In an election year focused on resuscitating the struggling economy, few could have predicted the central role feminism is playing in political debates. Beginning in early February with the controversy surrounding the Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate, the Democratic Party has made overtures to women and aligned itself with traditionally feminist viewpoints. However, the … Read more
Matt Bai is a columnist for the New York Times. His latest book, The Argument, discusses the Democratic Party and its politics. Harvard Political Review: What prompted you to write The Argument? Matt Bai: It’s pretty straightforward. Sometime in 2003, Democrats were so down and out, and liberalism as an ideology so beaten down, that … Read more
When I saw a “We’re Closed” banner in the front window of a Hungarian deli in New York’s Upper East Side one morning, and that the store’s shelves were absent their traditional salami, red paprika, and huge coils of sausage, I was sure that “Little Hungary’s” last remaining meat emporium had closed its doors for … Read more
Bill Kristol is a conservative political analyst. He was Chief of Staff for former Vice President Dan Quayle, founded The Weekly Standard, and regularly appears on Fox News. Harvard Political Review: Can we expect to see more paternalistic laws and actions, as with the recent Kennedy School’s smoking ban? Bill Kristol: This reflects a shift … Read more
In 2008, President Obama made this statement of principle, otherwise known as a gaffe: “When you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody.” John McCain used the opportunity to call him a socialist. So did Rick Perry in his 2012 campaign. Mitt Romney has so far preferred using code. But as the campaign gets tougher, he too might start … Read more
Manhattan’s Little Italy was once a microcosm of its mother country, replete with Genovese, Neapolitan, and Sicilian enclaves, a frenzied amalgam of Italians conversing in their native tongue while vending homemade porchetta and piadini. But after a slow, inexorable decline, Little Italy has become a neighborhood of nostalgia rather than a neighborhood of existing immigrant … Read more
When campaigning in Puerto Rico in March, Republican Presidential Candidate Rick Santorum told a local newspaper that, just “like any other state,” Puerto Rico must comply with federal law mandating English as the “principal language.” There is, however, no federal law in the U.S. mandating English as the official language. Can Santorum’s statement be dismissed … Read more
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus is an interesting character. Sure, his name is Reince Priebus, which is original enough, but he also possesses a unique talent for criticizing the media for being in the pocket of the Democratic Party in a way that angers the media and the Democratic Party. You might remember Priebus’s “war on caterpillars” quip. … Read more
Who remembers the time of large seats, fancy five-star meals, and casual, spacious comfort in the air? I don’t; except for in first class, it hasn’t been around for a while. But as airlines have adapted to an era with more flying than ever (until the recession), rising fuel costs, and greater interdependence, many here in the United States … Read more