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Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas is one of the most widely syndicated political columnists in America. Based in Washington, he is a wide-ranging social commentator, not a "beltway insider," who supports traditional conservative values and the American "can-do spirit." He'll take on virtually any topic, from the decline of the family to growing terrorism worldwide.
A syndicated columnist since 1984, he is the author of “America’s Expiration Date: The Fall of Empires, Superpowers and the United States” (HarperCollins/Zondervan, January 2020). His latest book is “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen in 50 Years Reporting on America” (Humanix Books, May 2023). Readers may email Mr. Thomas at tcaeditors@tribune.com.

Columns by Cal Thomas

FILE - In this Tuesday, June 12, 2018 file photo, people pray for America at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Dallas Convention Center in Dallas. In late July, the SBC _ the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S. _ announced plans to create a high-level study group to develop strategies for combatting sexual abusers and ministering to their victims. The move followed a series of revelations about sexual misconduct cases involving SBC churches and seminaries. (Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News via AP)

The unfathomable behavior of leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention

My first reaction upon hearing that hundreds of leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention had sexually abused as many as 700 people in 400 churches, including victims as young as 3, was "how could they?" It was the same reaction I had when news of predatory priests in the Roman Catholic Church, and the cover-up that followed the sexual abuse allegations, surfaced.

February 13, 2019
Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who won her bid for a seat in the House of Representatives in New York's 14th Congressional District, at the Kennedy School's Institute of Politics at Harvard University, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2018. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Going green once seemed extreme, but it’s now accepted

Kermit the Frog was wrong. It is now easy to be "green." The evidence is the "Green New Deal," which CNN describes as a " 10-year 'economic mobilization' that would phase out fossil fuel use and overhaul the nation's infrastructure while building whole new layers into the existing social safety net." The 14-page resolution was proposed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York Democrat, and Sen. Ed Markey, Masschusetts Democrat.

February 11, 2019

The state of what union?

Eloquence is not a characteristic associated with President Donald Trump, but in his State of the Union address Tuesday night, the president not only rose to the occasion, he also delivered a message that was beautifully crafted by his speechwriters, a speech devoid of much of the divisive and combative language that has characterized his first two years in office. It was also well-delivered and well-received, if not by every member of Congress, then by 76 percent of those who watched it, according to a CBS News instant poll.

February 6, 2019
President Donald Trump speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Friday, Jan. 25, 2019, to announce a temporary deal to open the government. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Something is required to stem the tide of illegal immigration

The first thing that needs to be said about President Trump's decision to sign a measure re-opening part of the federal government without getting money for the wall he demanded is that his experience as a New York businessman was no help. Perhaps he failed to recognize that Democrats are the party of government and no one guards the power, cost and perks of government better than they do.

January 28, 2019
Ladies on Liberal Television Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

The media drools over new female members of Congress

The major media have gone gaga over the number of women newly elected to Congress and those announcing their run for the White House in 2020, with more female candidates likely to follow suit.

January 23, 2019
State of the Union Options Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Donald Trump’s State of the Union options

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has given President Trump an opportunity to change the dynamic of the State of the Union address, an event that has become predictable and often boring. It has featured members of Congress popping up and down like whack-a-moles, interrupting the president with applause if they agree with him, or stone silence if they don't.

January 21, 2019
Illustration on the Democrats' junket to Puerto Rico by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

Democrats take a break from Washington to see ‘Hamilton’ and cleanup

More than 109 lobbyists and 39 Democratic members of Congress attended a "winter retreat" last weekend in Puerto Rico, ostensibly to help raise funds for damage caused by hurricane Maria in 2017, reports Fox News. The fun in the sun was enhanced by a limited run of the Broadway hit "Hamilton," starring its creator, lead actor, and Democratic partisan, Lin-Manuel Miranda.

January 16, 2019
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks at his State of the City address in New York, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019. De Blasio said he would create a city-managed retirement fund for workers who lack access to employer-sponsored funds as well as a new Office to Protect Tenants. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Democrats outdo one another in calls for higher taxes

When you receive your paycheck and look at the withholding for federal, state and sometimes city taxes, along with Social Security and Medicare, you probably don't think you're underpaying governments and want them to take more.

January 14, 2019
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., left, stands with President Donald Trump, and Vice President Mike Pence, as Trump speaks while departing after a Senate Republican Policy luncheon, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Trump speech and the response

Despite advance billing that President Trump's border wall speech would break news and contain new information, it was mostly familiar rhetoric: Criminals and drugs, rapists and murderers are coming to America and the wall is the only way to stop them.

January 9, 2019
Illustration on the carbon tax burden in Ireland by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

‘What’s the point of a carbon tax rebate?’

The Irish government is proposing rebates to a carbon tax it recently imposed to households that comply with what it considers "low-carbon lifestyles." The rebate, according to Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, might be in the form of a check, an increase in welfare benefits or a tax credit for people who live the way the government thinks they should.

January 7, 2019
Brexit Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Decision time on Brexit

To Brexit, or not to Brexit, that is the question (apologies to Shakespeare). The answer to whether the U.K. will pull out of the European Union as a majority of voters favored in a 2016 referendum will be decided this month. Maybe.

January 2, 2019
Illustration on the Syrian conflict by Nancy Ohanian/Tribune Content Agency

Staying in Syria or leaving it are bad choices, but unilateral withdrawal is the worst choice

Osama bin Laden predicted it and his prophecy appears to be coming true. In the book "The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11," Lawrence Wright quotes bin Laden as saying: "Look at Vietnam, look at Lebanon. Whenever soldiers start coming home in body bags, Americans panic and retreat. Such a country needs only to be confronted with two or three sharp blows, then it will flee in panic, as it always has."

December 26, 2018
Illustration on prison reform by Nancy Ohanian/Tribune Content Agency

A bipartisan measure significantly reforms the criminal justice system

Republicans and conservatives dating back at least to Richard Nixon have used the slogan "tough on crime" and its corollary "lock 'em up and throw away the key" as electoral red meat. The problem is what to do when inmates are released with few skills, fewer job prospects and a bleak future that leads some to commit new crimes that land them in prison again at taxpayers' expense.

December 19, 2018
FILE - In this Feb. 4, 2013 file photo, shows a close up detail of a Boy Scout uniform worn during a news conference in front of the Boy Scouts of America headquarters in Irving, Texas. The Boy Scouts of America says it is exploring "all options" to address serious financial challenges, but is declining to confirm or deny a report that it may seek bankruptcy protection in the face of declining membership and sex-abuse litigation. "I want to assure you that our daily mission will continue and that there are no imminent actions or immediate decisions expected," Chief Scout Executive Mike Surbaugh said in a statement issued Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

The erosion of what many Americans hold dear continues apace

The erosion of what many Americans once believed were the foundations of our country continues apace. They include, but are not limited to, overspending and debt (personal and national), never-ending wars, uncontrolled borders leading to massive immigration with no time for or expectation of assimilation and political divisions that grow wider by the day.

December 17, 2018
Wanted by the Washington Establishment Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

The fury of the establishment

Hell may have no fury like a woman scorned, but scorning the Washington Establishment produces even greater anger.

December 12, 2018
Media Flip-Flop Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

The mean-spirited media do a 180 on George H.W. Bush

Before George H.W. Bush fades from memory into the darkness of history books, one more point needs to be made. It is about the contrast between how most of the major media treated him when he was president and how they mostly (but not completely) did a 180 during their coverage and commentary of his funeral.

December 10, 2018