Scandals have typically operated as a cloud over a president’s agenda. But the Russia-related legal challenges swirling around President Trump are functioning more like a cloak for his joint agenda with congressional Republicans. That difference captures the GOP’s decision to govern in a manner aimed almost entirely at stoking their […] Read more »
G.O.P. Senators Might Not Realize It, but Not One State Supports the A.H.C.A.
It’s no secret that the American Health Care Act is unpopular. In recent national polls, only about 29 percent of Americans support the bill. It is the most unpopular piece of major legislation Congress has considered in decades — even more unloved than TARP (“the bailout”), and much more unpopular […] Read more »
GOP fails to compromise
… In a survey we conducted, 69 percent of those who voted for Republicans for Congress admired “political leaders who stick to their positions” over those “who make compromises.” Just 31 percent preferred leaders willing to make compromises. Voters who supported Democrats presented nearly a mirror image. Sixty-seven percent admired […] Read more »
Can GOP Candidates Outrun Trump?
… Whatever the similarities between the Brexit and Trump elections last year, it would be foolhardy to extrapolate them to our midterm elections next year. That said, there are canaries in the political coal mine that could provide clues to the mood of the electorate. The most immediate is next […] Read more »
Almost a Must-Win for Democrats in Georgia 6
Democratic strategists may hate the idea that they must win the June 20 special election in Georgia’s 6th District, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Jon Ossoff’s defeat would not tell us what will happen seventeen months from now in the 2018 midterms any more than Republican Tim […] Read more »
Democrats in Split-Screen: The Base Wants It All. The Party Wants to Win.
Democrats are facing an open breach between the demands of their political base and the strict limits of their power, as liberal activists dream of transforming the health care system and impeaching President Trump, while candidates in hard-fought elections ask wary independent voters merely for a fresh chance at governing. […] Read more »