FDR

Obama — and FDR — Set Precedent for Trump's One-Man Rule

There has been a lot of talk — almost all of it accurate — about how Barack Obama's presidency has fueled the rise of Donald Trump. The president's fans hate this talk, for understandable reasons. They see the president as dignified and cerebral. They see Trump as crude and bigoted, a "short-fingered vulgarian," as Graydon Carter famously put it. The argument that Obama paved the way for Trump takes many forms. He "lowered the bar" for presidential qualifications, argues Peggy Noonan. Trump's Don Rickles act, writes Michael Barone, reflects "the coarseness of Obama's non-stop insults of Republicans and anyone who does not share his views and priorities."

Tuesday Short Cuts

The FDR Model for Buying Presidential Elections

Redistributing Wealth and Entitlements for Votes