Some headlines for 2016

Each year, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial page editor Tom Waseleski prepares for the New Year an aspirational list of headlines.  Each year, I shamelessly borrow the idea and herewith present my own suggestions, with precious little expectation that we will see them atop newspapers, magazines or teasing newscasts in 2016.  Please send your own in the comments section below. …

Continue reading Some headlines for 2016

Dems debate: a well-kept secret

All three Democratic Presidential contenders were at the top of their games on Saturday night, but,  given the time slot the Democratic National Committee had agreed to, relatively few people saw them.  Early ratings indicate that only around eight  million viewers watched the debate in real time, far fewer than the 18 million  who tuned in …

Continue reading Dems debate: a well-kept secret

Take-aways from GOP Presidential debate

Sometimes the answer to who wins a debate lies in what sticks with you two days after the event. In the case of Tuesday's CNN GOP Presidential debate out of Las Vegas, there were several sparks that still glow.  After a bumbling start, in which Jeb Bush flubbed his opening remark (hasn't he found a …

Continue reading Take-aways from GOP Presidential debate

The Donald is crafty but dumb

Members of the media may finally be falling out of love with Donald Trump.  For months, they have been conduits for every outrageous hateful thing he has said, providing him millions of dollars worth of airtime for free because he has been good for their ratings. With his call to ban Muslims from entering the United …

Continue reading The Donald is crafty but dumb

Last night’s winners and losers

Would Donald Trump tone down his junior high school playground bombast? Or, for that matter, would he say anything substantive in response to a policy question? Would Jeb Bush show some "cojones" in confronting Trump?  Would Carly Fiorina get in Trump's face, stand up to the braggart who had dissed hers? Would John Kasich be able …

Continue reading Last night’s winners and losers

Hillary v. Biden: getting real

When late CBS newsman Daniel Schorr was asked about his move from radio to television, he reportedly observed, "If you can fake sincerity, you've got it made."  It's in that spirit, and mindful of her declining poll numbers, that Hillary Clinton is getting tweaked again.  The effort has been brilliantly satirized by my friend and …

Continue reading Hillary v. Biden: getting real

Fox big winner in the debate

The big winner in last night's "big boy" (top ten Republicans in polls, all male) debate was Fox News itself. While the network isn't my default choice, the moderators, stalwart defenders of Republican orthodoxy,  and the format wrung the most out of the sometimes unruly lot and provided some illuminating moments.  Megyn Kelly, flanked by Chris Wallace …

Continue reading Fox big winner in the debate

Donald Trump is a jerk

When John F. Kennedy was asked how he became a hero in World War II, he said, "It was involuntary. They sank my boat." But it wasn't the Japanese sinking  of PT 109 that made JFK a hero; it was what he did to save his men after the sinking. The inimitable GOP buffoon candidate Donald Trump said …

Continue reading Donald Trump is a jerk

Donald Trump a buffoon candidate, but will the birthers go away?

Donald Trump takes credit for President Obama’s release of his full birth certificate, saying he’s proud that he (Trump) was “able to do something that no one else was able to do.” Well, if you say so, Donald. Guess you’re a can-do guy.I’d like to think that this puts an end to the birther movement, …

Continue reading Donald Trump a buffoon candidate, but will the birthers go away?