Tom Nichols/The Atlantic:
The Trump-Biden Rematch Is Inevitable
The choices will be a traditional American politician or a de facto cult leader—again.
But Trump and Biden are likely to be renominated for very different reasons. Obviously, Biden is the incumbent—and, as I have argued, has been a remarkably successful president under difficult circumstances. Whatever the grousing from Democratic faithful, parties do not torpedo their own president: The only sitting chief executive who was elected in his own right and then denied renomination for another term was Franklin Pierce, in 1856. (Four others were denied nomination after becoming president upon the death of the incumbent.)
My colleague Mark Leibovich, however, has suggested that Biden’s age is too big a problem to ignore, and that the Democrats would benefit from a contested primary:
The public silence around the president’s predicament has become tiresome and potentially catastrophic for the Democratic Party. Somebody should make a refreshing nuisance of themselves and involve the voters in this decision.
I don’t quite agree. Biden, as the expression goes, has lost a step, but I kind of like the new Joe Biden. As a senator and a vice president, Biden was often a great source of Kinsley gaffes, the accidental truth-telling that made him a must-watch on the Sunday shows. Biden as president is different, and not just older. There’s a greater seriousness to him, a somberness, and an obvious weight on his shoulders. To me, that’s a better Biden.
Michael Tomasky/The New Republic:
Here’s the Gutsy, Unprecedented Campaign Biden and the Democrats Need to Run
The party needs a clear hold on power in Washington to deliver big economic boons to the American people. To do that, they need to make a big promise to voters.
Democrats appreciate that he ran in 2020 and beat Trump and that he’s passed some impressive bills. Under normal circumstances, that would be enough. Incumbents usually run on some version of “stay the course”; we’ve moved things in the right direction, and this is no time to switch. But that won’t be enough this time. The “wrong track” number in this Morning Consult daily poll (69 percent last Monday) has been higher on average for the last year than it was during most of Trump’s presidency. And there could be a recession coming—one rather inconveniently timed, from the Democratic point of view. If additional economic headwinds start to blow, that wrong track number is likely to go even higher.
So no—the circumstances don’t call for a stay the course campaign. Biden should do something bigger and bolder. He and the Democratic candidates for Senate and House should run a unified campaign. They should say to America: Elect us—give us the White House, 52 Senate seats, and a House majority—and we’ll reform the filibuster and, by Memorial Day 2025, we’ll pass a platter of bills all aimed at helping the middle class and fulfilling the Biden motto that the economy grows from the middle out and the bottom up, not the top down.
Abortion, democracy, and freedom are on the ballot. it’s a choice election. The rest follows.
Margaret Sullivan/The Guardian:
Tucker Carlson was Fox News’ biggest star. Then he became its biggest liability
Carlson has been far more than a cable-news host over the half-dozen years since he took that prominent evening slot and became Fox’s most-watched personality.
He has been America’s chief fomenter of populist resentments, its go-to guy for the politics of grievance and – despite his smarmy demeanor, and aging prep-school appearance – he’s been a twisted kind of working-class hero.
“Carlson has been uniquely dangerous and damaging – the leading figure in the right’s larger undertaking of making stuff up and inciting a hate-filled narrative against the educated, cosmopolitan elite,” said Linda Hirshman, an author and cultural historian who studies and writes about social movements.
Andrew Prokop/Vox:
Tucker Carlson was doing something different — and darker — than most Fox hosts
And that’s why his departure really matters.
It might sound odd to claim that a TV host losing his program is seismic news for American politics, but with Tucker Carlson’s exit from Fox News, that claim is justified.
Like the rest of his Fox colleagues, Carlson’s main job was winning eyeballs to the network — and he was very successful at that.
But he was also engaged in a different and more ambitious project from, say, Sean Hannity. Rather than just cheerleading for Trump or the Republican Party or the Fox News company line, Carlson was articulating an ideology.
Some call it conservative populism, or national conservatism, while critics say it’s akin to white nationalism. It’s an ideology that panders to many Americans’ bigoted and xenophobic impulses, their resentments and their grievances. It welcomes in voices denounced by others as racist, and delights in mocking “woke” liberals. It promotes conspiracy theories. It admires foreign leaders denounced by others as authoritarians. It denounces “elites,” the traditional establishments of both parties, and the long-held commitments of US foreign policy.
Bernie Belvedere/Arc Digital (from before the firing):
The Tucker Files
What Tucker believes in the privacy of his own home doesn’t really matter
In fact, it’s quite possible Tucker’s personal feelings about Trump go far harder than those of most Trump critics. Calling him a “demonic force” and admitting to “passionately” hating him—there is serious bite behind these words.
The problem, as I’ve been arguing, is that Tucker’s been singing an entirely different tune in public.
Predictably, after the texts came out, Tucker made sure to walk back his words:
I spent four years defending his policies. … And I’m pretty straight-forward, I love Trump. Like, as a person, I think Trump is funny and insightful.
But neither his private texts nor this public disavowal really matter all that much. What matters is what he does day in and day out in his primary arena of influence. And there, in that space, Tucker’s been about as pro-Trump as it is possible to be.
Liam Donovan/”Donovan’s Reef” on Substack (a Republican perspective):
Everything You Wanted to Know About the Debt Limit Fight But Were Afraid to Ask
So why did they do this?
Since their initial meeting at the White House in early February, Speaker McCarthy has been unable to engage President Biden in further talks, with Biden plainly stating he would not negotiate over the debt limit, and would only discuss spending after Republicans release their budget. On the heels of a McCarthy speech at the New York Stock Exchange meant to sound the alarm to Wall Street, Republicans released this package as a means of establishing a consensus House negotiating position, and forcing the President to the table.
Is the White House’s refusal to negotiate a tenable position?
From the standpoint of the White House, the current posture makes sense for three reasons:
Why bail Republicans out if they can’t get their act together? Make them demonstrate they can be a functional majority.
To the extend they trust the Speaker to bargain in good faith, what’s it worth if he can’t be counted on to corral the votes? Make this leadership team demonstrate their ability to whip.
Unless Republicans display a willingness to vote for a debt limit increase—even a conditional one—who is to say that default on Biden’s watch isn’t the goal? Make them show that they’re looking for a productive offramp.
That’s the calculus today. Whether it continues to make sense depends what House Republicans can muster next week.
In the end, for the “clean increase, no negotiations” position to be sustainable, Biden must be prepared to either outlast the political will of Republicans, or use some novel executive action (more on that later.)
Donovan’s a relatively honest hack (term of affection) and worth reading.
Watching GOP “moderates” cave to McCarthy’s hostage on the debt limit is a reminder of several things:
- They aren’t moderates, they’re just not insurrectionists. But the DC press can’t help themselves
- They can never be counted on to do the right thing.
- These are Republicans we are talking about, and party always comes over country; it’s to be expected (as anyone in D.C. will explain to you like you’re 5 years old).
Just don’t get numb to it when it happens.
Jonathan Chait/New York Magazine:
Kevin McCarthy’s Main Debt-Ceiling Argument Is a Lie
A clean hike can’t pass? Of course it can.
So why are they doing this? Punchbowl, the Capitol Hill newsletter that is known for being very close with McCarthy, explains the stakes quite clearly:
McCarthy simply wants to get to the negotiating table with President Joe Biden and top Democrats. To do that, it’s imperative that House Republicans pass this bill. Otherwise, the House could be forced to move a clean debt limit increase this summer. That’s exactly what Biden wants, but it would be devastating for McCarthy.
Passing the bill means McCarthy keeps alive his hopes of extracting a ransom from Biden. Failing to pass the bill means he would be forced to give up the extortion scheme and simply raise the debt ceiling. That outcome would certainly be “devastating for McCarthy.” But should the rest of us care?
Alaska Supreme Court, in landmark ruling, says partisan gerrymandering violates state constitution
The decision follows a contentious recent reapportionment cycle: The Alaska Redistricting Board was twice found by the state’s highest court of having unconstitutionally gerrymandered the state’s political maps by attempting to give solidly Republican Eagle River more political representation with two Senate seats. Following a court order, the board approved an interim map last year for November’s general election that kept Eagle River intact in one Senate district.
The court ruled Friday that the redistricting board would have 90 days to appear before a Superior Court judge and show cause why the interim political map should not be used until the 2032 general election. A board meeting hasn’t been scheduled yet to discuss the court’s decision, but that could happen as soon as next week.
This is a BFD and should not be overlooked. Alaska is home to Denali, a sane state Supreme Court, Ranked Choice Voting … and is pro-fish, to boot.
Greg Dworkin
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