2021 – Page 3308 – The Portland Press Herald

Letter to the Editor: Hold tech giants liable for assault on democracy

January 13, 2021January 12, 2021

If Fox, Facebook and Twitter weren’t able to systematically promote lies and exploit false narratives, would Trump have become president? Would a mob have stormed the capital? Good governance cannot prevail in a society that protects and rewards liars. There is evidence that Americans understand this: a corporation can’t use false or misleading ads to […]

Op-eds, Opinion

Leonard Pitts: Don’t let the traitors – including Trump – off the hook

by Leonard Pitts The Miami Herald January 13, 2021January 12, 2021

Calls for unity should not come before genuine repentance and accountability.

Times Record

Commentary: Through her divisive rhetoric, Education Secretary DeVos leaves a troubled legacy of her own

by Mark Hlavacik, University of North Texas; Dustin Hornbeck, University of Texas Arlington; Kevin Welner, University of Colorado Boulder; Nicholas Tampio, Fordham University, and Stanley S. Litow, Duke University The Conversation January 13, 2021January 12, 2021

Note: U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos resigned from her post effective Jan. 8, 2021, saying there was “no mistaking” the impact that President Donald Trump’s rhetoric had on the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Here, five scholars offer their views on DeVos’ legacy at the federal agency she headed for four years. Mark Hlavacik, […]

Times Record Opinion

Commentary: Why Trump’s challenges to democracy will be a big problem for Biden

by James D. Long and Victor Menaldo, University of Washington The Conversation January 13, 2021January 11, 2021

When a mob attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and stopped Congress from certifying Joe Biden as the nation’s next president, it was scary – and fatal for at least five people. But it did not pose a serious threat to the nation’s democracy. An attempt at an illegal power grab somehow keeping Donald […]