Columns

Attorneys for Christa Pike hold a news conference after a judge ruled the Tennessee Department of Corrections must preserve all evidence related to the failed execution of Pike, on Oct. 7, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee. (George Walker IV/AP)

Clarence Page: A botched execution shakes our death penalty presumptions

By Clarence Page

October 12, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The botched execution of Christa Pike offers a gross illustration of the cruelty that capital...

Chicago school board president candidates Jessica Biggs, Hilario Dominguez and Victor Henderson participate in a forum at the Copernicus Center on Sept. 29, 2026. (Chris Sweda/baiduhai)

David Greising: The race for Chicago school board president is about ideas — and character

By David Greising

October 10, 2026 at 10:01 a.m.

It will take savvy strategic thinking, backed by the character needed for leadership, to make...

Heidi Stevens: I wish we modeled better care for the young people who are making sense of the world right now

By Heidi Stevens

October 9, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

I hope that when we’re all writing our stories, the ones that are still being...

Evidence markers are placed near an SUV as Chicago police investigate at the scene of a shooting near the 3800 block of West Ferdinand Street, March 21, 2024. Dexter Reed, 26, was fatally shot by police in an "exchange of gunfire." (John J. Kim/baiduhai)

David Greising: The consent decree was designed to prevent disasters such as the Dexter Reed shooting

By David Greising

April 11, 2025 at 5:51 p.m.

Larry Snelling seemed suited to bring the Chicago police into compliance with the consent decree....

Former President Donald Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, during a campaign event at the Hyatt Regency in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 2, 2024. (Jamie Kelter Davis/The New York Times)

Clarence Page: Trump put himself in an anti-abortion trap that he’s yet to escape

By Clarence Page

April 10, 2024 at 5:05 a.m.

Donald Trump, reported to have mulled endorsing a national ban on abortion after 16 weeks...

Israeli soldiers rest on top of their tank on the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, April 8, 2024. (Tsafrir Abayov/AP)

Daniel DePetris: Joe Biden’s tone shifts and Israel pulls troops from Gaza. What’s next?

By Daniel DePetris

April 10, 2024 at 8:27 a.m.

When Israel began striking back against Hamas in Gaza a mere hours after 3,000 terrorists...

Artist Brendan Fernandes with his piece "From Hiz Hands", Aug. 27, 2018, at DePaul Art Museum in Chicago. (Erin Hooley/baiduhai)

Laura Washington: Expo Chicago comes but once a year. A call to art lovers to make the pilgrimage.

By Laura Washington

April 8, 2024 at 5:05 a.m.

Every April Expo Chicago convenes artists from near and far to showcase their work. Columnist...

Former President Donald Trump takes the stage during a campaign rally on March 9, 2024, in Rome, Georgia. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty)

Clarence Page: Donald Trump goes all in defending Jan. 6 mob and Karl Rove goes off

By Clarence Page

April 7, 2024 at 5:05 a.m.

Karl Rove was as direct as possible on how unacceptable Donald Trump's defense of Jan....

A Kissinger family portrait from 1965 includes, in the front row from left, Patty, Billy, Molly on mother Jean's lap, and Danny on father Holmer's lap. And in the back row, from left, are Meg, Nancy, Jake and Mary Kay. (Meg Kissinger)

Heidi Stevens: The search for answers — and belonging — in the wake of family tragedy

By Heidi Stevens

June 7, 2024 at 11:50 a.m.

Meg Kissinger's book “While You Were Out” is a clear-eyed look at mental illness. But...

Mukhammadsobir Faizov, a suspect in the shooting at the Crocus City Hall attack, sits in a glass cage in Basmanny District Court in Moscow on March 24, 2024. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP)

Elizabeth Shackelford: As Russia’s actions demonstrate, our world order is fraying

By Elizabeth Shackelford

April 5, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

If America is unwilling or unable to cajole its friends to abide by a set...

People chant and cheer in support of access to an abortion drug in front of the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on March 26, 2024. The event was held the day the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the abortion pill case FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Steve Chapman: The grave threats to abortion rights are sparking a backlash

By Steve Chapman

April 4, 2024 at 5:01 a.m.

Regarding abortion, Democrats are not reticent about what they are defending. And Republicans are not...

The remains of the cargo ship Dali are seen after it crashed into and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, on April 2, 2024, in Baltimore, Maryland. A work crew was fixing potholes on the bridge, which is used by roughly 30,000 people each day, when the cargo ship struck in the early morning of March 26. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty)

Clarence Page: Deriding DEI is the right’s attempt at a polite way to attack civil rights

By Clarence Page

April 3, 2024 at 7:33 a.m.

What does DEI have to do with the mayor of Baltimore and the collapse of...

Philippine resupply vessel Unaizah is hit by two Chinese coast guard water canon blasts on May 4, 2024, causing injuries to multiple crew members as they tried to enter the Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed South China Sea. (Ezra Acayan/Getty)

Daniel DePetris: A belligerent China is bringing out East Asia’s resolve

By Daniel DePetris

April 2, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

The forthcoming summit among the U.S., the Philippines and Japan is really about one thing...

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