Welcome to a new season of my favorite racing series. IndyCar kicks off their season this weekend in St. Petersburg. And despite the fact that I am living in St. Petersburg this winter, I will not be there. Instead, I’ll be hanging out with my kids in Nashville. I’d rather be with my kids, but just a word of warning to them: You’d better be entertaining.
With the season just getting underway, I wanted to share my predictions for the top 20 in the championship, as well as the top ten finishers in the Indy 500. I know the 500 isn’t until May, but why put off until late May what you can get done in early March? Words to live by.
Let’s start with the top 10 Indy 500 finishers:
108th Running of the Indianapolis 500
Kyle Kirkwood
Scott McLaughlin
Colton Herta
Marcus Ericsson
Josef Newgarden
Alexander Rossi
Scott Dixon
Christian Lundgaard
Conor Daly
Pato O’Ward
And here are the top 20 for the 2024 IndyCar season:
Predicted 2024 IndyCar Standings
Scott McLaughlin
Pato O’Ward
Scott Dixon
Marcus Ericsson
Alex Palou
Josef Newgarden
Colton Herta
Alexander Rossi
Will Power
Felix Rosenquist
Christian Lundgaard
Kyle Kirkwood
Marcus Armstrong
David Malukas
Graham Rahal
Tom Bloomquist
Rinus Vekay
Romain Grosjean
Linus Lundqvist
Santino Ferrucci
Congratulation to Kyle and Scott. Enjoy the season!
In November of last year, I share the 25 saddest songs I had ever heard. Granted, I haven’t heard all sad songs. In fact, there are entire genres I am unfamiliar with. So, let me stipulate up front that these lists are just my opinion and that my purview is not only subjective, but very limited.
When I wrote my first list of the 25 saddest songs ever written, I actually was working from a list of more than 75 sad songs. I picked 25 at random, but the songs on this list (and the forthcoming volume 3 of the list) are just as deserving of recognition. Accordingly, here are 25 more sad songs for your consideration. Listen to a few tonight and cry yourself to sleep.
26. Missing You
Written by: John Waite, Mark Leonard, & Charles Stanford
Performed by: John Waite
“Missing You” came out in July 1984. If I saw it once on MTV, I saw it a thousand times. (For readers under 50 years of age, MTV got its start playing nothing but music videos. It started a revolution in the music industry, matching a video with a song. It became so popular that some musicians conceived of the video before creating the song. It was a simpler time.) Although I like the John Waite video for the song, I look for reasons to watch and listen to Allison Krauss. So, here’s Allison Krauss and John Waite doing a duet of “Missing You.”
Missing You
Every time I think of you I always catch my breath And I’m still standing here And you’re miles away And I’m wondering why you left And there’s a storm that’s raging Through my frozen heart tonight
I hear your name in certain circles And it always makes me smile I spend my time Thinking about you And it’s almost driving me wild And that’s my heart that’s breaking Down this long distance line tonight
I ain’t missing you at all Since you’ve been gone away I ain’t missing you No matter What my friends say
There’s a message in the wild And I’m sending you this signal tonight You don’t know how desperate I’ve become And it looks like I’m losing this fight
In your world I have no meaning Though I’m trying hard to understand And it’s my heart that’s breaking Down this long distance line tonight
But I ain’t missing you at all Since you’ve been gone away I ain’t missing you No matter what I might say
And there’s a message that I’m sending out Like a telegraph to your soul And if I can’t bridge this distance Stop this heartbreak overload
‘Cause I ain’t missing you at all Since you’ve been gone away I ain’t missing you No matter what I might say
I ain’t missing you (I ain’t missing you) No way Since you’ve been gone away (I can lie to myself these days) I ain’t missing you
And there’s a storm that’s raging Through my frozen heart tonight
And I ain’t missing you at all Since you’ve been gone away I ain’t missing you No matter what my friends say
I ain’t missing you I ain’t missing you (I can lie to myself these days) I ain’t missing you at all, I ain’t missing you (No way, baby)
No matter what my friends say (I’m doing fine here) And I ain’t missing you at all I ain’t missing you I keep lying to myself every time I think of you
I’m okay I’m doing fine here from day to day I ain’t missing you I can lie to myself
27. Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
Written by Gordon Lightfoot
Performed by: Gordon Lightfoot
“Does any one know where the love of God goes When the waves turn the minutes to hours?”
In November 1975, I was fifteen years old. That’s probably a little old to develop irrational fears, yet that’s exactly what happened to me. In that month and year, I became afraid of Lake Superior (“the big lake they call Gitche Gumee”). Why? That’s the month the U.S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior, taking with it twenty-nine souls.
I grew up near Chicago and was fairly accustomed to being around Lake Michigan. But where Lake Michigan seemed fun and inviting, Lake Superior seemed frightening, a place to avoid. Like I said, it was an irrational fear. Thankfully, I’m almost over it.
Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead When the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed When the gales of November came early
The ship was the pride of the American side Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most With a crew and good captain well seasoned
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms When they left fully loaded for Cleveland And later that night when the ship’s bell rang Could it be the north wind they’d been feelin’?
The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound And a wave broke over the railing And every man knew, as the captain did too T’was the witch of November come stealin’
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait When the gales of November came slashin’ When afternoon came it was freezin’ rain In the face of a hurricane west wind
When suppertime came, the old cook came on deck sayin’ “Fellas, it’s too rough to feed ya” At 7 PM, a main hatchway caved in, he said “Fellas, it’s been good to know ya”
The captain wired in he had water comin’ in And the good ship and crew was in peril And later that night when his lights went outta sight Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
Does any one know where the love of God goes When the waves turn the minutes to hours? The searchers all say they’d have made Whitefish Bay If they’d put fifteen more miles behind her
They might have split up or they might have capsized They may have broke deep and took water And all that remains is the faces and the names Of the wives and the sons and the daughters
Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings In the rooms of her ice-water mansion Old Michigan steams like a young man’s dreams The islands and bays are for sportsmen
And farther below Lake Ontario Takes in what Lake Erie can send her And the iron boats go as the mariners all know With the gales of November remembered
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed In the maritime sailors’ cathedral The church bell chimed ’til it rang twenty-nine times For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee Superior, they said, never gives up her dead When the gales of November come early
28. I Can’t Make You Love Me
Written by: Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin
Performed by: Bonnie Raitt
I love the story behind the writing of “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” Like many good songwriters, Allen Shamblin was born in Nashville and Mike Reid played in the NFL. Wait…what? That’s right. Before becoming a successful songwriter, Mike played college football at Penn State. He was so good, he finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting as an offensive lineman. He went on to become a first round pick in the NFL draft, going to the Cincinnati Bengals. He also played gangster Big Julie in the Penn State production of Guys and Dolls. Mike Reid was nothing if not versatile.
“I Can’t Make You Love Me” tells the heartbreaking story of a guy (or in Bonnie Raitt’s singing, a girl) who is losing the person he loves. They spend one more night together and he tells her “Morning will come, and I’ll do what’s right. Just give me ’til then to give up this fight.” I’m starting to get weepy just thinking about it.
I Can’t Make You Love Me
Turn down the lights Turn down the bed Turn down these voices inside my head Lay down with me Tell me no lies Just hold me close, don’t patronize Don’t patronize me‘Cause I can’t make you love me if you don’t You can’t make your heart feel something it won’t Here in the dark, in these final hours I will lay down my heart and I’ll feel the power But you won’t, no you won’t ‘Cause I can’t make you love me, if you don’t
I’ll close my eyes, then I won’t see The love you don’t feel when you’re holding me Morning will come and I’ll do what’s right Just give me till then to give up this fight And I will give up this fight
‘Cause I can’t make you love me if you don’t You can’t make your heart feel something it won’t Here in the dark, in these final hours I will lay down my heart and I’ll feel the power But you won’t, no you won’t ‘Cause I can’t make you love me, if you don’t
29. For The Good Times
Written By: Kris Kristofferson
Performed by: Johnny Cash (among others)
I love Kris Kristofferson’s story. He was an Army brat who moved around a lot. He attended Pomona College, where he played football, rugby, and ran track & field. Upon graduation from Pomona, he attended University of Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship (that’s a big deal), While at Oxford, he played rugby and was on the boxing team. It was also at Oxford where he started writing songs, playing guitar, and singing.
Before pursuing a full-time music career, Kristofferson joined the Army, became a helicopter pilot, and rose to the rank of captain. In 1965, he started spending time in Nashville where he tried to sell his songs. He gave a demo tape to June Carter, wife of Johnny Cash, and asked her to give the tape to the popular Cash. She did, but Cash threw it on a pile with other demos and ignored it.
After not hearing from Cash for some time, Kristofferson flew a helicopter to Cash’s house and landed on his front lawn. That got Cash’s attention, and the rest is history. Kristofferson went on to become a successful songwriter (winning Songwriter of the Year in 1970), singer (recording 17 albums), and actor. He also went on to sit across the aisle from me at the premier of his film, Bloodworth. He does not tell that story nearly as often as I do. We did not speak.
For the Good Times
Don’t look so sad, I know it’s over But life goes on and this old world will keep on turning Let’s just be glad we had some time to spend together There’s no need to watch the bridges that we’re burning
Lay your head upon my pillow Hold your warm and tender body close to mine Hear the whisper of the raindrops blowin’ soft against the window And make-believe you love me one more time For the good times
I’ll get along, you’ll find another And I’ll be here if you should find you ever need me Don’t say a word about tomorrow or forever There’ll be time enough for sadness when you leave me
Lay your head upon my pillow Hold your warm and tender body close to mine Hear the whisper of the raindrops blowin’ soft against the window And make-believe you love me one more time For the good times
30. Eleanor Rigby
Written By: Paul McCartney and John Lennon
Performed by: The Beatles
I once heard Paul McCartney talk about how he came up with the song “Eleanor Rigby.” In a nutshell, he wanted to tell a story about the lives of lonely people. He came up with Eleanor Rigby (who began life as Daisy Hawkins), an old-maid type woman, and Father McKenzie (who began life as Father McCartney), a church vicar who presides over a small congregation of lonely people. It really brought home for me how sad the song really is.
Eleanor Rigby
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Eleanor Rigby picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been
Lives in a dream
Waits at the window, wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door
Who is it for?
All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?
Father McKenzie writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear
No one comes near
Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there’s nobody there
What does he care?
All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Eleanor Rigby died in the church and was buried along with her name
Nobody came
Father McKenzie wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave
No one was saved
All the lonely people
(Ah, look at all the lonely people)
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
(Ah, look at all the lonely people)
Where do they all belong?
31. Crying
Written by Roy Orbison
Performed by Roy Orbison
It stands to reason that a song called “Crying” should be sad. It helps that Roy Orbison’s multi-octave voice is on full displaying in the song. I think it was “Crying” that Bruce Springsteen (a big fan of Orbison’s) was singing about in “Thunder Road” when he sang “Roy Orbison singing for the lonely. Hey, that’s me and I want you only.” If it’s good enough for Bruce, it’s good enough for me.
Crying
I was all right for awhile
I could smile for awhile
But I saw you last night
You held my hand so tight
As you stopped to say, “Hello”
Oh, you wished me well
You, you couldn’t tell
That I’d been crying over you
Crying over you
When you said, “So long”
Left me standing all alone
Alone and crying, crying
Crying, crying
It’s hard to understand
But the touch of your hand
Can start me crying
I thought that I was over you
But it’s true, so true
I love you even more
Than I did before
But, darling, what can I do?
For you don’t love me
And I’ll always be crying over you
Crying over you
Yes, now you’re gone
And from this moment on
I’ll be crying, crying
Crying, crying
Yeah, crying, crying
Over you
32. Atlantic City
Written by Bruce Springsteen
Performed by Bruce Springsteen
In 1981, Bruce Springsteen started recording songs for his solo album (i.e. without The E Street Band), Nebraska. He was sitting in his home studio (i.e. his bedroom) working on a song that was then titled “Fist Full of Dollars,” a homage of sorts to Clint Eastwood’s movie of the same name. Eventually, the song became “Atlantic City.” Like most of the rest of the Nebraska album, “Atlantic City” is pared down, spare, and gritty. There’s nothing pretty about it, and you have to look pretty hard to find anything that’s hopeful. Bruce Springsteen can really write a sad song.
Atlantic City
Well, they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night And they blew up his house, too Down on the boardwalk, they’re getting ready for a fight Gonna see what them racket boys can do Now there’s trouble busing in from out of state And the D.A. can’t get no relief Gonna be a rumble out on the promenade And the gambling commission’s hanging on by the skin of its teeth
Well, now, everything dies, baby, that’s a fact But maybe everything that dies someday comes back Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty And meet me tonight in Atlantic City
Well, I got a job and tried to put my money away But I got debts that no honest man can pay So I drew what I had from the Central Trust And I bought us two tickets on that Coast City bus
Well, now, everything dies, baby, that’s a fact But maybe everything that dies someday comes back Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty And meet me tonight in Atlantic City
Now, our luck may have died, and our love may be cold But with you, forever, I’ll stay We’re going out where the sand’s turning to gold So put on your stockings, baby, ’cause the night’s getting cold
And everything dies, baby, that’s a fact But maybe everything that dies someday comes back
Now I been looking for a job, but it’s hard to find Down here, it’s just winners and losers and “Don’t get caught on the wrong side of that line” Well, I’m tired of coming out on the losing end So, honey, last night, I met this guy, and I’m gonna do a little favor for him
Well, now, everything dies, baby, that’s a fact But maybe everything that dies someday comes back Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty And meet me tonight in Atlantic City
33. Dancing in the Dark
Written by: Bruce Springsteen
Performed by: Bruce Springsteen/Sam Fender
It’s a Springsteen two-for!
If you’re of a certain age, you probably remember the video for Springsteen’s Dancing in the Dark. It’s upbeat, and Bruce is looking buff, dancing around the stage. As you may know, this is the song where a not-yet-famous Courtney Cox (of Friends fame) comes up on stage and dances with the Boss. It seems like a celebration.
But listen to the lyrics. They tell a very different story. In addition to the Boss’s version, here’s Sam Fender reimagining Springsteen’s song. Do your best not to cry.
Dancing in the Dark
I get up in the evening
And I ain’t got nothing to say
I come home in the morning
I go to bed feeling the same way
I ain’t nothing but tired
Man, I’m just tired and bored with myself
Hey there baby, I could use just a little help
You can’t start a fire
You can’t start a fire without a spark
This gun’s for hire
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
Message keeps getting clearer
Radio’s on and I’m moving ’round the place
I check my look in the mirror
I wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face
Man, I ain’t getting nowhere
I’m just living in a dump like this
There’s something happening somewhere
Baby, I just know that there is
You can’t start a fire
You can’t start a fire without a spark
This gun’s for hire
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
You sit around getting older
There’s a joke here somewhere and it’s on me
I’ll shake this world off my shoulders
Come on, baby, the laugh’s on me
Stay on the streets of this town
And they’ll be carving you up all right
They say you gotta stay hungry
Hey, baby, I’m just about starving tonight
I’m dying for some action
I’m sick of sitting ’round here trying to write this book
I need a love reaction
Come on now, baby, gimme just one look
You can’t start a fire
Sitting ’round crying over a broken heart
This gun’s for hire
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
You can’t start a fire
Worrying about your little world falling apart
This gun’s for hire
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
Hey, baby
34. Only Love Can Break Your Heart
Written by: Neil Young
Performed by: Neil Young
As I’ve grown older, I’ve become more of a Neil Young fan. That wasn’t always the case. Even as much as I liked Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, I really didn’t like Young all that much. I still can’t say I’m a huge fan, but I really have come to appreciate his music.
“Only Love Can Break Your Heart” is a beautiful song. It may not be as sad as some of the other songs on the list, but I think it still belongs. Give it a listen.
Only Love Can Break Your Heart
When you were young
And on your own
How did it feel to be alone?
I was always thinking of games
That I was playing
Trying to make the best of my time
But only love can break your heart
Try to be sure right from the start
Yes, only love can break your heart
What if your world should fall apart?
I have a friend I’ve never seen
He hides his head inside a dream
Someone should call him and see
If he can come out
Try to lose the down that he’s found
But only love can break your heart
Try to be sure right from the start
Yes, only love can break your heart
What if your world should fall apart?
I have a friend I’ve never seen
He hides his head inside a dream
Yes, only love can break your heart
Yes, only love can break your heart
Yes, only love can break your heart
Yes, only love can break your heart
Yes, only love can break your heart
36. I Will Always Love You
Written by: Dolly Parton
Performed by: Dolly Parton/Whitney Houston
Can we just take a moment to celebrate the awesomeness of Dolly Parton? She’s a national treasure. She has done a lot of great songs, a lot of sad songs, but it was Whitney Houston that really brought this song to life. Watch the two videos below. Dolly’s is good. Whitney’s is out of this world.
The very first stanza of the song tells the story. “If I should stay, I would only get in your way. So I’ll go, but I know I’ll think of you every step pf the way.” They’re breaking up, but she doesn’t want to. She’s doing it for him. #Sad.
I Will Always Love You
If I should stay I would only be in your way So I’ll go but I know I’ll think of you every step of the way
And I will always love you I will always love you
You My darling, you Mmm-mm
Bittersweet memories – That is all I’m taking with me So good-bye Please don’t cry: We both know I’m not what you, you need
And I… will always love you I… will always love you You, ooh
I hope life treats you kind And I hope you have all you’ve dreamed of And I’m wishing you joy and happiness But above all this, I wish you love
And I… will always love you I will always love you I will always love you I will always love you I will always love you I, I will always love you You Darling, I love you I’ll always I’ll always love you
37. My Heart Will Go On
Written by: James Horner and Will Cummings
Performed by: Celine Dion
When I think about “My Heart Will Go On,” I think about my daughter. She was just two years old in 1997 when the song came out, and she loved it. I remember one day, sitting at my in-laws’ house, and my daughter wanted to play the song over and over and over. She sang along with Celine Dion, and I was surprised that at just two years old, she was pretty good. Of course, I’m not biased.
“My Heart Will Go On” was from the movie Titanic, which was about a forbidden love affair that ended with Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio’s character) drowning in frigid cold waters after the Titanic–the “unsinkable ship,”–hits an iceberg and sinks. Sad stuff indeed.
My Heart Will Go On
Every night in my dreams I see you, I feel you That is how I know you go on
Far across the distance And spaces between us You have come to show you go on
Near, far, wherever you are I believe that the heart does go on Once more you open the door And you’re here in my heart And my heart will go on and on
Love can touch us one time And last for a lifetime And never let go ’til we’re gone
Love was when I loved you One true time I hold to In my life we’ll always go on
Near, far, wherever you are I believe that the heart does go on Once more you open the door And you’re here in my heart And my heart will go on and on
You’re here, there’s nothing I fear And I know that my heart will go on We’ll stay forever this way You are safe in my heart And my heart will go on and on
38. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart
Written by: Barry Gibb & Robin Gibb
Performed by: Bee Gees/Al Green
The Bee Gee are underrated. There, I said it. For people my age, when we were young, the Bee Gees were looked at as a disco group. And we were not fans of disco. But if you look at the Bee Gees entire discography, it’s obvious that they were much more than just a disco group. They were a great band.
Al Green (before he was Rev. Al Green) did a cover of “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart” and made it his own. Man, did he ever make it his own. Take a look at the video to see what I mean.
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart
I can think of younger days when living for my life Was everything a man could want to do I could never see tomorrow But I was never told about the sorrows
And, how can you mend a broken heart? How can you stop the rain from falling down? How can you stop the sun from shining? What makes the world go ’round? How can you mend this broken man? How can a loser ever win? Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again
I can still feel the breeze that rustles through the trees And misty memories of days gone by We could never see tomorrow No one said a word about the sorrow
And how can you mend a broken heart? How can you stop the rain from falling down? How can you stop the sun from shining? What makes the world go ’round? And how can you mend this broken man? How can a loser ever win? Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again
39. Someone You Loved
Written by: Lewis Capaldi
Performed by: Lewis Capaldi
“Some You Loved” is sad on a couple of different levels. First, the lyrics tell the story of a guy who used to be in a relationship, still wants to be in the relationship, but isn’t in the relationship anymore. And he’s struggling with that fact. He fell in love, let his guard down, and now he’s dealing with the pain.
But it’s the writer and performer’s life that is even more sad. Lewis Capaldi is a Scottish musician who burst onto the scene with “Someone to Love.” But shortly after realizing his dream of become a successful musician, he was diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome and debilitating anxiety. Medicine can help both ailments, but it dulls his faculties, making it difficult to write songs and impossible to perform them the way he wants. Sometimes it’s easier not to realize your dream than it is to realize it and have it ripped away.
Someone You Loved
I’m going under and this time I fear there’s no one to save me This all or nothing really got a way of driving me crazy
I need somebody to heal Somebody to know Somebody to have Somebody to hold It’s easy to say But it’s never the same I guess I kinda liked the way you numbed all the pain
Now the day bleeds Into nightfall And you’re not here To get me through it all I let my guard down And then you pulled the rug I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved
I’m going under and this time I fear there’s no one to turn to This all or nothing way of loving got me sleeping without you
Now, I need somebody to know Somebody to heal Somebody to have Just to know how it feels It’s easy to say But it’s never the same I guess I kinda liked the way you helped me escape
Now the day bleeds Into nightfall And you’re not here To get me through it all I let my guard down And then you pulled the rug I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved
And I tend to close my eyes when it hurts sometimes I fall into your arms I’ll be safe in your sound til I come back around
For now the day bleeds Into nightfall And you’re not here To get me through it all I let my guard down And then you pulled the rug I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved
But now the day bleeds Into nightfall And you’re not here To get me through it all I let my guard down And then you pulled the rug I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved
I let my guard down And then you pulled the rug I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved
40. The Boxer
Written by: Paul Simon
Performed by: Simon & Garfunkel
For most of my life, I have believed that “The Boxer” begins with the lines “I am just a poor boy, though my story’s seldom told. I have squandered my existence for a pocket full of mumbled sunshine promises.” As you can see below, I was wrong. That, in and of itself is sad.
But the lyrics are the story here. The song’s narrator tells about his efforts to overcome loneliness and poverty, then switches to a third-party lament about a boxer who “carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him till he cried out.” Is the boxer a metaphor for what the narrator is going through? It seems that way to me. Either way, it’s powerful stuff.
The Boxer
I am just a poor boy Though my story’s seldom told I have squandered my resistance For a pocketful of mumbles Such are promises All lies and jest Still, a man hears what he wants to hear And disregards the rest
When I left my home and my family I was no more than a boy In the company of strangers In the quiet of a railway station Running scared Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters Where the ragged people go Looking for the places only they would know
Lie-la-lie…
Asking only workman’s wages I come looking for a job But I get no offers Just a come-on from the whores on Seventh Avenue I do declare there were times when I was so lonesome I took some comfort thereLie-la-lie…
Then I’m laying out my winter clothes And wishing I was gone Going home Where the New York City winters aren’t bleeding me Leading me Going home
In the clearing stands a boxer And a fighter by his trade And he carries the reminders Of every glove that laid him down Or cut him ’til he cried out In his anger and his shame “I am leaving, I am leaving” But the fighter still remains
Lie-la-lie…
41. Something in the Way
Written by: Kurt Cobain
Performed by: Nirvana
Truth is, I had never heard “Something in the Way” before someone suggested to me that it should be on my list. I listened to it. Sure enough, it’s sad. I think it’s about a homeless person, but I’m honestly not sure.
That’s it. That’s the whole story.
Something in the Way
Underneath the bridge Tarp has sprung a leak And the animals I’ve trapped Have all become my pets And I’m living off of grass And the drippin’s from the ceiling It’s okay to eat fish ‘Cause they don’t have any feelings
Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm
Underneath the bridge Tarp has sprung a leak And the animals I’ve trapped Have all become my pets And I’m living off of grass And the drippings from the ceiling It’s okay to eat fish Cause they don’t have any feelings
Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm Something in the way, mmm Something in the way, yeah, mmm
42. Wicked Game
Written by: Chris Isaak
Performed by Chris Isaak/Tenacious D
If you’re around my age, you probably remember this song as the one with the uncomfortably sexy video of an impossibly handsome Chris Isaak chasing a beautiful, topless woman around the beach, the whole time singing about how he doesn’t want to fall in love. He claims the woman is playing a wicked game, drawing him in, letting him dream about her, making him fall in love. He knows the world is going to break his heart, but he can’t help himself. Then the song ends with the words, “Nobody loves no one.” That’s sad, isn’t it?
Chris Isaak does the OG version of this song. His video looks like one of those black and white perfume commercials that makes no sense. I really like the cover done by Tenacious D. Sometime I forget how really talented Jack Black is.
Wicked Game
The world was on fire and no one could save me but you It’s strange what desire will make foolish people do I never dreamed that I’d meet somebody like you And I never dreamed that I’d lose somebody like you
No, I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) No, I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) With you, with you (With you) (This world is only gonna break your heart)
What a wicked game we play, to make me feel this way What a wicked thing to do, to let me dream of you What a wicked thing to say, you never felt this way What a wicked thing to do, to make me dream of you
And I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) No, I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) With you
The world was on fire and no one could save me but you It’s strange what desire will make foolish people do I never dreamed that I’d love somebody like you And I never dreamed that I’d lose somebody like you
No, I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) No, I don’t wanna fall in love (This world is only gonna break your heart) With you (With you) (This world is only gonna break your heart) With you (With you) (This world is only gonna break your heart) No, I… (This world is only gonna break your heart) (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Nobody loves no one
43. Unchained Melody
Written by: Alex North & Hy Zaret
Performed by: The Righteous Brothers
This one is a classic. And although it seems like I’ve known this song my entire life (it was first recorded by Todd Duncan in 1955), I never knew why it was called “Unchained Melody.” The answer was uninspiring. It seems that the song was written for the movie Unchained, and because of that, was tentatively titled “Unchained Melody.” I don’t know if the writers didn’t think much of the song or they just got busy, but they never bothered to rename it. It’s a great song and it deserved better.
The song was recorded hundreds of times by singers including George Benson, Neil Diamond, Leo Sayer, and even U2. But there are two versions that stand out. The Righteous Brothers version really put the song on the map, and their version found new life in the movie Ghost. The Elvis Presley cover is like nothing else, putting his soaring vocals on full display. I challenge you to watch the video and not get chills.
Unchained Melody
Oh, my love My darling I’ve hungered for your touch A long, lonely time
And time goes by so slowly And time can do so much Are you still mine?
I need your love I need your love God speed your love to me
Lonely rivers flow to the sea, to the sea To the open arms of the sea Yes, lonely rivers sigh, “Wait for me, wait for me I’ll be coming home, wait for me”
Oh, my love My darling I’ve hungered, hungered for your touch A long, lonely time
And time goes by so slowly And time can do so much Are you still mine?
I need your love I, I need your love God speed your love to me
44. Yesterday
Written by: Paul McCartney and John Lennon
Performed by: The Beatles
“Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away. Now it look as though they’re here to stay. I believe in yesterday.” You don’t need much more than that to know the story the singer s telling.
Writing the song was not nearly as sad as the song itself. According to Paul McCartney, the song came to him one night in a dream. But the lyrics were unfinished. Originally, the song started with the lines “Scrambled eggs/Oh my baby how I Iove your legs/Not as much as I love scrambled eggs.” McCartney knew the scrambled eggs lyrics weren’t going to stay, but he kept them as a placeholder until he found something more suitable. I’ll never be able to eat scrambled eggs again without thinking about this song.
Yesterday
Yesterday all my troubles seemed so far away. Now it looks as though they’re here to stay. Oh, I believe in yesterday.
Suddenly, I’m not half the man I used to be. There’s a shadow hanging over me. Oh, yesterday came suddenly.
Why she had to go? I don’t know, she wouldn’t say. I said something wrong. Now I long for yesterday.
Yesterday love was such an easy game to play. Now I need a place to hide away. Oh, I believe in yesterday.
Why she had to go? I don’t know, she wouldn’t say. I said something wrong. Now I long for yesterday.
Yesterday love was such an easy game to play. Now I need a place to hide away. Oh, I believe in yesterday.
Mm mm mm mm mm mm mm.
45. I Will Remember You
Written by: Sarah McLachlan, Seamus Egan, and Dave Merenda
Performed by: Sarah McLachlan
Is it just me, or can you not hear a Sarah McLachlan song without thinking of those ultra-sad ASPCA commercials that show scared and hungry dogs living in horrible conditions. Every time I see one, I want to yell at the cameraman, “Put the camera down and help those poor dogs.” But no, the cameraman can’t help the dogs. Only your donation of just $19/month can do that.
Anyway, this is a sad song. Now, all I can think about are those poor dogs.
I Will Remember You
I will remember you Will you remember me? Don’t let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories
Remember the good times that we had? I let them slip away from us when things got bad How clearly I first saw you smilin’ in the sun Wanna feel your warmth upon me, I wanna be the one
I will remember you Will you remember me? Don’t let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories
I’m so tired but I can’t sleep Standin’ on the edge of something much too deep It’s funny how we feel so much but we cannot say a word We are screaming inside, but we can’t be heard
But I will remember you Will you remember me? Don’t let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories
I’m so afraid to love you, but more afraid to lose Clinging to a past that doesn’t let me choose Once there was a darkness, deep and endless night You gave me everything you had, oh you gave me light
And I will remember you Will you remember me? Don’t let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories
And I will remember you Will you remember me? Don’t let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories Weep not for the memories
46. Wildfire
Written by: Michael Martin Murphey and Larry Cansler
Performed by: Michael Martin Murphey
I first met Michael Martin Murphey in 2003. He had recently moved to my area of Wisconsin from his home state of Texas after marrying a woman from our neighboring town. I was the president of our local Rotary Club at the time and Michael was interested in joining.
I think I may have been the only member of our Rotary Club who knew who Michael was. At that first meeting he introduced himself and said he was a musician. “What kind of music do you play” someone asked him. He asked, “You heard of country and western?” Everyone said they had. “And you know what country music is?” Again, everyone say they did. “Well, I do the western kind.” I’ve had the great good fortune to hear Michael perform “Wildfire” three or four times since then, both solo and with his band.
“Wildfire” is a terrific song that tells a sad story about a horse named Wildfire that gets loose in a blizzard and runs off. Wildfire’s owner chases after the horse, but they both die in the heavy snow. The song goes on, switching to the prospective of a farmer who knows the story of Wildfire and his owner, and fears–or maybe wants–them to come take him away from the sodbusting life.
Wildfire
She comes down from yellow mountain On a dark, flat land she rides On a pony she named wildfire With a whirlwind by her side On a cold Nebraska night
Oh, they say she died one winter When there came a killing frost And the pony she named wildfire Busted down his stall In a blizzard, she was lost
She ran calling wildfire Calling wildfire Calling wildfire
So by the dark of the moon, I planted But there came an early snow Been a hoot-owl howling outside my window now ‘Bout six nights in a row She’s coming for me, I know And on wildfire we’re both gonna go
We’ll be ridin’ wildfire Ridin’ wildfire Ridin’ wildfire
On wildfire we’re gonna ride Gonna leave sodbustin’ behind Get the hard times right on out of our minds Riding wildfire
47. Stay With Me
Written by: Sam Smith, Kames Napier, William Phillips, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne
Performed by: Sam Smith
“Stay With Me” is Sam Smith’s most popular song. But it’s birth was a controversial one. After it was released, Tom Petty’s estate contacted Smith claiming that “Stay With Me” sounded suspiciously like Petty’s single “I Won’t Back Down,” which had been written by Petty and Lynne. Turns out they were right. Petty and Lynne got co-writing credit and 12.5% of the proceeds from the song.
Stay With Me
Guess it’s true, I’m not good at a one-night stand But I still need love ’cause I’m just a man These nights never seem to go to plan I don’t want you to leave, will you hold my hand?
Oh, won’t you stay with me? ‘Cause you’re all I need This ain’t love, it’s clear to see But, darling, stay with me
Why am I so emotional? No, it’s not a good look, gain some self-control And deep down I know this never works But you can lay with me so it doesn’t hurt
Oh, won’t you stay with me? ‘Cause you’re all I need This ain’t love, it’s clear to see But, darling, stay with me
Oh, won’t you stay with me? ‘Cause you’re all I need This ain’t love, it’s clear to see But, darling, stay with me
Oh, won’t you stay with me? ‘Cause you’re all I need This ain’t love, it’s clear to see But, darling, stay with me
48. The Living Years
Written by: B.A. Robertson and Mike Rutherford
Performed by: Mike + The Mechanics
The song was inspired by the fact that both Robertson and Rutherford lost their fathers when they were young. The similarity got the two talking, and they realized how the previous generation had wanted to follow in their fathers’ footstep, but then things changed and young men suddenly didn’t want to be like their fathers. For the songwriters, the change wasn’t brought on by anything the fathers had done. It was just a cultural shift. But the change negatively impacted relationships between fathers and sons.
I especially like the lyric “I wasn’t there that morning/When my Father passed away/I didn’t get to tell him/All the things I had to say.” Every time I hear it, I think of my own dad.
The Living Years
Every generation Blames the one before And all of their frustrations Come beating on your door
I know that I’m a prisoner To all my Father held so dear I know that I’m a hostage To all his hopes and fears I just wish I could have told him in the living years
Crumpled bits of paper Filled with imperfect thought Stilted conversations I’m afraid that’s all we’ve got
You say you just don’t see it He says it’s perfect sense You just can’t get agreement In this present tense We all talk a different language Talking in defense
Say it loud, say it clear You can listen as well as you hear It’s too late when we die To admit we don’t see eye to eye
So we open up a quarrel Between the present and the past We only sacrifice the future It’s the bitterness that lasts
So don’t yield to the fortunes You sometimes see as fate It may have a new perspective On a different date And if you don’t give up, and don’t give in You may just be O.K.
Say it loud, say it clear You can listen as well as you hear It’s too late when we die To admit we don’t see eye to eye
I wasn’t there that morning When my Father passed away I didn’t get to tell him All the things I had to say
I think I caught his spirit Later that same year I’m sure I heard his echo In my baby’s new born tears I just wish I could have told him in the living years
Say it loud, say it clear You can listen as well as you hear It’s too late when we die To admit we don’t see eye to eye
49. From His Window
Written by: John Smith
Performed by: John Smith
John Smith is a friend of mine from Trempealeau, WI. He’s a terrific singer-songwriter who also leads trips to Ireland (something I want to go on one of these days). John’s song “From His Window” is autobiographical, about his father who had Alzheimer’s. John’s dad was in a nursing home, and although he didn’t always remember John, he did enjoy when John visited. In the song, John had spent some time with his dad, but had to leave. John went out to his car, and as he was pulling out of the parking lot, he looked back, and his dad was in his window, waving, watching John drive away. It’s a heartbreaking song.
John tells the story about playing “From His Window” in a pub in Ireland several years ago. As often happened, tears were flowing by the end of the song. The audience in the pub applauded, and in the quiet after the applause died down, a lone voice from the back of the room called out to John in an Irish brogue, “That’s a good one, John. But can you play us a sad song?”
I would encourage you to watch the video for John’s song. But let me warn you, you might want to have some tissues handy. I think you’ll need them
From His Window
He stands by the window He watches cars go by He waves at everybody He’s just a friendly guy
He doesn’t know what day it is He doesn’t talk much anymore Sometimes he cries when he means to laugh Doctors say he can’t tell that
And I come to visit I take him out on drives He wants to go home with me Evertime
But the nurses come to take him Back to his room that’s waiting And I fight to keep my tears inside From his window, he waves goodbye
Where have the years all gone to It seems like only yesterday We used to dance upon his shoes Back on Sunday afternoons
He was a mountain standing tall Doing his best to raise us all We always had enough to eat He worked two jobs to make ends meet
But now it seems he can’t remember that And it’s hard for the rest of us to understand But when I come to visit, he knows my name and he says it And I fight to keep my tears inside
From his window He waves goodbye
But when I come to visit, he knows my name and he says it And it makes me glad I made the drive From his window He waves goodbye
From his window He waves goodbye
50. Danny Boy
Written by: Frederic Weatherly
Performed by: Various
There are several different stories about how “Danny Boy” came into existence. What is known is that the lyrics were written in 1910 by British lawyer and lyricist (This two job descriptions rarely goes together) Frederic Weatherly. The music for “Danny Boy comes from “Londonderry Air,” but it’s unknown exactly how the lyrics and music came together.
Although it’s hard to know exactly the meaning behind the lyrics, it is believed that they are a message from a family to a son going off to war. Considering that the song was written in 1910, the war was likely World War I.
A million different artists have recorded “Danny Boy,” and it was a little hard choosing exactly with version to include here. In the end, I decided to share a traditional version of the song by Jim McCann and The Dubliners, as well as a wonderful, over-the-top version by Tom Jones.
Danny Boy
Oh, Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling From glen to glen, and down the mountain side. The summer’s gone, and all the roses falling, It’s you, it’s you must go and I must bide. But come ye back when summer’s in the meadow, Or when the valley’s hushed and white with snow, It’s I’ll be there in sunshine or in shadow,— Oh, Danny boy, Oh Danny boy, I love you so!
But when ye come, and all the flowers are dying, If I am dead, as dead I well may be, Ye’ll come and find the place where I am lying, And kneel and say an Avé there for me. And I shall hear, though soft you tread above me, And all my grave will warmer, sweeter be, For you will bend and tell me that you love me, And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me!
It has become fashionable as of late for Republicans–especially the MAGA variety–to claim that the United States is not a democracy, but is instead a constitutional republic. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) made a big splash when he wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that the United States is not a democracy. He followed up that tweet with an op-ed in which he tried to support his point with a lot of words, but was never quite able to make the case.
The reason Sen. Lee failed to make his case is because there is almost no difference in the way we understand the words “democracy” and “republic.” For instance, the American Heritage Dictionary defines “republic” as:
“A political order in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who are entitled to vote for officers and representatives responsible to them.”
That describes what we have in the United States.
The definition of “democracy” is:
“Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives.”
That applies to us too.
So, which are we? Is the United States a democracy or a republic? Yes.
People who argue that the United States is a republic, not a democracy, don’t seem to understand that they are virtually the same thing. They mean the same thing to us today, and they meant the same to the Founders.
What supporters of the “We are a republic, not a democracy” way of thinking would have you believe is that a democracy requires every citizen to have a say in the running of the government. What they are referring to is direct or pure democracy. That’s not the kind of democracy we have (although ballot initiatives and referendum could fairly be described as direct democracy).
What we have in the United States is a representative democracy. It is what most Americans think of when we say “democracy” and it is what the Founders were thinking of when the United States was created.
One of those Founding Fathers, and one of our first Supreme Court Justices, James Wilson, compared the three forms of government–monarchical, aristocratical, and democratical–saying that only in a democracy is the sovereign power “inherent in the people, and is either exercised by themselves or by their representatives.”
Chief Justice John Marshall echoed Wilson’s sentiments when he was leading the fight to ratify the Constitution in Virginia. He called the form of government being implemented a democracy, and compared it favorably against despotism. He did not add the qualifier “representative” to his description of the democracy. It was understood by Founders and citizens alike that when the term “democracy” was used, a representative democracy was being referred to.
The “republic, not democracy” crowd likes to point to James Madison’s comments in Federalist 10, Federalist 14, and Federalist 51, in which he speaks with disfavor about democracy. “In a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region.” (Federalist 14)
But a full reading of the text reveals that Madison was talking about direct democracy in these instances. The idea of democracy was appealing to the founders, but they rightly feared that majority rule could turn into mob rule when the passions of the citizenry was inflamed.
Alexander Hamilton, Madison’s co-author in the Federalist Papers, addressed this concern in a letter to Gouverneur Morris when he wrote, “A representative democracy, where the right of election is well secured and regulated & the exercise of the legislative, executive and judiciary authorities, is vested in select persons, chosen really and not nominally by the people, will in my opinion be most likely to be happy, regular and durable.”
It was not unusual for the Founders to use the terms “democracy” and “republic” interchangeably. For instance, both Madison and Hamilton wrote about Rome, referring to it as a “republic” despite the fact that it was a direct democracy. The synonymous use of the words was common and occurred throughout the Federalist Papers.
This interchangeability became the consensus view among the Founders. Throughout their public writings, private papers, and speeches, they referred to the United States as both a democracy and a republic. By the time the Constitution was completed, there was no confusion about what a speaker meant when he used either term.
The Founders wanted power over the government to rest in “the people” (or more accurately, the Founder’s limited view of “the people”), but they understood that they needed a constitution that set out the rules for a more sober democracy, and checks and balances between the three branches of government that would restrain the power of any one branch.
What the Founders set up has been variously referred to as a “democracy,” a “republic,” a “constitutional democracy,” a ‘constitutional republic,” a representative democracy,” a “representative republic,” and a “democratic republic.” All different terms. They all mean the same. Technically, you could call the United States a “constitutional representative democratic republic” and you’d be correct.
By the mid-1800s, the thought of a direct democracy was all but gone. No one thought of “direct democracy” when they heard “democracy.” In fact, there was no distinction between “democracy” and “republic.”
President Abraham Lincoln, in the days leading up to the Civil War, gave a speech in which he referred to the war as a “great test of popular government,” and used the words “constitutional republic” and “democracy” synonymously to describe our American form of government.
Today, no one is confused by what is meant when we call our form of government a democracy or a republic. Either way, we think the exact same thing as we would if the other term had been used instead.
The more interesting question to me is, why does Sen. Mike Lee and other MAGA Republicans want to make us believe that the United States is a republic instead of a democracy, or that there is a significant difference between the two? I think the answer is pretty simple and straight forward.
If you’re familiar with what former President Donald Trump intends to do if he finds his way back to the White House, then you know that much of his agenda is anti-democratic. He wants to restrict the ability of some people to vote. He wants to use the military to quell protests. He wants to usher in a government based on Christian Biblical principles. He wants to fire as many as 50,000 government employees and replace them with his loyalists (i.e. people who will carry out his agenda, whether it’s legal or not). He wants to arrest and jail his political opponents. He has advocated for all of these policies, and they are all anti-democratic.
It will be a lot easier to implement anti-democratic laws and policies if MAGA officials can convince the country that we’re not a democratic nation. If we’re not a democracy, then MAGA’s anti-democratic laws and policies won’t be overthrowing our democracy. They’ll just be laws and policies, no different from what we’ve seen in the past.
Of course, they will be very different from what we’ve seen in the past. But if Donald Trump, Mike Lee, and other MAGA leaders can disabuse us of the notion that we are a democracy, and can damage or destroy our trust in democratic institutions such as the DOJ, FBI, administrative agencies, the legislature, and the judiciary, then it will be much easier to do away with these institutions completely or replace them with anti-democratic institutions much more friendly to the MAGA agenda.
The next time you hear someone tell you that the United States is not a democracy, and they try to convince you that we’re a republic, ask them to explain the difference. If they’re honest, they won’t be able to. Their argument is a distinction without a difference.
I’ve been writing more about political issues recently. Part of the reason for this is that my interest in politics has piqued in the past few years. Also, it is my belief that the upcoming election in November may be the most important in our history. In fact, I am convinced that our democracy is on the line. And once we lose our democracy, there is no legal way to get it back.
But I have to admit, I’m not always comfortable sharing my political opinions. Politics, along with religion, are often controversial topics. So, when I share my political opinions, I try to be as civil and non-judgmental as possible. My goal is to be part of a meaningful conversation, bringing light, rather than just heat, to the discussion.
Alexandra Hudson is the founder of Civic Renaissance, an intellectual community dedicated to beauty, goodness, and truth. She is a frequent writer and speaker on issues involving civility, and she recently wrote the book, The Soul of Civility: Timeless Principles to Heal Society and Ourselves. Hudson was recently interviewed by Preet Bharara on his podcast, Stay Tuned with Preet. Bharara asked Hudson about how we could interject more civility into our political process and dialogue, which tends to be more uncivil, even violent, now than at almost any time in the past.
Here’s what Hudson had to say:
“My main piece of advice is to talk about politics less. It’s kind of counter intuitive, but in order to save our democracy, to save our public square, we actually have to relegate it to its proper place.
“I argue in the final chapter of my book, it’s called “On Misplaced Meaning and Forgiveness,” that as these traditional touchstones of meaning in modern life , but also across human history—things like friendship, family, faith—they have been on the decline in recent decades. And too often, people have relocated their ultimate source of identity—their meaning—in political issues. They’ve made an idol of religion out of politics. And there are three symptoms of this that I see, and as a result, is bad for our souls and for democracy.
Several symptoms of this misplaced meaning that I see are:
“That fact that previously apolitical venues now have a political dimension. You know, which sports teams you root for, where you live, where you send your kids to school, where you grocery shop, where you get your newspaper. Politics has invaded every aspect of our lives. That is atypical, and it is not good for our souls, not good for democracy. We’re overdoing democracy and undermining it as a result.
“Another symptom of this misplaced meaning that I see is the way in which people can go from 0-60, you know, just happy to raging like you’ve never seen before, at the broaching of one issue that is really dear to them, which they feel is being treated with insufficient reverence…Something small is like kindling on the fire of our souls. The frustration builds and builds…
“The third point is, because we made politics matter too much in our lives, another sad thing that I’ve seen time and time again is the end of life-long family relationships, friendships, people cutting one another off based on who they vote for, their position on XYZ public issue. And that to me is a symptom, as Plato would say, of disordered loves. We’ve let things that are not as important become the most important thing to us. We’ve let that displace real beautiful, central things to the level of happiness and joy in our lives like friendship and family relationships. And we’ve essentialized other people, and degraded them by reducing them to one aspect of who they are, who they voted for or their view on one issue. We have to, in order to do public life better, and life together better, we have to recover a love of things that are nonpolitical and noncontroversial in nature. So, in order to talk better to your uncle at the dinner table about Covid or Donald Trump, maybe you start about a shared love first. If you must talk about those things—and again, my general thoughts and recommendations it to not—but if you must, talk about your kids first, or something joy filled and beautiful. Establish that trust and connection first. Because that is the problem of where we are today. We have no level of trust. We have no level of basic affection for our fellow citizens across differences. And that’s doing a disservice to how we are talking about the hard issues, and how we’re talking about the difference.
“I had the privilege of speaking, just last week, at the Alabama Supreme Court about these ideas (of civility and civil disobedience). It was right next door to Dr. King’s church on Dexter Avenue where he also preached and worked through these ideas. And, just a stone’s throw from where Rosa Parks was kicked off the bus and subsequently arrested for failing to sit at the back of the bus.
“So, I was speaking, as you might imagine, it was a very illustrious group of educators, jurists, and lawyers, predominately white males, and I spoke about protest. I spoke about civil disobedience as a duty of citizenship. I have a whole chapter in my book dedicated to civil disobedience. Sometimes, citizenship requires speaking truth to power, calling out the hypocrisy of an unjust status quo.
“Rosa Parks broke a specific law, a specific Jim Crow-era law, but her conduct was in accordance with what Martin Luther King Jr. might refer to as the eternal, immortal law. She broke a bad law for the sake of a higher principle, upholding the rule of law, the eternal law. We have that obligation to do so as well.
“So, Dr. King is very central to my theory of civility, as a duty of citizenship, and why we have an obligation to speak truth and to take action sometimes—even when it’s costly, even when it’s uncomfortable—but doing so in ways that are still respectful of the dignity and personhood of others.
“The Imago Dei, this notion that man is created in God’s image that was central to Dr. King’s theory of personhood and his whole philosophy of non-violent civil disobedience. It informed his conduct. It compelled him to take action. But it also took certain action off the table, at the same time. For example, he knew that he could never degrade the personhood of another through violence or ad hominem attacks, or through destroying their property. That was dehumanizing. And that would be contradictory and undermine his entire project to begin with. So, Dr. King is central and a hero of civility throughout my book.”
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I ‘m not sure how I feel about Hudson’s thoughts. Certainly, I’d like to see more civility in our rhetoric and behavior, particularly in politics. I agree completely with Hudson when she points out that we have elevated politics to a level of importance that has displaced and degraded the normal connections we have to one another through friendship, family, and faith. I think we all have stories, regardless of where we find ourselves on the left-right political spectrum, of damaging or losing relationships with those that used to be an important part of our lives. In my sixty-plus years, I have never seen anything like it.
On the other hand, I’m not sure I can agree with her that the way to inject more civility into our society is to talk less about politics and democracy. With democracy under attack, not just in the United States but around the world, discussing the importance of democracy and how we can save it, seems like an important, even necessary, thing to do.
I’m not saying Hudson is wrong. I’m still thinking about her advice. It’s something that is occupying my mind at the moment, and I’m certain it will continue to be in my thoughts in the coming days. I think increasing civility in our political discourse is worth considering.
Earlier this week, I shared some thoughts on how we in the United States approach immigration. My overarching point in that post was that we rely far too heavily on enforcement and punishment, when we would be better served by having an immigration policy that is organized, streamlined, and well thought out, and which emphasizes respect, and compassion toward those seeking to enter the country. The post generated a few comments both on- and off-line, which prompted me to write this post clarifying some of the myths and misunderstandings regarding immigration.
Alex Nowrasteh is the Vice-President for Economic and Policy Study at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank. He is an expert on immigration and has studied United States immigration policy for years. He offers 15 myths about immigration that I think a lot of people will find surprising.
MYTH #1: “Immigrants will take American jobs, lower wages, and especially hurt the poor.”
FACT: Immigrants don’t take American jobs, lower wages, or push the poor out of the labor market.
MYTH #2: “It is easy to immigrate here legally. Why don’t illegal immigrants just get in line?”
FACT: It’s very difficult to immigrate legally to the United States. Immigration law is second only to the income tax code in legal complexity.
MYTH #3: “Immigrants abuse the welfare state.”
FACT: Immigrants use significantly less welfare than native-born Americans.
MYTH #4: “Immigrants increase the budget deficit and government debt.”
FACT: Immigrants in the United States have about a net zero effect on government budgets — they pay about as much in taxes as they consume in benefits.
FACT: Maybe. The evidence on how immigration affects economic inequality in the United States is mixed — some research finds relatively small effects, and some finds substantial ones. The standard of living is much more important than is the income distribution.
MYTH #6: “Today’s immigrants don’t assimilate as immigrants from previous eras did.”
FACT: Immigrants to the United States — including Mexicans — are assimilating as well as or better than immigrant groups from Europe over a hundred years ago.
MYTH #7: “Immigrants are a major source of crime.”
FACT: Immigrants, including illegal immigrants, are less likely to be incarcerated in prisons, convicted of crimes, or arrested than native-born Americans.
MYTH #8: “Immigrants pose a unique risk today because of terrorism.”
FACT: The annual chance of being murdered in a terrorist attack committed by a foreign-born person on U.S. soil from 1975 through the end of 2017 was about 1 in 3.8 million per year.
MYTH #9: “The United States has the most open immigration policy in the world.”
FACT: The annual inflow of immigrants to the United States, as a percentage of our population, is below that of most other rich countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
MYTH #10: “Amnesty or a failure to enforce our immigration laws will destroy the Rule of Law in the United States.”
FACT: America’s current immigration laws violate every principal component of the Rule of Law. Enforcing laws that are inherently capricious and that are contrary to our traditions is inconsistent with a stable Rule of Law.
MYTH #11: “Illegal immigration or expanding legal immigration will destroy American national sovereignty.”
FACT: Different immigration policies do not reduce the U.S. government’s ability to defend American sovereignty.
MYTH #12: “Immigrants won’t vote for the Republican Party — look at what happened to California.”
FACT: Republican immigration policies pushed immigrants away, not the other way around.
MYTH #13: “Immigrants bring with them bad cultures, ideas, or other factors that will undermine and destroy our economic and political institutions. The resultant weakening in economic growth means that immigrants will destroy more wealth than they will create over the long run.”
FACT: There is no evidence that immigrants weaken or undermine American economic, political, or cultural institutions.
MYTH #14: “The brain drain of smart immigrants to the United States impoverishes other countries.”
FACT: The flow of skilled workers to rich nations increases the incomes of people in the destination country, enriches the immigrants, and helps (or at least does not hurt) those left behind.
MYTH #15: “Immigrants will increase crowding, harm the environment, and [insert misanthropic statement here].”
FACT: People, including immigrants, are an economic and environmental blessing and not a curse.
These 15 myths were taken from Nowrasteh’s report, The Most Common Arguments Against Immigration and Why They’re Wrong. There’s a lot of other interesting information in the report that contradicts most of what you hear from Republicans in Congress, despite the fact that the Cato Institute and Republicans often agree on legislation.
Nowresteh offers a three-prong approach to immigration reform:
Expand guest worker visas beyond agriculture
Welcome all highly skilled immigrants
“Enforcement First” is a cop-out and will never solve the immigration problem
The following video lays out Nowresteh’s recommendations. I not only found his recommendation to make sense, but I was surprised by who agreed with him once upon a time, only to now advocate against those same common sense immigration reforms.
My grandfather was just 16 years old when he came to the United States in 1904. He left his home in Romania, boarded a ship in Hungary, and sailed to New York, disembarking on Ellis Island. He didn’t have any money, didn’t speak English, didn’t have a job, and didn’t have family waiting for him in America. After spending a short time in New York, he left for Dearborn, Michigan, and eventually settled in Aurora, Illinois.
In those days, there were no immigration laws, at least not in the way we think of immigration laws today. Until a few years before my grandfather immigrated, each state had its own immigration policy. In the late 1800s, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government had authority over immigration, striking down state immigration laws.
Beginning in the 1890s, our border was open, the only laws related to immigration were quotas that were set for each nationality entering the country. The quotas had a preference for northwestern Europeans but didn’t exclude any nationality from entering the country.
Today, its common for people who oppose immigration to claim that immigrants of the early 20th century entered the country legally, unlike today’s immigrants. It’s hard to say that early 20th century immigrants followed the law when they came to the United States since there really weren’t any immigration laws at the time. It’s literally impossible to break a law when no law exists.
Another argument against present day immigration is that immigrants of the past had to show identification to prove their identity, and they had to have a job set up before they could enter the country. Both arguments are incorrect.
First, most immigrants in the early 20th century did not have to provide identification because most countries at that time did not provide any type of identification documents to their citizens. Early 20th century immigrants entered the country and provided their name and country of origin to immigration officials on Ellis Island. Many immigrants had their name changed at Ellis Island, leaving their birth name behind. Even if they had documentation establishing their identity, it would have been meaningless because they left Ellis Island with a different name than they had when they entered the country. For instance, my grandfather entered the country as Vacile Mindgyar and left Ellis Island named Louis Mindar.
Second, very, very few immigrants had jobs set up before they came into the country. One of the reasons my grandfather moved first to Michigan, then to Illinois, was because he was chasing work. In those days, factories and mines needed workers and they welcomed immigrants to become employees. Unlike today, there were no laws requiring employers to prove that their employees were U.S. citizens, and there was no fear that a foreigner was going to steal the job of a citizen.
It wasn’t until the 1960s that Congress implemented comprehensive immigration laws. But even then, the law was quite different than what we think of as immigration law today. For instance, the law implemented in the 1960s emphasized the reunification of families and worked to attract skilled workers. It wasn’t designed to close the border or keep immigrants out of the country.
It wasn’t until 1980 and the Reagan Administration that the United States began to govern the admission of refugees. In 1986, Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), the first legislation in the country’s history to address the number of undocumented immigrants in the country. But rather than being punitive, the IRCA was designed to grant amnesty to the millions of undocumented immigrants that had been living for years in the United States.
Ronald Reagan is often given credit for (or blame for, depending on your perspective) bringing the issue of illegal immigration to the fore. But even Reagan would likely feel uncomfortable with the stance of Republicans today concerning immigration. Reagan saw immigrants as an asset to the United States, deserving of respect. He was opposed to undocumented immigrants living in the United States, but he wanted to find a way to grant them amnesty, leading to them becoming citizens.
Ever since Reagan put it in the spotlight, Republicans have become increasingly hostile on the issue of immigration, and have demanded harsher and harsher punishment of immigrants, even when they enter the country seeking asylum. So much so that it has become acceptable behavior for some Republican governors to ship illegal immigrants and asylum seekers to far off locations where they have no support, often sending them in the cold of winter without coats or shelter.
More recently, the State of Texas has installed razor wire buoys in the Rio Grande River, resulting in injury and death to several immigrants crossing the river. The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, has defied an order from the Supreme Court to allow immigration officials access to the razor wire buoys so they can remove them from the river. In other words, the governor is breaking the law—even causing death and injury—to prevent immigrants from breaking the law. Yet, while immigrants looking for a better life in America are being injured and dying, Abbott has so far gone unpunished, even as he continues to defy court orders.
It would be easy for opponents of immigration to claim—as they often do—that the immigrants wouldn’t be injured if they just didn’t break the law, but it is our immigration laws themselves that force asylum seekers to enter the country illegally. Let me explain.
In order to apply for asylum, an asylum seeker must be physically present in the United States in order to make application. There is no way to go online to fill out an asylum application. There is no app to complete the process from anywhere in the world. It can only be done at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office within the United States.
Did you follow that? If you want to apply for asylum, you are forced to enter the United States illegally. Then, once an asylum seeker applies, it can take years—often three to five—before their case is ever heard and a decision is reached on whether or not they will be granted asylum and allowed to stay in the United States.
At this point, you’re probably wondering why it takes so long. There are a couple of reasons. First, ICE has to do their due diligence, looking into the circumstances the asylum seeker is running from, and determining the asylum seekers background. ICE does the best job they can to determine whether or not the asylum seeker is the type of person we want in the United States. But that takes time, ICE is understaffed and there are far too few immigration judges deciding the asylum cases.
The most hardline immigration legislation in history recently passed the Senate on a bi-partisan basis, but the bill is said to be DOA in the House, where Republican Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has refused to bring the legislation to a vote. This, despite the fact that there appears to be more than enough votes to pass the historic legislation. As crafted, the legislation would provide much more money to ICE to implement a quicker, more restrictive non-custodial asylum process; changes and alternatives to detention; funds for more ICE agents and immigration judges and court; as well as other changes that have been demanded by Republicans in recent years.
The politics of immigration are maddening, but rather than focus on the particulars, I’d like to offer a completely different approach to immigration. Currently, the approach to immigration is punitive. The main purpose is to punish those foreigners who enter the United States, regardless of the reason they enter. It’s a disrespectful approach that emphasizes pain and inconvenience. It’s an approach that presupposes that immigrants are a blight on our country and we have to do everything in our power to keep them out. As for those that make it in, we try to make it as unpleasant as possible for them in hopes that their pain and suffering will dissuade others from following in their footsteps.
I would submit that our approach is all wrong, and that it guarantees we get the very outcomes we claim we want to avoid. To start with, I think we need to recognize that immigrants, far from being a drain on our society, are a net benefit. Financially, according to the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, immigrants pay about the same in taxes as they receive from state and federal governments in benefits. On top of “money in-money out” considerations, immigrants tend to take jobs that Americans don’t want to do, such as agricultural work like picking fruit and vegetables, and milking cows, which helps keep food prices low for all of us.
Immigrants also tend to open small businesses at a higher rate than native born Americans, creating jobs and sparking local economies. According to a study conducted by economists at the MIT Sloan School of Management, immigrants are a whopping 80% more likely to found a business that native born Americans, and the businesses they found employ 1% more employees than comparable businesses founded by native born Americans.
In a nutshell, we need to begin from the perspective of immigration being good for the United States. It’s something we should encourage, recognizing that we can’t and shouldn’t just open our borders and let anyone in. But rather than fight immigration, we should design an organized process that gets the results we want. And that process should be respectful and fair, not punitive.
Unites States immigration law is incredibly complicated. In fact, it is the second most complicated federal code, surpassed only by the Internal Revenue Code (i.e. tax laws). What if we were to simplify and streamline immigration law in the United States, making it easier to understand and apply? And what if that new immigration code attracted the types of people we need to fuel our economy, not just those running from corrupt, violent situations in their home country. Right now, we are attracting the world’s most desperate people. We can and should help them. But what if we also designed our immigration policy to attract skilled, educated people who could slide right into our economy and help build it?
I don’t mean to say that reform of our immigration policy is easy. It’s not. But neither is it impossible.
My overarching point is that immigration can be a boon to the United States. We should embrace it and design an immigration policy that is respectful, fair, modernized, and which encourages immigrants—particularly asylum seekers—to follow the law without having to break the law. The only thing we’re currently lacking is the political will to get it done.
If you watched the Super Bowl last Sunday, you probably saw the commercial for He Gets Us, a Christian group that is doing PR work for Jesus. If you didn’t see the commercial during the Super Bowl, take a look:
Pretty slick, huh?
He Gets Us has been running these types of commercials for the past three years. Each commercial costs in the neighborhood of $10-$20 million dollars to make, and the commercials they run during the Super Bowl cost another $7 million per 30-second placement. He Get Us must have some deep pockets.
In fact, the He Gets Us ads are being paid for by the Servant Foundation, a group that does business as The Signatry. They are a “donor-advised” 501 (c) 3 non-profit that distributes millions of dollars every year, primarily to conservative Christian churches and organizations.
The biggest recipient of The Signatry’s largess is the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a right-wing organization that fights against LGBTQ+ rights, opposes women having control over their bodies and reproductive systems, and which the Southern Poverty Law Center (SLPC) has designated as a hate group. Most organizations The Signatry supports hold views similar to the ADF.
To watch the He Gets Us ads, you’d think they are promoting a progressive, even woke, Jesus. The He Gets Us Jesus loves everyone, including gays, immigrants, and the bullied. He opposes cancel culture, and the ads claim Jesus came from a broken home, just like many of the people the ads are targeted toward.
Jason Vanderground, a spokesperson for He Gets Us, says the group behind the ads “believe it’s more important now than ever for the real, authentic Jesus to be represented in the public marketplace as he is in the Bible.” But it isn’t Jesus that needs the PR. It’s the churches that claim to follow his teachings while routinely behaving in ways that are in direct opposition to those teachings.
According to Pastor Kevin M. Young of Christ’s Table Ministry, “Jesus doesn’t have an image problem, but Christians and their churches do. These campaigns end up being PR for the wrong problem. Young people are savvy. One of their primary issues with evangelicalism, and the modern church in America, is the amount of money spent on itself.”
The He Gets Us ads are aimed at a primarily Gen-Z audience, an audience that is digitally native, tech savvy, and culturally aware. And, they are the least religious generation in history. Members of Gen-Z report overwhelmingly that they have avoided the church, not because they have a problem with the teachings of Jesus, but because of the way many churches carry out those teachings. It’s the churches themselves that need PR (if not an entire overhaul), not Jesus.
The He Gets Us ads appear to be conducting a sort of slight-of-hand, using Jesus and his teachings to reel in potential followers, but then dropping the progressive pretense when they hook a potential convert and send them to a partner church. Jesus is the bait, not the message.
He Gets Us has set up a network of thousands of churches across the nation to send their catch to. Although they claim that all churches are welcome to join their network, if you read the fine print on their website, you’ll learn that only those churches that agree with the Lausanne Covenant will be accepted into the network.
Written by John Stott and agreed to primarily by evangelical church leaders in 1974, the Lausanne Covenant “lays out fifteen specific categories of belief: the purpose of God, the authority and power of the Bible, the uniqueness and universality of Christ, the nature of evangelism, Christian social responsibility, the church and evangelism, cooperation in evangelism, churches in evangelistic partnership, the urgency of the evangelistic task, evangelism and culture, education and leadership, spiritual conflict, freedom and persecution, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the return of Christ.” In practice, the Lausanne Covenant has been used to oppose what the church refers to as “idolatry of disordered sexuality,” which is a fancy way of saying they fight against the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
Vanderground says that He Gets Us is neither left nor right, nor are they affiliated with any particular church or denomination. But isn’t that a bit naïve? Was Jesus apolitical? Were the issue he preached about non-political?
“The campaign may want to advocate for apoliticism, but whether they recognize or admit it, it is practically impossible to be apolitical when it comes to the issues referenced on their site. Furthermore, imagining Jesus as apolitical is itself a political decision — and it is a decision that aligns with politically and financially powerful interests…Jesus’ politics, which challenged Rome’s politically and financially powerful interests, guaranteed his death. The message of the Roman Empire should sound familiar to those of us who live in the American Empire: The more resources and power you can attain, the better off you’ll be. Of course, Jesus sought to bring about a kingdom, that is a political domain, where the exact opposite was held to be true: The poor and the powerless will inherit the kingdom, but the powerful will be kicked off their thrones and the wealthy will be sent away empty.”
When those interested in learning more about He Gets Us engage with the tools and chat features they have on their website (HeGetsUs.com), the responses from those working for He Gets Us and their member churches are decidedly evangelical and anti-LGBTQ+.
Writer Chrissy Stroop took advantage of the chat feature on the He Gets Us website and, posing as a young Christian struggling with gender identity, was encouraged to seek guidance from the Bible and a Christian “Biblical” counselor. The He Gets Us employee also shared a Bible verse from the Book of Genesis that evangelicals often use to justify their opposition to trans rights and same-sex marriage.
But it’s not just the message that is a problem for He Gets Us, it’s also the messenger. One of the largest donors to the He Gets Us campaign is David Green of Hobby Lobby fame. The right-wing evangelical is well known for his crusades against LGBTQ+ people, same-sex marriage, and contraception. Gen-Zers view Green and Hobby Lobby in much the same way they view the Koch Brothers and other right-wing zealots who oppose most of the things that are important to, and which Gen-Zers, support. The money being spent by He Gets Us comes in large part from a $3 billion donation from Green designed to improve the image of evangelicals, defend evangelical Christian beliefs both in and out of court, and bring non-believers into the evangelical Christian fold.
I have to admit, at first blush, I kind of liked the He Gets Us ads. They spoke to a Christianity that I find attractive. One that has little judgment but lots of compassion. Alas, the ads are mere parlor tricks, an online bait-and-switch game that is all too easy and far too common. If the people behind the ads actually believed what they said, I might become a fan. Sadly, the words they use are empty and cynical, more appropriate for selling laxatives or nutritional supplements than the Son of God.
ADDENDUM: It’s worth pointing out that left-leaning Christians are not the only ones unhappy with the He Gets Us ads. Hard right evangelicals are also unhappy with the commercials, believing they portray Jesus as a woke deity who accepted and tolerated all sinners, regardless of their sin, and whether or not they had repented.
Music video producer and one-time Congressional candidate Robby Starbuck wrote on X.com (formerly twitter): “The ‘he gets us’ feet ad about Jesus seems to imply that Jesus was cool with all kinds of sinful behavior. He wasn’t. He didn’t go hangout with prostitutes or any other sinner because he accepted the choices they made, he did it to inspire them to change,”
Pastor Ryan Visconti of Generation Church in Arizona said, “The ‘He Gets Us’ commercial might seem harmless to some, but it’s obviously part of a psyop to trick Christians into thinking Jesus is fine with sin & apostasy. It’s the opposite of what our world needs right now,”
Musician Vinnie James posted this on X: “SUPER BOWL WARNING! The ‘He gets us’ ad is TOTALLY deceptive. Jesus washed the feet of his DISCIPLES (followers)! Those were people who ALREADY BELIEVED in JESUS. He then told them to wash EACH OTHERS (believers) feet. Christianity shouldn’t be rewritten as political ads!”
In fact, this same sentiment was posted by Brittany Dawn Nelson, a Christian Instagram influencer in this video:
The good folks at He Gets Us responded with a press release concerning the controversy. Reporting on the press release, Newsweek said: “The images [of Jesus washing feet] are meant to symbolize ‘how we should treat one another,’ while the commercial is meant to call themes of ‘love and unity’ and ‘love your neighbor’ ahead of a deeply divided election, according to the organization in a press release, which says its goal is to ‘remind everyone, including ourselves, that Jesus’ teachings are a warm embrace, not a cold shoulder.”
It doesn’t seem that anyone is happy with the ads. Liberal Christians are annoyed that the ads are a cynical attempt to lure in potential converts with nice words, only to drop the progressive pretense after they get the mark on the line.
Conservative Christians are angry that anyone is portraying Jesus as a kind and tolerant soul who meets people where they live. They want potential converts to repent and live a life free of sin (Like the conservative Christians?) before Jesus metaphorically washes their feet.
And Gen-Zers are turned off by the ads not only because of the ad’s bait-and-switch nature, but because members of Gen-Z are critical of He Gets Us (and other Christian organizations) for spending far too much money to attract new members (like on Super Bowl ads) , and far too little money helping the hungry, the homeless, the downtrodden, and the stranger. You know, the kind of people Jesus helped.
I am a long-time user of Amazon.com who has far too many boxes showing up at his door. I like the “everything store.” Just about anything you need can be delivered to your door within a couple of days of ordering it.
What I recently learned is that there are three ways to get more for your money at Amazon. The first way is by using Amazon Warehouse. Amazon Warehouse is where Amazon sells returned and slightly used items at discounted prices. If you’re not concerned with the product you’re buying being brand spanking new, Amazon warehouse may be for you.
Finally, do you like coupons? Amazon Coupon has a dedicated page that lists coupons for many of the items they sell. As an example, look at this OMTech 100W CO2 Laser Engraver for $5,999.99. Kind of expensive, isn’t it? Maybe a coupon for $950 off will help. You can’t find the coupon on the normal Amazon page for the item. It’s only on Amazon’s Coupon page.
The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) will hear the case of Trump v Anderson today. The case was appealed from the Colorado Supreme Court which found that Donald Trump had participated in an insurrection on January 6, 2021, and that under the language of section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, was disqualified from serving as president in the future. As a result of that decision, the Colorado Supreme Court said that Trump was excluded from being on the state’s presidential ballot.
This is not necessarily a complicated case. To decide it, the Court will need to determine:
if Donald Trump participated in an insurrection or gave comfort and aid to those participating in an insurrection,
if the language of section 3 of the 14th Amendment pertaining to “officers of the United States” includes the presidency, and
if the oath taken by Trump and every other president requires them to “support” the Constitution of the United States.
First, let’s look at the language of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment:
Section 3 Disqualification from Holding Office
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Next, let’s consider each question SCOTUS will grapple with today:
1)Every court that has considered the question thus far has found that, not only was the breach of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 an insurrection, but that Trump participated in the planning and execution of the insurrection, and gave comfort and aid to the insurrectionists. It’s unlikely that this will be a close call. There’s far too much evidence available for SCOTUS to decided that Trump did not either participate in an insurrection or give aid or comfort to those participating in an insurrection.
2) Trump’s legal team contends that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment does not apply to the presidency. It is true that Section 3 does not mention the presidency by name. Instead, it says, “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State…” Section 3 includes “elector of President or Vice-President” but it doesn’t specifically include the President and Vice-President.
The Colorado District Court found that the language “officer of the United States” includes the President and Vice-President. However, on appeal in the Colorado Court of Appeals, the decision of the District Court was reversed on the basis that the President was NOT an “officer of the United States.” That case was appealed and the Colorado Supreme Court reversed it again, agreeing with the District Court that the President was an “officer of the United States.”
Looked at from a technical basis, the SCOTUS could conceivably find that Section 3 does not specifically the President and they could also find that there is historical evidence to support the proposition that the President is not an “officer of the United States. It’s an iffy proposition, but the Court could use it to reverse the Colorado Supreme Court decision.
However, as a practical matter, it is hard to argue that the framers of the 14th Amendment, who wanted to make certain that members of the Confederacy did not serve in the newly reunified government, would write and pass an Amendment that did not pertain to the two highest offices in the land. There is evidence from the proceedings of the Congress that crafted the 14th Amendment that the framers most certainly intended to include the President and Vice-President in the catch-all phrase “officers of the United States.”
Even so, this SCOTUS has not been great about using actual history as support for their decision. Instead, they have a track record of making a decision that cobbling together historical fact and fiction to justify those decisions. So, it’s anyone’s guess of they will come down on this question.
3) Trump’s legal team also claims that he (Trump) never took an oath to support the Constitution. In fact, the oath that Trump (and all Presidents) took includes the words “to protect and defend the Constitution.” Unlike Congressmen and Senators, the presidential oath does not include the words “support the Constitution.”
This argument involves a difference without a distinction. It’s easy to see that if one protects and defends the Constitution, they are also supporting the Constitution. Section 3 does not require that the oath taken includes the words “support the Constitution. Instead, it requires that the person being considered for disqualification from office must have previously taken an oath to “support the Constitution.” There can be little question that the oath taken by Trump, which required him to “protect and defend the Constitution” required him to “support the Constitution.”
I wouldn’t expect SCOTUS to side with Trump on this question, but you never know. As we’ve seen in the past, SCOTUS is full of surprises.
Is Section 3 of the 14th Amendment Undemocratic?
Although it won’t be part of the SCOTUS proceedings, many commentators–especially those on the right–have contended that, if Section 3 disqualifies Trump, it will take away a voters right to vote for the candidate they support, essentially robbing them of their right to vote. This is a specious argument that sounds good on the surface, but turns out to be exactly backwards when viewed closely.
Rather than Donald Trump, let’s imagine that Barack Obama was running for president. If he were, he would be disqualified from holding the presidency because he has already served two terms and the Constitution sets a two-term term limit on presidents. Applying the Constitutional language, it’s clear that Obama is disqualified.
“But I want to vote for him,” you might say. “You’re preventing me from voting for my preferred candidate. That’s undemocratic.””
While partially true, it’s the Constitution that prevents Obama from running for and holding the presidency. The same reasoning applies to Donald Trump.
The Constitution requires that, to run for and hold the office of the president, a candidate must be 1) at least 35 years of age, 2) a natural born citizen, 3) had not held the office of the president for a total of two terms, and 4) had not participated in a insurrection or gave aid or comfort to those committing an insurrection after taking an oath to support the Constitution of the United States.
These are the four requirement a candidate must meet to serve as President. Although they limit the pool of people any voter can vote for, there is nothing undemocratic about the requirements. In fact, requiring that a candidate must not have participated in an insurrection or gave aid or comfort to insurrectionists, rather than be an undemocratic requirement, is just the opposite. It is designed to support and protect our democracy. Allowing any person that took action to overturn an election or giving aid or comfort to those working to overthrow an election would be damaging, perhaps deadly, to our democracy. The framers who wrote the 14th Amendment understood how dangerous it was to allow such a disloyal, undemocratic person into the leadership of our government. With the 14th Amendment, Section 3, they made certain that such a person would never hold such office.
Trump v. Anderson is arguably the most important Constitutional case SCOTUS has ever heard. It goes directly to who can lead our nation, and it will be interesting to see how the Justices decide this extremely important case.
Post Argument Thoughts
Man, was I wrong. In another post, I predicted that SCOTUS would uphold the decision of the Colorado Supreme Court by a vote of 6-3. I also said there was a chance it could be 7-2. Nope. Not even close.
After watching oral arguments this morning, I can tell you that SCOTUS is not going to uphold the Colorado Supreme Court decision. It was obvious from the the Justices’ questions that a majority of them bought into the idea that the 14th Amendment, Section 3 does not apply to the president or vice-president. Even Justice Katanji Brown Jackson bought this argument hook, line, and sinker.
I found KBJ’s position interesting. Her read of the history was that Congress was concerned about former Confederates gaining (re-gaining) power in southern states, and that the focus of Section 3 was on state and lower federal offices rather than on the presidency.
To be certain, there is some truth to what KBJ said. But her reading of history only reveals part of the picture. Congress was worried about what the impact would be on recently freed slaves in the southern states if former confederates ran things in those states. Congress wanted to avoid that potential as much as possible.
However, that doesn’t mean that the framers of the 14th Amendment weren’t concerned about a former Confederate becoming president or vice-president. They were worried about that, and in their discussions before Section 3 was committed to law, they talked about how their “officers of the United States” language covered the two highest offices in the land. I can’t explain why KJB would choose to ignore that part of the historical record.
There was also a great deal of discussion about the impact a decision in favor of Colorado would have on other states. The Justices seemed concerned that such a decision would make for a lack of uniformity, where some states allowed some candidates on their ballot while other states allowed (or disallowed) those same candidates on their ballot.
That’s not new. It has happened for years and is even happening now. I thought the Solicitor General for Colorado answered this concern well when she said that the discrepancies are a feature, not a bug of federalism. She’s right. The Constitution gives states the power to run federal elections. It does not tell them how to do it and it does not require that each state do it in the exact same way. As a result, we have different states conducting federal elections is different ways. And yet, several Justices were quite concerned about this, as if it was something new and something that should be avoided.
I’ve already proven my lack of predictive skills when it comes to SCOTUS, but I’ll take another shot at it. I predict SCOTUS will overturn the Colorado Supreme Court decision 7-2. And don’t be surprised if the vote is 8-1 or even 9-0. Things were really that lopsided.
Abraham Lincoln knew Donald Trump. Although he may not have known Trump by name. he most certainly knew the man.
Lincoln, perhaps this nation’s greatest president, knew something back in 1838 that we need to understand today. At the time, the United States was moving toward one of the most dangerous and divisive periods in our country’s history. The politics of the day were polarized, pitting southern slave-holding states against those in the north who supported the abolition of slavery. Tensions were running high, and there was talk of a potential civil war.
In a speech before the Young Men’s Lyceum, Lincoln uttered the now famous lines, “If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.” To Lincoln’s mind, the threat was internal. And he understood that we could either be a nation committed to laws or a nation committed to a single man or political party. We could not do both.
Even back in 1838, the future president knew that a demagogue like Donald Trump was more likely to destroy our democracy than an invasion by a foreign power. At the time, Lincoln was just 28 years old, but he saw clearly how an un-American agitator like Trump could lead his followers to commit acts of violence and lawlessness. Speaking about those who would break the law (or encourage others to do it for them), Lincoln said, “Having ever regarded Government as their deadliest bane, they make a jubilee of the suspension of its operations; and pray for nothing so much as its total annihilation.”
Lincoln did not believe that all laws were good. In fact, just the opposite. He made a habit of speaking out against laws he felt were wrong. But he believed in the importance of the rule of law to our democracy, and he believed that there was a proper procedure that must be followed to challenge and repeal bad laws. It was the Constitution, Lincoln contended, that must always be followed, because he felt that it was the Constitution that guaranteed our democracy. To abandon it was to abandon the very democratic underpinnings of our society.
Lincoln believed that people who, in another time, might help build the nation, would, in times when no foreign power threatened the United States, turn their energies toward tearing the country apart. As historian Heather Cox Richardson writes, “With no dangerous foreign power to turn people’s passions against, people would turn from the project of ‘establishing and maintaining civil and religious liberty’ and would instead turn against each other.”
The time for passion was during the country’s founding. Something new was being created and passionate energy was necessary for its creation. However, once the country and the rule of law were established, the time for passion was over. Instead, what was needed to maintain and strengthen what had been created was “sober reason.” Lincoln encouraged the men of his day to display “general intelligence, sound morality, and in particular, a reverence for the constitution and laws.”
Why do I say that Lincoln warned us about Donald Trump? Consider this:
Donald Trump is facing 91 felony charges, has been indicted in four different jurisdictions, his business has been found to have committed fraud, and he was found liable for sexual assault and defamation in a civil suit that has him on the hook for $88.3 million. Yet, Trump’s support remains strong, and he is the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party in this year’s upcoming presidential election. Among the policies and programs he has promised to pursue if he is re-elected include:
Nationwide abortion ban
Prosecution and imprisonment of his political enemies (including Republicans who have been critical of him)
Mass deportation of illegal immigrants and naturalized American citizens
Ending birthright citizenship (even though it is provided for in the Constitution)
Suspension of broadcast licenses for CNN, MSNBC, and any other broadcaster that is critical of him and/or his policies
Concentration-style camps for illegal immigrants
Stricter voting laws making it harder for people to vote
Use of the military to quell protests and unrest over his policies
Suspension of the Constitution when it prevents him from carrying out his agenda
Replacing career government workers with Trump loyalists
And the list goes on.
These are the types of acts that Lincoln warned against. They are designed to consolidate and exercise power for the good of Trump and his inner circle rather than being true to the Constitution, the rule of law, or our democracy. In other words, Trump’s campaign promises do not honor the Constitution nor the country’s values and traditions. Instead, they are designed to override and replace both the Constitution and our democracy.
Donald Trump and his supporters/enablers are a far more dangerous threat to the rule of law and democracy than any foreign power, including Russia, China, and Iran. No country on planet Earth has the wherewithal to destroy the United States militarily. But Donald Trump and the Republican Party are not only capable of tearing down everything we have built up since our founding, they are poised to do just that if Trump is re-elected in November.
Abraham Lincoln understood this possibility. The sooner we all understand it, the sooner Trump can be stopped.