The University of Austin – A refreshing return to classic liberalism

by Dave Redekop

At the University of Austin the emphasis will be on academic training, not political propaganda or ideological indoctrination. Photo Credit: University of Austin.  Beginning in 2021, an eclectic group of scholars, journalists, academians, philanthropists, and those who had enjoyed business success began to lay the groundwork for a new university. The names include a who’s […]

MSNBC – The Ronna McDaniel saga

by Dave Redekop

America would benefit from a journalist class more intent on doing their job reporting the news and letting citizens determine how to respond. Pictured: Former RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel. Photo Credit: Ronna McDaniel/X.  On the evening of the Iowa caucus in January, a triumphant Donald Trump delivered a speech celebrating his victory, congratulating his opponents, […]

The last of his kind: Joe Lieberman passes away at 82

by Dave Redekop

Lieberman represented what no longer exists. He loved country first. Photo Credit: U.S. Senate.  The untimely and tragic passing of Joe Lieberman on March 27 brought closure to an incredible life, one that saw Lieberman almost achieve the vice presidency save for a few hundred votes in Florida. Lieberman’s life provides wonderful lessons and stories […]

Robert Hur testimony hard to discount

by Dave Redekop

Whether a Biden defender or not, there can be no mistake that President Joe Biden retained classified materials at the end of his Vice-Presidency. Pictured: Special Counsel Robert Hur. Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Justice.    The Maryland Board of Regents introduces member Robert Kyoung Hur on its website with the following final paragraph to […]

Aaron’s home run resonates fifty years later

by Dave Redekop

Looking back over the decades, understanding what Aaron faced seems surreal. Pictured: Hank Aaron. Photo Credit: MLB. After facing death threats, racist catcalls, and unbearable pressure, on the evening of April 8, 1974, Henry Aaron broke baseball’s most majestic record when he hit his 715th career home run to pass Babe Ruth’s long-standing 714. As […]

Tim Tebow: A point of light

by Dave Redekop

While many have diminished or made fun of this initiative over the years, Tim Tebow serves as a reminder that we have agency to do things that help, to care for those overlooked, to bind up the wounded, and to be a point of light. Photo Credit: Tim Tebow/X. Making a difference in a world […]

Trump’s precedents

by Dave Redekop

On the verge of becoming his party’s nominee for the third time, Trump has never won the popular vote. Pictured: Former U.S. President Donald Trump. Photo Credit: Donald Trump/X Over the past few days, I have found two entertaining articles about the parallels between Donald Trump and previous presidential contenders.  The first one, Dan McLaughlin’s […]

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell set to step down from post

by Dave Redekop

Whoever replaces McConnell may reflect the Trump Party more doggedly, but acquiring the unique skills of the seven-term senator will be back-breaking. Pictured: U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Photo Credit: Getty Images.    In the myriad of words written about Mitch McConnell’s tenure as Republican leader, the term effective will most usefully describe his […]

A threat to democracy comes in all forms and from both sides

by Dave Redekop

In a sweeping rejection of a Supreme Court ruling, President Joe Biden continued his effort to ignore the Constitution and proceed with his student-debt-forgiveness scheme last week. Pictured: President Joe Biden. Photo Credit: AFP/Mandel Ngan via Getty Images.    In campaign ads running across the United States and in think tank sessions held on most […]

Joe Biden’s age isn’t the issue: It’s his health

by Dave Redekop

The job ages younger men. Those who care about Biden should begin to act in his best interests. Someone close to him needs to tell him to step aside. Charles de Gaulle said: “Graveyards are full of indispensable men.” Photo Credit: AFP/Mandel Ngan via Getty Images. In 1944, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, having already bucked tradition […]

U.S. presidential election campaign: News and notes

by Dave Redekop

The presidential campaign being waged south of the border remains one of the strangest ones in history. Photo Credit: AP News. The presidential campaign being waged south of the border remains one of the strangest ones in history. Significant portions of the Democratic Party and a majority of the general population remain skeptical about President […]

Tim Horton, 50 years later

by Dave Redekop

When Horton originally opened his first franchise in Hamilton in 1964, little did anyone know the empire it would become. The business is a Canadian icon, one of the nation’s best-known entities and most successful enterprises. Pictured: Tim Horton. Photo Credit: Travel Cochrane. For millions of Canadians, the foremost daily coffee experience they prefer occurs […]

Why does a dying democracy attract so many presidential candidates?

by Dave Redekop

The ironic conclusion that Cohn’s piece delivers suggests that a healthy democracy in 1948 attracted four national campaigns. If American democracy entices four or more national campaigns in 2024, almost eighty years later, perhaps those anxious about the threats to democracy should acknowledge that it seems alive and well this year. Pictured: former U.S. president […]

Who will be Trump’s vice-presidential pick?

by Dave Redekop

Trump will likely not wait until the convention to make his choice. In a year where all the suspense has disappeared from the campaign, the former president’s vice-presidential pick will hold the drama in the electoral side of a contest that will go sideways more times than a tractor-trailer on an icy Interstate in January. […]

Biden’s border crisis risks re-election chances

by Dave Redekop

As the 2024 presidential sweepstakes get into gear, the issue of illegal immigration threatens to gain traction and overwhelm the Biden campaign. Photo Credit: AFP/Mandel Ngan via Getty Images.    As the 2024 presidential sweepstakes get into gear, the issue of illegal immigration threatens to gain traction and overwhelm the Biden campaign. At the beginning […]

Trump could be on his way to the GOP nomination with a big win in Iowa

by Dave Redekop

Political junkies would like to see a horserace. But we’re more likely to see what a gust of wind does to a house of cards. In 2024’s GOP presidential race, Iowa may be the starting gate and the finish line. Photo Credit: Reuters/Octavio Jones.   On Monday, expect voters in Iowa to confirm what polls […]

A Trump-Biden rematch appears inevitable as 2024 begins

by Dave Redekop

As 2024 opens, the odds-on favourite nominees for the Republican and Democratic parties are President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. For the first time since the 1892 election, the incumbent president will face a previous occupant of the White House. Photo Credit: AP News.   As 2024 opens, the odds-on favourite nominees for […]

The Ivory Towers Crumble

by Dave Redekop

Harvard University President Claudine Gay testifies before a House committee hearing in Washington on Dec. 5. (Ken Cedeno/Reuters)   Exactly a year ago, I wrote about Claudine Gay, the newly appointed President of Harvard University. Ms. Gay represents the new frontier of university administrators. She is intersectional, a person of colour, and determined to advance […]

Dickens’ Christmas Carol

by Dave Redekop

An exploration into the origins and societal influences behind Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol,’ revealing the author’s personal experiences and profound societal concerns that shaped this enduring holiday narrative of redemption and compassion. Photo credit: Wikipedia   Over the past few weeks, I have been participating in an online course I enrolled in with Hillsdale […]

State of the Republican Race – Destiny or Detour

by Dave Redekop

As the Iowa caucus nears, Trump leads polls but speculation arises on potential upsets by DeSantis or Haley, suggesting twists in the Republican nomination race. Photo Credit: Wikipedia   With the Iowa Caucus about a month away, all the polls indicate the Trump juggernaut steaming to victory. In the latest 538 poll, Trump leads DeSantis […]

Johnson’s unexpected ascension to House Speaker, prompted by divisions within the Republican caucus and disagreements over the ousted Speaker McCarthy’s initiatives, ignites a fiery debate over his religious and political convictions as he steps into a significant leadership role. Photo Credit: Wikipedia   In as unexpected a development as likely seen in some time, an […]

America’s Distressing Choice

by Dave Redekop

Governors DeSantis and Newsome clash in spirited political debate on the Hannity Show, highlighting policy differences and visions for America’s future. Photo Credit: Wikipedia   On Thursday, November 30th, two leading politicians from each political party joined Sean Hannity on his evening program for a political debate. The exchange of ideas, policy differences, and barbs […]

How the Media Distorts Biden v Trump

by Dave Redekop

In an era marked by heightened political tension, a closer examination of media representation on the legal challenges faced by Donald Trump and Joe Biden underscores significant differences in reporting styles and focal points. Photo credit: AP News   Ronald Reagan once observed, “The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they’re ignorant, it’s […]

JFK: 60 Years Later

by Dave Redekop

JFK’s assassination remembered after six decades: A look back at the pivotal moment that shaped America’s trajectory. Photo: Facebook/Encyclopaedia Britannica   On Nov 22, Americans marked the sixtieth anniversary of the most shocking moment of the last hundred years. In Dallas, shortly after noon, on a sunlit day, the 35th president was murdered in front […]

A Primer on what happened on October 7th

by Dave Redekop

Photographs of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas militants are projected onto the walls of Jerusalem’s Old City on November 6. Photo Credit: Leo Correa/AP   Thanks to an interview with Charles C. Cooke conducted with Dan Senor last week, I have a greater and more complete understanding of why things have evolved in Gaza […]

The Media has motive in replacing Biden

by Dave Redekop

Prominent Washington columnists suggest potential challenges to President Biden’s reelection amid growing concerns. Photo credit: AFP/Mandel Ngan via Getty Images   In a recent column, I suggested former President Obama, sometime this fall, would let Joe Biden know his services are no longer required. I stand by that story, but David Ignatius and Al Hunt, […]

The three-headed monster that will dominate the 2024 US election

by Dave Redekop

 Immigration, inflation, and crime. Photo credit: AFP/Rebecca Noble via Getty Images   Putting aside all the drama of the Trump indictments, the ill-advised dumping of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the rapid aging of Joe Biden, three issues are sitting on the docket that the 2024 presidential hopefuls must address. These issues stand above the […]

The skinny on new NHLPA head Marty Walsh

by Dave Redekop

Most fans’ interest remains on the ice at the start of a new NHL season. Nonetheless, some off-ice developments include the appointment of a new NHLPA head. Photo credit: NHLPA   Earlier this year, Marty Walsh took the reins as executive director of the NHL’s players’ union. Walsh, whose last job found him a member […]

New York City’s migrant nightmare

by Dave Redekop

The free-flowing border policies of the Democratic Party, haunting New York today, serve as a warning and a threat to the political dynasties that exist. Photo credit: AFP/Timothy A. Clary via Getty Images   Just a year ago, Governor Kathy Hochul of New York, involved in a tighter-than-expected race to keep her recently secured promotion, […]

Silent Cal: reflecting back 100 years

by Dave Redekop

Calvin Coolidge ascended to the presidency precisely a century ago last month. In stark contrast to most American leaders today, the 30th president preferred to speak, spend, and rule less. Photo credit: Library of Congress   Exactly 100 years ago last month, Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States, took office after the […]

Democrats ignore the Constitution

by Dave Redekop

Modern-day Democrats, such as Governor Michelle Grisham of New Mexico (pictured), have little interest in following the Constitution unless they can use it as a cudgel to prove Donald Trump and all Republicans who voted for him are insurrectionists, fascists, or authoritarians. Photo credit: AFP/Saul Loeb via Getty Images   In two recent events, a […]

Obama will deliver Biden the news

by Dave Redekop

When the current president is told his services are no longer necessary, it’ll most likely be Barack Obama who taps Biden on the shoulder. The die has been cast, only the timing remains in question. Photo credit: Getty Images via New York Post   In a recent column in The Niagara Independent, fellow writer Chris […]

How the major players performed in the last Republican presidential debate

by Dave Redekop

And a quick look ahead to the next round later this month. Photo credit: AP/Morry Gash   With the first Republican debate in the can, most are turning their attention to the next contest slated for September 27 at the Reagan Library in Simi, California. Before prospects for the second debate are considered, an analysis […]

Back to school, and back to basics

by Dave Redekop

The benefits of a classical education. Photo credit: Capstone Classical Academy   As students return to school, the growing number of issues in public education mount. In Canada and the United States, students, parents, and teachers face challenges that previous generations never anticipated. The introduction of technology, the ideological battles, and the changing nature of […]

Riley Gaines’ fight for women’s sports

by Dave Redekop

The former All-American competitive swimmer at the University of Kentucky (pictured right) has become a spokesperson for what she terms the fight against the movement ‘to erase women and destroy women’s sports.’ She first garnered attention in 2022 when she spoke out against having to compete with trans swimmer Lia Thomas (left). Photo credit: Icon […]

How Representative Laurie Schlegel is changing lives

by Dave Redekop

  Many have wanted to regulate pornography, but determining a legal method seemed elusive. Being a sex addiction therapist gave Schlegel (pictured, left) added insight into the problem and a chance to have thought about ways to address its relentless march into the minds of young men. Photo credit: Facebook/Louisiana House of Representatives   Laurie […]

How football became king

by Dave Redekop

Many trace football’s hold on the American viewing public back to the 1958 NFL championship game between the old Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants.   Early in September the viewing attention of Americans will suddenly shift. The return of football will signify autumn’s arrival and the end of the long national intermission between […]

Despite the man’s flaws and failings, Trump’s appeal is understandable

by Dave Redekop

Photo credit: AP/Andrew Harnik   No one has superseded Donald Trump’s impact and influence on American politics since he came down the famous escalator in 2015 to announce his improbable presidential run. Following his 2016 campaign, upset win, presidency, impeachments, leadership during COVID, campaign of 2020, claims of election fraud, January 6 activities, subsequent role […]

Trump in 2028

by Dave Redekop

Win or lose next year, the former president could well return for another kick at the can as an octogenarian in 2028. Photo credit: Reuters/Al Drago   A former pastor of mine would often say, “I am not a prophet, nor the son of a prophet,” just before he would make a prediction. I will […]

The dangers for The Donald debating

by Dave Redekop

From overtly spiteful opponents to his ongoing legal problems, there are several reasons Donald Trump may choose to sit out the first Republican presidential debate later this month. Photo credit: AP/Julio Cortez   Less than two weeks before the first Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee on August 23, also the site of the party’s 2024 […]

The Washington press corps picks sides

by Dave Redekop

The mainstream media’s reluctance to cover the President Biden corruption story reveals how committed it is to the proposition that Donald Trump poses an existential threat to democracy and the nation. Photo credit: AFB/Saul Loeb   In mid-July, while credible IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler testified of corrupt Biden family practices, including those […]

What is happening to manhood?

by Dave Redekop

Carpenter working on Tennessee’s Douglas Dam, June 1942. Photo credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group   A man does what he must–in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures–and that is the basis of human morality. These thoughts, attributed to Winston Churchill, echo today in the halls of a civilization […]

Playing with political fire

by Dave Redekop

Both the Republican Party and the dominate media appear willing to play with fire and see to it that Donald Trump wins the 2024 nomination. Photo credit: AP/Evan Vucci   As the 2024 presidential campaign shifts into a new gear, those in the Republican Party appear determined once again to nominate Donald Trump as their […]

Do the Biden disclosures invoke Watergate?

by Dave Redekop

Separated by a half century of history, the unfolding Biden Family scandal and Watergate may look different, but as the revelations mount, the prospect of former president Joe Biden lonely, walking a Delaware beach next summer as a private citizen – a la Richard Nixon in San Clemente – becomes increasingly plausible. Pictured is Joe […]

Who is more authentic: Obama or Scott?

by Dave Redekop

Pictured are former President Barack Obama and Senator Tim Scott (right), who is currently running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Photo credit: Getty Images/Spencer Platt and Getty Images/Allison Joyce   A recent dust-up in the media between former President Barack Obama and Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, running for the 2024 Republican presidential […]

Taft-Hartley reminds conservatives why union power needs restraint

by Dave Redekop

Passed in 1947, the Taft-Hartley Act restricts the activities and powers of labour unions in the United States. Photo credit: LA Times/Mel Melcon   In a recent essay for National Review, Dominic Pino examines conservatives’ opposition to unions since the union movement gained legislative heft in the 1930s. As Pino suggests, the negative consequences of […]

U.S. Supreme Court rules affirmative action unconstitutional

by Dave Redekop

The decision ends several decades of what many in America consider to be race-based discrimination in the college admissions process. Photo credit: AP/Jose Luis Magana   Last week’s Supreme Court ruling in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, ended affirmative action as public policy in the United States. The […]

Continetti (pictured) is a journalist, author, and resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He’s currently a contributing editor at the National Review, having formerly helped found The Washington Free Beacon. His articles and reviews have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Los Angeles Times, and Washington Post. Photo credit: Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation   I […]

Gary Bettman: best commissioner in North American sports

by Dave Redekop

Bettman (pictured) took over as head of the NHL three decades ago. Photo credit: NHL   On June 13, Gary Bettman presented the Stanley Cup to Winnipeg native and Las Vegas Golden Knights Captain Mark Stone. With this milestone, Bettman’s time as NHL commissioner may have reached its zenith. As much as the moment signified […]

Henry Kissinger at 100

by Dave Redekop

The 20th century’s most celebrated diplomat provides guidance on mitigating the threat of the next world war. Photo credit: Bloomberg/Peter Foley   On May 27, Henry Kissinger turned 100 years old. Kissinger walks through history with Richard Nixon, not because of Watergate, but because Kissinger served as Nixon’s chief foreign policy advisor and Secretary of […]

Robert F. Kennedy Junior: candidate for president

by Dave Redekop

Kennedy (pictured) doesn’t have to win to play spoiler for Biden, he just has to make things interesting enough. That said, as history has shown, winning is certainly not out of the question. Photo credit: AP/Virginia Mayo   For years after the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy a yellowing newspaper report from what I believe […]

Who should lead America into its next epoch?

by Dave Redekop

Outside of the four leading candidates to be President of the United States come January 2025 – Biden, Trump, Harris, and DeSantis – there’s a pair of potential nominees on either side of the aisle who could return American politics back to the centre where 80 per cent of the electorate resides. On the Republican […]

Will the real 2024 presidential nominees please stand up?

by Dave Redekop

Outside of the four leading candidates to be President of the United States come January 2025 – Biden, Trump, Harris, and DeSantis – there’s a pair of potential nominees on either side of the aisle who could return American politics back to the centre where 80 per cent of the electorate resides. The first of […]

Outside of the odds-on favourites to occupy the Oval Office come January 20, 2025, there are a number of potential and declared candidates on both sides of the aisle who present an interesting – albeit, unlikely – case for next President of the United States. Photo credit: Getty Images/Scott Eisen   American presidential elections rival […]

The press and Clarence Thomas

by Dave Redekop

Photo credit: Getty Images/Tasos Katopodis   Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has once again become the subject of accusations from the Left. This time, Justice Thomas, a constant target of the progressive side of the aisle, is being accused of possible ethical lapses in his personal friendships.  What has been motivating this new effort on […]

Will Biden really be the Democratic nominee in 2024?

by Dave Redekop

Outside of age and clear cognitive decline, there are a number of factors that make the incumbent’s claim to the Democratic title more tenuous than he, his supporters, and the mainstream media would lead you to believe. Photo credit: Bloomberg/Victoria Blue   With Joe Biden’s intentions made known on April 25, the choices before the […]

Alana Newhouse and ‘brokenism’ v. ‘status-quoism’: part two

by Dave Redekop

As explained in a previous article, according to writer Alana Newhouse the primary divide in American politics today is, more than anything, about how people tend to address societal problems. One side wants to maintain the institutional status-quo, while making incremental improvements. The other wants to tear everything down and rebuild. The below analyzes how […]

Trump Derangement Syndrome

by Dave Redekop

What it is, what it isn’t, and if and how America can move forward. Photo credit: The Washington Post/Jabin Botsford   Inside the Trump orbit, those who react to Donald Trump in an unpleasant manner are said to have Trump Derangement Syndrome, or TDS. The Trumplicans believe this diagnosis to describe anyone who suffers from […]

Book banning in America

by Dave Redekop

Not all book bans are created equal. There’s a difference between keeping sexually explicit material out of the hands of elementary school children and banishing classic novels from the classroom which, depending on one’s perspective, may contain uncomfortable themes or inclusions upon complete removal from their historical and cultural context. Photo credit: AP/Rick Bowmer   […]

What the Fox News, Dominion Voting settlement tells us

by Dave Redekop

There are three hard lessons to be learned from Fox’s recent defamation suit and $787.5 million payout to Dominion Voting Systems. Photo credit: AP/Yuki Iwamura   Just before Fox News personalities had to testify in court, a settlement between the company and Dominion Voting Systems (DVS) came to light. In the agreement, Fox paid DVS […]

A personal library tells a story

by Dave Redekop

Photo credit: Dave Redekop   Sitting in my small den, a converted bedroom, stands a bookshelf that my wife and I had built about 20 years ago to house my ever-increasing collection of books. On the shelves rest the story of my life retold as I observe the tales that I have read over the […]

Alana Newhouse and ‘brokenism’ v. ‘status-quoism’

by Dave Redekop

According to Newhouse (pictured), the primary ideological divide in American politics today is less about or between left versus right, or liberal versus conservative. It’s more about how people on either side prefer to address societal problems. One side wants to maintain the institutional status-quo while making incremental improvements. The other wants to tear the […]

Where have you gone, Gerald Ford?

by Dave Redekop

In 1974, newly-elected President Gerald Ford put what was ultimately best for the nation above is his own personal and political interests when he pardoned his predecessor Richard Nixon for any crimes related to the Watergate scandal. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons/Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library    About a month after Richard Nixon left office in […]

Is Joe Manchin prepping for a third-party run?

by Dave Redekop

Manchin, often the target of criticism from the left wing of the Democratic Party, has started to tire of balancing the interests of his state, which depends on the fossil fuel industry, and those of a party becoming more entrenched in its Green Energy commitments. Anyone dismissing the possibility of a run down the middle […]

Has Donald Trump jumped the shark?

by Dave Redekop

In recently criticizing Governor Ron DeSantis with a particularly silly, objectively untrue line of attack, the former president, it can be argued, has begun to exhibit the same kind of quality-decline as Happy Days did with the Fonz’s infamous water-skiing feat. Photo credit: Miller-Milkis Productions   The long-running television sitcom Happy Days gave us many […]

Donald Trump’s potential running mate

by Dave Redekop

Despite (and perhaps partially thanks to) the former president’s arrest and arraignment earlier this week in New York, he’s the current front-runner in the race to be the Republican Party’s nominee for the 2024 presidential election. If successful in his bid to reappear on the ballot, Trump won’t be alone – he’ll of course have […]

Governor DeSantis in his own words – part two

by Dave Redekop

The popular governor from Florida on the media, elementary school education (indoctrination), woke corporations, and crime. Photo credit: AP/Ron Johnson   In a previous article, I debriefed an interview Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida completed with conservative talk show host Ben Shapiro. There were three initial areas of discussion I examined: DeSantis’ early years, his […]

Late night hosts split

by Dave Redekop

Talk show host veterans Stephen Colbert (pictured left) and Bill Maher (right), both very much of the political left, serve as a kind of microcosm for the Democratic Party of today. Colbert represents the ultra-progressive wing, having fully embraced the woke doctrine. While Maher embodies the classical liberal of yesteryear, making time for common sense […]

Governor DeSantis in his own words – part one

by Dave Redekop

Though yet to officially declare his run for the presidency, Ron DeSantis stands as both Trump’s and Biden’s biggest rival for the White House in 2024. Photo credit: NURPHOTO/Paul Hennessy via AP   As he prepares for his entrance into the 2024 presidential sweepstakes, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida recently sat for an interview with […]

No. 4 at 75

by Dave Redekop

Legendary Boston Bruin Bobby Orr, who turned 75 on Monday, revolutionized the defenceman position, and in turn forever changed the game of hockey. Photo credit: NHL   Like a comet streaking through the sky, for a few short seasons in the late 1960s to the mid-1970s, Robert Gordon Orr, Parry Sound hockey prodigy, ruled the […]

Two unlikely presidential candidates from South Carolina

by Dave Redekop

Former governor Nikki Haley (left) officially entered the Republican Party nomination race one month ago. Senator Tim Scott (right) is currently strongly considering a bid. Photo credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster and AP/John Locher    Having spent five years in South Carolina in the 1980s and still in touch with those who know a bit about the […]

Mitch McConnell – the left’s great enemy, the right’s vexation

by Dave Redekop

Once highly respected on both sides of the aisle, the Republican Senate Minority Leader from Kentucky now finds himself the target of censure from red and blue forces alike. Photo credit: AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta   No politician in Washington today stirs up more aggravation than the long-time senior senator from Kentucky, Mitch McConnell. Despite being […]

Five American political podcasts worth a listen

by Dave Redekop

The below provide listeners with ideas you can’t say on legacy networks and offer a refreshing slant on the news, all while reporting stories that the corporate media ignores. Pictured is Ben Shapiro, co-founder of the Daily Wire and host of the Ben Shapiro Show. Photo credit: Getty Images/Jessica Pons   From time to time, […]

How to fire the U.S. Vice-President

by Dave Redekop

Current VP Kamala Harris, on several occasions, has given pause to those who thought she had the gravitas for the office back in 2020. Her cackling laughter, off-topic responses, nonsequiturs to inquiries, and apparent tone deafness to basic politicking find her in deep water with senior members of the Biden team and quite unpopular with […]

Joe Biden’s gambit

by Dave Redekop

On entitlement programs, Donald Trump and Joe Biden speak from the same hymnbook and intend on trying to perpetuate programs which simply do not have the funding on hand to sustain themselves. Biden needs Trump in 2024 because the latter provides nothing new the American people haven’t already seen. Ron DeSantis, on the other hand, […]

California v. Florida: two visions of America

by Dave Redekop

Popular leaders of their respective states, Governors Gavin Newsom (left) and Ron DeSantis (right) have both been touted as future presidential candidates and could well meet head-to-head in the coming years. However, their popularity is virtually all that unites them, as both men possess radically different visions for America and notions of how best to […]

Pete Buttigieg revealed

by Dave Redekop

Current Secretary of Transportation and former Democratic Party presidential nomination candidate Pete Buttigieg. Compared to that of cabinet members of yesteryear, such as the laudable George Schulz, Buttigieg’s qualifications and competence are significantly lacking – and, unfortunately, Americans are notable worse off for it. Photo credit: Getty Images/Anna Moneymaker   The trials and travails of […]

Kim Davis and the politics of hockey

by Dave Redekop

Just over five years ago, the NHL brought on former JP Morgan Chase executive Kim Davis (pictured) to head up its new diversity regime. Photo credit: NHL   Back in 2017, the NHL’s head-honchos decided that a league, possessing a long history of racial intolerance, especially towards Indigenous players and those of African descent, needed […]

Classified chaos – Clinton, Biden, and Trump

by Dave Redekop

The classified documents drama playing out over the past few weeks in Washington says a lot about American leadership of late, elite media, and double standards. Photo credit: AP   Three weeks ago, CBS News revealed that classified documents from when Joe Biden served as Barack Obama’s vice-president had been located at the Penn Biden […]

The two men who replace Nancy Pelosi

by Dave Redekop

In tandem, Kevin McCarthy (left) and Hakeem Jefferies (right) take the torch from Nancy Pelosi, who was both Speaker and Leader. Photo credit: CNN and Reuters/Elizabeth Frantz   At the beginning January, Kevin McCarthy of California and Hakeem Jefferies of New York were sworn in as new Speaker of the House of Representatives in the […]

George Santos’ whoppers inform us

by Dave Redekop

While Santos (pictured) sunk to new lows by fabricating everything from education to family matters in the lead up to this past November’s election, when looking for someone with whom to compare the representative from New York, no better example exists than the current President of the United States. Photo credit: The Washington Post/David Becker […]

Whisperer to the President

by Dave Redekop

President Joe Biden’s most trusted and powerful advisor, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain. Photo credit: Getty Images/Alex Wong   Ask any sentient person in North America and they can tell you Joe Biden is the President of the United States. They may even tell you he holds the most powerful office in the […]

A modest proposal for the 2024 presidential race

by Dave Redekop

Both Democrats and Republicans should look to the next generation of leaders and put forward nominees who are, at the very least, cognitively intact and capable of building consensus. This would of course disqualify both Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Photo credit: AP   The political schedule in the United States heats up in 2023. […]

Is Ron DeSantis America’s Stephen Harper?

by Dave Redekop

Calm and composed, driven by facts over feelings, and committed to sensible policy over all else, the current governor of Florida and Canada’s former prime minister certainly share a lot in common. Photo credit: Getty Images/Octavia Jones and The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick    During the long national friendship between Canada and the United States, one […]

Harvard inspires mediocrity

by Dave Redekop

Harvard University recently named Claudine Gay (pictured) as the school’s 30th president. Gay is someone who, by almost every professional measure, appears wholly unqualified to lead what many still consider to be the world’s finest institute of higher-learning. Photo credit: Harvard University/Stephanie Mitchell   A striking sense of change marks establishment academia these days. Where […]

Mosquito Bowl – a Christmas story

by Dave Redekop

Played on Christmas Eve 1944 between two rival regiments of Marines on the island of Guadalcanal, the wartime football game – the subject of a new book by Buzz Bissinger – provides a valuable lesson in unity. Pictured are Marine Lt. David Scheiner and Cpl. Anthony Butkovich shaking hands before the game, Dec. 24, 1944. […]

Kyrsten Sinema – American maverick

by Dave Redekop

The senator from Arizona formally split from the Democratic Party and registered as an Independent earlier this month. Photo credit: Getty Images/Bloomberg    In a recent article, I wrote about the radical shift that has overtaken the Democratic Party. Those who take issue with this view can now take it up with the Senior Senator […]

Profile in courage – Godspeed Michael Gerson

by Dave Redekop

Then-President George W. Bush prepares his State of the Union address with chief speechwriter Michael Gerson outside the Oval Office in Washington, D.C., Jan. 29, 2002. Gerson passed away last month. He was 58. Photo credit: Eric Draper/Reuters   The recent passing of former George W. Bush speechwriter, Michael Gerson, reminds us all that profiles in […]

Why are U.S. elections open to charges of fraud?

by Dave Redekop

While Canadian elections routinely and historically take place almost entirely without incident. Three main issues help explain the stark contrast. Photo credit: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic   Everyone in North America with the slightest interest in current events knows about the claims of a stolen vote in the 2020 American presidential election. Interestingly enough, a long history […]

Elon Musk’s significant Canadian connections

by Dave Redekop

The world’s richest man, whose mother is Canadian and who lived in Canada for a handful of years as a young adult, has been smeared by the media in his adopted country and across the Western world for challenging the status quo and daring to offer a voice to people who grate against the progressive […]

Nancy Pelosi’s mixed legacy

by Dave Redekop

Mother, grandmother, and arguably the most important woman in modern American politics, last week the outgoing Speaker, age 82, announced she would not stand for another leadership post in government after leading the House Democrats for two decades. Photo credit: Los Angeles Times/Kent Nishimura    Much will be written about Nancy Pelosi over the next […]

Will the 25th Amendment end Joe Biden’s presidency?

by Dave Redekop

The media clamoured to suggest Trump’s cabinet should invoke the 25th, so why the radio silence now from those same media ‘experts’ in regard to President Biden? It’s abundantly clear the latter’s capacity to lead is severely limited. Photo credit: AP via NBC   Section Four of the 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution […]

Plenty of lessons for Republicans to learn from midterm elections

by Dave Redekop

Not least of which is that the party must, sooner than later, rid itself of the albatross around its neck that is former president Donald Trump. Photo credit: Reuters/Mike Segar   Last Tuesday evening, the Republican Party, expecting a wave of successful candidates to sweep them into power across America, instead experienced a red trickle, […]

Final projections for upcoming U.S. election: revisited

by Dave Redekop

A review of last week’s midterm picks. Pictured is Democratic senator-elect John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. Photo credit: Getty/Justin Merriman   In a recent column for The Niagara Independent, I made some final projections about what I thought would happen in the hottest battleground contests of the U.S. midterm elections, which took place Tuesday night. How […]

Revisiting the Charlottetown Accord referendum, three decades on: part two

by Dave Redekop

This is part two in a two-part series marking the 30th anniversary of the Charlottetown Accord referendum. In part one, a review of events between 1980, when Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau sought to patriate Canada’s Constitution, and the 1990 deadline for ratifying the Meech Lake Accord were chronicled. Pictured left and right, respectively, are Trudeau […]

Final projections for upcoming U.S. election

by Dave Redekop

Midterm elections south of the border take place next Tuesday, November 8. Several contests remain a dead heat heading into the home stretch, including the Georgia Senate race between Democrat incumbent Raphael Warnock (left) and Republican challenger Herschel Walker (right). The outcome of the tight race in Georgia, which may well require a run-off, could […]

Revisiting the Charlottetown Accord referendum, three decades on: part one

by Dave Redekop

Exactly 30 years ago last week, Canadians rejected Prime Minister Brian Mulroney’s 1992 attempt to add Quebec’s consent to the Constitution. Pictured Mulroney displays a piece of paper he had torn during a speech in Sherbrooke, Quebec in September 1992. The Prime Minister was demonstrating that a ‘No’ vote in the public referendum would rip […]

What happened to the Democratic Party?

by Dave Redekop

Ad nauseam, the media reports on Republican violations, absurdities, and inconsistencies when it comes to upholding America’s cultural and institutional norms, all the while deliberately ignoring Democratic breaches because progressives, apparently, possess better motives or mean well. Photo credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster   What has happened to the Democratic Party? In the cacophony of media coverage […]

Forgotten federal election of 1972 merits remembering

by Dave Redekop

The contest saw incumbent Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (not pictured) – expected to secure another majority – barely squeak by challenger Robert Stanfield (pictured, front-right). Only a few seats stood in the way of Stanfield’s Progressive Conservatives getting the chance to form government, which could have potentially ushered the elder Trudeau out of federal politics […]

Status quo may prevail in upcoming U.S. election

by Dave Redekop

Pictured are Democratic and Republican candidates for Governor of Arizona Katie Hobbs (left) and Kari Lake (right). Polls designate the race as one of the closest midterm contests in the country. Photo credit: Creative Commons/Gage Skidmore   American voters are set to hit the polls for midterm elections in just a few weeks on November […]

Cold War on Ice – Remembering the 1972 Summit Series: Part III

by Dave Redekop

The famed eight-game hockey competition between Canada and the Soviet Union took place exactly half a century ago this month. Below discusses the legacy of the tournament and how it impacted the game in Canada and abroad. This is the third and final installment in a three-part series. Click to read Part I and Part […]

Why Ron DeSantis frightens both Democrats and Trumpkins alike

by Dave Redekop

The current Florida governor possesses all of the presidential qualities, credentials, and capabilities Joe Biden and Donald Trump lack. Photo credit: Bloomberg/Tristan Wheelock    In the recent primary elections in Florida, the Democratic Party turned out a phenomenal 1.5 million voters to nominate Charlie Crist as their gubernatorial candidate in this fall’s election. It would […]

Cold War on Ice – Remembering the 1972 Summit Series: Part II

by Dave Redekop

The famed eight-game hockey competition between Canada and the Soviet Union took place exactly half a century ago this month. Below chronicles the second half of the series played on Soviet soil from Sept. 22 to 28, 1972. See here for Part I. Pictured is Paul Henderson’s series-winning goal in game eight. Photo credit: Library […]

Who is Emily Oster and why it matters

by Dave Redekop

Data assembled and assessed by the Ivy League professor (pictured) conclusively demonstrates that, contrary to union and media-fuelled popular belief, schools are not, in fact, hot spots for COVID. As Oster’s work helped show, school closures were not only unnecessary, keeping children out of the classroom, away from friends, and out of all social and […]

Cold War on Ice – Remembering the 1972 Summit Series: Part I

by Dave Redekop

The famed eight-game hockey competition between Canada and the Soviet Union took place exactly half a century ago this month. Below describes how the binational clash came to be and chronicles the first half of the series played on Canadian soil. Pictured Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau completes the ceremonial puck-drop ahead of game one at […]

What the FBI search means for 2024

by Dave Redekop

It all depends on if Merrick Garland really has the goods, and more importantly how well he and his political allies can sell whatever was found in Florida, if anything, to the American people. Photo credit: Getty Images/Brandon Bell   Earlier this month the FBI used a search warrant collected in June to carry out […]

The Democrats’ share of the ‘big lie’

by Dave Redekop

Casting doubt on the American electoral system in an attempt to overturn or invalidate an unfavourable election result hardly began with the political defeat of Donald Trump in 2020. The Democrats have effectively spent the entire 21st century doubting Republican victories and leveling spurious accusations against their political opponents, starting in earnest with the 2000 […]

Who will be the Democratic nominee in 2024?

by Dave Redekop

As the sitting president, one would expect Joe Biden to be the automatic choice for the Democratic Party. However, growing concerns around the soon-to-be octogenarian’s health and capacity put the possibility of a second term in serious jeopardy. There are several contenders waiting in the wings to jump in if need be. Perhaps the most […]

Hot U.S. Senate races this fall

by Dave Redekop

Pennsylvania’s Senate race between Trump-endorsed Dr. Mehmet Oz (pictured, left) and current Lt. Governor John Fetterman is one of a handful of key midterm contests this November. Photo credit: AP/Marc Levy    Elections held in the United States later this year will determine a number of matters affecting regional, national and global politics. If Canadians […]

What the Roe v. Wade ruling really means

by Dave Redekop

 Lost in the politics and hysterics that naturally followed the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade two weeks ago was what actually happened: abortion was not outlawed across the country; the matter was simply remanded back to the states. Photo credit: AP/AJ Mast   The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) […]

If the Congressional leaders had moved with speed and determination, brought forth witnesses, and had cooperative GOP partners, the 45th president would have been impeached, convicted for his unconstitutional crimes surrounding January 6 and been ineligible to run for office again. However, as it stands, it seems likely Trump will make another attempt at the […]

Why the gun debate is so complicated

by Dave Redekop

Recent mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas and just across the border in Buffalo, New York have once again brought one of the United States’ most divisive debates to the fore. The dual issue of gun violence and how best to reduce its presence has even made its way into a Canadian context, with public officials […]

Curing society’s long COVID

by Dave Redekop

A new kind of ‘long COVID’ is settling in. This one threatens to haunt us, our kids, and our society for years to come. Photo credit: Education Week/Jaclyn Borowski   When COVID-19 first emerged as a threat to the global community, a number of restrictive measures were implemented. The situation has been serious and could […]

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