It’s perhaps the quintessential question of the 2020 presidential election: What path should the Biden campaign take to win the 270 electoral votes needed to regain the White House? This debate has generally revolved around two options: the Rust Belt path and the Sun Belt path. The Rust Belt route consists of states that Democrats usually win, but which saw a sharp … [Read more...] about Biden Bets on A Rust Belt Path to the White House
Donald Trump and His Conventions: From Spectator to Star of the Show
Turns out you can learn quite a lot about someone by charting their history with political conventions. Last week I reviewed Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s run of DNC speeches. This week, I’m looking at Donald Trump’s RNC experiences. 1980 Ironically enough, Trump’s first convention wasn’t a Republican one. In 1980, Jimmy Carter headed north to Madison Square Garden … [Read more...] about Donald Trump and His Conventions: From Spectator to Star of the Show
What Will Joe Say?: Biden’s Past DNC Speeches and What They Can Tell Us About His Acceptance Address
As Joe Biden approaches his acceptance address for the 2020 Democratic National Convention he faces a variety of difficulties. Of course there’s the normal issues, like needing to touch on dozens of policies and reach out to countless constituencies. Now, however, the nominee must also deal with the reality that his speech will have to be delivered to an empty room with no … [Read more...] about What Will Joe Say?: Biden’s Past DNC Speeches and What They Can Tell Us About His Acceptance Address
Dems Hope to Bounce Back, and Hold On, In Biden’s Birthplace
You may not be aware of this, but despite the innumerable profiles and memes about voters in western Pennsylvania, that region was not the key to Donald Trump’s upset victory in the Keystone State. Actually it was the Northeast which ended up being the most pivotal portion of the commonwealth. For example, look at Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties, home to Scranton and … [Read more...] about Dems Hope to Bounce Back, and Hold On, In Biden’s Birthplace
Michigan Is the Canary in the Coalmine for Democrats (and Now Republicans Too)—If you want to know how a presidential campaign is going, just look at Michigan
In his memoir, Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes wrote about being with Barack Obama when the Clinton campaign requested that the President visit Michigan on the day before the 2016 election. “Michigan?” President Obama responded, “That’s not good.” Obama was right to be concerned. After all, Michigan’s been the harbinger of Democratic presidential campaigns for … [Read more...] about Michigan Is the Canary in the Coalmine for Democrats (and Now Republicans Too)—If you want to know how a presidential campaign is going, just look at Michigan