Editorial

Constitutional revolution is going mainstream. If the Republican Senate confirms a Trump appointee to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat right before or after the election, progressives say Democrats, if they sweep in November, should retaliate by packing the Supreme Court. None of this comes out of the blue. The left is disenchanted with our country, and especially its governing institutions, which it believes are shot through with racism and deeply undemocratic. Democrats have gone from assuming a few years … [Read more...] about Ideological vengeance

By Lee H. Hamilton It probably feels like the 2020 elections have been going on for years, and in a sense they have. Ever since Donald Trump won the presidency in 2016, the political world has been girding for this moment. But more Americans than you might expect have only just begun paying attention, now that we’re in the final weeks of the campaigns. So, this seems an opportune time to look at where things stand—including some basic information that might have gotten lost in all the shouting. For instance, most people know … [Read more...] about The Basics of the Election

The October surprise happened in September, but it was certainly a jarring surprise. Normally in a presidential race, it will be engineered by supporters of one candidate against the other. But unless we learn differently, the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg came when her health finally collapsed after years of fighting off cancers. Shortly before she succumbed, she dictated a statement: “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed. ” But in the ways of Washington, the beauty of … [Read more...] about Ginsberg impact, TBD

It undermines how she moved the law We join the nation in mourning the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Her life of service to our country and its laws has rightly inspired millions who see this mighty woman as a representative of the best of America. But even as we begin mourning her passing and the celebration of her life, it seems important to stop and note who Ruth Bader Ginsburg truly was to America and to the underlying concept of America as a nation ruled not by the whims of monarchs and tyrants but by the laws made … [Read more...] about Don’t call Ruth Bader Ginsburg a revolutionary

There’s a giant scheme afoot to disenfranchise voters in November — it’s called mail-in balloting. Mail-in voting has, like many things in our politics, taken on the aspect of tribal warfare — if President Donald Trump is vociferously against it, Democrats must be vociferously for it, and vice versa. Absentee voting is unquestionably less secure than in-person voting, but there’s no evidence of widespread fraud. Nor is there evidence that, at least prior to this campaign, mail-in voting has favored Democrats, as the president … [Read more...] about Democrats should worry about mail-in voting

I have a great idea for Joe Biden’s campaign slogan! I’m surprised no one has thought of it before. Are you ready? How about “Make America Great Again”? Yes, I know it has been Donald Trump’s war cry, but Trump’s first term as president has been a disaster. The U.S. stature at home and abroad under the Trumpster has become an embarrassment. So much so that he might be convinced that it’s kind of mortifying to use it, given how the United States has slid down the slippery slopes of history during his first term. As a matter of … [Read more...] about Chagrined again

The scenes from the West Coast could come from a war zone. Reports of many dead and missing. Daytime skies in the Bay Area of San Francisco turning ominously dark and orange. Throngs of displaced residents taking shelter in county fairgrounds that resemble refugee camps.National Guard helicopters flying harrowing missions to rescue endangered civilians. A 13-year-old Oregon boy, Wyatt Tofte, died Sept. 8 trying to escape a wildfire with his grandma. He was discovered in a car where he sought refuge, his dog curled in his lap. Sen. … [Read more...] about West on fire, Great Lakes on the rise, and other climate perils

But history shows no governor tried to stretch its use as far as Gov. Whitmer is trying now By MICHAEL VAN BEEK Once a rarely used and obscure statute, the Emergency Powers of Governor Act of 1945 is the most talked about Michigan law in 2020. It’s what Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is using to justify her unilateral control over the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Her use of it has stirred up controversy and inspired a citizen-led initiative to repeal the law. But the history of the EPGA shows that it was repeatedly … [Read more...] about Michigan’s emergency powers law was always controversial

  Hollywood is accommodating a new era of McCarthyism, imposed this time by Red China. It involves everything that Hollywood tells us that it hates — censorship, pressure to conform and blacklists. Yet the studios have seamlessly absorbed China’s dictates into their operations. This most iconic American business is now, literally, an agent of Chinese influence. The latest outrage is Disney’s live-action remake of the animated movie from the 1990s, “Mulan,” based on Chinese folklore about a girl enlisting in the army. … [Read more...] about Hollywood’s shameful kowtow to Beijing

By LEE H. HAMILTON I was talking to a friend not long ago who was pretty down on politics in all its forms. “I actually find real enjoyment in politics,” I told him. He asked if I was nuts. No, I said, there’s a lot of pleasure—even joy—to be found in participating. Case in point: getting the chance to listen to gifted speakers. For many years, I was fortunate to have a seat on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, which gave me a chance to observe some of the best orators in the nation. For instance, there was … [Read more...] about The art of giving political speeches