You may have encountered the term “ bird flu” increasingly online and in the media. It refers to a highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A, classified as H5N1. Wild birds carry and transmit this flu, though most do not get sick from it. However, it has been detected in birds and mammals at farms such as poultry and dairy cows and has the ...Read more

For some of us, just reading the title of this piece may be irritating — even maddening. If you’re scared about Trump’s election, being asked to understand the “other side” can seem a distant concern compared to your fears of what might happen during his presidency. If you’re glad Trump won, you may be tempted to say, “We’ve won;...Read more

In rehearsal at Lyric Opera of Chicago for my two-act work, “Blue.” I had gone to bed on election night with a mixed sense of hope and dread and woke up Wednesday morning with a deep sense of grief, betrayal, fear, anger, disbelief and loss.

The efforts that I had taken, and my one vote, combined with those of millions of others, hadn’t ...Read more

Of all the campaign promises and crisis-fixing commitments president-elect Donald Trump assured us he will quickly fulfill, two pledges are in urgent need of each other. Not starting on day one – now!

We’re talking about: (1) the first promise Trump made to us – about finally securing our southern border; and (2) the last commitment Trump...Read more

When Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump agree on something, it’s a sign that trouble is afoot. And last week, the senator from Vermont said that he would gladly work with the president-elect to cap credit card interest rates at 10%, a promise Trump made during the campaign.

Their complaint is simple: Americans who have to pay 20% or 30% interest...Read more

Donald Trump won 46% of the Latino vote, according to some exit polls highlighting the complexity and nuance of this demographic, which pundits too often mischaracterize as monolithic, or worse, an aggrieved minority. Against most expectations, a significant portion of moderate to conservative Latinos turned out for Trump, delivering critical ...Read more

On Saturday afternoon, at 4:17, Donald Trump used his Truth Social to announce the last of his cabinet secretaries, Brooke Rollins for USDA, finishing naming the 15 positions far faster than any other incoming president. His speed might be because he’s been here before, so he knows what he’s doing, which is definitely fine, or he’s not ...Read more

The apparent death of the PRESS Act in Congress should alarm Americans on two levels.

One, the measure — acronym for Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying— seeks to shield a vibrant free press from coercive government intrusion.

But, two, even those who fail to understand the necessity of an uncowed press to the health of a ...Read more

As should be expected, the Democratic Party and its supporters are casting blame for the results of the 2024 presidential election. Many are looking inside the party and its ideology, policies, candidates and messaging, as they should. But some are trying to blame sexism (even misogyny) and racism for the failure of a woman of color to win the ...Read more

Donald Trump won't be sworn in as our 47th president for two more months, but he's already pleasing his base in one way:

Undocumented immigrants and their allies are running scared.

The former and future commander in chief repeatedly vowed during his campaign to start mass deportations the moment he enters office. Those affected are taking ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump has rocked the boat and roiled critics with some of his controversial transition picks and campaign promises but most Americans believe that’s just what he should be doing.

Nearly six in 10 American adults approve of the way Trump is handling his transition, according to a CBS/YouGov poll, a shocker for the ...Read more

The Biden administration has failed to distinguish itself on the world stage over the past three years. The president is apparently eager to keep that lamentable record intact as he leaves the Oval Office.

From the botched Afghanistan withdrawal to the failed appeasement of Iran’s mullahs, from the tepid support for Israel in its battle ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump has been bypassing FBI background investigations for his cabinet appointees in favor of screening by private companies. The reasons?

The normal process can be slow. And it can reveal embarrassing personal information. Of course, it can! But those are not reasons to scrap an important safeguard to our national ...Read more

The last thing former University of Pennsylvania president Amy Gutmann ever imagined was becoming U.S. ambassador to Germany, the country from which her Orthodox Jewish father barely escaped with his life.

Born in the tiny town of Feuchtwangen in Franconia, 23-year-old Kurt Gutmann realized shortly after Adolf Hitler came to power that he had ...Read more

Special Counsel Jack Smith has moved to dismiss both federal criminal cases against Donald Trump on the simple premise that he will be president once more in less than two months’ time, and longtime Department of Justice policy dictates that a sitting president cannot be prosecuted.

So, at long last, the attempted election overthrow case and ...Read more

If you plan to spend the day after Thanksgiving shopping, buyer beware: You could be purchasing stolen goods. Many handbags, wallets, gloves, shoes, boots, belts, jackets and other items have been heisted from their rightful owners. But there’s an easy way to ensure you aren’t buying stolen property: Just check the label. If it says “...Read more

Say what you will about President-elect Donald Trump. The man can hold a grudge.

So, too, apparently, do the neo-Nazis who marched on the Ohio state capital this month. Freshly emboldened by Trump’s re-election and competition with a rival white supremacist group in Ohio, they carried Nazi paraphernalia, shouted racist chants, and provoked a ...Read more

As long-serving members of the California Air Resources Board, we have prioritized environmental justice and community health, championing efforts to combat climate change. However, we believe state policies must thoughtfully address the consequences for communities least able to bear the associated costs.

This concern applies to CARB’s newly...Read more