Opinion

The First is all about ideas, conversations, curiosity, and most of all freedom. To that end, we publish a plethora of content from both our own writers and outside contributors. We focus especially on real people, with real jobs, and real opinions, not the blather you see repeated on cable news.

We are not beholden to one person, party, or partisan agenda. We call it like we see it, and we want to bring you those who do the same.

So click below to read some of the premiere content from some of our contributors. Don’t like what they have to say? Have a question? Email them, or contact us at ideas@thefirsttv.com.

DESANTIS RAKE-STEP Rakes in the Cash | Steve Berman

DESANTIS RAKE-STEP Rakes in the Cash | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

In an phone interview with Erick Erickson, newly announced Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that the “buzz” from his technically glitchy announcement interview on Twitter with Elon Musk was significant. He called it the “biggest story in the world.” A massive exaggeration, but it does have some merit. Misfortune has its own cachet. …

PSYOPS: Trump’s NH Play Against DeSantis | Steve Berman

PSYOPS: Trump’s NH Play Against DeSantis | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

The problem with Gov. Ron DeSantis is that he’s a lawyer, and he has almost no weapons that are effective against Donald Trump. See, lawyers look for fact patterns. Trump runs psyops campaigns. Just look at this annoying, Old MacDonald-had-a-farm ad run by a Trump-supporting political action committee. First, the facts. Almost every Congress has had to …

Bakhmut’s Ruins are Putin’s Victory | Steve Berman

Bakhmut’s Ruins are Putin’s Victory | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

It’s not Russian propaganda that Bakhmut is no longer in the hands of Ukrainian forces. Once every building is hollowed out, leveled, or structurally compromised to the point where it cannot offer shelter, there’s really nowhere for Ukrainian defenders to hide or regroup, so they left. But talk of “Pyrrhic victory” and “Russian losses” is counterproductive. …

ALTMAN ON AI: Regulate Me! Don’t Fall for It | Steve Berman

ALTMAN ON AI: Regulate Me! Don’t Fall for It | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told Congress he’d like to be regulated. I bet he would! Like the Bell System, or Big Pharma, or the American Commercial Barge Line. Protective regulation has the added—if intended—effect of creating a hedge around the targeted industries. It freezes in place many of the positional factors, ossifying the market and turning star businesses …

HOLD MY BUD LIGHT: Republicans Play Chicken with the Debt Limit | Steve Berman

HOLD MY BUD LIGHT: Republicans Play Chicken with the Debt Limit | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

President Joe Biden is unpopular. He has been unpopular since he botched our exit from Afghanistan, which seems so long ago that it happened in a different decade. Possibly the only Democrat more unpopular than Biden is his own Vice President and running made, Kamala Harris—at least since Krysten Sinema left the party. Not to be outdone, because it’s clearly …

CALLED BY GOD: Fulton DA Fani Willis Offers Immunity to Trump Electors | Steve Berman

CALLED BY GOD: Fulton DA Fani Willis Offers Immunity to Trump Electors | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

“God called me,” is what Fulton County DA Fani Willis said about her decision to run for the office she holds, an office that is piece by piece assembling its case against former President Donald J. Trump, in what many believe (including me) is the most compelling exposition of Trump’s mind and intentions after the 2020 election. …

Ouija for Dummies | Steve Berman

Ouija for Dummies | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

One of my pet peeves is when people eat the last Nutter Butter and put the empty package back in the cupboard. But that’s not important right now. (Yes, I’m directly stealing Jonah Goldberg’s schtick.) But really, one of my pet peeves is when people use the phrase “beg the question” when they really mean “raise …

If Biden Was a Drug, The FDA Would Never Approve Him | Steve Berman

If Biden Was a Drug, The FDA Would Never Approve Him | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

President Joe Biden is running for a second term, with Vice President Kamala Harris as his running mate. Sen. Bernie Sanders is not running, and has endorsed Biden. Should Biden win, his November 20th birthday will celebrate his 82 years on earth; he will be president until after his 86th birthday, by far the oldest president …

NOPE! I Don’t Buy The Press Line on A1C Texiera | Steve Berman

NOPE! I Don’t Buy The Press Line on A1C Texiera | Steve Berman


Opinion Contributor

It’s almost like Martians are covering the World Series, the difference between how the New York Times and other mainstream media are covering the case of A1C Jack Texiera, the Massachusetts Air National Guard member who photographed Top Secret information and posted it on a Discord channel, versus how actual people who know how these …