VDH Ultra Subscriber

Victor Davis Hanson Once race trumps merit, a public becomes Sovietized; that is, people descend into rank cynicism, distrust, and scorn. For example, the jaded public now believes that America’s daily systems failures must be due to some incompetency—prompted by hiring, promoting, and rewarding people on the basis of their race, gender, or sexual orientation […]

Victor Davis Hanson America has reverted to a pre-civilizational fixation on tribe and superficial appearance over character and expertise—and the result has been a disaster. But how do we even calibrate “diversity” or “people of color”? Why is a poorer Sicilian-American not diverse, but a richer Hispanic of lighter hue with a “Latino” last name

Victor Davis Hanson The implosion of the post-debate Biden incumbent candidacy marks one of the most unusual and duplicitous events in presidential history. Since 2019, most media and Democratic elites have known that Joe was both cognitively challenged and yet the only viable camouflage for what had become an out-of-touch, hard-left Democratic Party. In a

Victor Davis Hanson We still do not know whether most culpability for the failed security during the Trump attempted assassination was the fault of the Secret Service, the FBI, local law enforcement, or all three combined. Instead of clarity, we are witnessing mutual recrimination and absurd blame gaming. The takeaway from such utter incompetence was

Victor Davis Hanson DEI casts suspicion on all hiring. So, the public asks: Was that fly-around on a recent flight due to a DEI pilot or aircraft controller? Is the anti-Semitic epidemic at elite campuses due to the exemptions granted DEI “victim” students who under their woke binaries claim they cannot themselves be oppressors when

Victor Davis Hanson The United States until recently was the world’s only multiracial, well-functioning, large democracy/constitutional republic. India and Brazil are plagued by poverty, violence, and political discord. Other nations do not attempt multiracial/multireligious/multiethnic paradigms lest the project turns out like the Balkans, Rwanda, or Iraq. Instead, nations usually encompass blood-and-soil commonalities of religion, race,

Victor Davis Hanson Too many wealthy citizens only pay capital gains taxes at a reduced rate rather than income tax on their annual revenues. And too many of the one percent have the wherewithal to pay no tax, given the labyrinth of loopholes and deductions their brilliant but costly accountants mine. Yet, they are not

Victor Davis Hanson The U.S. is broke. It owes over $35 trillion, mostly to American and Chinese bond and T-bill holders. The interest alone costs nearly $1 trillion, larger than the annual defense budget. The aggregate debt is now 123 percent of the annual GDP. Each American resident owes some bondholder about $103,000. How can

Victor Davis Hanson Trump’s greatest challenge is to restore deterrence—blown up by Biden after Kabul, the Chinese balloon fiasco, the Gazan and Ukrainian wars, and his periodic Corn-Pop-like empty threats (i.e., “Don’t!”) when enemies successfully game Biden. Hamas, the Houthis, Hezbollah, and Iran are existential enemies of the U.S. and the West in general. They

Victor Davis Hanson Next, who of the long-residing illegal aliens would be eligible for legal-resident status, and from there choose or not choose to apply on their own for U.S. citizenship? Most would agree that this third category should include spouses of U.S. citizens; those with lengthy U.S. residence from childhood; and others with lengthy