In the powerful revival of the musical “Ragtime” at the New York City Center theater, the female lead, played by Caissie Levy, stops the show with a song titled “Back to Before.” With words filled with emotion in each phrase, she sings of the pain of making progress in a deeply divided and bigoted turn-of-the-century America. As I absorbed the song, I could not help but think of Donald Trump and the corrupt message he has brought in the election.
Trump is, of course, a man wit...
Opinion
The era of political polarization is over
From media claims that we are a hopelessly divided country to ceaseless personal attacks on the presidential candidates' characters and track records, it's not surprising that most folks believe the American electorate is more polarized than ever. A closer look at the two parties’ respective platforms, however, reveals a story of a homogeneous citizenry, and a nation unified in its temperament and values.
Political polarization oscillates back and forth depending on v...
The era of political polarization is over
From media claims that we are a hopelessly divided country to ceaseless personal attacks on the presidential candidates' characters and track records, it's not surprising that most folks believe the American electorate is more polarized than ever. A closer look at the two parties’ respective platforms, however, reveals a story of a homogeneous citizenry, and a nation unified in its temperament and values.
Political polarization oscillates back and forth depending on v...
Our health care system is dysfunctional: Here’s how to make America healthy again
American health care is getting more expensive, but Americans aren’t getting healthier. We spend $4.8 trillion annually on health care — more than any other country — only to have some of the worst health outcomes in the developed world.
Spending more money on government programs is not the solution. What we need is a fundamental paradigm shift toward health care freedom. We spend three times more per capita than Italy on health care, the average American lifespan is five ye...
What Trump has actually done for Black Americans
“I have done more for Black Americans than anybody with the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln,” Donald Trump has claimed on multiple occasions. “Nobody can dispute it.”
Well, lots of people have examined his record and drawn a dramatically different conclusion. Here’s what they have found.
The economic recovery from the Great Recession that started under the Obama administration continued during the first three years of Trump’s presidency, benefiting Black as wel...
Which candidate’s plan will actually make America healthy again?
With the presidential election less than a week away, health care is not on the ballot, but the winner will definitely impact the direction our health care system takes. In fact, the candidates’ respective approaches to health care appear to be diametrically opposed based on their previous statements and records.
A President Kamala Harris would likely extend coverage to millions more people by expanding the Affordable Care Act and the Medicaid expansion to all 50 states. She w...
Kamala Harris and Democrats will pack the Supreme Court if they win
In 2016, countless conservatives skeptical of Donald Trump voted for him anyway because the future of the Supreme Court was on the ballot. Now that concern is even more pressing.
This election, more than Justice Antonin Scalia’s seat is up for grabs — the Supreme Court as we know it is at stake.
At her CNN town hall, Kamala Harris was asked if she supported packing the Supreme Court with multiple additional justices in order to change its ideological composition. Sh...
Harris will fight to protect health care for more than 4 million Hispanics
When my sister, Kimberly, was two years old, she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. As she was fighting for her life, my parents were fighting to protect their family.
My mom and dad spent every dollar they had on Kimberly's medical expenses as she quickly maxed out her lifetime cap on health insurance.
Kimberly died at age 21, and my parents spent years trying to pay off the debt incurred from her medical expenses. No parent should have to grieve th...
Here’s one way America’s many ‘pro-worker’ candidates can deliver
Even during a contentious election year, plenty of Democrats and Republicans agree on something: With millions of Americans earning money on freelance and gig platforms, it’s time to focus on innovative ideas to better incorporate this growing self-employed workforce.
Portable benefits — those tied to a worker rather than an employer — are rapidly moving to the top of a bipartisan agenda.
In fact, the next president and Congress, no matter who that happens to be, wi...
Harris cynically rediscovers Obamacare a month before Election Day
Remarkably, before his defenestration, Joe Biden had not made healthcare much of an issue in his re-election campaign. This seemed unusual. It was the first time since Bill Clinton’s 1992 race that the creation of national health insurance hadn’t emerged as a major campaign issue.
Biden’s relative silence on healthcare was all the more surprising given that he had long made healthcare a signature issue, as he did in the 2020 race. He talked about healthcare in his swan son...