“I don’t question his motives. And I try not to question the president’s motives as being a good American or a bad American.”
— Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), quoted by CNN, on whether President Obama loves America.
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“Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), the No. 2 Senate Democrat, announced on Wednesday that he would not be seeking reelection, capping off a decades-long Senate career,” The Hill reports. Save to…
“The Trump administration is considering slashing its steep tariffs on Chinese imports—in some cases by more than half—in a bid to de-escalate tensions with Beijing that have roiled global trade…
“President Trump’s penchant for chaos — overload the media, public and government with disorienting action and controversial figures — is mass-producing … chaos, everywhere,” Axios reports. “As Trump’s 2.0 administration…
Wall Street Journal: “The wealthiest have gotten richer, and control a record share of America’s wealth. New data suggest $1 trillion of wealth was created for the 19 richest American…
Adrienne LaFrance: “Look around, take stock of where you are, and know this: Today, right now—and I mean right this second—you have the most power you’ll ever have in the…
“Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla, said on Tuesday that China’s halt on exports of certain magnets was affecting his plans to build humanoid robots, in the clearest signal…
Tom Nichols: “Pete Hegseth was never qualified to be the secretary of defense. Donald Trump should never have nominated him, Hegseth should never have accepted the nomination, and the Senate…
“The CEOs of three of the nation’s biggest retailers — Walmart, Target and Home Depot — privately warned him that his tariff and trade policy could disrupt supply chains, raise…
Playbook: “This gruesome FT chart offers a helpful illustration of exactly what’s spooking the White House. Normally, if the U.S. takes a nasty economic hit — such as during Covid-19…
“HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is weighing pulling the Covid-19 vaccine from the government’s list of recommended immunizations for children,” Politico reports. “Eliminating the vaccine from the CDC schedule…
“This is not a secret court, an inquisition in medieval times. This is the United States of America.” — U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, quoted by Reuters, on President Trump’s…
Paul Krugman: “What the hell was the Treasury secretary doing giving a closed-door briefing on a significant policy change that hadn’t yet been officially announced? Isn’t that a setup for…
CNN: “Trump has since been soliciting feedback from people around him about Hegseth’s performance during conversations… So far, most, if not all, has been positive about the Pentagon chief. Trump…
Playbook: “Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will seek to reassure global markets this morning as the White House shifts to full-on defense-mode on the economy. Bessent — basking in his role…
“President Trump has signaled a potential U-turn on his trade war with China amid continued market volatility,” CNN reports. “Trump’s remarks appear to mark a rhetorical climbdown after weeks of…
“Stock futures climbed on Wednesday morning after President Donald Trump said he doesn’t plan to remove Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell from his post as central bank leader,” CNBC reports….
“A trio of federal judges excoriated the Trump administration Tuesday over its immigration crackdown and threw up new legal roadblocks to the White House’s no-holds-barred approach,” the Wall Street Journal…
“The idea that the government is wasteful and inefficient has been a long-held view by most Americans for decades, surveys have found. And Americans mostly support the concept of the…
“Senior Democrats are increasingly convinced the party will land former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to run for Senate next year, a potential coup for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer…
Stephen Collinson: “By conventional measures, Donald Trump’s second presidency is already descending into disarray amid a legal morass, self-inflicted errors, and a vast gap between its massive ambition and its…
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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