Coronavirus has ignited a battle over voting by mail. Here’s why it’s so controversial.

One of the biggest fights of this year’s presidential election may be over the election itself and how to hold it during the coronavirus crisis. Vote-by-mail, long mostly a hobbyhorse of good-government advocates, has suddenly been thrust to the center of an escalating partisan war as some say it’s the […] Read more »

Politics Through the Looking Glass: Virus Scrambles the Left-Right Lines

… As Republicans prepare for a re-election battle almost certain to hinge on perceptions of the Trump administration’s readiness and efficiency in performing its most solemn duty — to protect American lives — the decades-old debate over government’s role in American life has entered an unfamiliar phase of discombobulation. A […] Read more »

Partisanship and Deficit Spending

… In the midst of this fearsome economic environment, the Trump Administration has succeeded in navigating an unprecedented $2.3 Trillion stimulus package through a divided Congress, ensuring basic protections for businesses and workers harmed by the crisis. … This swift, united action by Republicans in Congress suggests that they feared […] Read more »

Rating Changes: Democrats edge slightly ahead, but presidential race still a toss-up

Key Points • We are not dramatically revising our outlook for the presidential election, at least not yet. • That said, several rating changes in the Electoral College and Senate generally benefit Democrats. • Many governors are getting high marks for their responses to the crisis; even for those elected […] Read more »

Why Trump’s approval bump isn’t helping him against Joe Biden

… Of course, most Democrats disapprove of Trump but his current net approval rating is better than it was in December before the coronavirus first emerged. This helps make sense of a puzzle: Why has Trump’s approval bump not helped him in his probable November matchup again former vice president […] Read more »

Coronavirus is dividing blue cities from their red states

The struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic is opening a new front in the long-running conflict between blue cities and red states. Across a wide array of states with Republican governors, many of the largest cities and counties — most of them led by Democrats — are moving aggressively to […] Read more »