In the liberal imagination, the money is the government's by default, and the president and Congress determine through the tax code how much to give back to the people.

Persecution means an attempt to drive out, attempt to subjugate, and there are various ways that that can be done. Sarah Palin's opponents and her critics would like to see her leave the public square by insulting, degrading, demeaning, abusing and ridiculing her, and - by pretending that she has nothing to say.

The Beltway is waking up to the realities of Prsident Obam's budget plan, which taxes, spends, and borrows as far as the eye can see.

There is plenty of time for Republicans to have a Macaca moment. But right now, as of October 17, 2014, the Republican Senate candidates have performed better than they have in years. For the moment, today, as you read this, the Democratic candidates are the jokes.

Something peculiar has happened. As I write, none of the Republican candidates for Senate has become a public embarrassment. On the contrary: For the first time in a decade, it is the Democratic candidates, not the Republican ones, who are fodder for late-night comics. That the Democrats are committing gaffes and causing scandals at a higher rate than Republicans not only may be decisive in the battle for the Senate. It could signal a change in our politics at large.

In the liberal imagination, the money is the government's by default, and the president and Congress determine through the tax code how much to give back to the people.

I think that conservatism as we understand it is coming under great strain during the era of Trump.