US Opinion and Commentary

“VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussion and opinion on these policies.” — VOA Charter

Showing Archived Posts

Hillary Clinton: Pro & Con

Posted November 7th, 2016 at 4:12 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Hillary Clinton has been called the most qualified person to be president of the United States by the current president, Barack Obama, the Libertarian vice presidential candidate, William Weld, among others.

Clinton promises to make the “biggest investment” in jobs since World War II, propose immigration reform with a pathway for citizenship and establish a no-fly zone in Syria to “save lives and hasten the end of the conflict.”

Donald Trump, among others, calls her “the most corrupt candidate” to ever run for president.

She has been cleared, again, by the FBI Director regarding her private email server while secretary of state. Can Clinton dispel the doubts about her trustworthiness to become the first woman president of the United States?

Donald Trump: Pro & Con

Posted November 4th, 2016 at 3:38 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Donald Trump and his supporters say he is the only candidate able to change a broken political system in Washington and make it work for the American people.

He promises to cut taxes across the board; renegotiate trade deals to make them more favorable for the United States; create 25-million new jobs over the next 10 years; and grow the U.S. economy by an average of 3.5 percent per year.

Trump vows to abolish Obamacare and replace it with health savings accounts; increase the size of the U.S. military; end the strategy of nation-building and regime change and militarily crush the Islamic State.

And then there’s the “impenetrable” wall along the U.S. southern border Trump says he will build, and make Mexico pay for it to stem the tide of illegal immigration.

Critics say Trump is a narcissistic, misogynist demagogue whose admiration of Vladimir Putin is disquieting, if not disqualifying.

With fewer than 100 hours to go before polls open on Tuesday, can Donald Trump pull off one of the most improbable victories in American political history?

Voting Rights vs Voter Fraud

Posted November 2nd, 2016 at 2:53 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Donald Trump’s claims of a rigged election has put a spotlight on the intricacies of the process of voting in the United States.

There is no centralized governance of American elections, except the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which enforces the 15th Amendment, affirming the right to vote no matter “race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” And the 26th Amendment sets 18 as the minimum voting age.

Otherwise, it’s left up to individual states to establish its own rules for such things as registering to vote, methods of voting, and challenging voter credentials.

Republicans and Democrats will have official poll watchers deployed across the country to look for voting irregularities. But Trump has urged supporters to do so on their own to ensure the election “is not stolen” from him. Democrats are concerned that will cause voter harassment and suppression.

The rhetoric about rigging the election and suppressing the vote is adding stress to an already emotionally-chargbed campaign.

Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump & the Gender Gap

Posted November 1st, 2016 at 4:02 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Once Hillary Clinton announced her intention to seek the Democratic presidential nomination, gender was going to be a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign. During the primaries, one story line was why is Clinton losing the women’s vote to Bernie Sanders, especially young women. Once the match-up with Donald Trump was set, the gender gap became […]

Another Trove of Hillary Clinton Emails

Posted October 31st, 2016 at 3:16 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Hillary Clinton’s email issues will apparently haunt her well beyond Election Day. FBI Director James Comey told Congress Friday that new emails have surfaced that need investigating. It’s unlikely the investigation will be completed by next Tuesday.

The emails in question were on a computer owned by disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner, estranged husband of Clinton aide Huma Abedin. They surfaced during an investigation of Weiner sending explicit messages to a 15-year old girl.

In July, Comey publicly recommended closing the probe of Clinton’s use of a private email server while Secretary of State, without bringing charges. At the time, he said Clinton and her aides were “extremely careless” handling classified information, but no prosecutor would recommend charging her.

Now, the FBI director is accused of violating Justice Department policy and precedent by commenting on an investigation, especially a politically-charged one so close to the election.

And Clinton has eight days to conduct whatever damage control she can before most Americans cast their vote for president.

The Complicated Fight to Drive ISIS out of Mosul

Posted October 27th, 2016 at 2:44 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

The operation to retake Mosul from Islamic State forces is proof of the quote “no battle plan survives contact with the enemy.”

Just ten days into the Mosul offensive, military planners are accelerating their timeline to try to take the Syrian city of Raqqa, ISIS’ self-proclaimed capital, because they’re seeing lots of traffic going from Mosul to Raqqa.

Complicating matters are the various alliances and interests of U.S.-led coalition partners that intersect and overlap with one another. For example, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) would be helpful in any coalition move on Raqqa. But Turkey sees the SDF in alliance with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which the United States classifies as a terrorist organization.

Meanwhile, Turkey wants a role in the Mosul operation to protect the rights of ethnic Turks there. Iraq’s prime minister has ruled that out.

About 30,000 Iraqi troops along with about 3,000 Kurdish peshmerga forces are on the front lines of the Mosul offensive. The U.S. has as many as 200 special operations troops on the ground embedded in an advise and assist role and is leading the coalition air support.

Perhaps the most critical job the U.S. has is keeping the disparate factions focused on the mission and avoiding diplomatic distractions.

Two More Weeks

Posted October 25th, 2016 at 4:42 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

14 days and counting before most Americans vote in the 2016 presidential election. While most polls have Hillary Clinton ahead of Donald Trump, predictability is among the casualties in this election.

And there is still time for events to make an impact. Such as Monday’s word that Obamacare premiums will rise by an average of 25 percent. Republicans jumped on the news with a chorus of “I told you so.” Trump promised to replace Obamacare “with something much less expensive.”

Clinton is spending the campaign’s final two weeks encouraging supporters to get to the polls, and if possible, cast their ballots early as a way to rebut Trump’s assertions that the election is rigged.

Listen for familiar story lines from both candidates as they make their closing arguments for votes. Trump and Clinton will concentrate their efforts on handful of competitive states: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina, Nevada and Iowa. Traditionally Republican Texas, Georgia and Arizona are now considered toss-up states, opening the electoral map for Clinton and the possibility of a third party candidate picking up momentum.

After the Debates

Posted October 20th, 2016 at 4:47 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Hillary Clinton called Donald Trump a “puppet” of Vladimir Putin. Trump said Putin has “outsmarted” Clinton “every step of the way.” She said Trump “choked” when he didn’t tell Mexico’s president that his country will pay for the wall. He suggested the recently launched offensive in Mosul was timed to advantage Clinton.

Trump called for a repeal of Obamacare. Clinton said payroll taxes will rise for the wealthy to replenish Social Security. Trump refused to say whether or not he will accept the outcome of the election. She called that “horrifying.”

In between, the third presidential debate in Las Vegas was peppered with the candidates positions on gun rights, abortion, immigration and growing the economy.

How will what we have heard from Trump and Clinton impact the election on November 8, and afterwards?

Trump v. Clinton: Round 3 in Vegas

Posted October 19th, 2016 at 2:33 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Las Vegas has been home to some of boxing’s most famous prize fights. It makes all the sense then that the final Clinton-Trump debate should take place there.

Since the previous debate, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have more to answer for: emails WikiLeaks says was hacked from Clinton’s campaign chairman that include potentially embarrassing conversations about political strategy and texts of Clinton’s speeches to Wall Street bankers; and sexual assault accusations against Donald Trump by 10 women who came forward after Trump said his 2005 video recorded Access Hollywood conversation was just words, not actions.

Sitting ringside in Trump’s corner will be mother of a NAVY Seal stationed at the Benghazi embassy, who blames Clinton for her son’s death. President Obama’s Kenyan half-brother, Malik, will also be there at Trump’s invitation. Clinton invited a pair of titans of business, Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman and NBA team owner Mark Cuban, both vocal critics of Trump.

The two candidates come into this debate bloodied, but unbowed. This is their final chance to land a knockout blow.

Rigging the Election?

Posted October 18th, 2016 at 4:51 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Two bedrock principles of United States elections that makes American democracy a model others try to emulate are “one man (person), one vote and the peaceful handover of power.

Donald Trump is sowing seeds of doubt in both by claiming the election is “rigged” during campaign appearances, interviews and on social media.

The last close election in 2000 ended with Al Gore winning the popular vote, but losing the state of Florida when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of George W. Bush in a disputed recount of votes. Gore conceded in the name of national unity.

Trump’s unsubstantiated claims are being called dangerous, undermining and flat out wrong by his opponents and some Republicans. But Trump supporters point to various holes in laws and enforcement of laws that can open the door to voter fraud, and say they will be watching the polls on November 8.

Move on Mosul

Posted October 17th, 2016 at 3:56 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Battle plans for retaking the Iraqi city of Mosul has been in the works for months. Now, it is time to execute those plans.
Many observers believe Islamic State fighters and supporters, who took Mosul in June 2014, will offer some resistance, use Mosul civilian residents as human shields, lay some traps for those coming after them, and retreat back into Syria.
Kurdish peshmerga, Iraqi army, Shi’a militias, and some Sunni tribal forces will try to coordinate on the ground with air and logistics support from the United States-led coalition.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared the country would “celebrate victory as one.” Can a victory in Mosul do what so far has been unattainable, unite Iraq?

Bob Dylan: Nobel Laureate?

Posted October 13th, 2016 at 9:59 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

It’s hard to believe that the Nobel committee would bestow it’s literature prize to Bob Dylan. But it’s as hard to believe that he hadn’t won it already.

America’s Middle Class Battlelines

Posted October 12th, 2016 at 4:30 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

For most Americans, a middle class life looks like this: Home ownership; a yearly vacation; college for your kids; a secure, debt free retirement.
That’s what’s been spun as the “American Dream.” And, according to the political rhetoric, trying to achieve it is a nightmare.
The Pew Research Center recently reported the share of middle class households have dropped in 9 out of 10 metropolitan areas. Some of that erosion is due to income growth. But more of the drop can be attributed to income declines.
Presidential nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are offering both reasons and remedies for the middle class slippage. But can a manufacturing jobs plan, or an investment or middle class tax cut close the fissures that seem to be splintering American society?

Clinton v. Trump: Foreign Policy & National Security

Posted October 11th, 2016 at 4:29 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Beyond questions about Donald Trump’s sexually salacious dialogue on an 11-year old videotape; beyond accusations about the role Hillary Clinton may have played regarding her husband’s salacious dalliances, was there any substance to chew on during Sunday’s presidential debate?

Foreign policy and national security issues were touched on ever so slightly, mostly regarding Syria, Islamic State, Russia and Trump’s proposed ban on Muslims coming into the country.

So much of the 2016 presidential campaign has been about what the two candidates have done in their past. Americans have 28 days left to find out more about what Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton propose to do in the future.

The Russian Relationship

Posted October 6th, 2016 at 2:14 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

Relations between the United States and Russia have reached another low point as Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday Moscow was pulling out of a nuclear security treaty, and then issued a list of conditions in which he would reconsider.

The deal, which dates back to the year 2000, involves the disposal of plutonium stockpiles, which can be used for nuclear weapons. It could signal Russia’s intent to withdraw from other nuclear weapons treaties with the U.S.

On the surface, the conditions on which Russia would reconsider appear unpalatable: lifting economic sanctions related to Russia’s incursion into Ukraine; compensation for those sanctions; reducing NATO’s footprint in Eastern Europe.

The U.S. announced Monday it is shutting off talks with Russia over Syria because of violations of the ceasefire, including suspected Russian bombing of an aid convoy last week. Some fear the U.S. pullback from talks will give Russia a free hand to execute its military plans in Syria. Others say it may leave Russia with no exit strategy.

No matter how this plays out, finding a solution will most likely be left to the next president of the United States.