That title is not hyperbole —it’s a reflection of a reality too many dismiss as over the top. Democracy depends on reason—on the willingness of citizens and leaders alike to engage honestly, argue respectfully, and govern responsibly. It’s the democracy I studied in high school and college, reading The Federalist Papers, Alexis de Tocqueville, and Thomas Paine. It’s a system...

I’ve been looking back at history for moments when leadership wasn’t just a word, it was a responsibility carried with humility and moral strength. It’s easy to talk about leadership when the outcome is victory. The harder truth—the one that defines real character—is how a leader responds when the stakes are high, and the outcome is uncertain. Dwight D. Eisenhower...

A timely Opinion piece in The New York Times by David French sheds greater light on why so many Evangelical Christians fervently believe in Donald Trump. In 1998, during the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, Evangelical leaders issued a public statement declaring that “character counts” and that “the President’s personal morality is not private.” The message was clear: integrity matters—especially for those who...

Published in 1937, Walter Lippmann’s An Inquiry into the Principles of the Good Society feels especially relevant today, given the current state of politics. Lippmann was a standard-bearer of the hope for a better American society, and his insights on leadership and the moral compass that should guide public life are spot on. An astute observer of the political landscape,...

With America and the world mired in chaos and conflict, a symbol of hope rises like a phoenix at Notre Dame Cathedral after a fire nearly destroyed the 860-year-old limestone landmark. In 860 years, Notre Dame has survived the War of the Roses, and witnessed the Russo-Turkish War, the Napoleonic and Yugoslav Wars, the Hundred Years’ War (116 years), World...

Both willfully compromised the US Secret Service. Among the egregious behaviors former President Donald Trump inflicted on democracy was utilizing, to his own ends, a federal agency whose mandate was the nonpartisan protective mission of the Secret Service. During his time in office, it was axiomatic that anyone in Trump’s orbit faced a Hobson’s choice: loyalty to Trump or the...

“Hang Mike Pence! Hang Mike Pence!” —insurrectionist shouts during the attack of the U.S Capitol on January 6th. “We don’t want you to think of Lexi as just a number. She was intelligent, compassionate, and athletic. She was quiet, shy unless she had a point to make.” —Kimberly Rubio, mother of Lexi Rubio—one of 21 killed in a school shooting...

“A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom. But the tumult soon subsides. Time makes more converts than reason.” In the depths of the Revolutionary War, George Washington’s troops struggled with disease, hunger, and defeat. What Washington needed was a...

“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York.” —Richard III, Act I, sc. 1 In March 1954, Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson spoke to a crowd of supporters about the poison that had infected much of the American public by a demagogic United States Senator. “We are witnessing the bitter harvest from the...

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way.” — John Maxwell, American clergyman Liz Cheney is smart, disciplined, honest and fearless. A rock-sold Republican from Wyoming, Cheney is one of only two House Republicans who sit on the House panel investigating the January 6 insurrection. Adam Kinzinger is the other. However, it is...