IRS Makes Highest Deductible Hike on Record Due to Inflation

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) increased the individual tax deductible for 2023 at the highest rate in more than 35 years due to inflation.

Individual tax deductibles increased by $900 to $13,850, up $1,800 to $27,700 for married couples filing jointly, a roughly 7% increase compared to tax year 2022, the IRS announced Tuesday. This increase is the largest hike since 1985, when tax brackets were first tied to inflation, The Washington Post reported.

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Commentary: The Central Importance of Infrastructure

After I’d chastised him repeatedly for being the spoiler in the November 2020 battle between Republican David Perdue and Democrat Jon Ossoff to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate, Shane Hazel invited me to debate him on his podcast.

During our lengthy discussion, Hazel demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the U.S. Constitution, and we found ourselves in agreement on many if not most of the critical issues, starting with the First and Second Amendments. One topic I wish we could have spent more time discussing was the issue of infrastructure. As it was, I got nowhere with Hazel on that question.

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2022 Changes Made Virginia’s Tax Policy More Progressive

Virginia’s tax code is now more progressive than most states, meaning that taxes impact higher income brackets more than lower income brackets, after the General Assembly increased the standard income tax deduction from $4,500 to $8,000 for individuals, and made the Virginia Earned Income Tax Credit 75 percent refundable.

“Taken together, these changes will make Virginia’s income tax 45 percent more progressive than in 2021 (as measured by change in the ‘Suits’ progressivity index, which measures the progressivity of taxes on all income groups), and more progressive than most other states’ income tax,”  a Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission report states.

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Commentary: Rural Backlash Against ‘Renewables’ Surges

The hype about wind and solar energy keeps colliding with the hard reality of land-use conflicts. Nowhere is that more obvious than in Ohio, where 41 townships have rejected or restricted the expansion of wind and/or solar projects since last November. In addition, at least eight Ohio counties have implemented restrictions on Big Wind and Big Solar over that same time period. 

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Commentary: The Embarrassing Rhetoric on Russia

The Ukraine-Russia conflict has spurred debate on how to best resolve the crisis. One thing most people can agree on is that nuclear war could happen. In response, most would hope that the risk of nuclear destruction would bring about grounded debate. Unfortunately, the conflict has brought out name calling and baseless allegations. Much of this coming from people currently in charge of policy or who helped shape policy in the past. The juvenile rhetoric on Ukraine-Russia is undermining the debate and could have grave consequences.

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Major Newspaper Publishes ‘Misleading’ Photos on First Trimester Abortion

The Guardian published images of gestational tissue from the first 9 weeks of pregnancy without clarifying that the embryo had been removed, giving the impression that no embryo was present, an OB-GYN told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The article showed eight photos of the gestational sac — a thin, white tissue that supports a pregnancy — and suggested first trimester abortions only removed this tissue in a Wednesday article titled “What a pregnancy actually looks like before 10 weeks – in pictures.” The embryos had been removed from the tissue, according to OB-GYN Christina Francis, but the article made no mention of that.

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Poll: Americans Say Federal Government Has Too Much Power

US Capitol Infrastructure

Newly released polling data shows that a majority of Americans say the federal government has too much power.

Gallup released the poll Wednesday, which showed that 54% of Americans said the federal government is “too powerful.” The survey found 39% said the federal government has the right amount of power while only 6% said it has too little.

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Report: Biden Administration Told Texas Mayor Not to Declare State of Emergency over City’s Migrant Crisis Ahead of Midterms

The Biden White House reportedly directed the Democrat mayor of El Paso, Texas, to not declare a state of emergency over the massive influx of illegal immigrants overwhelming the city due to concerns it would make Democrats look bad ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.

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Commentary: Liberal Arts Colleges Are More Liberal than Universities

Students often approach me to share the experiences they are having with other faculty on campus. They talk of being deeply uncomfortable asking questions in seminars and share with me how intimidated they are to challenge their professors. They often have real difficulty in sharing views that may run against the progressive, even Marxist, ideas that tend to dominate my campus.

I have been a professor at Sarah Lawrence College—one of the nation’s more elite and politically active campuses—for over a decade now. Liberal activism and ideological infusion into classes have become standard here and at many other liberal arts schools.  

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Biden to Pay Nearly Three Times More than Trump Would Have Paid to Refill Strategic Oil Reserves

President Joe Biden will buy oil to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) at a price that is nearly three times higher than the price the Trump administration would have paid.

Biden’s Energy Department (DOE) aims to buy back crude oil at a price of $67 to $72 per barrel after selling 15 million barrels in December to complete the largest series of SPR releases in the nation’s history, according to a White House fact sheet. Former President Donald Trump proposed in March 2020 to refill the strategic reserves at a price of $24.49 per barrel; however, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer helped block the proposal, calling it a “bailout for big oil.”

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