In the face of science march protests all around the world today, Donald Trump tweeted the following in his defense: I am committed to keeping our air and water clean but always remember that economic growth enhances environmental protection. Jobs matter! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2017 Let’s set aside the factual inaccuracy that […]
David Atkins
Follow David on Twitter @DavidOAtkins. David Atkins is a Washington Monthly contributing writer, activist, and research professional living in Santa Barbara as well as an elected DNC Member from California. He is president of The Pollux Group, a qualitative research firm.
Posted inPolitical Animal
Clearing the Field for Clinton Was Democrats’ Biggest Mistake in 2016
More candidates would have lessened the infighting in the party.
Posted inPolitical Animal
There Is Nothing Left of Trump’s Supposed Economic Populism
Entire oceans of ink have been spilled over the question of how much of Trump’s support came from prejudice versus economic anxiety (hint: it’s both and they’re interconnected.) But no matter the answer, what’s clear by now is that Trump’s economic populist agenda on behalf of the white working class no longer exists if it […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
There Is No Good Answer in the Middle East
Writing about foreign policy in the Middle East is hard. The purpose of political writing is to create policy guideposts for leaders to follow, and to elucidate confusing policy and partisan knots for readers. Writers like us prove ourselves not only by our skill with words and our ability to provide moral clarity, but also […]
Posted inPolitical Animal
Kushner, Cohn and Their Wall Street Friends Are Not Moderates or Centrists
When discussing the Game of Thrones backstabbing feuds in the White House, it is common for the media to describe Bannon and his friends as far-right extremists in conflict with results-oriented “centrists” like Trump’s son-in-law Kushner and Goldman Sachs executive Gary Cohn. This Axios story is typical of the genre: Steve Bannon, the engine and […]
Posted inUncategorized
Syria and North Korea Are Not Impressed
Yesterday I pointed out the shoddy thinking behind the notion that Trump’s airstrikes in Syria were an effective “message” to either Assad or other adversarial states. The airstrikes themselves were wildly ineffective. America’s options against the Syrian regime remain limited. A ground war would be stupid, air strikes alone accomplish very little, and there is […]
Posted inUncategorized
What “Message” Was Sent By The Airstrikes in Syria?
Most of the media is still giving Trump high praise for launching airstrikes against Syria, for reasons that continue to elude me. Even critical pieces like this one by James Rubin at the New York Times still call it a “policy success.” Of the major pundits not explicitly associated with the left or the alt-right, only […]
Posted inUncategorized
Will Republicans Actually Face Consequences From Their Base for Failing to Repeal the ACA?
With each new Republican attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act again crashing of the rocks of political reality, we get treated to Republicans warning of dire electoral consequences from failing to act on their biggest campaign promise. Case in point: President Donald Trump warned House Republicans Tuesday if they can’t pass health care legislation after […]
Posted inFeatured, Political Animal
The Two Bad Explanations for Trump’s Airstrikes in Syria
Is the president a foolish hothead or a cynical opportunist?
Posted inPolitical Animal
Trump’s Reality Distortion Field is Shattering
Greg Sargent at the Washington Post has long been making the case that Trump’s main communications strategy is to assault the notion of shared objective reality itself. In Trumpworld, the only arbiter of crowd sizes or climate science or wiretapping is Donald Trump himself, and everything else is “fake news” regardless of what facts might invalidate […]
