Political Thoughts of Timothy A. Raty

One of my favorite myths about former President Donald Trump (R) is the notion that the Trump Administration significantly reduced Federal regulations (you can find an archive of the Trump White House bragging about this here ). The fact of the matter is that, at best, regulations were reduced by an insignificant amount; at worst, they increased under Trump. For those readers who may not know, under the Federal Government, there are three broad categories of laws: ·         Statutory Laws. These are the laws passed by Congress. ·         Administrative Laws . These are the “laws” created by administrative agencies ( e.g. , the State Department, the EPA, HUD, etc. ), ostensibly   for the purpose of carrying out statutory laws, but quite often abused to the point that agencies use broad interpretations to impose their own laws on the American people. ·         Case Law . ...

As widely anticipated, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) failed to obtain the votes necessary to be elected Speaker of the House. His main obstacle are prominent members of the so-called House Freedom Caucus, who are holding out support in order to obtain more concessions which will grant them more power and influence in the 118 th Congress. While the failure to obtain the Speakership showcases the fine, thin line the GOP must walk with having a slim majority in the House (218 are needed for a majority and the GOP has 222 seats), it is also a testament to the moral principle that when you sanction evil, evil will sanction you in return (and not in the way you want). After the January 6 th Attacks (some call them a soft coup, others call it a domestic terrorist attack; I call it both), McCarthy had contemplated asking President Trump to resign . Ultimately, this did not occur and McCarthy voted to acquit Trump during his second impeachment. Since that time and, in particular leading up...