Republicans
Nixon’s lessons for today’s Republicans
If the past few weeks are any indication, conservative Republicans learned very little from the 2012 election. While the party’s establishment tries to claw its way back from defeat, tea… Continue reading
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America’s new political battles begin
It may be less than a fortnight since the 2012 US elections, but it’s never too early to start speculating about what might happen in the next ones. So here’s… Continue reading
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Race, gay marriage and modern Conservatism. Lessons for David Cameron from America. - Spectator Blogs
So, we’ve had nearly a week to digest the results of the American election and contemplate what, if anything, it might all mean for politics there and, naturally, in this… Continue reading
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Briefing: The US fiscal cliff
With the elections over and Barack Obama returned to the White House for four more years, the attention of US politicians has turned to the so-called ‘fiscal cliff’ — a… Continue reading
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The Romney campaign meets electoral reality
When I worked in Washington, I was shown round the White House by a junior Bush administration staffer. As our group made it round the building we passed various photos… Continue reading
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The View from the Cocoon of Denial and Epistemic Closure - Spectator Blogs
William F Buckley has, alas, gone the way of all flesh but his National Review lives on and arguably remains the flagship journal of contemporary American conservatism. It certainly considers… Continue reading
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US election 2012: Obama’s re-election
In the end, Barack Obama won re-election comfortably. The Obama political team again demonstrated its ability to get the vote out where it needed it. The margin might have been… Continue reading
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Barack Obama is Re-Elected President of the United States - Spectator Blogs
Well, I was wrong. I thought Mitt Romney might do rather better than it seems he has. As I type this CNN has just called Ohio for Barack Obama, confirming… Continue reading
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Presidential Predictions: Barack Obama 294 Mitt Romney 244 - Spectator Blogs
Asked my prediction a few days ago, I looked at all the possibilities and plumped for Obama 294, Romney 244. This is tediously in the middle of the general range… Continue reading
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Barack Obama Deserves A Second Term - Spectator Blogs
No matter the result of today’s Presidential election, it will not be Morning in America tomorrow. Of course the successful candidate will talk of America’s essential greatness. He will promise… Continue reading
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Why I would vote for Mitt Romney
What is the role of a commentator in an election in which he or she cannot vote? And how would I vote tomorrow if I could? The response of many… Continue reading
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The real Mitt Romney and why the American right can take heart
Iain Duncan Smith last night threw his weight behind Mitt Romney in a manner his colleagues have been reluctant to do. He told Pienaar’s Politics that he was unimpressed with… Continue reading
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The Continental Divide: Why are Red States So Red and Blue States So Blue? - Spectator Blogs
So, for the third time in the last four American elections it looks as though this contest is gonna be a close one. As in 2004, however, the narrow-but-significant advantage… Continue reading
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The Republican party didn't leave Michael Bloomberg. He was never really in it. - Spectator Blogs
If two things could have been predicted about Hurricane Sandy it was that, first, far too many people would waste time pondering the likely impact of the storm upon next… Continue reading
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US Elections: Will everything just stay the same?
We’re now just a week away from election day in the United States. And after all the campaign rallies, all the debates, all the billions of dollars spent, it looks… Continue reading
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Vice-President Biden closes the enthusiasm gap
The conventional wisdom dictates that debates between VP candidates are nights that should only interest political anoraks. But the last eight days have not been good for conventional wisdom: remember… Continue reading
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‘Are you better off?’ won’t be a winning debate line for Mitt Romney
‘Are you better off than you were four years ago?’ That was the question Ronald Reagan told Americans to ask themselves when choosing their President in 1980, and it’s a… Continue reading
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Mitt Romney is no George W Bush. That’s a problem.
Failed presidencies have long half-lives. Just ask Walter Mondale or Michael Dukakis. Jimmy Carter’s legacy wasn’t the only reason they lost but they certainly received no assistance from the great… Continue reading
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God, guns,welfare: conspiracy theories about working class Americans
Mitt Romney has been caught saying what he really thinks – or in modern journalistic jargon has committed a ‘gaffe’. Serious American commentators believe that his election challenge is all… Continue reading
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Democrats pull ahead in key US Senate races
When I looked at the battle for the United States Senate back in July, I said it’d be tough for the Democrats to retain control. But since then — and… Continue reading
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