Nobody looks good in this story. Nuzzi could be dismissed as just one bad apple, except her behavior and status in her profession, and the behavior of respectable outlets like New York Mag and Vanity Fair, suggest that Nuzzi is just an indication of a far deeper rot in American political journalism

Remember that New York Magazine claimed to have conducted not one, but two, investigations of Nuzzi's conduct (one in-house and another by an independent law firm) and both concluded that there was no evidence of bias in her coverage.

nymag.com/press/articl...

Many states limit governors' powers to pardon by requiring other bodies or officials to affirm a decision to pardon or grant clemency. There is absolutely no reason that one person should have this power unchecked.

ccresourcecenter.org/state-restor...

Personally, I don't get the attraction of enlightened despotism (a regime concept with a long history of failure, for obvious reasons). But the idea that Trump proves that It. Just. Might. Work. Here. is truly bizarre.

Someone has a slow and boring brand to maintain.

Much of the media is unwilling to disagree. But, luckily for us, CBS News doesn't get to elect the next Congress.

At this point, I expect the Supreme Court to try to bail him out by ruling that his tariffs are illegal. Not sure how much that will help, however.

On the other hand, "if the Secretary of Defense violated the laws of war, should he be subject to impeachment?" is an actual, Speaker of the House-relevant question.

Though it's always amusing to see Mike Johnson deny that he knows anything about anything and give voice to his utter nihilism, the Speaker of the House really isn't responsible for upholding the laws of war. He's the wrong person to be asking this quesiton...at least framed this way.

it is the worst of all worlds. a "unitary *presidency*" insulated from judicial or congressional power and a weak president unable to do the job of governing

Most culture-war nonsense isn't about what the speaker can or can't do. It's usually about getting very upset that some other people are doing things that the speaker abhors (or, sometimes, secretly wishes they could do).

Uninspiring, unclear, and untrue. Just what you want from a slogan.

My state's Junior Senator is authentically stupid.