Deadlock and Dysfunction: Flint City Council and beyond
By Paul Rozycki I don’t know if the Guinness Book of World Records awards the longest series of votes by a government body that resolved nothing, but, if it does, Flint City Council should be in the running. Within the last few months the council voted 449 times in an attempt to select a presiding officer and failed to do so, as reported by Mid-Michigan Now. It also failed to fill the vacant seat of Councilman Quincy Murphy, who...
Commentary: How to explain the cult-like appeal of Trump
By Paul Rozycki For the last decade, since he rode down the escalator in Trump Tower in 2015, Donald Trump has been a dominant factor in American politics. He lost the popular vote but won an Electoral College victory in 2016. He lost both the popular vote and the Electoral College in 2020. Then, he won both in 2024. Above and beyond the specific factors that won Trump the victory this year, he has a unique cult-like following that...
How Trump won: 10 takeaways from the 2024 election
By Paul Rozycki In the November 2024 election, former President Donald Trump won a second term, taking both the Electoral College and the popular vote. It was only the second time that Republicans have won the popular vote since 1988. What does it mean when a nation elects a convicted felon who promises to be a dictator and arrest his enemies; claims Haitians are eating pet cats and dogs and wind farms cause cancer; and says he will...
The 2024 election: What’s on the ballot and what’s at stake?
By Paul Rozycki In a year when we’ve seen a sitting president step aside from his certain nomination, a former president facing criminal convictions over payments to a porn star and two assassination attempts, the nomination of the first African-American/Asian woman to be president, and unfounded claims about pet dogs and cats being eaten by Haitian immigrants, no one can say we’re witnessing a typical presidential election. But with...
Project 2025: A possible glimpse into a second Trump administration
By Paul Rozycki Want to know what a second Trump administration might look like? An overview of “Project 2025” might give you a good idea. The 900-page plan, fully titled “Mandate for Leadership, The Conservative Promise, Project 2025,” would dramatically change the federal government and shift it to the right. It was put together by nearly 200 Trump officials and supporters in conjunction with the right-leaning Heritage...
Biden passes the torch to Harris, what now?
By Paul Rozycki You thought this was going to be a dull election year with a Biden/Trump rematch? It sure doesn’t look like it. In just the last month we’ve seen: A fumbling debate by the president of the United States; A Supreme Court ruling that limits the prosecution of the previous president and grants immunity from criminal prosecution to a president performing “official duties;” A federal judge dismissing charges against Trump...
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