Articles filed under Commentary

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  A Democrat’s letter to Bruce Rauner Nov 28, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Raja Krishnamoorthi Guest columnist Raja Krishnamoorthi: Dear Mr. Rauner: I’m a Democrat, and I supported Pat Quinn in the election. That said, I wish you the best. To that end, I respectfully submit 10 thoughts for your consideration.
  

   

• A Democrat’s letter to Bruce Rauner Nov 28, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Raja Krishnamoorthi Guest columnist Raja Krishnamoorthi: Dear Mr. Rauner: I’m a Democrat, and I supported Pat Quinn in the election. That said, I wish you the best. To that end, I respectfully submit 10 thoughts for your consideration.
  

   

• How lobbyists make the system work for them Nov 27, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Lee Hamilton Columnist Lee Hamilton: Because of its power to influence public affairs, the press has long been known as “the Fourth Estate.” But I think the media may have been displaced. These days, it’s lobbyists who seem to carry the most clout in Washington.
  

   
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  Remembrance of a tragedy also brings hope Nov 26, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Terri Severin Guest columnist Terri Severin: Three weeks ago, I attended the 20th anniversary remembrance of the crash of American Eagle Flight 4184 in Roselawn, Ind., where I lost my sister and 4-year-old nephew. I stood at the roadside memorial in driving sleet and snow accompanied by almost 70 mph winds.
  

   

• Where are the real men on college campuses? Nov 26, 2014 5:01 AM
  BY Richard Cohen Columnist Richard Cohen: Where are the men? I am talking about men who live by a certain code, who know that rape is repugnant, that gang rape is vile and that so-called men who do these things are criminals. I am talking at the moment of the frat boys at the University of Virginia who are accused of raping a young woman. But I am also talking of all those who knew what was happening — at the time or afterward. They are not men, either.
  

   

• Democrats’ path after Obamacare: down, down, down Nov 25, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Byron York Columnist Byron York: Are post-Obamacare Democrats as strongly opposed to changing the law as their colleagues who voted for it? Or are they possibly a little less personally invested in staving off challenges? It’s a question that will be tested in coming months.
  

   

• Dropping the anchor on immigration Nov 25, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Ruban Navarrette Columnist Ruben Navarrette: The politically correct should spend less time telling people what to think and more time forcing themselves to think. Case in point: Immigration reform proponents and other immigrant advocates despise the term “anchor babies” — and with good reason. They hate it when politicians or the media use the phrase, and they will picket, protest or pester anyone who does.
  

   

• Obama abandons the ‘harder path’ Nov 23, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Michael Gerson Columnist Michael Gerson: There are any number of marvelous things one might do as president, if Congress were not such a checked and balanced mess. But future presidents now have a new method at their disposal: Declare a long-running debate to be a national emergency. Challenge Congress, under threat of unilateral executive action, to legislate on the topic before your term runs out. And when lawmakers refuse, act with the most expansive definition of presidential power.
  

   
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  Equal rights for women long overdue Nov 21, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Michelle Fadeley, Carol Heisler and Mary Kubasak Guest columnist Michelle Fadeley: In the summer of 1982 in Illinois, the deadline that required 38 states to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment was quickly approaching. With 35 ratified, Illinois was one of just three more states needed, and arguments were being heard in Springfield. Unfortunately Illinois failed to ratify the amendment that year, the deadline passed, and the United States became one of the only developed countries not to protect all citizens regardless of gender in their Constitution.
  

   

• In appreciation for the daily task facing reporters, editors Nov 20, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Jim Slusher Columnist Jim Slusher: Sometimes writers are asked to pare back their letters to the editor to comply with our 300-word limit. But consider the difficult task reporters face every day to fit their stories to the space allowed.
  

   

• Pope calls for family resurrection Nov 20, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Kathleen Parker Columnist Kathleen Parker: News that Pope Francis will visit the U.S. next year for the triennial World Meeting of Families brings elation to Catholics, excitement to pope watchers — and perhaps a little chagrin to some who too soon interpreted Francis’ broad compassion as a precursor to doctrinal changes related to marriage.
  

   

• Just who is being denied right to vote? Nov 19, 2014 5:01 AM
  A Grayslake letter to the editor: I just read the Nov. 16 column by Catherine Rampell of The Washington Post Writers Group, titled “New voting laws may be deciding some elections.” The implication is that someone working for voter registration facilities denied voter registration to individuals who were legitimately entitled to vote. Specifically, what documents are people being required to produce to prove that they are eligible to vote? I believe that eligibility is based primarily upon U.S. citizenship, minimum age, and then, for state and local purposes, proof of residency.
  

   

• When questions of character mask the message Nov 19, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Richard Cohen Columnist Richard Cohen: Beverly Gage, a Yale historian, was researching a biography of J. Edgar Hoover in the National Archives when she came across the infamous letter the FBI had written to Martin Luther King Jr., outlining in the crudest form his extramarital escapades and suggesting, King concluded, that he kill himself: “There is only one thing left for you to do. You know what it is.” King did nothing, but the FBI acted. It leaked its dirt to the press.
  

   

• Answers to ‘How?’ and ‘What next?’ after election Nov 18, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Paul Green Political columnist Paul Green: The next Illinois General Assembly may be the most important session in recent history. All political spins and clichés aside, the basic answer to Illinois financial/budgetary/pension crisis is coldly simple.
  

   

• The gathering storm in Washington Nov 18, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Michael Gerson Columnist Michael Gerson: After a series of national elections that empowered two parties on an ideological collision course, Americans are about to be treated to a magnified version of everything they hate: overreach, backlash, deadlock, threats and lasting bitterness.
  

   

• The missing students of Mexico Nov 16, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Ruben Navarrette Columnist Ruben Navarrette: NewsMexico is suffering a national tragedy, the details of which make the Day of the Dead look like a walk in the park. And, for some Mexican officials, keeping up with the gruesome details can be exhausting.
  

   

• New voting regulations may be deciding elections Nov 16, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Catherine Rampell Columnist Catherine Rampell: Voter suppression efforts may have changed the outcomes of some of the closest races this month. And if the Supreme Court lets these laws stand, they will continue to distort election results going forward.
  

   
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  Closing of nuclear plants a mistake Nov 14, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Stanford L. Levin Guest columnist Stanford Levin: Early closing of well-operating nuclear power plants, including some of those operated by Exelon in Illinois, is bad for the environment, will cost Illinois a number of high-paying jobs and substantial amounts of local tax revenue, and will in the end raise electricity prices for Illinois businesses and residents.
  

   

• Closing of nuclear plants a mistake Nov 14, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Stanford L. Levin Guest columnist Stanford Levin: Early closing of well-operating nuclear power plants, including some of those operated by Exelon in Illinois, is bad for the environment, will cost Illinois a number of high-paying jobs and substantial amounts of local tax revenue, and will in the end raise electricity prices for Illinois businesses and residents.
  

   

• Rising, but bringing everyone else along Nov 13, 2014 5:01 AM
  By Michael Gerson Columnist Michael Gerson: Gov. John Kasich of Ohio deserves the award for best performance in a battleground state. It helps, of course, to have a flawed Democratic opponent. Yet Kasich won a majority of union voters, three-fifths of women voters, a majority of voters under 30, two-thirds of independents, and a quarter of African-American voters.