Author: Byron York Washington Examiner

TRUMP — AND THE GOP — CAN DO A LOT TO FIGHT CRIME IN DC. News reports are filled with stories that President Donald Trump intends to “federalize” the District of Columbia. Few include the fact that the District is already federalized, and has been since its creation in 1791. Trump made the pledge after a former…

ON THE DEMOCRATIC PROTESTS IN TEXAS AND NEBRASKA. You’ve seen reports about the unpopularity of the Democratic Party these days — stories with headlines such as “Democrats Get Lowest Rating From Voters in 35 Years.” It’s true: Large numbers of voters disapprove of the party and, even though they don’t love Republicans either, trust the…

DON’T BE DISTRACTED — FOCUS ON WHAT HILLARY CLINTON DID. There’s a house-of-mirrors quality to the newly-declassified annex from special counsel John Durham’s investigation of the investigation in the Trump-Russia matter. What is true? What is genuine? What does it mean? There’s a simpler way to read it: Just focus on what we know the Hillary Clinton…

FROM ‘HE’S CRASHING THE ECONOMY’ TO ‘IT’S A MIRAGE.’ Go back three months, when the government released gross domestic product numbers for the first quarter of 2025. The report was that GDP fell 0.3% in the first quarter, later revised to 0.5%. That would have been disturbing except for the explanation: In anticipation of President Donald…

THE KEY QUESTION ABOUT THE EPSTEIN ISSUE IS: WHAT IS THE ISSUE? Perhaps fearing that without constant reminders the public might lose interest in the Jeffrey Epstein matter, the Washington Post has conducted a text message poll of 1,089 people to ask “how closely are Americans following news about government files from the federal investigation of…

FOR NOW, THE BIG FIGHT IS DEMOCRATIC ANGER VS. TRUMP ACCOMPLISHMENT. President Donald Trump met with reporters in Scotland on Monday to tout his new trade deal with the European Union. Accompanied by United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump held court for more than an hour, taking questions on trade, China, the wars in Ukraine…

IN UGLY DEMOCRATIC FEUD, BOTH SIDES DESERVE TO LOSE. Are Republicans taking pleasure in the current feud between Bidenworld and some pillars of the Democratic Party? Yes, they are. But not a joke, as former President Joe Biden would say: The fight is worth noting because it shines a light on the continuing bitterness in the…

PURE, UNDILUTED, UNADULTERATED JOE BIDEN ID. Former President Joe Biden has kept a low profile since leaving the White House six months ago. In May, his office announced that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer, which it said could nonetheless be effectively managed. In the past few months, Biden has made…

MEASURING WHAT AMERICANS THINK ABOUT IMMIGRATION. Over the weekend, CBS News published a new poll with the headline, “Poll finds support for Trump’s deportation program falls.” The story seemed straightforward. But the story behind the story is worth looking into. The poll found that 44% of those surveyed approved of the way President Donald Trump is…

ON THE SOURCING OF THAT WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLE. About that Wall Street Journal article on the 2003 Jeffrey Epstein birthday letter said to be from Donald Trump: Its sourcing is frustratingly — and intentionally — vague.  The article says Ghislaine Maxwell “collected” letters from Trump and others for Epstein’s 50th birthday 22 years ago,…