1) Americans Keep Moving Further Away From the Inner Cities
They’re especially moving away from blue/progressive cities.
That’s the takeaway from a new Census Bureau analysis of population/migration trends in and out of the 500 largest cities in America.
Much of the movement outlined in central cities happened during and right after COVID. A big factor has been the tripling of the number of Americans now working from home.
Among towns 20 miles or more from city hall, the 2022-2023 growth was about 240,000, up from about 205,000 in 2018-2019. But, the data below show that the further out areas 50- 60 miles beyond the central cities (the ex-urban areas) are growing too.
Gee. We wonder why people are fleeing the central cities with Marxist/progressive governance. Could it be a crime? Illegal immigration? Horrible schools? High taxes? Drugs? High housing costs? Lousy public services?
This chart from CTUP demographic scholar Wendell Cox, shows that the population growth of California that was expected several decades ago has plateaued. That’s an amazing statistic because there are millions of illegal immigrants still flowing into California.
This is the first time in the history of California as a state that the native-born population has stopped growing. In recent years more than two million more Americans have left the Golden State than have come in.
Governor Gavin Newsom must be doing an amazing job.
3) Biden's Forced Transition to Electric Vehicles Is a Gift to China
Biden is sticking with his goal of 100% EV sales within 10 to 12 years.
The problem, of course, is that he wants to replace the internal combustion vehicles with EVs that are dependent on a foreign supply of key metals from China. We have more of these metals in the mountains of the Dakotas, Colorado, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming than China does, but Biden has put onerous restrictions on mining so we have to import them.
If they are going to mandate EVs, shouldn't the Democrats at least have the decency to fix the permitting process so these metals can be produced in the United States?
4) Cautionary Words From Singapore's Departing Prime Minister
Singapore is one of the world’s huge success stories. Only 60 years ago, it was poorer than South Africa or Jordan. Now its Gross National Product per person is a stunning $88,000 (it is $82,000 in the US).
Its economy has doubled in size (in real terms) in the last 20 years and it is now wealthier than Great Britain, its former colonial power. It is a shining example of the power of free markets and innovative ideas such as the private accounts that fund its retirement program.
This month, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong turned over his office to Lawrence Wong, a 51-year-old economist who studied at the University of Michigan. In an exit interview, Loong had some sobering words of advice for the West we should heed.
“In the West they’ve got a movement called Wokeness where you are super sensitive about other people's issues… It leads to very extreme attitudes and social norms particularly in some academic institutions, universities,” he said. “I don’t think we want to go in that direction. It does not make us a more resilient, cohesive society with a strong sense of solidarity. We must be more robust.”
We would do well to follow such advice—sooner rather than later.
5) Washington Post to Biden – Lie, Pander, and Do Whatever it Takes to Win
This takedown of the Washington Post from one of our favorite political columnists, Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe, is a worthy read:
Last week, the Washington Post's editorial board declared that it regards President Biden's reelection in November as a matter of such importance that it will not fault him for promoting misbegotten policies that are designed to attract votes. The president's policies "clearly pander to core constituencies," the editorial board conceded, and "some of these policies are quite bad — even dangerous." Other pandering by the White House may be "less obviously dangerous but still violates common sense and principle."
….In a lifetime of newspaper reading, I have never encountered an editorial so cynical in its willingness to discard any principle other than to win at all costs. "Trim your principles, Democrats, and pander away," the Post advises Biden and his party. To "play Machiavelli" isn't the worst thing, it says — the worst thing is "losing.”….
When the election is over and the Post wants its credibility back, it may regret having tossed it away.
