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Pence's political future hinges on how he leads the White House Coronavirus Task Force
Where has Vice President Mike Pence been for the past month?
As COVID-19 infections and deaths continue to surge nationally, I’ve been looking for Pence, the man tasked with guiding America through this public health crisis as head of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Sure, I’ve seen him honor our nation's fallen soldiers during a Veterans Day ceremony. He made a cameo at a campaign rally... |
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Race for a coronavirus vaccine: Why I volunteered to be exposed to COVID-19
As a scientist, I know that one of the keys to emerging from the current COVID-19 pandemic is a safe and effective vaccine. Over 100 vaccine candidates are being considered and some will soon advance to large human trials. Thousands of people will receive the vaccines. Researchers will see if their infection rate is any different from unvaccinated people’s and verify the vaccine’s safety.
Beca... |
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Increase in coronavirus cases was to be expected
States are reopening their economies after shutting down for at least several weeks, in some cases nearly three months. Small and large businesses alike are beginning to pick up the pieces as states lift their shelter-in-place orders and Americans are slowly going back to work. Naturally, Democrats and some news organizations are pushing a narrative about a “second wave” of the virus.
The claim... |
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Adopt minimum national police use-of-force standards and train cops for interaction
Monday’s death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man pinned to the ground by a police officer applying a knee to his neck, underscores a disturbing reality: Many Americans believe such fatal outcomes are inevitable when confrontations occur between people of color and law enforcement.
For us, as well, this moment feels tragically familiar.
More than five years ago, as the nation wrestled with t... |
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What America can learn from other nations in the war on COVID-19
People in the United States like to believe in "American exceptionalism," the notion that the nation's military, economic and moral superiority make it an exception among the countries of the world. With nearly 55,000 confirmed lives lost in the United States so far and widespread economic disruption from the coronavirus, it is increasing apparent that America could learn a thing or two from how o... |
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Coronavirus is unprecedented in our lifetimes. So is the economic crisis about to explode.
We've been warned to brace ourselves for over 100,000 deaths, maybe over 200,000, from the new coronavirus that as yet has no vaccine or cure. We also need to brace ourselves for an economic tsunami that is unlike anything we've seen before.
Two weeks ago there were 3.3 million first-time unemployment claims. Last week, we learned Thursday, that doubled to a record 6.6 million. The St. Louis Fe... |
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Obama and I took a class about socialism's dark side. Bernie would have learned a lot.
In the spring of 1983, when I was a senior at Columbia University, I took a course entitled “The Sociology of Socialist Societies.” Like a lot of young American leftists, I was a bit starry-eyed about socialism. But the class quickly disabused me of that.
We read a memoir by Hungarian dissident Miklós Haraszti, whose bosses in a tractor factory fleeced and brutalized him. We also read American ... |
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Joe Biden would show selfless patriotism by quitting the 2020 Democratic nomination race
Dismal results in Iowa and New Hampshire didn’t cause Joe Biden’s presidential campaign to become untenable; they only confirmed it. Many of us who watched him at close range on the trail saw it coming months ago: The former vice president’s campaign isn’t going to work.
Biden, who has served his country honorably, must now demonstrate — again — what a truly good man he is. Rather than cling t... |
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Palestinians can accept a plan for peace or watch the world pass them by
On Tuesday President Trump released details of the long-awaited “deal of the century” Mideast peace plan. The 80-page document, the product of an effort led by presidential adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner, takes the comatose peace process in a bold new direction. But whether the plan can succeed depends largely on if Palestinians are willing to give peace a chance.
The new approach acknowl... |
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Warren takes on big fights for consumers and wins them. I saw it firsthand: Rich Cordray
Over the past year, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has cemented her reputation as a thought leader on economic policy and as a champion of big ideas. But often missing from the public discussion is her track record of tackling key problems successfully and leading complex organizations. I saw this firsthand when I worked closely with her at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
After reckless... |
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