“To meet the challenge of our times, so that we can later look back upon this era not as one of which we need be ashamed but as a turning point on the way to a better America, we must first defeat the enemy within.”—Robert F. Kennedy How close did we come to the end of American democracy on January...

On February 9, 1950, Senator Joseph R. McCarthy stood before the County Women’s Republican Club in West Virginia and stated, “I have here in my hand a list of 205 [State Department employees] that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy of the...

There’s a scene in the movie, The Princess Bride, where the undaunted hero—with all the kindness, smartness, and decency required of heroes—is doing what heroes do: saving his beloved Buttercup from kidnappers. At one point, he chases them to the Cliffs of Insanity, a rocky crag so high and so treacherous it makes Yosemite’s El Capitan look like a picnic....

CNN’s Chris Cuomo Prime Time offered a mix of news, interviews, and insights into politics and how those in power work the levers of power in Washington. He often reserved his harshest assessment of others for a segment called, “Let’s Get After It!” His approach throughout was straightforward as he fearlessly held political figures accountable, and on more than one...

What do these four things have in common: money, status, power and politics? “Gamal Abdelaziz, a former hotel and casino executive is accused of paying $300,000 to get his daughter admitted to the University of Southern California as a basketball player based on false qualifications. “John Wilson, a private equity executive, is accused of paying $220,000 to get his son...

Jeffrey Wigand and Frances Haugen have two things in common. Both blew the whistle on impropriety within their respective companies, and both appeared on the news show, 60 Minutes to tell their stories. At the social media company, Facebook, Haugen—with a degree in computer engineering, and a master’s degree in business from Harvard—has 15 years experience in the computer world...

Denial tells the story of American Holocaust studies professor Deborah Lipstadt who is sued for libel by David Irving when she declares in lectures and writings that he’s a fervent Holocaust denier. The film takes a turn when Lipstadt discovers that in the UK the accused has the burden of proof, meaning that Lipstadt’s legal team must prove that Irving...

In 2005, I was speaking to a group of teachers, students, administrators and alumni at the Penn State Forum. During the Q&A that followed, one audience member asked, “if you only had five minutes to speak with the president of the United States, what would you tell him?” “Only five minutes?” I said. Even though I had not meant it...

“Terror is nothing other than prompt, severe, inflexible justice.” – Robespierre While the French revolutionary’s words ignited an uprising that ultimately overturned the despotic empire of Louis XVI and opened France to new age, his words resonate today, but not in the way he originally intended. Today, we have our own King Louis who is supposed to be in former...

Standing before a judge to fight a traffic ticket was a matter of principle to me. Embed from Getty Images Back in my college days I was helping a friend move. I had loaded up my car with boxes and was waiting for her to come down, get in her car so I could follow her to a new apartment....