Source: Niskanen Center
by Dan Davies
“In a small site of special scientific interest about 20 miles northwest of Oxford, a ‘shed’ is being built. Or at least, that was how Jon Thompson, the chief executive of the High Speed 2 (HS2) rail project, described the Sheephouse Wood Bat Protection Structure. … The ‘bat shed’ became the subject of media controversy in 2024 when … Thompson revealed that it, alone, had added £100 million to the bill. It makes a useful starting point for discussing a general question of costs in infrastructure, not just in the UK but in many countries with a similar economic and legal structure. Why do things like the Sheephouse Wood Bat Mitigation Structure seem to happen so often? More to the point, why do they appear to particularly afflict the common law countries?” (04/01/25)
https://www.niskanencenter.org/the-problem-factory-preemptive-risk-aversion-in-infrastructure-planning-and-the-role-of-professional-services/
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Republicans on Tuesday won special elections for two US House of Representatives seats in Florida vacated by Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees, dashing Democratic hopes for an upset victory in the first federal special elections held since the president began his second term. … Democrats were not expected to be competitive in the heavily Republican area, but the final tally appeared much closer Tuesday than it was in November.” (04/01/25)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/01/republicans-florida-special-elections-results
Source: Freedom’s Phoenix
“Jacob Hornberger (Future of Freedom Foundation) comes on to discuss the JFK files release, JFK Records Act, national security nonsense in holding the files for so long, Ian Freeman update, etc.” (04/01/25)
https://www.freedomsphoenix.com/Media/377188-2025-04-01-2025-04-01-ernest-hancock-interviews-jacob-hornberger-future-of.htm
Source: EconLog
by David Henderson
“I used to think that Donald Trump was an ignoramus who didn’t understand the gains from trade. But now I realize that he understands it better than we economists. All we have are our models and our logical reasoning. Trump has experience as a trader in the real world who understands that in every trade, there is a winner and loser. He also understands that when domestic car companies charge low prices to Americans, that’s good, but when foreign car companies charge low prices, that’s bad. … I wasn’t wrong to criticize Kamala Harris for advocating price controls during the presidential campaign. But I’m wrong for having criticized Donald Trump for warning auto companies not to raise prices …. The difference is that Harris is a Democrat and Trump is a Republican and that makes all the difference.” (04/01/25)
https://www.econlib.org/recent-mistakes-ive-made/
Source: Bloomberg
“The Democratic-backed candidate in a closely contested Wisconsin judicial race defeated a conservative [sic] rival supported by billionaire Elon Musk, preserving a liberal [sic] majority on the state’s supreme court and dealing a blow to one of President Donald Trump’s most prominent allies. Susan Crawford, a circuit court judge, beat former state attorney general Brad Schimel, according to NBC and CNN. The off-year race in a battleground state became a major test for both parties — and the most expensive judicial contest in US history — with impacts on abortion rights and labor laws in Wisconsin as well as for congressional redistricting plans ahead of next year’s midterm elections and the 2028 presidential race.” (04/02/25)
https://archive.is/MLeoE
Source: Washington Post
by Megan McArdle
“When Donald Trump won his second term, there was much speculation about what it would mean to have a president who started out as essentially a lame duck. ‘After nearly a decade — during which so many in the GOP cowered in fear at the costs of defying Trump — ambitious senators, House members and governors will be contemplating their own futures in a world without him,’ wrote my colleague E.J. Dionne, adding that ‘recognizing the limitations on a Trump presidency is a first step toward holding Trump in check.’ However you would describe what is happening now, no one would argue that Trump has been held in check. Instead, we are witnessing something entirely novel in American political history: the YOLO presidency. … Rather than being constrained by the fact that he can’t run for office again, Trump has been liberated by the fact that he doesn’t need to.” (04/01/25)
https://archive.is/fFwyF
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Due Process, Empire, and the Dole.” (04/01/25)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQFF7jmCGlM
Source: San Diego Union-Tribune
“The U.N. food agency is closing all of its bakeries in the Gaza Strip, officials said Tuesday, as food supplies dwindle after Israel sealed the territory off from all imports nearly a month ago. Israel, which tightened its blockade and later resumed its offensive in order to pressure Hamas into accepting changes to their ceasefire agreement, said that enough food entered Gaza during the six-week truce to sustain the territory’s roughly 2 million Palestinians. Markets largely emptied weeks ago, and U.N. agencies say the supplies they built up during the truce are running out. Gaza is heavily reliant on international aid because the war has destroyed almost all of its food production capability.” (04/01/25)
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/04/01/gaza-strip-food-supplies/
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“If you don’t like Musk, you can and should avoid buying/using the products and services he offers: Not just Tesla’s vehicles, but social media platform X (formerly Twitter) and Internet Service Provider Starlink. You might also do what you can (very little, I’m sorry to say) to oppose his corporate welfare take via government contracts for SpaceX, tax credits for purchases of Tesla vehicles, etc. What you shouldn’t do, because it’s both wrong and stupid, is vandalize or destroy any of the more than 4 million Tesla vehicles currently on the road worldwide.” (04/01/25)
https://thegarrisoncenter.org/archives/19462
Source: CNN
“The case against pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil will remain in New Jersey after a judge denied a government motion to have the case transferred to Louisiana where the Columbia graduate student remains in federal custody. Nearly a month after Khalil’s [abduction], US District Judge Michael Farbiarz concluded the New Jersey district court has jurisdiction over the case because Khalil was in the state when his attorneys filed a habeas corpus motion seeking to challenge the legality of his [abduction], according to a 67-page decision filed Tuesday. Khalil, a negotiator for pro-Palestinian student protesters in talks with Columbia’s administration over last spring’s contentious campus encampment against the Israel-Hamas war, was [abducted] outside of his apartment on Columbia University’s campus on March 8.” (04/01/25)
https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/01/us/mahmoud-khalil-columbia-student-louisiana/index.html
