We shouldn't call winners or losers immediately after a debate. Those calls have been useless as a guide to what really matters. . . . What matters is what the press focuses on.

When you define yourself as a protector-in-chief, your accountability is higher. On Sept. 11, you could reasonably say he hadn't had time to take charge, whereas at the beginning of your second term you really can't say it's someone else's responsibility.

The assumption that seeing is believing makes us susceptible to visual deceptions

As our country grapples with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Constitution Day offers young people an opportunity to learn how a cornerstone of our democracy -- the concept of federalism -- shapes our lives.

As our country grapples with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Constitution Day offers young people an opportunity to learn how a cornerstone of our democracy -- the concept of federalism -- shapes our lives,

I find this more troubling than deception in the political campaigns. The level of misunderstanding and the consequences of misunderstanding can be much more dramatic. If we don't hold the right people accountable and the right processes accountable, we'll risk having another catastrophe without real preparedness, and more people will die needlessly.