With almost no public debate, in the past decade the United States has increased dramatically the use of a significant new weapon in its military and counterterrorism efforts: unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. Drones have become such a major part of American counterterrorism efforts that current Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has described them as […]
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The devious, dishonest strategy of the National Organization for Marriage
As the campaign over Amendment 1 enters its final month, a controversy has erupted surrounding one of the leading national organizations to oppose marriage equality: the National Organization for Marriage (NOM). NOM has been at the center of a legal fight in the state of Maine concerning campaign finance laws. Two weeks ago, following a […]
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We need a sane, honest discussion about the dangers posed by Iran
Join a discussion of U.S. foreign policy in Iran with former CIA officer Ray McGovern Wednesday, March 21, at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Church of Chapel Hill, 106 Purefoy Road. The program is part of the Balance & Accuracy in Journalism series. Nine years ago, after a frenzied political and media campaign to convince […]
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The deceptive arguments for the Defense of Marriage Amendment
On May 8, 2012, North Carolina voters will consider Amendment 1, a ballot proposition that would inscribe a ban on same-sex marriage in the North Carolina Constitution. The amendment asserts that marriage “between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this State.” North Carolina […]
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Romney and the politics of envy
The growth in economic inequality and wealth concentration in America has become an ever more incontrovertible fact. Thanks in substantial measure to Occupy Wall Street, wealth distribution has made its long overdue entry into the mainstream of American political discourse. In response, Republicans in general and Mitt Romney in particular have fallen back on a […]
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Wrapping up Iowa
So, Mitt Romney has won the popular vote here, by the extraordinary margin of eight votes over Rick Santorum, out of over 100,000 votes cast. The winner of the popular vote total is not significant in terms of determining the composition of the Iowa delegation to the GOP national convention. Iowa will end up sending […]
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The Iowa caucuses: A lot of hot air
Editor’s note: As we went to press at 9:50 p.m. Tuesday, Mitt Romney was in first place by 118 votes over Rick Santorum and 189 votes over Ron Paul. See Related Stories below on our Triangulator blog for more coverage, including the winner, which was announced after press time. As the caucuses wrap up, and […]
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The Iowa caucuses: A depressing spectacle
As the caucuses wrap up, and regardless of who wins tonight, the identity of the eventual nominee seems clear. Despite months and months of debating and campaigning, and as the GOP’s base seemed desperate to anoint a new non-Mitt Romney every month, the former Massachusetts governor is clearly the man to beat. He has unmatched […]
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More notes from the campaign trail
A few notes from the campaign trail yesterday. In addition to Paul, I saw three other candidates — Michele Bachmann, the surging Rick Santorum and the presumptive front-runner Mitt Romney. Each candidate argued that Iran posed a grave threat to America and the world. Bachmann vowed that if she were president, she would not preside […]
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Ron Paul and the problem of moral accounting
Twenty years ago, I saw Noam Chomsky speak at UNC-Chapel Hill. After rehearsing his usual litany about U.S. foreign policy crimes, someone in the audience asked what he would do differently if he were president. Chomsky answered that the first thing he’d have to do is arrest himself on charges of war crimes—that the office […]