What Mueller knows about Manafort might explain Trump’s growing agitation
WASHINGTON — Winston Churchill famously described Russia as “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.” The same might be said — and the Russia reference is no coincidence — of Paul Manafort and the trial now underway of President Trump’s former campaign chairman.
Commentary: Farmers want fair trade, not handouts
My grandfather, who was a dairy farmer, would often say, “farmers do not need to go into a casino to gamble. They do it every single day, just going to work.”
Is hard work enough to buy you a house?
In 1988, my parents bought a house in Anaheim for $140,000. It’s in one of those post-World War II tracts where all the houses have three bedrooms, two baths and one garage — everything two Mexican immigrants could ever want for their American Dream.
Poor Portland progressives: So much to protest, so little time
“The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.”
Republican Party not likely to repeal Obamacare
Republicans will probably take a vote on Obamacare repeal in the 116th Congress next year if they get the chance. But I wouldn’t count on it actually passing and getting signed into law. If Republicans do retain control in the midterm elections, I expect the next Congress will look an awful lot like this one.
Bring back home ec class because kids lack basic life skills
As I begin to prepare for next semester’s classes, I consider what my students need to learn. What aspects of my class will prepare them for the real world?
Democratic civil war yet to play out
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the new heroine of the Democratic Party left, is a virtual cinch to win her election to the House from New York City this fall. So she’s already expanded her campaign beyond Queens and the Bronx, hoping to change the face of her party by electing more progressives.
Journalists are playing into Trump’s hand
WASHINGTON — A question to my colleagues in the media: Why do we play President Trump’s foil?
Trump and Putin’s do-si-do
WASHINGTON — It’s a given that political candidates will target each other with as much oppositional propaganda as they can get away with. But with the Kremlin now playing a third-party shadow role in U.S. elections, the usual game seems to be shifting from blood sport to cold war.
Linda Tripp, #MeToo icon and champion of good government
WASHINGTON — Of all the second acts being performed in American life (remember when Donald Trump supported abortion rights?), there are few as bold as the show Linda Tripp is starring in right now.