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I miss Anthony Kennedy already. Other people have written eloquently about Kennedy’s contributions to the Supreme Court. After the retirement of Sandra Day O’Connor (whom I miss, too), Kennedy became the swing vote in case after case. When a seminal case was argued before the high court, Kennedy was the justice who had to be persuaded. When a 5-4 decision came down, Kennedy was usually that crucial fifth vote. Sometimes he voted with the more liberal wing of the court; sometimes he voted with t

Democracy advocates recently celebrated a victory in Maine, where voters used ranked-choice voting in their statewide primaries — the first state ever to do so. In that election, voters also approved a referendum to keep the ranked-choice system for future elections. They will use it this November in the elections for U.S. Senate and U.S. House.ALSO READ: Independents Made the Difference in Maine’s Ranked Choice VotingAdvocates say this method of voting opens up the system to third parties and i

RANCHO SANTA FE, CALIF. – While small town parades, backyard barbecues and fireworks displays may be what many people associate with the 4th of July, Independence Day deserves far greater respect. Fifty-six men signed a single piece of parchment on this day in 1776 that contained 1,338 words that changed the history of the world for the better. That hallowed document claimed independence not only for a Nation but for a People. Unfortunately, 242 years later, we are in danger of surrendering to

Being born in America is like winning the lottery of life. Being able-bodied and able-minded on top of that, in good health and of average or better intelligence, is just a big 'ole cherry right on top of the biggest, best bowl of pure ice cream there ever was. Where to even begin? 1. I'm lucky to be an American because when we change governments it isn't violent. The peaceful transfer of power from one government to the next, the quadrennial bloodless revolutions has kept the most powerful c

Americans deserve a fair voting system If you’re like many Americans, you’ve never heard of vote splitting, yet it exerts an underlying force on American elections that has the potential to change the outcome of an entire race. Think back to the 2016 Republican Primaries. Towards the end, many moderate Republican strategists were urging struggling candidates such as Governor Kasich to drop out. They argued that Kasich was “splitting” off votes from Senator Rubio, the result being that neither

Family separations at our southwest border reveal the pain when children are forcibly seized by state or federal government agencies. We see the fear and anger, and expect frustration, loss of trust, helplessness and likely lifelong trauma for children, parents and other relatives. In American’s foster care system, an invisible epidemic of taken children delivers the same pain and fear. In 2016, about 687,000 children were forcibly taken from their families and placed with strangers or in group

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - Earlier this year, an investigation by the Associated Press revealed a disturbing sexual assault problem on some of the nation’s military bases around the world. Since the initial story broke, it seems the problem is worse than originally thought and Congress wants answers and changes, something that the Pentagon is fighting against. Since the story broke in March, the AP has found that there are now nearly 700 cases over the last 10 years of child-on-child sexual assault

The partisan bickering in the Legislature has claimed another victim: Clean Elections. In 1996, Maine voters decided they’d had enough with how campaigns were funded, and they passed the Maine Clean Election Act. Candidates who choose to run “clean” can accept only a certain number of contributions to start, and only $5 contributions from voters in their district qualify the candidate to receive public funding. It’s a great idea – you get local support and public financing, keeping big-money d

Throughout slavery, Reconstruction and the movement for civil rights, African Americans in the U.S. have faced racism, social disparities, and oppression. While things have advanced for us significantly, black Americans still encounter subtle and blatant social disenfranchisement.For instance, the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world and the people behind bars in the U.S. are disproportionately black. Chronic diseases like diabetes, arthritis, HIV, and cancer are more pr

A few weeks ago we witnessed in disbelief the seductress of reality tv Kim Kardashian swap her greased and puckered internet-breaking social media posts for an austere and fully-clothed Oval Office photo op with President Trump in her new role as hot celebrity prison broker. And yet again, in a stranger-than-fiction redux last week, we did a double take as tatted and pierced former NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman, in MAGA cap and pot cryptocurrency T, got all ferklempt on CNN as he relayed how being