Six months ago, I agreed with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's disinclination to impeach President Trump. As she put it, “unless there’s something that’s so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country.” Besides, she added, “He’s just not worth it.” It was, I agreed, …
Continue reading Responsibility to impeach: how to make it count
Most days I am seething and grinding my teeth. Sometimes Donald Trump makes me feel like Jean Giraudoux' Madwoman of Chaillot, about a disillusioned idealist who wants to "rescue humanity from the scheming and corrupt developers." Words fail me. Tearing my hair out will be useless. Work, study and other civic commitments are but a …
Continue reading Dem debate 3: is there a winner in the bunch?
No one has a right to hold onto an office in perpetuity, but having served a long time shouldn't necessarily be a disqualifier. Senator Ed Markey has been in public office nearly half a century. The one-term+ US Senator has been in Washington for 43 years, both as a member of the House and of …
Continue reading Mass. Senate race: an embarrassment of riches?
Behold the flaming liberal, which devours its own if it strays too far from the nest! Right now, the best thing Donald Trump has going for him is the divided Democratic Party. The most left-leaning could hold sway in the primary but not reflect where the majority of the electorate is in November. The most …
Continue reading An open letter to Democrats (and debate moderators)
Massachusetts is officially the most Irish state in the country, with nearly 22 percent of residents being of Irish ancestry. Considering how many of the politicians I've covered are "Irish," it is surprising that only recently did I travel to the Emerald Isle. The month of June changed that, and what a treat it was. …
Franklin Park Zoo isn't my grandfather's zoo, or the one my father took me to eons ago. It isn't even the zoo I took my children and grandchildren to. It's becoming a jewel of a zoo, with animal attractions for people of all ages, from the entertaining antics of the prairie dogs to the graceful …
July 12th is a day to watch in Northern Ireland. The annual Orange Order parade-- the highlight of a months-long marching season-- commemorates the 1690 Battle of Boyne defeat of forces of Catholic King James II by those of Protestant King William of Orange. It was the beginning of Protestant control of Ireland and the …
Continue reading Bloodshed continues in Northern Ireland despite Peace Accords; could worsen
Despite our desire for a Trump-free ten days in Ireland, our President was on too many minds over there. Landing at Shannon Airport, we had to pass the VIP Lounge where just days before Trump and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar met because Varadkar didn't want an official visit to be at Trump's golf course, …
We hadn't even finished unpacking from a vacation in Ireland when we were accosted by headlines that the Environmental Protection Agency has finalized its plans to undo years of modest progress on climate change, especially the Obama Clean Power Plan. The Trump Affordable Clean Energy Rule's bow to the U.S. coal industry (among other fossil …
Continue reading Ireland: where Trump is not, on climate change
Tension grows between those clamoring to impeach President Trump now and those believing that, however warranted such a move is as a way to increase accountability, it could end up helping Donald Trump to a second term if the Democrats too far ahead of the rest of the country. Constitutional law professor Larry Tribe came …
Continue reading Beyond impeachment: thwarting Russian interference
Marjorie Arons-Barron 