‘Truth decay’ infected politics before Trump
The president announces 11 ‘Fake News awards,’ as a new RAND Corporation study explores the growing disagreement about basic facts.
Episodes
The Daily 202's Big Idea
Start your day with the news you need to know and insights you can’t get anywhere else. Every weekday morning, The Washington Post brings you an insider’s view of the biggest stories of the moment.
Episodes
An unexpected defeat in a rural Wisconsin special election sets off alarm bells for Republicans
The lesson here for national Democrats: Patty Schachtner is the sort of candidate who can actually defeat a GOP incumbent in red congressional districts this fall.
Denials of a profane Trump comment encapsulate why people distrust politicians so much
Republican Senators Tom Cotton (Ga.) and David Perdue (Ark.) have put all the Republicans who were in the room into a tough spot.
James will be back on Tuesday
James and The Washington Post are off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Trump has failed to nominate anyone for hundreds of important jobs in the executive branch
The president badly lags his predecessors in filling mid-level posts that make government work.
Meet the Trump nominees who couldn’t get confirmed by the GOP Senate, but are still in government
The list includes Sam Clovis and Brett Talley.
It’s perilous to have a president who doesn’t know history
Donald Trump wholeheartedly embraced earmarks Tuesday as a lubricant to grease the gears of government, drawing cheers from the swamp he promised to drain.
Trump is systematically alienating the Latino diaspora
A Manchurian Candidate who was secretly trying to alienate Hispanics would be hard pressed to do as much damage to the Republican brand as President Trump has.
Why Trump and Republicans are suddenly talking up bipartisanship
The best way to run against Washington in 2018 is by calling for an end to gridlock and dysfunction.
Trump's off-shore drilling and marijuana announcements anger Republicans
With the proposed expansion of offshore drilling and a crackdown on legal marijuana, the Trump administration created huge political headaches Thursday for scores of Republicans who were already facing a tough environment in 2018.
Trump’s break with Bannon shows the limits of loyalty
President Trump’s insistence that Steve Bannon, his former chief strategist and a top aide at the White House until five months ago, was a mere “staffer” is akin to Joseph Stalin trying to erase Leon Trotsky from the history of the Russian Revolution.
North Korea my-button-is-bigger brinkmanship again spotlights Trump’s fixation on size
Following President Trump’s tweets can feel like watching a short man drive a Hummer
Trump’s true priorities revealed in holiday news dumps
Trump's political appointees in Washington worked overtime over the holidays to deconstruct the administrative state and eviscerate several of Barack Obama’s signature achievements.
Political questions for 2018
To celebrate the new year, we're re-running the last Big Idea of 2017. In it, James poses several questions that he think will shape 2018.
Dec. 29 Headlines
Producer Anne Li fills in for James with three headlines that should be on your radar.
Dec. 28 Headlines
Producer Anne Li fills in for James with three headlines that should be on your radar.
Dec. 27 Headlines
Producer Anne Li fills in for James with three headlines that should be on your radar.
Dec. 26 Headlines
Producer Anne Li fills in for James with three headlines that should be on your radar.
Will President Trump’s second year go better than his first?
These are the big questions we want answered in 2018 about Mueller and the midterms.
Why Democrats are confident that the tax bill will be an albatross for Republicans
James spoke with Democratic operatives who argued passionately that the tax bill is not going to become a winner for the other side – even if some people see benefits.
The tax bill is likely to become more popular after it passes, because expectations are so low
The bill is historically unpopular. But in the short-term, the majority will actually benefit from it. And several outside groups are planning ad campaigns to make sure you know it.
Why does a Louisiana GOP senator keeps bringing down Trump judicial nominees?
After John Neely Kennedy helped torpedo three would-be judges in just the past week, the White House is paying attention.
Trump risks losing the last remnant of his populist street cred with GOP tax bill
The narrative of President Trump’s first year will shift this week when he signs into law the biggest overhaul of the tax code in three decades.
Democrats risk overplaying their hand by pushing for President Trump’s resignation
Many politically-savvy Democrats worry that fighting over whether Trump should resign is not the way to win in 2018.
Revolt against Trump in the suburbs continued in Alabama
The backlash in the suburbs against President Trump is one of the most significant political stories of 2017. If Democrats win the House next year, it will be the main reason why.
Jeff Sessions’s Senate seat will now be held by a Democrat
Democrats win a stunning victory in Alabama – and Trump suffers another humiliating defeat.
Washington Governor Jay Inslee on the 2018 governor's races
There are 36 governor’s races next year, including 26 in states currently held by Republicans. Inslee, the new chairman of the Democratic governors association, thinks Trump will be so toxic in 2018 that Dem candidates won’t need to mention him.
Alabama’s desire not to be embarrassed may be the best thing going for Democrats
The U.S. Senate special election in Alabama is tomorrow.
Democrats are struggling to activate black voters in the Alabama Senate race
Interviews in the town that inspired ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ reveal pervasive African-American fears that their votes won’t make a difference.
Women lawmakers in both parties are leading the push to address sexual harassment
The willingness of women lawmakers to directly confront the pervasive culture of sexual harassment that exists in Congress will offer a data point for female candidates in 2018 to make the case that there needs to be more women on Capitol Hill.