Visual Source: Newseum
Jennifer Lawless:
Like many Americans, I am excited by the prospect of a woman in the White House. Dozens of other nations have elected female heads of state while the United States continues to lag. But shattering the glass ceiling with a candidate like Michele Bachmann might carry too high a price for mainstream Americans. [...]
I have long studied, published and worried about women's numeric under-representation in the political sphere. When the 112th Congress convened in January 2011, 83% of its members were men. Men occupy governor's mansions in 44 of the 50 states. They run City Hall in 93 of the 100 largest cities across the country.
There is no question that something seems fundamentally wrong with a political system in which women hold so few positions of political power.
But if shattering the glass ceiling means supporting Michele Bachmann's presidential bid and the candidacy of a woman who is dramatically out of step with mainstream America, then I'd prefer to keep the ceiling intact. We can't afford to make that kind of history.
David Frum:
I was a strong opponent of same-sex marriage. Fourteen years ago, Andrew Sullivan and I forcefully debated the issue at length online (at a time when online debate was a brand new thing).
Yet I find myself strangely untroubled by New York state’s vote to authorize same-sex marriage — a vote that probably signals that most of “blue” states will follow within the next 10 years.
I don’t think I’m alone in my reaction either. Most conservatives have reacted with calm — if not outright approval — to New York’s dramatic decision.
Why?
The short answer is that the case against same-sex marriage has been tested against reality. The case has not passed its test.
Since 1997, same-sex marriage has moved from theory to reality.
If people like me had been right, we should have seen the American family become radically more unstable over the subsequent decade and a half.
The New York Times:
The Supreme Court decision striking down public matching funds in Arizona’s campaign finance system is a serious setback for American democracy. The opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. in Monday’s 5-to-4 decision shows again the conservative majority’s contempt for campaign finance laws that aim to provide some balance to the unlimited amounts of money flooding the political system.
Eugene Robinson:
Taking a longer view, the economy has clearly improved over the past year — but the improvement is slow, wobbly and fragile.
Given this state of affairs, it’s hard to imagine how taking money out of consumers’ hands — either through cuts in government spending or tax increases — could possibly make things better. It’s easy to see how such measures could make things worse.
Likewise, it’s hard to believe that running trillion-dollar deficits every year is sound policy. Economists who confidently tell us that it’s no problem that the national debt is approaching 100 percent of gross domestic product sound as if they’re whistling past the graveyard. I believe it would be a long, long time before the financial markets began to see the United States as a great big Greece, but at some point that day would come.
And how could Congress turn a long-range crisis into an immediate disaster? By stubbornly refusing to raise the debt ceiling, which would be the economic equivalent of a toddler’s temper tantrum.
It’s clear what needs to be done. President Obama and congressional leaders should agree on a series of firm deficit caps that would reduce the debt over time. This must be accompanied by a reasonable increase in the debt ceiling.
The Chicago Sun-Times:
Illinois is officially done with Rod Blagojevich.
With a conviction on 17 of 20 counts, our disgraced former governor can begin counting down his days as a free man. Even if he appeals, as of course he will, a looming prison sentence means the Rod Show is drawing to a close, thank you very much.
That means the end to Blagojevich’s radio appearances, to his grandstanding press conferences and, most importantly, to the ongoing damage he has inflicted on image of the State of Illinois every time he opens his mouth.