Lyndon Baines Johnson
Half a century after the Kerner report, Americans are still separate and unequal
The problem isn't that government efforts to address inequality don't work. It's that they were only haltingly tried.
Don't repeal the Johnson Amendment, fix it
We should limit political activity by churches—but not speech from the pulpit.
Unprohibited speech
Trump complains that tax-exempt rules require religious nonprofits to be silent on politics. He’s wrong.
Great Society, great awakening
President Barack Obama’s State of the Union proposed to enlarge the American promise of prosperity by introducing a new tax structure for the very wealthy, tax credits for families outside of the wealthy stratum, increased access to retirement plans for more American workers, and a plan to subsidize community college tuition. While there will be resistance to the president’s proposals, the impulse behind them is an appeal to an idealized form of decency that Lyndon B. Johnson believed would make his idea of a Great Society an American reality.
Fifty years ago this month, Johnson introduced his vision to Congress.
Safety net successes
Sen. Rubio would replace the EITC with wage supplements. He’s offered few details, but at least he agrees $18,000 is not enough to support a family.
Racial violence and presidential rhetoric
When Barack Obama addressed the “Trayvon Martin ruling” Friday, he did more than offer his “thought and prayers” to the family of Martin, applaud them for their “incredible grace and dignity,” and narrate a history of racial surveillance that often leaves African Americans frustrated and even afraid. The president did more than acknowledge that the democratic judicial system had done its work, urge demonstrations to be peaceful, and call for close evaluations of “stand your ground” laws.
Obama took a moment where the nation was viciously debating its most cherished values through the death of a child and cast a vision for a better future through other children.