Tag Archives: Donald Trump

Denouement of ‘repeal and replace’

Posted on July 28, 2017 by

As societies become more complex, the government (the instrument of our social compact) is called on to do more to arrange commerce – the exchange of goods and services. Market regulation is a necessary component of development, to ensure some … Continue reading →

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The meaning and the drama of Trump’s budget

Posted on March 19, 2017 by

Newt Gingrich lives in President Trump’s first pass at a federal budget. The purpose of a budget – government, corporate or household – is to put vision in numbers. First identify the goals, the strategies to execute them and their … Continue reading →

Posted in Congress, federal budget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The Electoral College: Will no one rid us of this meddlesome relic?

Posted on December 19, 2016 by

On the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December, the Electoral College is expected to demonstrate not only its uselessness but its destructiveness by choosing for president a candidate who lost the national popular vote by more than 2 … Continue reading →

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‘Change’ vs. our ossified process: It’s no contest

Posted on November 13, 2016 by

“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Martin Luther King’s distillation of abolitionist Theodore Parker’s sermon is one of his most famous quotations. It resonates with us because we assume the universe is moral … Continue reading →

Posted in Congress, election campaign, Electoral College, gerrymandering, U.S. Constitution, Voting | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Buchanan, Trump and the high-water mark of the tea party

Posted on July 23, 2016 by

In the summer of 1992, I walked the floor of the Republican National Convention as Pat Buchanan roused the delegates with his “culture war” speech. Embracing the experience as the reporter I was, I felt their fury at having been … Continue reading →

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Donald Trump gives the GOP its comeuppance

Posted on March 3, 2016 by

Upon signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Bill Moyers related decades later, President Johnson said, “I think we just delivered the South to the Republican Party for a long time to come.” It’s a popular story (though its truth … Continue reading →

Posted in civil rights, election campaign, gerrymandering, Uncategorized, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A political phenomenon crashes the season of hope

Posted on December 10, 2015 by

Donald Trump is just the hired help. A canary in a coalmine, the reality-show star is a measure of our civic health. Trump has held up a mirror, and his polling finds a slice of the electorate angry about our … Continue reading →

Posted in election campaign, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments