'What a difference a judge makes'
Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
'The future of the federal judiciary is on the ballot this November, too'
Bill Lueders at The Bulwark
The Week
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'Biden deficit surpasses $1 trillion in just half a year'
Las Vegas Review-Journal editorial board
President Joe Biden "has presided over the largest non-war or pandemic spending binge in this nation's history," says the Las Vegas Review-Journal editorial board. Inflation, unsurprisingly, "hit a 40-year high as a result." The deficit topped $1 trillion in the first half of fiscal 2024 even though tax revenue was up 7%. No wonder Americans are down on Biden's handling of the economy. He is leading us down an unsustainable "economic path."
'Sorry, home sellers: The 6% Commission isn't going anywhere'
Stephen Mihm at Bloomberg
The headlines make it sound like the recent National Association of Realtors settlement marks the end of the traditional 6% real estate commission, says Stephen Mihm. But home sellers shouldn't get their hopes up. The standard commission wasn't supposed to survive the "advent of the internet," but it did. It is "a deeply-held custom nurtured for close to one hundred years among the members of the nation's largest trade association. Good luck getting rid of it."
'Why No Labels didn't stick'
David Faris at Slate
No Labels' decision not to sponsor a presidential candidate "all but completed its predictable life cycle," says David Faris. The centrist group should have realized long ago that it "already has the president of its dreams" in the White House. No Labels wanted Medicare to negotiate drug prices. It called for a path to citizenship for Dreamers, Social Security reform without benefit cuts. President Joe Biden "literally supports or has signed legislation on all of these things."
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5 cinematic cartoons about Bezos betting big on 'Melania'Cartoons Artists take on a girlboss, a fetching newspaper, and more
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The fall of the generals: China’s military purgeIn the Spotlight Xi Jinping’s extraordinary removal of senior general proves that no-one is safe from anti-corruption drive that has investigated millions
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Why the Gorton and Denton by-election is a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’Talking Point Reform and the Greens have the Labour seat in their sights, but the constituency’s complex demographics make messaging tricky
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Big-time money squabbles: the conflict over California’s proposed billionaire taxTalking Points Californians worth more than $1.1 billion would pay a one-time 5% tax
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‘The West needs people’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
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Trump links funding to name on Penn StationSpeed Read Trump “can restart the funding with a snap of his fingers,” a Schumer insider said
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Trump reclassifies 50,000 federal jobs to ease firingsSpeed Read The rule strips longstanding job protections from federal workers
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‘The censorious effect is the same, even if deployed covertly’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
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Supreme Court upholds California gerrymanderSpeed Read The emergency docket order had no dissents from the court
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Is the Gaza peace plan destined to fail?Today’s Big Question Since the ceasefire agreement in October, the situation in Gaza is still ‘precarious’, with the path to peace facing ‘many obstacles’
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Vietnam’s ‘balancing act’ with the US, China and EuropeIn the Spotlight Despite decades of ‘steadily improving relations’, Hanoi is still ‘deeply suspicious’ of the US as it tries to ‘diversify’ its options
