As I write this commentary, I’m watching Chief Justice John Roberts ask all 100 Senators to stand and take a special oath for the Impeachment Trial of President Trump. “Do you solemnly swear that in all things appertaining to the trial of the impeachment of Donald John Trump, president of the United States, now pending, you will do impartial justice according...

(With apologies to Stephen Vincent Benét) It’s a story they tell about a land that occupied the smallest place in a once powerful nation. Now, all that power was concentrated in one spot and one group whose fear of losing their authority was so great that they succumbed to the most corrupt individual between heaven and earth. So powerful, they...

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”   — George Santayana, Spanish philosopher At the most critical juncture of the Cuban Missile Crisis, President Kennedy was facing the very real possibility of nuclear war with Russia. In a speech to the American people, Kennedy details the crisis and expresses his desire for full and complete denuclearization....

As a New York Times editorial (Jan. 3), cogently puts it: “The real question to ask about the American drone attack that killed Major General Qassim Suleimani was not whether it was justified, but whether it was wise.” Several years ago at Christmas time, I gave some money to a homeless man sitting in front of the local post office....

We’re all looking for positive stories. This editorial — from The New York Times, Sunday March 7, 1954, under the title, “The ‘Positive’ Story” — is more a warning to President Eisenhower, and offers many parallels to today’s headlines. What many were unaware at the time, Eisenhower had already begun a stealth campaign against the demagogic Senator Joseph R. McCarthy,...

“When you are a leader and every week you have young people demonstrating with such a message, you cannot remain neutral… They helped me change.” – Emmanuel Macron, president of France At 16, climate activist Greta Thunberg is the youngest to ever have been selected as TIME magazine’s “Person of the Year.” “We cannot just continue living as if there...

Arriving early for a Christmas event, I sat down with Mr. and Mrs. Claus, also early arrivals. “Jim,” Mrs. Claus says, “We’re walking up the street to Starbucks for some hot chocolate, wanna come? “Okay,” I said. As soon as we walk into an airy merry night, Santa is immediately met with smiles, handshakes and requests for photos from teens,...

This is not about Democrats vs. Republicans; this is about Right vs. Wrong. America used to be the standard of moral behavior: liberty; justice for all; freedom of religion, press; human rights. While we haven’t always been perfect, we constantly strive toward a more perfect union. On the other end of the continuum, we have one individual who — abetted...

The whistleblower was not in on the call. It was hearsay. “Everything Trump says was in the best interests of the country.” No due process. Secret basement meetings (with Republicans in attendance). “The Ukrainian president didn’t do the investigation… No quid pro quo.” “Was there a quid pro quo?” E.U. Ambassador Gordon Sondland asked rhetorically, testifying before the House committee....

“These are the times that try men’s souls.” – Thomas Paine, English-born, American philosopher and activist. Taken from Paine’s essay, The Crisis, those words were meant to inspire American revolutionaries as they faced an extraordinary moment of character. Considering our current crisis, what Paine writes next is worth reflection. “The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will,  » Read more about:...