Robert Marbut on America’s Homelessness Crisis, Strategies for Uplifting the Homeless, and Effective Government Policies
Jailing Tom Stewart won’t help clean up politics
Americans have decided, if the polls are right, that the most important issue facing this country is campaign finance reform. But the polls probably are not right, reflecting, as they do, the media’s priorities and the lack of any military or economic bad news. This may be a case where the survey respondents are trying to guess the answer that Read More ›
Founding Fathers figured America needed a census it could count on
When the public sees evidence of election fraud–as in the Louisiana and California Congressional races last fall–confidence in the root integrity of democracy is threatened. But imagine what would happen if the whole US statistical system, including the population count upon which Congress itself is apportioned, and by which billions of dollars of federal programs are allocated, became suspect. Such Read More ›
‘Dream’ vacation bought and $pent in White House
It was a year ago when my wife and I began thinking of taking a vacation trip to our nation’s capital. A friendly fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee recommended lodging in the center of town in order to be close to the sights. And what could be more convenient–or more secure–than The White House? Tennis, swimming, excellent food, fine Read More ›
Post-election stalemate could be the moment for Social Security reform
An almost evenly divided federal government is the main product of the Great Stalemate Election of 1996. Either the two parties now will pursue their aims through more fruitless confrontations or they will seek out at least a few areas where statesmanship might serve the best interests of both. The toughness legislative problems facing the country may be Medicare and Read More ›
Drug woe answers don’t lie with cartoon–or cartoonists
Garry Trudeau, creator of the comic-strip Doonesbury, is one of your star Boomer celebrities, a self-appointed guru of perpetual ’60s cool. It was Trudeau who invented the jaunty Mr. Butts character that mocks the tobacco companies and the politicians who take their contributions. Today Mr. Butts figures haunt only Republican rallies, despite the annoying fact from the National Library on Read More ›
Whitewater torture: Prosecute or drop it before Election Day
Ted Van Dyk is a former Washington State resident and a Democrat of national pedigree, who once served as an aide to Vice President Hubert Humphrey, later ran a Democratic policy center and advised Sen. Paul Tsongas in his 1992 presidential bid. These days he gazes balefully over developments in the Whitewater scandal as described in the newspapers that arrive Read More ›
Potential voters are challenged to take a shot at contemporary politics
Here is a test of common sense opinions on contemporary politics. Write true or false next to each item and, at the end, see how you scored, Results: The correct answer for each question is “True,” except for the last, number 10-, which is definitely false (Tsk, tsk. Common sense must hold to standard English, even in vernacular speech–just assign Read More ›
Fix presidential nominating process for the year 2000 now
The prevailing mood of the Republican presidential nominating process is still one of irritated reluctance, like that of singers being awakened to go on stage at 5 a.m.–and an audience being forced to attend the performance. This show started too early. We also are witnessing the infamous law of unintended consequences as it snaps back in the faces of the Read More ›