Ezra Klein, from whose insights I often benefit, places the current state of U.S. politics into historical perspective in his latest New York Times column.
I’ll just offer two paragraphs, each of which makes a very smart point, and offer a link to the full piece
Paragraph 1:
“American politics has typically had ‘sun’ and ‘moon’ parties. After the Civil War, Republicans controlled American politics for decades. After the New Deal, Democrats dominated. Between 1931 and 1995, Democrats held the House for all but four years. Since 1995, control of the House has flipped four times, and if Republicans win the gavel in 2023, that’ll be five.”
And…
“If you were looking for a three-sentence summary of American politics in recent years, I think you could do worse than this: The parties are so different that even seismic events don’t change many Americans’ minds. The parties are so closely matched that even minuscule shifts in the electoral winds can blow the country onto a wildly different course. And even in a time of profound economic dislocation, American politics has become less about which party is good for your wallet and more about whether the cultural changes of the past 50 years delight or dismay you.”
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