Ron DeSantis’s exit from the presidential race effectively turns the 2024 election into a three-person contest: Joe Biden‚ Donald Trump‚ and Nikki Haley. (We shouldn’t ignore our friend RFK‚ Jr.‚ though he’s more a factor — and a significant one — than a leader in this race.) DeSantis’s departure means many things. Among them‚ it means that Donald Trump suddenly likes Ron DeSantis‚ who he seems to have now elevated to the status of “honorable” rather than dishonorably sanctimonious — or “Ron DeSanctimonious‚” as Trump trashed him before. As our Dan Flynn pointed out in his Spectator A.M.‚ Donald Trump said he’s “very honored” to receive DeSantis’s endorsement and has henceforth proclaimed the DeSanctimonious pejorative “officially retired.” The magnanimous Trump now dubs his once-dishonorable opponent “a very capable person.” (READ MORE: It’s Not Just Watergate: Much of Our Recent History Is Misunderstood) If you want Donald Trump to praise you‚ do something for him. That’s all it takes. And DeSantis has done Trump a big favor by pulling out and making this a three-horse competition between The Donald‚ Sleepy/Sleazy Joe‚ and the gal that Trump immortally christened “Bird Brain.” But alas‚ Bird Brain has many supporters‚ which prompts this bird brain‚ your humble‚ un-sanctimonious columnist‚ to offer some trenchant political analysis‚ given that I double not only as The American Spectator’s editor but as a professor of political science at the great Grove City College. As I share this analysis/advice‚ I implore readers to not ascribe to me certain personal political motives or preferences. I have no driving passion for any candidate or‚ frankly‚ for much of anything in American politics anymore. I’ve watched my country and culture go to hell in a handbasket. (I can’t even count on my pope anymore.) All of this once depressed me‚ but now‚ I’m at a point of peace‚ realizing that nothing short of the Second Coming will straighten out things. I’m certainly not seeking salvation in politics. Consider me truly an American spectator. I’m sitting back‚ watching‚ praying for the best‚ but expecting the insanity to continue full throttle until‚ well‚ that Second Coming. With all that said‚ here’s my advice to a potentially pivotal group that I’m here labeling the “Disgruntleds” (sort of rhymes with “Deplorables”). Disgruntleds are comprised of Never-Trump Republicans and the sizable chunk of disgruntled Democrats who don’t like Joe Biden and prefer not to vote for the old man — who‚ as they know‚ could well lose to Trump anyway. Those disgruntled Democrats would light themselves on fire come November to vote against Orange Man Bad at the ballot box‚ just as certain MAGA-ites would ignite themselves for their man. Those non-Biden Democrats‚ like the Never Trumpers‚ now basically have a choice between Incoherent Joe and the aforementioned Bird Brain. (READ MORE: After Iowa‚ It’s Time for Republicans to Rally to Trump) My advice to them: Team up and vote for Nikki Haley. For many Democrats‚ pulling the lever for Nikki Haley surely couldn’t be too arduous a proposition. After all‚ about half of the Democrats‚ and 95 percent of the “progressive” liberals‚ only care about identity politics and a couple of diehard issues‚ like flipping genders and having abortions. They shouldn’t view Nikki Haley as much of a threat to their party’s and ideology’s holy sacrament of abortion nor to their new secular religion‚ which can be abbreviated “LGBTQ.” No‚ Haley isn’t Cultural Revolution Joe on the rainbow agenda‚ but she’s not Ron DeSantis either. Besides‚ dear liberals‚ your blessed Roe is already overturned‚ Pride Month is now an established month-long national holiday‚ and Nikki isn’t going to cancel your local Drag Queen Story Hour or tell your five-year-old boy he isn’t a girl. But above for the Revolutionary Left‚ Nikki Haley is‚ of course‚ a woman. Nothing matters more to cultural lefties than their silly identity politics. Frankly‚ they’d elect Barney the Purple Dinosaur president of the United States if he were female (or declared himself female). (READ MORE: ‘Free Media’ for Trump Feels Like 2016 Again) Needless to say‚ Nikki Haley checks the revered identity politics box. Does anything else really matter? For progressive Democrats‚ Nikki Haley ought to be a viable option‚ given the other choices. As for Never Trump Republicans‚ there ought to be few hurdles at all. Haley is a standard‚ reliable‚ traditional‚ party-stalwart Republican. Above all‚ she’s not Donald Trump‚ who (did I mention?) calls her Bird Brain. My advice to these Disgruntleds is to come together and rally around Nikki Haley. To repeat‚ that would be Dems who dislike Biden and Never Trumpers. As to the mechanics that would allow that to happen‚ via the primaries‚ general election‚ etc.‚ that is something that I — man of small brain — have not worked through. I’ll let them figure it out. In the meantime‚ I’ll get out the popcorn and continue to be an American spectator from this perch as my country and culture continue to descend into chaos. The post Disgruntleds for Haley appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

As I recounted recently in the Wall Street Journal‚ 20 years ago Milton Friedman wrote me to say‚ after doing a complete analysis‚ he believed we should be taxing our universities rather than subsidizing them. The economics involved are pretty straightforward: Activities that have good spillover effects (what economists call “positive externalities”) should be subsidized by governments‚ while those that impose costs on society should be taxed. The federal government appropriately subsidized the production and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines‚ since if person A received the vaccine‚ he or she provided some protection to unvaccinated persons B and C. By contrast‚ the manufacturer who pollutes the air or a stream is imposing costs on society — justifying taxation or special fees. (READ MORE: College Grads for Trump) It is assumed that universities provide positive externalities. As a college-educated worker‚ Mike learns skills‚ work discipline‚ and honesty through his university training. He likely imparts some of those positive attributes to his colleague Michelle‚ who didn’t attend college. College-educated workers raise labor productivity through the “learning by doing” of coworkers. Therefore‚ we should subsidize university attendance to increase those positive externalities. Accordingly‚ we have state-subsidized universities‚ Pell Grants‚ and subsidized student loans. Likewise‚ private foundations and individuals support college attendance through scholarships.  But what if colleges and universities exhibit negative externalities? What if professors encourage or support student rioting‚ causing property damage or loss of life? What if their teachings destroy or weaken the glue that binds us together as Americans‚ perhaps through woke ideas inconsistent with the traditional American values most of us still hold?  What if professors and/or students advocate murder (genocide) during hateful speeches targeting individuals based on their religion‚ skin color‚ or other attributes? What if universities have more negative than positive externalities? Then a strong case could be made to tax them. (Independent of the presence of externalities‚ some taxation is necessary to finance basic governmental functions such as national defense and other activities.) With few exceptions‚ colleges and universities depend on third parties — governments or private donors — for the financing they need to survive. Even for-profit universities rely on federally subsidized student financial assistance. Reducing subsidies is a serious concern to university officials‚ but imposing major taxation is potentially lethal. (READ MORE: Freedom as License Is Slavery in Disguise) Two important considerations need to be recognized. First‚ not all universities are the same — some exhibit positive externalities while others demonstrate net negative ones. This poses problems for the broader comprehensive taxation of universities. Second‚ there are many different ways to tax universities‚ and multiple levels of government would be involved — federal‚ state‚ and local.  Not All Universities Are Equally Good Or Bad Elite‚ highly selective‚ and rich schools like Harvard‚ Duke‚ Northwestern‚ and Stanford are radically different than two-year community colleges‚ most private liberal arts schools‚ or nonselective second-tier state universities. The most negative behavior in this collegiate annus horribilis has come from the elite private universities engaging in the most outrageous acts of antisemitism and violence. They have stridently proclaimed the supremacy of social justice as the collegiate mission — as opposed to the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge. Racial equality or other forms of identity politics‚ for example‚ trump discovering new vaccines or ingenious forms of artificial intelligence as a paramount university objective at many top schools. By contrast‚ community colleges or lower-tiered state universities have been relatively peaceful. This is an argument for selective taxation of universities to reduce negative externalities. Additionally‚ one way of penalizing universities — reducing state government subsidies — is not generally available for private elite universities. How Do You Tax Universities? State and local governments derive much of their income from sales‚ excise‚ or property taxes. Governments could assert that university assets not purely serving academic purposes should be taxed. Property taxes are imposed on privately owned housing occupied by some college students‚ but not on university-owned housing. Meals eaten by students in restaurants or bars are usually subject to sales taxation‚ while university-provided meals are not. Perhaps it is time to remove those tax privileges‚ nudging schools into behaving as they should. Maybe tax stadiums (built for ball-throwing spectacles‚ not academic functions)‚ but not classrooms and laboratories. (READ MORE: Johns Hopkins Defines ‘Privilege.’ Good for It!) Taxing an institution’s income and wealth is an option at both the state and federal levels. Since 2017‚ there has been a small federal endowment tax imposed on wealthy schools (about 35). House Ways and Means Committee chair Jason Smith has called for quadrupling that tax‚ and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) has advocated a far higher levy that would materially hurt the rich schools (and unquestionably lower future gifts). Another idea is to simply prohibit income tax deductions for university gifts. The federal government could also reduce overhead payments associated with research grants‚ although this might burden a legitimate core university function. Send An Appropriately Sized Message My instinct tells me an impactful financial cost imposed via reduced appropriations and enhanced taxation of university assets could be levied without dramatically impairing academic functions. Schools would complain bitterly‚ but they would make some much-needed spending reductions — such as reducing DEI apparatchiks and more efficiently using human and physical resources. Give a good nudge to the universities‚ remind them they are utterly dependent and that they cannot run ideologically driven woke academic villages at public expense. Richard Vedder is a Distinguished Professor of Economics Emeritus at Ohio University and a Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute. The post It’s Time to Tax the Universities appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

by Paul Joseph Watson‚ Summit News: Three quarters want food and energy rationing‚ majority want to ban foreign holidays. A shocking poll exposes the utter contempt the elite holds the general public in‚ with more than three quarters wanting to ration food and energy to combat ‘climate change’ and a majority wanting air travel for […]

by Shane Trejo‚ Big League Politics: CEO of Mobilize the Message Cliff Maloney wants Republicans to step their ballot chasing game up. With Pennsylvania becoming one of the most important battleground states in the nation‚ every vote will count. More importantly‚ there is no room for error for Republicans’ ballot chasing. In other words‚ if […]

Photo: Alamy President Donald Trump made a final speech on the New Hampshire campaign trail ahead of the primary‚ calling for voter turnout‚ unification‚ and hope for a better and… The post Trump makes a final call for HIGH voter turnout in New Hampshire primary first appeared on Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN).

Photo: Alamy As Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the suspension of his 2024 presidential campaign and instead endorsed former President Donald Trump‚ a list of GOP members and political… The post Calls for Trump 2024 intensify after DeSantis dropped out first appeared on Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN).

President Donald Trump committed to terminating damaging diversity‚ equity‚ and inclusion policies across the federal government as president again in 2025‚ addressing a hot-button issue that has risen to the… The post Goodbye‚ DEI: Trump pledges to eradicate radical leftist ideology from federal agencies first appeared on Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN).

Businessman and former GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy lit up a crowd of fired-up MAGA supporters on Monday evening in Laconia‚ New Hampshire‚ on the cusp of the important early state… The post Vivek fires up the crowd on eve of New Hampshire primary first appeared on Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN).

Photo: Alamy Gear up for the second 2024 Republican presidential primary in New Hampshire on Tuesday night and join RSBN for wall-to-wall coverage of the election night results. President Trump… The post How to watch election night results in New Hampshire LIVE from the Trump campaign watch party first appeared on Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN).