Gary Franks Columns category, Page 4

Who’s a threat to democracy? President Joe Biden is a rubber stamp for the Democrat-controlled Congress. He has never vetoed a bill presented to him by Congress. Thus, as far as policy, legislation and the direction of the country are concerned, the de facto presidents are Senate Majority Leader Chuck...

Blaming a segment of America for the acts of their failed leaders, further dividing America with angry rhetoric and scaring Americans is usually not the best way to lead a country. However, President Joe Biden accomplished this feat in a recent speech. There are threats to our democracy. Ironically, the...

President Joe Biden’s student loan debt relief plan should have been debated and voted on by Congress. Even Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi once said it could only be done via a vote of Congress. For Biden to just do it is considered noble by some, political by others,...

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, if you cannot win a majority in the U.S. Senate in 2022 with a “hurricane style” wind at your back, the problem rests with the person you see in the mirror. A recent NBC poll reported 74% of Americans feel that the nation is heading...

I trust we all would agree that addictions — whether it’s drugs, alcohol, gambling or anything else — are not healthy. So why not define former President Donald Trump as a media addiction? Yes, the mainstream media (both left and right), cable stations, social media, newspapers and radio are all...

We are Americans. We are hardworking people. We fight in defense of our values. We love our freedoms. We do not have to be told what to think — what cars to buy, what jobs to seek, what leaders to choose. We want our leaders to be the best and...

Democrats simply cannot help themselves. The high hopes I had in West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin have diminished, though my high respect for the senator remains. The pressure he felt from being one of the only dissenting voices in the room (Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema being the other) to stop...

Democrats have had a pattern of offering people false hope. Remember, the threat of sanctions would deter Russia from invading Ukraine. We know how that worked out. “Elect me president and I will get rid of covid” — a phrase President Joe Biden campaigned on. How did that turn out?...

America, we are truly in uncharted waters. In a recent Monmouth poll, only 10% of Americans feel we are headed in the right direction. President Joe Biden’s approval numbers — which were already low — are continuing to decline, also in record numbers. The question is, how does Biden turn...

The Supreme Court has had to deal with three issues that seem to bring God back into the conversation. In all three, the inclusion of religious sentiment has prevailed. And I applaud the decisions. The three decisions affect prayer, school choice and abortion. On religion, America is changing. Until 2013,...

Theater — I cannot help but mix a theatrical incident that attempted to portray a narrative meant to hurt one political party. No, not the Jan. 6 congressional hearings. I am referring to the Jussie Smollett saga. You will recall that Smollett was found guilty of orchestrating his own beating....

We offer our “thoughts and prayers” after a tragedy like the one in Uvalde, Texas. It is noble. But it seems misplaced and at times perfunctory. Why not do something that has worked in America’s past — religious observance? Let’s give thoughts and prayers before a tragedy. For decades, we...

It is truly the minds, hearts and souls of those who kill people that must be altered. Due to Supreme Court decisions rendered in 1962 and 1963 that prevented American children from doing what every member of Congress does every day — have a prayer before commencing the day or...

Our democracy is strong. But I have some questions. Can a very unpopular president with a 36% approval rating lead? Can a president with 80% of Americans telling him he is going in the wrong direction still be effective? And if he cannot be, what does this do to our...

As the world shifts its focus toward mourning the victims of senseless violence directed at racial and religious minorities, we should recognize that the Supreme Court actually has an opportunity to show the world where America really stands on racial diversity and race relations. The Supreme Court has held numerous...

The United States has sent $3.7 billion of military support to Ukraine thus far. Now we want to give ten times that amount should Congress agree to President Joe Biden’s latest proposal. Why such a huge increase? Is there a specific goal — other than “whatever (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskyy...

Forever talking about events related to the Jan. 6 attack of the Capitol or former President Trump makes Democrats and the liberal media giddy, but we have very serious matters before us. The nation with the largest arsenal of nuclear weapons is threatening to use them. Please, Democrats and liberal...

Last week we all witnessed the 75th anniversary of the breaking of the color barrier in sports by Jackie Robinson. This was one of the most momentous events in American history as it changed — via sports — the lives of all Americans. There was a time when Black participation...

It is one thing when you have a self-inflicted wound, like the Afghanistan exit. It is quite disappointing when you see a major problem staring at you and getting worse over time before it wounds you, like what to do about the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Thus far, we have...

More than 70% of the country feels we are going in the wrong direction. If Americans did not need another reason to change direction, at least at the congressional level, the massacre at Bucha and horrors seen in Ukraine cry out for change. Where is the Democrat-­controlled Congress? It is...

History shows that Republican senators have supported Black candidates for the Supreme Court at a far better rate than Democrats. The list is very short: Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas. President Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat, nominated the first Black to serve on the Supreme Court in 1967. The Democrats had...

In 1991, former President George H.W. Bush gave me and every member of the 102nd Congress a major decision to make: Should the U.S. use force to remove Iraqi troops who invaded neighboring Kuwait? The majority voted “yes,” and the operation was successful. I am sure Bush is rolling over...

At one time, the U.S. and NATO countries all seemed to believe that sanctions would work to prevent a Russian invasion of Ukraine. They were mistaken. Now they believe sanctions will stop Russian President Vladimir Putin. The record shows the more sanctions the West imposes, the faster and harsher Putin...

President Biden, I had hit the reset button after the exit debacle in Afghanistan. This was a rookie mistake from a near 80-year-old, even if you still do not see it that way. I also hit the reset button on your statements not matching the facts — “I will not...

The best way to stop a war is to prevent it from starting. We are failing here. Prevention beats punishment anytime with the former saving lives and the latter doing the opposite. Terms of engagement in conflicts with nations that are formidable does not usually include punishment or sending a...