In a complex deal brokered by the U.S. government, Russia has freed reporter Evan Gershkovich and 15 other political prisoners in exchange for the release of eight of its nationals in the West — including Vadim Krasikov, a killer especially valued by Russian President Vladimir Putin who was serving time for murder in Germany. This […]
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 inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Can’t we get back to solving problems?
We are once again in the thick of a presidential election cycle at risk of being dominated by spectacle and far too light on substance. As in 2016 and 2020, sensationalist developments — most recently an attempted assassination of one candidate and the bowing out of another — have transfixed the media 24/7. While these […]
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Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Harris’ VP pick of Minnesota’s Tim Walz is a major gift to Donald Trump. Here’s why
Until Tuesday morning, it looked like Vice President Kamala Harris was going to help her chances of winning in those unpredictable swing states by choosing Pennsylvania’s popular governor, Josh Shapiro, to be her presumptive running mate. Instead she has chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a candidate whose liberal bona fides equal her own. The pick […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Largest prisoner exchange since the Cold War becomes fodder for US partisan brawl
The scenes tugged at the heart strings. Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter nabbed during a reporting assignment by Russian police last year on bogus charges of espionage, was finally reunited with his mother on an airport tarmac after spending about a year and a half in the Russian prison system. On the same […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Trump proved himself unfit to be commander in chief
When I was an officer in the U.S. military, I abstained from voting in national elections, one small way to keep the armed forces nonpartisan. Now, to uphold that same value and prevent the military from becoming a political tool, I believe that in November, everyone — civilians, service members, veterans, everyone — should vote […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: How Harris can reset Democrats’ relations with business
President Joe Biden has been objectively good for business, especially relative to the risk of the chaos that would follow Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Yet it’s no secret that the relationship between Biden and the business community has been poor. The presidential candidacy of Kamala Harris offers Democrats the chance for a […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Worried about AI? Here are things you need to know
The first time I used generative artificial intelligence, I felt like a kid at an amateur magic show. Is the card really floating in midair? The parents at this kind of show, of course, are less dumbstruck than the kids: The card is not floating but instead swinging on some string. It’s not magic. Not […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Biden drags Supreme Court into politics
President Joe Biden is treating the Constitution as a mere suggestion in calling for sweeping changes to the United States Supreme Court. For the most part, what he is proposing can only be done by amending the founding document, a process that is extraordinarily difficult, and in this instance, unnecessary. Biden’s play on the high […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Commentary: Kamala Harris has work to do and more women to convince
In the 48 hours after President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, she did something every working woman in America can relate to: She put her multi-tasking superpowers to work and got a big job done in little time. But Harris’ impressive launch will not be enough […]