John Giokaris

Bio

John Giokaris has been contributing to PolicyMic since February 2011. Born and raised in Chicago, John graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a double major in Journalism and Political Science and is currently earning his J.D. at The John Marshall Law School. John believes in free market principles, private sector solutions, transparency, school choice, constitutionally limited government, and being a good steward of taxpayer dollars. His goals are to empower/create opportunity for citizens to use the tools at their disposal to succeed in America, which does more to grow the middle class and alleviate those in poverty than keeping a permanent underclass dependent on government sustenance indefinitely. Sitting on the Board of Directors for both the center-right Chicago Young Republicans and libertarian America's Future Foundation-Chicago, he is also a member of the free market think tank Illinois Policy Institute's Leadership Coalition team along with other leaders of the Illinois business, political, and media communities. John has seven years experience working in writing/publishing, having previously worked at Law Bulletin Publishing, the Tribune Company, and Reboot Illinois. His works have been published in the Chicago Tribune, U.S. News & World Report, Crain's Chicago Business, Reboot Illinois, Townhall, the Law Bulletin, and the RedEye. He's also made appearances on CBS News, PBS, and Al Jazeera America.
SCOTUS Hands Democrats a Major Win — Liberals Start Pulling Their Hair Out
By John Giokaris
On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that individuals can donate a limited amount of campaign cash to an unlimited amount of candidates and many liberal pundits are declaring it to be the end of fair elections. It's ironic,…
Americans Are About to Pay $5 Billion in Fines Thanks to Obamacare
By John Giokaris
The March 31 deadline to comply with the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is right around the corner. While the Obama administration is trying to keep the actual numbers very hush-hush, even the most optimistic estimates show the…
Democrats Want to Get Wendy Davis Elected So Badly, They're Breaking the Law to Do It
By John Giokaris
Yes, that Texas. The state that has had a Republican-dominated state government since 2002 and the state that hasn't voted for a Democratic president since Jimmy Carter in 1976. Right now, there's a battle going on to turn the Lone Star state blue.…
One of the World's Most Wanted Criminals Has Finally Been Captured
By John Giokaris
After 13 years on the run, Mexico's biggest drug cartel kingpin and one of the world's most wanted criminals, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, was arrested overnight in Mexico by U.S. and Mexican federal authorities on Saturday. According to CNN, Guzman,…
Last Night's State of the Union Was Proof That Obama Has Stopped Doing His Job
By John Giokaris
A lot of frustration and even a little panic — that's what I heard from President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday. I also didn't hear any new ideas — only higher taxes, more public sector spending and new regulations, with the…
I Was a Conservative Opposed To Obamacare — Until I Saw This Richard Simmons Dance-Off
By John Giokaris
The media was right, and I was wrong. This president really is in touch with my generation, and he truly speaks to me and understands how to connect with millennials. With reports earlier this month showing that not enough young people have bothered…
3 Charts Explain Why the Obama Welfare State is Growing Faster Than Job Creation
By John Giokaris
Five years into the Obama economic recovery and the results are in: We’re growing the welfare state faster than we’re creating jobs. December’s jobs report highlighted a very grim reality: the number of Americans working has hit a 35-year low, at…
2014 May Finally Bring the Market Correction Some Experts Are Freaking Out About
By John Giokaris
Update: The title of this article has changed from its orginal published version. As this bull market ended 2013 with a roar, some economists and research groups are already bracing for a major correction in 2014 that could be anywhere from 10% to…
The 13 Biggest Box Office Bombs of 2013
By John Giokaris
Hollywood definitely produced a whole lot of crap this year. But believe it or not, it will probably finish 2013 having made about as much box office cash as it grossed in 2012 (2011 was actually worse than 2013). A large part of that has to do with…
20 Ridiculous Ways the Government Wasted Your Money in 2013
By John Giokaris
"The cupboard is bare ...There’s no more cuts to make." That’s what House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told CNN’s State of the Union in September during an interview about spending reform. Really? She can’t find any spending to cut in the…
3 Charts That Explain Why the GOP Folded Like a Lawn Chair On the Budget
By John Giokaris
Late last week, the House passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 by a wide margin: 332-94. The bill is a compromise spending solution reached between House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) and Senate Budget Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.)…
Pope Francis Denounces Capitalism, But is He Right?
By John Giokaris
Well, the pope made headline news again. As PolicyMic's Nina Ippolito noted, Pope Francis had harsh words for free market capitalism and the economic inequality it produces — going so far as to claim it is "the root of all social ills," "the cause…
5 Ways JFK's Assassination Changed America Forever
By John Giokaris
Friday marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The memory of that day has been permanently seared into the minds of baby boomers, just as the memory of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 will live on for my…
Why the GOP Desperately Needed the Filibuster. Why Dems Desperately Wanted to End It.
By John Giokaris
The Democratic Senate majority made history on Thursday by passing the melodramatically nicknamed “nuclear option,” which basically eliminates the filibuster rule altogether and moves to a simple majority vote with regards to executive branch…
The Biggest Lessons From Virginia, New Jersey Elections? Personality Matters
By John Giokaris
So the center-right Chris Christie wins by a mile in a blue state while the far right Ken Cuccinelli loses a close one in a purple state. I know elections go way beyond ideology, but for all the pure ideological dorks and extremist pundits out there…
Midterm Elections 2014: Polls Show Republicans Could Take Over the Senate
By John Giokaris
One year from Monday, the 2014 midterm elections will be held, and Republicans will get another opportunity to obtain their first Senate majority since 2006. As I explained in part 1 of this series, odds are the GOP will safely retain their majority…
2014 Midterm Elections Predictions Prove Pundits Don't Know Math
By John Giokaris
Editor’s note: This is a two part series that will explore Republican prospects in the 2014 midterm elections. Part 1 is the House elections. We’re just over a year away from the 2014 midterm elections, and liberal pundits are feeling giddy. They…
Blame Obama For the Government Shutdown
By John Giokaris
So over the last 48 hours, I have been getting hammered from my hardline progressive friends who’ve been losing their minds over this government shutdown and hold me accountable for anything any Republican in America thinks, says or does because…
Government Shutdown Provides An Opportunity to Discuss Which Departments We Need and Don't Need
By John Giokaris
Well it happened. October 1 hit and we had our 18th federal government “shutdown” since 1976. I put “shutdown” in quotations because as I’m sure we all know by now, the federal government doesn’t really shut down. Some cheered, others acted like it…
Republicans Finally Unveil Their Alternative Health Care Reform Plan — But It's Too Little, Too Late
By John Giokaris
Well it only took about four years – illustrating the GOP’s impeccable penchant for timing (sarcasm added) – but they’ve finally come up with an alternative solution to replace the Affordable Care Act. Calling it the Republican Study Committee’s…