Washington Watch Articles From 2026
If the Iran War Continues, What Will Trump Do?
With the apparent collapse of the US talks with Iran, President Donald Trump finds himself in a box with no easy way out. Polls are showing that key elements of his winning electoral coalition are growing weary of the war and frustrated with its domestic consequences. As we approach the midterm elections, Republicans in Congress are also nervous about how voters may react when they go to the polls.
Trump’s Budget is a Conservative’s Dream
Since Donald Trump first broke onto the national political scene, there has been a serious debate among Republicans regarding his commitment to conservative principles. His style was, in a word, flamboyant. His morality was questionable. And his behavior and language were outrageous. None of these behaviors could be identified with the staid “buttoned down” behaviors on display in conservative circles.
Beware of War’s Unintended Consequences
In February 2003, Secretary of State Colin Powell went to the United Nations to present the George W. Bush administration’s case against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. His remarks were directed at two audiences: reluctant allies and unconvinced Americans.
The Imperial Presidency
News broke this week that President Donald Trump was conditioning approval of an infrastructure spending bill on renaming New York City’s Penn Station and Washington’s Dulles Airport in his honor. It was unsurprising because there’s a disturbing pattern in Mr. Trump’s approach to governing that includes the glorification of the leader, the erasure of norms, the use of threats of retribution to stifle critics, and a reliance on “alternative facts” to keep the faithful in tow.
Donald Trump’s Philosophy: Attack and Never Admit Defeat
To understand how President Donald Trump promotes his presidency and policies, especially when they are being challenged, it is necessary to understand the impact that New York attorney, the late Roy Cohn, had on his approach to politics and power.
The Way We Should Remember Martin Luther King Day
It should not have been surprising that President Donald Trump had be goaded by civil rights leaders into issuing a statement acknowledging Martin Luther King Day 2026.
How Did We Get to This Point?
How did we get to the point where the president can say and do things that put our culture and democracy at risk, and it’s just shrugged off as if it were normal?
Trump’s Venezuela Gambit
President Trump might be popping corks to toast what he called “one of the most stunning, effective, and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history.” Celebrations, however, are premature. In reality, the assault on Venezuela and the kidnapping and transfer of President Maduro to New York to stand trial in US court are by no means a done deal. On closer scrutiny, more questions than answers are apparent