David Atkins

As the People’s Summit comes to a close in Chicago, the backlash from mainstream reporters is already coming in. Perhaps the best case in point comes in this New York Times piece by Alexander Burns and Jonathan Martin, which posits a clash between party leaders who “want to win” in tough districts, and militant base […]

A few days ago our own Martin Longman made a good case for why Donald Trump might well be impeached by his own party: put simply, Trump has become a such swelling liability to the GOP from both a public relations and legislative standpoint that they can’t live with him any more than they can live without […]

This is not a good week for Jeff Sessions. While Donald Trump and James Comey play a he-said/he-said game, the week’s biggest loser has to be the Attorney General. In a closed door session, Comey reportedly revealed that Sessions had had a third undisclosed meeting with Russian officials. The former FBI Director indicated that Sessions’ compromising […]

If the definition is insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, then we may want to check on the mental health of many center left pundits. While some of us argued early that Trump could indeed win the Rust Belt with a coalition of disaffected voters, the serious […]

I’ve written before that, much as we all may argue about the respective roles of bigotry and economic anxiety in the rise of the global far-right movement, sometimes there are stories that lead to a third conclusion: “conservatism” has in some parts of the world taken on all the aspects of cult dogma, little different […]

It is no longer surprising when Trump and his inner circle are revealed to to have done something corrupt, self-dealing or even borderline treasonous. Their characters are well spoken for by now. Of more interest as a character study are those who throw their credibility onto the fire to defend this Administration, often knowing that […]

Trump badly needs a change in narrative. But he’s not going to get one. With Russia scandals looming over his personal family, his policy agenda in tatters and his main defender Fox News cratering in viewership, Trump is blaming his communications apparatus and considering a major overhaul just a few months into his presidency. His approval […]

While Russia dominates the headlines, the greatest damage the Trump administration is doing to the country and the world is at the G7 summit, as Trump prepares to take the United States out of the Paris climate accords: President Trump has privately told multiple people, including EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, that he plans to leave […]