Deputy managing editor @TheCapitolForum US Columnist, Tomorrow’s Affairs @tmrwsaffairs Creator, NUCLEAR THEATER Former nat'l political reporter for @Reuters
Washington, DC
Joined May 2008
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I am now an editor at @thecapitolforum. Feel free to DM me with pitches/info/releases on tech, antitrust, trade, M&A, labor.
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Love you all, but I’m not reading 10 tick tocks about how Trump blew the midterms that all say essentially the same thing.
From me--->
Come January, Washington will be a place transformed, one where power will be shared, equally and uneasily, between a lame duck president and the new Democratic congressional majority.
For Trump, Tuesday represented a repudiation of almost everything he has done, said and stands for.
Now Trump's White House is likely to be besieged by a flurry of demands and subpoenas from congressional Democrats eager to probe what they view as a venal administration that has flouted the rule of law – and perhaps rack up some political points and settle some scores along the way, argues @jamesoliphant
tomorrowsaffairs.com/from-on…
James Oliphant retweeted
Come January, Washington will be a place transformed, one where power will be shared, equally and uneasily, between a lame duck president and the new Democratic congressional majority.
For Trump, Tuesday represented a repudiation of almost everything he has done, said and stands for.
Now Trump's White House is likely to be besieged by a flurry of demands and subpoenas from congressional Democrats eager to probe what they view as a venal administration that has flouted the rule of law – and perhaps rack up some political points and settle some scores along the way, argues @jamesoliphant
tomorrowsaffairs.com/from-on…
James Oliphant retweeted
Posting a longer cut of Ron DeSantis dropping some truth bombs about the state of the Republican Party after last night's blue tsunami. Hard to argue with any of this to be honest.
James Oliphant retweeted
Look, the Trump GOP isn’t the first party to fall victim to hubris. But thinking you can ride roughshod over everything, declare war on half the country, insist your way is the only way is a recipe for disaster particularly if you don’t deliver for ordinary Americans. 1/3
Here is the bottom line: If tonight goes the way it’s looking, the biggest reason is that voters have lost faith in the president. Yes Trump’s sideshow is always the headliner. But his last brutal defeat came in 2020 when he was viewed as unable to handle a nation in crisis. This is all about Trump’s performance in office all over again. He was given a second chance and misread his mandate. (As sure you can argue Biden did.) The reasons for that of course are plentiful and those will be dissected. But he lost the country.
You could argue the biggest loser of the night is not Trump, but Vance. His home state went blue. And the weakness shown by Trump’s party tonight will open the 2028 door for a lot of other challengers who think they can offer something different.
Look, the Trump GOP isn’t the first party to fall victim to hubris. But thinking you can ride roughshod over everything, declare war on half the country, insist your way is the only way is a recipe for disaster particularly if you don’t deliver for ordinary Americans. 1/3
Here is the bottom line: If tonight goes the way it’s looking, the biggest reason is that voters have lost faith in the president. Yes Trump’s sideshow is always the headliner. But his last brutal defeat came in 2020 when he was viewed as unable to handle a nation in crisis. This is all about Trump’s performance in office all over again. He was given a second chance and misread his mandate. (As sure you can argue Biden did.) The reasons for that of course are plentiful and those will be dissected. But he lost the country.
Trump was first elected in a fever of populism following the financial crisis and was effective in calling out how both parties had neglected working class voters. But his second term seemed to ignore all of that. It became about building wealth for the wealthy (and him and his friends) 2/3
Coupled with the idea that he and his allies could do no wrong and were the smartest guys in the room. Hence the Iran war. And of course there were his obsessions with things nobody cares about. All against a backdrop of rising prices and taking benefits away from people who were already struggling or firing middle class govt workers. All of this was foreseeable.
Trump Says in Interview That He Will Accept Election Results nytimes.com/2026/11/03/us/po… via @NYTimes
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James Oliphant retweeted
Here is the bottom line: If tonight goes the way it’s looking, the biggest reason is that voters have lost faith in the president. Yes Trump’s sideshow is always the headliner. But his last brutal defeat came in 2020 when he was viewed as unable to handle a nation in crisis. This is all about Trump’s performance in office all over again. He was given a second chance and misread his mandate. (As sure you can argue Biden did.) The reasons for that of course are plentiful and those will be dissected. But he lost the country.
He literally spent a month telling his supporters to come out for him.
President Trump is still watching the election results in the East Room tonight. As his handpicked candidates are struggling, a White House official is offering this assessment: "President Trump did a better job promoting many of the candidates on the ballot than the candidates did themselves."
"President Trump was not on the ballot, and it’s proven that Trump voters show up when he is on the ballot."
Here is the bottom line: If tonight goes the way it’s looking, the biggest reason is that voters have lost faith in the president. Yes Trump’s sideshow is always the headliner. But his last brutal defeat came in 2020 when he was viewed as unable to handle a nation in crisis. This is all about Trump’s performance in office all over again. He was given a second chance and misread his mandate. (As sure you can argue Biden did.) The reasons for that of course are plentiful and those will be dissected. But he lost the country.
Even if she doesn’t pull it off, candidates matter. Recruiting is important. The idea is to give voters in states like SC a plausible alternative, a defensible vote.
A stunner could be brewing in South Carolina, where the needle gives Annie Andrews a narrow edge. It's still early, but she's running ahead of our estimates for early, absentee and election day votes.
nytimes.com/interactive/2026…
James Oliphant retweeted
Godzilla: Hot child in the city nucleartheater.substack.com/…