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200 Years Later, The Monroe Doctrine Is Still The Best Protector Of U.S. Interests

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This month marks the 200th anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine. If celebration (or even acknowledgment) seems muted, that may be because policymakers and the public know little about the principles and grand strategy underlying the doctrine.

Few likely understand the doctrine because its meaning has been distorted throughout American history, especially in the Progressive Era by Theodore Roosevelt’s corollary. Some see it, for better or worse, as the beginning of America’s commitment to maintaining an international order by arms and diplomacy. But this is incorrect.

The Monroe Doctrine was not a blueprint for establishing an international order, or even for American involvement throughout the Western Hemisphere. It was an expression of the moral principles and strategic thinking that animated foreign affairs for the first century of our national existence. It is also the blueprint for returning to a realistic grand strategy that can preserve American liberty from threats foreign and domestic.

The Monroe Doctrine’s Origins

President James Monroe articulated what later became known as the Monroe Doctrine in his seventh annual message to Congress on Dec. 2, 1823. Its topic was the collapse of the Spanish Empire and the subsequent rise of independent nations in Latin America. Henry Clay and other leading statesmen saw this as an opportunity to push American-style republicanism abroad.

President Monroe and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams took a more cautious stance. Monroe declared a policy of neutrality in the wars between Spain and the newly independent republics of Latin America.

He also promised not

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Presbyterian Church In America Invites Professional Polarizer David French To Lecture Christians On Getting Along

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One month from today, Presbyterian leaders will gather in Richmond, Virginia, for the Presbyterian Church in America’s annual General Assembly to discuss and debate church issues and decide on matters of importance. One attendee, nay speaker, however, is decidedly not Presbyterian.

That little ray of sunshine is David French — the Army JAG (in case you didn’t know)-turned-religious liberty litigator-turned-writer whose brain has been so corrupted by Trump derangement that he sold out to The New York Times and The Atlantic, where his columns are indistinguishable from the dishonest drivel of the legacy press’s anti-religious religion reporters. In a phrase, he’s a regular accuser of the brethren.

French makes political polarization his personal brand, so it’s curious that the PCA has invited him to be a panelist at an assembly-wide seminar called “How to Be Supportive of Your Pastor and Church Leaders in a Polarized Political Year.” Is the denomination unaware that French’s family publicly left the PCA because it’s a “hostile” congregation of “neo-Confederates“?

If the PCA knew this and invited him anyway, shame on them. And if they somehow didn’t know because their heads are buried that far in the sand — unlikely, especially considering the PCA’s leftward decline, but I repeat myself — double shame.

So I emailed the PCA General Assembly and its Administrative Committee’s head Bryan Chapell that very question and received no response. An email obtained by The Federalist that was apparently sent to many people who complained about the French pick, however,

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North Carolina’s Early Voting Locations Illegally Favor Democrats

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North Carolina’s early voting locations operated on college campuses disproportionately favor Democrats in violation of state statute, new research suggests. A report from the nonpartisan think tank Verity Vote analyzed North Carolina’s early voting locations (One Stop Voting), campus voter registration, and early ballots cast. Data reveals noncompliance with a North Carolina statutory requirement for neutrality in early voting venues.

College students disproportionately favor one political party. That is not breaking news. Edison Research polling shows a 28-point margin for Democrats among young people. A 2022 study by the Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology found that Democrats outnumber Republicans on college campuses by a 55-23 margin nationwide. While the size of the partisan advantage for Democrats among college students has grown significantly in the last decade, the fact that it exists has been well-documented since the 1960s. College faculty and staff also disproportionately favor one party. A 2020 study of more than 20,000 faculty members found 48.4 percent were registered Democrats and only 5.7 percent were registered Republicans.

North Carolina statute §163‑227.6 prohibits the use of early voting sites that disproportionately favor any party or candidate. The requirement for election officials to select early voting locations that confer no partisan political advantage is being violated in more than a dozen counties across the state of North Carolina.  

More North Carolinians choose to vote early rather than on Election Day. In 2022, more than 53 percent of ballots were cast at One Stop Voting locations. Therefore, decisions related to these locations can significantly

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Meta Relies On ‘Human Rights Norms’ To Censor Protected Speech, Board Member Admits

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A member of the Meta Oversight Board said in a recent livestream that Meta places “international human rights norms” above the First Amendment when it considers free speech issues. This admission is especially concerning considering a recent revelation that the FBI and CISA have renewed collaboration with social media companies to censor posts they label “disinformation.”

“As Meta became more global, it realized what an outlier the United States was, and could not simply default back to U.S. First Amendment jurisprudence,” said Kenji Yoshino, a member of the Meta Oversight Board, an independent entity that advises the platform. “Our baseline here is not the U.S. Constitution and free speech, but rather international human rights norms.”

Meta’s Censorship in Theory

Yoshino, a board member for the left-wing William J. Brennan Center for Justice, made this comment in a livestream with fellow Meta Oversight Board member and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution Michael McConnell. The National Constitution Center hosted the online panel on April 29, and its CEO Jeffrey Rosen moderated the discussion about ways Meta shapes content during elections.

Meta originally sought to follow the First Amendment, Yoshino said. But as Meta expanded across the world, he noted, it shifted its content policies beyond the First Amendment.

McConnell disagreed with Yoshino’s reasoning and said the more important distinction is the First Amendment’s application to private entities. But he admitted he agrees with Meta’s ability to censor content. “Even within the United States, private companies are free to not convey speech

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