Hornberger's Blog

The Lynching of Lynne Stewart (1939-2017)

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 9, 2017

Convicted felon Lynne Stewart passed away on Tuesday. She was a noted criminal defense attorney in New York City who federal officials prosecuted, convicted, and punished for supporting terrorism. It was a bogus charge, one that perfectly reflects the extent to which the U.S. national-national security state has warped the mindsets, principles, and values of people within the federal government ...

Blame the Pentagon and CIA for Trump’s Immigration Ban

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 8, 2017

President Trump tells us that his newly modified travel ban, just his original travel ban, is intended to keep us safe. Safe from whom? From the terrorists. Or, if you wish, the Muslims, or the “radicalized Muslims.” But the important question must still be asked: Why is it that terrorists, Muslims, or “radicalized Muslims” wish to commit acts of terrorism against the ...

Growing Opposition to Minimum Wage Hikes

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 7, 2017

The Washington Times has published a fascinating and insightful story about growing opposition to hikes in the minimum wage in various parts of the country. The opposition is based not so much on the principles of liberty as a practical reason: the increase is causing businesses to lay off people. According to the article, which is entitled “Minimum Wage ...

Immigration Is Not Citizenship

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 6, 2017

I recently met a Dutch woman who has lived here in the United States for around 40 years. She told me that when she was 14 years old, she told her parents that her dream was to move to the United States. I asked her why and she said the reason was because she decided that there would be ...

Donald Trump, Social Engineer

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 3, 2017

At his daughter Ivanka’s urging, President Trump is showing us his liberal or progressive side by urging Congress to enact tax-code legislation relating to childcare and paid leave. Of course, this shouldn’t surprise anyone given that conservatives have, one, long supported other liberal programs, such as Social Security and Medicare, and, two, have long supported the income-tax ...

Donald Trump, Standard Conservative

by Jacob G. Hornberger March 1, 2017

In the second month of Donald Trump’s presidency, it is crystal clear that he is nothing more than a standard conservative, one with a unique personality but a standard conservative nonetheless. Consider the drug war. After decades of manifest failure, death, destructiveness, and loss of liberty among the American people, what does Trump want to do ...

Hypocrisy, Left and Right, on Immigration

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 28, 2017

Leftists (or liberals or progressives, if you prefer) are lamenting the plight of illegal immigrants who are being arrested and deported by President Trump’s ICE gendarmes. Playing the standard defender of the “poor, needy, and disadvantaged,” they are criticizing Trump for being cruel and heartless with his deportations of illegal immigrants who have been in the United ...

Debt Ceiling Déjà vu

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 27, 2017

Two days ago, President Trump sent out a tweet crowing that the national debt went down by $12 billion in the first month of his administration, as compared to the first month of the Obama regime, when it went up by $200 billion. If Trump really believes that he is responsible for that reduction in the amount of the national ...

What Part of “Obsolete” Does Trump Not Understand?

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 24, 2017

An online dictionary defines “obsolete” as “out of date” and lists such synonyms as outdated, outmoded, and old-fashioned. All right then. What part of “obsolete” does President Trump not understand? Throughout his campaign for president, he told audiences that NATO was “obsolete.” That’s the word he used. Indeed, at least once since he was elected president, he again referred to this ...

The Futility and Corruption of the Drug War

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 23, 2017

I just finished watching the much-acclaimed series “Narcos” on Netflix. What a fantastic program. And what an excellent depiction of the futility and corruption of the war on drugs. The series is a true-life account of Pablo Escobar, a Colombian drug lord who headed up the Medellin drug cartel, a black-market drug group that smuggled hundreds of tons of cocaine ...

Libertarianism and Immigration Enforcement

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 22, 2017

For the past several years, there has been a running debate within the libertarian movement between libertarians who favor government immigration controls and those who favor open borders. As an advocate of open borders, I have never been able to figure out how those libertarians who favor government-controlled borders are able to reconcile their position with the libertarian non-aggression principle, ...

A Second FFF-HBCU Conference on the Drug War

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 21, 2017

  If you live within driving distance of Orlando, Florida, or just happen to be in the area, I would like to invite you to attend FFF’s conference, “End the Drug War,” at the Florida A&M University law school (201 Beggs Avenue, Room 240, Orlando, FL 32801) on Wednesday, March 22, 2017, from 6:00 pm – 8:30 p.m. Admission price: ...