ABC News has reported that more than 50 Democrat members of Congress will be skipping this week's presidential inauguration. In other words, those Democrats are taking their balls and going home . . . except that they have no balls to begin with. Although they represent their congressional districts, they are still in the congressional minority. As such, they are not all … [Read more...] about About Those Inauguration-Skipping Democrat Congressmen
James Bond has been teaching kids to smoke for over half a century
But with better intelligence, he's smoking less Pixabay Deadly fumes James Bond started smoking in 1962 and was last seen lighting up in 2002. Over the course of six decades, James Bond eluded thousands of enemy bullets, averted global wars and deactivated some potent bombs. But he may have also encouraged kids to try smoking cigarettes.… … [Read more...] about James Bond has been teaching kids to smoke for over half a century
We Cannot Wait for History’s Judgment. We Need the Truth About Trump and Russia Now
Embed from Getty Images We Cannot Wait for History’s Judgment. We Need the Truth About Trump and Russia Now. For the sake of democracy, an independent commission or special prosecutor must be appointed to investigate Russian influence. BY Bill Moyers and Michael Winship Over the holidays, John Farrell, author of an upcoming biography of Richard Nixon, wrote an op-ed … [Read more...] about We Cannot Wait for History’s Judgment. We Need the Truth About Trump and Russia Now
Guide for Women’s March participants on January 21
If my Facebook circles are representative, thousands (millions?) of people plan to take to the streets on Saturday 21 January as part of the national Women's March. There are more than 600 events scheduled worldwide. For many, it may be their first time in a protest. After all, it's been since 1860 that the nation has seen such widespread protest over a presidential … [Read more...] about Guide for Women’s March participants on January 21
Trump is wrong about black America
WASHINGTON -- Rep. John Lewis is the son of sharecroppers. As a child, he wanted to be a preacher; he practiced by delivering fiery sermons to the family's chickens. But history had other plans for him: lunch counter sit-ins, Freedom Rides, the March on Washington, the Edmund Pettus Bridge, a seat in Congress representing most of Atlanta. No sane person would accuse such a man … [Read more...] about Trump is wrong about black America
Obama commutes sentence of Manning, who gave secrets to Wikileaks
By Roberta Rampton and Ayesha Rascoe WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Tuesday shortened the prison sentence of Chelsea Manning, the former U.S. military intelligence analyst who was responsible for a 2010 leak of classified materials to anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks, the biggest such breach in U.S. history. A White House official said there was no … [Read more...] about Obama commutes sentence of Manning, who gave secrets to Wikileaks
Cartoon: Circus Trump
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: Circus Trump
Obama Might As Well Pardon Russian Hackers, Too.
So, President Obama has decided to commute Bradley/Chelsea Manning's prison sentence. From ABC News: "President Obama granted a commutation to Chelsea Manning, a transgender soldier who was convicted of Espionage Act violations and other charges for leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks." Obama might as well pardon the Russian hackers, … [Read more...] about Obama Might As Well Pardon Russian Hackers, Too.
Countdown to Inauguration
In what could be viewed as “different strokes for different people,” Americans -- and others -- are counting down the days and hours until inauguration of the 45th U.S. president with mixed emotions. Take for example former President George W. Bush. According to satirist Andy Borowitz at The New Yorker, the former president -- while recognizing that many Americans are … [Read more...] about Countdown to Inauguration
Safety First? (Guest Voice)
Safety First? D. Eckberg In recent years it has become fashionable in conservative circles to mock liberals as overly sensitive wimps. In particular this has become a rallying cry deriding college campuses, after administrators or young scholars describe the need to create a safe environment for students of all backgrounds. The specifics of the attack take a number of … [Read more...] about Safety First? (Guest Voice)
Obama, Trump and the power of ‘we’
Editor's note: This column was co-written by Joy-Ann Reid. E.J. Dionne and Reid are co-editors of "We Are the Change We Seek: The Speeches of Barack Obama," which was published by Bloomsbury Press last week. This column is partly drawn from the book's introduction. NEW YORK -- Our nation is about to replace a president who loves soaring rhetoric and extended argument with … [Read more...] about Obama, Trump and the power of ‘we’
Ben Affleck goes gangster in the unusual crime film ‘Live by Night’
It is a stylish, savage world of nattily dressed men in fedoras and armed with sub-machine guns. It is an iconic element of American movies: the period gangster film. There have been American period gangster films set in cities such as New York, Los Angeles and Chicago-but never one set in sleepy Ybor, Tampa Bay, Florida.… … [Read more...] about Ben Affleck goes gangster in the unusual crime film ‘Live by Night’
Of Chickens and Democracy
And the corruption of the most corrupt ages in living human memory continues, apace: Manu Raju / CNN: First on CNN: Trump's cabinet pick invested in company, then introduced a bill to help it — Tom Price in 60 seconds Story highlights — Washington (CNN)Rep. Tom Price last year purchased shares in a medical device manufacturer days before introducing legislation that would … [Read more...] about Of Chickens and Democracy
What Kind of Man – What Kind of President?
As we reflect on one of the nastiest and most contentious presidential campaigns in recent history, it may be appropriate to ask: What kind of man disparages our war veterans by suggesting that those who suffer from PTSD aren’t strong and can’t handle it? What kind of man brags that he could shoot somebody in the middle of Fifth Avenue and not lose support or … [Read more...] about What Kind of Man – What Kind of President?
How we move on…
A friend, Julie, posted on Facebook that she could not accept the message to get along with the people who supported the winner of the 2016 Presidential election. Her reasoning is that to do so is to embrace those people who in "Supporting him means they think it's ok to mock the disabled, molest women, hate minorities, bully, cheat, lie, and tear down others, among many … [Read more...] about How we move on…
Cartoon: MLK Day
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: MLK Day
The B Street Band withdraws from inaugural ball, cites ‘gratitude’ for Springsteen
BELMAR -- Bruce Springsteen's music will not soundtrack Donald Trump's inaugural celebrations after all. The B Street Band, a long-running Boss tribute act based in Belmar, announced Monday it will not play the Garden State Inaugural Ball in Washington Thursday. In a statement provided to the Springsteen fan blog Backstreets.com, keyboardist Will Forte cited the band's… … [Read more...] about The B Street Band withdraws from inaugural ball, cites ‘gratitude’ for Springsteen
Marshall to Press: Stop Crying and Do Your Job
Josh Marshall calls on the press to stop fretting and report on Trump as "a punk and a bully" on Talking Points Memo. Presidents don't validate what is and isn't news. If you're expecting them to, you're doing it wrong. Almost nothing that is truly important about the work of a free press is damaged by moving the press office across the street. Don't get me wrong. I'm not … [Read more...] about Marshall to Press: Stop Crying and Do Your Job
Republicans Being Tone-Deaf Again
The Republican Party continues to have a problem with its members being politically tone-deaf. From Yahoo! News: "Speeches by far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos (yuh-NAH'-poh-lihs) and former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli were canceled Friday night after heated protests erupted at the University of California, Davis. University police put up barricades as … [Read more...] about Republicans Being Tone-Deaf Again
Trump is Sabotaging His Own Presidency
During Wednesday's choleric press conference, Donald Trump compared the intelligence community to the Nazis. Not a good idea. Actually, Trump has been trash-talking the intel community for months, siding with a foreign adversary and dissing our spy agencies as bumblers, based on what they said about Iraq 14 years ago. Not a good idea. The most dangerous thing that this … [Read more...] about Trump is Sabotaging His Own Presidency