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Family, teachers remember Powell boys at Washington funeral

Kevin Ferris

Words of hard-earned wisdom on national defense

Last updated Tuesday, October 4, 2011 - 9:01am

There seems to be something about the job of defense secretary that attracts blunt, no-nonsense realists.

Exhibit A was on display last month at the National Constitution Center, where Robert Gates demonstrated again why Republican and Democratic presidents wanted him running the Pentagon.

In a public question-and-answer session early in the day, in media interviews, and finally at the Liberty Medal presentation, Gates was thoughtful, professional -- and blunt.

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Ryan's map deserves a look

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Friday, January 7, 2011 - 2:29pm

Get used to hearing the term "road map" in 2011.

Not the Mideast version, with two opposing sides and no room for compromise. This is a Washington road map with ... OK, bad example.

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Democrats backing tea party candidates

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 8:21am

Vice President Biden gave his view of the opposition in this fall's elections at a recent Democratic gathering:

"(T)his ain't your father's Republican Party. This is the Republican Tea Party."

Uh-oh. We know what that means. People who are worried about taxes, spending and debt. People who will stand up in a town-hall meeting and challenge lawmakers -- even if it means hurting politicians' feelings.

Obviously, for Democrats, that means we're talking people who are racist (if you believe the NAACP and others) and un-American, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the opponents of health-care reform last summer.

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The liberal roadblocks to shrinking government

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Thursday, July 22, 2010 - 8:26am

William Voegeli has bad tidings for advocates of limited government and low taxes: There is no endgame when it comes to the liberal agenda.

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A brave critic of Islam

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Tuesday, June 22, 2010 - 3:04pm

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a big believer in freedom of speech. So she practices it daily, fearlessly, and at great personal cost.

"Every important freedom that Western individuals possess rests on free expression," she writes in her new book, "Nomad: From Islam to America: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations." "We observe what is wrong, and we say what is wrong, in order that it may be corrected."

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A rightward sequel to Year of the Woman?

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Tuesday, June 15, 2010 - 9:20am

"In this season of discontent, it will be women who can transform the national rage and demoralization into hope."

Sounds like a potential campaign slogan for Meg Whitman, the newly anointed Republican gubernatorial candidate in California. Or Carly Fiorina, now the Golden State's GOP Senate candidate. Or Nikki Haley, who won the most votes in South Carolina's Republican primary for governor.

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A summit for the rest of us

Kevin Ferris The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last updated Tuesday, February 16, 2010 - 11:37am

Forget the one-day health-care summit on Feb. 25, where the two sides will pretend they can compromise enough to pass the Senate's health-care monstrosity. Instead, let's hold a two-day event, one that caters to the inside-the-Beltway crowd's need for style, and the other providing the substance that citizens want.

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