Mitt Romney is right about one thing: Too many American children do receive what he this week called a "Third World education." A disproportionate number of them are children of color. It is indeed "the civil rights issue of our era." It is also the economic issue and the security issue. More »The Next Education President
It's her voice that I keep hearing in my head. "Susan," she would say, in that quiet, commanding tone she had, before explaining something to me: how to deal with the Irish boys in politics in the '80s, what to do about a friend's son having problems, or how I definitely, absolutely needed to start buying real estate. More »Susan Mary Riley, We Will Miss You
When my kids were young, about the worst thing they could say about something was that it was capital-b BORRRING. You know how they stretch out the word, as in why say more? More »Boring
Depending on which poll you believe, Obama is either up by 3, 7 or 9 points, or down by 1, 3 or 5. More »Who's on First?
"They made me feel so small." More »Saturday Night with Bea
If this were a reality show and the question for the participants to decide was whether John Edwards was the most narcissistic man on the planet, the biggest liar, the worst husband and father, a self-absorbed egomaniac who betrayed the trust of his family, his staff and his supporters and was willing to risk his party's chance at the presidency in service of his own outsized ambition, then no question. More »John Edwards: Jerk or Criminal?
Every four years, there is one presidential campaign that is much more fun to watch than the rest, even if it has no realistic chance of success. I loved watching Mike Huckabee four years ago. It was far better than watching John McCain going from the Straight Talk Express (fun four years before) to the cautious conservative. More »Newt's Great Adventure
"Bring diapers and wine." More »Twenty Years After
I went to a strip club once. OK, maybe it was twice. The guys were going; I was curious. More »How Dumb Can You Be?
As it turns out, Hilary Rosen was wrong about Ann Romney not working a day in her life. She's plainly working right now, as a strategist for her husband's campaign, not a stay-at-home mom. For all the shock and chagrin about Rosen's comment (which was, of course, poorly put, but was an effort to address the question of whether the Romneys could understand the problems of "people like us," as pollsters usually ask it), it turns out that Mrs. Romney wasn't insulted at all. ... More »Women's Work
If you haven't heard of the Buffett Rule, you will. It's already emerging as one of the key themes of the presidential race, and if it isn't already known as the Romney Rule, it will be soon. More »The Buffett Rule
There was much ado about not much when President Obama declared last week that it would be "unprecedented, extraordinary" for the United States Supreme Court to overturn the health care reform law that passed both houses of Congress with substantial majorities. More »The President and the Court
What happened to Trayvon Martin? The short answer: I don't know. More »What Happened to Trayvon Martin?
As was clear in this week's arguments on the constitutionality of the health care reform law, today's Supreme Court is as political as any institution in Washington. It was not always so. More »Supreme Court Politics
I opened the garage to back my car out on Saturday morning and silently cursed at the car blocking part of my driveway, making a difficult task (backing out onto a busy street, something I never thought about when I rented this house while renovating mine) so much harder. I eased out a foot or two and saw what had just happened in front of my house. A bicyclist was down on the pavement, alive but not moving, flat on his back. The man who hit him had pulled over (halfway into my driveway) and was standing there, undone by his utter misery and helplessness. ... More »Finding Grace
I've been waiting for it: the inevitable comparisons between the Massachusetts governor who ran for president (with my help) in 1988 and the former Massachusetts governor on his way to being the 2012 Republican nominee. More »Mitt Romney and Mike Dukakis
Don't get me wrong. The killing of 16 Afghan men, women and children by an American soldier without provocation and without threat to his own life (or so it appears) was wrong. Completely wrong. It is an unspeakable tragedy for all those involved. It places the lives of other Americans in danger. I'm no fan of the myriad "abuse excuses" that once held sway in the American legal system. Those who know the difference between right and wrong and have the capacity to choose are responsible for choosing wrongly. End of story. More »What Went Wrong?
Midlevel executives at big Wall Street firms leave every day of the week, particularly if — as was the case with Greg Smith — they've worked somewhere for 11 years and haven't "made" managing director. Usually, the departures are "friendly," even if they really aren't. You use your credentials — and the references — from that top firm to get a job with a slightly less top firm or with a client or affiliate. What you don't do is trash your old firm, which makes you a pariah. More »The Goings On at Goldman
I've been through enough "year(s) of the woman" to be more than a little skeptical when someone tries to sell me the story that this is really it. Whenever there are more women running (or, as in 1984, woman singular), we hear about "the year of the woman." More »The Year of the Woman
In the wake of conservative activist, author and publisher Andrew Breitbart's death, the news media reported on the sharp division of "opinion" reflected on Twitter and other social media outlets. Half and half. Half what you might expect when someone dies at 43 leaving a wife and four children under 13. The other half as nasty as Breitbart himself was when Ted Kennedy passed away. More »In Memoriam: Andrew Breitbart
Money troubles? Mitt Romney? The guy who pays a lower tax rate than I do because I actually work? The guy whose wife drives two Cadillacs and hangs with the NASCAR owners? More »Romney's Money Troubles
The news from Sloan Kettering that colonoscopy measurably saves lives will certainly make me feel better when I start drinking the liquid the night before mine. But really, what my doctors have been telling me from their own experience is why, as much as I hate doing it, I'm pretty religious about the timetable. More »Taking Care
The fight between Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum doesn't just raise questions about each man's strengths and weaknesses. It also raises, as fundamentally as any battle in recent decades, the question of who, ultimately, is in charge of picking the nominee. More »Who's in Charge?
Could it really happen? More »The Santorum Surge
Here we go again: a tragedy in the music world, a tragedy waiting to happen that did. Disturbing headlines before and after leave us scratching our heads and asking why. On the days before her death, Whitney Houston was disheveled, dressed in clothes that didn't match, hair dripping with water or sweat, doing handstands by the pool, waving her arms erratically at a rehearsal, visiting doctors in Beverly Hills and even filling prescriptions at the Michael Jackson-made-famous Mickey Fine Pharmacy. And yes, she checked in to the hotel with a large retinue. More »That's What Friends Are For
Newt's easy. While all of us on the Democratic side were playing "root for Newt," Republicans were taking the proverbial second and third look — and getting scared by what they saw. Hello, Herman Cain. More »What Happened to Newt and Mitt?
Tuesday's ruling by a panel of three judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit holding unconstitutional the California ballot initiative that aimed to take the right to marry away from same-sex couples is hardly the last word in the debate. The court's ruling, unlike that of the district court below, did not purport to decide whether states must, in the first instance, give marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but only that, once they do, they cannot take them away for no good reason. ... More »Chasing Equality
If the goal of the primary process is simply to nominate a candidate, essentially to nominate the man or woman most likely to win in the end, then this primary season should be declared over. Clear the stage, and give it to Mitt Romney. Newt Gingrich's promise to go the next 46 notwithstanding, you couldn't find anyone in Vegas to give you ballpark odds on his winning. And forget about Ron Paul or Rick Santorum. They never had a chance. More »Primary Purposes
10. It would be very boring. People would stop paying attention to presidential politics. Campaigns are unique learning experiences, as Professor Gingrich certainly knows. More »Ten Reasons Why Newt Gingrich Shouldn't Drop Out
Clintonesque. That's what all the talking heads were saying about the president's State of the Union. And they didn't mean long. More »Clintonesque
Ask any honest Democrat, and they'll tell you what I'm about to tell you: We're rooting for Newt. More »Rooting for Newt
Me, worry? More »Dear Democrats
There is a famous story (it may be apocryphal, of course) about Richard Nixon and his dog. No, I don't mean the Checkers speech, the one where Nixon saved his integrity by invoking his little dog, Checkers, and his wife's cloth coat. This one came later, after he lost, during the famous Bel Air fire. The story is that as he was fleeing his house, Nixon left his dog. More »About the Dog
The people have spoken — all 126,185 of them. That's how many votes turned Mitt Romney into the Republican nominee, for all intents and purposes. In a country with more than 300 million people, less than a tenth of a half of a percent have picked one of the two men who could be the next president of the United States. More »The People Have Spoken
No one told me that January is the wrong time to visit Normandy (until afterwards, that is). Most of the places we went to visit were closed. It was cold and wet and rainy. It took more than three hours each way. But I haven't been to France in fifteen years, and who knows (especially after this trip) when I will go again. More »Echoes of World War II in Normandy
For the first few decades of my life, I always knew what my New Year's resolution would be: Lose weight. Get to the number on my license. More »New Year's Resolutions
I still remember back in 1988 sitting in a Chinese restaurant when then-Governor Bill Clinton took a napkin and listed on one side the Democratic governors who were against the death penalty and, on the other, those who were for it. In its time, the issue was the third rail in American politics — the line that divided those who could win because they were considered tough on crime and those who would face electoral problems. A few years later, my friend Kathleen Brown was trounced in the governor's race in California in large part because she opposed the death penalty. More »A Second Look at the Death Penalty
The Gingrich balloon is leaking air. He is beginning to look more and more like Howard Dean. The latest Rasmussen caucus poll shows him dropping three points behind Mitt Romney (23 to 20) after leading him by 13 points (32-19) just a month ago. More »Reality Bites
Right around now is when people start fretting over creches in the public square and arguing as to whether publicly funded Christmas symbols violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment. And right about now is also when certain Jewish groups begin insisting that the answer is to place a Hanukkah menorah right next to that creche, which leads atheists to complain about a plague on both their houses. More »Christmas Choices
"He finally said something," the man in the elevator said to no one in particular as he turned away from the little screen that entertains us with traffic, weather and news as we ride up and down between floors. More »Welcome Home
Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton's debut on NBC's "Nightly News" is drawing plenty of attention, as well it should. Since her father's election nearly 20 years ago, the Clintons set an example of real family values by doing everything they could to keep Chelsea out of the spotlight and allow her to live as normal of a life as possible. By all outside indicators, it worked. She has grown up to be a young woman of intelligence, character and commitment. The press, for its part, pretty much left her alone. More »The New Chelsea Clinton
It was just at this time in 2003 — on December 9th, to be exact — that former Vice President Al Gore endorsed insurgent candidate Howard Dean, making him the official frontrunner and nominee-apparent in the Democratic race for the president. Looking back, many people said the endorsement was the kiss of death, but that wasn't really the case. Gore — then and now — was much respected in the Democratic Party, and any serious candidate would welcome his endorsement, not to mention the support of his former aides and backers. More »The New Frontrunner
Gulnaz is an Afghan woman who was raped. For reporting it, she was sentenced to three years in prison. Her baby — a child of the rape — cries in the background. Her punishment for appealing her sentence was that it was increased to 12 years. She has been in prison for two and a half years, and her baby is with her. More »Gulnaz's Story
Los Angeles is no longer occupied. After two months of Tent City across from City Hall, the LAPD finally moved in after midnight on Wednesday to disperse those who remained after multiple warnings. All told, some 300 Occupiers were arrested by the 1,200 police officers who conducted the final eviction. Later that morning, sanitation workers arrived in protective gear to clean up the 30 tons of debris left behind. Once that's done, the farmers market can move back in, and people in search of some fresh air or respite can once again enjoy the 1.6-acre park in the heart of downtown. More »UnOccupy LA
On Monday, the Democratic National Committee unveiled a new ad targeting Mitt Romney. The 30-second spot (there is also a four-minute version on the DNC's website) is made to look like a movie trailer about "the story of two men trapped in one body." More »The Campaign Against Romney
When I was a kid, Thanksgiving was always my favorite holiday. We shivered in the stands during the big game against the Big Blue, and our longstanding losing streak didn't matter. By the time I was a junior, I sat in the first row wearing a short skirt. I may be the most uncoordinated person there is, but by sheer force of will, I learned to twirl a baton and made majorette, which was not the usual extracurricular for a much-maligned smart girl. Other than giving birth to my children and getting elected president of the Law Review, I think it was the happiest I've ever been. More »Giving Thanks