The War on Democracy: Art Pope and the Rich Bullies
Out here on the Left Coast, we’re not opposed to capitalism. But we believe it needs constraints. You’ll hear two arguments for curbing capitalism. One focuses on poor kids and the other on rich...
View ArticleThe War on Democracy: The Deep State
Over the course of the past decade, the doyens of the left, Peter Dale Scott and Noam Chomsky, began to use the term “deep state” to refer to the relatively small number of Washington and Wall Street...
View ArticleFukushima: What Have We Learned?
It’s been three years since the Fukushima nuclear disaster and the bad news continues. In December, it was widely reported that 51 US sailors assigned to the nuclear carrier, Ronald Reagan, have...
View ArticleAmerica's Gas Problem
Most US politicians regard natural gas as the key element in our energy policy. In his January State-of-the-Union address President Obama said, “[Natural gas is] the bridge fuel that can power our...
View ArticleAccelerating Use of Renewable Energy
US energy policy is stuck on reliance on natural gas. Most Americans understand that by the middle of the century most of our energy will have to be supplied by renewables – wind, water, and solar –...
View ArticleBuilding the New Populism
It’s a treasured American maxim that every problem is an opportunity in disguise. Seven months before the mid-term election Democrats face a serious problem: most Americans feel the country is headed...
View ArticleThe War on Democracy: SCOTUS Weighs In
Americans are worried about the economy and economic inequality. Most of us feel the government should do something to reduce inequality. Now the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has...
View ArticleInside Paul Ryan, Inside the GOP
After six months attacking Democrats for the alleged faults of Obamacare, Republicans finally went on the offensive with the budget plan developed by Representative Paul Ryan. The Ryan/Republican...
View ArticleSaving the 2014 Election
Six months out from the midterm election, Democratic prospects appear grim. A ABC News / Washington Post poll found President Obama’s approval rating at a new low (41 percent). 53 percent of...
View ArticleElizabeth Warren: Saving the Democrats
Reading Senator Elizabeth Warren’s new book, A Fighting Chance, I thought about the parallels between her career and that of Barack Obama. Both are brilliant lawyers with inspiring personal stories....
View ArticleRacism: What's the Problem?
The past few weeks have seen the anniversaries of the US Civil Rights Act and the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in “Brown v. Board of Education.” We’ve also had a media frenzy over the dreadful...
View ArticleClass Warfare: The 2014 Election
As we head into the midterm national election, it’s clear that voters are unhappy. But it’s uncertain how their displeasure will affect the November 4th outcome. We’re seeing class warfare, where the...
View ArticleClinton vs. Warren: Problem or Opportunity?
Many who saw the remarkable conversation between Senator Elizabeth Warren and economist Thomas Piketty on economic inequality, got the impression that Warren was preparing to run for President....
View ArticleThe Return of Sixties Values
The level of US political rancor has reached an intensity not seen since the sixties with its battles over civil rights and the Vietnam War. On the one hand we have Republicans advocating a new Iraq...
View ArticleCampaign 2014: Hate Politics
Four months before the midterm election, it’s become apparent the Republican strategy is based upon firing up their base with a barrage of anti-Obama messages. This has driven down the President’s...
View ArticleGetting Democrats to Vote
After an absence of several years, the new Pew Research Center political typology poll was just released. It breaks the American political electorate into eight groups. And, it makes clear what the...
View ArticleWhat's Wrong With US Foreign Policy?
Obama bashing has been one of the characteristics of the 2014 midterm election. For the last few months the President was accused of lacking foreign policy leadership. Republicans blamed Obama for...
View ArticleWhat Do Republicans Want?
Although negative political ads take a toll, in most elections voters respond to positive messages. 2014 may prove to be an exception to this rule, as Republicans have waged a relentlessly negative...
View ArticleAmerica the Hammer
In his September 10th speech about middle-eastern terrorists, ISIL, President Obama gave the classic rationale for US involvement: “America is better positioned today to seize the future than any other...
View ArticleWhat Do Democrats Want?
During the 2014 midterm elections Republicans have waged a negative “slash and burn” campaign, attacking President Obama and Democrats in general. The GOP strategy is to fire up their base, bamboozle...
View ArticleWhat Do Women Want?
Many themes have featured in the interminable run-up to the 2014 mid-term election: Obamacare, Obama’s use of presidential power, Iraq/Syria, fracking, to mention only a few. But the theme that is...
View ArticleIt's Still the Economy, Stupid!
A month before the November 4th mid-term elections, the competition for control of the Senate is neck-and-neck. The improving US economy hasn’t increased Democratic prospects. What explains this?On...
View ArticleResurrecting Hope
Six years ago, most progressives eagerly awaited the election of Barack Obama. Now many of us are unhappy with him. Indeed, Obama’s unpopularity has become the primary theme of the midterm elections....
View ArticleWhat Do Millennials Want?
Attempting to predict the outcome of the November 4th midterm elections, political observers have scratched their heads at the behavior of the youngest US demographic segment, the Millennials. These...
View ArticleIs Bipartisanship Possible?
As the 2014-midterm elections grind down to their conclusion, voters in many communities continue to be subjected to wave after wave of negative ads. The obvious solution is to take big money out of...
View ArticleNone Dare Call It Treason: Why Republicans Won
Democrats have offered many excuses for their devastating losses in the 2014-midterm election, but they failed to include the most obvious: they were weak. Starting with President Obama and extending...
View ArticleThe Democrats' Midterm Message Problem
There’s a rough consensus about why Democrats were pulverized in the midterm elections: losing Democratic candidates didn’t have a succinct positive message. To understand this problem, it’s...
View ArticleFive Lessons From the Midterm Elections
Democrats got shellacked on November 4th. Republicans gained at least 8 Senate seats, 12 House seats, and 3 governorships. Democratic partisans spread the blame around: President Obama, Party...
View ArticleWhat Democrats Stand For: Four Messages for 2016
In the aftermath of the disastrous 2014 midterm election, former Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean observed, “You’ve got to stand for something if you want to win.” Before 2016,...
View ArticleWho Runs the Democratic Party?
It’s convenient to blame Democratic leaders for the Party’s disastrous 2014 midterm elections. But which leaders? Who runs the Democratic Party?Not President Obama. He may be the commander-in-chief,...
View ArticleIn Elizabeth Warren We Trust
A recent Pew Research poll found that only 24 percent of Americans trust the government in Washington. This says a lot about US politics, but it doesn’t answer the question: which politicians can we...
View ArticleFive Presidential Candidates
Happy New Year! Welcome to the start of the presidential campaign marathon. For your consideration are five likely candidates, each representing a distinct segment of the US political...
View ArticleAmerica's Four Wars: An Opportunity
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness…” So begins Dickens “A Tale of Two Cities,” set amidst the French Revolution in 1789. So...
View ArticleThe Return of Good Obama
After working on the 2008 Obama campaign, and celebrating his election, I’ve spent much of the past 6 years defending the President. Fortunately, the 2015 State-of-the-Union address found the President...
View ArticleRepublicans Try To Bully US Into Attacking Iran
So far, the Republican-controlled 114th Congress has attacked women’s reproductive rights and savaged undocumented immigrants. Now they want to bully the Administration into attacking Iran.A classic...
View ArticleRebuilding The Liberal Brand
If you watched the Super Bowl, you probably noticed a bland McDonald’s commercial. It was part of their campaign to strengthen their brand. Too bad liberals didn’t run a commercial because they need...
View ArticleObama Grows Coattails
21 months before the 2016 presidential election, Republicans are struggling to find a candidate who will be conservative enough to win their nomination and moderate enough to appeal to sensible voters....
View ArticleGood Obama, Bad Obama
During the last two years of a President’s second term pundits begin discussing his “legacy.” How will historians judge Barack Obama? Conservatives believe he will be loathed. Liberals tend to be...
View ArticleWhat Do Republicans Stand For?
20 months before the 2016 presidential election, the Republican Party is floundering. Unlike the Democrats, where Hillary Clinton is the clear presidential favorite, there’s no frontrunner for the GOP...
View ArticleIsrael: America's Bad Brother
Most families contain a problem relative: an addled elder, schizophrenic sister, or troubled brother. That’s the status of the state of Israel: a member of the US family but, these days, the bad...
View ArticleJeb Bush: The Return of "Compassionate" Conservatism
Sixteen months before the Republican convention, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush is a slight favorite to win the GOP presidential nomination. Given that Hillary Clinton is the overwhelming favorite...
View ArticleIran: Diplomacy or War?
We’re on the brink of a historic treaty to constrain Iran’s nuclear capabilities, but the details are still hazy and most Americans haven’t made up their minds. Early polls indicated broad support for...
View ArticleReady For Hillary?
To no one’s surprise, on April 12th former First Lady, Senator, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced her entry into the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. The obvious...
View ArticleScott Walker: Mobilizing Resentment
It’s early in the Republican presidential primary process, but at this point former Florida governor Jeb Bush is a slight favorite. However, the latest CNN/ORC poll indicates that Wisconsin Governor...
View ArticleVote No On Armageddon
A recent Bloomberg poll noted a disturbing political fact: Republicans are willing to support Israel even when its objectives diverge from those of the US. This ominous stance is a consequence of the...
View ArticleWhat Makes Bernie Run?
On April 29th, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced he’ll compete with Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. Although anything can happen between now and the late July...
View ArticleHillary Clinton: First Impressions
On May 6th, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton held her first two fundraising events in San Francisco. I attended an afternoon event, featuring a confident, positive Clinton. While...
View ArticleMarco Rubio: Back to the Future
The surprising disintegration of Jeb Bush’s presidential campaign has opened up the race for the 2016 Republican nomination, benefitting the other candidate from Florida, Senator Marco Rubio. This is...
View ArticleIraq: Five Points to Remember
As the Republican presidential demolition derby continues, the 2015 GOP candidates have settled on two central themes: hatred for President Obama and desire to send US troops back to Iraq to fight...
View ArticleRand Paul: Libertarian Bigot
As the 2016 Republican presidential hopefuls continue to pummel each other, many Americans wonder if there is a GOP candidate who expresses common sense on any key issue. At the moment, the sole GOP...
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