Archive: Kathryn Kolbert
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The picture was of a united body with the president leading. And as we know, the picture is a crucial political takeaway...
By Kathryn Kolbert | January 25, 2011; 11:40 PM ET | Comments (0)
The legislator: Nancy Pelosi
Despite millions spent to scapegoat her in the last election and the Republican's obvious glee at knocking her out of the Speaker's throne, Pelosi is leaving this position with dignity. More importantly...
By Kathryn Kolbert | December 22, 2010; 10:24 AM ET | Comments (19)
Betrayal is a potent weapon
The hardest part of all of this is that the people who supported Obama because he promised to fight for the little guy are feeling betrayed. And betrayal is a potent weapon in party politics that Republicans will cash in on...
By Kathryn Kolbert | December 8, 2010; 11:03 AM ET | Comments (5)
Looking for love from an unloving public
The only successful way to ensure that Congress will swallow the bitter pill is to have them authorize a neutral group to make the tough decisions and then make sure that Congress is prohibited from making changes to...
By Kathryn Kolbert | December 1, 2010; 09:42 AM ET | Comments (4)
Laud the White House, not Woodward Ave
A mess as big as GM's could not have been fixed this quickly without the U.S bankruptcy code that allowed GM to wipe out its debt and the millions of dollars infused into the restructured company by the Obama Administration. This took guts and calm at a time when there was no good economic news and vigorous political opposition...
By Kathryn Kolbert | November 15, 2010; 01:18 PM ET | Comments (5)
Pelosi deserves plaudits
I resist the temptation to jump on the Megabus that is driving the trash talk against Nancy Pelosi. The campaign of vilification orchestrated by Republicans with millions of dollars in often anonymous campaign funds was masterful, but Dems should not be swayed by their opponents' propaganda. Pelosi...
By Kathryn Kolbert | November 10, 2010; 01:43 PM ET | Comments (5)
First, focus on jobs
Unfortunately, the midterm elections contain no good news for President Obama and the Democratic party. The mantra that Bill Clinton never forgot--"It's the economy, stupid"--must become President Obama's mantra as well. The disastrous losses in this midterm vote gives the White House a perfect opportunity to refocus on...
By Kathryn Kolbert | November 1, 2010; 04:19 PM ET | Comments (7)
Short-term vs long-term success
Gov. Christie's blunt style is a relief to voters who crave certainty. Indeed he has become the consummate outsider since so many of his fellow politicians faced with difficult choices tend to obfuscate their positions or refuse to take firm stands. In the long term, Christie's haste and certainty may come to haunt...
By Kathryn Kolbert | October 15, 2010; 02:13 PM ET | Comments (1)
Getting team buy-in
Leaders who are looking for more creativity need to put their people in different surroundings and reframe the questions in ways that probe the underlying philosophy and criteria for an effective solution first, rather than specifics. Devising your own solution might work if you are president of the United States, but...
By Kathryn Kolbert | September 29, 2010; 12:39 PM ET | Comments (0)
Sipping different types of tea
The Tea Party has been very successful at spreading their message peer to peer and finding a dedicated cohort of people who are invested in their somewhat amorphous goals. Their biggest difficulty for the long term is preserving that cohesiveness when...
By Kathryn Kolbert | September 21, 2010; 04:04 PM ET | Comments (1)
The power of compromise
As an ardent liberal democrat, I never thought I'd be pushing for the election of moderate republicans and democrats, but in fact that is what we need: people who...
By Kathryn Kolbert | September 14, 2010; 10:04 AM ET | Comments (0)
Stick to your principles Craig!
Like Craig Newmark, I am a vigorous advocate of the First Amendment and an open internet. Government should not prohibit nor interfere in the content of Craigslist's ads. Where there is concrete evidence of criminal activity or obscenity, the government can request that particular ads be taken down. Craigslist can then make decisions on a case by case basis. But pressure from the government for removal of all ads...
By Kathryn Kolbert | September 8, 2010; 11:09 AM ET | Comments (0)
Obama did the right thing stepping in
Leadership demands that you stay true to your principles whether or not they are politically expedient. Three cheers for the President who has used the controversy to remind Americans that this country was founded on (and Constitutionally enshrined) the notion that all people have the right to practice their faith, free of government interference.
By Kathryn Kolbert | August 24, 2010; 09:42 AM ET | Comments (4)
Going fishing means listening to voters
Staying in DC in August will not change the gridlock that is the likely outcome of political parties more interested in cable TV headlines than lasting change. Perhaps a short visit with angry and frustrated constituents will help our leaders in Washington talk constructively about solutions. God knows, more swanky lunches at the Monocle won't get us there.
By Kathryn Kolbert | August 17, 2010; 11:32 AM ET | Comments (2)
Let the media go hungry
A politician like Vilsack should know that the ever-hungry media can wait to be fed.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 23, 2010; 06:52 AM ET | Comments (28)
Three strikes against the intel community
It is difficult to get people who don't know of each other nor trust the process to work together, especially if there are some 1,271 government organizations and 1,931 private companies in about 10,000 different locations across the United States.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 21, 2010; 10:51 AM ET | Comments (1)
Turning obsession into championships
The problem with conventional wisdom is that it is conventional. Despite his harshness and lack of subtlety, Steinbrenner possessed one of the key attributes of successful people, he was absolutely obsessed with his business, working 24/7 to make the Yankees a winner and expecting everyone else to do the same.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 16, 2010; 10:37 AM ET | Comments (0)
Cheap solutions to complex problems
This is a case of state legislators passing a clearly unconstitutional law in order to appease a vocal constituency-
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 13, 2010; 03:31 PM ET | Comments (22)
Trying a little tenderness
President Obama already demonstrated that he is willing to chastise Israel and that did little to move Netanyahu toward peace negotiations. There is little downside to seeing if flattery and stroking will do the trick.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 9, 2010; 12:43 PM ET | Comments (14)
Bad refereeing
For big business to now claim that the government is "anti-business" is like the umpire complaining about how badly his game was refereed.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 5, 2010; 05:27 PM ET | Comments (2)
Comfortable with discriminatory views
I wish the tea party's attitudes on issues of race and gender would progress as our national views have progressed since 1776.
By Kathryn Kolbert | July 1, 2010; 12:23 PM ET | Comments (7)
What the Founders rejected
In a democracy, the decisions of the voters, not arbitrary age limits, ought to control who serves in Congress.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 29, 2010; 10:34 AM ET | Comments (4)
A Constitutional necessity
One need not go far - Iran, North Korea, Iraq in the days of Saddam Hussein -- to see the dangers of military rule.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 23, 2010; 04:55 PM ET | Comments (1)
Getting them back to work
Voters who are concerned about the economy simply want jobs so they can protect their families and enliven their communities.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 22, 2010; 01:02 PM ET | Comments (0)
Small gaffe, big generosity
I hate to see BP chairman's gaffe overshadow the fact that BP has now stepped up to put $20 billion dollars in escrow and has given Kenneth Feinberg the ability to dole it out to those in need.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 17, 2010; 04:23 PM ET | Comments (1)
Put the fishermen to work
Tony "I Want My life Back" Hayward is a textbook case on how not to handle a crisis.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 14, 2010; 08:55 PM ET | Comments (3)
Facebook's human pyramid
As we've learned from the cheerleaders building their human pyramids, the person as the top is not the most important: It's the bottom and middle that do the heavy lifting.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 8, 2010; 06:33 AM ET | Comments (0)
Sharp words for despicable conduct
Saying nothing in the face of despicable conduct is a tacit acceptance of a friend's behavior and speaks volumes about your own cowardice.
By Kathryn Kolbert | June 2, 2010; 08:27 AM ET | Comments (0)
Best education bargains
The best bargains in education today can be found in smaller liberal arts colleges, community colleges and some state programs that have concentrated on what really matters: excellent teaching that inspires students to learn.
By Kathryn Kolbert | May 25, 2010; 12:45 PM ET | Comments (10)
Not in the gene pool
If leadership were heritable, Congress would have legalized human cloning a long, long time ago.
By Kathryn Kolbert | May 21, 2010; 05:29 AM ET | Comments (0)
Wicked smart, despite naysayers
Imagine if the president had nominated a woman from a less prestigious school? You can bet the naysayers would have been squealing she wasn't good enough for the job.
By Kathryn Kolbert | May 19, 2010; 02:11 PM ET | Comments (0)
