Category: Column

Though everyone is talking about Democratic strategist and Obama confidant Hilary Rosen’s insolent remarks about Ann Romney, I want to discuss them, too, because they reveal her leftist mindset. Rosen didn’t misspeak; she spoke deliberately and with passion. And when given a chance to retract or soften her remarks, she doubled down — at least […]

The poobahs of our popular culture never seem happy unless they’re taking entertainment down to the “next level” of deviancy. When they undertake remakes of Hollywood classics — especially the comedies — that’s when you see how far we’ve fallen. The forthcoming modern-day adaptation of “The Three Stooges” isn’t going to be a celebration of […]

In a fast-changing world, a common mistake is to keep fighting the last war. For example, why would Republicans support sending more troops to Afghanistan, when that war was long over, or helping topple Moammar Gadhafi, who had become an ally in the war on terrorism? Some Republicans seem to support all military deployments just […]

In 2008, a mostly unknown Barack Obama ran for president on an inclusive agenda of “hope and change.” That upbeat message was supposed to translate into millions of green jobs, fiscal sobriety, universal health care, a resetting of Bush foreign policy, and racial unity. Four years later, none of those promises will be themes of […]

“I don’t know any polite way of putting this — but he’s lying,” said professor John Ellis, president of the National Association of Scholars’ California division. Ellis was reacting to a critic’s characterization of the NAS’s damning report, “A Crisis of Competence: The Corrupting Effect of Political Activism in the University of California.” California taxpayers […]

Most campaigns have a musical theme. Rick Santorum, who “suspended” his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination on Tuesday, might have selected the song “The Impossible Dream.” Santorum’s dream seemed improbable, if not impossible, from the start. He lost his last Senate race and had been out of office — and out of mind — […]

“Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola is a big shot — and not just in the film world. As a vintner and restaurateur, Coppola apparently sees himself as the: capo di tutti capi: — the boss of all bosses — who owns the Italian dictionary. Last year, Coppola won a U.S. trademark for the phrase “a tavola” — […]

Immediately after his astonishing finish in the Iowa Caucuses (which he turned out to have won), Rick Santorum could have won the nomination and the presidency. But he got lost in the Evangelical Ghetto. Short of money and needing an organization, Santorum grabbed the support offered by the Christian right. Suddenly, he had available to […]

Now that Rick Santorum has “suspended” his campaign, we can stop pretending and can say what has been clear for weeks: Mitt Romney will be the Republican nominee for president. The general election campaign has begun. In some quarters, it is assumed that Barack Obama will be re-elected without too much difficulty. There are reports […]

For months, we’ve heard the chattering class tell us that Mitt Romney was the only acceptable Republican nominee. He was the only candidate who could beat Barack Obama; he was the only one smart enough, savvy enough, and milquetoast enough to defeat Obama in a general election. While Newt Gingrich was too hot and Rick […]

Let’s stipulate: Activists on the left are free to exercise their rights of speech and assembly to boycott businesses whose politics they oppose. Conversely, activists on the right are free to exercise the power of their pocketbooks and refrain from supporting businesses that shun their values. So, what are you waiting for, conservatives? There are […]

I’m suspicious of superstitions, like astrology or the belief that “green jobs will fix the environment and the economy.” I understand the appeal of such beliefs. People crave simple answers and want to believe that some higher power determines our fates. The most socially destructive superstition of all is the intuitively appealing belief that problems […]

When NBC’s “Today” show played the audio of George Zimmerman’s call to a Sanford, Fla., police dispatcher about Trayvon Martin, the editors made him appear to be a racist who says: “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.” What Zimmerman actually said was: “This guy looks like he’s up to […]

President Barack Obama kicked off his re-election campaign in earnest this week with a stirring message of hope and unity for the American people: Eat the rich! According to media reports, “fairness” will be one of the central messages of the entire Obama campaign. So fittingly, the Senate will pretend to vote on the Paying […]

The news is stuffed with “studies” in which “experts” tell us how we should behave. One recently found that conservatives have lost their trust in science over the last 40 years. That’s probably because the very political academics of science are routinely summoned to prove the right-wingers are not only wrong but dangerously wrong and […]

This man I’ve been dating didn’t want anything serious. I don’t either. I explained that I just wanted to hang out and have fun. We were going out several times a week, sleeping together at least once a week. Suddenly, he freaked, worrying I’d get attached. I reinforced that I absolutely don’t want anything serious, […]

In his Wisconsin victory speech last Tuesday, Mitt Romney said, “Washington has to become an ally of business, not the opposition of business.” This to me is a more worrisome statement than his communications advisor’s gaffe about Etch A Sketches or Romney’s shout-out to NASCAR team owners. Over the last few years, the country has […]

By now you’ve likely heard about the infamous Las Vegas convention bash during which federal civil servants at the General Services Administration indulged in various frivolities to the tune of $823,000 of your money. That conference featured, among other things, a hired professional clown — which is like Picasso hiring some guy from out of […]

On June 1 one year, my wife and I checked into a beautiful resort hotel at about 6:30 p.m. and were greeted with enthusiasm, courtesy and efficiency, and given tickets for a complimentary continental breakfast. We went to our suite, freshened up and enjoyed a marvelous dinner, then had a wonderful night’s sleep. The next […]

Random thoughts on the passing scene: How long do politicians have to keep on promising heaven and delivering hell before people catch on, and stop getting swept away by rhetoric? Why should being in a professional sport exempt anyone from prosecution for advocating deliberate violence? Recent revelations of such advocacy of violence by an NFL […]

In my column two weeks ago, “Not All Presidential Orders Are Created Equal,” I discussed some specifics in President Barack Obama’s March 16 executive order, “National Defense Resources Preparedness,” and how it is a completely audacious overreach of presidential power, especially enacting peacetime martial law. Here I will discuss why analysts are wrong for simply […]

Can anyone think of an innocuous reason that President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder oppose state voter ID laws? Obama and Holder appear to view almost everything through the prism of race or, at the very least, use race as an excuse to justify otherwise very dubious policies, from immigration enforcement to voter […]

In light of the tragic killing of black teenager Trayvon Martin — and the manufactured hysteria surrounding it — one thing needs to be stated as clearly and as often as possible: The United States is the least racist and least xenophobic country in the world. Foreigners of every race, ethnicity, and religion know this. […]

As President Barack Obama’s re-election strategy takes shape before our eyes, it appears to involve several key elements: 1. Do not run on your record; run as if there were no incumbent. 2. Stress class warfare, negatives and fear of GOP cuts. 3. Subsume negatives about his record in a miasma of general pessimism. (Medicare […]

President Barack Obama chastised the media last week. “I think that there is oftentimes the impulse to suggest that if the two parties are disagreeing, then they’re equally at fault and the truth lies somewhere in the middle,” the president chided those attending the American Society of Newspaper Editors luncheon. Obama also claimed that he […]

BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Here, where Titanic, the massive White Star Line luxury liner, was built — the joke for years has been, “It was fine when it left here.” This year marks the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the ship “Not even God himself could sink….” and the centenary is being observed in […]