The Political Scene
Why Was It So Hard for the Democrats to Replace Biden?
After the President’s debate with Trump, Democratic politicians felt paralyzed. At the D.N.C., they felt giddy relief. How did they do it?
The Republican National Convention and the Iconography of Triumph
In Milwaukee, with a candidate who had just cheated death, the resentment rhetoric of Trump’s 2016 campaign gave way to an atmosphere of festive certainty.
John Fetterman’s War
Is the Pennsylvania senator trolling the left or offering a way forward for Democrats?
Can State Supreme Courts Preserve—or Expand—Rights?
With a lopsided conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court, progressive activists are seeking legal opportunities in state constitutions.
Mike Johnson, the First Proudly Trumpian Speaker
Though he has adopted a “nerd constitutional-law guy” persona, he is in lockstep with the law-flouting former President.
The Trials of Alejandro Mayorkas
The Secretary of Homeland Security has been forced to respond to an unprecedented flow of migrants to the U.S.-Mexico border. Why are Republicans in Congress impeaching him for it?
Jim Jordan’s Conspiratorial Quest for Power
How the Ohio Republican built an insurgent bid for Speaker on the lies of Donald Trump.
How Gretchen Whitmer Made Michigan a Democratic Stronghold
The Governor’s strategy for revitalizing her state has two parts: to grow, Michigan needs young people; to draw young people, it needs to have the social policies they want.
How Election Subversion Went Mainstream in Pennsylvania
In the state’s midterms—which could determine the balance of the Senate and the integrity of the Presidential race in 2024—Democrats are fighting for the vote. Republicans are fighting to undermine it.
Will Wisconsin’s Republicans Make Voting Meaningless, or Just Difficult?
Activists are combining voter suppression with election conspiracies to capture the state in 2022 and beyond.