Chinese Balloon Mania

Tales of threat assessment and media reactions.

Tabby Thursday

A little debt ceiling, a little higher ed, and other misc delights.

Matt Yglesias’ Return to His Roots

The one-time Juiceboxer is still annoying the mainstream media.

Zealots and Pluralists

A moderate Republican almost diagnoses the problem.

More Tabs and Quick Takes

The no electoral politics, no Trump edition.

Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded

Michael Barone on out-migration from some Blue states.

Richard Shelby and the Old Senate

“You can’t be against everything.”

The Deterioration and Death of Old Media

Headline News Network is shuttering after four decades.

Were the Election Outcomes Truly Unexpected?

Thinking about what was likely and what wasn’t.

Bernard Shaw, 1940-2022

CNN’s original anchorman is gone at 82.

President Joe Biden delivers remarks at a Medal of Valor ceremony, Monday, May 16, 2022, in the East Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz) President Joe Biden delivers remarks at a Medal of Valor ceremony, Monday, May 16, 2022, in the East Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

The News is Bad for Biden

The nature of American political reporting distorts our perception of reality.

The Capitol Riot and Fox News

A large plurality of the network’s viewers think left wingers trying to make Trump look bad are to blame.

The January 6 Committee’s Audience

It was yuuuge! And nobody saw it!

January 6 Committee Public Hearings: Day 1

The laying out of the case begins.

More on Ginni Thomas and the 2020 Election

She advocated that AZ overturn its election.

Tucker Carlson White Supremacist Messaging

The face of Fox News is not the bow-tied buffoon from his “Crossfire” days.

A Key Aspect of the Ginni Thomas Story

Beyond who her spouse is, the texts to Meadows reveal a deeply concerning situation.

Ginni Thomas the Insurrectionist

A Supreme Court Justice’s wife urged the White House and Congressional Republicans to steal the 2020 election.

Bob Beckel, 1948-2022

The Democratic strategist and longtime talking head is gone at 73.

January 6th Yeah But-ism

Yes the riots were a disgrace but the Democrats . . . .

Nobody Watches Cable News

A media critic argues we pay outsized attention to the goings-on at Fox, MSNBC, and CNN.

Patriots Leave Fox After Patriot Purge

Two NeverTrump Republicans have had enough.

Nationalizing the Local

The appetite for content and clicks turns sensationalizes news that isn’t news.

Evangelical Politics in the Time of Polarization and Covid

A piece in The Atlantic inspires thoughts.

Red Lights on the Dashboard

Some recent news items that add to concern about American democracy.

Capitol Riots Day 1 Analysis

An emotional day set the tone for the investigation.

The Reality Show Party?

Another R/D cleavage?

Hunter Biden’s Art

A new career and a pending art sale.

Allen West Announces Gubernatorial Bid

He will challenge Greg Abbott for the GOP nomination.

The Ivies=NK?

Or, you know, not.

The Vaccine Hesitant are Primarily Non-Voters

New polling provides useful insights into the problem.

Rush Limbaugh is Still Dead

The reflections on the departed right-wing talk host continue.

Newsmax Gaining on Fox

The information bubble is getting smaller.

More Nonsense About the Election

A shadowy flight into the realm of evidence that does not exist.

Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Debate

A national nightmare that may not have changed many minds.

The Business of the News is Business

“We are a cancer and there is no cure,”

Cancelations Are Seldom Permanent

The weirdness of Internet outrage culture.

Shepard Smith to Anchor CNBC Newscast

The longtime Fox News host has re-emerged at an unusual spot.

Gun Violence Spiking Across American Cities

A marked rise in shooting deaths is going largely unnoticed.

Biden’s Veep Search

Every Democratic woman seems to be under consideration.

White House Coronavirus Update Briefing President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence and members of the White House COVID-19 Coronavirus task force, delivers remarks and answers questions from members of the press during a coronavirus update briefing Thursday, April 16, 2020, in the James S. Brady White House Press Briefing Room. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian) White House Coronavirus Update Briefing President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence and members of the White House COVID-19 Coronavirus task force, delivers remarks and answers questions from members of the press during a coronavirus update briefing Thursday, April 16, 2020, in the James S. Brady White House Press Briefing Room. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian)

Candor on COVID a Firing Offense

President Trump can’t handle the truth.

The TV Doctors and the Problem of Cable “News”

Cable news “experts” frequently aren’t.

President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, takes questions from the press at a coronavirus update briefing Saturday, March 14, 2020, in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead) President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, takes questions from the press at a coronavirus update briefing Saturday, March 14, 2020, in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

Trump and the Governors

This isn’t what leadership looks like.

President Donald J. Trump, joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, left, and Attorney General William Barr, displays his signature after signing an Executive Order to Prevent Hoarding and Price Gouging, Monday, March 23, 2020, in the Oval Office of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead) President Donald J. Trump, joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, left, and Attorney General William Barr, displays his signature after signing an Executive Order to Prevent Hoarding and Price Gouging, Monday, March 23, 2020, in the Oval Office of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

The Magical Thinking Presidency

Trump’s approach from the beginning has been reality-denying. It makes it difficult to take anything the administration proposed seriously.

Coronavirus Could Kill Trump Presidency

We may be seeing the beginning of the end.

Chris Matthews Retires

The longtime talking head is the latest poster boy for #MeToo. And mandatory retirement.

Sixth Democratic Debate Draws Lowest Viewer Numbers Yet

Thursday night’s Democratic debate drew the lowest numbers of any of this season’s debates.

Bloomberg Rising In The Polls, But Most Democrats Don’t Want Him

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is in fifth place in national polling, but a new poll suggests that he may not rise much further.

The GOP Is Now The Party Of Putin

Much like the President they obsequiously defend, Republicans have become useful idiots in Russia’s war on Western liberal democracy.