Politics
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Trudy Rubin: Keeping the Philadelphi Corridor will endanger Israel's security and doom the remaining hostages
Imagine if you were the parent or child of one of the Israeli hostages still held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, and you knew your loved ones were being abandoned by your own government for political reasons.
That is effectively what is happening as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists on changing the terms of a U.S.-backed cease-...Read more
Editorial: Biden follows Harris's lead in fuel flip-flop
The Biden-Harris administration is many things, but steadfast on policy isn’t one of them.
When President Joe Biden ran in 2020, he caved to the Bernie Bros and let Sen. Bernie Sanders “Unity Task Force” influence his climate change agenda. Fossil fuels bad, pipelines must go, and green was the order of the day.
Vice President Kamala ...Read more
Commentary: Brazil takes on Elon Musk in an effort to regulate a weapon of mass disinformation
Elon Musk, the eccentric, far-right billionaire behind X (formerly Twitter), SpaceX and Tesla is testing the world’s willingness to regulate the ultrarich. Billionaires, with money to burn and control over the vital industries that created their wealth, can make great friends and difficult enemies.
But the power that is their appeal is also ...Read more
Joe Battenfeld: Kamala Harris momentum slows as economy, immigration drag her down
Kamala Harris’s post-convention momentum appears to have died as new polls show a tight race in key battleground states, with Harris’s weakness on the economy and immigration dragging her down.
The once bright glow from Harris’s ascension to Democratic nominee has started to wear off as voters take a closer look at her far left record and...Read more
James Stavridis: Hamas tunnels show future wars will be fought underground
A year into Israel’s fight against Hamas, it has become clear that the military “center of gravity” — the most important element of the conflict — is not the missiles or manpower of the terrorist group. Rather, it is the 400-plus miles of tunnels carved out under the Gaza Strip. From those tunnels, Hamas and its sponsor, Iran, were ...Read more
Noah Feldman: Chicago gun ruling is yet another absurd decision
Illinois can’t ban the concealed carry of licensed handguns on Chicago’s famous L — short for “elevated trains” — according to a new ruling by a Donald Trump-appointed federal district judge.
The decision joins a growing number of absurd rulings following the Supreme Court’s notorious 2022 holding in Bruen, which overturned ...Read more
Commentary: Trump goes full revisionist on the economy
Listening to former President Donald Trump speak to the Economic Club of New York, you could be forgiven for thinking that the economy has been such a disaster since he left office that the stock market is in a perpetual free fall. And yet, the benchmark S&P 500 Index is up 64% since the 2020 election through Wednesday, topping the 60% gain at ...Read more
Commentary: Will Trump ever be tried for Jan. 6? Here's the answer that emerged from the latest hearing
Much remained uncertain after Thursday’s hearing on how to proceed with the federal Jan. 6 case against Donald Trump following the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling. But one point seemed clear: It’s not going to trial anytime soon.
The parties and U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan agreed that, as the judge put it, “the issue of immunity ...Read more
Francis Wilkinson: Mass shootings are a result of the GOP's moral collapse
In theory, school shootings are tragic.
Indeed, after Wednesday’s mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia — four murdered, nine injured — Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey expressed gratitude that “a much larger tragedy” had been prevented. It was a win, of sorts.
I don’t mean to criticize Hosey. But ...Read more
Editorial: Hostile meddling: Russia and Iran want a vote in our election
Foreign governments trying to tip the scales of American elections is nothing new, but the brazenness with which Russia and Iran are meddling in the 2024 presidential election is notable.
In a DOJ indictment, federal authorities announced charges and sanctions against Russian-government-linked operatives for interfering to boost Donald Trump, ...Read more
Mark Gongloff: Texas is the new Arizona, and not in a good way
Humans can survive whole days without food, shelter or internet, but they can’t last long without water. Which is why it’s so weird that American humans keep rushing to live in places where water is increasingly scarce. The latest dry hot spot is Texas.
Two fast-growing Texas towns have been in the news recently for being dehydrated. The ...Read more
Editorial: Gold Star families rebuke Harris over cemetery attack
Kamala Harris is now attacking Donald Trump for mourning with the families of fallen service members. Even in a heated political environment, that’s shameful.
Last week, former President Trump participated in a wreath-laying ceremony to honor the 13 fallen heroes murdered in Afghanistan three years ago. A suicide bomber killed them as they ...Read more
Editorial: Yes, killings were singularly horrific. But more typical crime continues to proliferate on the CTA
CTA leadership keeps telling us our public transit system is getting safer.
A scan of CTA news releases on crime statistics over the past few years shows that the agency reports to the public only when reported crimes on the system fall in a given month. The timing of the releases seemingly is random; there’s no discernible schedule. That ...Read more
Commentary: Adults can also embrace a 'back to school' attitude
Going back to my days as a schoolboy, the close of summer has always felt to me like a time of beginning. We tend not to think of the incoming autumn this way. Already, we’re nostalgic for the vacation we just took. If we’re headed for school, there’s a certain bemoaning that occurs. There will be all of that structure again! Homework! ...Read more
Francis Wilkinson: Trump could destroy the anti-abortion movement
It’s doubtful that any contemporary political faction has been betrayed by its host party more often, or more publicly, than the anti-abortion movement.
The history of Republican presidents appointing Supreme Court justices — Sandra Day O’Connor, David Souter, Anthony Kennedy — who uphold abortion rights is too uncanny to be accidental...Read more
Editorial: While Biden tanned, Hamas brutally murdered an American hostage
American weakness gets Americans killed. That’s a running theme of the Biden-Harris administration.
On Saturday, the civilized world mourned after learning that Hamas had brutally murdered six hostages it kidnapped during the Oct. 7 terror attack. The Israeli military found the bodies in a tunnel below Rafah. Among the deceased was Hersh ...Read more
Editorial: Californians need electric bill relief. Lawmakers failed to deliver it
Californians already pay some of the nation’s highest electricity rates, and thanks to another year of inaction by state lawmakers there is still no end in sight to the steep hikes in monthly power bills.
Pacific Gas & Electric’s average residential electric bill has risen 77% since 2020, while the average Southern California Edison bill ...Read more
LZ Granderson: Trump keeps talking about bacon prices, but that's not making the point he intends
When it comes to the price of bacon, Donald Trump is absolutely right: It's too damn high. What he doesn't tell you when he brings this up on the campaign trail — which is a lot — is that the sharp increase was headed our way while he was in the White House.
In 2018, 61% of California voters passed Proposition 12, which required the space ...Read more
Commentary: Would you chain your child?
This won’t come as a surprise to many parents, but a study found that by mid-August each year, kids reach “peak boredom.” Fortunately, a new school year has started in most parts of the country (or soon will). And most kids have plenty of options for passing the time in the summer — from running through the sprinklers to gaming online.
...Read more
Commentary: The Paralympics are a unique manifestation of global cooperation
In a world increasingly marked by polarization and rising nationalism, the Paralympic Games stand as a vital symbol of the rules-based liberal international order.
Despite the growing controversy and challenges that surround the Olympics, these Games continue to represent an enduring commitment to global cooperation, inclusivity and shared ...Read more