Voting Rights Act needs help 0
It’s been 48 years since the Voting Rights Act was signed into law. And now it’s in jeopardy. On August 6, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act and said, “There is no room for injustice anywhere in the American mansion.” In the 48 years since its enactment, the Voting Rights Act has […]
Read MoreWHAT A WEEK! 0
Every once in a while, the United States Supreme Court decides a landmark case that changes the course of American history. For the nine justices, “every once in a while” suddenly became four times in a single week. In the past seven days, the Supreme Court resolved four blockbuster cases — and each one raised […]
Read MoreIn Zimmerman case, doing what’s right not just about law 0
Like so many others, I am distraught. It will take many days to sort through my feelings and reactions to the verdict of not guilty in the Trayvon Martin case. Still, some thoughts and lessons are obvious, immediate and, in a sense, imperative. First, those who delight in the verdict are wrong. There is no […]
Read MoreEqual Love Under the Law 0
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality this week. Marriage is an institution for humans. It is intended for two people who love one another, who want to commit to lifetime bonding as mates, and to form a family, whether it’s only the two of them, or also includes children. The traditional concept […]
Read MoreCongress, give us new Voting Rights Act 0
In an earthshaking 1965 speech to Congress and to the nation, President Lyndon Johnson spoke directly to the sinister forces that had restricted black Americans’ right to vote across the South — laying out the goals of the Voting Rights Act in the form of a command to this shameful cabal. “Open your polling places […]
Read MoreHILLARY STILL A SUPERSTAR 0
At the Clinton Global Initiative in Chicago, an interviewer asked Bill Clinton, “Before I let you go, any chance that we might see another Clinton in the White House?” The audience chuckled and the former president got an impish look on his face. “Chelsea’s still too young,” he grinned. It’s no joke, though, that the […]
Read MoreAbortion bill sponsor said what? 0
The stupidity is simply staggering,” Rep. Charlie Dent, a moderate Republican from Pennsylvania, told Roll Call. He was referring to the political miscalculation of anti-abortion forces in the House Judiciary Committee who insisted this week on reviving the culture wars, years behind us, still again, with yet another proposed abortion bill. This bill, championed by […]
Read MoreTwo different marriage bans, both wrong 0
Today is the 46th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that declared unconstitutional any ban on interracial marriage. More than four decades after the historic and aptly named Loving decision, the U.S. Supreme Court is once again poised to rule in a case that could put an end to discriminatory […]
Read MoreVoters Are Open to Act Two 0
I found myself debating this in my mind last night after seeing this tweet: “Sanford returns to Congress and Weiner runs for Mayor.” I was working on Capitol Hill the day Marion Barry was re-elected. A colleague of mine was reading The Washington Post’s account and let out a whoop. “I love this country, I […]
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