Past Articles by Ron Elving
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Goodbye, Again, To Obama's Most Audacious Hope The sudden eruption of second-term scandals in his administration will have many costs for President Obama, but surely the most grievous will be the lost opportunity to transcend the partisan wars of Washington, his fondest dream for his second term, much as it was for his first. Now it seems destined to be dashed once again. |
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Goodbye, Again, To Obama's Most Audacious Hope The sudden eruption of second-term scandals in his administration will have many costs for President Obama, but surely the most grievous will be the lost opportunity to transcend the partisan wars of Washington, his fondest dream for his second term, much as it was for his first. Now it seems destined to be dashed once again. |
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Logic Behind Obama News Conference Hard To Fathom What stood out were the moments he seemed at a loss with the frustrations of dealing with Congress. But no matter how frustrating a president finds this dilemma, it does not advance his cause to wear his frustration in public. Yes, he must acknowledge the difficulties he faces, but he also needs to transcend them. |
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Logic Behind Obama News Conference Hard To Fathom What stood out were the moments he seemed at a loss with the frustrations of dealing with Congress. But no matter how frustrating a president finds this dilemma, it does not advance his cause to wear his frustration in public. Yes, he must acknowledge the difficulties he faces, but he also needs to transcend them. |
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Logic Behind Obama News Conference Hard To Fathom What stood out were the moments he seemed at a loss with the frustrations of dealing with Congress. But no matter how frustrating a president finds this dilemma, it does not advance his cause to wear his frustration in public. Yes, he must acknowledge the difficulties he faces, but he also needs to transcend them. |
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Reluctant Justices May Be Forced To Make History A look back at landmark cases makes clear that the Supreme Court never really knows exactly how its decisions will play out — especially not in the long run. That uncertainty must loom over the justices now as they contemplate the issue of gay marriage. |
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Reluctant Justices May Be Forced To Make History A look back at landmark cases makes clear that the Supreme Court never really knows exactly how its decisions will play out — especially not in the long run. That uncertainty must loom over the justices now as they contemplate the issue of gay marriage. |
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RNC Post-Election Report A Line In The Sand For Divided GOP The hard-eyed assessment of the 2012 national election by the Republican National Committee is either the first step toward the GOP's recovery or the latest sign that the party is headed for a break-up. |
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Fiscal Cliff Debate: Why The (Very) Few Rule The Many In Congress Even if the Senate were to approve a compromise package and a majority of the House (Republicans and Democrats) were prepared to accept it, the deal likely won't even be brought to the House floor for debate and a vote. How can this be? Because of the de facto "majority of the majority" rule. |
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How Sandy's Path Could Chart A Course For Romney's Victory The superstorm began its destructive tour of the American mainland in Florida, and that's where the GOP presidential nominee needs to begin his march on election night. Other states in its path included North Carolina, Virginia and New Hampshire, states where Mitt Romney has a strong chance. |
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Analysis: Romney Debate Strategy Shows He Thinks He's In the Driver's Seat The retracting of the Romney horns was too obvious to be spontaneous. That is not the way the GOP nominee and his team operate. They have decided that polls in their favor are now the contest's defining factor. So their tactics for the third debate went from "go after him" to "don't blow it." |
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George McGovern, An Improbable Icon Of Anti-War Movement The opposition to the Vietnam War was young, unconventional, countercultural and suspicious of government. McGovern himself was none of these things. At the time of his presidential nomination in 1972, the two-term Democratic senator was a decorated World War II veteran who had spent most of his adult life in politics. |
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A Stronger Showing At Hofstra, But Ghost Of Denver Still Haunts Obama The president's improved performance last night doesn't eradicate the damage from the Oct. 3 debate. Only one chance remains to do so before Election Day, so the pressure that animated the Hofstra debate will be all the greater in Monday's finale in Florida. |
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A Fighter To The End, Arlen Specter Seemed To Thrive On Controversy Over the course of three decades in the Senate, Specter's vote could be one of the hardest to get, and often the vote that made the difference. He died Sunday at the age of 82. |
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7 Signals Stolen From The Running Mates' One-Game Playoff How was the Joe Biden vs. Paul Ryan vice presidential debate like a Major League Baseball playoff game? Well, umpires (and moderators) matter, for one. Here's a list. |
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That's Why Incumbents Used To Say No Since 1976, seven sitting presidents have agreed to debate their major challengers - and nearly all of them suffered for it. Three won re-election; three lost re-election. President Obama will be the tiebreaker. |
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Republicans Or Democrats: The Choice Comes Down To Competing Myths At their conventions, the parties presented varying visions of America - as an entrepreneurial paradise where hard work, innovation and prudence are all that matters, and as a communitarian paradise where racial, national and religious differences are subsumed in a surge of shared success. Voters must decide which resonates most and why. |
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What The Democrats' Do-Over Really Says About Party Platforms Democrats had to make some hasty and awkward changes to their 2012 platform. The GOP platform passed smoothly but contains some controversial language. Important as it is to set down in writing what a political party believes in, it has become increasingly verboten to talk about it too publicly. There are two big reasons why. |
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Bill Clinton, Politics' Comeback Kid, Rides Again At The DNC The former president, who will speak tonight in North Carolina, has played a role in every Democratic National Convention since 1972. Reviewing Clinton's exploits at the past 10 annual confabs offers a set of milestones for his entire career - and recaps 40 years of convention history. |
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GOP's 'We Built It' Refrain Is Both Puzzling And Telling   The GOP's "We Built That" theme, which grew out of a gaffe by President Obama, all but took over the Tampa convention. Republicans say this line of attack, legitimate or not, highlights what they say is Obama's true attitude toward business. And they believe they can win by convincing the public that the president doesn't understand where jobs come from. |
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Ryan's Speech Revives The Spirit Of Jack Kemp, War Over Reaganomics Rep. Paul Ryan demonstrated in his convention speech that he's a true believer, much like two previous politicians he has sought to emulate: Ronald Reagan and Jack Kemp. Kemp's economic ideas were controversial decades ago, but they've gained new life in the vice presidential nominee's budget plan. |
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GOP Reaches Out To Women More In Convention Programming Than In Platform Writing The Republican National Convention is trying to build a bridge to more female voters. |
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Romney's Forces Are In Control For Now, But Maybe Not For Long ANALYSIS: The next era of conservative politics is just as likely to be dominated by the insurgents as by the forces that have brought Mitt Romney to his party's presidential nomination. |
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Tempest In Tampa: Isaac Tests Mitt Romney's Mettle ANALYSIS: The last surviving purpose of the convention is to reach a vast audience and make an impression. Perhaps the special circumstances of this week will give the Republican presidential contender a unique way to do that. |
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51 Percent Of Voters In NPR Poll Favor Amending, Not Repealing, Health Care Act More people still oppose the Affordable Care Act, but a narrow majority favor amending it rather than repealing it. The poll also shows President Obama with a 2-percentage-point lead over Mitt Romney, although they're even among voters from 12 battleground states. |
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Roberts' Ruling Recalls Other Moments When High Court Shocked The Nation Time and again, the court has shaken up American politics with pronouncements no one quite expected, from the rejection of "separate but equal" schools to the striking down of bans on gay sex. And the effects of a landmark decision may only be revealed over time. |
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Seven Ways Wisconsin's Recall Vote May Matter To You Gov. Scott Walker's recall election victory might not seem like it would have much relevance outside the Badger State. But the outcome may embolden other governors to follow Walker's lead and move against public employee unions. It also could boost conservatives and disrupt President Obama's re-election strategy. |
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How Walker Held On To His Job In Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker beat back a recall attempt in Wisconsin on Tuesday by doing what he had to do, turning out huge majorities in the Republican enclaves of the state - especially in its eastern half near Lake Michigan. |
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County-By-County Battle In Wisconsin Wisconsin votes on recalling its governor Tuesday, and much has been made of potential implications beyond the state. But while most registered Wisconsin voters are expected to turn out, they'll be thinking about the stakes for their state, not necessarily the mega issues of the presidential race. |
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For Romney, The People May Trump The Money In Associating With The Donald What Mitt Romney is looking for in Donald Trump is something he can't get from other billionaires. It is populist appeal. Trump has star power the way Sarah Palin had star power, except you won't catch him retreating to Alaska and renouncing it. |
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America's Dairyland Doubles As Test Site For Political Civil War A political civil war has raged in Wisconsin for nearly 18 months - presaging the fierce national politics of this presidential year. |
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Coloring In Electoral Map Until You're Blue (Or Red) In The Face National polls show a close race for the popular vote between President Obama and Mitt Romney, but you may find it more enlightening to look at the larger, more complex puzzle that is the Electoral College map. The state-by-state landscape is distinctly more uphill for the challenger. |
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Once Again, Santorum Keeps It Close But Falls Further Behind Rick Santorum came surprisingly close to an upset in Tuesday's Wisconsin primary, losing to Mitt Romney by less than 5 percentage points. It was not as heartbreakingly close as his previous losses in Michigan and Ohio, but it was one more reminder of what might have been. |
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How A Collapse Of The Health Care Law Could Help Democrats Down The Road The law known as "Obamacare," now in the hands of the Supreme Court, might have become anathema to all Republicans, but the ideas at its heart were meant to be a moderate, practical answer to the pressure for more government involvement. |
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How Collapse Of Health-Care Law Could Help Democrats The law known as "Obamacare," now in the hands of the Supreme Court, might have become anathema to all Republicans, but the ideas at its heart were meant to be a moderate, practical answer to the pressure for more government involvement. |
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Are Primary Republicans Chasing Romney Or The Reagan Rainbow? Were he around today, one wonders if Ronald Reagan would have the chance to grow into the figure he became. |
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Why It's Time For Newt Gingrich To Say Good Night Rick Santorum, who won the Alabama and Mississippi primaries on Tuesday, has proven himself the conservatives' favored alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney. |
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Analysis: Why It's Time For Newt Gingrich To Say Good Night Rick Santorum, who won the Alabama and Mississippi primaries on Tuesday, has proven himself the conservatives' favored alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney. |
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The Fight For The GOP Nomination Is Over, But It Still Will Go On Usually by this time in the nominating contests, the GOP has given its heart to its hero, and it's lights out for the rest. But once again, the GOP of 2012 refused to read the usual script. |
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Fight For GOP Nomination Is Over But Will Still Go On Usually by this time in the nominating contests, the GOP has given its heart to its hero, and it's lights out for the rest. But once again, the GOP of 2012 refused to read the usual script. |
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Santorum & Co. Left To Mourn What Might Have Been In Michigan The entire political industry had been poised for weeks for a Rick Santorum breakthrough in Michigan, not quite believing it could happen but believing the polls that said it could. |
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Desert Face-Off May Have Closed Out Debate Season. So What Did We Learn? Televised debates are always about expectations, and by this measure the night belonged to Mitt Romney. Flashing once again the combative style he showed last month in Florida, Romney took the fight to Rick Santorum and made the former senator look like, well, a former senator. |
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Santorum's Problem With Women Could Be His Glass Ceiling Attracting the votes of women was already the No. 1 affliction for the Republican Party in 2012. Nominating a candidate who personifies the gender gap in American politics is not a likely antidote. |
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Did Santorum Win Big Or Win Squat? What's A Nation To Believe? The results of Missouri's "beauty contest" primary and caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado may be poor indicators of the sentiment of most Republicans and independents. Instead, they show the ardor of the fraction of voters who turned out - and the potency of the abortion issue in national politics. |
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Move Over, Iowa, Nevada Has A Caucus Problem Too Some highly improbable events lately have embarrassed the host states in the presidential nominating process, including Nevada, which held its caucus Saturday night. |
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Romney Rules In First Mega-State, But Warning Flags Fly Over Florida Results ANALYSIS: Despite a sweeping victory, it was not all sweetness and light for Mitt Romney in the Sunshine State. Lacking a hero, many conservatives may have stayed home. Turnout this year was down from the primary of 2008 by 10 percentage points, more than 280,000 votes. |
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Romney Rules In First Mega-state But Warning Flags Fly Over Florida Results ANALYSIS: Despite a sweeping victory, it was not all sweetness and light for Mitt Romney in the Sunshine State. Lacking a hero, many conservatives may have stayed home. Turnout this year was down from the primary of 2008 by 10 percentage points, more than 280,000 votes. |
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GOP Presidential Contest: Is It Over Or Just Getting Started? Mitt Romney's last three rivals have started preparing their backers for a disappointment on primary night in Florida. But they still insist they're in the race until the August convention. Anything less than a show of absolute confidence has a tendency to become a self-fulfilling prophecy of doom. |
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Live By Debate, Die By Debate: Gingrich Challenge To Romney Stalls Where It Began From his assault on food stamps to his eviscerating of the news media, Newt Gingrich literally brought crowds to their feet during last week's debates in South Carolina. For a moment, you could almost hear the rebel yell. But Florida has been a different matter. |
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Obama's And Daniels' Speeches Follow Classic Party Lines ANALYSIS: There were appeals to what unites Americans, and even to what may unite the warring parties in Washington. But the spirit and bite of the address were in the throwing down of the gauntlet. |
