Bloomberg.com • 17th January 2025

Why Is Ashley Moody Replacing Marco Rubio? Loyalty

On Thursday, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody was named by Governor Ron DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio in the Senate after, as is widely expected, the Miami Republican is confirmed as President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of state. Moody will be a dependable, go-along, get-along addition to the US Senate — a reliably pro-Trump vote. She will neither compete for the limelight nor command it when it shines upon her. Moody, 49, is a Tampa lawyer and daughter of Clinton-appointed US Distri...

Bloomberg.com • 15th January 2025

Pam Bondi Needs to Explain Whose Side She’s On

It’s hard to imagine a more important role in the incoming presidential administration than that of attorney general. President-elect Donald Trump has signaled that he plans to use the Justice Department to pardon Jan. 6 rioters, seek retribution against those who have opposed or investigated him, and deport millions of undocumented immigrants. Trump’s nominee is former Florida AG Pam Bondi. When she comes before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday morning, how the Senate grills her will te...

Bloomberg.com • 22nd October 2024

This Is Why You Don’t Recognize Your State Government

The nation is going in two different directions. That’s because more states have fallen under one-party control — either Republican or Democrat — than at any time in modern US history. We examined a trove of legislative and electoral data and found that when one party secures control, representative democracy erodes, voters get ignored, and the gaps are wider under Republican control.

Bloomberg.com • 12th January 2025

Trump Is Making America Florida

There is a reason that President-elect Donald Trump has tapped so many Floridians to fill his administration. Florida is the breeding ground for the kind of government Trump envisions for his second term: A souped-up executive branch that has contempt for institutions; a talent for exploiting the resentment of working-class voters; a desire to give favorable treatment to donors; and an urge to aggressively use state power to attack dissenters.

Bloomberg.com • 29th December 2024

Is Democracy Dying? These States Will Tell Us

If you want to understand the health of American democracy, what happens in state legislatures matters just as much as what happens in Washington, DC, and Mar-a-Lago.In 2025, we can assess the health of democracy at the state level by watching four pressing issues: how states respond to federal spending cuts; how legislatures handle November’s ballot initiatives; whether local officials keep trying to subvert elections; and how far states get in eroding the wall between church and state. If you...

Bloomberg.com • 14th December 2024

North Carolina Voters Wanted Bipartisanship. Republicans Refused.

In the November election, North Carolina Republicans lost their supermajority in the state legislature. They also lost sight of their role as public servants.Democrats picked up a single Republican seat and ended the Republican Party’s ability to override the governor’s veto. Because the incoming governor is a Democrat, state Republicans quickly went to work to limit his powers before they lose theirs. In the November election, North Carolina Republicans lost their supermajority in the state le...

Bloomberg.com • 7th December 2024

DOGE's Best Idea Yet Is Ending the Twice-a-Year Time Change

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the two billionaires tasked by President-elect Donald Trump to find ways to make government more efficient, have hit upon one good idea: ending the obnoxious and inconvenient twice-a-year clock change between daylight saving time (in the summer) and so-called standard time (in the winter). “Looks like the people want to abolish the annoying time changes!’’ Musk declared on X in response to a poll from a user that found that 82% of the 38,000 respondents supported a...

Bloomberg.com • 6th December 2024

Marco Rubio May Be Trump’s Most Promising Cabinet Pick

Marco Rubio is Trump's most promising Cabinet pick. If he can navigate a chaotic administration and its role on the global stage, he could be a source of generational change in the Americas.

Bloomberg.com • 27th November 2024

Pam Bondi Has a Track Record of Putting Donors Above the Law

Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general and Donald Trump’s pick to run the Department of Justice, has what he likes in all his cabinet picks: a made-for-TV presence and a track record of fealty. And unlike Trump’s first pick — fellow Floridian flame-thrower Matt Gaetz — Bondi actually has some relevant experience. She was a prosecutor for 26 years, including eight years as state AG. Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general and Donald Trump’s pick to run the Department of Justice, h...

Bloomberg.com • 25th November 2024

The Looming GOP Divide Over School Vouchers

Republican donors extol school choice. But in many red counties, parents understand that their best bet is to keep funding flowing to public schools.

Bloomberg.com • 13th November 2024

Rick Scott’s Myriad Failures Make Him Unfit to Lead the Senate

Florida Senator Rick Scott has emerged as the MAGA favorite in the race to succeed Mitch McConnell as majority leader. But anyone who looks at Scott’s record will conclude that President-elect Donald Trump and his supporters ought to be wary. Scott could do more harm to the Trump agenda than even Susie Wiles could handle.

Bloomberg.com • 5th November 2024

Election Results Take Time. Be Patient.

Be patient as election results roll in Tuesday night. Ignore any premature claims of victory by candidates or media outlets. Whatever the count is by the early hours of Wednesday will probably not be the final one. The tally will change, and the counting will continue. And if the Electoral College numbers are close, the outcome of the presidential race might not be known for days.Trust me. I learned the importance of election night patience the hard way — along with most of America — during 36 d...

Bloomberg.com • 2nd November 2024

Don’t Let Trump Fool You. US Elections Are Fair and Secure.

Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates appeared before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform in 2021 and told lawmakers that “as a Republican who believes in democracy, I dreamed of one day going to a nation that was trying to build a democracy and help them out. I never could have imagined that I would be doing that work here in the United States of America.”Gates testified during a congressional review of Republicans’ unfounded claims of 2020 election fraud in Arizona and underscored the...

Bloomberg.com • 14th October 2024

Why Trump Is Winning With Some Georgia Immigrants

One of every four residents of Gwinnett County, Georgia, was born outside the United States. That’s nearly double the national average, and those numbers keep growing in this metro Atlanta area, which is home to a richly diverse community of Latin, Asian and European immigrants.It’s also a community that can’t be pigeonholed when it comes to politics in this critical swing state. One of every four residents of Gwinnett County, Georgia, was born outside the United States. That’s nearly double th...

Bloomberg.com • 3rd October 2024

Don’t Let a Hurricane Take North Carolina’s Votes, Too

The North Carolina General Assembly spent the last four years passing laws that selectively suppress voter turnout. Encouraged by Donald Trump, who narrowly won the state in 2020, the Republican-controlled legislature imposed new photo ID requirements, shortened the time voters have to return mail-in ballots, weakened the authority of the state’s top elections official and added hurdles to voter registration.They needn’t have bothered. Hurricane Helene’s devastation in the western part of the st...

Bloomberg.com • 12th September 2024

Lexington, Kentucky, Is Building Trust From the Ground Up

This column is a part of Republic of Distrust, a series about the loss of trust in American institutions and what can be done to restore it.If you want confirmation about the deep pessimism Americans harbor about our divisions, look no further than the Marist National Poll released in May. Almost half of the country says the United States is likely to erupt into a second civil war in their lifetime. This column is a part of Republic of Distrust, a series about the loss of trust in American inst...

Bloomberg.com • 21st August 2024

Trump’s Allies Are Creating More Election Chaos in Georgia

The Georgia Board of Elections — which is dominated by election deniers — approved a rule change Monday that will sow chaos into the state’s election process and guarantee that if the November vote is close, we may not know the results of the presidential race for weeks.They’re playing with fire. By tipping the scales in the swing state to benefit former President Donald Trump, Georgia officials risk creating an election crisis even more turbulent than what we witnessed four years ago. The Geor...

Bloomberg.com • 4th August 2024

Trump and Project 2025 Are Now Inseparable

Donald Trump created a monster, and it lives. We heard last week from Trump’s campaign that reports of Project 2025’s demise “would be greatly welcomed.” Campaign co-managers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles offered that comment in a statement after news that the Heritage Foundation official leading the project was stepping down. Donald Trump created a monster, and it lives. We heard last week from Trump’s campaign that reports of Project 2025’s demise “would be greatly welcomed.” Campaign co-ma...

Bloomberg.com • 30th July 2024

Josh Shapiro Is a Seasoned Political Pro Who Should Be Harris’ VP

Conventional wisdom among political consultants says that a presidential candidate’s choice of a running mate has a marginal impact on the electoral map. But if Kamala Harris were to choose Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, she’d not only get a popular governor in a battleground state, but a polished political veteran with the policy chops to appeal to the narrow segment of voters who will likely decide this election. Of all the candidates on Harris’ short list— Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, Tra...

Bloomberg.com • 29th July 2024

Kamala Harris Has Work to Do and More Women to Convince

In the 48 hours after President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, she did something every working woman in America can relate to: She put her multi-tasking superpowers to work and got a big job done in little time. But Harris’ impressive launch will not be enough to bring to her side the suburban women who could swing this election. Most didn’t like either Donald Trump or Joe Biden and many were ready to stay home or go third-party. Harris...