WASHINGTON -- I've got the perfect slogan for President Trump's re-election campaign: "Promises Made, Promises Not Kept, But I'm Betting My Voters Are Too Stupid to Notice." Let's take stock: Trump promised to build a wall along the 2,000-mile southern border, with the cost of the "big, beautiful" barrier to be borne by Mexico. Trump made this pledge not once but dozens … [Read more...] about Trump has an atrocious report card, but will he fail with his voters?
Is Algeria Turning Green or Staying Red
Like a lot of the world, Algeria isn’t on America’s mental map: not our stone, not our shoe. But it’s getting attention in other, un-American places like the rest of the planet due to the restive natives who are well pissed off at nearly 60 years of communist mismanagement. The largest (peaceful to date) street protests in recent decades have erupted lately in the capital … [Read more...] about Is Algeria Turning Green or Staying Red
All Day Suckers (Cartoon, Column and Video)
Most people understand the National Enquirer isn’t a legitimate news organization. Until recently, most wouldn’t have thought it was propaganda. Most people believed it was nothing more than a gossip rag that got its headlines from stalking celebrities and going through their garbage. It seemed to spare nobody. Then, we learned they paid for stories (which credible news … [Read more...] about All Day Suckers (Cartoon, Column and Video)
3 ways activist kids these days resemble their predecessors
Yolanda Renee King, the grandchild of Martin Luther King Jr., alongside Jaclyn Corin, a Parkland survivor and activist. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik David S. Meyer, University of California, Irvine A gaggle of young activists recently paid Dianne Feinstein a visit at the senator’s San Francisco office, imploring her to support the Green New Deal framework … [Read more...] about 3 ways activist kids these days resemble their predecessors
Cartoonist Clay Jones Finalist in Herblock Prize for Editorial Cartooning
For the past several years The Moderate Voice has been blessed to use the superb editorial cartoons (and the superb columns and superb "Watch me draw" YouTube videos) of Clay Jones, a nationally syndicated columnist who ventured out on his own a few years ago to self-syndicate. As a result, it was a pleasure but not really a surprise to learn that Clay Jones was named finalist … [Read more...] about Cartoonist Clay Jones Finalist in Herblock Prize for Editorial Cartooning
As Erdogan turns away from the West, he sabotages Turkey’s progress
By DAVID IGNATIUS Washington Post Writers Group WASHINGTON -- For a scary snapshot of what a "post-American" world looks like, consider the rupture that has been developing through three administrations in the U.S.-Turkey relationship. Turkey has come to think it can call the shots, regardless of U.S. interests. The prime mover has been President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. … [Read more...] about As Erdogan turns away from the West, he sabotages Turkey’s progress
Remembering the Souls of MH370
It is the fifth anniversary of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 literally in(to) thin air. A tragedy that took the lives of 239 passengers and crew members. At the time – and for a while afterwards -- this author wrote so much about the tragedy and its aftermath that some readers got “sick and tired” of it. While the cause of the disappearance of the … [Read more...] about Remembering the Souls of MH370
Trump hires only the worst people
WASHINGTON -- It's hard to find good help these days. During his campaign, President Trump boasted that he would "surround myself only with the best." But by his own account, his administration attracts rather the opposite. On Saturday, Trump publicly mocked former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, imitating his Southern accent: "The attorney general says, 'I'm gonna recuse … [Read more...] about Trump hires only the worst people
Can the Mueller report provide any resolution?
By DAVID IGNATIUS Washington Post Writers Group WASHINGTON -- Robert Mueller's final report should present Congress with a clean choice: Either the facts warrant impeachment of President Trump, or they don't. That was the promise of Mueller's appointment as special counsel: He would gather the evidence, and then Congress and the public could make a judgment. In a country … [Read more...] about Can the Mueller report provide any resolution?
Manafort Sentenced to 47 Months in 1 of 2 Cases Against Him
Embed from Getty Images Many believe former Trump presidential campaign manager Paul Manafort got off light with his sentence of 47 months in prison. But he has another sentencing soon with a Virginia judge who many expect will be far less lenient. The decision: Paul Manafort, the political consultant and Trump presidential campaign chairman whose lucrative work in … [Read more...] about Manafort Sentenced to 47 Months in 1 of 2 Cases Against Him
Cartoon: Trump Shoots Man on Fifth Avenue
Mike Slosberg is a cartoonist and novelist. He lives with his wife and hundreds of drawing pens on the Upper Westside of Manhattan, New York. You can see more of his cartoons and learn about his books by going to: mikeslosbergbooks.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: Trump Shoots Man on Fifth Avenue
Brazil and Venezuela clash over migrants, humanitarian aid and closed borders
Clashes between opposition protesters and Venezuelan soldiers at the Venezuela-Brazil border have killed an estimated 25 people. AP Photo/Edmar Barros Robert Muggah, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) and Adriana Abdenur, Brazilian Naval War College Venezuela’s borders are now dangerous flashpoints in a tense showdown between … [Read more...] about Brazil and Venezuela clash over migrants, humanitarian aid and closed borders
Welcome to the Watergate Era 2.0
Let's dust off the history books and turn back the clock 45 years, to an event that resonates today. On Feb. 21, 1974, the House Judiciary Committee, having already spent four months probing Richard Nixon's serial perfidies, released a pivotal report about impeachment. Committee counsel John Doar - a registered Republican - wrote that this "constitutional remedy," which had … [Read more...] about Welcome to the Watergate Era 2.0
Socialism Confused With Democracy
Somewhere in the USA there is a nurse who has Socialism confused with democracy. That nurse is Bonnie Castillo, executive director of National Nurses United. Here is the headline to her commentary as published by The Hill. Castillo's commentary is nothing but a Socialist tirade about how "the people" want a non-existing free lunch. At least two congressional … [Read more...] about Socialism Confused With Democracy
Will the Democrats Self-Destruct Again?
It’s already started. With an opening to boot out an incumbent president with a low approval rating and minority support, a gaggle of Democrats have jumped into the race seeing a possibility to be the party’s nominee. Not only is the opponent a Republican, but it's the arrogant figure of Donald Trump, a lying bully and braggart who lost the popular vote to Hillary and used … [Read more...] about Will the Democrats Self-Destruct Again?
In the matter of Trump v Cohen, most voters believe Cohen
The American voter is currently siding with Michael Cohen over Donald Trump when their stories differ. According to a Quinnipiac University National Poll, 50 percent of registered voters believe Cohen and only 35 percent believe Trump. An examination of sub-group responses reveals a Republican Party of out touch with the rest of America. It also suggests white males are out … [Read more...] about In the matter of Trump v Cohen, most voters believe Cohen
JENGA AND THE ART 0F GRIEVANCE POLITICS
“Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made.” - Immanuel Kant, Idea for a Universal History with a Cosmopolitan Purpose We have become inured to the ways in which grievance politics subverts America’s unique competitive advantage in the world: our ability to solve problems and to adapt to change. While other regions of the world stagnate … [Read more...] about JENGA AND THE ART 0F GRIEVANCE POLITICS
‘Trump people’ are the ultimate victims of the president’s hoax
WASHINGTON -- Last August, President Trump went to Charleston, West Virginia, , for a "mission accomplished" moment. He had already boasted to his Fox News fan base that "I've turned West Virginia around, because [of] what I've done environmentally with coal." In Charleston, he said that "we are putting our great coal miners back to work" by ending what he had dubbed the … [Read more...] about ‘Trump people’ are the ultimate victims of the president’s hoax
Michael Cohen and the Devil in the Details
By Michael Winship My writer friend Gail, who lives in London but is fluent in all things American, has been closely following our daily travails. We’re in touch often, sharing our mutual, grim, and often bleakly funny stories about Trump here and Brexit there. Wednesday, just before Michael Cohen began his testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, she … [Read more...] about Michael Cohen and the Devil in the Details
Brian Williams Earns His Way Back
By Peter Funt Television's most elegant and articulate anchor, who shepherds what is arguably the nation's most informative nightly news program, continues to toil in relative obscurity. It's not that viewership for Brian Williams's 11 p.m. ET program on MSNBC is tiny; it reaches nearly two million people on an average night. It's that the broadcast from which Williams … [Read more...] about Brian Williams Earns His Way Back