The extraordinary breadth of Hunter Biden’s pardon
President Joe Biden’s pardon of son Hunter for any offenses over a nearly 11-year period doesn’t have many, if any, direct historical parallels.
By Aaron BlakeWhat to make of Trump’s Cabinet picks
On some Cabinet picks, President-elect Donald Trump’s strategy is clear: disruption and retribution.
By Amber PhillipsHow to argue about politics on Thanksgiving — with the facts
From tariffs to deportations, here are the facts about some of the heated issues that could come up on Thanksgiving.
By Amber PhillipsAmericans’ many contradictions on Trump’s agenda
Mass deportation and tariffs are among the proposals on which Americans’ views contain multitudes.
By Aaron BlakeEven Republicans want a check on Trump
Three-quarters of Americans and a majority of Republicans say they want Republicans in Congress to push back on Donald Trump when they disagree.
By Aaron Blake2024 is the year Democrats lost their populist edge
New polling reinforces a reason Democrats lost in 2024: Voters increasingly see the GOP as speaking for -- and to -- them.
By Aaron BlakeThe key 2024 election results you might have missed
State legislative and Supreme Court races were not terribly decisive, while we saw setbacks for ranked-choice voting and minimum-wage increases.
By Aaron BlakeMandate? Fuller election results increasingly show GOP gains were small.
A holistic look — down to the state legislative level — reinforces that early Trump and GOP claims to a huge “mandate” were overblown.
By Aaron BlakeThe diciest Trump Cabinet picks, ranked
Evaluating the factors that could give enough Republican senators pause in confirming Trump’s picks.
By Aaron BlakeTrump’s Cabinet picks, and the morality problem
A number of Trump’s picks have major personal skeletons, including troubled sexual histories, but does the GOP care?
By Aaron BlakeDemocrats blame Biden more than Harris for 2024 loss
Parsing the initial blame-game polls.
By Aaron BlakeThe Senate Republicans balking at Trump’s Cabinet picks
A look at who has declined to express support for Gaetz, Kennedy, Gabbard and Hegseth.
By Aaron BlakeChecks and balances? Some GOP lawmakers say just do whatever Trump wants.
Republican lawmakers increasingly say not only that Trump has a mandate, but that his mandate is all that matters.
By Aaron BlakeWhy Matt Gaetz is such a controversial pick for attorney general
Trump has been nominating loyalists to serve in his Cabinet, and nowhere is that more obvious than in his pick for attorney general: Rep. Matt Gaetz.
By Amber PhillipsTrump’s picks take a bizarre — and extreme — turn
What Matt Gaetz, Pete Hegseth and Tulsi Gabbard bring with them.
By Aaron BlakeThe best and worst candidates of 2024
Republicans ran fewer obviously flawed candidates than they had in 2022, but underperformances still cost them big.
By Aaron BlakeAmericans elected Trump. They might not like what comes next.
A look at how Americans feel about some of Trump’s more controversial potential policies.
By Aaron BlakeDid abortion ballot measures backfire on Democrats?
It’s plausible, but the evidence suggests Democrats’ failure to win the messaging battle played a bigger role.
By Aaron BlakeTrump’s mandate isn’t as ‘powerful’ as he suggests. Here’s why.
The size of Trump’s and the GOP’s perceived and actual mandate has huge implications for what lies ahead.
By Aaron BlakeCould Democrats still win the House?
It appears unlikely, but unpredictable and slow-counting California looms large.
By Aaron Blake