Public policy in the twentieth century was about protecting and expanding the social compact, based on recognition that effective government at the federal level provides rules and services and safety measures that contribute to a better society.

The Congress is a dysfunctional institution; its broken. One of our three branches of government is broken.

John Paul was the first modern pope to grow up in a secular culture: He attended public schools, danced with girls - indeed, as a teenager he had a crush on a beautiful Jewish girl who fled his hometown just ahead of the arrival of the Germans.

The failures of the press have contributed immensely to the emergence of a talk-show nation, in which public discourse is reduced to ranting and raving and posturing. We now have a mainstream press whose news agenda is increasingly influenced by this netherworld.

Today, ordinary Americans are being stuffed with garbage.

The American Revolution and Declaration of Independence, it has often been argued, were fueled by the most radical of all American political ideas.

Even at the end of a presidential election campaign, we have no way to know what Mitt Romney really believes.