Los Angeles Times (August 2)
Yesterday, this newspaper’s “editorial board said it was time for GOP officials to stop condemning Trump’s individual offenses as if they were gaffes and recognize that his ‘entire campaign is based on his ego, his intolerance and his disreputable world view,’” warning that “‘those who will not repudiate him are on the wrong side in this battle for the nation’s political soul.’” Today, it appears “as if prominent Republicans are starting to bail, convinced that their nominee’s [latest] ramblings…will weigh down the Trump campaign ship enough to sink it.”
Tags: Condemn, Disreputable, Editorial, Ego, Gaffes, GOP, Intolerance, Political soul, Republicans, Repudiate, Trump
New York Times (June 12)
“The stain of Trump will last long after his campaign. His insults, cruelty and bigotry will sear themselves into the memory of Americans for a long time to come, especially those who are the targets of his invective.” He will do long-term damage to his party. “Mr. Trump is what he is — a malicious, malignant figure on the American political landscape…. There will be a fearsome price for Republicans to pay for their embrace of Donald Trump.”
The Economist (May 7)
“It is now clear that Republicans will be led into the presidential election by a candidate who said he would kill the families of terrorists, has encouraged violence by his supporters, has a weakness for wild conspiracy theories and subscribes to a set of protectionist and economically illiterate policies that are by turns fantastical and self-harming.” Somehow, Donald Trump now has a chance to win the presidency. “The result could be disastrous for the Republican Party and, more important, for America.”
Tags: Conspiracy, Disastrous, Donald Trump, Economically illiterate, Election, President, Protectionist, Republicans, Terrorists, U.S., Violence, Weakness
USA Today (March 29)
“We thought the race for president couldn’t get any cruder or more embarrassing…. that was not the case.” Trump and Cruz have moved standards lower and lower. “Today’s grade-school political repartee makes us long for the days when candidates were classy instead of crude.” The majority of Republicans “are embarrassed by their party’s race for the White House.” But “it’s not just Republicans—Americans are embarrassed. If only the candidates were.”
Tags: Candidates, Crude, Cruz, Embarrassing, President, Republicans, Trump, U.S.
New York Times (May 12)
Fast-track approval and the Trans-Pacific Partnership are “pitting President Obama against many members of his own party and some Republicans. Though the two sides have major differences, a compromise is still possible and would be good for the American economy.”
Tags: Approval, Compromise, Economy, Fast-track, Obama, Republicans, TPP, U.S.
New York Times (November 6)
“The Democratic brand did not fare well” in Tuesday’s elections that broadly swept conservative Republican candidates into office. When asked to vote on policy issues, however, “voters made notably liberal decisions in both red and blue states,” passing liberal initiatives ranging from environmental initiatives and gun control measures to legalizing marijuana. These initiatives “were directly at odds with the positions of many of the Republican winners.”
Tags: Conservative, Democrats, Elections, Environment, Gun control, Liberal, Marijuana, Policy, Republicans, U.S.
New York Times (January 29, 2014)
President Obama delivered his sixth annual State of the Union address to Congress. It “acknowledged the obvious: Congress has become a dead end for most of the big, muscular uses of government to redress income inequality and improve the economy for all, because of implacable Republican opposition.” The President’s determination to bypass Congress and do whatever he can to get things done without legislation is realistic: “Mr. Obama should employ every tool in his box to bypass those barriers.”
Tags: Barriers, Bypass, Congress, Determination, Economy, Government, Inequality, Legislation, Obama, Opposition, President, Republicans, State of the Union
Los Angeles Times (December 22, 2013)
Following previous battles, one of which recently shut down the U.S. Government, many were encouraged that both parties cooperated in Congress to smoothly pass a budget before the New Year. It would, however, be naive to assume this heralds a new spirit of bipartisan cooperation. “Next year is unlikely to get better, for one simple reason: It’s a congressional election year…. Getting Democrats and Republicans to agree on anything will be harder than ever.”
Tags: Bipartisan, Budget, Congress, Cooperation, Democrats, Election, Government, Republicans, U.S.
Washington Post (October 8)
John Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives “doesn’t know how to get out of the predicament. A shutdown is bad; a default on the debt, which looms 10 days from now, could be catastrophic…. At some point, Mr. Obama and the Democrats will have to throw the speaker a lifeline…. But throwing a lifeline is pointless until the victim realizes he may be drowning. It’s not clear the Republicans have reached that point. The danger is they will take the country down with them.”John Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives “doesn’t know how to get out of the predicament. A shutdown is bad; a default on the debt, which looms 10 days from now, could be catastrophic…. At some point, Mr. Obama and the Democrats will have to throw the speaker a lifeline…. But throwing a lifeline is pointless until the victim realizes he may be drowning. It’s not clear the Republicans have reached that point. The danger is they will take the country down with them.”
Tags: Danger, Debt, Default, Democrats, House, John Boehner, Lifeline, Obama, Predicament, Republicans, Shutdown, U.S.
Washington Post (October 2)
“Americans’ respect for their Congress has, sad to say, diminished in recent years. But citizens still expect a minimal level of competence and responsibility: Pay the bills and try not to embarrass us in front of the world. By those minimal standards, this Congress is failing. More specifically, the Republican leaders of the House of Representatives are failing. They should fulfill their basic duties to the American people or make way for legislators who will.”
Tags: Citizens, Competence, Congress, Duties, House of Representatives, Legislators, Republicans, Respect, Responsibility, Standards
