Columns

This image from CCTV video released by Saudi Arabia's Media Ministry shows passengers taking cover as flames and smoke fill part of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during what authorities described as a strike at the airport on Oct. 10, 2026. (Saudi Media Ministry via AP)

Daniel DePetris: Resumption of war between Houthis and Saudis is bad timing for Donald Trump

By Daniel DePetris

October 12, 2026 at 1:27 p.m.

The attacks in Saudi Arabia come when Donald Trump is in a standoff over the...

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...

Former President Donald Trump after speaking at a Concerned Women for America Summit at the Capitol Hilton, in Washington, on Sept. 15, 2023. Trump, whose Supreme Court appointments led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, harshly criticized his top rival in the Republican presidential primary, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, for a six-week abortion ban that he called a "terrible thing."

Clarence Page: Are tables turning on the abortion issue since Dobbs? Be careful what you ask for.

By Clarence Page

September 20, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

I'm sure I wasn't the only TV viewer who stuck a finger in my ear...

Sen. Mitt Romney speaks to reporters after announcing he would not seek reelection on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 13, 2023. Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee for president, made a historic break with his party when he voted to remove former President Donald Trump from office.

Clarence Page: MAGA was only the beginning of Mitt Romney’s worries

By Clarence Page

September 17, 2023 at 8:17 a.m.

Like numerous other folks who did not support Mitt Romney's election when he was challenging...

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., speaks in the Hart Senate Office Building on July 20, 2023, in Washington, D.C. Kennedy recently read sexually explicit passages aloud during a senate book-ban hearing on Sept. 12.

Column: Stop pretending book bans are all about sex. If we ban books, ‘we will be banning knowledge, culture, empathy,’ says Illinois secretary of state.

By Heidi Stevens

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

I suppose it was meant to be a gotcha moment — Sen. John Kennedy, R-La.,...

Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates greets people in the rotunda at the Illinois State Capitol on April 19, 2023.

Clarence Page: Yes, Black parents like school choice too

By Clarence Page

September 13, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

So now it's Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates' turn to be pilloried for...

A police officer hands out pizza to dozens of recently arrived migrants to New York City as they camp outside of the Roosevelt Hotel, which has been made into a reception center, where they try to secure temporary housing on Aug. 1, 2023, in New York City. The migrants, many from Central America and Africa, have been sleeping on the streets or at other shelters as the city continues to struggle with the influx of migrants whose numbers have surged this spring and summer.

Clarence Page: New York is having an immigration crisis? Join the club of receiving cities.

By Clarence Page

March 11, 2024 at 12:44 p.m.

Mayor Eric Adams is earning praise from Republicans, which is always a danger sign for...

Linda Mobley hangs her head in prayer as she holds a book that could be banned under Florida's newly adopted curriculum standards on African American history during an Aug. 10, 2023, education town hall at Antioch Missionary Baptist Church in Miami Gardens.

Clarence Page: When is a book ban not a ‘ban’? Officials dance around censorship efforts.

By Clarence Page

March 12, 2024 at 11:57 a.m.

With abortion prohibitions looking more like a loser than a surefire winner for Republicans, it...

University of North Carolina students, faculty members and family hold a candlelight vigil on Aug. 30, 2023, in Chapel Hill in honor of professor Zijie Yan, who was fatally shot on campus.

Clarence Page: ‘Can you hear gunshots?’ Student texts reveal horrors from inside an active shooter lockdown.

By Clarence Page

September 3, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

An "active shooter" situation is a hell of a way to start a school year...

A message reading Carolina Strong is displayed on a screen after a vigil for slain professor Zijie Yan at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Aug. 30, 2023.

Column: In the wake of yet another school shooting, I fear young people will give up on our willingness to protect them

By Heidi Stevens

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

The Aug. 30 edition of the Daily Tar Heel, University of North Carolina at Chapel...

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy after the Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee, on Aug. 23, 2023. Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and author, commanded considerable attention during the first Republican primary debate as his standing was rising in national polls.

Clarence Page: Not even the reality of racial violence can overcome the razzle-dazzle of a presidential candidate

By Clarence Page

August 30, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

Sixty years after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic March on Washington, much of...

Republican presidential candidates Vivek Ramaswamy and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley participate in the first debate of the GOP primary season Aug. 23, 2023, in Milwaukee.

Clarence Page: Republicans seek strength in the GOP debate after Donald Trump’s indictments

By Clarence Page

August 27, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

Vivek Ramaswamy got off to a great start in this primary season's first Republican presidential...

Columnists