By Zelda Caldwell, National Catholic Register – As we mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, how do you think the American experiment is going?… Answer: Professor Robert George: “Experiment” is the right word. Our founders knew that the constitutional republic they proposed to establish would be an experiment — and that experiments can fail. Indeed, over the course of history, attempt after attempt to establish systems of self-government had failed. And when republics failed, they often collapsed into the worst forms of tyranny. …

By Greg Maresca, The American Spectator – As America marches toward its 250th birthday, a revival of CBS’s Bicentennial Minutes, the nightly Emmy-winning feature that aired from July 4, 1974, through December 31, 1976, would have been a scheduling coup on any and all media platforms… For those old enough to recall, the Bicentennial Minutes was a one-minute historical vignette featured at the end of CBS’s primetime programming during the run-up to America’s 200th birthday. …

By Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Bishop Emeritus, Pillars of Faith – In moments of great tension within the Church, we must remember that every judgment made must ultimately serve the salvation of souls. Truth can never be separated from charity, nor charity from truth… As discussions continue regarding the Society of St. Pius X, I believe we must ask a question that reaches deeper than canonical arguments or historical disputes. What has moved these priests and faithful throughout the past fifty years?… To understand the Society, we must remember its beginnings.

By John Daniel Davidson, The Federalist – What can be done about it? One immediate step that could be taken, if the Trump administration and the GOP had the political will (which they don’t seem to right now) would be mass deportations coupled with mass denaturalization. Get the people who have come here only to make money, or stage a revolution, out of the country. Mobilize the National Guard, if that’s what it takes. If American cities riot, as they did in Minneapolis, send the National Guard into those places and declare martial law. If Democrat mayors and governors impede these operations, arrest them.

By Walter B. Hoye II, Live Action – Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger introduced her euphemistic “Negro Project” on Sunday, June 25th, 1939, 87 years ago. And Black America has never been the same since… Margaret Sanger’s Negro Project — the targeting of Black Americans by eugenicists — could come to fruition in a relatively short period of time… According to the Population Reference Bureau, dedicated to informing people around the world about the population, health and the environment, long periods of low fertility rates have an “irreversible consequence.” ….

By Elise Winland, Zeale News – President Donald Trump on June 24 canceled a planned signing ceremony for a major bipartisan housing affordability bill, saying he would delay action on the measure until the Senate passes the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act… “Today’s Housing News Conference and Signing is hereby cancelled until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post hours before the scheduled event.

By Derek Rotty, Catholic Exchange – “Have I ever witnessed a miracle?” is a worthwhile question in our Western culture dominated by rationalism, materialism, and scientism, as many skeptics and agnostics—and even some Christians—believe miracles impossible… A miracle, according to Merriam-Webster, is “an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church provides a bit more texture in its definition: “A sign or wonder, such as a healing or the control of nature, which can only be attributed to a divine power.”

By Austin Ruse, Crisis Magazine – What we have seen these past weeks is a veritable love fest between Europeans and Americans and a grand reopening of the European mind about almost all things America… The White House cage fights, the military flyover, and the bald eagle were quite remarkable spectacles on the South Lawn the other day, especially as they laid down a working-class marker on America 250. Various fancy-pants tut-tutted, and all the better they did. Remember, Abe Lincoln went in for ear-biting-eye-gouging rasslin’. These are our roots.

By Ben Whedon, Just the News – On Thursday, the justices issued opinions on both asylum claims and temporary protected status (TPS), two of the key legal mechanisms for keeping foreigners in the country. TPS is a legal status intended for citizens of a nation facing an immediate hardship, such as a war or natural disaster. About 1.3 million people in the United States have been granted such status, including 600,000 from Venezuela and 330,000 from Haiti.

Fr. Matthew Dimock, Jr., OnePeterFive – In late April of 2025, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church were in the middle of their multi-day General Congregation. The one question on their minds: who shall take up the responsibility of steering the Barque of Peter? As the cardinals discussed the qualities of the next pope and what problems he must solve, the Chinese Communist Party announced the results of their own conclave. Rather than electing a Pope, they, instead, elected two priests to become bishops of their own dioceses.

By Mary Rose, Zeale News – Vice President JD Vance said in a June 25 interview that Iran has offered terms “radically different” from the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated under President Barack Obama, including stricter nuclear inspections and eliminating its stockpile of enriched uranium… Speaking to UnHerd after returning from negotiations in Switzerland, Vance said one result of the Lake Lucerne peace summit was an agreement in principle to establish a military communication channel between the U.S. and Iran.

By Edward Pentin, National Catholic Register – …. some cardinals criticized the January meeting for its tightly managed procedure and synodal structure, with one persistent criticism being that it was “very controlled.” They lamented a lack of genuine debate and a sense that key decisions and framing had been set in advance. Short plenary interventions (talks), heavy use of prepared briefing papers, and a rapid timetable reinforced a pattern in which the College of Cardinals functioned more as a body that receives decisions ….

By Tyler Arnold, EWTN News – The U.S. Supreme Court on June 25 ruled in favor of President Donald Trump’s restrictive asylum policies that faced strong opposition from the USCCB’s and some other Catholic advocacy groups… One ruling allows the DHS to end “temporary protected status” for Haitians and Syrians, who can now be deported. The other allows the government to turn away asylum seekers at the southern border by limiting the number of claims they will process each day. …

By Mary Rose, Zeale News – The head of the U.S. Postal Service testified June 24 that USPS will not deliver mail-in ballots in states that refuse to hand over voter rolls tied to absentee ballot distribution in keeping with an election integrity order from President Donald Trump… Postmaster General David Steiner made the remarks before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, defending a proposed rule that would require states to provide USPS with the names and barcodes tied to their mail-in ballots for federal elections before any ballots are delivered …

By Stephen Daisley, First Things – Every pope has his defining mission, a papal charism of sorts that characterizes and in time becomes a shorthand for his pontificate. Paul VI was the reformer of the liturgy who turned the Mass to the people. John Paul II was the apostle of human dignity against the twin anti-gods of communism and secularism. Francis was shepherd to the poor and the climate in an age of economic and environmental instability. Just over a year since he assumed the throne of Peter, we can already see Leo XIV’s papal charism: He is the migrants’ pope. …