Insight: “A major source of objection to a free economy is precisely that it … gives people what they want instead of what a particular group thinks they ought to want. Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself.” —Milton Friedman (1912-2006)

Observations: “It’s time for the federal government to get back to work. … How is this going to work to still effectively serve the needs of the American people?” —Congressman Jody Hice on the prospect of many federal government bureaucrats continuing to work from home (Reality check: Federal bureaucrats have never “effectively served” the American people.)

Re: The ChiComs I: “For some on the left, challenging China means standing up for Western values like democracy and human rights — and this, in turn, raises questions about America’s own commitment to those principles. For some in corporate America, capitalism hasn’t opened China but made the West more dependent on mercantilist Beijing. … China doesn’t have to defeat the United States. All it has to do is outlast us. And right now, thanks to an ugly combination of hesitancy, cowardice and corruption, China seems well-positioned to do so.” —Ben Shapiro

Re: The ChiComs II: “Communist China is not a normal country. It is engaged in genocide. It always lies. Our media repeated China’s lies, and 600,000 Americans died. We must have a full American-led investigation into COVID’s origins to discover the truth. But we won’t get that from the Biden Administration, which continues to insist that the World Health Organization (WHO) lead any investigation. That’s right — the same WHO that is hopelessly compromised by communist China.” —Gary Bauer

Re: The ChiComs III: “[The Wuhan lab source] becomes undeniable, and more clear than ever, but this is a rogue state. This is an outlaw state. This is not a ‘member of the international community.’ … This is a nation which will suppress the truth, maybe wipe out people in their own ranks who try to tell the truth. … So far as we know the Chinese did not [deliberately release the virus] but it hasn’t been disproven, and given the way China acts I don’t believe you can completely rule it out.” —venerable journalist Brit Hume cautiously teasing the question: Did the ChiComs release the virus intentionally?

Observations: “Taiwan is such a bizarre situation where we know they’re a separate country and treat them like a separate country but no one is allowed to say it.” —Frank J. Fleming

For the record: “There really is no such thing as an ‘assault weapon.’ That is a term that was manufactured by liberal lawyers and pollsters in Washington to try to scare the American people into believing that the government should confiscate weapons.” —Senator Tom Cotton

Touché: “When I was a kid, my grandpa told me ‘Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms should be a convenience store name, not a govt agency’ and that seems more true today than ever.” —Cabot Phillips

You’ve been warned: “With respect to the AR-15, I support a ban.” —ATF nominee David Chipman

And last… “I wonder if Joe Biden would be more interested in the origins of the coronavirus if his son hadn’t of made so much money from the CCP?” —Lisa Boothe