By admin Even at its peak, Congress is hardly a paragon of competence and moral clarity. But it’s been especially scandal-prone in recent years, thanks largely to the MAGA members who’ve ridden in with President Donald Trump since his first term in 2016.
Read more What I Saw at the French Protests
Remember Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz? He resigned just days before the House Ethics Committee was set to release a on allegations of drug use and sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old. (He then enjoyed a very brief tenure as Trump’s pick for Attorney General before the scandals forced his withdrawal.)
Or how about former North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorne? His resume of wrongdoing included alleged gun violations, insider trading, sexual harassment, and lying about his college acceptances (not to mention a hint of white nationalism).
No wonder then that just 16 percent of Americans approve of Congress’s performance, according to Gallup’s latest numbers, and only 4 percent have a “great deal” of confidence in the institution. In the same way that a dish is only as good as its ingredients, Congress is only as good as its members. Unfortunately, MAGA’s contributions to the Congressional stew are like the legislative equivalent of cyclospora.
“Candidate quality” continues to be a problem for the GOP this cycle, as Monthly Editor Nate Weisberg discovered while compiling his list of the 10 worst candidates running in November. Some of them even make Gaetz and Cawthorne seem like choirboys in comparison. If Democrats succeed in winning big in this year’s midterms, it’ll be in part because voters are fed up with candidates whose primary qualification is loyalty to Trump, integrity and competence be damned.
For this week’s interview (a preview of this week’s podcast), Nate and I counted down the top five worst candidates up for election—or re-election—this year. We also talk about some of the best.
Read more Meet the Democratic Senate Candidates Who Are Overperforming. And Underperforming
See if your pick for number one is the same as ours.
Don’t miss at the Monthly…
College or apprenticeship? Why not both? Most people think of apprenticeship as an “alternative” path for young adults who choose not to enroll in college. But as PPI’s Bruno Manno reports, “apprenticeship degrees”—which combine both practical training with a diploma—are increasingly coming into vogue. They’re a tidy solution for the lack of parity between technical and academic education. And as Bruno argues, they could prove an effective remedy for ensuring that more young adults find a pathway from high school to higher education and career. Learn more about this model here.
The normalization of hate. It wasn’t that long ago that an accusation of Nazism was among the gravest of offenses. Now it earns at most a shrug for many Americans, and is even a point of pride for many in the MAGA fringe. “The neo-Nazis have seen their terminology enter the national vocabulary,” writes David Masciotra. “Their language and influence are visible everywhere, poisoning debate and turning generations of young men into vessels of cruelty, paranoia, and prejudice.” David argues that this fall’s midterms offer Americans an opportunity to reject the nation’s descent into hate. Read here.
Rising odds for a blue Senate. “Democrats can trace multiple paths to Senate control, even in some of the reddest turf in the country, because many of their candidates are performing better than a generic candidate would,” writes Politics Editor Bill Scher. Candidates are wildly over-performing in places like Arkansas and South Dakota (though Democratic victories are still unlikely), and within striking distance of winning in places like Kansas. A surprise upset could even out the map in places where Democrats aren’t performing as well as they should (here’s looking at you, Michigan). Read Bill’s full analysis here.
City of rage. Paris-based Features Editor Gillen Tener Martin has witnessed firsthand the convulsions that have overtaken her adopted city in the past week. Living in the epicenter of the violence, and watching as beloved places in her neighborhood were vandalized or destroyed, left her with questions: “Where were the police who had tear-gassed peaceful protesters near our apartment when stores on our street were being looted?” she asks. Gillen also shares an astonishing set of photos in her piece. Read here.
Read more The American Way of Execution
Plus…
- Politics Editor Bill Scher reports that while Democrats are optimistically spending in ruby-red places like Mississippi and Montana, the odds of winning Senate seats in those places are still long.
- Political debate has regressed into something much like what happens at high school tournaments—more about sophistry than substance, writes Zach Marcus.
- Secretary of Defense failed to get his wish for a live-streamed execution—but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen in the future, James Zirin argues. The mere suggestion “pushes the boundaries of what’s acceptable,” he writes.