Solvency can be achieved through a balanced combination of revenue increases and structural adjustments, such as delays in eligibility to older ages and lower rates of annual cost of living increases.

When a government tells you a record is being withheld, that is not the last word. It is one person’s reading, and sometimes it is wrong. You can read the statute yourself, point to the language, and ask someone with authority to take another look. Often, that is enough.

Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness cannot exist when people face gun violence in their homes, schools, workplaces and neighborhoods.

As July 4th approaches, I find myself trying to better understand the link between virtue and happiness as political language. The Founders believed that a free people could be virtuous and that a virtuous people could be happy. I do not think a majority of the nation in 2026 believes we are experiencing that now.

A flag is not a fashion statement, a team jersey or a campaign logo, and it never was. You don’t show your love for something by turning it into a costume. You show it by living up to what it means.

Looking around, the mood is hardly celebratory, yet celebrate we should. Another July 4th fast approaches, another Independence Day, but this one marks an especially notable milestone, 250 years since the great experiment began.

I believe deeply in America’s greatness, but not as a slogan that looks backward. I believe in the greatness that moves us forward toward a more inclusive, just and faithful expression of our democratic ideals

As we celebrate 250 years of our democracy, we need to step back and appreciate how fortunate we are to live in such an amazing country.