Plus, RFK, gas stoves, and the 2024 Festivus Report.

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January 8, 2025

Welcome to The Lighthouse ([link removed]) , the weekly email newsletter of the Independent Institute covering politics, economics, current events, and everything in between.

Dear Readers,

What will the political landscape look like in 2025? One thing is for sure: the coming year will look nothing like 2024. Justin Trudeau announced he is stepping down as the head of Canada's Liberal Party. Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta is going to retire its politically biased fact-checking system, and President-elect Donald Trump's electors were officially certified on January 6th—a date that has now earned a place in history books.

As the world shifts, our authors tackle the issues shaping the new year. Brady Leonard begins by discussing the ambitious reforms that aim to take on America's $36 trillion debt: Will taxpayers finally get some relief, or will another chance for change slip away? Raymond J. March writes on the contentious appointment of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services. Paige Lambermont covers the controversy swirling around gas stoves and residential natural gas bans, while Craig Eyermann reports on Senator Rand Paul's annual Festivus tradition of airing wasteful government spending in 2024.

Happy reading!

Jonathan Hofer
Managing Editor

Top picks this week
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** What to Expect from D.O.G.E. ([link removed])
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** What do Musk and Ramaswamy realistically stand to accomplish with their new endeavor? ([link removed])
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** by Brady Leonard
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If reforms allow American taxpayers to keep more of their money, D.O.G.E. will have succeeded. With over $36T in debt and a volatile international landscape, efforts to restore fiscal sanity should be applauded, not mocked.
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** RFK, Vaccines, and the FDA ([link removed])
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** by Raymond J. March
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As President-elect Trump prepares to return to the White House, many question his cabinet choices, particularly the controversial appointment of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services, amid ongoing vaccine-related controversies.
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** Gas Stoves are Great ([link removed])
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** Once you cook on a gas stove, efforts to protect consumer choice in appliances make even more sense. ([link removed])
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** by Paige Lambermont
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Efforts to ban residential natural gas connections or specific appliances, particularly gas stoves, have faced strong consumer resistance. Good.
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** The Festivus Airing of 2024’s Federal Spending Grievances ([link removed])
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** by Craig Eyermann
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Senator Rand Paul celebrates Festivus by highlighting examples of wasteful spending in his annual report. And it is a joy to behold.
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** FEATURED BOOK - COMING SOON!
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** Race & Liberty (Updated Edition) ([link removed])
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** The Essential Reader ([link removed])
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** Edited by Jonathan J. Bean
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With new contributions from Thomas Sowell, Coleman Hughes, Thomas Chatteron Williams, Kenny Xu, David Bernstein, and Ilya Somin—as well as a plethora of primary source evidence from recent landmark US Supreme Court decisions—Bean champions the values of colorblindness, freedom, and equal constitutional protection for all individuals—regardless of race. It’s a message that couldn’t be more timely.
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