Politics
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Commentary: Prioritizing leadership and mentorship will prevent teachers from leaving the profession
Our eighth graders have a yearly tradition: They walk the hallways on their last day of school while the sixth and seventh graders and their teachers stand and honor them as they leave. As I walked with one of my eighth graders, Murphy, sixth and seventh grade teachers were giving him high-fives. I noticed him looking lonely and asked him what ...Read more
Commentary: A Head Start is not the finish line
The child care challenges in the United States are many, and how candidates focus on the issue between now and Election Day may impact the outcome. A new poll indicates that voters want candidates to have a plan to address both child care and childhood education.
“Voters understand the strain that finding and affording care has on families. ...Read more
F.D. Flam: AI can debunk conspiracy theories better than humans
Scientists surprised themselves when they found they could instruct a version of ChatGPT to gently dissuade people of their beliefs in conspiracy theories — such as notions that COVID-19 was a deliberate attempt at population control or that 9/11 was an inside job.
The most important revelation wasn’t about the power of AI, but about the ...Read more
Commentary: 'Why do I have to hide, Mommy?' My kindergartener's first lockdown drill
I send my 6-year-old son to kindergarten wearing an AirTag.
I take pictures of him every day in the school drop-off line to remember his outfit.
I avoid buying light-up sneakers. I subconsciously stay away from bright colors.
I’ve memorized the shape of his birthmark and every single scar on his little body.
I do all this just in case.
...Read more
Editorial: When government has to subsidize people's property taxes, something is badly wrong
How do you know property taxes are too high in this state?
Most homeowners if asked that question would laugh at the notion that there was any doubt. But there hardly could be starker evidence than that local politicians, led by Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi, are proposing to have taxpayers cough up more money — potentially lots of it — ...Read more
Commentary: Living in Los Angeles helped me discover what being Jewish meant to me
There’s a powerful Jewish value, elu v’elu, that means “these and those.” As in, both these and those ideas have merit. Both these and those people contain a holy spark. Both this and that answer can be right.
When I moved from Tucson to L.A. in 1997, I left a greater metro area of a little over half a million people for a city with a ...Read more
John M. Crisp: What I wish Kamala Harris had said during the debate
The left gushed over Kamala Harris’ performance during last week’s debate with Donald Trump. The enthusiasm is largely justified.
But I’m having trouble suppressing a feeling of mild disappointment. Could a better debater have more effectively called out Trump on some of the things he said during the debate that are simply not true? In ...Read more
Robin Abcarian: Think Donald Trump isn't really serious about being a dictator? Think again
One of the pleasures of last week's presidential debate was watching Vice President Kamala Harris deftly filet former President Donald Trump over his affinity for dictators such as Russia's Vladimir Putin and North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
"It is absolutely well known that these dictators and autocrats are rooting for you to be president again ...Read more
Jackie Calmes: The GOP House won't govern. Send it to the backbenches in November
Lucky for the Republicans who run the House, few Americans are paying attention to their antics of late, given the focus on the presidential race. Here's what they're up to: busily exemplifying the definition of insanity — doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
"Led" by Speaker "MAGA Mike" Johnson, ...Read more
Doyle McManus: How can millions of voters still be undecided between Trump and Harris? Here are their reasons
WASHINGTON — In a U.S. presidential race that features a deeply polarized electorate and a sharp contrast between the two candidates, most voters have known for months which side they are on.
Then there are people like Faith.
A middle-aged manager of a substance abuse treatment center in southern Pennsylvania, she voted for Donald Trump in...Read more
George Skelton: Making history and expressing outrage may drive Californians to record turnout
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Here's one election prediction from a nonpartisan expert: Californians will be so enthused about Kamala Harris they could vote in record numbers.
A huge Democratic turnout, of course, would help the party's down-ticket candidates, especially in pivotal congressional races that could determine control of the U.S. House of...Read more
Editorial: Another assassination attempt? We can't let political violence steer elections
Violence has no place in politics in America and yet here we are again, dealing with the possibility of another attempt on Donald Trump’s life. The FBI said on Sunday that it was investigating what appeared to be an attempted assassination as the former president played golf at Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach.
Details of ...Read more
Editorial: On 'eating the cats' and immigration limits
“They’re eating the cats” may be the perfect encapsulation of Donald Trump’s brilliance and flaws.
The former president uttered that line during Tuesday’s presidential debate. He was referring to claims that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, are eating people’s pets. He also said, “They’re eating the dogs.”
Similar ...Read more
Editorial: Solving no problem -- Mike Johnson's noncitizen voting bill is not about integrity
House Speaker Mike Johnson has continued the proud tradition of GOP speakers setting the country on course to another disastrous government shutdown by pulling voting on a temporary spending bill that included the nonstarter SAVE Act, a bill to require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration in federal elections.
That ...Read more
Editorial: Groundwork for violence: The danger of the pet-eating migrant lies of Vance and Trump
At last week’s presidential debate, Donald Trump brought up a chilling scene: Haitian migrants roaming the city of Springfield, Ohio, terrorizing the local population and eating their pets. It was a message previously spread by his vice presidential candidate, JD Vance, and other prominent GOP politicians.
One problem: it’s not true, ...Read more
Matthew Yglesias: What if Harris and Trump could ignore Pennsylvania?
The 2024 election will almost certainly come down to Pennsylvania. But nothing is certain in life, and it’s not too soon — forgive me — to look forward to the 2028 election, when warmer, faster-growing, less-unionized states are key Electoral College battlegrounds.
In fact, according to Nate Silver’s forecasts, the state that is second ...Read more
Editorial: Could have Tyreek Hill's traffic stop ended differently? Miami-Dade needs the answer
The Tyreek Hill rough takedown case is still unfolding, but one thing has become clear: From the moment Miami-Dade police officers yanked the Dolphins star player by the neck from his gull-wing McLaren and forced him to the ground last Sunday, a routine traffic stop in South Florida became part of the painful, national discussion about driving ...Read more
Commentary: School choice is worth the cost
School choice remains on the roll, and opponents are grasping at any implement to try and arrest its progress.
This past school year, America passed the million student milestone, with more than 1 million students participating in a program that provides funding for them to attend private school. More than one third of all students in the ...Read more
Editorial: Could have Tyreek Hill's traffic stop ended differently? Miami-Dade needs the answer
The Tyreek Hill rough takedown case is still unfolding, but one thing has become clear: From the moment Miami-Dade police officers yanked the Dolphins star player by the neck from his gull-wing McLaren and forced him to the ground last Sunday, a routine traffic stop in South Florida became part of the painful, national discussion about driving ...Read more
Trudy Rubin: Debate reminds us why Trump's dance with dictators threatens US security
There was one moment in last week's presidential debate that crystallized why former President Donald Trump must never again direct U.S. foreign policy: his reaction to Vice President Kamala Harris' dig that "world leaders are laughing" at him.
"Let me just tell you about world leaders," Trump instantly shot back. "Viktor Orbán, one of the ...Read more