Columns

A young woman reacts as she looks at her damaged home after Russia's night missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Oct. 14, 2026. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Elizabeth Shackelford: Trump’s abhorrent Russian diesel deal defies US laws and won’t lower gas prices

By Elizabeth Shackelford

October 16, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Donald Trump has illegally undone sanctions efforts against Russia. For all of this, Americans won’t...

Saturday Night Live Host Shane Gillis during the monologue on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (Will Heath/NBC/TNS)

Heidi Stevens: Shane Gillis ‘SNL’ opener misses the mark — and the moment

By Heidi Stevens

October 16, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

The most disappointing thing about Shane Gillis’ shopworn, hackneyed, tone-deaf, retrograde, unfunny “Saturday Night Live”...

Former Indiana U,S. Rep. Lee Hamilton, who was co-chair of the Iraq Study Group, in his office at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington on Nov. 24, 2006. (Pete Souza/baiduhai)

John T. Shaw: We need Congress to ponder the long term with a new future-focused group

By John T. Shaw

October 14, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Half a century ago, many lawmakers viewed their responsibilities differently and created a forum to...

Ellen Pompeo stars as Meredith Grey in "Grey's Anatomy."

Column: Some TV shows tried to incorporate COVID-19 into their fictional worlds. Was it worth it?

By Nina Metz

March 12, 2021 at 7:18 a.m.

A year into the pandemic, we're spending more time than ever in front of the...

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris smile after Biden signed the American Rescue Plan, a coronavirus relief package, in the Oval Office of the White House on March 11, 2021.

Column: Biden signs popular American Rescue Plan, making GOP look bad. That’s cancel culture!

By Rex W. Huppke

March 12, 2021 at 7:47 p.m.

President Joe Biden has signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, guaranteeing that struggling Americans...

Students from Hersey High School in Arlington Heights exit the building following their first day back to school in October 2020. Other than a pause around the winter holiday, District 214 students have had a combination of in-person and remote classes since.

Column: Teachers unions meet their match as parents say, ‘Open our schools’

By John Kass

March 12, 2021 at 5:00 a.m.

Suburban parents are rightfully angry. They pay among the highest residential property taxes in the...

Column: Nasty, expensive school board elections for Chicago? Hard pass.

By Eric Zorn

March 11, 2021 at 3:47 p.m.

The campaign literature in voters' mailboxes was vicious, dishonest, over the top and vaguely nauseating,...

Professor Robert E. Kelly is interrupted by his kids during an interview with BBC News.

Column: BBC Dad (and his kids) sprung onto the scene 4 years ago. Would that video even raise an eyebrow today?

By Heidi Stevens

March 11, 2021 at 2:34 p.m.

Four years ago this week, the adorable children of political science professor Robert E. Kelly...

Piers Morgan speaks to reporters outside his home in London, as he walks his daughter Elise to school on March 10, 2021. Morgan left "Good Morning Britain" after making controversial comments about Meghan Markle.

Column: With Meghan as Princess of the Woke, we’ll skip England for a while

By John Kass

March 11, 2021 at 5:00 a.m.

We've always wanted to visit England and sample the delicious savory pies, good rare English...

This June 29, 1967, photo shows the mangled car that actress Jayne Mansfield died in after colliding with a truck outside of New Orleans. Safety advocates say similar deaths annually could be prevented by underride guards on the side and front of new tractor-trailers.

Column: Car collisions with big rigs don’t have to be so deadly

By Steve Chapman

March 10, 2021 at 4:18 p.m.

Anytime I'm driving down the highway behind a semitruck, I look for the horizontal metal...

People walk by a Lego store display showing models of Trump Tower inside Water Tower Place on Michigan Avenue on Jan. 6, 2021.

Column: A Target on the Magnificent Mile? How embarrassing. What’s next? Tourists?!?

By Rex W. Huppke

March 10, 2021 at 10:23 a.m.

As you have likely heard, we in the upper crust of Chicago society are perturbed...

Column: I love the idea of a Target in Water Tower Place. What’s ’embarrassing’ about affordability?

By Heidi Stevens

March 10, 2021 at 10:14 a.m.

I love the idea of Target anchoring Water Tower Place, filling the space — part...

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, en route to Houston, on Feb. 26, 2021.

Column: How long can President Biden hide from real news conferences?

By John Kass

March 10, 2021 at 5:00 a.m.

How long will President Joe Biden's handlers keep shielding him from White House news conferences?...

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