… Whether Biden proves more effective than other recent Democrats at attracting older voters around Social Security and Medicare will likely pivot on whether seniors believe the GOP genuinely would cut the programs if given the power to do so, argued Robert Blendon, a professor emeritus at the Harvard School […] Read more »
Parties Face ‘Crackup’ as Outsiders Wield Social Media Against the Establishment
On the night that he conceded defeat in 1992 after the most successful independent presidential campaign of the last century, Ross Perot made it clear that he was not done shaking up the established order. “Believe me,” he declared, “the system needs some shocks.” So perhaps it was only fitting […] Read more »
Now Trump Wants His Wall, But It Looks Like He’s Two Years Too Late
The border wall is often described as Donald Trump’s signature issue, his most famous campaign promise, the very rationale for his political career—and therefore the most urgent priority of his presidency. … But if building the wall was so necessary to the success of his presidency, why did he wait […] Read more »
Congressional Leaders Unpopular on Balance
As the 116th U.S. Congress convenes today, its top leaders face a public that, on balance, holds them in low esteem. Nancy Pelosi, who is expected to be elected speaker of the House for the second time following the Democratic gains in the November midterm elections, is viewed favorably by […] Read more »
The Midterms Sent an Unmistakable Message to Republicans
In last week’s election, the bill came due on the defining bet placed by congressional Republicans during the Donald Trump era. Led by House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House and Senate Republicans made a strategic decision to lock arms around Trump over the past two […] Read more »
Who Wins If the Talk Turns to Impeachment?
This week we learned that Donald Trump’s campaign chairman is going to jail, and his one-time attorney and ‘fixer’ admitted that the president directed him to pay hush money to two mistresses in a scheme that violates campaign law. You’d think that Democrats would be spiking the football. Or, gloating […] Read more »