Today, the 40th Republican National Convention assembles in hurricane-threatened Tampa, Fla. Seven days later, the 46th Democratic National Convention will assemble in presumably non-hurricane-threatened Charlotte, N.C. Thousands of delegates, many thousands more press personnel and even more political enthusiasts will be on hand. Vendors will sell political buttons to collectors (does anyone wear them anymore?),…
Mitt Romney’s selection of Paul Ryan was supposed to be a problem for the Republicans. So said a chorus of chortling Democrats. So said a gaggle of anonymous seasoned Republican operatives. All of which was echoed gleefully by mainstream media. The problem, these purveyors of the conventional wisdom all said, was Medicare — to be…
On the USS Wisconsin in Norfolk harbor, a coatless Mitt Romney named a tieless Paul Ryan as his vice presidential nominee. Romney’s choice was not much of a surprise after he told NBC’s Chuck Todd on Thursday that he wanted someone with a “vision for the country, that adds something to the political discourse about…
Our presidential elections, pundits sometimes remind us, are not national contests, but rather contests in 50 states and the District of Columbia. And since most states lean heavily to one party or the other these days, the only real contests are in a dozen or so target states. Once upon a time, most states were…
Traumas suffered by a society generations ago can still have a negative effect centuries later. This is something Americans of a certain age should have no difficulty understanding. Half a century ago, we had to grapple with a dysfunctional and unjustifiable system of legally imposed racial segregation. It was a legacy of the Civil War…
Americans keep behaving in ways that baffle the liberal mainstream media. Two examples figured prominently — or should have — in last week’s news. One is the runoff primary for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Texas. Former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz thumped incumbent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, 57 to 43 percent….
“Answered prayers,” Saint Teresa of Avila is supposed to have said, “cause more tears than those that go unanswered.” Especially, I fear, the answered prayers of political scientists. These days, you hear academics and pundits bemoaning hyperpartisanship of our politics. It has never been worse, some say. This shows a certain ignorance about history. Go…
Does the 2012 campaign look a lot like the 2004 campaign? Many Democrats think so. And there are some resemblances. As in 2004, current polling suggests a close race and shows only about a dozen states in contention. As in 2004, the incumbent has been running negative ads against the challenger, hoping to disqualify him…