The knock on Sen. John Edwards, who is Democrat Sen. John Kerry’s choice as a running mate, is his level of foreign policy experience.The 51-year-old has not yet completed his first term in the United States Senate, his first go at elective office. Before winning his North Carolina seat, Edwards was a trial lawyer.During the […]

One of the things people hate most about politics is politicians who don’t tell the truth and change their positions at the drop of an opinion poll.Only five months ago, Sen. John Kerry said of his chosen running mate, Sen. John Edwards: “I think the American people want an experienced hand at the helm of […]

The clich is that in choosing John Edwards as his running mate, John Kerry didn’t just acquire a potential vice president, but a message: the rhetoric of “two Americas” that Edwards relentlessly repeated during the primaries. Less appreciated is that the choice of Edwards might finally give President Bush a message, too.Kerry has long lacked […]

Among the many interesting things to consider about John Edwards, two stand out.First, Edwards lost his oldest son, Wade, in a car accident in 1996. Wade was 16.Second, Edwards decided not to pursue re-election in the Senate in order to wage a quixotic campaign for the Democratic nomination midway through his first term in office.I’ve […]

I keep getting myself in dutch with the paying customers. They say I’m naive.It’s a complaint I’ve heard a few times over the last year from the good people who read this column. The source of their ire? They are annoyed that I am surprised. Although, in fairness to myself, “surprised” is probably not the […]

The speculation has ended, and the selection has been made. It’s an all JFK-wannabe Democratic ticket.John Kerry and John Edwards are, in their own ways, John F. Kennedy wannabes – Kerry in his own mind, and Edwards in the minds of his supporters and of an admiring press corps. As a writer in The Boston […]

The incandescent heat generated by the debate over same-sex marriage has begun to produce a little light here and there.The best idea I’ve heard so far is for everyone to take a deep breath. Then we’d all do well to take some time to understand the historical development of marriage as well as the difference […]

Maine’s Clean Elections law is working.Unfortunately, it’s also in danger of running out of money.Of the 429 candidates who were on the ballot for June’s primary, 308, or 72 percent, ran under the rules of Clean Elections.Candidates utilizing the program are limited in their fund-raising and spending. The goal is to reduce the influence of […]

“Fahrenheit 9/11” made me angrier than any movie I’ve ever seen.It was a good anger, hard, clean and righteous, and I enjoyed it so much that I went back three days later to experience it again. Took two of my sons and two of their friends so they could become angry, too.It’s not that I […]

It isn’t often that I suffer from moral confusion, but the reaction to Vice President Dick Cheney’s caustic remark to Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., has me perplexed.To summarize for those who have been away from the planet, Cheney delivered a popular epithet (see “The Sopranos”) in response to Leahy’s attempt at camaraderie following his “questioning […]