Category Archives: Opinion

By Lisa McCormick As the world convenes for COP28, I stand before you, not with hope, but with a deep sense of disappointment and urgency. COP 28 refers to the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties, the United Nations climate change conference taking place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from 30 November until 12Continue reading “Another COP, another cop-out”

The First Amendment provides no license to conspire to overturn an election. by David Cole and Ben Wizner Does the First Amendment shield Donald Trump from prosecution for conspiracy to obstruct the 2020 election results? Trump’s lawyer has proclaimed the indictment “an attack on free speech and political advocacy.” He says Trump thought there was voter fraud,Continue reading “Opinion: We’ve defended Trump’s 1st Amendment rights. But his latest claims about the Jan. 6 indictment are nonsense”

by The Rev. Daniel S. Hendrickson, SJ, Ph.D., Arizona Mirror Thanksgiving is a time when we are able to reflect on what we are grateful for, but defining what that is has become markedly difficult for a growing number of young adults.  According to a recent Gallup report titled “The Voices of Gen Z,” theContinue reading “This Thanksgiving, we’re thankful for finding a sense of purpose”

by Terrence T. McDonald, New Jersey Monitor The summer of 2004 was not a great one for Democratic Gov. Jim McGreevey. On June 30, a major McGreevey fundraiser, Charles Kushner, was fined more than $500,000 by federal election officials for improper campaign contributions to McGreevey and others. A week later, another major McGreevey fundraiser, DavidContinue reading “Jim McGreevey is seeking redemption. Is it for the right reason?”

by Terrence T. McDonald, New Jersey Monitor Gov. Phil Murphy’s opposition to a plan to bring asylum seekers to Atlantic City is shameful. Just six years ago, Murphy campaigned to become our governor by drawing a bright line between the kind of America Donald Trump wants and the kind of America Murphy believes in. “The America IContinue reading “Governor Murphy flip-flops on aiding immigrants”

by Amol Sinha, New Jersey Monitor In recent years across the nation, we’ve seen a resurgence of systematic attempts to ban books from libraries, classrooms, and curriculums with the aim to undermine experiences across all races, genders, and sexualities. Restricting access to under-represented voices is intended to invalidate marginalized identities and has no place inContinue reading “Opinion: Book bans foreshadow more than empty shelves”

by Terri Gerstein | Economic Policy Institute Last month, the Supreme Court handed employers one more cudgel to use in trying to squelch worker organizing: the threat of a state court lawsuit for economic harm. In Glacier Northwest Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union No. 174, the Supreme Court upended decades of labor law precedentContinue reading “Supreme Court sided with corporations over workers—again”

by Terrence T. McDonald, New Jersey Monitor The recent dustup between the editor of New Brunswick Today and that city’s police director exposes what a disaster Daniel’s Law is for public accountability, and what a mistake it would be to continue expanding the law. Named for the slain son of a federal judge, Daniel’s LawContinue reading “Daniel’s Law is bad for journalists & everyone who wants government accountability”

by Meghan Faulkner and Robert Maguire Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s decisions have been benefiting wealthy and powerful political donors like Harlan Crow for decades. Thomas has, over and over and over, ruled against donor disclosure, and he has also repeatedly ruled against having any contribution limits at all, allowing the wealthy to spend without interferenceContinue reading “Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ decisions benefit wealthy donors”

Russian dissident Alexey Navalny has displayed ferocious courage by speaking out against the ongoing war in Ukraine, exposing political corruption in the country, and offering a vision for a better future for Russia even as officials seek to keep him in prison for decades. His bravery is the kind of thing that once defined AmericanContinue reading “Russian dissident Alexey Navalny’s courage should inspire Americans”

by Edward Curtin It has been 55 years since Sen. Robert F. Kennedy stepped onto the presidential nominating stage to try to mend the massive breach that had opened in American society. The country was torn asunder by the Vietnam War, racism, poverty, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the soon-to-be assassination ofContinue reading “Professor calls Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ‘the candidate to heal the great divide’”

As former President Donald Trump gears up for a CNN town hall on May 10, one can’t help but wonder when other prominent figures will be given the same opportunity. Specifically, we are curious as to when Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a respected figure in American politics, will be afforded a similar platform to addressContinue reading “When Will Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Have a Televised Town Hall on CNN?”

by Isaac Jiménez, New Jersey Monitor As cities nationwide see staggering housing prices and tenants priced out of metro regions, workers are fighting back. This week in Jersey City, residents spent five hours at a council meeting to demand that city officials give tenants a universal right to counsel to protect them from eviction, displacement, and neglectContinue reading “From Trenton to city hall, workers are demanding more”

by Michael Wald­­­­­man It’s a crucial moment for the rule of law in the United States. Donald Trump faces no fewer than four criminal investigations. Two are before a federal grand jury. One is unfolding in Fulton County, Georgia, where Trump was caught on tape asking Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to help him “find”Continue reading “Trump and the Rule of Law: Public office isn’t a shield from accountability”

Police say a woman from Hillsborough who fatally ran her husband over with a car in February 2023, is facing charges of death by auto in the killing of her husband but the facts of the case appear to suggest that she should be sent home and released from any criminal trial or another ordeal.Continue reading “Hillsborough woman who fatally ran over husband with car should be free”

A 67-year-old woman answered her front door at around 3:30 a.m. and found a stranger armed with a silver revolver who was pleading for help but she shot him dead with the 9mm handgun she was carrying after he “raised up both arms” and instead of decrying the abundance of deadly firearms in America, theContinue reading “Reggie Best is dead but Putnam County Sheriff is celebrating gun violence”

By Anita D. Sircar, MD My patient sat at the edge of his bed gasping for air while he tried to tell me his story, pausing to catch his breath after each word. The plastic tubes delivering oxygen through his nose hardly seemed adequate to stop his chest from heaving. He looked exhausted. He hadContinue reading “Op-Ed: COVID doctor is running out of compassion for the unvaccinated”

The war unleashed by Vladimir Putin in Ukraine will have grave consequences for Russia—political, economic, and cultural. However, contrary to the Kremlin’s thinking, Russia’s importance on the world stage, which is being rapidly reconsidered today, is in fact not so great. Modern Russia is beginning to fade into the past. Just a few years ago,Continue reading “Putin’s invasion of Ukraine will have grave consequences for Russia”