Alec MacGillis
TNR’s 12 Best Campaign Stories of 2012
What Hurricane Sandy Means for Election Day
If you’re one of the many folks in my Twitter feed who’s feeling a general unease because Hurricane Sandy and Election Day are in close proximity, I want you to relax a little. Not all the way, just a little. READ MORE >>
Romney’s Climate Change Nihilism
Nothing in Mitt Romney’s acceptance speech better encapsulated the spinelessness of his presidential candidacy than the following line: “President Obama promised to begin to slow the rise of the oceans and heal the planet. My promise is to help you and your family.” READ MORE >>
Romney Cribs from the GOP’s Willie Horton Playbook
The Real Strategy Behind Romney’s (Lying) Welfare Ads
Clearly, the Romney campaign's anti-Obama welfare ads have come at a cost. Given the way they have been condemned as false by even mainstream media sources—as Alec MacGillis pointed out yesterday, Joe Scarborough has explained that he was “stunned” by the ads' demonstrable falseness—the Romney camp has forfeited any hope of pivoting to the “high road” in response to future Obama attacks. READ MORE >>
It’s Time to Revisit the Voting Rights Act
How To Bar Blacks And Latinos From Voting
My latest TRB column ("Art Of War") is about how GOP voter-suppression has come out of the closet. Alec MacGillis adds an amazing twist: The GOP is now trying to sell voter suppression in Ohio as an expression of patriotic support for the military! READ MORE >>
Who's Keeping the Race Close? Obama or Romney?
After a supposedly disastrous month of anemic jobs growth and unforced errors, Obama appears to maintain his slight advantage over Romney in national polls. The stability of the race has surprised many, particularly those invested in the daily beat of the news cycle. TNR’s own Alec MacGillis thinks that “a huge part of it must have to do with [Obama’s] lackluster opposition.” I'm not sure the numbers bear that out. READ MORE >>
Not With a Bang, But a Whimper: The Long, Slow Death Spiral of America’s Labor Movement
Many commentators have correctly observed that the reelection of Governor Scott Walker is a grave blow to unions, especially public sector unions. They went all in to defeat Walker and, despite the great outpouring of protest last year against his collective bargaining bill, he won by a greater margin this time than he did in 2010. READ MORE >>
Welcome to The Plank
Welcome to The Plank. The original TNR group blog has been on hiatus since 2009—during which time, from what we can tell, the internet decided that the term “plank” is best used in reference to lying prostrate in public. That won’t do. We’re back to reclaim planking in the name of informed and lively conversation about the world of politics. READ MORE >>
