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What It Means to Be an American and Fly the Flag

Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one key phrase

Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one key phrase

Things are about to get worse for Mike Johnson

Things are about to get worse for Mike Johnson

U.S. capitol.

Congress Votes With Only One House or Senate Dissenter, 2025

California’s Governor Race Is a Democratic Nightmare, But There’s One Easy Fix

California’s Governor Race Is a Democratic Nightmare, But There’s One Easy Fix

California court expedites Trump challenge to new tax returns requirement

California court expedites Trump challenge to new tax returns requirement

California's Supreme Court is expediting President Trump's challenge to a new state law that would require him to release five years of tax returns in order to get on the state ballot for the 2020 election.

Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images
Bill Theobald
By Bill TheobaldAug 22, 2019
Bill Theobald

Bill Theobald is senior writer at The Fulcrum, where he focuses on everything to do with voting. This December marks his 40th anniversary in the business, and he still believes -- now more than ever -- that the glow from great journalism can truly light the world.

See More Writings by author

The California Supreme Court is fast-tracking its review of a challenge to a new law that would require President Trump to make public his tax returns in order to get on the state's ballot for the 2020 election.

A lawsuit seeking to block implementation of the law was filed August 6 by the California Republican Party against Secretary of State Alex Padilla. It claims the law violates California's constitution.

Two other challenges, one filed by Trump's personal lawyers, are pending in federal court.

Trump refused to release his tax returns during the 2016 election campaign, bucking a practice followed by every presidential candidate for decades.

The court issued an expedited schedule on Wednesday requiring attorneys on both sides to file legal papers by mid-September, including anyone who wants to file briefs supporting either side.

The California law requires presidential candidates to release five years of tax returns in order to appear on the ballot. Democrats control both houses of the California Legislature and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill in late July.

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How Texas’ Housing Changes Betray Its Most Vulnerable Communities
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Photo by Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash

How Texas’ Housing Changes Betray Its Most Vulnerable Communities

While we celebrate the Christmas season, hardworking Texans, who we all depend on to teach our children, respond to emergencies, and staff our hospitals, are fretting about where they will live when a recently passed housing bill takes effect in 2026.

Born out of a surge in NIMBY (“not in my backyard”) politics and fueled by a self-interested landlord lawmaker, HB21 threatens to deepen the state’s housing crisis by restricting housing options—targeting affordable developments and the families who depend on them.

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Let America Vote to Welcome Its 51st Star

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AI generated

Let America Vote to Welcome Its 51st Star

I’m an American who wants Puerto Rico to become America’s 51st state—and I want the entire country to be able to say “yes” at the ballot box. A national, good-faith, vote would not change the mechanics of admission; it would change the mood. It would turn a very important procedural step into a shared act of welcome—millions of Americans from all 50 states affirming to 3.2 million residents of Puerto Rico that they belong in full.

Across the map, commentators are already making that case. Georgia GOP chair Josh McKoon put it bluntly: “Unlike Canadians, Puerto Ricans actually want to become a state.” Jacksonville Journal-Courier

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Making America’s Children Healthy Requires Addressing Deep-Rooted Health Disparities

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Getty Images

Making America’s Children Healthy Requires Addressing Deep-Rooted Health Disparities

In early September, the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission released a 19-page strategy to improve children’s health and reverse the epidemic of chronic diseases. The document, a follow-up to MAHA’s first report in May, paints a dire picture of American children’s health: poor diets, toxic chemical exposures, chronic stress, and overmedicalization are some of the key drivers now affecting millions of young people.

Few would dispute that children should spend less time online, exercise more, and eat fewer ultra-processed foods. But child experts say that the strategy reduces a systemic crisis to personal action and fails to confront the structural inequities that shape which children can realistically adopt healthier behaviors. After all, in 2024, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine updated Unequal Treatment, a report that clearly highlights the major drivers of health disparities.

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