From the Left

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. is honored at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition annual Dr. King Breakfast on Jan. 20, 2025. (Audrey Richardson/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

Jesse Jackson Never Lost Hope in Human Redemption, and Neither Should We

From the Left / Clarence Page / Feb 23, 2026

Having covered the late Rev. Jesse Jackson off and on since the 1960s, I am still amused to receive an email from one of my many critics who wants me to know that you don't have to be white to find something to criticize about Black people, as if I didn’t know.

In fact, I've made an impressive collection of what I call “I’m not racist, ...Read more

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Feb. 11, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images/TNS)

Pam Bondi Shows Loyalty to her Audience of One

From the Left / Clarence Page / Feb 16, 2026

Let’s hear a word of praise for the ordinary citizens who have called for an end to the too-often reckless invasions of American cities by federal agents carrying out President Trump’s crusade against undocumented immigrants.

I am moved by the courage and patriotism of those who have come out on the streets, sometimes in awesome numbers, to...Read more

Pete Hegseth Wants Women Out of the Military -- and He's Not Hiding It

From the Left / ACLU / Feb 16, 2026

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth made headlines when he summoned hundreds of senior military leaders to a military base in Quantico, Virginia, and made troubling comments about equity in the military. President Donald Trump's address to the generals was also alarming, calling for troops to be deployed in U.S. cities as "training grounds" and to...Read more

Sue, a woman who came to Minneapolis from Chicago to join the anti ICE protests carries a poster past window panels showing two gun perforations on Jan. 26, 2026, that according to the business owner said were made when Alex Pretti was gunned down by federal agents in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. A makeshift memorial at the shooting scene has been the center of attention for well wishers. A makeshift memorial at the shooting scene has been the center of attention for well wishers. On Jan. 24, federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, while scuffling with him on an icy roadway in Minneapolis, less than three weeks after an immigration officer fired on Renee Good, also 37, killing her in her car. U.S. President Donald Trump blamed their deaths on Democratic

Beware the Bully Promising a 'Soft Touch'

From the Left / Clarence Page / Feb 09, 2026

For casual observers of U.S. politics, an interview President Donald Trump gave last Wednesday to "NBC Nightly News" might have suggested a change of tone in the federal government's standoff in Minnesota.

Speaking of the brute-force operations federal agents have conducted there rounding up undocumented immigrants in that state, Trump Read more

Why Police Traffic Stops Are Dangerous and Ineffective

From the Left / ACLU / Feb 09, 2026

The Fourth Amendment protects us from being stopped, searched or detained by police without good reason. But over the years, courts have dramatically weakened those protections when it comes to cars and traffic enforcement.

Courts have ruled that a traffic stop is permitted whenever an officer has probable cause of a traffic violation, even ...Read more

Federal immigration agents detain a man during an operation by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Jan. 27, 2026. On Jan. 24, federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, while scuffling with him on an icy roadway in Minneapolis, less than three weeks after an immigration officer fired on Renee Good, also 37, killing her in her car. The fatal shootings has reignited accusations that federal agents enforcing US President Donald Trump's militarized immigration crackdown are inexperienced, under-trained and operating outside law enforcement norms. (Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images/TNS)

Chaos is the Point of Trump's War on Immigrants in Minnesota

From the Left / Clarence Page / Feb 02, 2026

There’s something uncomfortably familiar about President Trump’s jackboot approach to the immigration debate.

It brings to mind a memorable off-the-cuff stumble by Chicago’s legendary late Mayor Richard J. Daley when he was asked about allegations of excessive force by city police officers.

“The policeman isn’t there to create ...Read more

Executions Spiked in 2025, but the Death Penalty Is Still Losing Ground

From the Left / ACLU / Feb 02, 2026

For death penalty opponents, the dramatic spike in executions last year was truly horrifying. After several years of no more than 25 executions, there were 47 in 2025, nearly double the years prior. This included the executions of people with intellectual disability, powerful claims of innocence and whose trials were marked by profound ...Read more

Welcome to the World of MAGA Machismo, Where Muscles Trump Brains

From the Left / Dick Polman / Nov 16, 2023

Ladies and gentleman, here is your United States Senate, then and now:

Sen. Daniel Webster on March 7, 1850: “It is fortunate that there is a Senate of the United States (with) a just sense of its own dignity, and its own high responsibilities, and a body to which the country looks with confidence for wise, moderate, patriotic, and healing ...Read more

Trump and his lawyers think he can get away with anything. It's outlandish.

From the Left / Ruth Marcus / Oct 25, 2019

WASHINGTON -- "The king can do no wrong." That is the ancient legal maxim used to explain why a sovereign should not be held to account for misdeeds. President Trump and his lawyers are now making arguments that make this legal doctrine look wimpy. Their vision boils down to: The king can do whatever wrong he damn pleases, and there's nothing ...Read more