Over the course of her run for Senate, Elizabeth Warren used one rhetorical punch line seemingly more than any other: “I’ve run exactly one campaign in my life,” she would begin, accompanying her words with sharp jabs of the left hand, “and that was the campaign to get the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.” Sometimes, she … Read more
On November 6, 2012, Chris Murphy swept past Republican challenger (and former WWE tycoon) Linda McMahon. He earned 55% of the popular vote and won 7 of Connecticut’s 8 counties. On January 3, 2013, Murphy was officially sworn into office to become the Junior Senator from Connecticut. At 39, he is the youngest Senator serving … Read more
There’s an old saying that “if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck.” The phrase has been historically used when identifying Communists, but it also applies to newly-elected Senator Angus King (I-ME)—who looks like, swims like, and quacks like a Democrat. King is pro-choice, … Read more
With the 2012 election in the rearview mirror, the Republican Party is in the midst of large turnover. Mitt Romney—the GOP’s torch-bearer for much of 2012—has faded into the political background, busier watching boxing than offering words of leadership for his party. Paul Ryan has been nowhere to speak of during debt negotiations. Karl Rove and Dick … Read more
The Republican Party isn’t defunct-yet. The 2012 elections were hardly the referendum on failed Democratic policies that they were meant to be, and while the Republicans maintain a strong House majority, Obama is still in the White House, and a fresh crop of Democratic faces will be joining both chambers of Congress. Voter ID laws … Read more
The Republican Party is alive and well. American elections all but ensure a two-party system; the power of money and tradition will surely keep Republicans competitive. But in hopes of avoiding an extended period as the minority party—recall how Democrats controlled the House for forty years after World War II—Republicans will need to change. And … Read more
To an extent, the losing party reexamines its future after every presidential election. So what was different about 2012 for the Republicans? What needs to be done in the future? In order to find out, many point to the underlying characteristics of the electorate. An inescapable reality of 2012’s election is that it was more … Read more
I am voting for Barack Obama. That said, Mitt Romney has shown an adept understanding of the political necessities of running for president in a party governed by the remnants of the Tea Party. Governor Romney knew that primary season would be rough, but he also knew that it was his chance to convince reliable … Read more
Think back to how you thought this election would go a year ago. Regardless of your political leanings, Obama was teed up for whoever ran against him; he had everything going against him, save for a scandal. His accomplishments were unpopular, his dazzling charm was gone, and his base didn’t care. Surely the Republican nomination … Read more
Without a doubt, President Obama ran a tighter, more effective campaign. Over the summer, President Obama pummeled Governor Romney as a Wall Street executive detached from the problems of Middle Class Americans. Subsequently, Romney emerged from the summer averaging a weak 43 percent favorability among voters, his public image tarnished. In contrast, heading into the … Read more