Recent Sen. Margaret Chase Smith Commentaries

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The Enemy Within
In 63 BCE, Rome was facing an internal crisis that threatened to destroy the Republic. Roman senator Lucius Sergius Catilina, known as Catiline, was conspiring to overthrow the government. With the help of a coalition of the discontented, his plan included violent uprisings and the assassination of several leading senators and political figures, including Cicero, Rome’s famed philosopher and statesman....
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September 10, 2024
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A Clarion Warning
At a time when trust in Washington leadership is at its lowest point, it’s more vital than ever to revisit the lessons from our past. As a freshman Senator from Maine, a deeply republican state, Margaret Chase Smith had been concerned about Communism’s threat to the United States. However, she had become increasingly troubled about the extremist actions of Senator...
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March 18, 2024
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Dark Times: Past and Present – From McCarthy to Watergate
“The blacklist was a time of evil… [Looking] back on this time…it will do no good to search for villains or heroes or saints or devils because there were none; there were only victims.” – Dalton Trumbo, Laurel Award acceptance speech delivered to the Writers Guild of America West, April 1970. Note: I will be live-streaming, @jimlichtman, on the January 6...
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June 14, 2022

Read Some of the Most Recent Articles
The Latest... And Often Greatest
A Call for Unity
I first heard about John Gilbert Winant several years ago in Concord, New Hampshire, while I was teaching a class on ethics. My co-captain, Professor...
We Remember
On this anniversary of 9/11, let’s take a moment to remember those we lost and honor the heroes who ran toward danger. It was a...
The Enemy Within
In 63 BCE, Rome was facing an internal crisis that threatened to destroy the Republic. Roman senator Lucius Sergius Catilina, known as Catiline, was conspiring...
This is Why I Have Lost All Faith in the Ability of Republicans to Govern
This is Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia addressing his Senate colleagues regarding the proposed Senate Border Security Bill.  » Read more about: This is Why...
A New Pearl of Great Price: Blind Faith in Trump
Legend has it that a man once approached the Jewish sage Hillel the Elder with a challenge: if he could sum up the principles of...
Our Better Angels Better Show Up
A good friend and I have what we call our “Best Friends Thursday” lunches, where we catch up on the events of the day, primarily...