I enthusiastically support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Over the years, I wrote a four-part series in defense of Paxton in The American Spectator (here), and a pair of articles for City Journal (here and here). In connection with his bogus impeachment, I wrote several articles critical of t…
Year: 2024
Government Project: The Eternal Folly of Central Planning
Edward Banfield’s classic case study of a failed New Deal program gets a well-deserved reprinting. It is a timeless parable of the futility of “economic democracy” and centralized control. This essay originally appeared in AIER’s Daily Economy, on April 1, 2024 (here). Thanks to Ace o…
The Perils of (Pure) Populism
Despite the Supreme Court’s recent ban on racial preferences in college admissions, special interests in California seek to gut the non-discrimination protections of Proposition 209. This essay originally appeared in Law & Liberty on April 3, 2024 (here). Thanks to Power Line and Real Clear…
Ending the Ninth Circuit’s “Cruel and Unusual Punishment” of America’s Cities
Vagrancy is conduct, not status. Courts should not force communities to tolerate the despoilation of public areas. A slightly-revised version of this essay appeared in Law & Liberty on February 27, 2024 (here). Thanks to How Appealing, National Review‘s The Corner (here), the Ace of Spa…
American Refugees
Will the influx of blue state refugees into the heartland ruin the country or save it? This essay originally appeared in the March-April 2024 issue of The American Conservative (here). Thanks to Instapundit (here), Real Clear Policy (here), the Ace of Spades HQ blog (here), and the Tennessee Cons…
Spread Great Ideas Podcast
I was on a podcast recently discussing state and local politics in Tennessee. It is called Spread Great Ideas, by Brian David Crane. Here it is: https://spreadgreatideas.org/episodes/mark-pulliam/ The video version is here. Please welcome Mark Pulliam, an award-winning lawyer, writer, and activis…
Union Time on the Taxpayer Dime: Coming Texas Showdown
In the Lone Star State, a long-running legal challenge to “release time” in public-employee union contracts approaches its finale. Justice at last? This article originally appeared in Law & Liberty on February 12, 2024 (here). Thanks to Ace of Spades HQ! In the post-Janus age, it is just …
Trouble in Paradise? (Part 22)
Why is the Blount County Public Library the only library in Tennessee to partner with the radical American Library Association in this propaganda campaign promoting illegal immigration? Thanks to the Tennessee Conservative News (here)! In a red state county that voted for President Trump by a 71-…
The ABA’s Free Speech Intervention
Legal academia finds itself peering into the abyss of leftist orthodoxy, in which dissent is forbidden. Ironically, the liberal American Bar Association may save once-respected law schools from themselves. A slightly-edited version of this essay was originally published by The James G. Mar…