It’s Wednesday, April 29. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Eli Lake on the problems with the Comey indictment. Will Rahn talks to the retired Navy admiral who is convinced that aliens are real. Emmet Penney has the details of the Trump administration’s plans to make nuclear power great again. Rafaela Siewert talks to Rachel Goldberg-Polin. And much more.
But first: Ben Shapiro on how to fix American institutions.
There was once a time in American society when fierce political differences didn’t preclude a shared moral foundation. Our core, foundational ideas—that violence is bad, that freedom of speech is paramount—were unquestionable, baked into the ethos of our nation.
It’s getting harder to argue that we still live in that kind of society. As we’ve written in recent days and weeks, the divisive tenor of public discourse seems to be reaching a fever pitch—with increasingly severe consequences.
The latest reminder of that came this weekend at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
How did this climate take shape?
Ben Shapiro’s answer is simple: “Our institutions are failing.” In his piece today, adapted from a recent speech at the University of Austin, he explains how plummeting trust in what were once the foundational pillars of American life—church, government, academia, science—is at the root of our social unraveling.
Read Ben’s essay for his view on what went wrong—and what Americans can do to fix it.
The Comey Indictment Has Already Backfired |
|
|
|
 |
|
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice indicted former FBI director James Comey on two charges: threatening the life of a president and transmitting a threat across state lines. It’s the second time the administration has come after Comey, who is high on the president’s enemies list. The first indictment was thrown out. Eli Lake says this one will backfire. Read his column on why. | | |
|
Will America Finally Let Itself Build Nuclear Plants? |
|
|
|
 |
|
The Trump administration just made it easier to build nuclear power plants—by streamlining reactor approvals and simplifying environmental reviews. Today, Emmet Penney gets the details of this overhaul, which he says promises to usher in a nuclear renaissance in America. | | |
|
The Admiral Who Says Atlantis Is Real and the Aliens Are Already Here |
|
|
|
 |
|
Retired rear admiral Timothy Gallaudet is one of the most outspoken proponents of the idea that not only are UFOs real, but the government is hiding the truth about them. “We’re being visited by some kind of higher-order intelligence that we don’t understand,” Gallaudet tells The Free Press’s Will Rahn. “And it’s happening often.” Read his Q&A—and find out what he’s expecting if Trump releases UFO files. | | |
|
Her Son Was Kidnapped and Killed by Hamas. This Is Her Story. |
|
|
|
 |
|
Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s son Hersh was abducted by Hamas, held for 328 days, and then murdered. Today, Rafaela Siewert sits down with Rachel to discuss her new book, “When We See You Again,” in which she chronicles her fight to bring Hersh home, and how her faith deepened after his death. “There is nothing like the feeling of putting someone you carried for nine months inside of your body into the ground wrapped in white fabric,” writes Rachel in her book. “I was burying part of myself.” Don’t miss her conversation with Rafaela. | | |
|
