Author Archives: Joe Benning

Now What?

In response to Bashar Al-Assad’s use of nerve gas to attack his civilian population, President Donald Trump ordered an attack on the Syrian airport Assad’s Air Force used to launch the attack. Now what? It isn’t so clear what exactly … Continue reading

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The Resistance Continues

For lots of very good reasons, not the least of which is that he is—let us face it—an ignoramus, an awful lot of people find Donald Trump’s election to be simply unpalatable. Within this group are two distinct camps. There … Continue reading

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Devin Nunes Weighs In

Devin Nunes, a Republican, a Trump supporter and Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee previously said (and continues to say) that he doesn’t see any evidence that Trump Tower was wiretapped by the Obama Administration. There appears to be unanimity … Continue reading

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The Mandibles–A Review

The Mandibles: A Family, 2029 – 2047 By Lionel Shriver Harper Collins 2016 421 pages   In September of 2016, Lionel Shriver, a novelist, gave the keynote address at the Brisbane Writers Conference. She made instant headlines when, donning a … Continue reading

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Preet Bharara: It’s About Time

Aloha   As the salutation suggests, this post is coming from Hawaii, where we have been living these last three weeks. Thanks to the wonders of Airbnb we rented a cottage in Maui near Makawao, a little cowboy town planted … Continue reading

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Where’s that $100 Trillion?

That’s right. Trillion.   There is a reason, actually lots of them, why Washington is consumed with the latest Trumpian Tweet to the effect that Team Obama spied on Trump’s Presidential campaign. For one thing, if the charge is true, … Continue reading

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To Trade or Not to Trade…

Economic Nationalism and the Trump Trade Agenda According to Steve Bannon, the second prong of the Trump Administration’s policy focus is “Economic Nationalism”. The obvious first question is: what, exactly, does Bannon have in mind when he refers to Economic … Continue reading

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Mr. Bannon Goes to CPAC

  In a fascinating address given at the CPAC annual convention, Trump political strategist Steve Bannon explicitly articulated the framework for the Trump Presidency over the next four years—and possibly beyond. His speech to the convention made it clear that … Continue reading

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Chaos

“Can’t anyone here play this game?” – Casey Stengel addressing the Mets. Well, that was quick. After serving something like 3 weeks in the Trump Administration, General Mike Flynn was forced out as National Security Advisor. The proximate cause of … Continue reading

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A Win for School Choice

The Teacher’s Unions launched an all-out blitz against Betsy DeVos, Donald Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of Education. In the end she was confirmed, but just barely. After 2 Republicans and all Democratic Senators voted against her, it took the … Continue reading

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