1) Maybe We Should Start Teaching American History Again

Two depressing findings in the latest Gallup Poll showing near-record all-time lows in Americans who feel patriotic pride in our country.

First, the more liberal one is in their political beliefs, the less patriotic they feel. Today, 92% of Republican voters feel pride in America, but only 36% of Democrats do. That's an all time 56 percentage point gap. This 4th of July, houses with the American flag waving are likely to be Republican.  

The poll shows that the election of Trump has clearly moved Democrats in a less patriotic direction.

But, even more concerning in the Gallup poll is that each succeeding generation is feeling less love of country. Only 41% in their teens or 20s have pride in America.

Why is that? After all, America is richer, safer, has less racism, offers more opportunities for women, and is more charitable than ever before, and yet the younger generations believe just the opposite.

We blame this ignorance on the schools and the baby boomer parents - who have allowed our kids to be indoctrinated with anti-America teachings. Kids now take "social studies"  instead of American history.  

In his 1989 Farewell Address, Ronald Reagan's message presciently warned of this:

"Are we doing a good-enough job teaching our children what America is and what she represents in the long history of the world?"

Clearly, we are not.

We liked President Trump's Executive Order in January entitled "Unleashing Prosperity through Deregulation," and not merely because it was a nod to our own name. Trump set a goal of ending ten existing federal rules, regulations or guidance letters for every new one created. So far he has kept up the pace to achieve just that.

The latest effort comes from the Department of Labor, which has just announced the ending of 63 "costly and burdensome" regulations, most left over from the Obama and Biden years.

Headed for the scrap heap are Labor regs mandating wage and overtime pay for in-home care workers and one promoting union organizing in certain job categories. Programs that promote apprenticeships will no longer have a requirement that could involve "the illegal selection of apprentices based on race and sex."

We expressed skepticism when Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer was appointed by President Trump in January, and noted her somewhat pro-union record in Congress. But she is stepping up to the plate on the White House's deregulatory agenda. We look forward to her releasing new rules in the future that ease burdens for independent contractors and question the mandating of union wages for almost all federally-subsidized construction projects.

4) This Sounds Like Communism to Us

When President Trump called Zohran Mamdani a "communist," Democrats howled in protest. But we can't help but notice that Mamdani's housing plan sounds an awful lot like  communes:

To go further toward the Vienna model, we'll have to go beyond the market. We can establish community land trusts to gradually buy up housing on the private market and convert it to community ownership. We can give tenants a right of first refusal to buy out their landlords when buildings go up for sale. And we can fully commit to a new era of social housing, ending subsidies for luxury housing development and using our wealth to build beautiful, high-quality social housing projects that offer good homes and strong communities to everyone. We won't decommodify housing overnight. But we know what we have to do, and we have history to guide.

5) Pay to Stay?

President Trump and his Border Czar Tom Homan have done an exceptional job of securing the border and stopping the stampede of illegal migrants into the country. With border crossings down 92% this year from the Biden average, the crisis has been largely alleviated.

Also, the strategy of deporting the worst-first strategy of deporting criminals, drug runners, potential terrorists, violent gang members, etc. has been a brilliant tactical move to make America safe again.

We're weary of the practical and political wisdom of raids on farms, factories, stores, hospitals, and even schools to search out illegal aliens. The visuals of tens of thousands of workers and family members being forcibly evicted aren't what most Americans support today.

We are proposing an alternative called "Pay to Stay." This would allow illegal immigrants who come forward and have no criminal record, have paid income and payroll taxes, are not collecting welfare benefits, and have a willing employer that will attest to their good behavior and work ethic, to get a short-term work permit (not a path to citizenship). They or their employer would be required to pay a fine of perhaps $10,000 to $50,000 immediately or paid off in installments over a series of years.

Their penalty for entering illegally would be to lose the right to apply for citizenship. Ever. And they would NOT be eligible for any welfare programs.

We know this is a controversial issue and we would love to hear your feedback.

6) If Betsy Ross Were With Us Today!

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