The U.S. Supreme Court ruling that allows Pennsylvania to count mail-in ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 and received by Nov. 6 is a victory for voters, and for the institution of voting. But the practical impact of the three-day extension the court authorized Oct. 19 is likely to be undercut by Harrisburg's chronic inability to do its job on behalf...Read more

Throughout this most disastrous year in U.S. presidential history, President Donald Trump dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic perils by first denying we even had a problem. Then declaring he fixed it. Then pointlessly chasing around in circles, except when he was pausing to proclaim we had finally "rounded the corner."

So it surprised no one when,...Read more

There's a massive get out the vote campaign in the United States, with both major political parties stressing that every vote should count.

Contrast that to Puerto Rico. It also has an election Nov. 3, but none of the votes will really count on the major issue:

Should the U.S. territory become a U.S. state?

Millions of island residents will ...Read more

The 2016 presidential campaign was the first in which Republican candidates, including Donald J. Trump, called for paid family leave. The GOP's embrace of this idea is driven by the need to attract more female voters, who are largely in favor of such a program, and to address America's falling fertility rates.

Last year the number of babies ...Read more

Earlier this month, I drove 626 miles from Washington, D.C., to my parents' home in suburban Atlanta to vote.

Like other young people, I am a nomad of sorts. I twice moved cross-country this past year and haven't set up roots anywhere. So, I'm avoiding changing my voter registration until I know my permanent residence.

Besides, voting in ...Read more

Four years ago I hit a family member. We disagreed on which presidential nominee to support. At that time, it was clear to me that whatever remotely redeeming pledges Donald Trump the candidate made, these promises were certain to be broken by President Trump the elected official. Besides, the man was without any doubt morally unfit to be ...Read more

As she stepped aboard her Spirit flight to Baltimore, Donna Beall, a longtime emergency room nurse, assumed what I would assume: That, as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus, the middle seat in every row of a passenger plane would be left open by the airline to allow for social distancing.

But that was not the case.

On recent ...Read more

With Judge Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation to the Supreme Court all but certain, Democrats are toying with ways to reform the court. Former Vice President Joe Biden plans to suggest a bipartisan commission to study the options. Unfortunately, the proposals all have serious flaws. Either their constitutionality is doubtful or they would undercut...Read more

On Sept. 8, President Donald Trump came to Jupiter, Florida, and signed an executive order that he said would protect the state from offshore drilling for 10 years. Trump added this laughable claim: "To my administration, environmental protection is a sacred obligation."

Just three months earlier, Trump sounded more like the president who ...Read more

President Donald Trump seems perpetually confused about who pays the tariffs of 10% to 25% that he's imposed on imported goods. Either that, or he just won't admit the truth: Trump's tariffs are taxes on U.S. purchasers, not foreign manufacturers.

The issue came up again at Thursday's presidential debate in Nashville, Tennessee, after moderator...Read more

Conspiracy theories are brilliant. They really are. In an evil genius kind of way. They tell us so much about humanity's incredible creative powers. We concoct debilitating and distorted social worlds and then those creations torment us, smothering us as they travel the super-charged speedways of social media.

Some people liken conspiracy ...Read more

It seems obvious that Donald Trump is the worst president in my lifetime.

I briefly considered the possibility that he was less awful than Richard Nixon, who resigned in disgrace in 1974. But at least Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency and signed the Endangered Species Act when he wasn't covering up the Watergate burglary or ...Read more

Safe drinking water, clean air, healthy wildlife and natural habitat might not be front of mind as the Senate moves forward with President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett — but they should be.

That's because the Supreme Court often has the last word on how, and sometimes even whether, federal laws are effectively...Read more

Throughout this most disastrous year in U.S. presidential history, President Donald Trump dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic perils by first denying we even had a problem. Then declaring he fixed it. Then pointlessly chasing around in circles, except when he was pausing to proclaim we had finally "rounded the corner."

So it surprised no one when,...Read more

Scientists and researchers are racing to satisfy the world's yearning for a COVID-19 vaccine. Typically, it takes years to accomplish such significant medical advances, but the hunt for this vaccine has been expedited the world over. Dozens of vaccines are in various stages of trial or investigation.

As the death toll continues to climb, there ...Read more

It was a very cold night on Jan. 28, 2017. Thousands of Chicagoans from all backgrounds were rallying at O'Hare International Airport and other airports around the country against a travel ban President Donald Trump had just signed into law. The executive order restricted travel to the U.S. from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Syria. ...Read more

As the pandemic wears on, month after month, it's easy to assume nothing much has changed. But it has. We're making more progress than many people may realize.

Take Regeneron. President Donald Trump recently spoke of his efforts to usher this new therapeutic drug through the process for emergency use authorization and to make it available to ...Read more

Nelson Algren once described the great American city of Chicago as "the place built out of man's ceaseless failure to overcome himself." He could just as well have been writing about Donald J. Trump.

Just consider the trajectory of the final presidential debate on Thursday night.

Trump performed far better than his hesitant rival Joseph R. ...Read more

The Donald Trump who showed up for the debate Thursday was the glum one. Someone had told him to keep a lid on it, and he was visibly chastened.

"I get treated very badly," he moped early on. "No president should have to go through what I went through."

Trump was on such a short leash that he didn't even bring gusto to his usual scattershot ...Read more

More than 47 million Americans already have voted, and it's doubtful that many who still haven't cast a ballot are undecided about whom to choose for president. In Thursday's second and final presidential debate, President Donald Trump said nothing to persuade those who haven't made up their minds that he deserves a second term. Democratic ...Read more