly reflexive nature of the House. It is why party interests, rather than those of the nation, came to dominate congress. We see this regularly when Senator Schumer joins Speaker Pelosi in wild proposals that threaten...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California, Oregon, Washington and other states involved in a western states pact to coordinate coronavirus response have asked the federal government for a combined $1 trillion in aid, California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Monday.

After a month of sheltering in place, hundreds of millions of Americans will soon emerge from the new “normal.” Georgia, Colorado, and Alaska (among other states) are giving their residents some freedom to return to their old lives, with many “non-essential” businesses resuming operations. Plenty of public health advocates are concerned and have raised legitimate questions about the timing of such policies. But, done right, a cautious re-opening of America can lay the groundwork for renewed prosperity and lead to better health outcomes than continued, blanket stay-at-home orders. And a robust system of American federalism allows states to emulate best...