Columns

Offenders should still be treated with humanity

WASHINGTON — An administration not known for policy creativity is unlikely to have useful internal policy debates. But in the Trump administration, prison reform is a welcome exception. This is

A Massachusetts liberal for president?

Could Elizabeth Warren be nominated for president? There are plenty of establishment Democrats who are worried. I know the answer: Yes. Can a Massachusetts liberal win the general election? That’s

WRITERS ON THE RANGE: The 98th meridian

THE WEST Like a scourge, increasing aridity is hurtling eastward across the land. According to a report from John Wesley Powell that was submitted to Congress 140 years ago, the

Foretelling a catastrophic meeting with Putin?

“There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea.” — Donald Trump, June 13, 2018 “North Korea is upgrading its nuclear research center at a rapid pace, new satellite

What a divided party can do

The Red Hen reminded me. “Don’t tell anyone you work for Carter,” the volunteer who met me at the Florida airport whispered to me. I’m sure I looked shocked. Carter

Conservatives might thank God for Kennedy

WASHINGTON — As many conservatives saw it, Justice Anthony Kennedy’s 1988 ascent to the nation’s highest bench was reason for only muted celebration, if any, because he settled into the

The Max vs. The Don

WASHINGTON — If I were a cartoonist ..., I would often say to my friend Doug Marlette, the Pulitzer Prizewinning editorial cartoonist who died 11 years ago. He’d listen patiently

Shut up, they explain

I’m not surprised that mobs shriek at Trump administration officials in restaurants and that Maxine Waters wants more of that. I’ve watched this happen at American colleges. One example: Heather

Welfare for coal and nuclear power

The Trump administration just sent a tsunami through America’s electrical energy world when a leaked memo revealed that it had a new plan to shovel millions of dollars to the

The crying-child Rorschach

WASHINGTON — Is there a psychiatrist in the house? Like so many Americans, this columnist longs for the voice of another, the great and good Charles Krauthammer, who died last