Thomas Edsall
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Trump Can No Longer Mask His Real Agenda
Trump Can No Longer Mask His Real Agenda Oct. 20, 2026, 11:00 a.m. ET Credit...Maddie McGarvey for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly essay from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality. One of the most memorable lines in President Trump’s first Inaugural Address on Jan.
What if Political Polarization Is Not the Disease but the Cure?
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. What if Political Polarization Is Not the Disease but the Cure? Oct. 13, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Aleksey Kondratyev for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly essay from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality.
The Gender Gap Has Taken a Strange Twist
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. The Gender Gap Has Taken a Strange Twist Oct. 6, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Damon Winter/The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly essay from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality.
Opinion | Trump’s Luck Is Finally Running Out
Opinion | Trump’s Luck Is Finally Running Out - The New York Times
Trump Makes Republicans More Racist and Democrats Less So
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Trump Makes Republicans More Racist and Democrats Less So Sept. 22, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Damon Winter/The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly essay from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality. President Trump’s corruption is unequaled by any previous resident of the White House.
Trump Has Untethered Himself From Reality
U.S. Politics 2 hours ago Trump lashes out at Supreme Court justices, saying his appointees ‘are not the people I interviewed’ CNN - Kevin Liptak • 2h President Donald Trump upbraided Supreme Court justices as “shells” beholden to “crazed” liberal interests in a lengthy online screed a day after the court blocked his plan to execute dramatic changes to mail-in voting ahead of the midterms.
Trump Has Lost Contact With Reality
Politics 6 hours ago Federal Reserve is expected to raise its benchmark rate, defying Trump's demands Associated Press - By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER • 6h WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is widely expected to lift its short-term interest rate Wednesday for the first time in three years to fight stubbornly high inflation, a move that would put the central bank at odds with President Donald Trump’s support for a cut.
Trump Has Untethered Himself From Reality
Trump Has Untethered Himself From Reality Credit...Andrew Harnik/Getty Images Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly essay from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality. Last Tuesday, President Trump demonstrated for the few who remain in doubt that his mind is trapped in a fictional world where he is the heroic savior of the nation, if not all mankind. That day, Trump honored the men and women who braved death or died on Sept.
‘A Blatant and Gargantuan Conflict of Interest’
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. ‘A Blatant and Gargantuan Conflict of Interest’ Aug. 18, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Jens Masmann for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. The Trump family’s crypto business exemplifies all of the sleaziest aspects of the president’s code of conduct, if we can call it that.
Trump Is Trapped in a Maelstrom of His Own Making
World News 2 hours ago Trump hid in catering truck in secret plane swap over Iran threat, reports say bbc.co.uk - Jessica Rawnsley • 2h Donald Trump secretly swapped planes as he left a Nato summit in Turkey last month, as part of an elaborate ruse in response to a possible Iranian threat, US media report.
Trump Is Trapped in a Maelstrom of His Own Making
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Trump Is Trapped in a Maelstrom of His Own Making Credit...Kaya & Blank for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics.
‘The Easiest Explanation for This Phenomenon Is That Ideology Really Matters’
There is no more dynamic force in Democratic politics — bar none — than the Democratic Socialists of America. At the same time, the liabilities surrounding the socialist label threaten to limit potential center-left gains in voting in the midterms at a moment when the Republican Party and its candidates are in deep trouble.
Who Does JD Vance Think He Is?
Whenever Vice President JD Vance takes the microphone, he has to decide which combination of his multiple identities to select for the specific audience before him, a choice he sometimes seems to find bewildering. The range of Vance’s mix-and-match choices includes hillbilly, intellectual, Trump successor, raging MAGA loyalist and high-tech investor, not to mention veteran threatening other countries and veteran no-long-wars guy.
Trump’s Kiss of Death
Photo Illustration by Philotheus Nisch for The New York Times Donald Trump is the black-thumb president. Let’s start small. He persuaded FIFA to quash the one-game suspension of the U.S. striker Folarin Balogun, after which the American men’s soccer team suffered a humiliating 4-1 loss to Belgium. When Trump first announced plans to renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, he said it would cost $1.5 million.
El beso de la muerte de Trump
Ilustración fotográfica por Philotheus Nisch para The New York Times. Donald Trump es el presidente de la mala mano. Empecemos por lo pequeño. Persuadió a la FIFA para que anulara la suspensión de un partido del delantero estadounidense Folarin Balogun, después de lo cual la selección masculina de fútbol de Estados Unidos sufrió una humillante derrota de 4-1 ante Bélgica.
El beso de la muerte de Trump
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Donald Trump es el presidente de la mala mano. Empecemos por lo pequeño. Persuadió a la FIFA para que anulara la suspensión de un partido del delantero estadounidense Folarin Balogun, después de lo cual la selección masculina de fútbol de Estados Unidos sufrió una humillante derrota de 4-1 ante Bélgica.
Trump’s Kiss of Death
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Donald Trump is the black-thumb president. Let’s start small. He persuaded FIFA to quash the one-game suspension of the U.S. striker Folarin Balogun, after which the American men’s soccer team suffered a humiliating 4-1 loss to Belgium. When Trump first announced plans to renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, he said it would cost $1.5 million.
Three Things Democrats Have to Do if They Actually Want to Win
Even now, according to a new survey by the left-leaning group Data for Progress, the Democratic Party has a net negative rating of minus 29 percentage points among swing voters, worse than the minus 25 for the Republican Party. Democrats seeking to restore their party’s credibility with the electorate as a whole, but especially among those crucial swing voters, might consider adding three planks — on immigration, urban disorder and transgender issues — to the 2028 Democratic platform. Why?
If the Democrats Actually Want to Win, This Is What They Have to Do
Even now, according to a new survey by the left-leaning group Data for Progress, the Democratic Party has a net negative rating of minus 29 percentage points among swing voters, worse than the minus 25 for the Republican Party. Democrats seeking to restore their party’s credibility with the electorate as a whole, but especially among those crucial swing voters, might consider adding three planks — on immigration, urban disorder and transgender issues — to the 2028 Democratic platform. Why?
Is This Liberalism’s Last Stand?
Is This Liberalism’s Last Stand? July 7, 2026, 5:04 a.m. ET Credit...Jonno Rattman for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. Is liberalism an endangered species? By liberalism I mean the combination of carefully regulated free markets with individual and intellectual freedom — the liberalism that drove unparalleled growth and prosperity here and abroad.
A Working-Class Party Without Many Workers
Candidates aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America are surging to victory on the claim that they are proponents of “a government by, for and of the working class” that will wrest power from both “far-right Republicans and corporate Democrats.” Here’s the problem. Most of the leadership of the D.S.A. and a majority of voters who back its candidates are in no way working class. Instead, an elite made up of well-educated professionals dominates this insurgency.
What’s the Matter With Congress?
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. What’s the Matter With Congress? June 23, 2026, 5:02 a.m. ET Credit...Christopher Lee for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics.
These Are the Voters Who Can Keep Democrats From Going Off the Rails
These Are the Voters Who Can Keep Democrats From Going Off the Rails June 16, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Harlan Bozeman for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, Democratic centrists bitterly complained that Jesse Jackson and his progressive allies were pushing the party too far left.
If Winning Is Everything, Is Anything Off Limits?
If Winning Is Everything, Is Anything Off Limits? June 9, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Amina Gingold for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. Fifty-nine years ago, when I was a young reporter covering City Hall for The Baltimore Evening Sun, the Second City Council District contest was a vicious struggle for political power pitting an ascendant Black political organization against the dominant Czech machine.
Trump Is Down. Can Democrats Go Up?
Trump Is Down. Can Democrats Go Up? May 19, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Joshua Dudley Greer for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. Despite the collapse of support for President Trump — whose unfavorable ratings have grown to 59 percent from 43 percent a week after inauguration — voters continue to hold Democrats in greater disfavor than Republicans. The difference is slight, but still electorally significant.
‘This Is All a Scam, a Giant Scam’[says the scammer]
‘This Is All a Scam, a Giant Scam’[says the scammer] May 12, 2026 Credit... By Thomas B. Edsall Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly column from Washington, D.C., on politics, demographics nytimes.com/…-is-fighting-the-worlds-stupidest-cu… On the day our oil-stained president returned to the White House, he began an all-out assault on clean energy. Today, 16 months later, he and his party are paying a significant political price while American consumers are stuck with the bill.
Trump Is Fighting the World’s Stupidest Culture War
Trump Is Fighting the World’s Stupidest Culture War May 12, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Aleksey Kondratyev for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly column from Washington, D.C., on politics, demographics and inequality. On the day our oil-stained president returned to the White House, he began an all-out assault on clean energy. Today, 16 months later, he and his party are paying a significant political price while American consumers are stuck with the bill.
‘When You Think of It, We Shouldn’t Even Have an Election’
‘When You Think of It, We Shouldn’t Even Have an Election’ May 5, 2026, 5:02 a.m. ET Credit...Alex Brandon/Associated Press Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. President Trump hates to lose. Heading into the 2026 midterm elections, you can’t say that the president hasn’t warned us, over and over, that he will do all he can to prevent the congressional contests from turning into a humiliating Republican rout.
Political Campaigns Have No Idea What’s About to Hit Them
Political Campaigns Have No Idea What’s About to Hit Them April 28, 2026, 5:05 a.m. ET Credit...Chase Barnes Mr. Edsall contributes weekly essays from Washington on politics and demographics. For better or worse, artificial intelligence is driving a major upheaval in American politics that will alter the substance and the character of campaigns.
‘Easily the Worst President in U.S. History’
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The damage President Trump has inflicted on the United States and the world is so enormous and wide-ranging that it is hard to grasp. It runs the gamut from public and private institutions to core democratic customs and traditions, from the legal system to universities, from innocent targets of fraud to those duped into believing vaccines do more harm than good.
‘Sin duda, el peor presidente de la historia de EE. UU.’
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images El daño que el presidente Donald Trump ha infligido a Estados Unidos, y al mundo, es tan enorme y amplio que resulta difícil de comprender. Abarca desde instituciones públicas y privadas hasta las costumbres y tradiciones democráticas fundamentales, desde el sistema jurídico hasta las universidades, desde víctimas inocentes de fraude hasta las personas a las que se ha engañado haciéndoles creer que las vacunas hacen más daño que bien.
‘Sin duda, el peor presidente de la historia de EE. UU.’
El daño que el presidente Donald Trump ha infligido a Estados Unidos, y al mundo, es tan enorme y amplio que resulta difícil de comprender. Abarca desde instituciones públicas y privadas hasta las costumbres y tradiciones democráticas fundamentales, desde el sistema jurídico hasta las universidades, desde víctimas inocentes de fraude hasta las personas a las que se ha engañado haciéndoles creer que las vacunas hacen más daño que bien.
There Is a Contest Trump Is Winning
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Guest Essay April 21, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET Credit...Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The damage President Trump has inflicted on the United States and the world is so enormous and wide-ranging that it is hard to grasp.
Why Is No Kings So Old?
As I was gathering material on the absence of young people at anti-Trump demonstrations, I came across evidence of powerful technological forces weakening persistence and cognitive tenacity across the board. Most interesting, the most immediate danger posed by artificial intelligence may not be the futuristic moment when A.I. becomes so smart and so independent of human control — in other words, conscious — that it takes over politics, economics and the social order.
Trump Hasn’t Given Up on His ‘Unrequited Love’ for Putin
Events over two days last month — Friday, March 6, and Saturday, March 7 — demonstrated President Trump’s willingness to sacrifice American interests in subservience to President Vladimir Putin of Russia. On that Friday, the Washington Post reporters Noah Robertson, Ellen Nakashima and Warren P.
It’s Not Going to Get Any Easier for Democrats After Trump
7 hours ago TAYLORSVILLE, Utah (AP) — For decades, Democrats’ only chance of getting elected to Congress from the conservative state of Utah was by convincing voters that they were sensible moderates, not like the zealous progressives from California or Colorado. But the political landscape has changed, thanks …
It’s Not Going to Get Any Easier for Democrats After Trump Original
The Democratic Party’s short-term prospects look great. The party’s long-term prospects look dismal. First, the party’s auspicious present: Democrats are favored to win the House and have a shot at taking control of the Senate in the midterm elections later this year. In 2028, the steady collapse of support for President Trump has increased the likelihood of a Democratic presidential win. But in 2030, the Democrats’ glory days turn ugly as the party’s fortunes face the threat of a downward spiral.
Why Are So Many Democratic Politicians So Far Out of Touch? Original
In January 2025, when the U.S. House took up legislation to bar trans women’s participation on women’s sports teams, all but two Democratic representatives — Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez — voted against the bill. When the Senate took up a similar proposal three days ago, every Democrat present voted against it. Why don’t more Democrats explicitly moderate their stands on transgender rights, immigration and other issues?
A.I. Is Coming for Politics
Sixteen years ago, Peter Thiel, the multibillionaire co-founder of PayPal and Palantir Technologies, was strikingly prescient.
Trump’s Smash-and-Grab Presidency Reaches New Heights Original
President Trump’s decision to go to war against Iran exemplifies his smash-and-grab approach to governing: acting without apparently considering the lives to be lost, the law or the institutional damage he will leave behind. Trump seems to have attacked Iran unprepared for the intensity of Iran’s counterattack, the full range of threats posed to Americans in the region, the inflationary effects of sharply rising gas prices and the angry reaction within the MAGA electorate.
Opinion | JD Vance Has His Reasons
Vice President JD Vance, by far the front-runner in the contest for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, has become the leading elected official aligned with a movement questioning the founding principles of American democracy. In sharp contrast to his political partner, President Trump, who governs from the gut, the vice president has imbibed many of MAGA’s political theories and made them his own.
Opinion | The Donald Trump 1 Percent Fan Club
President Trump is distributing executive patronage — from pardons to favorable regulatory decisions — to privileged groups, including those willing to contribute to his preferred committees and causes and those who invest in the Trump family’s crypto businesses. Determined to get a piece of the action, the very wealthy are lining up in droves.
Opinion | Trump Is His Own Worst Enemy
President Trump appears determined to prevent his party from achieving a durable majority coalition anchored by a multiracial working-class base. Trump’s posting of a video portraying Barack and Michelle Obama as apes is one of his more glaring miscalculations, which have given Democrats an opening to halt a steady erosion of support among minority voters crucial to their party’s chances for success.
Trump Is His Own Worst Enemy
Now Rep. Thomas Massie has gone toe-to-toe with the president of the United States, the speaker of the House and the attorney general in just the last few months. And he says there’s more to come. The libertarian Republican from rural Kentucky has long been a headache for party leaders, but he’s taken …
Opinion | What Should Democrats Do to Create a Durable Majority? Our Readers Have Thoughts.
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. What Should Democrats Do to Create a Durable Majority? Our Readers Have Thoughts. Feb. 10, 2026, 5:04 a.m. ET Credit...Damon Winter/The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly column from Washington, D.C., on politics, demographics and inequality.
Opinion | Let’s Start Project 2028 Original
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have been granted access, use your keyboard to continue reading. This column is an experiment of sorts: an outline of items in a hypothetical 2028 Democratic Party platform designed to restore the party’s appeal to centrist working- and middle-class voters. My suggestions are subject to challenge and dispute, and as usual, I have sought out comments from strategists and political experts.
Opinion | ‘I Wouldn’t Say the Democrats Are in Good Shape’
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. ‘I Wouldn’t Say the Democrats Are in Good Shape’ Credit...Jamie Lee Taete for The New York Times Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly column from Washington on politics, demographics and inequality. The moment is ripe to deal a debilitating blow to Trumpism and the MAGA movement. Right-wing populism is staggering.
Opinion | ‘This Is Trump’s Goon Squad, for Christ’s Sake’ Original
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Opinion | If Power Corrupts, What Do We Have Here? Original
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. President Trump is showing symptoms of an addiction to power, evident in his compulsion to escalate claims of dominion over domestic and international adversaries. The size and scope of Trump’s targets for subjugation are spiraling ever upward. Trump began his second term with his administration clamping down on law firms and universities.
Opinion | Trump Is Pushing a Culture War That Knows No Bounds
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. While the focus of attention since President Trump retook office has been on his deployment of military force in American cities, Iran and Venezuela, on his abuse of the pardon power and on his family’s profiteering, his domineering tactics also extend deep into the private sector.
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