Chuck Grassley, the Republican Senator from Iowa has been around for a long time. A very long time. He was born in 1933, and was first elected to the House in 1975 and the Senate in 1981. Even though he’s a spry 91 years of age, he is, quite clearly, 91 years of age. His career in the Senate, and particularly on the Judiciary Committee, has been notable, both for his occasional support for criminal law reforms as well as being the champion of whistleblowers.

Why, then, has Chuck Grassley chosen to drop to his knees and become a Trump acolyte?

Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, has been known for decades as a champion of whistle-blowers. But critics say he has retreated from his signature issue, smoothing a path for a Trump loyalist who was confirmed on Tuesday to a lifetime appointment on the federal bench. Continue reading →

In yet another broken norm, the shenanigans employed by Attorney General Pam Bondi to put the most loyal and least qualified person behind the desk of the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey have given rise to a problem. Who has the authority to prosecute criminal cases in the district?

Federal court proceedings throughout New Jersey were abruptly canceled on Monday because of uncertainty over whether Alina Habba had the authority to serve as acting U.S. attorney — a title she was given last week as her interim appointment as the state’s top federal prosecutor was about to expire.

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There are two songwriters whose works regularly run through my mind as I read the news and think about the things happening in the world. The first, Phil Ochs, took his own life in 1976. The second died on July 26th at the age of 97. His satire was stunning, then and now.

It wasn’t just the classics like National Brotherhood Week, but even his lesser-known pieces, like the Hunting Song. Continue reading →

There is no rule of life that requires that there be three broadcast networks in the United States. It will be a shame to lose the Columbia Broadcasting System, but it was a for-profit company and a business decision was made that in order for Sumner Redstone to complete the $8 billion sale of Paramount to Skydance, certain concessions had to be made. Pay off a frivolous lawsuit? Fire Colbert? Allow the government’s “bias monitor” to dictate what will be deemed news?

It might not be what Bill Paley had in mind, and Mike Wallace wouldn’t be likely to take it in stride for a paycheck, but they’re both dead and gone. The question that remains is whether the CBS on air today was the same as what it was before Dan Rather took the helm, when Walter Cronkite came into our homes most evenings. This is not to argue that Cronkite was perfect, without bias (who is?) or invariably accurate, but that he was deeply trusted by the American people to bring us the news such that we not only shared a reality, but that it was about as close to reality as could be mustered. Continue reading →

The world’s a little quieter today, and not in a good way.

Ozzy Osbourne, the Prince of Darkness, and Hulk Hogan, the bleach-blonde titan of the squared circle, are gone. Both kicked the bucket this week: Ozzy at 76, surrounded by family, and Hogan at 71, felled by a cardiac arrest. The news hit like a chair to the back of the head, and while Malcolm-Jamaal Warner joins these two this week in a grim trifecta, I want to pause to consider what Ozzy and Hulk meant, not just to their fans but to a culture that’s increasingly allergic to raw, unfiltered humanity. Continue reading →

There are usually guards at the entrance to the United States Attorney’s office for the District of New Jersey. Two women walk boldly toward the door, one Desiree Grace and the other Alina Habba. Only one of the two still has a position in the office. Which one does the guard let pass?

The Justice Department on Thursday cleared the way for Alina Habba to remain in her role as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey.

Ms. Habba’s tenure as interim U.S. attorney was set to expire on Friday. But she announced on social media on Thursday that she would be New Jersey’s acting U.S. attorney.

The decision will allow Ms. Habba to lead the New Jersey office for at least the next 210 days.

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It’s one thing to agree to change its discriminatory ways, even if progressive dogma proclaimed discrimination was the new anti-discrimination and Columbia bought into it as a good woke institution. But if the point was to get Columbia to protect Jewish students from discrimination, what does paying $200 million to the government in exchange for getting $400 million in federal research grants back fix?

Columbia University will pay a $200 million fine to settle allegations from the Trump administration that it failed to do enough to stop the harassment of Jewish students, part of a sweeping deal reached on Wednesday to restore the university’s federal research funding, according to a statement from the university. Continue reading →

Remember when you thought that becoming an assistant United States attorney would be the sort of thing that would provide you with great experience, a secure future and the opportunity to do something you believed to be good for society? That was before the duo of Bondi and Blanche took over. Consider what they did to former First Assistant Desiree Leigh Grace in the District of New Jersey.

Trump’s appointed interim United States Attorney, parking garage lawyer Alina Habba, maxed out her 120 days on the job without confirmation. Considering she had no qualifications for the job whatsoever, no experience whatsoever, and kinda sucked really badly as a lawyer, it’s hard to understand why she wasn’t swiftly approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee invoking the Hegseth Rule. The only thing standing in her way was the two New Jersey senators who were vehemently against her appointment, which was not so easily ignored lest the Senate courtesy not be extended when the winds shifted. Continue reading →

After twitting a fake video of President Obama being arrested while sitting with Trump in the Oval Office, President Trump tried to make it real.

Of course, this conveniently comes as the Epstein Files remain secret, even though the Martin Luther King, Jr. files are suddenly, inexplicably, revealed. But pretextual or not, does Tulsi Gabbard have a point? Continue reading →

If you hear the name Brett Hankison, it probably won’t ring a bell. Breonna Taylor, on the other hand, will start alarms ringing after she was killed by police who raided her house at night looking for a person who wasn’t there, starting a series of events that ended in Taylor’s death.

The series of events that played out on March 13, 2020, was essentially classic, a timeline that was certain to occur and, eventually or worse, end in the death of either innocent people or cops. This time, it was Breonna Taylor who was killed. Continue reading →