President News & Analysis

Conventions: From Meaningful to Meaningless

by Stuart Rothenberg July 16, 2012 · 9:33 AM EDT

Rarely a day goes by without some journalist noting that another Member of Congress is passing up the very forgettable opportunity of attending his or her party’s convention later this summer.

The list of media outlets to report on this “development” is long and getting longer: the New…

Campaigns to Compete for Ads During Olympic Games

by Nathan L. Gonzales July 12, 2012 · 9:35 AM EDT

There’s good news on the horizon for attention-deprived candidates: Millions of voters will soon be glued to their television screens in a normally dead time for campaign advertising.

The bad news is that it’s the Summer Olympics, and candidates and outside groups will have to spend a premium…

Big Legal Win for President, Big Political Win for Republicans

by Stuart Rothenberg June 28, 2012 · 12:23 PM EDT

Moments after the Supreme Court’s decision upholding the constitutionality of the health care law, observers were already assessing its political implications for the November elections.

The decision “amounts to a massive political win for the incumbent,” wrote Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post.

“The decision will certainly…

Barack Obama the Underdog Against ‘Change’ Slogan

by Stuart Rothenberg June 21, 2012 · 11:45 AM EDT

Back in October, President Barack Obama’s job approval rating stood at 44 percent in the NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey and only 17 percent of voters said that things in the country were “generally headed in the right direction.” Those numbers suggested that the president would lose re-election unless…

Are We Headed for Another Electoral Mess?

by Stuart Rothenberg June 1, 2012 · 9:36 AM EDT

The 2012 presidential election looks like it could well be another squeaker, and if it is, a number of possible outcomes could produce national hand-wringing, finger-pointing, complaints of unfairness and anger, further dividing Americans and undermining confidence in our political system.

A dozen years ago, Democrat Al Gore…

Is Pennsylvania In Play for November? Maybe.

by Stuart Rothenberg May 16, 2012 · 9:32 AM EDT

I never include the Keystone State in my list of presidential swing states for November. Am I making a mistake? Possibly.

There are plenty of reasons to leave the commonwealth of Pennsylvania off any list of the most competitive states that will decide the next president.

While…

Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones ...

by Stuart Rothenberg May 11, 2012 · 9:20 AM EDT

Little did I know that what I figured was a relatively innocuous column about the Democrats’ problems in North Carolina, where the party will hold its national convention in early September, would generate such a flood of angry attacks.

“Dear Stuart,” emailed one man from Beulaville, N.C., “Your…

On Second Thought, Maybe N.C. Was a Mistake

by Stuart Rothenberg May 1, 2012 · 10:16 AM EDT

If national Democratic strategists chose Charlotte, N.C., for the party’s national convention because they liked the facilities, the hotel accommodations or the weather in early September, then I guess I can’t yet quibble with the choice.

But if David Axelrod and the president’s other political advisers picked the…

Truth About Mitt Romney’s Running Mate Choice

by Stuart Rothenberg April 27, 2012 · 9:30 AM EDT

Over the past few months, I’ve written a couple of columns about presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney’s potential running mates Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. Start with some biography, an anecdote or tidbit, add a dash of analysis and a blind quote and you’ve got…

One Way to Look at the Presidential Polls

by Stuart Rothenberg April 25, 2012 · 8:30 AM EDT

It’s really amazing how some people with years of political experience change their opinions about the political landscape to match the latest poll.

It’s not that poll results shouldn’t affect our understanding of politics or inform us about what people are thinking. It’s that too often people behave…