Jan. 01

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New Senate: DEM 48             GOP 52

New polls:  
Dem pickups: (None)
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Assessing Donald Trump's First Year

As the calendar turns from 2017 to 2018, many outlets are taking the opportunity to assess Donald Trump's first year (well, first 345 days) in office. A selection:

Left-leaning Commentators: Right-leaning Commentators:

It is clear that most liberals are seeing one presidency—a total disaster—and most conservatives are seeing another—a smashing success. There is no reason to think this perceptual divide is going to disappear anytime soon. The only thing that (most) people seem to agree on is that whenever Donald Trump leaves the White House, he will be leaving an office and a government that has been permanently transformed. (Z)

Stories to Watch in 2018

The change of years is also an opportunity for various outlets to look ahead to 2018, and to try to read the tea leaves of what's coming next. That includes NBC News, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Brookings Institution, The Observer (UK), Fox News, NPR, the Wall Street Journal, and Forbes. Here's an executive summary, with a few additions from us:

An old Chinese proverb (or curse) says, "May you live in interesting times." For better or worse, we've got 'em in 2018. (Z)

People to Watch in 2018

Whether Donald Trump admits/knows it or not, Time's Person of the Year designation is not an "honor," per se, it's a judgment of impact, for better or for worse. Further, there is supposed to be some significant shift in newsworthiness. The Donald Trump of 2018 is likely to be the same Donald Trump we saw in 2017, and so unless he lobs a nuke at Kim Jong-Un, he's not really a candidate for the title. With those ground rules in mind, here are 10 people who could take a major step forward in their importance to American politics in 2018:

And so ends another year in American politics. Thanks for reading, and hope to have you around for the rest of what promises to be an exciting year! (Z)


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