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Caitie Whelan

Caitie Whelan

The Fascinating Marriage of Politics + Policy

Hello Dear Reader! I'm off for the long weekend, but I rummaged around in the archives and plucked out this favorite for you! Wishing you all good + gentle things in the days ahead, Caitie The Fascinating, Often Dysfunctional Marriage of Politics & Policy Wheat grown in Kansas, shipped

Which Politicians We Should Pay Attention to Right Now

"Folks come to Washington to do one of two things, " Senator Mitch McConnell said from the Senate floor one December day. "To make a point. Or to make a difference." The politicians who're in Congress to make a point might be making the finest

How Good Policy Will Be Made This Year

The first sunrise of 2000, I was on a ferry off the coast of Maine and a guy proposed to a girl on the bow as the new century's light broke around us. I'm thinking today of that earnest morning air that held 100 new years

End of Year Goodness for You

Hello Wonderful Reader, I'm taking a long winter's nap this week, and I hope similar rest and restoration for you. In this in-between time of the old year and new one, I love a few good Wendell Berry lines: Communicate slowly. Live a three-dimensioned life; stay

Things to Be Hopeful About in 2025

"You are brilliant and the earth is hiring," environmentalist Paul Hawken once wrote for a commencement address. And it's not just the earth who's hiring. Kindness, justice, gentleness all have many, many openings, too. But first, we need a bit of hope, don'

What's Worth Our Attention Right Now

Years ago, my mother took a nail, hammered it into the kitchen wall, and hung the prayer. "Grant me the serenity," it started in dark calligraphy, "to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the

Preparing for the Road Ahead

On a bitter January DC day in 2009, Congressman John Lewis approaches Barack Obama, who moments ago was sworn in as President. The Congressman holds out a commemorative photo to the new President. Would you sign this? he asks. The President autographs the photo. First, though, he writes four words:

Sweetnesses for You

Hello Hello! I've closed up my laptop and headed out on a bit of travel, so sharing two sweet bits to enjoy with your leftovers. And please know how very grateful I am for you, wonderful reader. Wishing you all good + tasty things, Caitie The Brilliance of Pizza

One Invaluable Action for This Moment

How many journalists does it take to change a lightbulb? the old joke goes. Journalists just report the facts, they don't change them. At first glance, this joke doesn't age well. Much of the media seems to treat facts like Play-Do: highly pliable. Except nowadays, much

A Post-Election Love Letter for You

"I know there are a bunch of you whose work lives have been turned upside down in the last week, and I'm sorry," the Senate staffer wrote to anyone who cared to read. The staffer's world had been upended a decade ago when the