Opinion
Independent authors cover the political spectrum and perspectives. Authors share their opinion on a wide range of topics on local, state, and national issues. Articles in this category express the opinions of our contributors, not IVN as a whole.
Don’t Blame Trump for Playing the Gerrymandering Game So Loudly
Gerrymandering wasn’t invented by Trump. It predates most states in the union. It’s named after Elbridge Gerry, who sliced up Massachusetts in 1812 to help his party, leaving behind a district so distorted it looked like a salamander....
08 Aug, 2025
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3 min read
Hate Gerrymandering? Let’s Start Voting in Primaries
Responding to pressure from President Trump, Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the Republican-controlled legislature are moving forward with a plan to redraw their district lines in advance of the 2026 midterms. Democrats are contemplating how to fight back and blunt any gains the GOP makes in Texas by conducting their own gerrymanders in New York, Illinois, and California. ...
07 Aug, 2025
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4 min read
'We Don’t Have a King': Hollywood Fires Back at Trump Over Attacks on Free Press
In a sharply worded letter released this week, more than 2,300 members of the Writers Guild of America accused President Donald Trump and his allies of launching an organized campaign to suppress independent media. The letter, which was signed by a wide range of television and film writers, from high-profile showrunners to political satirists and screenwriters, calls recent events an “unprecedented, authoritarian assault” on the First Amendment....
07 Aug, 2025
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4 min read
From Relief to Rage: $100M FireAid Concert Engulfed in Political Scandal
It seems we can’t even have a $100 million benefit concert without inviting partisan bickering. What began as an urgent and well-intentioned philanthropic effort to help victims of two catastrophic fires has turned into another political fight between the two major political parties....
05 Aug, 2025
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10 min read
DC Dems to Independent Voters: You Don’t Matter
The DC City Council had one final opportunity to fund a provision approved by 73% of city voters in November that would open primary elections to 83,000+ independent voters – and the Democratic-controlled body elected instead not to honor the will of voters....
29 Jul, 2025
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2 min read
Michael Smerconish Leads Lawsuit Against Both Political Parties
CNN host Michael Smerconish is a Pennsylvania voter who is denied access to taxpayer-funded primaries because he is a registered non-party affiliate (independent). He is also one of the plaintiffs in a new lawsuit challenging his state’s use of closed primaries. ...
22 Jul, 2025
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1 min read
Will Politics Kill Late Night TV?
Stephen Colbert’s Late Show is ending after nearly a decade at the top of the ratings. CBS insists this is a financial decision. Of course, everyone else is wondering if something more political may be at play. And the President of the United States is celebrating the news. Donald Trump took to Truth Social to cheer Colbert's upcoming exit....
18 Jul, 2025
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3 min read
Mamdani, Lander, and Other Partisan Extremists Just Took a Bite Out of NYC’s Democracy
The partisans, unions, and party bosses have won again. Independents, veterans, working people, young people and democracy have lost again. ...
18 Jul, 2025
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2 min read
Trump and Newsom Engage in War to See Who Can Offend Voters the Most
President Donald Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom are escalating a partisan tug-of-war match — each threatening to manipulate electoral maps for short-term advantage. However, their proposals are receiving significant pushback from voters, election reform advocates, even members of their own parties....
17 Jul, 2025
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4 min read
Unlikely Bedfellows: The Strange Alliance to Expose Epstein Files
President Donald Trump is working hard to put a lid on the Jeffrey Epstein controversy roiling his party. So far, it isn’t working. One procedural tool in Congress, a little-used but powerful discharge petition, could push the issue out of Trump’s control....
17 Jul, 2025
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5 min read