Former President Donald Trump did something breathtakingly cynical, certainly immoral and probably illegal the other day. In other words, it was Monday. Trump used an appearance on the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery, a resting place for many who honorably served their country, to make a campaign video. Trump was ostensibly at Arlington to […]
Ben Bragdon
Staff Writer
Ben Bragdon is managing editor of the Sun Journal. Prior to that, he was deputy managing editor for news at the Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel. Ben was previously editorial page editor for those newspapers and Central Maine Sunday for more than 10 years. Before that, he was managing editor for weekly newspapers at Current Publishing in Westbrook. He began his career as a reporter at the Piscataquis Observer in Dover-Foxcroft and editor at the Moosehead Messenger in Greenville. He has a bachelor’s degree in history from Boston University.
Posted inEditorials, Opinion
View from Away: Why the Fed shouldn’t stop worrying about inflation
At the recent central-bank symposium at Jackson Hole, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell delivered a widely expected message on interest rates: “The time has come for policy to adjust.” He all but confirmed that the Fed would cut rates by at least a quarter-point when its policymakers next meet in September. A modest cut makes […]
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Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Workers are bearing the brunt of extreme heat
Ronald Silver II, a sanitation worker in Baltimore, won’t be spending this Labor Day weekend with his family. On Aug. 2, during a sweltering 100-degree heatwave, Silver died while working a shift in a city garbage truck. His death was preventable. In July, following worker complaints, Baltimore’s inspector general reviewed conditions in the city’s Department […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: The Trump/RFK Jr. alliance is weird, but here’s how it might work
In an election cycle that can only be described as stranger than fiction, things have just gotten impossibly weirder. Longtime Democrat-turned-independent candidate for president Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dropped out of the race and endorsed none other than Donald Trump. The move wasn’t totally unexpected; both campaigns have been hinting at it for days, and […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: The weight-loss drug revolution exposes the weakest links in our health care system — drug pricing and insurance
It’s rare that a drug can have such a pronounced effect that its immediate benefits translate into health care savings for years, even decades. To the wonder drugs Harvoni and Sovaldi, which wipe out hepatitis C, we can now add the weight-loss medicine Ozempic and its cousins Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound. These drugs have shown […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Identifying division is easy; finding points of agreement is difficult
Negative campaigning is increasing in volume and nastiness every election cycle. Campaigns are based on a “divide and conquer” strategy, pitting citizens against each other. If you ask most political operatives why this is the case, they’ll tell you it’s because it works. It drives donations, volunteer engagement and turnout. And while I won’t debate […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Scholars Strategy Network: Biden years have seen job growth, new investment
Even with this buoyancy in the labor market, American consumers are facing high prices for food and housing causing negative attitudes about the economy overall.
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: If you didn’t get an extreme-weather alert, you’re alone
With the planet heating up and nature growing more deadly and destructive, new tools to help people gauge their climate risks are landing faster than DVD-sized hail in Texas. But these models still need fine-tuning. For now, a simpler approach might be to just throw a dart at any map of the U.S. Wherever it […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Harris’ price controls are a solution in search of a problem
Vice President Kamala Harris proposed price controls on groceries last Friday to stop food companies from “gouging” American consumers. It’s a terrible idea from the Democratic presidential nominee, as many have already pointed out, because price controls lead to shortages and other bad outcomes. It’s also doubtful Harris could push such a policy through Congress. […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric is harmful — and false
Last month at the Republican National Convention, former President Donald Trump revived the long-standing myth that immigrants are taking American jobs, claiming that of jobs created under President Joe Biden, “107% of those jobs are taken by illegal aliens.” This statement is false, as U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that both U.S.-born and […]