himwhynot

Gabriel Arana says that since the “It Gets Better” campaign went mainstream, it’s missed the whole point. As Ann Friedman writes in her column for the Prospect‘s December issue, by sidestepping the issue, we’ve squandered a valuable opportunity to talk about what would actually “make things better” for gay people — both as kids and […]

Paul Waldman says Republicans spun a good tale on the trail — but Democrats have the advantage of better policies. In campaigns, candidates reduce their ideas to simple statements of principle and 30-second ads, and the side whose simple message is more attuned to the moment will probably win. Two years ago, the moment was […]

Monica Potts says that unless America changes its energy policies, it will continue to train workers for jobs that just aren’t there. The unfulfilled promise of stable, well-paying green jobs is probably best represented by the wind turbine: The United States has the capacity to both build the turbines in unused factories and get as […]

Robert Kuttner says budget cuts will be one of the early and defining battles of the next Congress. The mastermind behind the austerity effort is investment banker and former Nixon Cabinet official Peter G. Peterson. He’s written four books over two decades, warning that Social Security would crash the economy — though the culprit turned […]

Adam Serwer says the Democrats lost, but they shouldn’t act defeated. Democrats and liberals would do well to learn from the GOP’s discipline in the aftermath of 2008. They should ignore the empty demands from media opinion-makers to “tack to the center,” and double their efforts to, if not get progressive legislation passed, articulate why […]

David Kirp asks what colleges are for: research, economic advancement, or making students more interesting? But as valuable as American universities are, Jonathan Cole claims too much credit for them. They are not responsible for every discovery in which university researchers have had a hand; industry, government, and think tanks have carried out pivotal studies, […]

Tim Fernholz says Tea Partiers will have to learn to work with long-standing members of the Washington establishment — GOP leadership. True, the Tea Party’s enthusiasm drove Republican turnout and brought about Republican control of the House, but their extremism was probably the sole reason Democrats held on to the Senate. They gave Republicans more […]

Paul Waldman says we can survive a Republican Congress. Don’t get me wrong — I’m not among those who believe that having a Republican Congress is just what the doctor ordered for Obama’s political fortunes. It may prove politically useful for the administration to have a foil, and when Americans get to know John Boehner […]

Tim Fernholz says that in a year when Democrats are supposed to be on the run, Rep. Tom Perriello is standing up for his progressive record. Progressive Democrats have long been convinced the Virginian’s approach is the way to win contested seats without compromising the party’s integrity, and tomorrow’s results will be a referendum. “People […]

Harold Meyerson says that among the House districts Democrats are battling to hold are five along the border with Mexico. Arizona Democrats, and not just those on the border, are particularly embattled in this cycle; they could conceivably lose all but one of their four congressional seats. On the border, veteran member Raul Grijalva, a […]