Wall Street Journal: “This past year showed that the progressive politics that dominated most industrialized countries over the past two decades or more is shifting to the right, fueled by working-class anxieties over the economy and immigration, and growing fatigue with issues from climate change to identity politics.”

“The return of Donald Trump to the White House is the most dramatic and important example—but it is far from the only one.”

“Across Europe, where economic growth has largely stalled, conservatives and populist right-wing parties are making unprecedented gains. Three-quarters of governments in the European Union are either led by a right-of-center party or are ruled by a coalition that includes at least one.”

A new Gallup poll finds 19% of Americans say they are satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S., slightly lower than the 22% to 26% readings in recent months and the lowest since July.

Charlie Sykes: “America’s politicians have an age problem, and the issue seems especially acute among congressional Democrats. The prevalence of older politicians can arguably make the elected class less relevant to younger voters and make it more difficult for new voices to rise in politics. But at its core, this is an issue of honesty: Didn’t the American people have a right to know that Biden was struggling? Didn’t Texans deserve to know about Granger? And if either of them was being lied to by those supporting them, didn’t they themselves deserve the truth too?”

“Eventually, Biden did bow out—and one consequence is that the next president of the United States will, like Biden, be 82 years old at the end of his term.”

Nate Silver: “As Sean Trende pointed out on X, it hasn’t exactly been the best century for the expert class. Begin with the response to September 11 — the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, which were supported by bipartisan majorities. Then the financial crisis and the bank bailouts. Then Brexit and the election of Trump. Then the pandemic: what was supposed to be a triumph of management for a technocratic elite instead wound up as a worst-of-all-worlds scenario with prolonged restrictions and school closures and 7 million dead — from a virus possibly caused by sloppy scientific research practices. Then massive inflation, which was supposed to be a thing of the past. Throw in here, if you like, ‘wokeness’ and how it’s eroded trust in higher education and triggered a cultural backlash.”

New York Times: “Our analysis suggests partisanship itself, intentional or not, plays a powerful role when Americans uproot and find a new home. And their very personal decisions about where to resettle help power the churn of migration that is continuously reshaping American life at the neighborhood level and contributing to a sense that Americans are siloed in echo chambers, online and in their daily lives.”

“It also has real stakes for our elections: Political scientists say the more partisan a district or state becomes, the less a candidate needs to woo voters from the other party — or, after winning, govern on their behalf.”

A USA Today analysis of the nation’s 3,113 counties shows “a striking realignment since 2012 that has intensified the partisan leanings in states across the country, leaving only a handful where the outcome of the Nov. 5 presidential election remains in doubt.”

“The hardening of the country’s political lines has contributed to other consequences, too, including one-party control of the governorship and state legislature in 40 of the 50 states. That has led to a patchwork of sharply divergent laws across the country − even between neighboring states − on abortion rights, transgender care, the public-health response to the pandemic and other controversial issues.”

“A new trend has emerged in American politics: The very youngest voters — 18-to-24-year-olds — say they’re more conservative than the cohort that’s just older,” according to the latest Harvard Youth Poll.

“This new trend — which is true for both genders and emerged only in the last few years — is especially pronounced with men.”

New York Times: “Then, around 2016, something shifted, a new analysis shows. Women ages 18 to 29 became significantly more liberal than the previous generation of young women. Today, around 40 percent identify as liberal, compared with just 19 percent who say they’re conservative. The views of young men — who are more likely to be conservative than liberal — have changed little.”

“It’s unusual for shifts in political ideology to be so pronounced, political scientists say. Young women are much more liberal than women 30 and up, according to the analysis by the pollster Gallup, which analyzed the answers to 54 questions about political beliefs that it has asked over time.”

“Fewer Americans want companies to take a public stand on current events and public policy,” new results from a Gallup-Bentley University study reveal.

“By taking a stance on political candidates, companies risk taking a hit to their bottom lines.”

“Just 38% think businesses in general should take a public stance on current events, according to the survey of 5,835 U.S. adults fielded from late April to early May.”

Now trending on the political dictionary: “happy warrior.”

Philip Bump: “Democrats are more proud of the U.S. Republicans are more likely to view it as the greatest country on Earth.”

A new Gallup poll finds just 41% of Americans say they are “extremely proud” to be American, the fifth consecutive year this reading has been in the 38% to 43% range.

A new Marist poll finds 52% of Americans think people in the United States are less patriotic than they were a few years ago, 32% believe they are about as patriotic as they were while 14% believe those in the U.S. are more patriotic.

Washington Post: “There is a deepening sense of fear as population loss accelerates in rural America. The decline of small-town life is expected to be a looming topic in the presidential election.”