Category: Politics
The Postrider Roundup: Trump v. Pop Culture, the System, et al.
Politics Editor Lars Emerson and Editor-in-Chief Michael Lovito discuss Trump’s pervasive impact on pop culture before turning to Michael’s article on DOGE and “solutionism.” Then, they assess (with some optimism for the system) what checks and balances may limit Trump going forward. ...
Musk, DOGE, and the Problem of Government Solutionism
If you’ve paid even a speck of attention to the news since January 20th, you know that Elon Musk, the centibillionaire head of Twitter (I still refuse to call it X), Tesla, and SpaceX, is now also a special government ...
Biden Derangement Syndrome is Not the Way Forward for Democrats
Last week, Matthew Yglesias wrote a Substack post titled “Throw Biden under the Bus.” If you couldn’t tell from its title, the main thrust of the post was that Democrats, in order to reclaim the electoral ground they lost in ...
The Postrider Roundup: EOs and Tarrifs and Memos, Oh My
Michael and Lars try to make sense of a chaotic first few weeks of Trump 2.0, including a wave of controversial tariffs, executive orders, and cabinet hearings, as well as how the Democrats are trying to pick up the pieces ...
Starting to Untangle What Happened to Democrats in 2024
In the outpouring of assessments, castigations, autopsies, recommendations, and blame following Democrats’ 2024 election losses, one particular public figure stands out: Hawaii’s junior senator, Brian Schatz. Where many Democrats, pundits, and politicos rushed to provide answers to the party’s 2024 ...
The Postrider Roundup: Hi Don and Bye-den
The Postrider‘s Lars Emerson and Michael Lovito discuss Trump’s inauguration, his first day back in the job, and his executive orders. Then they pivot to some reflections on the Biden era and the last weeks of his presidency. Follow Postrider ...
Trump Drove Me to the Democratic Party. Biden Kept Me There.
Back in 2020, I wrote a personal essay for a grad school course about what was, essentially, my political coming of age. Reading it again just over four years later, it’s fascinating to see how much my political identity changed, ...
How Did the 2024 Postrider Election Model Hold Up?
We know it’s been a while, but don’t say we didn’t warn you! Our presidential model flirted between Lean Trump and Toss-Up through the last couple weeks of the campaign. And our Senate model remained pretty consistent – Republicans were ...
The Postrider Roundup: 2024 Year in Review
Michael and Lars discuss the anticlimactic speaker election before diving into their 2024 year in review, where they discuss the best, worst, and schlubbiest of last year’s politics.
The Six Films that Explain the Biden Era
Way back in 2021, Politics Editor Lars Emerson and I launched Watching Mates, a podcast that discussed the films we thought best represented each post-war presidency. The final episode, about the then nascent Biden administration, dropped in February of 2022, ...
The Postrider Roundup: Trump’s Nominees, Biden’s Big Pardon, and Reflecting on January 6
The Postrider‘s Lars Emerson and Michael Lovito discuss Trump’s controversial nominees, checking in on Pete Hegseth and digging into FBI nominee Kash Patel, then discuss Biden’s controversial pardon of his son and what meaning January 6 holds nearly four years ...
Feeling the Love (and Fighting the Election Blues) With Wishy
There might not be a hotter indie rock subgenre among the Zoomers than shoegaze. For whatever reason, the under 28 crowd is flocking to bands whaling away at ludicrously distorted guitars, abusing their whammy bars, and cloaking their vocals deep ...
The Postrider Roundup: Trump’s Second Cabinet
The Postrider‘s Lars Emerson and Michael Lovito discuss Donald Trump’s picks for his second cabinet, breaking down who they’re cautiously optimistic about and who they’re scared/angry are even being considered at all.
Allan Lichtman Says He Changed What the 13 Keys Predicted for 2016—The Timeline Says Otherwise
Lichtman says that he made the decision to start predicting the electoral vote “on the fly,” and didn’t have time to update his October 2016 prediction paper. But Social Education told us the paper was submitted and edited after he publicly announced his prediction.
All the Young Dudes Gave Dems Bad News
Thanks to the leisurely pace at which California counts their votes, it’s still a little too early to come to massive, sweeping conclusions about the 2024 election. But if there’s one trend that’s made itself clear, it’s that young people, ...
The Postrider Roundup: After the 2024 Election
The Postrider‘s Lars Emerson and Michael Lovito debrief the 2024 election, its aftermath, and its consequences. They reflect on the media ecosystem’s coverage of the election and its results, the impact of Donald Trump in the grand scheme of American ...
Why The Postrider Matters
In the aftermath of the 2024 election, we offer a reflection on the modern media environment, what we try to bring to the table, and why grounded analysis from the team next door matters more than ever.
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Our Final Factor Updates
After many months of twists and turns, we’re almost at the end of the line – the generic ballot is back to about a one point lead for Democrats, giving Republicans a clear upper hand in the race for control ...
The Postrider Roundup: 2024 Election Preview Extravaganza
In The Postrider Roundup‘s inaugural episode, Michael Lovito and Lars Emerson discuss the impending elections for president, Senate, the House of Representatives, and a handful of governor’s mansions. They discuss what an odd last few weeks of the campaign it’s ...
One Week Out: Some Factor Updates
The presidential and Senate races are coming down to the wire – the generic ballot is below a one point lead for Democrats, giving Republicans a clear upper hand in the race for control of both the White House and ...