David McGrath

President Donald Trump, right, react angrily during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Feb. 28, 2025. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

David McGrath: If there’s a revolution against the Trump government, count me in

March 3, 2025 at 12:27 p.m.

I am a pacifist and have been so for most of my life. Nonetheless, I will not hesitate to join a revolution against the current administration if the president refuses...

Tom Homan, White House "border czar," speaks during Turning Point's annual AmericaFest on Dec. 22, 2024. (Josh Edelson/Getty-AFP)

David McGrath: Trump’s use of ‘border czar’ bully to terrorize immigrants taking page from sadistic Civil Rights-era Bull Connor

January 27, 2025 at 12:42 p.m.

Donald Trump's "border czar" Tom Homan's taking a page right out of notorious segragationist and Ku Klux Klan supporter Bull Connor's playbook from the 1960s.

Marianne McGrath packs dishes and utensils for Habitat for Humanity. (David McGrath)

David McGrath: My clutter is no match for my wife’s superpower

January 10, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

What better time than the start of the new year for all of us to move forward in our lives by decluttering?

Marianne McGrath holds her daughter, Janet, circa 1981. (Family photo)

David McGrath: How I found love and meaning one Christmas

December 25, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

I told my then-girlfriend I loved her on a brutally cold Chicago afternoon. Her response would change my life.

President Joe Biden waves as he concludes his speech at the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 19, 2024. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

David McGrath: In honor of the holiday, I am grateful for these outstanding Americans

November 28, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

Paying it forward on Thanksgiving, I wish to thank people like my sister Rosie and consummate journalist Clarence Page.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, delivers her concession speech at Howard University, in Washington, on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times)

David McGrath: Blaming the entire country for Trump’s election not only pointless but false

November 15, 2024 at 12:12 p.m.

It's easy to play the blame game when it comes to Kamala Harris' loss to Donald Trump, but a number of factors came into play and blaming "all" Americans is...

Marianne McGrath, wife of columnist David McGrath, has the kind of face that invites strangers to talk to her but it's a gift that can also get her in trouble when those strangers get political, her husband says. (David McGrath)

David McGrath: Be careful who you talk to because these days friendly banter can turn ugly quickly

November 18, 2024 at 9:20 a.m.

When politics can turn easy banter into fighting words, we need a leader who can make us come together again.

Author David McGrath works on tying down objects at his Florida home before Hurricane Helene makes landfall. (Marianne McGrath)

David McGrath: Hurricane Helene was brutal. Thankfully, the NOAA gave us warning.

October 1, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

Thanks to NOAA’s newest high-resolution radar, my wife and I got sufficient warning about Hurricane Helene days before its approach

Supporters attend a rally of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, in Las Vegas on Aug. 10, 2024. (Bridget Bennett/The New York Times)

David McGrath: Teaching taught me that female leaders help others excel

September 3, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

At the high schools and colleges where I was employed, I felt I was able to thrive and even excel under the leadership of women.

Kenneth McGrath, wearing a hand-me-down Camp Richards T-shirt, poses with sister Nancy in front of their Evergreen Park home, circa 1960. (Family photo)

David McGrath: Summer, before technology took over, was a time for imagination

August 9, 2024 at 6:59 a.m.

When my brother returned from summer camp, the amazements he described had so fired up our imaginations that we “played” Camp Richards.

All Stories