Via Obernews, an item in Slate on the Republican party’s growing abandonment of federalism. For me federalism was always one of the great appeals of the Republican party (along with not hating commerce), so this trend is particularly unfortunate. As the author points out, it’s a bit of a stretch to expect elected representatives at the federal level to oppose their own power (though Gingrich and company did at least make a little progress in that direction). Still, it would be nice if there was a viable political party that believed the “small is beautiful” principle applied to government.

Incidentally, if you’ve got libertarian leanings and you like your politics with a twist of sarcastic humor, swing by Obernews from time to time.