By now, presidential candidate Donald Trump’s principal success has been in branding his behavior as relentlessly rude, crude and uncurbed, believing he can bully and badger his way to the White House. And when it comes to the facts, he doesn’t just play fast and loose, he just plain ignores them. Trump likes to use the word “fabulous” in describing...

“It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.”  – St. Augustine Before his elevation to the head of the Catholic Church, Jorge Bergoglio began as a Jesuit priest from Argentina. Since his investiture as Pope in 2013, following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis — in honor of Francis of...

In Monday’s commentary (Those Clinton Emails), I began looking at the continuing issue regarding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. The fallout from inconsistent information from the Democratic candidate has caused her poll numbers to drop and led to a loss of trustworthiness among potential voters. But what’s the genesis of this controversy? Wikipedia...

When a gay couple asked Rowan Country Clerk Kim Davis on who’s authority she was acting when she declined to issue the couple a marriage certificate, she responded “under God’s Authority.” As a consequence, Federal Judge David L. Bunning jailed Davis after refusing to follow the orders of the court and her duty as an elected county official. According to...

How many ways can Donald Trump embarrass the American political process and the Republican Party? (He’s clearly immune from embarrassing himself.) Let’s count the ways: “He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.” — Trump referencing Senator John McCain who spent more than five years as a POW...

Before leaving on summer vacation, I thought I’d leave on a high note. While the majority of Congress has been stuck in perpetual partisan gridlock, it might surprise you to know that there are a group of Senators who are getting things done and… they’re all women. Chief among them are Senators Claire McCaskill, Amy Klobuchar, Kelly Ayotte and Shelley...

Ladies and gentlemen, gracious readers of this website, I have the distinct pleasure to announce that the most forthright, magnanimous, trustworthy, humble, most noble… …Oh, hell, I can’t do it. I’m sorry, Donald, I’m returning your check. I just can’t vouch for your character. In case you’ve been cocooned from radio, TV, the internet, social media, or social friends for...

The style, the affairs, to be sure, but President John F. Kennedy also got much more right than some give him credit for. Looking through the lens of those who were there at the time, one inconsistency was brought to light by journalist David Talbot for a TIME magazine cover story from 2007. This remarkably perceptive story discusses Kennedy in...

I’m always amazed at events honoring the day a renowned individual died versus celebrating what he or she stood for while they were alive. Certainly, such is the case with Abraham Lincoln who died at the hands of an assassin 150 years ago this month. There is, however, little doubt that Lincoln, although frequently referenced as our greatest president, was...

Prejudice has a cunning way of working itself into the smallest of crevices and then gradually expanding. The latest political firestorm surrounds Indiana Governor Mike Pence who last Thursday, signed into law what he and others in the state’s legislature labeled “religious freedom.” No sooner had the governor made his announcement then an avalanche of protests began regarding the fact...