US Opinion and Commentary

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Clinton’s Iowa Performance Reveals New Fault Lines for Democrats

Posted February 5th, 2016 at 4:48 pm (UTC-4)
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Both candidates have claimed, in different ways, to be the proper heir to Obama’s legacy. They’ve argued about how they’ll build on his accomplishments while altering the status quo…. The status quo doesn’t mean the same thing to all Democrats. Those who haven’t prospered during the Obama years may be ready for a bigger change.

Where Jeb Bush Went Horribly Wrong

Posted February 3rd, 2016 at 1:19 pm (UTC-4)
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The thesis of the Bush campaign is that voters crave a competent manager to make reasonable decisions — not a celebrity or a personality. This, of course, is ludicrous, a total misunderstanding of the modern presidency. And I can prove it. My first witness is his father.

It’s Only Iowa

Posted February 2nd, 2016 at 3:45 pm (UTC-4)
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The results of the Iowa caucuses matter because they are the very first votes cast in this year’s presidential race. Then again, political experts remind us over and over and over again that there is still a LONG way to go: 49 other nominating contests must take place before either party has a nominee that must then fight it out to win the White House. So, yes, Iowa is just a peculiar snapshot, but the way it all unfolded confirms the nature of this campaign: anti-establishment ideas have traction… and, yes, Donald Trump remains unpredictable: his concession speech to opponent Ted Cruz was low-key and dignified.

The Rise of Bernie Sanders – the Fall of America

Posted February 1st, 2016 at 2:02 pm (UTC-4)
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The fact that Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-declared Socialist, is heating up the campaign trail against the one-time presumptive primary winner, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, is one of the biggest tragedies facing America right now. It also happens to be one of the most under-reported.    

Next Stop: Iowa

Posted January 29th, 2016 at 2:32 pm (UTC-4)
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A year ago, the 2016 presidential race was a bit of a yawn. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush was the presumptive Republican nominee and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was headed for a landslide on the Democratic side. A lot can change in a year’s time. Clinton is locked in a tight race with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and Donald Trump’s wildly unconventional campaign has sucked up all the air in the Republican Party. On Monday, the Iowa caucus will turn polling data into actual votes. Historically, an Iowa win has not guaranteed a White House win. But as everyone agrees, this is no ordinary American election season. And with so many other local factors – a majority white population, rural, active evangelicals, the cold weather – predicting the outcome is especially difficult.

GOP insiders: It Was a Rough Night for Ted Cruz

Posted January 29th, 2016 at 12:45 pm (UTC-4)
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More than 4 in 10 GOP insiders — given the choice of the seven GOP candidates on the stage, plus Trump — rated Cruz as the loser of Thursday night’s debate, citing his defensive posture on his past immigration stances and opposition to ethanol subsidies.

Barack, Hillary and Bernie

Posted January 13th, 2016 at 2:24 pm (UTC-4)
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Keeping with tradition, President Obama is traveling to the American heartland to sell his State of the Union message. That message — the country is in better shape than the presidential campaign rhetoric makes it out to be — seems to be aimed helping his party continue to occupy the White House and burnish his legacy. As most of the media attention is focused on the fractious campaign among Republicans, the race between democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders is getting closer and more contentious. How unscathed either can emerge will go a long way to determine how shiny the Obama legacy will look.