Donald Trump’s enduring appeal in the Republican presidential contest has the GOP in a quandary, as it’s forced to contend with voters fed up with party politics. Some 50 years ago, another vociferous candidate put the scare in traditional power brokers. George Wallace fired up crowds with a similar anti-establishment […] Read more »
So Trump is a populist. When does populism actually win elections?
… In many other democracies parties, not voters, select candidates. In these other democracies, we do not see more radical candidates, like Trump, rise to prominent positions within the party because members of the party fall in line behind party leaders. … The U.S. two-party system has no room for […] Read more »
Who Are the Angriest Republicans?
… If there are two key themes in the election so far, one is Trump’s ability to enrage; the other is his ability to exceed expectations. The disregard of liberal and conservative elites for working and middle class voters has manifested itself in a consistent underestimation of the anger, resentment […] Read more »
How the G.O.P. Elite Lost Its Voters to Donald Trump
… As the Republican Party collapses on itself, conservative leaders struggling to explain Mr. Trump’s appeal have largely seized on his unique qualities as a candidate: his larger-than-life persona, his ability to dominate the airwaves, his tough-sounding if unrealistic policy proposals. Others ascribe Mr. Trump’s rise to the xenophobia and […] Read more »
No, Trump won’t win votes from disaffected Democrats in the fall
… Democrats worry that Trump’s focus on economic protectionism and opposition to trade deals could turn Democrat-leaning rust belt states into swing states, giving the Republican nominee an unexpected path to the White House in 2016. We can learn a little from students of Western European politics here. CONT. Charlotte […] Read more »
The Republican Crackup
The furious fighting in the ranks of Republican opponents of Donald Trump — combat that is growing ever more heated and rhetorically violent — has forced open to public view long-festering wounds in the conservative coalition. … In every recess of the right, the struggle between those who would accede […] Read more »