The Magic of Ben Shapiro
How Ben Shapiro helped build a conservative movement Trump could thrive in.
Alabama Pulls Back the Curtain
In which the victory of Roy Moore deflates the myth that Trumpism is primarily about Trump.
Conservatives should look to Robert Peel
American conservatives should consider the example of Robert Peel in trying to figure out the way forward.
GOPocalypse, Part 5: The Miner and Sapper
Ted Cruz’s role was more indirect than that of his rivals. But he could have done more.
GOPocalypse, Part 4: The Longshot
John Kasich ran a vanity campaign that never really began. He was the last opponent to drop out.
GOPocalypse, Part 2: The Upstart
Marco Rubio had a really good shot at the prize.
The Myth of the Press’s Anti-Trump October Surprise
Those who claim the press have been conspiring to sit on stories about Donald Trump haven’t been paying attention to the press.
GOPocalypse, Part 1: On Contingency
Trump was never inevitable.
The Republican Party and the Right After Trump
Trump’s trolling prank in Mexico and the future of the Right in the United States.
Better With My Memories and Dreams (And Without You)
So what exactly is Trump doing?
From the Journal of Reince Priebus…
Reince Priebus defends himself.
Kamikaze Cruz vs The Convention
In which a human Molotov Cocktail flings himself in the right direction.
Primary Bloodshed: Making It Stop
Everything went terribly. Here are some suggestions to make them go less terribly next time.
How To Fix a Broken Elephant: A Recipe for Electoral Health In Six Incredibly Difficult Steps
America desperately needs a disciplined, conservative political party — a thing the GOP has not been for quite some time. Here are the six steps those small-c conservatives of the #NeverTrump variety will have to take if they want to stem the rise of Trumpism in their party.
The Republican Nomination and the Language of Popular Democracy
Republicans need to challenge the implicit frame of the coverage of their nominating process.
Most Roads Led to Rubio, but…
Almost 7 in 10 Republican delegates have already been awarded. What have we learned?
It Ain’t Theft If It’s Legal
The party doesn’t owe the plurality leader diddly squat. It is known what he has to do. He has to actually do it.
Seeing Through the Unseen
A reply to Dan Scotto on conservatism and the GOP.
The GOP, Reform, and the Urban Vote
The GOP dreams of winning the urban vote while missing the point of why liberals vote the way they do.
The Republican Field, As Written By Hollywood
The cast of the GOP primaries is just horrible. Who wrote this crap and how were these characters conceived?
Rubio: You must act.
Abraham Lincoln has a letter for Marco Rubio.
Voice of the Senate
History repeats, cycles become complete… Word to the (partisan) drumbeat.
From Chris Christie Headquarters, February 2015
Just lie.
What Would a Trump Victory Tell Us About the Republican Party?
If Trump is the nominee, we will have learned something about American politics. But what?
This Just IN: Pravda on the Wabash
The Governor of Indiana is about to launch a state-run news service that will compete with agencies such as the Associated Press even as it controls access to public information. It is an idea that is terrible for a number of reasons, the primary one being this:
It might well work.
The Donald Sterling Scandal as a Minority Outreach Case Study
The public aftermath of the racist comments by the NBA Clippers’ owner offers a perfect microcosm for why the GOP fails so spectacularly at minority outreach. It also offers insight as to how that can reality be changed.
The Right Path, Part I: “To look more hard working”
The second in a four part series that argues that the left is headed down the same path toward the wilderness that the right began two decades ago. Before we look at the left, however, we must first examine the actual path blazed by movement conservatives.
I’ve Got the Immigration Blues
The reason the GOP should pass an immigration bill is for its long-term viability. The party isn’t going anywhere any time soon, but the numbers show that relying solely on the white vote will make it harder to win the White House and Congress, not easier.
Thoughts on Double Down
I plowed through Double Down, which I recommend if you are one of the relative few who belong both to the set of people who like politics and the set of people who are not put off by tittle-tattle and long-winded descriptions of a win-at-any-cost mentality.
Democrats need to get out of the Republicans’ way
It might not look like it, but Democrats are losing the government shutdown debate. The closer Congress gets to a deal, the less space there’ll be to negotiate when the next budget crisis comes knocking.
The 10 Biggest Lies Being Told About the Government Shutdown
If you’ve been listening to cable news, talk radio or your local Republican Congressman talk about our current government shutdown, chances are that much or all of what you’ve heard is a lie. Here is a list of the ten biggest whoppers being floated today.
Wishes Won’t Change the GOP
No, the GOP won’t change because of losing an election. They will change when moderates and independents give a damn.
Walking Through the Flogging Door*
Uh oh. I agree with the GOP again. Sort of.
This Is Why the GOP Can’t Have Nice Things
Maybe Georgia Republicans were right after all; maybe Obama really does a Marvel-comics-like mind control ray. How else does one explain the obliviously self-destructive actions of Rand Paul and the entire right-wing media machine this past week? Last week had been shaping up so nicely for the opposition party. The IRS, long-time scourge of conservatives…
“You don’t ‘seize’ the center, you create the center”
When I learned it, I thought the motion for this month’s Intelligence Squared U.S. debate – “The GOP Must Seize the Center or Die” – was simply dreadful. How could the opposing case possibly be made without fighting a losing battle with the proposition itself? Of course the GOP needs to win more votes from the center; of course they’ve been successfully characterized as out-of-touch with centrists. And indeed, the pre-debate poll showed a staggering 65% in favor of the […]
The GOP’s Self-inflicted Wound
Ezra Klein flags an interesting Gallup result showing rare uniformity in American public opinion. Turns out near everyone, Republicans included, thinks the GOP is intransigent. And they don’t like it: [Twenty-two] percent of Democrats, 17 percent of independents, and fully 26 percent of Republicans complained that the GOP refuses to compromise. That’s rather remarkable: It turns out…
