Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

“Should Democrats Trade the Southern Border for Ukraine?”

Just before Christmas 2023, I posted a partial of a Thom Hartmann commentary (reader: Jim Han suggestion), a radio personality, is liberal or progressive in his beliefs, and has other sides of politics, etc. on his radio broadcasts. Yes, he makes money by having his views and discussing other views on his show. I am […]

Immigration and the politics of compromise

One of my themes here has been that the Biden administration and congressional Democrats should actively and publicly seek compromise with Republicans.  The events this week illustrate the logic of compromise clearly.  The perceived crisis on the southern border was probably the biggest single threat to Biden’s re-election, or at least the biggest threat that […]

Why does the GOP hate capitalism?

From a comment thread over at jabberwocking.com: “The walls are more a sign of desperation than power. A better way is to fix Central America so there is a larger buffer between the US and the problems in South America. Fixing includes making conditions in the continent prosperous enough for all that we don’t have […]

The Bipartisan Military Aid and Border Security Bill Appears to be Dead. What now ?

The Republican Party has demonstrated it’s subservience to Donald Trump and rejection of policy making as such. In a sane country, this would doom the party to a very long period in opposition, but I am a citizen of the country I have not the country I want. I think the issues are well known, […]

At least today, things are looking up for the Democrats

Haley  Nikki Haley is staying in the race for the Republican nomination, at least for now.    Why?  If she only cares about becoming president, this year could be her best shot even with Trump way ahead of her in the polls.  Trump may be convicted or become incapacitated, and she could win the nomination as […]

Getting control of the border

The single most significant thing Republicans could do to reduce undocumented immigration is to require E-Verify for all hires and jail employers who don’t use it or who hire in spite of it. Why not use this? “At the same time, ordinary economic migrants could be most effectively dealt with via E-Verify. If you make […]

What happened at the Texas Border January 13

Texas took it upon themselves to guard the border and not allow the Border Patrol entry to Shelby Park, a 47-acre Texas public park. The Border Patrol typically apprehends people crossing the river at that point. Texas/US military soldiers were sent to the area to block any migrants from crossing the river. A group of […]

trump aligning supporters with global far-right movement to destroy democracy

December 17, 2023, Letters from an American, Prof. Heather Cox Richardson It seems that former president Donald Trump is aligning his supporters with a global far-right movement to destroy democracy.  On Saturday, in Durham, New Hampshire, Trump echoed Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s attacks on immigrants, saying they are “poisoning the blood of our country”—although two […]