The American bald eagle--our nation's national bird and symbol--is doing well. Populations have been expanding for years, and are now approaching the levels estimated for the founding era.
Many policymakers, pundits and professional environmentalists want to credit the Endangered Species Act for the success of eagle recovery efforts. But try as they might, it is hard to find much evidence that the ESA (as opposed to other conservation laws and recovery efforts) did much good, for reasons I explain in the latest issue of PERC Reports, published by the Property & Environment Research Center in Bozeman, MT.
The biggest factor in the eagle's recovery was almost certainly the banning of DDT for most uses. But this was done prior to the enactment of the ESA, under a different law (and by the EPA, not the Fish & Wildlife Service, the latter of which administers the ESA). The eagle also received more targeted protection from other laws. The bald eagle was officially removed from the endangered species list in 2007, and since then populations have continued to soar without the ESA's protection.
There's more, but those are reasons to read the article. It concludes:
Americans should be pleased that bald eagle populations continue to expand. The growing number of bald eagles is a conservation success story. But given the act's longstanding and widespread record of failing to promote species recovery, we should be careful before attributing that success to the Endangered Species Act.
Jonathan H. Adler
[ And, yes, for those curious, I took the picture that accompanies this post.]
Beneath the period costumes, powdered wigs, and tricorn hats, 1776 is a magnificent depiction of open debate. Set during the Second Continental Congress, the musical revolves around Founding Father John Adams and his pursuit of independence. The state delegates argue, compromise, and persuade, reminding us that the birth of America depended on John Stuart Mill's marketplace of ideas.
The play begins with a theatrical "portal," inviting viewers into an interactive museum, a reimagined Constitution Hall, before transporting them to Philadelphia in that sweltering summer of 1776. The dramatized debate is animated through vivid characters: Adams is loud, relentless, and impatient, while Benjamin Franklin's demeanor is calmer, almost camp. Their dynamic captures the show's central theme: Ideas succeed through friction and uncomfortable disagreement.
First performed in 1969, 1776 was staged for two months at Ford's Theatre in 2026. It endures because it refuses to shy away from conflict, reminding us that the battle to persuade and be persuaded is at the heart of politics.
ICYMI – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz pardoned an illegal alien convicted of repeatedly vaginally and orally raping a 10-year-old girl who told police it’s normal in his culture to have sex with prepubescent girls, then suggested the child was also at fault & should be arrested. The… https://t.co/Fj2VVwkXCm
The details of the case are horrific enough. But now we have the added outrage of Democratic politicians trying so score points against “Trump” by preventing the deportation of this monster.
I wrote about a similar case in May involving an armed robber. Minnesota is host to another large, monolithic-voting ethnic community, this one involving Southeast Asians. As with the state’s Somali community, without huge turnout in the Southeast Asian voting block, Democrats could not win elections in Minnesota.
As with any large group, a few of its members have run afoul of the law over the years and have been threatened with deportation. For the first time ever, we have a President (Trump) willing to carry out deportations, and home nations (Laos, Vietnam, etc.) newly willing to take back their own citizens.
To prevent these deportation, Walz and Ellison have been issuing “emergency” pardons that they hope will prevent the execution of final deportation orders filed against these criminals.
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