Dissenting Opinions Need Not Apply: Republican Mentality In the Age of Trump
The nature of Republican party politics in America today can only be described as contentious. Reports of Republican lawmakers privately bashing the President while trying to maintain and foster a semblance of party unity has become commonplace. Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell has privately conveyed his concern that Trump would not be able to salvage […]
We Need to Change the Way We Think about Healthcare…and Fast
Healthcare has proven to be the ultimate enigma for American policymakers. This year has brought wave after wave of political controversy, but nothing else has so comprehensively perplexed Republicans and Democrats alike. Hell-bent on dismantling the infrastructure left behind by Obama, President Trump regularly issues statements promoting the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care […]
The Case for Conditional Optimism
I missed only one day of class during my entire first semester of college: November 9th, the day after the presidential election. I could not imagine functioning on a campus that seemed to be in mourning, let alone in a small, intimate classroom. In the months following, I’ve frequently felt restricted by anger, fear, despair, […]
The Looming Danger for Democrats in Selective Enforcement of Rule XIX
Originally published March 2017 As the confirmation hearings for President Trump’s cabinet nominees continue, so does Democratic opposition to his candidates. During the debate on whether to confirm Jeff Sessions as Attorney General on Tuesday, February 7th, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren attempted to read a letter written in 1986 by Coretta Scott King, wife of […]
Political Satire in the Era of Trump
Donald Trump, reality TV star and celebrity billionaire, is shown on television descending down an escalator inside one of his infamous hotels, announcing to an adoring crowd that he will run for the office of President of the United States. When writer Dan Greaney wrote this scene into an episode of The Simpsons sixteen years […]
The Troubling Lack of Rage from the Right
As soon as Donald Trump stepped off of his escalator and announced his candidacy for President of the United States last June, we knew he was not going to be a typical candidate. If you were critical of him, you called him an inexperienced reality star who was not to be taken seriously. But from […]
David Foster Wallace and the Election That Made Fun of Itself
On the 20th anniversary of the late-author’s Infinite Jest, an inquiry into satire. Viking Penguin offices, New York City, 1986. The twenty-three year old sitting in editor Gerry Howard’s office is wearing a U2 t-shirt and sneakers so untied Howard is afraid that the kid (who eschews “Gerry” in favor of “Mr. Howard”) will trip […]
Political Satire in the Era of Trump
Donald Trump, reality TV star and celebrity billionaire, is shown on television descending down an escalator inside one of his infamous hotels, announcing to an adoring crowd that he will run for the office of President of the United States. When writer Dan Greaney wrote this scene into an episode of The Simpsons sixteen years […]
The Overlooked Racial Complexities of the Opioid Epidemic
Prescription opioids and heroin (from this point on summarily referred to as opioids; despite differences in legality, they both have opiate bases and fall under a shared political umbrella) have created the latest substance-related epidemic in America.[1] In a rare frenzy of bipartisanship, the House of Representatives passed 18 opioid-related bills during one week in […]
Felon Disenfranchisement in Light of Unjust Laws
The New York Times recently published a “Room for Debate” on the topic of felon disenfranchisement with Roger Clegg, president and general counsel of the Center for Equal Opportunity, arguing for felon disenfranchisement, and Janai S. Nelson, associate director-counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, arguing against it. The debate centered on the […]