Editorial

President Donald Trump has turned a narrow electoral defeat into a bid for infamy. His goal in the post-election interlude has been more and more explicitly to overturn the results of the election. Indeed, a couple of weeks ago he tweeted simply, “#OVERTURN.” We now know, thanks to a recording of his phone conversation with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger from over the weekend, how far he’s gone to pressure state officials to join him in this reprehensible goal. His hour-long lobbying of Raffensperger to declare … [Read more...] about Trump’s shameful Georgia call

One last con: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump skipped out on their New Year’s gala at Mar-a-Lago, where fans with too much money paid a thousand or so bucks singly because the Trumps were advertised to attend. But suddenly, the first scammers bailed and returned to the White House, leaving family members and other second fiddles to diddle those willing to be defrauded by the right-wing star-hucksters. While the Trumps are world champion charlatans, there’s no shortage of Bunco artists in Washington. Only too … [Read more...] about The Trump legacy of phoniness

By JAMES M. HOHMAN Michigan residents might be confused about why the state spends less on road funding, even though it elected a governor whose primary campaign promise was to fix the roads. Lawmakers had regularly increased road funding before her administration began. Spending on road funding, excluding federal transfers, increased from $2.0 billion to $3.6 billion between fiscal years 2010-11 and 2018-19, a 62 percent increase when adjusted for inflation. Part of the increase came from a $600 million tax hike in … [Read more...] about Less road funding from the road-fixing governor

The president, rioters and those who engage in political violence need to be held accountable There is an aspect of governing that is rarely acknowledged but that is always lurking in the background. It is always easier to cast stones and even incite violence than it is to forge consensus behind layered solutions to complex problems. Our founders understood this reality and responded to it by creating a system of checks and balances with competing centers of political power. But no system is perfect, and one flaw in our system … [Read more...] about There must be consequences for violence at the Capitol

By LEE H. HAMILTON Joe Biden won’t become president of the United States for a few weeks yet, but it’s fair to say he’s already feeling the pressures of the office. I think being president-elect may be the second hardest job in the world. For one thing, as president-elect he’s encircled by people who want something from him: appointments, jobs, internal disputes settled. Right now, political players of all sorts — people who supported him, people who opposed him, interest groups of all kinds and descriptions — are angling to get … [Read more...] about What a president-elect must deal with

A spent year expires, and so does its four-digit quip. Those who mumbled “2020” as their exasperated commentary on the year’s parade of horribles, oddities and bad breaks now must find a new wisecrack. Yes, 2020 brought terrible frustrations, some of them lethal. We’ve written about them at great length, often to share compassion and condolence with those who’ve suffered incalculable losses. More than 325,000 deaths in the United States were COVID-19-related this year. Loved ones in hospitals and nursing homes struggled with … [Read more...] about The best time to be alive is now

By JASON HAYES In her latest attack on Line 5, the pipeline that transports oil and natural gas liquids through the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan’s governor has moved to revoke the 1953 easement contract that allows it to operate. This arbitrary and ill-advised move will shutter a key part of the state’s essential energy infrastructure, increase the price of heating and transportation fuels, and threaten thousands of jobs. With the move to revoke the easement, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appears to be fleshing out her green energy … [Read more...] about Whitmer plan to revoke Line 5 easement threatens reliable, affordable energy for Michigan

By LEE H. HAMILTON If you pay attention to global affairs, you know that increasing numbers of people believe U.S. leadership in the world is coming to an end and the West more broadly is being eclipsed. I think these predictions are exaggerated, but they are not without some basis. Our challenges have grown. It is time for us to re-establish ourselves by showing our capacity for change and adaptation. The biggest external challenge we face, of course, is the rise of China and the competition it offers to the democratic model. … [Read more...] about It is time to show our resilience

The staggering student loan debt in this country — estimated to be around $1.6 trillion — stymies much of its young population. Many borrowers are putting off having families because they can’t afford the expense of raising children. Nor are they buying houses or cars, which would boost the economy. This has led some advocates to call for forgiving the debt, with President-elect Joe Biden vowing during his campaign to forgive up to $10,000 for each borrower. More liberal Democrats are fighting for up to $50,000, and the progressive … [Read more...] about Student-loan forgiveness should benefit neediest first

Sunday marks the expiration of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's second partial shutdown of Michigan's economy, and there's no reason to doubt it will be extended again. The ban on indoor dining and drinking has been in place nearly five weeks in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. Whether it has worked is hard to say, due to the lag in reporting and the daily fluctuations in cases. What's certain is that it has placed many of the businesses selected for closure in extreme jeopardy. The Michigan Restaurant & Lodging … [Read more...] about Let businesses prove they can safely open