More than any other issue, the state of the national economy consistently figures into voters’ decision at the polls. When economic growth is strong, incumbents tend to be re-elected; when it is sluggish, voters opt for the opposition in the hopes they can turn things around. This much is straightforward. […] Read more »
Donald Trump Is Also an Outlier in Political Science
Donald Trump has confounded politicians, pundits and political scientists as he runs a most unconventional — and so far successful — campaign to win the Republican presidential nomination. Here’s the way we think these things are supposed to play out: Party leaders shape and guide the nomination process. We call […] Read more »
Purity, Disgust and Donald Trump
… By setting a populist agenda that appeals to millions of Republicans and to substantial numbers of Democrats and independents as well, Trump has opened the door to a reshaping of the traditional two-party coalitions. As everything shifts and we question previously sacrosanct boundaries, Trump and his supporters embody conflicts […] Read more »
Why Fact-Checking Donald Trump Backfires
… A few weeks ago, Republican pollster Frank Luntz spent hours showing a focus group of Donald Trump supporters television ads that criticized their candidate. The Washington Post’s Dave Weigel described one ad as “not so subtly comparing the Republican front-runner to Adolf Hitler.” Those attacks on Trump made him […] Read more »
Donald Trump’s Appeal
… Trump himself is not much of a mystery (he’s the opposite of a mystery, in fact), but the depth and power of his support, of the emotional connection that his supporters feel with him, of his seeming indestructibility as a candidate — that’s the mystery. Equally mysterious is the […] Read more »
Why media should think twice about public-opinion polls: Panel discussion
A panel of experts criticized and offered candid insights on the media’s growing reliance on public-opinion polls during Harvard University’s recent Theodore H. White Seminar on Press and Politics. CONT. Shorenstein Center, Harvard University Read more »