Latest articles by Matt Grossmann
Electoral College lobbying has become routine since 2000, when I set up the first online system to try to change electors’ votes. We failed, but we learned some lessons in the process.
Republican governance is wrecked by rebellious challenges over ideological infidelity; Democrats are having more success holding their social group coalition together. Don’t expect that to change.
Ideological challenges are much more common for Republican officeholders than for Democrats. This leads to significant governing challenges that imperil the Republican leadership in Congress. It will not change anytime soon.
Because the Democrats are a pragmatic group coalition facing a Republican ideological movement, American public policy pursues Democratic goals like health care through Republican means like private markets and decentralization.
History shows that political reforms designed to reduce the power of established interest groups and enable legislation often help the more ideological party, the Republicans, over the Democratic group coalition.
The Democratic Party platform offers a laundry list of liberal policy proposals but little change in the types of policies pursued. Trying to accomplish it all is still likely to lead to a voter backlash.
Sanders lost the nomination when he failed to win the support of superdelegates.
By losing his first presidential campaign to Pat Buchanan in 1999-2000, Donald Trump learned to copy Buchanan’s nativist appeal. His 2016 campaign also has better timing, because the nativist Republican constituency has grown during the Obama years.