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Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas

tcaeditors@tribune.com

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

Britain, America embrace secularism

The U.K. Daily Mail has again published a story about a subject that has become a recurring theme this time of year. No, not Christmas, but rather drunkenness, though the holiday is used as its primary excuse.

December 27, 2017
Ultimate Christmas Gift Illustration by Linas Garsys/The Washington Times

The ultimate Christmas gift

Unless you are spending this time of year at a spiritual retreat cut off from TV, newspapers or internet service you cannot escape the blaring music and the marketers attempting to sell you something they promise will bring you happiness and peace.

December 20, 2017
This Thursday, June 8, 2017, file photo shows the U.S. Treasury Department building in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File) ** FILE **

A government ‘refund’

So, a Republican majority Congress has "reformed" the tax code for the first time in 31 years, allowing us to keep a little more of the money we earn. Woohoo!

December 18, 2017
Obscuring Trump Success Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Donald Trump actually accomplishing his goals

Side issues — some of them created by the president himself — have obscured the accomplishments of the Donald Trump administration during his first year in office.

December 13, 2017
In this Dec. 5, 2017, file photo, former Alabama Chief Justice and U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore speaks at a campaign rally in Fairhope Ala. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

It’s shortsighted to choose temporal power

In September 1862, a group of Chicago ministers sent a "memorial" (or long letter) to President Abraham Lincoln in which they made a theological argument for the elimination of slavery.

December 11, 2017
Illustration on Middle East peace by Linas Garsys/The Washington Times

There will be no Middle East peace until hatred of Jews ends

President Trump's son-in-law and designated Middle East peace envoy, Jared Kushner, told the Brookings Institution's Saban Forum last weekend that a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is key to solving larger goals, such as stopping Iranian aggression and Islamic extremism.

December 6, 2017
ADVANCE FOR WEEKEND EDITIONS, DEC. 2-3 - This Thursday, Nov. 23 2017 photo, shows the exterior of the historic Epsom Bible Church, moved to its current location in 2007 next to the town library, in Epsom, N.H. The same year it was moved, a New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program grant helped make significant improvements to the building, often referred to as the meetinghouse. (Elizabeth Frantz/The Concord Monitor via AP)

The value of high moral standards has never been more apparent

Rarely has the idiom "virtue is its own reward" looked better than it does in light of the sex scandals sweeping the nation. The so-called "prudishness," of a previous generation and the respect most men were once taught to have for women — and which Hugh Hefner and his disciples of "free love" mocked — are looking better with each passing day.

November 29, 2017
FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2017, file photo, former President Bill Clinton speaks at a symposium in Georgetown University in Washington. Democrats have been quick to support the “me too” chorus of women _ and some men _ who have stepped up to allege sexual misconduct and name names. But now “me too” stains the Democrats, too, putting them in an awkward place as they calibrate how forcefully to respond.(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Better late than never for sexual misdeeds to be exposed

The English poet of the Middle Ages, Geoffrey Chaucer, is generally credited with coining the phrase that has been updated in modern English to read, "Better late than never." It means to do something or to arrive later than expected may not be good, but it is better than not at all.

November 27, 2017
Illustration on being thankful for President Trump by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

Can Donald Trump-haters be thankful for him?

Any other Republican president but Donald Trump might expect to get at least some credit for the mostly positive direction in which the country is headed. Unfortunately, the Trump-haters prefer to focus on his, shall I say, unusual personality, rather than results. So let's put personality aside and consider what has happened in his first 10 months in office.

November 22, 2017
Vacancies in California Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

California’s high cost of living forces residents to flee

Evidence that when Democrats rule, taxes are never high enough can be found at any gas station in this once politically competitive state. Last month, the California gas tax was raised 12 cents a gallon. Regular gas at some stations is again approaching, and in some cities exceeding, $4 a gallon, a level not seen since natural disasters temporarily curtailed refinery production, and Gulf states manipulated prices.

November 15, 2017
Illustration on worldly society and the debasement of the gospel by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

Social gospel is never equal to gospel of personal salvation

When Jim Zeigler, the state auditor of Alabama, invoked the Bible to defend Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore against allegations that he had inappropriate contact with underage girls while single and in his 30s (which Mr. Moore has sort of denied), it signaled perhaps the final stage in the corruption of American evangelicalism.

November 13, 2017
Illustration on the escape skills of the Clintons by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

Hillary and Bill Clinton still escaping scandals

How do they do it? I am not the first to compare the Clintons to Harry Houdini, the great magician and escape artist, but Bill and Hillary make him look like a rank amateur.

November 8, 2017
24/7 Doctor App Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Virtual medicine offers access to doctors at low cost

If you're tired of the dysfunction in Washington -- the backbiting, the questioning of motives, the failure to agree on much of anything, the one-upmanship, the allegations about a "stolen" presidential election, Russian "collusion," the posturing and boorish behavior, how about focusing on something that is working and benefits a growing number of people?

November 6, 2017
In this Oct. 30, 2017, photo, Rick Gates leaves federal court in Washington, Monday, Oct. 30, 2017. Inside Trump Tower, some knew Gates as “the walking dead.” He had somehow survived the ouster of his closest campaign ally, chairman Paul Manafort, and Donald Trump himself had ordered Gates off the campaign more than once. Yet Gates, Manafort’s longtime deputy, maintained a significant role in Trump’s presidential campaign. He went on to manage Trump’s $107-million inauguration fund. And he would soon become a regular visitor to the White House.(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Paul Manafort indictment makes Democrats gloat

In considering the indictment of former Donald Trump campaign Chairman Paul Manafort and an associate, I am reminded of former Bill Clinton aide and defender James Carville's line about the ability of a grand jury to "indict a ham sandwich."

November 1, 2017
FILE - In this July 24, 2017, file photo, President Donald Trump speaks about healthcare in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington. U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria in San Francisco ruled Wednesday. Oct. 25, that the government does not have to immediately resume paying "Obamacare" health care subsidies that President Donald Trump cut off. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Spending cuts will help reign in government

The federal income tax was first introduced under the Revenue Act of 1861 to help defray war costs. Congress repealed the tax in 1871 when the need for government revenue declined, only to restore it in 1894 as part of the Wilson-Gorman Tariff Act. The public policy debate surrounding the constitutionality of the income tax has been going on ever since.

October 25, 2017
FILE - In this Jan. 8, 2017 file photo, Harvey Weinstein arrives at The Weinstein Company and Netflix Golden Globes afterparty in Beverly Hills, Calif. New York state's top prosecutor has launched a civil rights investigation into The Weinstein Co. following sexual assault allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the probe Monday. His office says it issued a subpoena seeking all company records (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

Sexual harassment doesn’t happen just in Hollywood

While trying not to indulge in schadenfreude over those hypocritical Hollywood elites who've claimed to stand for "women's rights," only to be accused of sexually harassing them, I noticed "#MeToo" trending on Twitter. At #MeToo, women who have been sexually harassed are invited to post their experiences and many have done so, including four female U.S. senators.

October 23, 2017