Michael McKenna
Columns by Michael McKenna
The threat from China and its bipartisan enablers
It is so difficult sometimes to take either of the parties seriously. Both have an unfortunate tendency to say one thing and do another, and in the process damage the United States. Published February 14, 2024
Taking votes: House Speaker Mike Johnson has the right idea
The political commentariat has been working overtime in the last few days trying to convince people that a handful of bumpy votes in the House of Representatives are dispositive signs of the eschaton. Published February 10, 2024
Trump campaign will undoubtedly take advantage of border crisis
So, the unconscionable border deal is dead, and the incomprehensible effort to impeach the leader of the Department of Homeland Security is hopefully equally dead. Good riddance to both of them. Published February 7, 2024
Biden mollifies Marxist wing of his party
What do President Biden's recent pause in licensing of liquefied natural gas exports (because of the climate) and the administration's long-standing resistance to securing the southern border have in common? Published February 2, 2024
How to fix the Dallas Cowboys and the border mess: Fire the boss
Like the Dallas Cowboys, American governments -- led by both Republicans and Democrats -- have failed at their fundamental mission for the last 30 years. Published January 31, 2024
No immigration deal: Laws do not enforce themselves, and Biden isn’t trustworthy
This month, The Wall Street Journal, joined the chorus of businesses and encouraged the Republicans to take the immigration deal -- which, to be clear, no one outside the negotiations has seen. Published January 30, 2024
Why Trump is winning: He’s staying focused on the issues
The fundamental lesson of former President Donald Trump's recent wins in New Hampshire and Iowa is that issues matter. Published January 24, 2024
Half a century into the fight for life: Supporting mother and child
Monday is the 51st anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, which struck down provisions in the criminal codes of all 50 states that made abortion a crime. Published January 20, 2024
Sen. Kevin Cramer’s energy tax would hit the poor, the old, those on fixed incomes
On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works is meeting to consider legislation that would set the stage to impose a carbon dioxide tax on American families, workers and consumers. Published January 17, 2024
Neither Trump nor Biden talking about managing taxes, spending and debt in 2025
Watching the two leading candidates for president nurse their resentments can be entertaining, but it would be more helpful if one or both of them started to talk seriously about governing in 2025. Published January 13, 2024
With the Republicans fractured, why haven’t Democrats become the majority party?
Democrats are every bit as riven as the Republicans; they just do a better job of hiding it -- no doubt a result of 200 years of experience in managing a coalition party. Published January 10, 2024
Biden, China and the Inter-American Development Bank
For years, in an effort to destabilize our immediate neighborhood, the regime in Beijing has been creeping closer to nations in the Western Hemisphere. Published January 6, 2024
Predictions for 2024: Trump will win the election, and the Dow will close above 40,000
Everyone makes predictions, but only a few of us are foolish enough to write them down. So here goes. Published January 3, 2024
Colorado and Maine bumbling U.S. into an election civil war
Right after Christmas, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley threw up on her shoes trying to answer a typically simple question from a typically simple voter in New Hampshire: What was the Civil War about? Published December 31, 2023
How well this columnist’s predictions for 2023 reflected reality
In the interests of full disclosure and a correct record, it is important to assess how well this columnist's predictions for 2023 (originally published Dec. 31, 2022) reflected reality. Published December 27, 2023
Christmas is a season of hope and salvation
In case my friend Luke isn't clear enough here, Christmas is about the hope of salvation. Published December 24, 2023
The sadness of Christmas
It's OK to be reflective and a little sad at Christmastime. Published December 20, 2023
Why is the Christmas song ‘Silent Night’ so popular?
In 1816, near the starving and ruined city of Salzburg, Austria, a 24-year-old priest named Joseph Mohr suffered, along with his parishioners, in the wreckage of the Napoleonic Wars. Published December 17, 2023
Power corrupts: Speech codes for universities is a dangerously subversive idea
Here's what bothers me about the debate over the performance of the presidents of the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at last week's congressional hearing. Published December 13, 2023
Republicans and the lack of free speech
Last week, the House Committee on Education held a hearing at which the presidents of Harvard, MIT and Penn testified about the hatred and invective and sometimes actions directed at Jews on the campuses of those schools. Published December 9, 2023
