Tag Archives: Donald Trump

What Pope Francis, President Trump and Senate President Troy Jackson have in common

There is a wisp of commonality between Pope Francis, President Donald Trump, and Maine Senate President Troy Jackson. Whether this is a ray of hope or a natural sign of the end times is an open question. The Pope’s Easter message to members of Popular Movements made headlines worldwide for its apparent embrace of a […]

The world was a better place with the Patriots in the Super Bowl

I think this is the Patriots’ fault. Seriously. During the first three years of Donald Trump’s presidency, the New England Patriots represented the AFC in the Super Bowl.  There was plenty of craziness arising in the American political system during that time. However, it all seemed … manageable. So this year? Our hometown team didn’t […]

Infrastructure funding will determine whether Maine is not Washington

Well, at the very least, things are consistent. Just over a year ago, I wrote that Democrats — in Augusta and Washington — are a study in contrasts. It’s still true today. In the past 10 days, we saw two traditional ceremonies take place. In our nation’s capital, a procession of House Democrats marched to […]

All impeachment outcomes are bad for Democrats

It’s impeachment time. The House of Representatives now has before it Articles of Impeachment against President Donald Trump. There are two possible results — the articles pass, or they fail. If they pass, then focus turns to the United States Senate. The Senate — surprisingly to some — has three possible options. They could fail […]

When can a death overcome partisanship?

A wonderful thing happened last weekend. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the “caliph” of the Islamic State, was killed in an overnight raid by American special forces. That is a tough thing to write. Death is generally not something that should be celebrated, even when the deceased is about as close to evil incarnate as you might […]

People like Tom Brady because he’s the GOAT, not because he’s white

Sometimes people take sports way too seriously. It is a longstanding human failing. Some of the bloodiest riots of antiquity — the Nika riots — arose in part because of chariot team affiliations. Plenty of American cities have erupted following championships won by the hometown team, and soccer hooliganism causes violence at games throughout Europe. […]

Impeachment only comes before investigation in the dictionary

Aye, yai, yai. Politicians love “I” words. President Barack Obama was famously fond of “I, I, I.” It was a popular game in conservative news outlets to count the number of self-referencing statements in his speeches. In his first State of the Union address, Obama referred to himself 98 times. President  Donald Trump scored a […]

Can a license to drive be a license to own a gun?

I trust Matt Dunlap more than Donald Trump and Barack Obama. This isn’t personal; it’s just his job. Maine’s elected officials are more responsive to the needs of our state than a far-off federal government in Washington. That is true regardless of who resides in the White House at any given time. But maybe Secretary […]

Compromise isn’t always a good thing

Compromise. It’s one of those magical words in politics. It is used as a paean to unity and a sword with which to cut through partisanship. Everything would get better if we just … compromised. It is never quite that easy. We kicked off Maine’s bicentennial celebration this past week. July 26 was the anniversary of […]