"By the end of this year, there could be 10 socialist mayors in the U.S. That's the most since the 1910s, when socialism was the shiny new object embraced by educated elites.

But what excuse do Democrats have today -- after 100 years of socialism's miserable, murderous failures -- for embracing this toxic ideology?

Back in 1911, according to one historical count, members of the Socialist Party of America won office in 74 towns and cities, and another 32 in 1913.

Fast forward to today. As NBC News put it, 'Democratic socialists are on the rise in Trump-era mayoral races ... fueled by a backlash to Trump policies, economic strain and fatigue with the Democratic establishment.'"

Read the entire article here.

"Democrats take great offense at being accused of being unpatriotic -- but the data don't lie.

"A new NBC News poll captured the partisan gap over pride in America.

"Overall, 56% of Americans are extremely or very proud of the country, but only 29% of Democrats, compared to 90% of Republicans.

"That's a yawning gap, and about a matter that really shouldn't be controversial."

Read the entire article here.

"America's largest cities are increasing their spending at almost unprecedented rates.

"A RealClearInvestigations analysis of cities with at least 500,000 residents found they cumulatively raised their per-person spending by 18% over the last 10 budget cycles, accounting for inflation. The only equivalents on record are the spending surges ignited by the Great Society programs of the 1960s and Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal during the 1930s.

"But unlike those past eras, today's cities do not have the revenue to support their heavy spending. State and federal funding have dropped off from their record highs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and local tax hikes have not kept pace with spending. Large tax increases or reductions in city services will eventually be required to address burgeoning structural deficits, placing a burden on future generations.

"The tradeoff would be easier to explain if cities were making strides to improve life for their residents. Census data, however, shows that key quality of life metrics in major cities have mostly been stagnant during the spending spree."

Read the entire article here.

"When California Gov. Gavin Newsom's former chief of staff Dana Williamson pleaded guilty last month to three felonies pertaining to campaign finance fraud and federal tax evasion, the governor told Bloomberg News he was shaken -- but philosophical. The news had come as a shock, he said, before adding that justice must be served.

"'We've all got to be held to the letter of the law,' Newsom declared.

"That was May. By June, federal agents were knocking on the doors of Newsom's own friends and family associates -- and the governor's tune had changed considerably."

Read the entire article here.

"The funniest thing about the Graham Platner (D) Senate campaign in Maine, aside from its forcing progressives into wildly unflattering rhetorical pretzels, is that it proves the moral panics over 'white supremacy' and 'toxic masculinity' were never sincere. They were only ever about smearing conservatives.

"For the last 11 years, activists in politics, news media, and academia have linked even the most banal, everyday activities to white supremacy and fascism.

"Hitting the gym, common hand gestures, having babies, and even just appearing at Madison Square Garden was white supremacist, racist, Nazi-adjacent or Nazi-coded.

"Even more absurdly, we were all supposed to pretend that these analyses were the product of intelligent and honest consideration, rather than the targeted slandering of everyone outside the confines of the far left."

Read the entire article here.

"Both Republicans and Democrats are focused on winning control of both Congress and the presidency over the next two years. But with only months to go before the congressional midterms, Democrats have a marginal lead in the race to control Congress, and no big presidential favorite has emerged for either party, the latest I&I/TIPP Poll shows.

"The national online I&I/TIPP Poll asked 1,332 registered voters: 'Which party do you prefer to control Congress after this year's midterm election?' The poll, taken from May 26 to May 28, has a margin of error of +/-2.9 percentage points.

"Who's ahead? Democrats lead with 46% support, versus 41% support for Republicans. But there's a large question mark hovering over the data: 12% of those responding said they weren't sure who they want to control Congress. That 12% right now forms the political battleground for both major parties."

Read the entire article here.

"For the last two months, President Trump's rhetoric on Iran has seesawed between expressing optimism on negotiations and making explicit threats to remove the mullahs from power.

"This week, Trump has returned to pugilistic mode, boasting of the strikes that quickly followed a regime drone attack on a US Apache helicopter -- and warning, 'We're going to hit them hard again.'

"Yet as long as Trump sees negotiations as an option, there's a danger that he'll try to treat the Islamic Republic in much the same way as he's approached the leftist regime in Venezuela after the capture of President Nicolas Maduro by US forces.

"That is, that he expects extraordinary military and political pressure will force a pivot to incentive-based negotiations through which Tehran, like Caracas, can be bargained into behaving like a normal state."

Read the entire article here.

"Another academic year has wrapped up, and another batch of college graduates has walked across the stage to accept diplomas of declining value. Even the graduation ceremonies have lost their historic luster, as only ideologically approved speakers can provide commencement addresses. Any speaker who might bring a serious message is either disinvited or not considered in the first place.

"American sentiment about the value of a college education is in steep decline. Pew Research Center polling indicates seven in 10 Americans believe higher education is 'going in the wrong direction.' And a recent Fox News poll reports nearly two-thirds of respondents believe a college degree is less important to individual success compared to 25 years ago.

"University administrators should use the summer recess to acknowledge what has led to this downturn in public confidence. The market is speaking to the higher education establishment -- pricey administrators might descend from their ivory towers to listen."

Read the entire article here.

"State auditors across the country were unable to verify billions of dollars in unemployment spending, Medicaid payments, and pension obligations in federally-funded programs, according to a new report by a government watchdog group.

"The findings in the 2026 Financial Transparency Score report, released by the government watchdog Truth in Accounting, found that 13 states failed to earn clean audit opinions. The report comes as the Trump administration is cracking down on how states are spending federal dollars.

"The organization used data from annual comprehensive financial reports, or ACFRs, produced by each state as a requirement for getting federal funding.

"The biggest culprits of the unlucky 13 states, according to the analysis, were Delaware and Georgia, as auditors were unable to obtain enough evidence to issue an opinion at all. This is a 'disclaimer' in audit terms."

Read the entire article here.

"A week ago, former 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley arrived for a meeting with his new boss, Nick Bilton, on the CBS News show at which they both work. Pelley took this as an opportunity to lecture and browbeat Bilton. In the meeting, which was recorded and leaked to the press, Pelley publicly accused those whom he works for as lacking credentials as journalists. Singling Bilton out, Pelley said that he had 'slender qualifications' for the job of producing 60 Minutes. Necessarily, CBS fired Pelley the next day.

"In his posture against Bilton, Pelley portrayed himself as possessing the journalistic credibility his new boss lacked. This is a little like Jeffrey Epstein calling out the NYPD's Special Victims Unit for their lack of caring about underage girls.

"I make this claim based on personal experience."

Read the entire article here.