A Political Dance…

A young girl walking to a grocery store at night was raped at knife point; pregnant, back in the 1960s, she went to get an illegal abortion, stared at a blood-stained table, left – gave birth to her daughter, put her up for adoption. Nineteen years later the daughter – Rebecca Kiessling – met her…

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A Trial

Suing Fox News for $1.6 billion, to prove Fox knew Trump’s claims ‘the election was stolen’ weren’t true, Dominion Voting Systems released Fox TV stars’ emails and text messages. Tucker Carlson texted Laura Ingraham: “Sidney Powell is lying by the way. I caught her. It’s insane.” Ingraham responded: “Sidney is a complete nut. No one…

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Lost Souls

When George Washington was twelve years old his father died; he caught smallpox at nineteen, recovered; leading the Continental Army endured Valley Forge, suffered defeats, won Yorktown, after the Revolution refused to be made King. Abraham Lincoln lost his mother when he was nine; poor, as a boy he worked, handed money he earned to…

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Three Internet Banshees – Knives Out

Trump read a story about Ron DeSantis, tore into the New York Post on the internet for what he called ‘a puff piece,’ took a breath, added, ‘DeSantis is a RINO…getting clobbered in the polls by me,’ took another breath, shrugged, ‘I don’t read the Post anymore. It’s fake news, just like Fox & WSJ!’…

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The Proud Boys and Trump

The lawyer for five Proud Boys on trial for storming the Capitol on January 6 said in the courtroom: “Donald Trump called on patriots to stop the steal. We’re calling on Donald Trump to take the stand.” Watching Trump sitting on the witness stand glaring at prosecutors, answering questions, would be entertaining – and if…

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Biden’s Age: The Kid is All Right

I’m old enough to know the problems an 80-year-old man can face. I get why Democrats worry. The gait stiffens, hearing gets iffy and words – names! – can be elusive. But old people know a lot that young people don’t. We know, first of all, what it’s like to be young. Young people don’t…

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The Man from Plains

Jimmy Carter burst onto America my first year in politics, 1976. I had just joined Jim Hunt’s first campaign for governor. Democrats here feared 1976 would be a repeat of 1968 and 1972, when liberal, Northern presidential nominees, Hubert Humphrey and George McGovern, sank the party in the South. Then came Carter. He was different…

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A Lot in Common

A decade ago when Republicans took control of Congress they banned ‘earmarks.’ Then Democrats retook control and put earmarks back. Last election Republicans won but, back in power, want to keep earmarks. At dusk, as shadows spread in the closing days of the Democratic Congress last year, hidden in a bill Democrats gave Congressman a…

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Escaping Babylon

Sitting in Washington Congressmen and Senators nod, tell lobbyists, I can do that – in the next breath say, By the way, I need a favor too, smiling, ask for contributions. After Watergate Congress, reeling, put limits on contributions to political campaigns – and outlawed corporate donations. Horse trading waned. Time Passed. Lawyers spotted loopholes…

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Mired in the Muddle

We lost the Vietnam War, Reagan stepped forward, ran for President, and Establishment Republicans – who then ruled the GOP – beat him. Then Jimmy Carter beat them. Four years passed, Reagan ran again, whipped the Establishment Republicans, whipped Jimmy Carter, and we won the Cold War. The Berlin Wall fell, the Soviet Union collapsed,…

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