Mona Charen
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Mona Charen Parker[1][2] (née Charen /ˈʃɛərən/ Script error: No such module "Respell".; born February 25, 1957)[3] is an American conservative columnist, journalist, and political commentator. Charen has written four books, and is an outspoken critic of the Trump administration.[4][5][6]
Early life and education
Charen was born in New York City and raised in Livingston, New Jersey, where she went to school with fellow journalist Ruth Marcus, starting "in fourth grade."[7] She is Jewish.[8] She received her B.A. degree with honors from Barnard College in 1979 and a J.D. degree from George Washington University Law School in 1984.[9][10]
Career

Charen wrote for National Review, where she was an editorial assistant starting in 1979. She later joined the staff of First Lady Nancy Reagan as a speechwriter.[11] Charen then worked on President Ronald Reagan's staff, in the White House Office of Public Liaison and in the Office of Communications.
Charen served as Jack Kemp's speechwriter in his unsuccessful 1988 presidential bid. She launched her syndicated column in 1987.[12] It is syndicated by Creators Syndicate and has been featured in more than 200 papers, including the Boston Globe, Baltimore Sun, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and The Washington Times.[13]
Charen was a regular weekly commentator on CNN's The Capital Gang, which appeared on Saturdays. Following an on-air heated exchange with fellow panelist Al Hunt,[14] the two of them did not appear on the same panel for several weeks. Charen switched to Capital Gang Sunday when that program was launched, appearing until the program was cancelled.
In 2010, Charen won the Eric Breindel Journalism Award.[15] In 2014, she became a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.[16]
In 2016, Charen was a member of the "Never Trump" movement, although she did not support Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.[17]
In 2018, Charen was invited to participate in a CPAC panel discussion. Her comments, which elicited boos and jeers from the audience, included the following:
I am disappointed in people on our side for being hypocrites about sexual harassers and abusers of women, who are in our party, who are sitting in the White House, who brag about their extramarital affairs, who brag about mistreating women—and because he happens to have an 'R' after his name we look the other way ... This is a party that endorsed Roy Moore for the Senate in the state of Alabama even though he was a credibly accused child molester. You cannot claim that you stand for women and put up with that.[18]
Charen subsequently wrote a New York Times op-ed entitled "I'm Glad I Got Booed at CPAC".[19] She has written four books: Useful Idiots: How Liberals Got it Wrong in the Cold War and Still Blame America First (2003), Do-Gooders: How Liberals Hurt Those They Claim to Help (and the Rest of Us) (2005), Sex Matters: How Modern Feminism Lost Touch with Science, Love, and Common Sense (2018), and Hard Right: The GOP's Drift Toward Extremism (2023). Two of her books are New York Times bestsellers.[20][21]
In 2020, Charen supported Joe Biden's presidential campaign, writing that “I want the Republican Party to feel spanked."[22][23] In 2024 she voted for Kamala Harris.[24]
Charen was policy editor of The Bulwark website and hosted the Beg to Differ podcast before it ended in 2024.[25] Charen hosts The Mona Charen Show, as of 2025.[26]
Personal life
Charen is married to Robert P. Parker, a Washington, D.C., lawyer. They have three sons.[27]
Bibliography
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- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Useful Idiots: How Liberals Got It Wrong in the Cold War and Still Blame America First. Regnery Publishing. 2003. ISBN 0-89526-139-1.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Do-Gooders: How Liberals Hurt Those They Claim to Help (and the Rest of Us). Sentinel. 2005. ISBN 1-59523-003-3.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona (2018). Sex Matters: How Modern Feminism Lost Touch With Science, Love and Common Sense. Crown Publishing. ISBN 978-0451498397.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona (2023). Hard Right: The GOP's Drift Toward Extremism. Creators. ISBN 978-1949673944.
See also
References
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- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Mona and Jay and Impeachment and More". Ricochet. September 27, 2019. Archived from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Barnard Graduate" (PDF). West Essex Tribune. July 26, 1979. p. 2/2. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Charen, Mona 1957- | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Center, Niskanen (January 5, 2022). "What's a principled conservative to do about Trump? (with Mona Charen) - Niskanen Center". Niskanen Center - Improving Policy, Advancing Moderation. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.dianeravitch (March 6, 2025). "Mona Charen: Trump's Spineless Enablers". Diane Ravitch's blog. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Why Jews Should Reject Trump, by Mona Charen". www.creators.com. September 27, 2024. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Mona Charen and Ruth Marcus Script error: No such module "webarchive"., C-SPAN Q&A (television), July 9, 2006. Accessed November 30, 2014. "Brian Lamb, C-SPAN: Ruth Marcus, can you remember the first time you met Mona Charen? Ruth Marcus, Author: I can't remember the first time but I can remember many other times in the middle there because we were – we both started in Livingston, New Jersey in fourth grade."
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona Charen (March 2, 2004). "Hating the Jews". Townhall.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
As a Jew, I can unhesitatingly declare that the world would be a better place if it contained more believing Christians.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Mona Charen - John Locke Foundation". John Locke Foundation. November 8, 2021. Archived from the original on July 11, 2025. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Mona Charen". Public Discourse. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Prentice-Hall biography". Archived from the original on September 27, 2011.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."About Mona Charen, author of an opinion column that is syndicated by Creators Syndicate". creators.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2009.
- ^ Creators Syndicate. Mona Charen Script error: No such module "webarchive". Retrieved January 23, 2009.
- ^ For Charen's version of the event and subsequent fallout, see "Prince of Darkness" Script error: No such module "webarchive". by Mona Charen, National Review, July 25, 2007
- ^ "Columnist Charen Wins Eric Breindel Award" Script error: No such module "webarchive". Wall Street Journal, June 7, 2010
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."EPPC Flash: EPPC Welcomes Mona Charen as Senior Fellow". Ethics & Public Policy Center. Archived from the original on March 5, 2021. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.N; P; R (November 12, 2016). "'Never Trump' Conservative Calls Election 'Amazing Earthquake'". NPR. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Alberta, Tim (February 25, 2018). "Trump's Takeover of Conservatism Is Complete and Total". Politico. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona (February 25, 2018). "I'm Glad I Got Booed at CPAC". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Best Sellers: April 6, 2003". The New York Times. April 6, 2003. Archived from the original on December 29, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Best sellers: January 23, 2005". The New York Times. January 23, 2005. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Khazan, Olga (November 14, 2020). "Never Trump, Forever". The Atlantic. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona. "Mona Charen: Proud of my vote for Biden". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ https://cdispatch.com/opinions/mona-charen-what-are-we-conserving/
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Mona Charen, Author at the Bulwark". Archived from the original on November 23, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Charen, Mona (January 20, 2025). "The Final Beg to Differ". www.thebulwark.com. Retrieved January 21, 2025.
- ^ Mona Charen biographical data Script error: No such module "webarchive". from the NNDB database
External links
- Page Template:Sister-inline/styles.css has no content.Script error: No such module "Sister project logo". Media related to Script error: No such module "Commons link". at Wikimedia Commons
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- Appearances on C-SPAN
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