5 of our top opinion pieces this week: ICYMI
In today's fast-paced news environment, it can be hard to keep up. For your weekend reading, we've started in-case-you-missed-it compilations of some the week's top USA TODAY Opinion pieces. As always, thanks for reading, and for your feedback.
Mueller report: Collusion by the news media, not Donald Trump, but don't expect apologies
By Glenn Harlan Reynolds
"We might someday need a press we can trust. But I hope not, because we certainly don't have one. So what’s next? Well, there may not have been Russian collusion, but there certainly was collusion between FBI agents and journalists, with agents leaking information and journalists paying them off with 'tickets to sporting events, golfing outings, drinks and meals, and admittance to nonpublic social events,' according to the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Justice."
Joe Biden's 2020 nightmare: He could be the Democratic reincarnation of Jeb Bush
By Jason Sattler
"This is a candidate who by necessity has to argue that some good has come out of the way American politics has operated over the last 40 years, because he was instrumental in nearly all of it. But as the twin crises of climate change and inequality approach irreversible tipping points, and the vulnerabilities in our political system are being exploited by a wannabe authoritarian who may never be removed from office peacefully, what’s unreasonable is to expect, or even hope, that things will go back to the way they were. Joe Biden represents normality. It’s a powerful lure. But I hope he understands that the 2020 presidential election will be anything but normal."
Understanding Donald Trump's Twitter rants takes Freudian psychology
By Austin Ratner
"When a man like Donald Trump and the movement that follows him are deep in denial, they cannot be reasoned with, and they can’t be trusted to make rational decisions. As Trump critics have noted so often, it’s in all of our interests to have a rational decision-maker in the White House. Trump fails to meet that criterion. Maybe it’s because he feels guilty and has engaged in all manner of irrational behavior to deny and avoid the fact of his guilt. That doesn’t make him insane or even different from the average person in whose life unconscious emotions play a heavy role. But it does make him unfit to be President of the United States."
Robert Kraft's plea deal offer for prostitution charges hinders real progress on sex trafficking
By Shea M. Rhodes and Jamie L. Pizzi
"Robert Kraft denies committing a crime. Whether he accepts the plea deal or not, Palm Beach should not have made the offer. The state attorney's decision to possibly forgo fully prosecuting these men is an all too common byproduct of misunderstandings about human trafficking and prostitution.This was clear in the disturbing share of the media coverage expressing sympathy for the men charged, proclaiming the entire operation a waste of resources, and advocating for legalization of prostitution. Not only do such opinions diminish the grotesque human rights violations alleged in this case, they ignore the pivotal role the demand for commercial sex plays in perpetuating human trafficking."
5. Trump blocked me on Twitter. I sued (and won) because modern town halls happen online.
By Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza
"I have a right to be heard in a public forum. We all do. That's why I joined a lawsuit challenging Trump's blocking practices. ... It’s an important First Amendment case for the digital age. Today, much of democratic discourse and engagement takes place online. Officials around the country use social media to communicate with constituents. This increase in accessibility is itself democratizing. It is critical we ensure that these virtual public forums are protected just as older formats — think town halls — have been."
You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to letters@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 5 of our top opinion pieces this week: ICYMI
