Columns

A poster depicts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot, his main rival and leader of the Yashar ("Straight") party, along a pedestrian path on Oct. 26, 2026, in Tel Aviv, Israel, ahead of the country's general election. (David Goldman/AP)

Daniel DePetris: If Israel gets a new prime minister, will anything change?

By Daniel DePetris

October 26, 2026 at 12:42 p.m.

Benjamin Netanyahu and his main challenger in Israel's elections, Gadi Eisenkot, are more alike than...

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Dr. Amy Acton visits with supporters during a campaign event along the Ohio River in Marietta, Ohio, on Sept. 17, 2026. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Clarence Page: Vivek Ramaswamy’s ad in Ohio governor’s race backfires

By Clarence Page

October 26, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The fracas over a campaign ad from governor candidate Vivek Ramaswamy could blow back on...

Mayor Brandon Johnson delivers his budget address Oct. 21, 2026, at Chicago City Hall. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

David Greising: The fight over Chicago’s budget is healthy. Now the city needs a charter.

By David Greising

October 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

If an independent City Council becomes an expected feature of the budget process, we really...

Mike Bieritz and Jenn Bieritz Niles at the supportive living facility where he moved in 2017. Mike recently died at age 59 from aspiration pneumonia and his sisters had his corneas donated. (Jenn Bieritz Nilles/TNS)

Heidi Stevens: A joyful life, a too-early death and the gift of sight for two people who lost theirs

By Heidi Stevens

October 2, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Heidis Stevens has long said that before she fell in love with journalism, she fell...

President Donald Trump stands next to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as Dario Amodei speaks to reporters at the White House in Washington on Sept. 29, 2026, after meeting with top executives of AI firms. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Elizabeth Shackelford: Return of ‘might makes right’ imperils the UN’s mission as AI threatens our existence

By Elizabeth Shackelford

October 2, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

If ever a technology demanded international cooperation and governance, to manage the risks and maximize...

Delcy Rodríguez, center, acting president of Venezuela, is escorted to the podium to address the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters Sept. 23, 2026. (Frank Franklin II/AP)

Daniel DePetris: Venezuela has bent to US will. Is that good for Venezuelans?

By Daniel DePetris

September 29, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Venezuela's new leader is no doubt trying to demonstrate her usefulness to the Trump administration,...

Nikole Hannah-Jones delivers the keynote speech during the Spelman College commencement ceremony May 21, 2023, in College Park, Georgia. (Paras Griffin/Getty)

Clarence Page: Nikole Hannah-Jones demonstrates why parents sometimes need to go to school, too

By Clarence Page

September 29, 2026 at 3:49 p.m.

Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones enrolled her daughter in a struggling school as part of an ideological...

U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski speaks during a hearing of the House Agriculture Committee on Feb. 11, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

John T. Shaw: US Rep. Nikki Budzinski believes centrist workhorses can prevail over far-left show horses

By John T. Shaw

September 27, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Centrists may not claim to usher in new eras in American economic and political life,...

Signs supporting journalists from the AP, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico hang in the press area of the White House, on Sept. 19, 2026, in Washington, DC. Reporters from MS NOW, CNN and Politico were barred from the White House a day after President Trump said he was banning the three outlets from the property. (Photo by Graeme Sloan/Getty Images)

Heidi Stevens: The president doesn’t want your pesky questions. But the founders had a different idea.

By Heidi Stevens

September 25, 2026 at 10:54 a.m.

The day after President Donald Trump announced he was banning CNN, Politico and MS Now...

A view inside Division 11 on Sept. 30, 2021, of the Cook County Department of Corrections jail facility. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

David Greising: We need statewide solutions to the poor oversight at Illinois’ county jails

By David Greising

September 25, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

People held in Illinois' 90 county jails are virtually all presumed innocent. As a society,...

Diesel sells for almost $7 at a gas station in Detroit on Sept. 22, 2026. (Sarah Rice/Getty)

Laura Washington: Taking back Congress should be a slam dunk for Democrats

By Laura Washington

September 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Serendipity in the form of misfortune is shining on the Democratic Party’s electoral prospects.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second from left, looks on while Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, center right, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, center left, during the Carpathian 8 Summit in western Ukraine on Sept. 18, 2026. Tusk warned his parliament that Moscow could launch a drone or missile attack on a NATO member state in the next few months. (Vladyslav Musiienko/AP)

Daniel DePetris: Vladimir Putin’s extension of the war beyond Ukraine has European leaders worried

By Daniel DePetris

September 22, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Europe is increasingly worried about Moscow expanding the war in Ukraine to NATO territory.

Pat Ryan Jr., CEO of Ryan Sports Development, who is leading the development of the stadium, stands on the 50-yard line at Northwestern University’s new Ryan Field on Sept. 14, 2026, in Evanston. It is still under construction and officially opens Oct. 2, 2026. (Stacey Wescott/baiduhai)

Edward Keegan: Chicagoland gets its first architecturally distinguished stadium in over a century

By Edward Keegan

September 21, 2026 at 4:03 p.m.

Northwestern's new Ryan Field is the most sophisticated sports facility in Chicago since Wrigley Field...

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