The United States is not an island unto itself, though the current administration’s actions on immigration, climate change, tariffs, research and foreign aid appear to reflect that view. A country does not exist in isolation. Diseases spread around the world, especially when countries are poor and lack robust health care systems. Weather is worldwide; air […]

When the Challenger spacecraft exploded shortly after takeoff in 1986, President Reagan gave a speech for the ages to lead and soothe us in our national grief. I suppose he could have railed against government bureaucracy, which was a theme of his administration, but he understood the need to rise above partisanship and rise he […]

Right out of the Project 2025 playbook, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on Jan. 27 “froze” (illegally impounded) billions of dollars of congressionally appropriated funding for more than 2,000 programs and services: everything from Head Start to Meals on Wheels and essential veterans’ services. Chaos and confusion immediately ensued. The OMB was forced […]

After reading the letter from Dr. Frederick Holler (“Lewiston, Auburn face decrease in health care availability,” Jan. 31), I believe we need to continue this conversation as long as it takes for the right people to realize just how close we are to losing, not only the two hospitals in Auburn and Lewiston, but in […]

I write in response to the Jan. 27 Sun Journal article, “Oxford County struggling with high number of public record requests.” Transparency in government is a long-honored principal. Generally, people find such secrecy repugnant. There is a basic rule of the public’s right to petition for redress of grievances to public officials, i.e., for them […]

Most Americans are the descendants of immigrants. Many families proudly describe the ancestors who came here with nothing, working menial jobs so their children could have better lives. In Maine in recent years, immigrants (often highly educated) have been doing the foundational work of caring, cleaning, picking and packing that keeps our society functioning. We […]

It’s difficult to sort through the fire hose of executive orders that have spouted from the new administration. The one that emerged as one of the most damaging in those first two days was the release of more than 1,500 Jan. 6 criminal defendants, many of whom had assaulted police officers and even caused several […]

Health care is about to topple in our cities. Management of Central Maine Healthcare’s hospitals will be taken over by a California company, Prime Healthcare Foundation, a nonprofit owned by a for-profit company. St. Mary’s has given up obstetric services and is closing its intensive care unit because of deficits. It is clear: Lewiston and […]

People should put aside any feelings about Donald J. Trump’s morals; no one on the right cares. I would like to focus on facts concerning his acclaimed — or shameful, in my book — business acumen. He seems to see tariffs as some sort of miracle cure for everything from the cost of child care […]

Donald Trump may have started about 10 years ago to find dedicated followers. He became a master at brainwashing by his repetition of lies and untruths. He continually praised his Republican Party for believing in him and choosing him as their leader. He covered his guilt of wrongdoings by repeatedly claiming the courts and the […]