1) Yesterday, Mona Charen and I recorded a Need to Know, with a special guest — a senatorial guest. Ben Sasse of Nebraska. He confessed to wanting to be the offensive coordinator of the Cornhusker football team.
How modest! I would want to be head coach. (Of the Wolverines.) (Though there’s no better coach in the country than our current one. His brother is probably equally good. Their dad was our Little League baseball coach. I’ll save this for another time …)
2) I recorded a Q&A with Otto Reich. Our subject is Obama and his upcoming visit to Cuba. (Mona and I talked about that too.) Otto is one of the best foreign-policy analysts in the country. He was born in Cuba.
Why does he have that German name? We discuss it on the podcast. Donald Trump, when he was trying to cast doubt on Ted Cruz’s religion, said, “Not many evangelicals come out of Cuba.” This is stupid, of course. But it is true that not many Otto Reichs come out of Cuba …
3) Would you like a little music? Music criticism, that is? I have some posts over at The New Criterion. One is about Yuja Wang, the Chinese pianist, and her playing of Mozart. Another is about Dmitri Hvorostovsky, the Russian baritone, and his brave, moving return to Carnegie Hall. Another is about a Hungarian pianist, Dénes Várjon.
In Hungary, they grow musicians, and scientists, like Kenya grows marathoners. Interesting phenomenon. Worthy of a piece someday …