The rise of the populist Tea Party movement is dominating the United States's mid-term election campaign. Yet its significance escapes the country's political and media class, says Godfrey Hodgson.
The result of the mid-term elections in the United States will reflect less the political calculations of many voters than their profound sense of disinheritance, says Godfrey Hodgson.
The entrenchment of inequality in the United States damages the economy, degrades politics and corrodes the American dream. A new reality is also an epic challenge of leadership, says Godfrey Hodgson.
Barack Obama’s appointment of David H Petraeus to lead the war against the Taliban highlights enduring tensions in the United States over the role of the military in its political life, says Godfrey Hodgson.
The great contest of the United States in 2010, the one that will decide the fate of Barack Obama’s vision of national renewal, is not at heart about politics. It is a clash about the moral nature of American society, says Godfrey Hodgson.
The political fate of this United States presidency is now coming to turn on the mid-term elections in November 2010, says Godfrey Hodgson.
Barack Obama’s healthcare-reform bill is a real legislative achievement. But the toxic atmosphere surrounding its passage reflects widespread denial of the very legitimacy of his presidency. This is a new twist on a story that began in the 1960s, says Godfrey Hodgson.
An inspiring candidate has become a failing president. But a comparison with Lyndon B Johnson shows that the reasons for this outcome are more than personal. Change had come to America before Barack Obama got to the White House, says Godfrey Hodgson.
The Supreme Court has just made even harder the effort to limit the degradation of American politics by money, says Godfrey Hodgson.
Barack Obama’s great promise is so far unfulfilled. But his record in office - and his capacity to improve it - must also be measured against the nature of the institution he heads, says Godfrey Hodgson
Barack Obama’s great promise is so far unfulfilled. But his record in office - and his capacity to improve it - must also be measured against the nature of the institution he heads, says Godfrey Hodgson.
There is an increasing mismatch between the demands on the American presidency and the realities that constrain it, says Godfrey Hodgson