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Biden’s State of the Union Highlights Absurd Reach of Federal Government

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Last night, President Joe Biden delivered his second State of the Union address.It was, first and foremost, an example of the extraordinary breadth of issues in which we expect our executive to get involved, as well as the absurdity of the federal government’s involvement in every aspect of American society.

Biden explored everything, from insulin prices to the cost of protecting. Roe V. WadeThis includes protecting children from ads on social media, decreasing consumer prices and getting more Americans mental healthcare services. It also ensures that better treatment is provided at nursing homes. You can find the entire article here.

One of the most notable—and libertarian-friendly—sections of the speech related to COVID-19 and the pandemic, with Biden (in a test of new Democratic messaging on the issue?) The promise of normalcy. He declared that COVID-19 “need not longer control our lives,” while still praising the effectiveness of vaccines and the importance of testing.

Biden referred to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention new guidelines. “Most Americans living in the majority of the United States can no longer wear masks,” he said. He added: “Our schools remain open. Let’s make it so.

Biden’s State of the Union missed too many points that could have made him feel right at home in an address by former President Donald Trump. He demanded more funding for police, spoke of the importance to secure our southern border and talked long about America-first and American buying.

“This is more populist than a left wing speech: Trade protection, Business Subsidies, Transfer Payments, More Money for Police, Secure the Border” commentedDavid Boaz is the Executive Vice President of Cato Institute.

More State of the Union Analysis from There are reasons writers:

• Criminal Justice Campaign Promises Absent From Biden’s State of the Union Speech

• Biden Says No Troops to Ukraine, Is Silent on Ukrainian and Russian Refugees

• Biden’s State of the Union Offers More Useless Solutions to Gun Violence

• If COVID-19 Is Over for Congress, It Should Be Over for School Children Too

• Biden Praises Ukrainian ‘Iron Will’, Refuses To Use Ukrainian Iron in Infrastructure Projects

• Biden Tries To Twist His Domestic Agenda Into a Form Joe Manchin Will Support

Free Minds 

A politician can ban people from personal Facebook pages.Federal appeals courts ruled it didn’t constitute a violation of the First Amendment that a New Mexico politician can block anyone on his Facebook page. Couy Griffin, Otero County Commissioner and Cowboys for Trump cofounder is the subject of this case. It also involves whether Couy Griffin’s personal Facebook page counts as a public forum for freedom speech purposes.

According to the Associated Press, “Three judges of the appeals court ruled unanimously in favor of plaintiff Jeff Swanson,” who is the chairman and chief executive officer for the Otero County Democratic Party. Swanson had stated that elected leaders cannot exclude voters from social media conversations. This was after Swanson blocked Griffin from Griffin’s private Facebook page after his criticism of the commissioner.

FREE MARKETS

The wrong way to get cryptocurrency In which Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.) And The New York TimesLearn everything you can about Russia/Chicago and cryptocurrency backwards:

The chances of cryptocurrencies helping ordinary Russians, Ukrainians is greater than that of Putin and his cronies.

“Crypto provides a way for people to live in Venezuela or Russia and not to avoid sanctions.” commentsSamuel Hammond, Niskanen Center. The contrary. Russia is trying reduce the costs of sanctions by imposing capital controls. Access to crypto markets *hurts* Russia more than it helps.”

And—as Hammonds and many others have pointed out—cryptocurrency transactions come with a record. An immutable ledger simply isn’t a smart way to avoid sanctions for large companies or nation states.” comments Hammond. There are always two sides to any transaction. Do you really believe Volkswagen could illegally export cars to Russia? And it would not be detected just because they paid Bitcoin for the transaction?

QUICK HITS

• Russia’s attacks on major Ukrainian cities “accelerated on Wednesday, with the Russian military claiming that its forces were fully in control of Kherson, a port near the Black Sea,” The New York TimesAccording to reports, “Ukrainian officials refute Russia’s claim.” Russian forces attacked Kyiv and also bombarded Kharkiv’s government building yesterday.

• “Don’t pour your Russian vodka down the drain,” writes Jack Shafer in PoliticoDon’t Kick Russian Students Out of The U.S.

• Why a no-fly zone over Ukraine is a bad move.

• A new poll finds Democrats more supportive than Republicans of U.S. intervention in Ukraine:

• How Texas abortion restrictions are putting women’s health at risk.

• The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is suing over a Texas directive that sex reassignment surgery, puberty blockers, or hormone treatments for minors should be considered child abuse.

• The Washington PostThis article examines three different visions of the American Right, as presented by three conservative conferences last weekend.

• “Is libertarianism a specifically political philosophy whose only legitimate concern is the role of the state and its use of force vis a vis the people it rules? Libertarianism can also be understood as a set of cultural obligations that go beyond disputes over government spending, size, scope and scope. There are reasonsStephanie Slade and Nick Gillespie talk about the show.

• Professor and writer Paul Cantor—author of The Invisible Hand of Popular Culture: Liberty vs. Authority on American Film and TVAn occasional contributor There are reasons—has died.