Sept. 5, 2016 – Ronald L. Feinman is the author of Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency: From Andrew Jackson to Barack Obama (Rowman Littlefield Publishers, August 2015). A paperback edition is coming in March 2017. Through all of the debate, discussion, analysis, and interpretation about Donald Trump over these 15 months since his candidacy began, it […]
Op-Ed
David Leopold: Deconstructing Donald Trump’s horrifying 10-step assault on immigration, due process and other cherished American values
Sept. 2, 2016 – This article first appeared on The Medium: https://medium.com/@DavidLeopold/deconstructing-donald-trumps-horrifying-10-step-assault-on-immigrants-due-process-and-other-5889c58e1c01#.qfdjs510l After Donald Trump met with his Hispanic Advisory Council on August 20, the media tied itself in knots over whether he had “softened” on his insistence that all 11 million undocumented immigrants be deported, a central pillar of his campaign. Then in a […]
Fred Wertheimer: House Freedom Caucus Pushes for Sept Vote on Unprecedented & Baseless Impeachment Resolution Against IRS Commish Koskinen
Aug. 31, 2016 – In July, Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) introduced a resolution of impeachment (H.Res. 828) against Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen. In August, Rep. Jim Jordan (D-OH), chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, said that House Freedom Caucus members would push for a House vote on the impeachment resolution when Congress returns […]
Isaiah Poole: Trump’s Immigration ‘Pivot’ and the Effort to Expose It For What It Is
Aug. 31, 2016 – Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, ever the showman, is certainly poised this Wednesday to deliver a heavy dose of eye-grabbing and eye-rolling reality-show drama. Ahead of what is being billed as a major speech on immigration in Phoenix, Arizona, Trump is paying a visit in Mexico to President Enrique Peña Nieto, […]
National Lawyers Guild: We Stand in Solidarity with Standing Rock Sioux Tribe against Dakota Access Pipeline
Aug. 29, 2016 – The National Lawyers Guild (NLG), the oldest and largest human rights bar association in the United States, by its International Committee, its Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Committee and its Environmental Human Rights Committee, as well as the NLG’s Environmental Justice Committee, stands in solidarity with the sovereign Oceti Sakowin Oyate (the Great […]
John Freemuth and William Lowry: Corporate sponsors at Yosemite? The case against privatizing national parks
August 25, 2016 – The centennial of the National Park Service is inspiring an impressive amount of soul-searching about the agency and the lands for which it is responsible. This is timely and appropriate, as the NPS faces serious challenges that affect the preservation of these precious lands. We both study the history of conservation […]
Frank Sharry: A vote for Trump is a vote for racism
August 22, 2016 – The following is a statement from Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, reacting to the conflicting stories about Donald Trump and immigration after the candidate’s meeting with Hispanic supporters on Saturday. Despite new reports from Trump that he is not, in fact, pivoting on immigration, it really doesn’t matter if he tries. He’s already […]
Wade Henderson: Civil and Human Rights Coalition Condemns Trump Campaign’s Voter Intimidation Effort
WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2016—Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement in response to the Trump campaign’s new effort to recruit supporters to challenge and intimidate voters at the polls. In the wake of the Shelby County v. Holder decision, the Department of Justice has […]
Jeff Flocken: Trophy hunters need to stop taking the lives of wildlife simply for fun
WASHINGTON, DC, August 17, 2016 – Jeff Flocken, North American Regional Director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), issued the following statement in response to the killing of a giraffe and zebra in South Africa by a 12-year old American trophy hunter: It’s sad any time that an imperiled animal like a giraffe […]
Robert Reich: Aetna Shows Why We Need a Single Payer
Aug. 17, 2016 – The best argument for a single-payer health plan is the recent decision by giant health insurer Aetna to bail out next year from 11 of the 15 states where it sells Obamacare plans. Aetna’s decision follows similar moves by UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest insurer, and Humana, one of the other giants. […]
Walter Ewing: Donald Trump’s Shortsighted Immigration Plans Won’t Secure the Homeland
Aug. 17, 2016 – As any serious national security expert will tell you, trying to find a potential terrorist by treating all immigrants or Muslims as security risks is far too vague to be effective. Accurate intelligence and effective information-sharing across agencies is the key to national security—not profiling. Yet in a bombastic August 15 […]
Timothy Frye: ‘Rigged’ electoral system? The willingness of losers to comply with a decision reached via free and fair elections
August 15, 2016 – Many have speculated how a Trump victory would affect the U.S., but few have thought about the consequences of a Trump loss. After falling behind Hillary Clinton in the polls, Donald Trump has already developed a narrative for his exit: The election was rigged. So how likely is a rigged vote? […]
James J. Zogby: We may defeat Trump but see the root causes of Trumpism fester unless we change direction
August 13, 2016 – This presidential election is exposing deep fault-lines in our society and the failure of some of the basic institutions of our democracy. If we don’t change direction, we’re on our way to “hell in a handbasket”. I begin with the difficult situation in which Republicans now find themselves as they watch […]
Travis N. Reider: Is the ‘lesser of two evils’ an ethical choice for voters?
August 12, 2016 – Every election cycle, there are citizens who don’t like either of the candidates nominated by the two major political parties. And so, a familiar debate begins: Is a vote for a third party a principled stand – or wasteful naiveté? This year, party discord has swelled the numbers of dissatisfied citizens, […]
Mitchell Zukoff: Why We Ask to See Candidates’ Tax Returns
Aug. 12, 2016 – Mitchell Zuckoff is a journalism professor at Boston University Lost in the debate over Donald J. Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns is the story of where the custom of disclosure comes from — and why it can be so valuable as a measure of character. It’s a tale of presidential tax […]
Ronald L. Feinman: Donald Trump Has Created a Constitutional Crisis on the 42nd Anniversary of Richard Nixon’s Resignation
Aug. 12, 2016 – Ronald L. Feinman is the author of Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency: From Andrew Jackson to Barack Obama (Rowman Littlefield Publishers, August 2015). A paperback edition is coming in March 2017. August 9, 1974 saw the end of a major constitutional crisis with the resignation of Richard Nixon from the Presidency. With […]
Robin Shulman: These States Wanted to Keep Communities of Color From Voting, but the Courts Said No, That’s Discriminatory
Aug. 11, 2016 – We assume every American adult has a basic right: to vote. But state legislators in recent years have created barriers that limit that right. They have restricted the forms of ID voters must provide, eliminated same-day registration, and narrowed time periods for voting — mainly affecting people of color. Now the […]
Bill Sher: The Biggest Spender Backing Donald Trump? The NRA.
Aug. 11, 2016 – Why is Donald Trump pandering so hard to “the Second Amendment people”? Possibly because the National Rifle Association is the biggest financial backer of his campaign. The NRA has spent $6 million in TV ads on behalf of the Republican presidential candidate, which is $6 million more than the Trump campaign […]
David Rocah: Baltimore’s Black residents are racially-profiled, harassed, stopped, searched, arrested, and assaulted by police, in violation of the U.S. Constitution
Aug. 11, 2016 – The following is a statement from David Rocah, Senior Staff Attorney for the ACLU of Maryland: The Department of Justice’s findings on the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) document in devastating detail what Baltimoreans have decried for years: Baltimore’s Black residents are racially-profiled, harassed, stopped, searched, arrested, and assaulted by police, in […]
Michael Moore: An Open Letter to Ivanka Trump: “Your Dad’s Not Well”
Aug. 11, 2016 – I’m writing to you because your dad is not well. Every day he continues his spiral downward – and after his call for gun owners to commit acts of violence against Mrs. Clinton, it is clear he needs help, serious help. His comments and behavior have become more and more bizarre […]