I have written on several previous occasions[1] about how the overuse of the filibuster in the US Senate has greatly contributed to the dysfunction of that body. Some, including the US Senator from my state, Marco Rubio, are not clear on the history or the intent of the filibuster so a brief summary of the … More The Newtown 31 – Senators who forgot Sandy Hook and remembered the NRA.
I have always thought that adjusting one’s position on a subject is not only acceptable but is a positive sign of critical thinking. After all, is it not reasonable to think that positions on subjects should evolve over time as we process new facts as they are discovered? Altering one’s view of a situation when … More Senator Portman’s decision on gay marriage and the lesson of Newtown
The bastardization of the filibuster in the Senate has been the subject of many discussions, articles and even a book. I expressed my own take on the filibuster in a previous posting and will not belabor the point by revisiting all of the reasons that the perverse mutations to the Senate rule have created a … More Dear Senator Marco Rubio: Facts matter – even on the simple issue of filibuster reform.
On June 4, 2012 the Pew Research Center released the results of a poll titled: “Partisan Polarization Surges in Bush, Obama Years.[1] “ Not surprisingly ,the poll indicated a widening partisan gap between Republicans and Democrats. There may be many causes for the divergent opinions on value issues such as growth of media-enabled information cocoons … More The partisan public and Senate filibusters.
Confronting Mediocrity 