Section: The Atlantic (USA)
Mitt Romney Alone Can Fix It
Donald Trump has never feared another elected Republican. Over the course of five years, he has bullied and insulted, mocked and complained about nearly every GOP officeholder past and present, including George W. Bush and Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Jeff Flake. He knew that the Republicans who dared to stand up to him couldn’t hurt him (Bob...
The Atlantic Politics Daily: Democrats Can’t Agree on the Reasons for Impeachment
Today in PoliticsIt’s Tuesday, October 22. Today, the latest in impeachment. Plus, interpreting and misinterpreting “high crimes and misdemeanors.” Finally, what Canada loses by a Trudeau win.(Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP)Just about every single congressional Democrat supports the impeachment inquiry. (That consensus only hardened after...
William Taylor Delivers the Smoking Gun
Diplomats are known for their ability to phrase things delicately, but testimony today from William Taylor, the top American diplomat in Ukraine, is notable for its bluntness.Although the Trump administration has denied that it was trying to extract a quid pro quo from Ukraine—investigations of both 2016 hacking and of the Biden family’s...
Democrats Want to Impeach Trump. They Haven’t Decided Why.
When House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave her blessing to an impeachment inquiry three weeks ago, she also laid down a marker: The investigation wouldn’t center on any of the issues that Democrats have obsessed over for the last three years. Not Russian interference, or emoluments, or security clearances, or family separation. Impeachment would...
Live Your Life Like a Superhero
Janina Scarlet knew she finally had a way to connect with her patient when the girl began talking about Veronica Mars. At a recent American Psychological Association conference, Scarlet, a psychologist at San Diego’s Center for Stress and Anxiety Management, recounted how the 15-year-old at first had trouble speaking about past trauma. In...
‘High Crimes and Misdemeanors’ Doesn’t Actually Mean Crimes
“High crimes and misdemeanors” is surely the most troublesome, misleading phrase in the U.S. Constitution. Taken at face value, the words seem to say that impeachable conduct is limited to “crimes”—offenses defined by criminal statutes and punishable in criminal courts. That impression is reinforced by the fact that the phrase follows the...
Nothing Changed on Impeachment, and Everything Changed
On October 13, President Donald Trump’s average approval sat at 42.2 percent, according to FiveThirtyEight’s average.Then came an astonishing week, even by the standards of the Trump administration. A procession of diplomats trekked to Capitol Hill, where they outlined a consistent tale of an administration hell-bent on conspiracy...
Who Is the Real Rudy?
On September 22, 2001, 11 days after the worst terrorist attack on American soil, then-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani looked squarely into the Saturday Night Live camera and told a shaken nation, “We will not let our decisions be made out of fear.” Flanked by a somber phalanx of uniformed police officers and firefighters, Giuliani offered...
The Atlantic Politics Daily: Who Supports Impeachment?
Today in PoliticsIt’s Monday, October 21. Today, several key tensions running through American politics that will shape the week to come. ¶ Plus, “What was Hillary Clinton thinking?” our contributing writer Tom Nichols asks. ¶ Finally, scenes from a massive Sanders rally.(Ryan Melgar)1. Republicans standing behind Trump / Republicans...
The Liberation of Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney is leaning forward in his chair, his eyes flashing, his voice sharp.It’s a strange look for the 72-year-old senator, who typically affects a measured, somber tone when discussing Donald Trump’s various moral deficiencies. But after weeks of escalating combat with the president—over Ukraine, and China, and Syria, and...
