Commentary

Comment: Want proof government can work? Renew your passport.

Told to expect a new passport in four to six weeks, many receive them in two weeks or less. Here’s why.

Comment: Cowed by Trump, congressional Republicans abdicate

A few have expressed opposition to Medicaid cuts and other moves, yet wouldn’t stand their ground on votes.

Comment: Trump’s deepfake video of Obama ‘arrest’ seeks distraction

What better way to pull attention from Trump’s troubles than to return to his obsession with Obama?

Comment: Reforms to involuntary committment law can save lives

Washington state should consider changes New York made to protect those who can’t protect themselves.

Comment: Epstein saga engineered as conspiratorial catnip

Mixing actual investigations of child trafficking with supposition makes for intrigue that won’t die.

Comment: ICE deportations ignore the promise of ‘never again’

Sending deportees to a third country leaves them open to persecution, a violation of global treaties.

Comment: Withholding weather data will harm disaster forecasts

Data from Defense satellites help with hurricane forecasts. What will follow is as important as why.

Comment: Never mind gas prices; your power bill will cost you

Demand from datacenters and the rollback of clean power incentives will show up in your electricity bill.

Comment: Supreme Court majority must show its work in rulings

Its silence in rulings on emergency docket cases risks appearing arbitrary leaves questions unanswered.

FILE — The Vice Presidential debate between Senator JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz at CBS Broadcast Center in  New York, Oct. 1, 2024. CBS and its parent company, Paramount, agreed to pay a $16 million settlement to President Trump to resolve a left-field lawsuit brought by the president against the news program “60 Minutes.”(Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times)

Comment: Is Trump the new editor-in-chief for CBS, ABC

Journalists at the networks will have to prove their independence after owners’ capitulation to Trump.

FILE — The Vice Presidential debate between Senator JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz at CBS Broadcast Center in  New York, Oct. 1, 2024. CBS and its parent company, Paramount, agreed to pay a $16 million settlement to President Trump to resolve a left-field lawsuit brought by the president against the news program “60 Minutes.”(Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times)

Comment: BPA adds to long history of poor resource management

A decision to join a far-flung energy market echoes past decisions detrimental to ratepayers and salmon.

Comment: New tax adds to burden of those in long-term care

Little discussed, the tax doubles or triples annual per-bed fees that will be passed on to families.

Comment: State got cheaper ferries and a policy rebuke

Accepting a contract for Florida-built ferries should tell lawmakers something about taxes and regulations.

Comment: Miller’s immigrant-free utopia is fact-free fantasy

Undocumented immigrants aren’t crowding our ERs and classrooms. Those problems have tougher solutions.

Comment: The flash-flood era is here and we’re not ready for it

Our infrastructure isn’t strong enough, too few of our homes are insured and FEMA is being dismantled.

Comment: Trump wants to sanitize parks’ history for your protection

Park visitors are being asked us QR codes to tattle on exhibits that ‘disparage’ Americans. There’s a better message.

Comment: Epstein matter places MAGA, Democrats on common ground

MAGA wants release of the files. Democrats are happy to exploit the division between Trump and his base.

Comment: Texas paying the price for handouts to oil, gas industry

The tax money it gives the fossil fuel industry might be better spent on readying Texans for climate change.

Comment: There’s no vaccine that assures concern for community

As vaccination rates drop we’re losing the ‘herd immunity’ that protects those who can’t receive vaccines.

Comment: Can we risk putting Social Security funds in markets?

Public pension funds operate on this model. It works for Canada, too. But there are no guarantees.