American Institute for Economic Research, November 11, 2020 Elections and Legitimacy James Bovard This year’s presidential election is the fourth since 2000 to be marred by either widespread allegations of voter fraud or of foreign interference. Politicians and pundits have long counted on elections to wave a magic wand of legitimacy over the reign of […]
Tag Archives | FBI
Trust No One with the Presidency’s Powers (1988 & 2000)
Many Americans feel like they have a miserable choice of presidential candidates this year. But the same pattern goes back at least to the end of the Reagan era. For decades, presidents have had far more power than they can be trusted with. Here are election season pieces I wrote on this theme in 1988 […]
The Voting Rights Mirage
American Conservative, October 19, 2020 The Voting Rights Mirage by James Bovard The most dangerous political illusion is that votes limit politicians’ power. Americans have been endlessly hectored in recent months to cast their votes in the presidential election. But trusting ballots to leash either Donald Trump or Joe Biden would be the ultimate triumph […]
Two Types of Terror in Michigan
American Institute for Economic Research, October 9, 2020 Two Types of Terror in Michigan James Bovard #StopTrumpsTerror is one of the hottest trending topics on Twitter, with more than 90,000 tweets. Yesterday, the FBI announced the arrest of six people yesterday in a plot (perhaps government-hatched) to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and put her […]
Will the Pandemic Panic Card Win in 2020?
American Institute for Economic Research, October 1, 2020 Will the Pandemic Panic Card Win in 2020? James Bovard “People want to be safe,” Joe Biden repeatedly declared in Tuesday night’s debate. The 2020 presidential race could turn into a referendum on whether vastly increasing government power can provide “freedom from fear.” This has been a […]
The FBI’s Forgotten Crimes Against Richard Jewell
People in Washington think I'm a redneck, and rednecks think I'm an undercover fed. Maybe dropping out of that finishing school was a mistake. https://t.co/5vu9AtiQsA — James Bovard (@JimBovard) September 17, 2020 The FBI’s Forgotten Crimes Against Richard Jewell by James Bovard A new movie about Richard Jewell is reminding Americans of one of the […]
Why I Write
Mises Institute, August 11, 2020 Why I Write by James Bovard I was born in Iowa, raised in the mountains of Virginia, and attended Virginia Tech sporadically from 1974 to 1976 before dropping out to try my luck writing. At some point in the late 1970s, individual liberty became my highest political value and I […]