By Michael P. Riccards In 1926, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was desperately trying to restore the use of his legs and spent a considerable amount of time in Warm Springs, Georgia. With Louis Howe’s dedication, he still kept his hand in… Read More ›
Michael Riccards
The pandemic and the equity movement
By Michael P. Riccards As this winter of discontent approaches, the pandemic is worse than ever in large part because we are too stubborn to take even the most simple methods of prevention. The Midwest and Farwest are aflame as… Read More ›
The role of religion in the 2020 presidential race
By Michael P. Riccards The election of Joseph Biden as president is a dramatic and much needed end to the Trump Administration. At times I must say I wondered if the current president wanted to win after all or was… Read More ›
Foreign affairs have been overlooked in the 2020 campaign
By Michael P. Riccards Less than a week before the presidential election, there has been almost no conversation about foreign affairs. The United States is supposed to be a superpower, the leader of the free world, and the anchor of… Read More ›
Presidential politics is my profession, but I have had my fill
By Michael P. Riccards The nation is severely divided on many topics, but we are united in wishing the election to come soon. We are weary from the virus, from the inconclusive measures to contain it, from the marches for… Read More ›
The Catholic Church and Gay Marriage
By Michael P. Riccards This week the current Pope reasserted his disposition that he supports the establishment of civil unions for gay people. The Vatican watchdogs and the American hierarchy generally regarded that as a doctrinal lapse, but many of… Read More ›
The mental state of chief executives
By Michael P. Riccards On this site before, I have dealt with the issue of the physical fitness of the presidency. Now we have to come to grips with the more difficult issue of the mental state of chief executives. Politics tends… Read More ›
The VP Debate in Retrospect
By Michael P. Riccards Two term vice president John Nance Garner once said that the office he held was not worth a pitcher of warm spit. If he had been more loyal to his president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, he might have ended up… Read More ›
The presidency in sickness and in health
By Michael P. Riccards The recent illness of President Trump is only the latest episode in our chief executives fighting medical problems. In the 20th century, the nation experienced some extremely important setbacks linked to the illnesses of the chief… Read More ›
Tonight’s Debate: ‘A National Embarrassment’
By Michael P. Riccards In 1960, the nation had its first live televised presidential debate with Kennedy and Nixon. It was fascinating and enlightening. But tonight it was a national embarrassment with Trump and Biden. What are we doing as… Read More ›
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