… One of my favorite sayings is from my friend, the very wise columnist Mark Shields, who is fond of saying that he would rather be a member of a church seeking converts than one trying to drive out heretics. This is not at all to argue that incumbents should […] Read more »
What We Should Look for and What We Can Ignore in 2020 Polling
I’m not going to mince words here. Early horse race polls are silly. Tracking ‘movement’ among a bunch of potential 2020 candidates a year of out from when voters go the polls is an utter waste of time. However, while the head-to-head numbers are irrelevant, it is useful to mine […] Read more »
The GOP’s health problem: They like big chunks of the Affordable Care Act
Now that a Texas judge has ruled that the entire Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional — all because of its individual mandate — Republicans may find themselves wishing for a different outcome. The big picture: There is little hope of a deal with Democrats on health reform in a divided […] Read more »
Trump is doubling down on his strategy that cost the GOP the House
With his threat to shut down the federal government unless he receives funding for his border wall, President Donald Trump is employing a tactic that is unpopular to advance a goal that may be even more unpopular. Trump’s threats — and the muted public resistance to them from GOP congressional […] Read more »
Americans’ message to Washington on the looming shutdown: Don’t
Americans have a clear message to Washington as the government hurtles toward a partial shutdown Friday: Don’t. By a double-digit margin, 54 percent to 29 percent, those surveyed in a new USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll say they oppose the shutdown that President Donald Trump threatened if Congress doesn’t agree to […] Read more »
How Red-State Democrats Became An Endangered Species In The Senate
One theme of the 2018 election was that Democratic senators from rural, red states became an endangered breed. Three Democratic senators on deep-red turf — Joe Donnelly of Indiana, Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota — lost their seats. Two others managed to squeak out wins […] Read more »