As most Mainers celebrate Christmas in their homes and churches, I’ll be engaged in another annual pastime, Jewish Christmas. The American ritual, dating back at least to the 1930s, consists of eating Chinese food and watching a movie. If Hanukkah and Christmas coincide, as is the case this year, my family will light the menorah […]
It’s all too easy to give up on politics, to grow cynical, but succeeding politically can mean saving lives, literally. Gov. Janet Mills knows this. When Mills was sworn into office nearly a year ago, she invoked a dear friend, Patty, who, she said, lacked insurance and “died needlessly from breast cancer, a disease that […]
Despite being well prepared for the task, it’s not clear Collins recognizes the full extent of the Senate’s role.
There are five major problems with the ignorance and incompetence defense, starting with the president’s constitutional responsibilities.
Talking to my mother lately, she can be surprised by her couch. I’ll tell her that her apartment in assisted living is fixed up like her house, with her couch. She’ll look down and say with a startle in her voice, “Yes, that is my couch. How did it get here?” My response is nearly […]
From the 2016 Republican primary fight to today, Republican leaders have avoided confronting a man whose view of government, character and temperament are decidedly not conservative. That man is Donald Trump. While running for the nomination, Trump went after the GOP establishment, insulting in especially personal and nasty terms Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio and Ted […]
Every scandal is terrible in its own way. The Trump-Ukraine shakedown bears the greatest resemblance to the late 1980s set of events known as the Iran-Contra affair, but it’s far worse. Both episodes involved partially privatizing our nation’s foreign policy. Iran-Contra included a sleazy arms dealer and wealthy individuals who worked with the Reagan administration […]
Despite her past big wins, if Sen. Susan Collins runs for reelection, she won’t really be running on her own. Instead Mainers will judge Collins in part by her links to three powerful men. One she voted to lead her party in the Senate. Another she voted to put on the Supreme Court. And the […]
Labor unions didn’t just bring us Labor Day weekend but all weekends and, responding to tragedies, they organized for safer workplaces. In the early 20th century, workers died horribly in factories, mines and steel mills from badly designed machines and unsafe conditions. The sewing machines and cutting tables of the Triangle Shirtwaist Company were located […]
Alexis de Tocqueville called New England town meetings “a school for democracy.” College should be, too.
