In the immediate wake of the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, we asked Americans how they would describe those people who stormed the Capitol. At the time, the most common word Americans used to describe people involved in the storming was, by far, “terrorists.” People also frequently used words like […] Read more »
With help from Manchin and Sinema, a Republican revolution from below is driving national policy
Republican-controlled state legislatures across the country are approving a wave of new voting restrictions on virtually party-line votes that require only a simple majority to pass. The US Supreme Court has likewise decided the key voting rights rulings that helped trigger this surge of state legislation on a party-line, majority-vote […] Read more »
It’s Foolish to Predict the Midterms Until We Know Covid’s Future
… In sharp contrast to everyone else doom scrolling about the pandemic, political handicappers seem determined to treat 2022 as an ordinary election year. As a result, we are awash in glib forecasts about how the inflation rate, Biden’s approval numbers, or the Democratic stalemate on Capitol Hill will determine […] Read more »
How Manchin and Sinema Completed a Conservative Vision
The decision by Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin to block their fellow Democrats from passing new federal voting-rights legislation clears the path for years of tightening ballot restrictions in Republican-controlled states. It also marks a resounding triumph for Chief Justice John Roberts in his four-decade quest to roll back […] Read more »
Battered White House searches for a Biden comeback scenario
… Weighed down by the coronavirus pandemic, surging inflation and a stalled legislative agenda, Biden’s approval rating has long since dropped into the low 40s danger zone. That leaves him below the level of Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama at similar points before midterm contests that dealt them […] Read more »
Biden’s bad week and the unreality of great expectations
The bad news keeps on coming for President Biden. He ended 2021 at a low point in his presidency, hoping to turn it around in the new year. But things have only gotten worse. His spending and voting rights plans are at congressional dead ends. Inflation remains at multi-decade highs. […] Read more »