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Distance, perspective of America

National Columnists

There is something clarifying about being far from home. In Cape Town, South Africa, where the mountains meet the sea and the horizon feels endless, distance creates a kind of stillness that invites reflection. But even here, halfway across the world, America is never far away. It lives in the conversations, the questions and the quiet curiosity of strangers trying to understand what is happening and where it is all heading. What has struck me most is not just that people are paying attention but how intently they are watching. Taxi drivers, business leaders, students and ...

Foolish NATO was big loser in Iran war

National Columnists

NATO members are not legally required to join any member's military operations that are not formally sanctioned by the alliance or not aimed at protecting the homelands of the membership. But they often do just that. Some NATO members joined the Americans in Afghanistan and Iraq on the theory that, in the post-9/11 environment, the Taliban and Saddam Hussein were dangers to all Western security. They followed the precedent set by America's 1999 intervention in the distant Balkans, leading a three-month NATO campaign to dismantle Slobodan Milosevi's often bloody ambitions of a Greater ...

In today's NBA, beliefs can be firing offense

National Columnists

There are plenty of things an NBA player can do and still keep his job. League history is littered with examples: players involved in off-court scandals, arrests, even allegations of serious violence. Time and again, teams and the league have found ways to look past behavior that, in most professions, would be career-ending. But there appears to be one line that cannot be crossed -- especially during Holy Week. That line, it seems, is expressing a traditional religious belief. Enter Jaden Ivey. The former Purdue standout was the fifth overall pick in the 2022 NBA ...

You don't own me

National Columnists

Politicians tax what we earn, regulate what we build and often decide what we can do with our bodies and our money. I like to think I own myself. But politicians increasingly act as if they do. "People should not have power over other people's lives," says Timothy Sandefur, author of the book "You Don't Own Me." In my latest video, Sandefur challenges the attitude that "freedom belongs to the government and it can parcel it out to us." He starts with building permits. "A building permit really says, you're not allowed to build on your own property until the ...

When birthright citizenship goes wrong

National Columnists

Get ready for the next Roe v. Wade — only this time the Supreme Court decision that threatens to split the country isn't about abortion; it's about "birthright citizenship." Trump v. Barbara is before the Court this week, and with it comes the very question of who is an American. On his first day back in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order clarifying that the children of illegal immigrants or temporary residents aren't American citizens just by virtue of being born on American soil. People born here to at least one citizen parent are automatically ...

Democrats, Trump knows your weak spots

National Columnists

Sure, the "No Kings" marches drew millions rightly protesting Donald Trump's assaults on our democratic institutions. But Democrats must dig deeper and ask how Trump could actually win another term after trying to overturn the 2020 election results with a violent attack on the Capitol. It wasn't as though most Americans adored him. Gallup's approval rating for Trump on election eve was a sad 46%. Trump carried the 2024 vote by playing the Democrats on three issues that aggravate even moderate Americans. They are open borders, the demonization of law enforcement and racial, ...