Amitai Etzioni

Professor of international relations, George Washington University

The president is either moping or muttering defensively about the abuses by the IRS and the tragedy of Benghazi. As I see it, if he wakes up tomorrow and is willing to speak up, there are a few things he could fairly state. First, any suggestion that "the IRS" went after the Tea Party are bogus.

Michael R. Bloomberg

108th Mayor of the City of New York

Our federal immigration system is broken, and until we fix it, our economy will continue to suffer and other countries will continue to gain jobs at our expense.

Louise Melling

Deputy Legal Director of the ACLU and the Director of its Center for Liberty

Nearly 60 lawsuits have been filed across the country challenging the federal rule that employers include contraception in the insurance they provide employees.

Elliott Negin

Director of News & Commentary, Union of Concerned Scientists

Given the Heartland Institute's penchant for misrepresenting science, you would think reporters would be curious about who finances its work. You would be wrong.

Peter Dreier and Richard Appelbaum

If journalism's role is to not only report the facts but also to expose wrongdoing, then the Times deserves kudos, and a Pulitzer Prize, for documenting and explaining the emergence of Bangladesh's new sweatshop economy as a major source of the clothing that American and European consumers buy every day.

Madeleine M. Kunin

First Female Governor of Vermont; Marsh Scholar, University of Vermont

Vermont, once again, is leading the country. A similar bill, called the Paycheck Fairness Act, is languishing in the Congress. How did we do it in Vermont? We worked together.

Rep. Adam Smith

Congressman Representing Washington's 9th District

The detention facility at Guantanamo Bay was never a good idea. It is an even worse idea now. Let's start the process to close GTMO now.

Dustin Lance Black

Founding board member, American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER); Academy Award-winning screenwriter, 'Milk'

It seems that the message we too often miss from Milk's work is that all Americans have an interest in equality because soon we will all be minorities in some way or another. Harvey called this his "coalition of the us's" -- not only gays but blacks, Asians, seniors, the disabled.

Michael Green

Executive Director, Center for Environmental Health

How successful are EPA rules? The report found that for every dollar we spend on environmental and health protections, we get back ten dollars in health, environmental, and economic benefits that add up to make all of our lives richer.

Derek Bennett

Chief of Staff, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

Veterans are superbly trained, diverse, innovative, reliable, hardworking, dedicated citizens, and many possess skills that are highly transferable.

Wray Herbert

Author, 'On Second Thought: Outsmarting Your Mind's Hard-Wired Habits'

The elderly have never been honored in American society. They have more often been stereotyped, stigmatized and pitied. And according to Princeton University psychological scientist Susan Fiske, this unfair ageist stereotyping could become even darker with the new influx of seniors.

Jeb Bush

Former governor of Florida

Most Americans agree that coming to the United States legally should be easier and with less cost than coming to the country illegally. Unfortunately, right now, that is not the case.

Geoffrey R. Stone

Edward H. Levi Distinguished Service Professor of Law, University of Chicago

Striking the right balance between the government's legitimate need for confidentiality, the press's legitimate need to obtain information about government action, and the public's "right to know" what its representatives are up to, is a difficult and delicate task.

Richard (RJ) Eskow

Writer; host, 'The Breakdown'; Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future

JPMorgan Chase is a perfect example of modern corporate leadership in its native habitat: at the center of a complicated matrix of human desires which it manipulates to suit its own ends.  And you and I are allowing it to continue.

Grover Norquist

President, Americans for Tax Reform

America is the most immigrant-friendly nation in the world and we are also the richest; that is not a coincidence. Immigrants have been coming to our shores since the Pilgrims landed and they bring with them determination, innovation, and the entrepreneurial spirit that built this great nation.

Mattea Kramer and Jo Comerford

It's 2023 -- and this is America 10 years after the first across-the-board federal budget cuts known as sequestration went into effect.

Nithya Das

Acting general counsel, AppNexus

America is a country built by immigrants. My parents' story is important not because it is unique but rather because it is the story of America. It is a story that should be allowed to repeat itself.