It’s e rather predictable to hear progressives promote protectionist rhetoric on trade and globalization. What’s surprising is when it spills from the lips of the leading Republican candidate. Donald Trump has made opposition to free trade a hallmark of his campaign, a holethat petitors have been slow to exploit. Inthemost recent CNN debate, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich eachechoed their own agreement in varying degrees, voicing slight critiques ontariffs but mostlyaffirmingTrump’s ambiguous platitudesabout trade that is“free but fair.”...

“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” is the most famous quote by the English Catholic historian Sir John Dalberg-Acton. It also appears to be the overriding theme of the teaser-trailer for the new movie Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The quote is even stated directly in the trailer in a voiceover (by actress Holly Hunter). Is it applicable in this context? Would Lord Acton agree that absolute power has corrupted Superman? I think he would. That...

Do you remember the story about colonial Americans experimenting with socialism? Probably not. It’s a tale that rarely finds its way into the textbooks of high school and college students. Indeed, I had been out of school nearly 20 years when I first heard about it. If your not familiar with this part of American history, this short video by Larry Schweikart will fill you in on explains what happened when the early settlers who arrived at Plymouth and Jamestown...

Acton Institute Director of Research Samuel Gregg was a guest on Thursday’s edition of Kresta in the Afternoon on the Ave Maria Radio Network; his conversation with host Al Kresta touched on Europe’s current struggles with Islamic terrorism, with a focus on this week’s attacks in Brussels, Belgium, and then shifted to a preview of Sam’s ing Acton Lecture Series address on Pope Francis, Poverty, and the Economy. If you’d like to attend that lecture here at the Acton Building...

Sometimes clearer heads prevail, but at considerable costs to individual stock portfolios and corporations who have to mount a defense against uninformed, nuisance shareholder resolutions. Last week the Securities and Exchange Commission slowed the progressive roll of religious activist group As You Sow by denying an AYS proxy resolution seeking a detailed nanoparticle risk assessment by Mondelēz International Foodservice. Mondelēz successfully convinced the SEC that its use of food whitener titanium dioxide (TiO2) in its Dentyne Ice chewing gum does...

On Sunday, March 27, Acton’s President and Co-founder, Rev. Robert Sirico will join Shannon Bream and Leland Vittert on Fox News’ America’s News HQ. He will offer an Easter reflection ment on any significant breaking news. You can catch him between 1 and 2PM Eastern. America’s News HQ on Fox News Channel reports the latest national and world news. It reports expert insight on health, politics and military matters. ...

Throughout the world Easter is celebrated as the greatest eventof the Christian faith. But as with most things associated with Christianity, we Americans tend to put our peculiar stamp on the holiday. Here are five facts you should know about Easter in America: 1. Easter Sunday church services are among the most well-attended all year. There’s even two terms to describe these additional congregants: CEOs — Christians who are “Christmas and Easter Only” — and Chreasters. These are Americans who...

In the Detroit News, Rev. Robert A. Sirico, co-founder and president of the Acton Institute, offers mentary on the two-year battle with the city of Grand Rapids over the institute’s exempt status under state property tax law (see the March 15 Acton news release, “Acton Institute Prevails in Property Tax Dispute with City of Grand Rapids” for background). In his opinion piece, Rev. Sirico writes: We were assured earlier from then-City Attorney Catherine Mish that it all wasn’t political, but...

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments todayin a casefrom religious nonprofit groups challenging thefederal government’s contraceptive/abortifacient mandate. Here is what you should knowabout that case. What is this case, and what’s it about? The case the Supreme Court will hear, Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Aged v. bines seven challenges to the Health and Human Services’ (HHS) contraceptive/abortifacient mandate. To fulfill the requirements of the Affordable Healthcare Act (aka ObamaCare) the federal government passed a regulation...

“Americans’ instinctively refuse to recognize as legitimate any international organization, law or treaty that claims any authority over Americans above the U.S. Constitution,” says Todd Huizinga in this week’s Acton Commentary, “particularly if that organization, law or treaty contradicts the Constitution or violates Americans’ constitutional rights.” In the American system, it is because sovereignty rests in the people that the U.S. government does not have a right to transfer sovereignty to any other organization, government or group of governments. But...