Donald Trump on 60 Minutes.

Mike Wallace, where are you when we need you?
Leslie Stahl mostly lobbed softball questions to Trump and his family and even then Trump mostly avoided answering, even if it meant contradictions:  he said gay marriage was "settled" so it didn't matter what he thought, while on the other hand Roe vs. Wade might be overturned.  He also claims to have a plan to defeat ISIS but won't tell us what it is, shades of Nixon's "secret" plan to end the war in Vietnam.  Speaking of Nixon, there were some dismayed by the election of Nixon who moved to Canada, just as some are doing now that Trump has been elected. This also happened with the elections of Reagan and the Bushes but even Nixon did some good things, including abolishing the draft and improving our relationship with China.  And, of course, there was Lyndon Johnson, who won by portraying Barry Goldwater as a warmonger and then led us into Vietnam.

Trump seems to be using the slogan "America First" without apparently any knowledge of the Committee of that name that tried to keep us out of WWII; the pro-German Charles Lindbergh was the spokesperson for that group, which disbanded after Pearl Harbor.  When Stahl told Trump that his supporters were starting to attack Hispanics, African-Americans and Muslims he said he was sorry to hear that and they should "stop it," though he did not apologize for his statements that had caused and encouraged this.  Meanwhile Trump is backpedaling on his campaign promises to build a wall on the Mexican border, deport illegal immigrants and abolish Obamacare.  What surprises me most about those who voted for Trump is that many believed his demagogic promises even though Trump is well known for his dissembling. 

Presidential Debate Oct 19,2016

The Punkwat twins!  Brentwood is the world’s smallest giant, while his brother, Elwood, is the largest midget in the world.  They baffle science.                                                                              
--W.C. Fields as circus-master Larson E. Whipsnade, introducing two men of average size, in You Can’t  Cheat an Honest Man (1939)

Fellows who, whether in stocks, politics, bread-stuffs, morals, metaphysics, religion – be it what it may – trump up their black panics in the naturally-quiet brightness, solely with a view to some sort of covert advantage.                                                                                                                                                                          -- Herman Melville, The Confidence-Man:  His Masquerade, 1857

He [Donald Trump] does not have a circle of friends but an entourage.  Where are the historians, philosophers, or poets he admires or who admire him?  Whose are the minds that expand, challenge or refresh his own?  He reads nothing…. He knows and talks about little but his own excellence.  He cannot learn from peers, since he thinks that he has none.  Why consult others when they are, compared with him, losers?                                                                   
 -- Garry Wills, New York Review of Books, Nov. 10, 2016

A man of extraordinary energy, warmth and vitality, Ronnie [Cornwell] exuded optimism.  From an early age he lived far beyond his means, confident that something would turn up to avert disaster.  He smoked large cigars, drank brandy and whisky by the quart, ate at the best restaurants, stayed at the finest hotels, entertained generously and dispensed extravagant presents.  He seldom settled an account unless pressed to do so, and often not even then.  All debts, he considered, were negotiable.  To women he radiated an unstinting and inexhaustible virility, with unfailing results.  Yet menace lurked beneath the charm.  There was a glint of violence in his eye.  His hugs were a demonstration of ownership as much as of affection…. He aspired to be a tycoon, with interests spanning the globe, though in reality his business empire consisted of little more than short-term fixes and one-off deals, many of them shady in character.                                                                                                                       
–Adam Sisman, John le Carre: The Biography, writing about le Carre’s father.

The latest Presidential debate followed something of a familiar pattern, with Trump dissembling about some things and claiming that others, such as his groping of women, have been “debunked,” for which he cited no evidence, nor did he have any evidence for his claims that the election was rigged because, he claimed, there were millions of people registered to vote who were not legitimate voters.  Everything Trump likes is wonderful and what he doesn’t like is “a disaster,” such as Obamacare, which he says he will replace with “something much, much better,” though he doesn’t say what that is, except it won’t be a single-payer system because that would be “much, much worse.”  Clinton plans to improve Obamacare and offer tuition-free college, college costs and debts something that Trump has not even bothered to mention.  Trump continues to act like a tinpot dictator, threatening to throw Clinton in jail and blaming her, a single Senator, for not changing the laws that allow Trump not to pay any income tax. And not only is Trump opposed to a woman’s right to choose, he actually has said that women who have abortions should be punished in some (unspecified) way.  Whatever one may think about career politician Clinton, at least she wants to bring people together and not pit them against each other.

Presidential Debate Oct. 9, 2016

The revelation of more Trump lewdness was no surprise, even if one had not seen Michael Kirk's Frontline Choice 2016, which revealed that in military school Trump's heroes were Hugh Hefner, James Bond and Clint Eastwood; this has apparently not changed since he "grew up."  And Trump's major mentor was Roy Cohn, the ultra-sleazy investigator for Joe McCarthy, who taught Trump to never settle and to always declare victory, regardless of the outcome.  Trump's supposed "locker room banter" was unlike anything I had ever heard in a locker room, aside from the fact that it did not take place in a locker room, a place Trump has probably seldom seen.

The "debate" was unfortunately rather devoid of policy discussions, though Trump did say that he would abolish Obamacare and replace it with competitive insurance across state lines, though how this would help those who can't afford health insurance is not clear.  Trump did say that single-payer healthcare would be a disaster because Canadians, who have single-payer, sometimes come to America for operations, if they can afford it!  Give him credit for at least not using the term "socialized medicine" in order to scare people, though Clinton pointed out that Medicare is single-payer and quite successful.

Trump continued to dissemble throughout the debate, telling a Muslim woman that many people had seen bombs in the house of the San Bernadino terrorists and did not report it (there is no evidence for this) and that the U.S. has the highest taxes in the world (far from it!).  Trump also showed aspirations to becoming a dictator, like he is in business, by putting Clinton in jail while he also said she had never done anything , apparently not realizing she was just a Senator with little individual power.  Meanwhile, he attacks Obama for his executive orders.  And when confronted with his own words Trumps simply denies he ever said it, whether it was about a beauty queen' s non-existent sex tape or his original support for the war in Iraq.

Clinton tried to talk about policy and inclusion but was repeatedly interrupted by Trump, who accused her of being "a liar with hate in her heart," though it was unclear as to what he was referring (perhaps her ill-timed but correct description of Trump's supporters as "deplorable").  Trump even said he did not communicate with his running mate, who claimed that Trump had changed his mind about banning Muslims from coming to the U.S., though Trump's position on this is unclear.

And education was barely mentioned at all, except for Trump's claim that African-Americans do not have good schools in their neighborhoods, though he didn't offer to do anything about it, suggesting that people should vote for him because "what have you got to lose?"  I'm sure for many of us that is not just a rhetorical question.

Tim Kaine and Mike Pence: VP Debate Oct. 4, 2016

I liked the visual format of the VP debate:  Kaine and Pence in a continuous shot and moderator Elaine Quijano was only heard, though she seemed to have little control of the debate.  Kaine's approach was to quote Trump often and when he did Pence either denied he said what he did or ignored it, particularly when Kaine mentioned rounding up immigrants and deporting them, which caused Pence to say a lot of them were criminals.  And Pence had no responses to Kaine's Trump quotes about Muslims, African-American neighborhoods, Mexicans, disbanding NATO and women being incarcerated for having abortions.  One general response Pence had was that "Trump is not a polished politician" and therefore one should not take seriously anything political he says?!

Pence's unremitting refrain was for America to beef up the military (would he reinstitute the draft?)and demonstrate "broad shoulders."  He wants to abolish Obamacare -- though neither he nor Trump have any suggested alternative for the uninsured -- and Pence has also advocated privatizing social security, a disaster we managed to avoid under Bush.  Pence also mentioned several times "the war on coal" as shorthand for recent attempts to enforce environmental regulations. When Kaine mentioned Senator Scott's speech (Scott is an African-American Senator from South Carolina) saying that he had been stopped forty-seven times by the police it was just ignored by Pence, who pointedly did not endorse Trump's advocating stop-and-frisk and irrelevantly cited Trump's endorsement by The Fraternal Order of Police.

Kaine continued to mention Trump's broken promise of providing his tax returns, while Pence praised Trump for taking all his legal deductions, though he did not suggest that showing a loss of 900 million dollars one year might suggest he is not quite the businessman he claims to be. Pence also agrees with Trump that wages are too high already, so we should not increase the minimum wage, which Clinton and Kaine support.

Presidential Debates: 9/26/16

I have strong memories of the 1960 Presidential debates, when the telegenic Kennedy outshone Richard Nixon and his five o'clock shadow.  I don't think these debates have much value in helping to decide for whom to vote, nor do I do I think the Libertarian and Green Party candidates should have been left out simply because they failed to poll some arbitrary number.  And though I don't think we need any more proof that Trump is a sleazy con man and serial dissembler, we got it anyway last night.

1. Yes, he was sued for discrimination against African-Americans in the housing market, but then, as he said, so were a lot of other people (as though that makes it okay).

2. Yes, he has called women "pigs" but some of them, especially Rosie O'Donnell, deserved it. When he was asked why he thought Clinton did not "look like a President" he sidestepped the question and said he thought she did not have the stamina.

3.  Trump claimed he convinced Obama to produce his birth certificate but offered no reason why he continued for another five years after it was produced it to claim that Obama was not American-born.

4.  He continues to state that if you walk down the street in an African-American neighborhood you will be shot and says we need "law and order" without any description of what that means.  He did not respond to Clinton's suggestion that we improve our justice system and limit incarceration.

5.  He says "hundreds, thousands" of manufacturers are relocating to other countries and we should bring them back, though he has no idea how to accomplish that other than keeping them from leaving in the first place, though he doesn't know how to do that either.

And so on.  I did like the TV format of almost always showing both candidates, no matter who was speaking, so we got to see Trump constantly muttering about everything Clinton said and were spared shots of the moderator and the audience.  The debate was unfortunately very short on specifics, though Clinton did mention college debt and free tuition, as well as equal pay for equal work, a higher minimum wage and family leave, while Trump blustered about Mexico and China, offering only to cut regulations so that businesses could pollute as much as they wanted to .

Gary Johnson: Inside City Hall with Errol Louis

Libertarian candidate for President Gary Johnson appeared Friday on Errol Louis's excellent political show "Inside City Hall", on NY1.  I'm finding Johnson refreshing, as Trump and Clinton, one demagogic and the other aloof, are less and less appealing.  Johnson differs from both major candidates in his support for free trade and his skepticism about the effectiveness and cost of foreign adventures, as we demonstrate over and over how little we have learned from Vietnam.  Unfortunately we have a Committee on Presidential Debates that is staffed by Republicans and Democrats and that insists, quite arbitrarily, that a candidate has to have 15% support in polls to be included in the debates, essentially ensuring that few dissident voices will be heard. (If you are wondering whatever happened to the "equal time" FCC rule:  it was abandoned in 1960 and abolished in 1983).

When Louis asked about Johnson's position on regime change -- Johnson said regime changes supported by us have never been effective -- Louis suggested maybe this was not true in Latin America.  They did not have time for an in-depth discussion of  this subject, unfortunately,  but the dynamics in Latin America have been different, as our support for right-wing dictators such as Batista in Cuba have led to revolutions such as Castro's.  Our support for Somoza in Nicaragua, Pinochet in Chile and many others has been good, perhaps, for United Fruit but seldom, if ever, for the indigenous populations (you can look it up).

Johnson supports legalization of marijuana and when Morris pointed out that people do indeed have problems with the drug Johnson correctly pointed out that making those people criminals and throwing them in jail does not help matters, especially when people of color receive a disproportionate amount of jail time. Some of us have problems with alcohol, too, but Prohibition did not work either.

There were other things that Louis and Johnson did not have time to discuss, especially healthcare., but, in any case, Johnson has a point of view intelligently different from the two major parties and, with his emphasis on choice and inclusion, certainly deserves a hearing.

TV Log

John Stossel last week had on his show on the Fox business network Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson and vice-presidential candidate William Weld.  These two candidates made sense in a way that the two major candidates do not, the Republican and the Democrat each being demagogic in their own way.  Two important issues that cause one to lean toward the libertarians:  they still believe in free trade, abandoned by the two major candidates, and they are extremely skeptical of foreign wars which, going back to Vietnam, have been one moral, physical and financial debacle after another.  Both candidates are former governors and neither is a rigid ideologue but both are progressive, inclusive and compassionate.  My own instincts have always been libertarian --though I still believe strongly in a single-payer health system, which I believe would be liberating -- and it looks to me as if the Libertarians are the most Burkean, least demagogic candidates.

Howard Gordon, producer of 24 and Homeland, has made Tyrant (on FX), now in its third season, one of the most interesting and involving shows on the air.  An American takes over an Arab country --the fictional Abuddin -- and tries to make it democratic.  The contradiction is that he has to use authoritarian methods to instill democracy and the country is soon riven by factions and the daughter of the American leader is murdered  by terrorists.  A new cast member this season is Christopher Noth as an American general, who extracts a high price for American military support.

Richard Price (writer) and Steven Zaillian (director) made The Night Of (HBO) into a gritty story about incarceration, lawyering, police investigation, trial, ethnic and generation divides.  Everyone is suffering from moral conflicts and personal difficulties, most of which are subject to compromises which make no one happy.  The eerie music of Jeff Russo adds to the downbeat mood.

Steven Bocho continues with the serialized police procedural he pioneered with Hill Street Blues(1981-1987)  and NYPD Blue (1993-2005) and the single case per season of Murder One (1995-1997) in Murder in the First (TNT).  He uses San Francisco locations effectively and has the two leading detectives in an interracial relationship that is broken up by the boss.  Bochco, as in his other cop shows and L.A. Law (1986-1994), emphasizes the personal difficulties of the job.

Politics 2016

For those who were disappointed that I did not write about the party conventions I just want to say I'm sorry, the debates exhausted me.  I offer the following political updates:

Alexandra Pelosi's film Meet the Donors, on HBO, includes interviews with a number of political donors.  One is not surprised to hear that they all donate for the good of the country and not because they hope for anything for themselves, except perhaps a chance to give their opinions.  One donor had hoped to be offered the job as head of the CIA by George W. Bush and instead was asked if he could take care of the Bush's cat while they were away.  Since Citizens United and the spurning of federal financing by Obama and Romney in 2012 donations to presidential campaigns have increased considerably.  The person who spends the most money doesn't always win, of course, and I have often wondered why more people don't do what I do, which is to research the candidate's records and speeches and vote for the person you think will do the best job.  I agree with Edmund Burke that we should elect the person with the most integrity and intelligence, as well as the ability to think for themselves.  The biggest problem is that not too many people of that caliber can make it through the primaries, designed as they are to promote demagoguery.

Jill Lepore has an excellent piece on the conventions in the Aug. 8 New Yorker, "The War and the Roses."  About the Republican convention she says, "the rule inside the Convention was:  Incite fear and division in order to call for safety and union."  At the Democratic convention President Obama's speech was "as boundless in its optimism as Trump's was in its pessimism." As Lepore points our, some have faith in the People, some have faith in progress; both faiths can be misplaced.

Eliot Weinberger has a detailed piece in the July 28, 2016 London Review of Books, "They could have picked..." answers the question:  why the world wonders, did the Republicans pick Donald Trump as the nominee when they had so many (in the words of Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus) "well-qualified candidates", including:

Rick Santorum:  He says that a child conceived by rape is "a gift from God" and compared homosexuality to "man-on-dog" sex.

Rick Perry, who planned to eliminate three cabinet agencies but couldn't remember what they were.

Bobby Jindal, the former governor of Louisiana who bankrupted his state in an unsuccessful attempt to eliminate all personal and corporate taxes.

Carly Fiorina, who said concern about climate change was like worrying about the weather and repeatedly criticized a Planned Parenthood tape that nobody could produce a copy of.

Dr. Rand Paul, an isolationist who is opposed to the mandatory vaccination of children.

George Pataki, who came out of nowhere and disappeared as quickly.

Scott Walker, who said he could defeat ISIS because he had cut the education budget and stood up to teachers.

Jim Gilmore, who came and went before anyone knew who he was.

Chis Christie, the Tony Soprano of American politics, though not as effective as Tony.

Jeb Bush, "whose demeanour at the debates was described as that of an exasperated substitute teacher in front of a class of unruly high-schoolers."

Mike Huckabee, who says "gun control means you hit the target."

John Kasich, with "a long anti-union, anti-tax, pro-gun, pro-capital punishment, anti-mass transit, pro-impeachment of Bill Clinton, anti-voters' rights, anti-abortion, anti-environmental regulations. pro-privatization of prisons, pro-Creationism in science classes record."

Dr. Ben Carson, who "often seemed like he spent too much time in the hospital pharmacy."

Marco Rubio:  "he seemed more like the popular mayor of a small Sunbelt city than a potential president."

Ted Cruz, "Even more than most politicians he suffers from messianic delusions."

Edmund Burke, where are you when we need you?

A Fond Farewell to A Prairie Home Companion

I can't say enough about how much I will miss Garrison Keillor's show; his last show was July 2 (my birthday) and he went out in style, with a superb monologue from Lake Wobegone  -- "where the women are strong, the men are good-looking and the children are above average," an episode of Lives of the Cowboys, words from the Ketchup Advisory Board and lots of singing, mostly duets with women who have regularly appeared on his show and mostly somewhat melancholy songs.  The only important thing missing was an episode of Guy Noir, which transfers a fatalistic private eye from the film noir of the forties to the current Midwest, albeit with a fair amount of deadpan humor.

I get the strong impression that many people find Keillor's show too sentimental and folksy, the same reaction they have to Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life.  To the contrary, A Prairie Home Companion is as full of darkness and  irony as Capra's film.  Perhaps it takes someone who grew up in a small town, as I did, to truly understand this.  Keillor did a wonderful rendition of Greg Brown's (with Sarah Jarosz) "It Gets Lonely in a Small Town" and in his monologue he talked about being a child forced to go outside when he would rather stay at home and read (he constantly refers to writers --mostly American, including Fitzgerald and Hemingway) and then being dragooned into playing right field in a softball game, where every fly ball filled him with fear.  The patrons of the Chatterbox Café can be nice, as can the parishioners of Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibilty, but they can also be bigoted, nasty and vindictive.

Keillor was very much influenced by some of the radio personalities who flourished in the forties, when radio was at its artistic peak.  I'm thinking particularly of Fred Allen, who hosted a radio show that featured live musical performances, brilliant comic sketches and effectively low-key political satire.  Keillor has brought on terrific musical guests, everyone from classical pianists to opera singers to every variety of folk, folk-rock and country music.  And for his comedy sketches he has had, since 1992, the talents of Tim Russell (who can imitate almost any voice; on July 2 he did an uncanny imitation of Jimmy Stewart) and Sue Scott.  And Keillor has had excellent sound effects men in Tom Keith (who died in 2011) and Fred Newman and a ready-for-anything music director in Rich Dworsky.

Jean Shepherd, who was also a big influence on Keillor, especially his monologues, is gone and Car Talk is no longer.  Chris Thile has been picked as Keillor's successor but it is hard to imagine A Prairie Home Companion without Garrison Keillor.  I admit that once I had stopped commuting I was not as regular a listener to Keillor's show, but before his shows became available on the internet I tried to find a radio equivalent of a VCR so I could record the show.  Maybe some of the guests were on too often and maybe some of the jokes were not as funny as they once were, but at least he had many good jokes and wonderful guests.

Ezra Edelman's OJ: Made in America

Edelman's film, which ran for 7 1/2 hours (not counting commercials) on ESPN, was interesting for what it left out as well as what it left in.  I was working at Fairchild during the period of the trial and I was not at all surprised by the reactions of the African-Americans who worked there:  many of them felt that the verdict was payback for all the Rodney Kings of the world.  Even the jurors who were interviewed by Edelman admitted that.  But he was only able, for whatever reasons, to interview two jurors, whose reactions to the trial were more emotional than intellectual.  Other jurors may have thought what Alexander Cockburn said in The Nation at the time, that the prosecution presented a relatively weak case and made many mistakes along the way.

The questions Edelman did not address included our corrupt college football system, where a few stars make it to the NFL while many others are used and tossed away, without even an education.  Edelman did not address Simpson's class time at USC or talk to any of his professors.  It seems that Simpson never graduated and likely attended few classes; he was probably was not even able to read.  But none of that mattered, because he was a star football player.  Nor does Edelman address the misogyny of sports stars:  Simpson carried on numerous affairs of his own but would beat up his wife if she even looked at anyone else.

Simpson was treated with favoritism wherever he went and whatever he did.  Director Peter Hyams did not want him in his film Capricorn One (1977) because there were so many other African-American actors who had worked hard and deserved the opportunity; the studio claimed it would be good publicity.  Simpson got the job advertising Hertz because, as he always claimed, "I'm not black, I'm O.J." (though it was never clear why Simpson had to run for his car if Hertz was so fast; did it mean service was not so good for those who could not run that fast?).  Nicole Simpson received very little support from the police or even her own family when Simpson beat her.

If Edelman's film has a hero it is Fred Goldman, who was convinced that Simpson was the murderer of his son, and sued him in civil court, winning a thirty-three million dollar settlement, of which he collected very little. We did not, however, learn as much as we should have from the Simpson case:  policeman should not shoot people because of their color, sports heroes should not be deified and we should not tolerate their abuse of women, colleges should not give athletic scholarships without at least a token attempt to also see that the recipients get a good education, the media should eschew sensationalism.  I am not optimistic about any of these changes.

Megan Kelly and Donald Trump

The only thing I will say about Megyn Kelly's absurd interview the other night with Donald Trump on Fox -- in which each tried to prove how more powerful than the other they were -- is:  why ask questions if one is not prepared to follow through?  When Kelly asked Trump his favorite movie and Trump said "Citizen Kane" Kelly did not follow up at all, when she easily could have asked what he liked about that movie about a powerful man who was his own worst enemy and treated the women in his life badly (I would not expect any appreciation of its innovative style from either person)  When she asked his favorite book he said "All Quiet on the Western Front" and again she did not follow up, when she could easily have asked why someone as militaristic and belligerent as he is liked Remarque's novel about WWI, perceived by many as anti-war.  My educated guess is that Trump has not seen Welles's movie or read Remarque's book and, judging by Kelly's non-response to each of Trump's answers she has not seen the movie or read the book either!

The Good Wife 2009-2016

The Good Wife may be the last of its kind, the last TV show that has 22 episodes a year of relatively high quality.  All credit to Robert and Michelle King, who created the show and stayed with it from beginning to end (they wrote and directed the final episode).  And all credit to Julianna Margulies, who stayed with the show for its entire run, with her plastic surgery being done gradually so that her blank and relatively inexpressive face helped to express her isolation at the end of the show, when she was left without her boyfriend, her best friend, her husband (a divorce at last) and children (off to college).

When I was growing up TV shows had the same characters but plots did not generally overlap from episode to episode. This all changed with Hill Street Blues, Steven Bochco's show that started in 1981 and was followed by high-quality shows such as L.A. Law, ER and The West Wing.  The rise of these shows coincided with the rise of the VCR and the internet:  if you missed a show you might have a friend who taped it or you might be able to watch it on-line.  No more graduation ceremonies postponed so that everyone could watch the finale of MASH.  Now we even have "on demand" for most shows; one doesn't even need a DVR or internet connection (though one cannot fast forward through the commercials.

Alicia Florick, Margulies character, was intelligent and resilient, especially in her work as an attorney.  Her real love was lawyer Will Gardner (played by Josh Charles), who died in season five and whom she never stopped loving.  One of the reasons the show was able to remain lively was the regular introduction of new characters, including a new partner for Alicia (Lucca, played by Cush Jumbo) and a new boyfriend (Jason, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan) in the final season. And the writing was always excellent, with detailed and interesting legal cases and constant battles among the lawyers.

Taking Trump Seriously, Commentary, May 2016

With Meet John Doe, Frank Capra crossed the thin line between populist sentimentality and populist demagoguery.
--Andrew Sarris, The American Cinema,(University of Chicago Press 1968)

Commentary has taken the trouble, in their current issue, to take Donald Trump's policies seriously and analyze them in detail.  The conclusions:

On Trade.  After a detailed analysis of Trump's plans to impose high tariffs and to withdraw from all U.S. trade agreements (and the difficulties with implementation) Scott Lincicome writes:  "We have many existing examples of how Trump-style tariffs have resulted in lower growth, higher prices, foreign retaliation and few, if any, new jobs."

On Taxes.  James Pethokoukis looks at Trump's tax plans and concludes, "It features cuts so large that any growth they generate might get swallowed by unprecedented debt increases.  It supposedly tries to sock it to the undeserving wealthy but will actually reduce their tax burden."

On "The Wall."  Linda Chavez looks at the building of a wall across the border with Mexico and concludes it would cost 17 billion dollars, even if all the difficulties with eminent domain and environmental impact problems can be overcome, slowing down the building of the wall for decades.  Trump's plan to remove all illegal immigrants in two years would cost $300 billion and, even then, "there is no evidence that Americans would rush to pick fruits and vegetables, de-bone chickens, scrub office floors and toilets, the jobs illegal immigrants currently dominate"

On Health Care.  Tevi Troy points out that Trump is offering little that Cruz and others have not offered and (my own comment here) offers nothing for those currently without healthcare insurance or those who will lose it when Obamacare is repealed, as Trump wants to do.

On Infrastructure.  Phillip Klein points out that Trump is big on building but has been vague on how he plans to pay for it (see On Taxes, above).

On Nato, On Asia, On Israel.  Tod Linberg, Michael Auslin, Jordon Chandler Hirsch point out the risks and dangers of Trump's isolationist ideas. As Hirsch concludes:  "A world in which the United States betrays bedrock alliances, cozies up with enemies, and raises the drawbridge is a world in which the Jewish state will struggle to endure."

For historical perspective I also recommend, in the same issue of Commentary, Terry Teachout's The Harbinger of Trumpism, about Sir Oswald Mosley (1896-1980), who in 1932  founded the British Union of Fascists.  As Teachout says, "Anyone who seeks to understand how authoritarianism might become a force in America would thus do well to consider his spectacular rise -- and ignominious fall." 
For novels that have, in various ways, written about the rise of populist fascism in America I suggest Sinclair Lewis's It Can't Happen Here (1935), Robert Penn Warren's All the King's Men (1945), and Philip Roth's The Plot Against America (2004).  For a fascinating look into the evil heart of anti-Islamic fascism in Norway I recommend One of Us by Asne Seierstad (translated by Sarah Death).

Democratic Debate April 14, 2016

Hilary Clinton is beginning to annoy me:
1. Why won't she release the transcripts of her $250,000 speeches to Goldman-Sachs and others?  Is there something like what David Corn and Mother Jones found in Romney's famous "47 percent" speech?  And who are these other unnamed people who should also release transcripts?  Bernie Sanders has no transcripts to release and even if Cruz and Trump do, so what?  Does she really want to associate herself with those dissemblers?

2. In the early part of her campaign Clinton couldn't distance herself fast enough from Obama while last night, as Sanders pointed out, it was all "Obama this and Obama that."  One wouldn't have to be particularly cynical to think that this change is because Obama's approval ratings are rising and Clinton is again shifting with the wind.  Everything good that Obama has done was because of her advice and every mistake he made was because he didn't listen to her!

3.Clinton claims she has stood up against the insurance companies and the drug companies so why is she opposed to single-payer healthcare?  She says she wants the remaining 10% of Americans covered but offers no suggestions how she will do this or how, if at all, she would bring down the costs for many of the poor who cannot afford what Obamacare costs or cannot afford the increasing co-pays. Her only defense --and this is true about other issues, too -- is that she wants to "avoid a contentious debate and forge a consensus."  Good luck with that, it sounds to me like an abdication of authority.

4.  Clinton claims to be sympathetic to the problem of student debt but she doesn't want free tuition for state colleges because there are too many Republican governors and that would provoke the dreaded "contentious debate."

5.  Clinton deplores climate change but doesn't think we can do anything about it unless India and China can be convinced to change their policies.  Meanwhile, she supports fracking and does not support a carbon tax.

6.  Clinton is sorry about what happened in Libya but what could one do, they didn't want our help!  She voted for the Iraq war -- Sanders voted against it -- and still doesn't seem to understand that getting rid of a ruthless dictator is fine as far as it goes but one has to have some kind of plan for what happens afterwards.

I wish both Sanders and Clinton would come more strongly to the defense of unions.  Sanders at least made a point about Verizon and the CWA and the continuing erosion of the middle class as the power of unions has precipitously declined. I must admit I was a little confused during the discussion of guns:  Clinton thinks that gun sellers and manufacturers should be responsible for what someone does with a gun even if that gun was sold legally? Sanders did not bring it up during this debate but his suggestion for single-payer healthcare, including mental healthcare, would likely be of more help than additional gun control, as much as that may also be needed.

Republican Town Hall March 29, 2016

Anderson Cooper was a bit flummoxed in asking questions of the three candidates, as were the audience members who asked questions.  Basically Cruz, Trump and Kasich paid little attention to the specifics of the questions and continued to stake out their by now well-established personae:  Cruz is the right-wing ideologue who isn't too interested in the facts, Trump is the bully who wants to beat up on everyone and doesn't care about policy details because he "can always make a deal" and Kasich is the practical guy who can get things done and has the best chance of winning.

My favorite point in the "town hall" was when Trump was asked by an audience member what the three most important areas would be to him if he were elected.  He said "national security" and then had trouble coming up with anything else, finally mentioning healthcare and education.  Anderson Cooper was rendered almost speechless by this, finally saying that he thought Trump's position was that the federal government has no role in healthcare or education.  Trump then admitted that that was correct, that "common core" should be abolished and education should be up to the states and healthcare should be left to private insurance companies, since we all know how well that has been working!  Apparently Trump is only interested in two things:  preventing women from getting abortions and putting other countries in their place.

Trump and Cruz continued bashing Muslims and immigrants while Kasich says we cannot just demonize whole groups of people.  Kasich continued to be the most statesmanlike of the group (which is admittedly not saying much) and took the admirable Burkean position that one cannot make decisions with a finger in the wind of popularity, while Cruz and Trump praised themselves for not being "politically correct."  All three candidates now have rescinded their pledge to support the Republican candidate, whoever he may be.

Democratic Debate March 9, Republican Debate March 10

The debates are starting to get a bit tedious, as each candidate continues to stake out their own territory. with little deviation.  At least Cuba is now being discussed, as Bernie Sanders emphasizes what good Castro had done --especially with healthcare and education -- and Clinton emphasizes Castro's poor record on human rights.  The Republicans agree that we did not "get a good deal" with Castro,, Trump in particular emphasizing what a great wheeler-dealer he is, who could get a good deal with everybody, including Israel and the Palestinians.  Interesting, the two populist candidates --Sanders and Trump -- both are unhappy with our current trade deals, Trump saying that if other countries "don't behave" he would institute tariffs as high as 45%.  I'm beginning to find Clinton's uneasy laughter a little creepy, as she continues to dodge the question of what she said to Goldman-Sachs.  David Corn (who exposed Mitt Romney's secret speech to wealthy donors in which he referred to 47% of voters as "moochers"), where are you now?

Clinton says that 90% of the country now has health insurance and though she claims to believe in universal coverage she offers no plan to cover the other 10%.  Sanders correctly points out that many of those who do have insurance do not get the medical care they need because of sky-high deductibles and co-payments. The Republicans all pledge to repeal Obamacare but the only suggestions any of them have to improve things are to allow insurance companies to sell across state lines!  On immigration the Republicans are opposed to a path to citizenship while the Democrats are for it and Clinton continues to criticize Sanders for not supporting "Ted Kennedy's bill" even though Sanders has clearly stated that he considered the guest-worker provision of that bill "akin to slavery."  Clinton also continues to harp on Sanders's vote against the import-export bill as Sanders continues to state that the money went mostly to Boeing and other profitable companies.  Clinton's response is that since other countries help profitable companies so should we. Sanders continues to support single-payer healthcare and free tuition for state colleges, while Clinton's concern is that these policies would only cause "contentious debate."

Everyone continues to complain about the lack of increase in wages but no one suggests policies that would make it easier for workers to form and join unions (except for the long-departed Martin O'Malley), presumably because of the scapegoating of teachers' and other unions.

Democratic Debate March 6

This debate revealed nothing particularly new.  Hilary Clinton's evasions are starting to annoy me, I must admit.  She did not address the question of whether bad teachers are protected by the union; they aren't, but why didn't Clinton answer the question directly?  Is she afraid to lose the endorsement of the teachers' unions if she answers this question in a little more detail when, to so many parents, it is an important question?  The same on fracking:  she said she would  institute (unspecified) regulations, while Sanders simply said he was opposed to it because of the environmental dangers. Is Clinton afraid to offend her fossil fuels contributors? Clinton continues to say that she will release the transcripts of her talks to Wall Street firms when others do.  What others? Sanders has none to release and one would not expect the Republicans to release any, if there are some. And she continues to evade the question of why she has a super-PAC if the Wall Street contributors don't expect anything from her.  Her response this time was that Obama also received a great deal of money from Wall Street; therefore it's okay?  And she continues to evade questions about her e-mails; instead she attacks Trump for bringing them up.

When it comes to education Sanders once again proposed free state-college tuition, universal pre-K and more childcare, with better pay for childcare workers. Sanders continues to support single-payer healthcare while Clinton seems happy with 90% coverage and offers no plan to include the missing 10%.  Both candidates would rebuild the infrastructure, though Sanders would invest more money in it. Clinton complained constantly about references to the 90's, contradicting her usual declarations that one should examine her record.  Her record shows fairly clearly that she will shift with the wind, as she was constantly apologizing for previous comments and votes, from coded references to "super-predators" to her vote for the war in Iraq, though foreign policy was not discussed at all, perhaps because they were in Flint, Michigan, where the water supply is contaminated and foreign policy does not seem pressing.  At the end of the debate the candidates were asked about God and Clinton gave a treacly response, not forgetting to include her usual reference to "God-given potential," while Sanders simply reaffirmed his Jewish background and simply stated that we should follow the golden rule that all religions have in common.

Republican Debate: March 3

When I was a debater in school we always had plenty of analysis and statistics to show where our opponents were wrong. But in the Republican debates there has been little of this, since the participants all basically agree on everything.  At least in this debate the Fox moderators were able to show not only Trump's inconsistencies but also they exposed his fantasy that he would make up the deficit caused by his tax cuts with getting rid of "waste, fraud and abuse" by showing the actual numbers.  Trump's response was to emphasize his flexibility, which led to one of the few moments when any of the candidates showed a sense of humor:  during one argument Cruz said to Trump "breathe, Donald, breathe" and a moderator said "let's cut out the yoga" and Rubio said "after all, he's very flexible."

The squabbling continued, as Rubio attacked Trump for his dubious "Trump University," his making of Trump clothes in Asia, and his employment of contract immigrants instead of Americans in his resorts.  Trump said he was forced into these decisions by circumstances and, anyway, he will be vindicated in the Trump University case when it is decided in three years.  Trump said also that the military would do whatever illegal torture he told them to do. Whenever he was pushed on anything Trump cited polls showing how ahead of everyone he was, including Clinton.

Kasich generally remained aloof from the squabbling and name-calling and did make the practical suggestion that we should have more vocational training in the public schools.  All the participants agreed that wages have not risen in a long time but, as usual, no one suggested that strengthening unions would be one way to help the situation. The participants complained about students saddled with debts but no one had any concrete solutions.  Everyone wants to abolish Obamacare and allow insurance across state lines but no one offers any solution to helping the uninsured or those who are insured and are still saddled with medical debts. All the candidates bemoaned what has happened in Flint, Michigan while wanting to abolish regulations that are preventing other such tragedies. The only solution to the illegal immigrant situation that is offered is Trump's deportation and wall with Mexico (which reminds one of the Berlin Wall). 

Without analyzing delegate counts I wonder if Kasich, who has been the most statesman-like of the candidates, has a chance at the nomination.  He is the one candidate who doesn't seem constrained by zealous ideology and seems genuinely interested in accomplishing things with bipartisan effort.

Republican Debate Feb. 25 and The Oscars Feb. 29

I'm not sure which I found more dispiriting in the past week, the most recent Republican debate or the Oscars.  Politicians and movies both seem worst than ever.

The Feb.25 debate was a depressing spectacle,, with Trump, Cruz and Rubio calling each other "liar," Kasich on the sidelines defending his long record in Congress and as the governor of Ohio, and Ben ("can somebody please attack me") Carson more out of it than ever, saying that we should "examine the fruit salad of their lives" when considering Supreme Court nominees.  Meanwhile, there is almost no "debate" about the issues, the only disagreement being how much one can accomplish on the first day in office:  tearing up the agreement with Iran, bombing ISIS back to the Stone Age, defunding Planned Parenthood, getting rid of those obstructionist environmental regulations, abolishing Obamacare.  Some of this might have to involve the Congress, however, since all the Republicans agree that President Obama has been too dependent on "unconstitutional" executive orders.  As usual no one had any useful suggestions to replace Obamacare --  health empowerment accounts and letting health insurance companies sell across state lines would not help those who are too poor to afford insurance -- and unions were again conspicuous in their complete absence.

As for the Oscars:  the debate about diversity tended to obscure the fact that most movies today look as if D.W. Griffith had never lived.  The only positive spot  in the whole tedious evening was the Oscar for best music to Ennio Morricone for Tarantino's The Hateful Eight.  Morricone was given an honorary Oscar in 2006, when he was 78, but he defied the tradition of death, which usually follows the honorary Oscar, and stuck around to win the genuine article.  Morricone has scored over 500 movies and TV shows and, of the ones I've seen and heard, C'er una volta il West (Once Upon a Time in the West, 1968) is the best; it might even be true that director Sergio Leone made the film to fit the score that Morricone wrote! Film scores have never gotten the attention they deserve but I am sometimes influenced to watch a movie based on who did the music (in my more more purist days I preferred no score, as in the films of Ingmar Bergman).

Republican Debate Feb. 13,2016

My favorite moment in the debate came when Carson, in his closing statement, used a made-up quote from Stalin, Carson claiming that Stalin said all one needed to do to overthrow America is undermine its spirituality, morality and patriotism.  Carson seemed to be suggesting that if you don't agree with him on the issues you must be some kind of communist.  One wonders how many listeners to the debate were even sure who Stalin was.
Could it be that there are too many debates?  Bush, Rubio, Cruz and Trump spent most of their time sniping at each other and calling each other liars, even though they all agree on lower taxes, repealing Obamacare, building a big wall to keep out immigrants, bombing ISIS back to the stone age and delaying the appointment of a Supreme Court justice until they can appoint one who will rule against abortion.  Kasich tried to rise above the fray and urged a "consensus" while Carson stayed out of it, in his own world as usual.
Lowlights included:
Carson said the government was evil, not the rich people.
Trump said Cruz was "the biggest liar." 
Everyone said how great Ronald Reagan was and how they were more like him than the other candidates.
Bush wants to "replace Obamacare" but had no suggestions as to how or with what.
Rubio referred to "me and my family" and wants to give parents tax credits, as long as the parents are "one man and one woman."
Trump said, a number of times, "we have to take care of our people" without defining to whom he was referring and said he could easily improve Social Security by getting rid of "waste. fraud and abuse."

In this debate Kasich seemed the one relatively reasonable and rational person, even being able to accept that the government could have a role in helping those who had no health insurance.  He also pointed out the role that the West had in causing some of the problems in the Middle East by the way in which the area was divided up after World War I.

Once again unions were not mentioned,  with the solutions for helping the middle class including getting rid of regulations (again, no specifics were mentioned) and bringing back jobs from China and Mexico, though no one made it very clear how one could accomplish this.

Demoratic Debate Feb. 11, 2016

I think Sanders was right, that Clinton dealt him some low blows.  One was by saying that Sanders should not criticize Obama; why not, is there anyone who doesn't believe that Obama has been something of "a disappointment?"  The other was by saying that the numbers for single-payer healthcare "don't add up," though she did not say why in any detail, presumably, at least in part, because of the large donations she gets from health insurance companies, who make their profits by charging high deductibles and co-payments and by denying service.  Clinton seems more concerned about a "contentious debate" than she does about health insurance for the twenty-nine million Americans who still lack it.   Both candidates were somewhat short on specifics, talking broadly about education, housing and jobs.  Sanders at least had the intelligent suggestions of rebuilding the infrastructure for employment and tuition-free state colleges for education, in these days when a college education today is the equivalent of a high school education fifty years ago (we'll discuss that interesting subject another time).

On foreign policy Clinton criticized Sanders for not having advisers, while she makes use of the same old guys -- including Henry Kissinger! -- who have caused so much trouble and made so many bad decisions in the past.  Sanders accurately described how the current situations in Iran, Iraq and Libya came about because we concentrated on overthrowing dictators and didn't pay attention to what might come next.

While Sanders made an important point on incarceration -- the necessity of employment to avoid recidivism -- Clinton did make a passing reference to unions and organizing, acknowledging that they were debating in Wisconsin, where the union-busting Scott Walker is governor.  Clinton also questioned whether we could have tuition-free college in states where government is hostile to it.  Clinton can always find reasons why some things are not "practical" as she defers constantly to authorities and experts.  At one point she criticized Sanders for not voting for the 2007 immigration bill since, after all, "that was Ted Kennedy's bill."  Sanders pointed out that that was not a reason to vote for a bill that did not have a clearly designed path to citizenship.

Republican Debate Feb. 6, 2016

The truth is that the whole G.O.P. seems stuck in a time loop, saying and doing the same things over and over.
--Paul Krugman, NY Times, Feb. 8, 2016

Just when one thinks that the Republicans can't sink lower, they do.  In this particular debate Chris Christie and Donald Trump played bullies, Rubio, Bush and the sleepy Carson were bullied, and Kasich tried to have everyone get along, even if it meant sometimes getting along with Democrats in order to accomplish something (what a concept!).  To a certain extent I felt sorry for Rubio, as he was bullied and taunted by Christie.  On the other hand, what Rubio kept saying made no sense, criticizing Obama because Obama "wants us to be like other countries."   And what other countries does Rubio not want to be like, the ones that have single-payer healthcare, extensive parental leave, subsidized daycare, decent unemployment insurance?  He and the other candidates want us to be America, which takes no crap from anyone, where if one is poor it's one's own fault, where the rich get richer and the poor poorer and rugged individualism reigns.  Trump, however, thinks the problem is that Obama doesn't know what he is doing (the debaters were divided on this).

The conceptual difficulty with the Republican debates is that there is no debating going on:  everyone is opposed to abortion (some would make exceptions for cases of rape and incest) but no one plans to do anything about it; if they even dared to mention making Supreme Court appointments that would change Roe v. Wade they know it would not help their election; everyone is opposed to Obamacare but offers little or nothing to replace it (Cruz's suggestions are risible and Carson's are incomprehensible); everyone wants to build a wall to keep out both immigrants and drugs (the competition seems to be about how big the wall will be and how to pay for it); everyone wants a bigger military than the next guy, though none of the candidates ever served in the military (Rubio bragged that his brother had!)

Christie did have at least one genuine accomplishment to brag about, other than having been a federal prosecutor,  and that was putting first-time, non-violent drug offenders in rehab instead of jail. Otherwise the governors bragged about how much they lowered taxes and how many jobs had been created during their terms. Once again the only mention of unions, which had once been instrumental in increasing wages, was Chris Christie bragging about how he had busted the teachers' union. Cruz started using the term "socialized medicine" once again, apparently to scare people, and said (without presenting any evidence) that it didn't work.  Most of the candidates, though, seemed to support socialized medicine for veterans and no Republican has criticized socialized medicine for senior citizens. 

Democratic Debate Feb. 4, 2016

Nothing much new was said in the most recent Democratic debate; not even the absence of the courtly Martin O'Malley was mentioned.
Sanders is still in favor of single-payer healthcare and free tuition for state colleges.  Clinton is opposed to the first because it is too expensive and the second because she "doesn't want to pay tuition for Donald Trump's kids."  Healthcare is a right and healthcare insurance is a conflict of interest:  the more insurance claims denied the more the insurance profit.  It is unlikely that Trump's kids would go to a state college but should high schools not be free because a millionaire's children can go there?
Clinton got upset because Sanders questioned her contributions from Wall Street, apparently forgetting a previous debate when she defended Wall Street because Wall Street was in New York and she was a Senator once from New York!  Is it unreasonable for Sanders and others to think that Clinton and others might --even unconsciously -- be influenced by those who make large contributions? Clinton even said at one point, apparently without irony, that "these guys make good investments."
Clinton is in favor of capital punishment, at least in some cases.  Sanders says, "there is too much violence in the world and no government should be involved in killing."
On foreign policy both candidates are opposed to ground troops in the Middle East and in favor of coalitions. It was interesting to see that Sanders was questioned about not having any distinguished foreign policy advisers while Clinton continually deferred to (usually unnamed)experts about her policies.
Clinton has changed her mind on trade agreements in several cases; it is unclear where she now stands on the issue.  Sanders is in favor of "fair trade" that keeps, as much as possible, Americans from having to compete with low-paid foreign workers.

Both candidates want to combat the increasing economic inequality but I was once again disappointed that neither candidate discussed unions and what could be done to strengthen them.

Republican Debate Jan.28, 2016

I look forward to the future Republican debates when we can play a drinking game based on every time Chris Christie mentions 9/11 or says "... as a former federal prosecutor."
 --Gail Collins, The New York Times

The Republicans continued their race to the bottom, afraid to say anything that might make anyone who might vote for them change their mind.  Christie, for instance, once suggested that Social Security payments could start later than they currently do.  He may or may not have abandoned that position but when asked about entitlements in the current debate he said no more money for Planned Parenthood and no more legal abortions!  This has nothing to do with entitlements, Planned Parenthood money is a drop in the budget bucket, and the federal government cannot legally pay for abortions!

Ted Cruz, opposed to Obamacare just as all the other candidate are, was asked how he would replace it, a question all the candidates have been ducking.  His answer:  more healthcare accounts, allow insurance companies to sell across state lines, and de-link health insurance from employment. 
All this is great for people who can afford, one way another, health insurance but does nothing for those without health insurance and can't afford it, those whom Obamacare was designed to help!

On foreign policy everyone wants to bomb ISIS back to the Stone Age and rebuild the military, though no one has the courage to call for the return of the draft.   Only Rand Paul seems to have given much thought to the consequences of what to do after ISIS is destroyed.  Everyone is opposed to further immigration and no one, any more, wants a path to legalization or citizenship for immigrants who are here illegally. 

Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio want to diminish inequality by doing away with regulation and climate control.  Rubio actually said he does not want to save the environment if it means losing jobs!  Santorum does show some concern for the 74% of adults who do not have college degrees, though neither he nor any of the other candidates shows any sympathy for unions, one important means to get blue-collar wages to rise.

Kasich pleaded with his fellow Republicans to work with Democrats in a conciliatory way but most of the candidates were too busy bashing Hilary Clinton to listen.  Gilmore, Huckabee, Carson and Fiorina had little to add to the debate:  Gilmore bragged about being a veteran, Huckabee was folksy in a scary way, Fiorina repeated constantly that it was "time to take this country back" and Carson seemed to be dozing off during most of the debate, though he did awaken at the end to prove he could memorize the Preamble to the Constitution.

Democratic Debate Jan. 17,2016

First of all, kudos to Martin O'Malley.  He is the first one in all the debates, of both parties, to mention the crucial issue of unions. In the list of things he said he wanted to do he included "make it easier to join labor unions and bargain collectively for better wages." 

In the "debate" itself there was minimal disagreement.  Bernie Sanders reiterated his support for a single-payer health system while Clinton wants to "build on Obamacare."  As Sanders pointed out, Obamacare still leaves 29 million people uninsured.  Hillary is obviously still feeling the wounds from her healthcare efforts in the 90's and doesn't want a "contentious situation."  When Hillary objected to the tax increases that would be necessary for a single-payer system Sanders correctly pointed out that any increased taxes would be more than canceled out by the savings of insurance premiums, as even employer insurance is costing the employee more and providing less, with more and more people postponing doctor visits because of the high co-payments. 

On foreign policy and the armed forces Sanders pointed out that we still have an army based on what we needed during the cold war and this needs to be looked at.  Clinton is still apologizing for her support of the Iraq war and feels a different wind blowing now, as she bends with it.  O'Malley correctly put the emphasis on the increased intelligence needed to fight ISIS and Sanders emphasized the need to learn from the past (what a concept!) and to have a good idea of what will happen after we topple a despot before we do it as an end in itself.

Sanders emphasized that we need a Congress that responds to the needs of the people and not just the billionaires and for that we need detailed campaign finance reform, a subject on which Clinton continues to be quiet, as much of her money comes from super PACs and from Wall Street. Both Sanders and Clinton attacked the systematic racism in our criminal justice system and Sanders emphasized the "de-militarization" of the police, emphasizing community and diversity.

Republican Debate Jan. 14, 2016

The only difference in the Republic debate this time was the moving of Carly Fiorina to the undercard, with Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum.  This allowed the seven men in the main bout to get back to the "mine is bigger than yours" bragging:  I will spend more on bombs and kill more opponents than you will.  Once again none of the participants and moderators mentioned unions, everyone saying that if we stopped handcuffing businesses with regulations they could grow unimpeded and, somehow, that would bring back the American dream and the affluent middle class! I will give Rick Santorum some populist credit as someone who is trying to appeal to the "74% of those ages 25-66 who do not have college degrees" and emphasizing the importance of "rebuilding the family" but everyone else wants to do away with Obamacare and beef up the military, as if that would solve any problems either at home or abroad.   And how is de-funding Planned Parenthood going to help anyone?  No one had any solutions or even suggestions how to make healthcare more available to everyone or how to make college more affordable. High school was not always free to everyone either.

I did find it amusing, in a mordant way, for Cruz to attack Trump for having "New York values,"  which he defined as "pro-abortion, pro-gay-marriage, socially liberal and obsessed with money and the media."  Cruz must be aware that most Americans are in favor of a woman's right to choose and letting people marry someone of the same sex.  As he appeals more and more to evangelicals he appeals less and less to everyone else.  Chris Christie does not seem to realize that Presidents are limited to two terms, threatening to "kick Obama's rear end out of the White House" and Ben Carson doesn't want to decide anything himself, preferring to get experts together and let them solve it.  Jeb Stuart and Donald Trump talked about mental health as an alternative to gun control but did not seem aware that most insurance companies offer little mental health coverage.

I missed Rand Paul's intelligent responses to those who want to bomb the hell out of everyone we don't like  (Paul says perhaps we could try diplomacy first and bombing only as a last resort) but he was relegated to the undercard and chose not to participate.  The seven contenders on the main card want America to be as different as possible from other nations, especially European countries:  no universal healthcare, no parental leave, no minimum wage, no labor unions, deport all illegal immigrants and don't allow any new legal ones, no increased taxes (especially for the wealthy), little or no gun control.  This is how we will "take our country back" and "make America great again"?

Jessica Jones on Netflix, Created by Melissa Rosenberg.

I haven't read comic books since I was 11 years old and I wouldn't even know where to buy one now.  When I was a child I looked forward to the arrival of DC Comics --Superman, Batman, et al. -- on Tuesdays at the local convenience store, mainly because I had little else to read; there was no local library and there were almost no books in my home.  So I followed closely the characters in the DC world.  In 1961 along came Marvel Comics and by then I had started to find books to read, mostly paperbacks on the store racks that I purchased with the five dollars a week or so that I earned on my paper route.

Now we have an abundance of movies and TV shows based on comic books, including Jessica Jones on Netflix.  The show seems to be liked by some adults and Emily Nussbaum in The New Yorker even praised it for its contribution to the continuing debate over sexual consent, as Jones fights the attempts of Kilgrave to control her mind, which he apparently was able to do for a while. I think the show would be much better if Jessica Jones were  the same gritty private eye but without the superpowers (which aren't too clear anyway; she can lift things and fly a little bit) and who is a somewhat bitter dipso because of her time with Kilgrave.  As it is, when she pursues Kilgrave (whose mind control powers are also a little vague) almost everyone who tries to help her ends up dead.  At one point Jessica tried to get Kilgrave to use his powers for good, but that plotline was unfortunately quickly dropped. 

It seems that too many parents these days are content to let their children read comic books; at least they are reading something!  Whether today's Marvel Comics are any good or not I am not qualified to say, but they certainly play a leading role in today's movies and TV.  Perhaps comics are more artistic and intelligent than they were when I was a kid, but they still discourage kids from using their imaginations, just as TV has done since it basically replaced radio.