When the U.S. Supreme Court handed down the now-infamous Citizens United ruling that unleashed a deluge of unaccountable corporate cash into the political system, the court had a pollyannaish view of what would happen next.

Several Roman Catholic organizations have challenged Obama administration rules requiring religious colleges and hospitals (but not churches themselves) to offer preventive health care, including contraceptive coverage, with no deductibles or co-pays.

Every day in Washington, government officials — at the Pentagon, the State Department, the White House, Congress or the CIA, to name a few — talk to journalists about information that is considered sensitive.

Congress has a plan, or at least has arranged the steps, for dealing with the country’s deficit and debt problems. Come the end of the year, lawmakers will send all of us over a “fiscal cliff.”

The drought hitting parts of North America illustrates why it’s never a good idea for any region to become dependent on a hundred-mile diet — or protectionist trade policy.

Yes, the latest Gallup poll numbers showing the public’s lack of confidence in some of our country’s major institutions are distressing. A nation needs to believe that its political and economic leaders have the character and vision to lead the country forward.