Featured Commentary category, Page 57

So much has been said about Donald Trump that fans and foes are tired of him. What hasn’t been described are the motivations of Republican leadership — the congresspeople who fawn over him despite private reservations, and state Republicans who continue their support. Representatives of the Republican Party have remained...

Although they never fail to take us aback, French riots have followed the same distinct pattern ever since protests broke out in the Eastern suburbs of Lyon in 1981, an episode known as the “summer of Minguettes”: a young person is killed or seriously injured by the police, triggering an...

King Charles III has launched a catastrophe countdown clock. It will tick until 2030, a year in which he predicts “serious consequences” if the world doesn’t effectively address “climate change.” Honestly, if you can’t trust the king, whom can you trust? It’s always good to be reminded of predictions like...

The agreement that President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached recently to suspend the U.S. debt ceiling until 2025 avoided immediate turmoil in financial markets but does little to avert the crisis that may be brewing due to huge federal deficits. The deal cuts the 2024 deficit by...

In its last three terms, the Supreme Court has received a great deal of public attention — both positive and negative — due to its decisions on human sexuality (Bostock, Zarda) and abortion (Dobbs). This term, going relatively unnoticed, were two now-decided cases — Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency and...

It may not have had the significance of the Emancipation Proclamation, or the civil rights legislation of the 1960s, but last week’s ruling by the Supreme Court that affirmative action in college admissions violates the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause is an important advancement toward equality for all. Reaction to...

After decades of aggressive and strategic efforts from influential right-wing forces, the Supreme Court outlawed race-conscious admissions at universities throughout the nation, dismantling decades of progress and crippling the potential of racial diversity and pluralism at our nation’s institutions of higher education. Chief Justice John Roberts, speaking for the majority,...

In a world increasingly driven by digital connectivity, access to the internet is no longer a luxury — it is a fundamental necessity that allows Pennsylvanians to communicate, learn, work, socialize, and access essential services. The covid-19 pandemic only magnified the challenges faced by those in our state who still...

The state of the republic is precarious, but I am hopeful that democracy will prevail because it is resilient. We the people have faced serious threats in the past, including even a Civil War, and we have overcome them. We must continue to pass laws to strengthen our democracy in...

Over the past several decades, a growing number of Americans have abandoned their faith — usually Christianity — to join the ranks of the nonreligious. These “Nones” describe themselves as atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular.” Some may shrug at this, but you don’t have to be religious to know...

Recently we marked the first anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization landmark decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, which I applaud. The Supreme Court ordered a return of the power to regulate all aspects of abortions to individual states. Thus, electing more Democrats or Republicans to Congress...

The Law of Unintended Consequences will come back to haunt Pennsylvania businesses, their workers and the commonwealth’s economy should the state nearly double the mandatory minimum wage by 2026, concludes an exhaustive analysis by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “If the Pennsylvania Legislature enacts, and the governor signs, a...

America and its Western allies face a new era of geopolitical tensions with a coalescing alliance of autocratic states — China, Russia, North Korea, Iran and perhaps Saudi Arabia. It’s become fashionable to warn about the dangers of a new Cold War. But competing with China for influence among emerging...

Next year, Pennsylvania school districts will be staring down a financial cliff as the historic covid-19 pandemic funding ends. The stakes are even higher now since the state Supreme Court ruled that the General Assembly must find ways to pay for public education. When compounded with crumbling infrastructure, increasing mental...

Like many people, I was glued to the news for much of Saturday, watching what seemed, at least for a moment, to be the first stages of a coup d’état — and it still might be. The only thing we know for certain is that if this is the beginning...

Last week, an Indiana chapter of Moms for Liberty, a nonprofit organization that advocates for “parental rights” in education, ended up apologizing and condemning Adolf Hitler after previously using a quote from the racist and antisemitic Nazi leader in its newsletter. “We condemn Adolf Hitler’s actions and his dark place...

When the Supreme Court began livestreaming audio of oral arguments in May 2020, it was because the covid-19 pandemic prevented the justices from convening in person. But since then, even as pandemic-era restrictions eased, the Supreme Court has continued livestreaming, uninterrupted. The Supreme Court initially approved the practice on a...

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner Group, staged a revolt against Russia after claiming the Russian army deliberately attacked his forces. Prigozhin demanded justice — and that took the form of an armed insurrection. Before Prigozhin reportedly backed down after negotiations with the leader of Belarus, the Wagner Group...

Over the past five years, I’ve worked to solve a multitude of issues facing American citizens overseas. In 2020, my office helped secure the African evacuation of Andrew Mewbourn, a Hempfield Township teacher suffering from a severe eye ailment. In 2021, I fought to hold President Biden accountable for his...

The commonwealth of Pennsylvania has issued a drought watch, acknowledging what those of us with gardens have known for months: We are well short of the rainfall we’d normally expect by this time of year. According to the National Weather Service, we’ve received only 13.6” inches of rain when we...

It is an unfortunate truism of politics that partisans tend to believe the worst about members of the opposite party and no amount of facts — if, indeed, facts can be agreed upon — move people from their entrenched positions. Largely, I think, it’s all about gaining or keeping power...

Less than 24 hours after the mutiny began, it was over. As the rebelling Wagner column bore down on Moscow, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered a deal under which Russian President Vladimir Putin promised to drop criminal charges against the mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and allow him to seek asylum...

The recent train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, spewed toxic chemicals into surrounding neighborhoods. Since pollution knows no borders, this polluted air was carried to communities in Pennsylvania as well. Similar train derailments have occurred in other states since that time. Tightening lax standards on the transportation of hazardous chemicals...

Recently, the shooter in the 2018 hate-fueled antisemitic Pittsburgh synagogue attack was convicted. Now there will be a trial to decide if we eventually make him world famous again by executing him many years from now, or instead simply forget his name and throw away the key. Six days earlier,...

One of the most puzzling and questionable enigmas of modern American political parties is the Democrats have had majorities that controlled Congress much longer than Republicans have. At one time, Democrats controlled the House for 36 consecutive years and 56 of the past 60 years. It’s also hard to believe...