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Wall Street Journal
2 days ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Tariffs, Not Free Markets, Are JD Vance's ‘Tool'
Matthew Hennessey gets the better of Vice President JD Vance in arguing that the market isn't a tool (Letters, May 29). Mr. Vance tries to support his proposition by citing that FDR directed the automobile industry to build the arsenal of democracy. That effort, however, isn't an example of 'operationalizing' the market. The president used government as a tool to override the market, and the private sector responded. Mr. Vance writes that President Trump has also 'leveraged access to America's markets' to get 'fairer treatment from foreign partners' on trade, illegal immigration and illegal drugs. But that isn't using markets as a tool, either; it's coercively regulating markets to get the president's desired results. Parenthetically, do Messrs. Trump and Vance really believe Canada's government can substantially reduce the amount of fentanyl passing through its border with the U.S., which at 43 pounds in fiscal 2024 was 0.2% of the volume seized along the U.S.-Mexico border?
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Opinion - Why would the US government ever refuse the US dollar?
In a moment of remarkable irony, Toby Stover vs. United States National Park Service may go down in history as the case that put America's legal tender on trial — at the hands of its own government. At its core, this lawsuit challenges the National Park Service's growing refusal to accept cash — U.S. dollars — at dozens of federally funded national parks. One such site is none other than the historic home of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in New York's Hyde Park. There, a woman offered to pay her entry fee in U.S. currency, clearly marked 'Legal Tender for All Debts, Public and Private.' Park officials refused. Reflect for a minute on that. The Park Service, a federal agency, is declining to accept money issued by the U.S. Treasury, backed by federal law. And in this instance, it happened at the home of FDR, the very president who, in 1935, ordered the inclusion of the Great Seal of the United States on every dollar bill to bolster confidence during the Great Depression. Today, the federal government refuses to accept those very same bills on the hallowed grounds of his historic residence. According to the plaintiff's May 12 filing in the Washington, D.C., Federal District Court, entrance fees to a national park are bound by the U.S. Treasury's legal tender statute, which states that 'United States coins and currency … are legal tender for all debts, public charges, taxes, and dues.' Refusing to accept cash for public entry fees appears to directly violate this statute. The question at hand is not whether the Park Service prefers digital payments — it is whether federal agencies can legally refuse the nation's own money. This isn't a glitch in the system. It's a symptom of a larger, and dangerous, trend. Scores of parks across the country have implemented or are transitioning to 'cashless' payment systems. This includes iconic places like Yosemite, Rocky Mountain, Mount Rainier and Lake Mead. Even our more local Great Falls National Park went cashless in January. As the U.S. National Park Service turns its back on cash, however, other federal institutions are moving in the opposite direction. According to the IRS's chief counsel, Taxpayer Assistance Centers are required to accept cash from taxpayers pursuant to federal law. And in the U.S. Congress, Rep. John Rose (R-Tenn.) recently reintroduced the Payment Choice Act, a bill with bipartisan support that would require retailers to accept cash for purchases of $500 or less in brick-and-mortar establishments. An increasing number of state and local jurisdictions are passing 'cashless bans' in the absence of a federal law, requiring retailers to accept cash to ensure access and inclusion for all consumers and to guarantee essential commercial continuity in times of disaster. So while these local governments affirm cash as a public right, the U.S. National Park Service is refusing the only form of payment that requires no permission, no technology and no third-party intermediary charging fees to facilitate a simple transaction and/or selling your data to other companies. That contradiction should trouble us all. In the Toby Stover case, the National Park Service argues that if visitors can pay digitally, refusing to do so is a 'self-inflicted' injury. This logic is deeply flawed. The right to engage in commercial transactions should not be contingent on smartphone access or digital literacy. Tendering cash is an exercise of one's basic right to permissionless transactions. There is also a practical vulnerability here. Digital systems depend on power and internet connectivity. What happens when the grid goes down following natural disasters, computer glitches or cyberattacks? At many parks, visitors could be turned away, not because they didn't want to pay but because they brought the one form of payment the U.S. government no longer respects — its own currency! Will history remember Toby Stover vs. U.S. National Park Service as the case that helped rescue the dollar's dignity, or as the beginning of its quiet demise? In a democracy built on laws and liberty, the answer matters. Jeff Thinnes is CEO of JTI, Inc., which supports the Payment Choice Coalition, a group of companies advocating for the right to use cash for reasons of resilience, national security, privacy, fairness, safety and freedom of choice. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Eaton Fire 5 months later: A look at the progress that has been made
LOS ANGELES - It's been nearly five months since the Eaton Fire erupted in Altadena, burning 14,021 acres and killing 18. The fire, which erupted Jan. 7, destroyed over 9,000 structures and damaged another thousand. Nearing the five-month anniversary, Los Angeles County officials are highlighting the progress and work that has been done to rebuild the community. What they're saying According to Supervisor Kathryn Barger, over 5,000 (88%) of fire-damaged properties have been cleared of debris by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Of those 5,000 properties, 3,440 sites (60%) received final sign-off and returned to the county for follow-up. Barger says the Corps currently has 81 active debris removal crews operating in the area, clearing roughly 57 properties per day. To date, they have removed over 1.3 million tons of debris. "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is demonstrating exceptional speed, efficacy, and dedication in their debris removal mission in Altadena. Their tireless work is helping our community heal and rebuild faster than many thought possible. I wholeheartedly appreciate their commitment and am proud to work alongside them as we support Altadena's road to recovery," Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement. In terms of parks and community spaces, Charles White Park is fully cleared, the Eaton Canyon Nature Center is 95% cleared, and Farnsworth Park is halfway complete. Barger said all parks are projected to be fully cleared of debris within two weeks. Work is also underway to clear debris at the Altadena Senior Center, The Bunny Museum, and Lifeline Church. Barger said some of these properties are in various stages of clearance, with some already completed and others pending final contract approvals. Loma Alta Park became the first public park to reopen after the fire. Altadena had a grand re-opening celebration for Loma Alta Park on Saturday, May 10. According to the county, property owners who have fire debris on their property and have opted out of the government-sponsored debris removal program must hire a contractor to complete the work. Those who opted out or did not submit a Right of Entry (ROE) form must now obtain a Fire Debris Removal (FDR) permit and hire a licensed contractor by June 1. PREVIOUS COVERAGE:Eaton Fire survivors struggling with housing, essential supplies 3 months after wildfire County officials say if a permit is not obtained by the June 1 deadline, the property may be declared a Public Nuisance. The Source Information for this story came from the office of Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair Kathryn Barger.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Philip Cross: Carney's stellar CV does not guarantee success
This week's opening of Parliament allows Canadians to begin to assess whether Prime Minister Mark Carney's government will measure up to the considerable challenges it faces, the two most daunting being redefining Canada's economic and strategic relations with the United States and reviving our moribund productivity growth. At the same time, Carney must address inter-regional tensions that are as old as Confederation, and despair among young people that is as new as social media. It will be months before we can judge how Carney is doing. History shows how hard it is to predict whether a leader will succeed based solely on their qualifications. Some who seem to have all the prerequisites flop once in office. Others apparently lacking in competence or temperament end up exceeding all expectations. In 1928 Herbert Hoover appeared to have a near-ideal skill set to be a successful president, having excelled in both the private and public sectors. He had parlayed his knowledge as an engineer into a fortune as head of a mining company. He then oversaw efforts to help Europe in 1917 as head of the American Relief Administration, before becoming secretary of commerce in the cabinets of presidents Harding and Coolidge. But despite these impressive credentials, Hoover proved incapable of leading his nation out of the Great Depression or even grasping the human toll of the slowly unfolding economic catastrophe. Here in Canada, Paul Martin also seemed perfectly positioned to handle power in 2003. During almost a decade as finance minister he successfully managed Canada's fiscal crisis of the mid-1990s, giving him ample opportunity to study how to govern effectively. Instead, he proved incapable of the decisiveness required of any prime minister, leading The Economist to label him 'Mr. Dithers.' Conversely, some leaders have been surprisingly effective despite appearing to lack the requisite qualities. Franklin Roosevelt, who trounced Hoover in the 1932 election, was dismissed by The New Yorker as a 'grown up Boy Scout.' Walter Lippmann, the leading American political commentator of the day, called Roosevelt 'a pleasant man … without any important qualifications for the office.' But FDR re-made American society with his New Deal and then shepherded the U.S. through the Second World War. After FDR died in office in April 1945, expectations for Harry Truman were abysmal. Many regarded Truman lightly because of his lack of education — though a lifelong reader of history he was the last president not to have attended college — and how he was kept in the dark by FDR's White House from key deliberations about the war's evolution. But Truman quickly grew into the job, authorizing use of the atomic bomb to dramatically shorten the war, thus saving hundreds of thousands of lives on both sides, and identifying the shift of the Soviet Union from wartime ally to principal postwar rival. Truman enacted the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe and enforced a policy of containing communist aggression. Mark Carney's qualifications for leading Canada rest largely on his years running the Bank of Canada and then the Bank of England. He is also an economist, which means two of Canada's past three prime ministers, Carney and Harper, have been economists — which must be a world record. On the other hand, Carney's halting performance during the election campaign was a reminder that leading a central bank and governing a country require quite different skills. And Carney has already created problems for himself by not yet choosing a permanent chief of staff. A skilled traffic cop is crucial to a leader's ability to be properly informed and then to ensure the civil service implements the decisions taken. William Watson: Carney's throne speech ventriloquism was a little too obvious Diane Francis: Carney must listen to Alberta As this week's OECD survey of Canada observed, Carney has the difficult task of 'balancing short-term macro-economic support to mitigate the impact of tariffs with medium-term debt reduction.' The Liberals' electoral platform of deficit-financed tax cuts and balancing the so-called operating budget by excluding capital spending suggests that, despite much brave talk, he does not fully grasp the difficulty of transforming an economy while balancing competing interests. Canadians can only hope he grows into his new job quickly. Philip Cross is a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Toronto Sun
25-05-2025
- Health
- Toronto Sun
GOLDBERG: History should have made more reporters skeptical about Biden's health
Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. Hundreds of thousands of photos were taken of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And yet, there are only four known photos of him in a wheelchair. This was deliberate. FDR hid his disability from polio — even from his mother. He ordered the Secret Service to destroy images of him in a wheelchair. His doctor, recommended by the physician who'd helped keep the severity of President Woodrow Wilson's stroke hidden from public view, was chosen for similar discretion. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Roosevelt even successfully enlisted the press corps in what author and international disability advocate Hugh Gallagher called FDR's 'splendid deception.' It was easy to rationalize the decision. Between the Great Depression and the Second World War, journalists felt that they should go along with the effort to portray the president as physically up to the job, for the sake of American morale. These are just the most egregious examples of this kind of obfuscation. But there were others. Grover Cleveland had a tumour removed on what the White House claimed was a 'fishing trip.' The severity of Dwight D. Eisenhower's heart attack in 1955 was downplayed to not jeopardize his re-election. JFK suffered from Addison's disease and was 'treated' by his personal physician, 'Miracle Max' Jacobson, a.k.a. Dr. Feelgood, who gave him 'vitamin' shots loaded with amphetamine and methamphetamine. The public had no idea until a New York Times report in 1972. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In other words, the controversy over Joe Biden's infirmity — and now his just-revealed Stage 4 prostate cancer — is not nearly so new as it may seem. That controversy, reignited by the publication of Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, was dominating the political conversation until the Biden family released news of his cancer. According to Tapper (an anchor at CNN, where I am a contributor) and Thompson (a reporter for Axios), Biden, his family and his closest aides conspired to hide the extent of Biden's mental and physical decline from the public. Motivations varied, as they often do, from an intense partisan desire to keep Donald Trump from retaking the White House, to Biden's denial and vanity, to a desire by his closest aides to stay in power. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. As one high-level aide told the authors, 'He just had to win, and then he could disappear for four years — he'd only have to show proof of life every once in a while.' Suspicions that the cancer revelation is an extension of Team Biden's desire to control the narrative over his health are hard to avoid. David Axelrod, a Democratic strategist and power broker who was very vocal about the political problems presented by Biden's age, had the kind of reaction the Biden team probably hoped for. 'Those conversations (about Biden's infirmity and the effort to conceal it) will happen, but they should be more muted and set aside for now as he's struggling through this.' It's hard to gainsay the spirit of Axelrod's compassion. There's no call for the viciousness some have spewed in response to an 82-year-old grandfather and husband's cancer diagnosis. But skepticism is warranted all the same, even if it comes from partisans. As many doctors — including oncologist Zeke Emmanuel, a former Biden administration medical adviser — have noted, prostate cancer is very slow-moving. It is surprising that a two-term vice-president and one-term president could have so many high-profile medical exams without it being caught before now. Whatever the truth, history — both This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Biden's and that of the presidency — make asking unpleasant questions legitimate. One of the obvious and much-discussed lessons from this chapter is that the news media should indulge their skepticism of those in power a lot more, particularly when doing so is politically or ideologically undesirable. For many Republicans, reporters' relative lack of curiosity about Biden's health and acuity can be explained entirely by the partisanship of journalists who, fearful of a Trump restoration, hid the truth. Less discussed, however, is that partisanship can be a useful tool in exposing the truth as well. Axelrod didn't push for removing Biden from the 2024 ticket because he's a Republican. He's a partisan Democrat who found it necessary to tell the truth for the sake of the party's chances of winning. Similarly, the right's response to Original Sin and its revelations hasn't been one of shock but of 'we told you so.' Highlighting Biden's infirmity suited their partisan ends, but that doesn't mean it wasn't true. Many in the media forgot that partisanship is often one of the only things that can motivate people to give voice to unpleasant truths. Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast Toronto Blue Jays Crime Columnists Sunshine Girls Ontario
