Opinion

Thomas Jefferson Street Blog

Wit and wisdom from all sides of the political spectrum.

 
Susan Milligan »
Oklahoma Tornado Reminds Us of the Value of Teachers Yesterday

A teacher's job used to entail, well, teaching. Kids went to class and were expected to listen to their teachers' lessons and to do their homework. Parents were expected to make sure kids got to school ready to learn, and to make sure that the youngsters did their part in getting an education, such as paying attention in class and completing their work.

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Clark S. Judge »
IRS, AP and James Rosen Scandals Strike at the First Amendment Yesterday

It has been a bad few weeks for the First Amendment.

The sinister commonality to the Internal Revenue Service and AP scandals and the James Rosen affair is that each appears to have been (strike "appears ": each was) an attempt to suppress a core American right.

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Boris Epshteyn »
Anthony Weiner Is Too Liberal to Be New York City Mayor Yesterday

The last time New York City elected a Democrat mayor was in 1989 – that was David Dinkins, whose stint was an unmitigated disaster.

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Jamie Chandler »
Organizations Masquerading as Tax-Exempt is the Real IRS Scandal May 22, 2013

In September 1802, journalist James Callender published the first of a series of articles detailing a long-term affair between President Thomas Jefferson and his household slave Sally Hemings. The story was a sensational revelation that definitively fit the definition of political scandal: The exposure of corruption, illegal or unethical practices, or a moral violation committed by public officials. Jefferson broke 19th century norms of anti-miscegenation by committing racial admixture.

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Pat Garofalo »
E.W. Jackson Proves the Tea Party Learned Nothing May 22, 2013

You'd think the conservative base would have learned its lesson in 2010, when, in a fever pitch of epic magnitude, it nominated Christine O'Donnell, Ken Buck, Sharron Angle and Joe Miller to run for the U.S. Senate. Suddenly, what looked like a prime opportunity for Republicans to flip the upper chamber and send Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., packing turned into an example of a party letting its base lead where the rest of America dared not follow. Or perhaps in 2012, when Indiana Senate nominee Richard Mourdock was sunk by an extremely ill-advised and incorrect rape comment.

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Peter Fenn »
IRS, AP and Benghazi Are Not Obama Scandals May 22, 2013

I have to confess that I am the only Washington political junkie who has not watched the series "Scandal," or even the much acclaimed "House of Cards." Maybe that makes me not competent to comment on what is going on in Washington these days – IRS, Benghazi, Associated Press reporters tracked. I hope not.

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Q&A

Why a College Degree May Not Be Worth It

Former U.S. Secretary of Education William Bennett explains why a college degree may not be worth the cost.

Two-Party Politics Is Failing the U.S.

Professor Charles Wheelan explains how centrists could change the Senate landscape.

The Rover Has Landed

NASA scientist Roger Wiens talks about the role Mars Rover Curiosity plays in the future of space exploration.

World Report

A Hasty Rapprochement With Burma

Obama has to demand that Burma forge ahead with democratic reforms.

Economic Intelligence

Antitrust Regulation Is Like Football

Having antitrust referees bog down Google in antitrust disputes benefits no one.

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Robert Schlesinger

An End to the NRA’s Angry Swagger

Polls show that overwhelming majorities of Americans, and even of NRA members, favor universal background checks.

Mary Kate Cary

Washington’s Toxic Stew

President Obama's burgeoning problems affect more than this week’s three scandals.

Mort Zuckerman

Meeting the Growing Threat of Cyberattacks

We have yet to establish security standards to prevent large-scale cyberattacks on the nation’s critical infrastructure.

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