My latest for @CityJournal! In March, Hasan Piker, Code Pink’s Medea Benjamin, and dozens of other American activists traveled to Cuba with the Nuestra América Convoy, billed as a humanitarian mission. The convoy delivered more than 20 tons of aid in an effort Reuters characterized as “circumventing U.S. sanctions.” It also placed American activists in events facilitated by Cuban state-linked institutions, amplified regime propaganda, and gave Cuban officials a platform to address an American audience. Then came the enforcement... May - Treasury subpoenas sought information about the convoy and its participants. June - The United States sanctioned ICAP and Amistur, which helped facilitate foreign delegations to Cuba. ICAP has long been viewed by U.S. intelligence agencies and Cuban defectors as a front for Cuban intelligence. July - The State Department detailed decades of Cuban espionage and collaboration with far-left radical organizations in America. Hasan and Medea will attract the headlines. But the scrutiny surrounding the convoy may be only the opening phase of a much broader crackdown on foreign influence operations. Treasury has made the first move. DOJ, Florida’s attorney general, and others could be next as the administration mounts a full-court press against malign foreign influence.

.@NYCMayor’s new initiative may harm vulnerable tenants by encouraging them to engage in collective action that goes against their individual interests—like rent strikes, which could mean more buildings falling into distress. Read more from @nicolegelinas:

"And when told that Nordic-style universal welfare systems require higher taxes on middle- and working-class households, only 13 percent would accept that trade-off for families like their own." Great read from @CityJournal.

NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani has launched a new initiative to help tenants organize against their landlords. The $53 million Office of Mass Engagement, created on the mayor’s second day in office, will manage “volunteers” going door to door for the ‘Talk to Tenants’ program. The mayor’s words will be cheap for him, @nicolegelinas writes, but they’ll be costlier for many of the people who take him and Talk to Tenants too seriously.

In the @ManhattanInst's @CityJournal, Senator @DaveMcCormickPA lays out a framework for meeting the challenges posed by what might be the most transformative technology in history.

Want taxpayer-funded drug paraphernalia in California? Go to the meth mansion. Yes, really. @CityJournal reporters went undercover to skid row's "harm reduction" center, and what they found was shocking. @JesseBWatters covers @christopherrufo & @austenhufford's investigation:

A new @ManhattanInst poll found majority support for executing those who rape a child (71%) or an adult (57%)—yet neither offense would, absent a concurrent murder, be death-eligible. The death penalty for murder involving "extreme cruelty," mass murder, or the murder of a child were all supported by 3-to-1 margins.

Hasan Piker, Code Pink, and as many as 40 others may be under investigation for their participation in a widely publicized trip to Cuba in March 2026. A State Department inquiry, which is part of a broader crackdown on Cuban influence, centers around whether the participants violated American sanction rules when they visited and engaged in what may have been advocacy on behalf of a designated state terror sponsor. @thestustustudio's latest:

A new @ManhattanInst poll finds that nearly three-quarters of voters support requiring welfare recipients to show that they are seeking work, while 80% prefer providing benefits in the form of food, housing, and health care over unrestricted cash transfers. Read more from @Jesse_Leg and @Sean_Speer:

Prediction markets are more popular than ever. But legally, these billion-dollar companies are operating in a gray area. The question remains: Can they avoid becoming casinos? @CharlesFLehman's latest:

Bill Clinton was right about welfare. As mainstream Democrats struggle to articulate what they stand for, new polling finds that work, responsibility, and public order remain a winning agenda. My latest for @CityJournal, with my @ManhattanInst colleague @Sean_Speer.

Is ShotSpotter racist? ShotSpotter CEO @ralphaclark responds: "That's a real personal attack for me...I always find it curious that when people look at [it] through a lens of law enforcement showing up as a protector...wouldn't you want to enable that law enforcement agency to have a tool to be able to respond to criminal gunfire? And why would that be racist?" Ralph Clark, CEO of SoundThinking (formerly ShotSpotter), sits down with @Rafa_Mangual to address common attacks and misconceptions about ShotSpotter:

A worker at a taxpayer-funded homeless shelter said that they "wouldn’t be bothered" if our reporters got high just outside (unless they overdosed). In addition to crack pipes, the shelter site offers services like doggie daycare, meditation on the lawn, and "valet" cart parking.

City Journal reporters visited a California-funded homeless shelter to investigate "harm-reduction" policies. They were handed drug-testing strips, syringes, and crack pipes—no questions asked.

In 2014, every school district received a letter from the DOJ & DOE warning that they could face federal investigations if their suspension rates differed by race. School discipline reforms spread nationwide, replacing suspensions with "restorative justice," social-emotional learning, and "trauma-informed" practices. Students need consequences, @DrJenniferWeber & @CarolynGorman_ write, not "restorative justice."