The ratchet effect

Washington Stand: "Financial Experts Worry National Debt Will Hit $50 Trillion in Less than 3 Years."

The explanation for the rapid acceleration is the national debt comes down to two factors: First, presidents and congressional majorities of both major political parties have increased federal spending exponentially since day one of the 21st century, but especially so since the COVID-19 pandemic that killed more than one million Americans beginning in January 2020. Second, revenues have increased following major tax cuts in 2017 and again in 2025, but spending has still outpaced the added income to the government. The current fiscal year deficit is $1.7 trillion.

The problem is that spending only ever goes in one direction and every time there's an effort to return to baseline spending levels everybody screams bloody murder.  Elon Musk's DOGE effort barely cut $150 billion from a $7 trillion budget and he was accused of starving kids.

When budget sequestration cut a merciless 2.6% from the federal budget back in 2013, Obama closed the White House to visitors in one of his typical performative displays of pique.  There was still plenty of money for his vacations, though.

Covid is just the latest example of "never let a crisis go to waste."  The government expanded like a balloon over both the first Trump and Biden administrations.  That balloon never deflates.

Gorillas in the mist

Twitchy: "'Hillary for Prison': Jon Stewart Discovers the World Outside NYC and Is Bewildered by What He Sees."

This story doesn't surprise me at all, even for somebody as "sophisticated" as Jon Stewart.  These people live in an ironclad echo chamber which is why "The View" invites on one Republican a year.  After Trump won in 2016, the media swore they would touch grass in flyover country - but they lied.

Other people's money

LA Times: "The wealth tax debate exposes the economic ignorance of politicians" - "There’s an old saying: Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach. A similar idea underscores the debate over wealth taxes in California and elsewhere: Those who can, build companies. Those who can’t, devise ways for the government to take shares in what others have built." 

Dolly Parton

Was there ever an American more universally beloved than Dolly Parton?  She'll be missed for so many reasons beyond her musical career.

This was always kind of a favorite of mine:

Oh that's not free speech

Ace: "Democrat Presidential Hopeful Gavin Newsom Signs "Stop Nick Shirley Act" Into Law to Strip Conservatives of Free Speech and Cover Up Democrat Fraud." 

This is by a wide margin the most unconstitutional piece of legislation I've ever seen.

Trump's mugshot

Twitchy: "Byron York Reminds Us It's the Third Anniversary of the Biggest Backfire in Political History."

I would argue this is a close second after Trump's guilty verdict which unleashed a tsunami of donations to Trump and the RNC by Americans repulsed by the partisan lawfare.

They ran out of money

LA Times: "California nearly achieved universal healthcare. Now, millions are losing coverage."

That's the story: California ran out of money for Medi-Cal. 

It's the spending

Wall Street Journal: "How the U.S. Went $40 Trillion in Debt - The problem isn’t tax cuts. Spending is way above historical norms."

Gross national debt has increased $17 trillion since 2019. That’s about as much debt as the U.S. added during the entire first 225 years of its history. While the liberal press blames the GOP’s 2017 tax cuts, and their extension in last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill, revenue has increased 68% since 2018. That’s twice the rate of inflation.

Since 2018, revenue has averaged about 17% of GDP, roughly the historical norm. Yet spending has averaged slightly over 24% of GDP, versus a pre-pandemic historical average of 20%.

The revenue-to-GDP statistic is a hard ceiling that does not change that much whether tax rates are high or low.  You simply can't get much above that historical level.  Spending, on the other hand, can fluctuate wildly based on war or pandemics or other crises.  The trick is pulling back spending when the crisis passes.

Denied

Townhall: "Karmelo Anthony Denied New Trial for the Murder of Austin Metcalf."

From what I've heard, if there had been an appeal, Karmelo's text messages would be introduced into evidence.  His defense team must be breathing a sigh of relief.

No lack of self-regard

Boston Globe: "The hubris of the democratic socialists - The Democrats’ left wing might be more persuasive if they didn’t dismiss their critics as corporate tools." 

Same vibe

Twitchy: "Desperate Measures for Desperate Times: Dem Primaries Magically Become a Blue Wave."

Damn, those Democrats really dominated [checks notes] the Democrat primaries.

The children of rich parents

Emphasis on the "children" part: "The DSA’s Leaders Are Tireless in Their Avoidance of Honest Work."

Exhibit A: estrogen-drenched Gustavo Gordillo

Gordillo is thus, in his own way, an ideal ambassador for Democratic Socialism, insofar as he perfectly embodies the sorts of people who seek power from it. Some other biographical details about Young Gordillo that didn’t make it into the interview:

• Gustavo went to Yale to learn his Democratic Socialism — more specifically, he majored in literature and returned there after graduation to get an MFA in sculpture.
• 
  
• He has never held an actual job; he claims membership in the IBEW Electricians Union Local 3 — for that essential touch of working-class cred — but as it turns out, has never worked a day in his life. (He was fired from his apprenticeship after failing to show up for work and classes.)
• 
  
• That’s okay though, because he managed to squeak by: He made a passionate speech to his local DSA about how The Man had oppressed them, and they voted him a $95,000 sinecure.
• 
  
• Even if had that fallen through, Gustavo wouldn’t have to worry about making rent — he lives in a $1.5 million two-story Brooklyn condo purchased for him . . . by his father

Ladies and gentlemen: This is your modern DSA, embodied.

I guarantee this guy never opened the hood of a car in his entire life but he has the gall to pontificate about the working man.  He's a theater kid, a pretender.

You love to see it

Fox News: "New York Times loses defamation suit, ordered to pay $9.25M to former Alabama basketball player - Jury finds Times defamed Kai Spears in a 2023 report that wrongly linked him to a fatal shooting."

I've said it before but, unfortunately, this is the only way the mainstream media learns.

"Greetings fellow Africans"

Townhall: "Abdul El-Sayed Latest Attempt to Pander to Voters Is Ridiculous, Even for Him." 

This message will not be received

NY Post: "Morgan Stanley picks Dallas for expansion outside NYC — stepping up Wall Street exodus following Mamdani election: ‘Wake-up call’." 

The President runs the executive branch

This "crazy" concept was just recently affirmed by the Supreme Court.  But the courts are full of "YOLO!" Hawaiian judges who just make stuff up out of thin air: "Judge Blocks Trump Administration's Plan to Move FBI Out of Hoover Building." 

Profile in courage

NY Post: "Hakeem Jeffries’s bid to win over Supreme Court-packing lefties is just pathetic."

Those are his principles and, if you don't like them, he has others for pandering purposes.

In other news: murder is bad

Not the Bee: "UK Home Office prints guide to teach migrants not to rape women and kids."