The First Dissident

William Safire, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary, has been a newspaper reporter, a White House speechwriter, a lexicographer, an anthologist, and a bestselling novelist. In addition to his weekly column, “On Language,” for The New York Times Magazine, his primary post is political columnist for The New York Times. Safire is the author of The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time: Wit and Wisdom from the Popular Language Column in the New York Times Magazine; No Uncertain Terms: More Writing from the Popular “On Language” Column in The New York Times Magazine; Take My Word For It; and many more.