Washington Monthly

It’s slow, inefficient and sclerotic. Here’s a progressive blueprint to fix it. President Donald Trump’s unrelenting assault on the federalworkforce has prompted many progressives to leap reflexively to government’s defense.   Some progressives, however, are acknowledging the need for reform. “The truth is, Trump and Elon Musk alone didn’t break our governing institutions,” write Hannah Garden-Mon...

Democrats are riding high after this year’s special elections,but that still doesn’t mean they’re popular with voters. Strategist Simon Bazelon has advice on what to fix. Less than a year into his second term, President DonaldTrump is already hobbling toward lame duck status. His approval rating has plummeted to 36 percent , according to Gallup’s latest survey, including just a 25 percent thumbs-u...

We go behind the scenes with Angela Kuefler, the pollsterwho helped engineer the historic victories of governors-elect Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill. Earlier this month, Democratic gubernatorial candidates AbigailSpanberger and Mikie Sherrill notched blockbuster victories in Virginia and New Jersey.  Spanberger trounced her Republican opponent, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears by a 15-point ma...

The Trump administration’s policies have damaged the economies of both countries, says former U.S. Ambassador to Canada James Blanchard. A month after President Donald Trump abruptly ended trade talks with Canada over an anti-tariff ad featuring former President Ronald Reagan, the two countries have yet to resume negotiations. The rift between America and its ally to the north is in fact “the wors...

The erosion—and deliberate erasure—of government data bythe Trump Administration threaten both public safety and the US economy, says former US chief data scientist Denice Ross. Federal data are more than jobs numbers and the Census Bureau's tallies of Americans. Government data undergird everyday essentials like the weather forecasts Americans rely on, including tornado and hurricane warnings...

A pending decision could gut the Voting Rights Act andencourage states to disenfranchise minority voters. Last month, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in  Louisiana v. Callais— a case that could spell the end of  Section2  of the Voting Rights Act, the bedrock federal law that bars racial discrimination in voting. As voting rights expert Joshua Douglas explains, the Courtis unlikely to strik...

Reckless tax and budget policies have stifled upwardmobility for young and working class Americans, says budget expert Eugene Steuerle. Bipartisan dysfunction is to blame. The federal government spends the equivalent of about $90,000 per U.S. household per year—yet many Americans don’t see the benefits. Medicare and Medicaid, Social Security and tax subsidies (primarily for wealthy households) swa...

YouTuber Natalie Wynn (aka "ContraPoints") spent a year immersing herself in the conspiracy theories wreckingour politics. Now, she’s sharing what she’s learned. Wynn's latest video, “ CONSPIRACY ,” has racked up more than 4 million views with a deep dive into the history anddynamics of conspiracist thinking in America, and how conspiracism undermines democracy. The success of her ap...

Nearly 1 in 6 Americans lives in a “distressed” community. Where these Americans live and what they experience could explain alot about the rise of Trump. As the architect of the Economic Innovation Group’s DistressedCommunities Index , Senior Fellow Kenan Fikri has spent the better part of the last decade discovering who is prospering in America—and where. The maldistribution of American opportun...

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ian Johnson discusses thelife of Liu Xiaobo, China’s sole laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize. Though Liu is hardly a household name in America, he is a pivotal figure for understanding modern China, Johnson argues. Johnson's recent ⁠review⁠ of I Have No Enemies, by Perry Link and Wu Dazhi (Columbia University Press), won the Washington Monthly’s ⁠2025 Kukula Aw...

The pending sale of an historic federal building by Trump could mean the wrecking ball for the “Sistine Chapel of New Deal Art.”   Journalist Timothy Noah discusses the masterpieces of New Deal Art housed at the Wilbur Cohen Building in Washington, D.C. that Americans should fight to save. Hosts: Anne Kim and Garrett Epps Guest: Timothy Noah Chapters 00:00 The Hidden Treasures of American Art 03:4...

2025 Kukula Award winner Christoph Irmscher discusses hisreview of Arlie Russell Hochschild’s book, Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right , and the vital role of criticism in civil society. Host: Anne Kim Guest: Christoph Irmscher, Distinguished Professor of English, Indiana University Chapters 04:56 Insights from 'Stolen Pride' and Empathy Bridge 09:43 The Concept of Stolen...

Virginia’s upcoming gubernatorial election will be a trialrun for next year’s midterms and an early referendum on Trump. Pollster Pete Brodnitz, founder of Expeditioin Strategies, critiques the strategies emerging from these campaigns. Host: Anne Kim Guest: Pete Brodnitz, Founder, Expedition Strategies Chapters: 00:00 Virginia's Upcoming Elections: A Bellwether for the Nation? 06:08 Candidate...

In what’s become increasingly common practice in recentmonths, the Supreme Court recently used its “emergency docket” to lift a lower court injunction barring the use of racial profiling by federal immigration officials. The Court’s order allows ICE officers in Los Angeles to continue aggressive “roving patrols” and detention practices based on a person’sappearance. While the Court’s order was uns...

In comparison to its glitzy neighbor in Princeton, NewJersey’s Montclair State University cuts a relatively low profile. But its impact on the region is just as profound. Montclair is New Jersey’s second largest public university, with 21,000 students – the majority of whom are racial minorities and half of whom are the first in their families to go to college. Montclair is also among the top-rank...

Donald Trump recently declared on TruthSocial that he plans to “lead a movement to get rid of mail-in ballots.” He claimed that “ELECTIONS CAN NEVER BE HONEST WITH MAIL IN BALLOTS/VOTING, and everybody, IN PARTICULAR THE DEMOCRATS, KNOWS THIS.” In truth, vote-by-mail is a bulwark of American democracy. Trump’s efforts to end vote-by-mail are an extension of hisefforts to control the nation’s elect...

President Donald Trump has condemned the District ofColumbia as a crime-ridden hellhole . He’s warned that “ caravans of mass youth rampage through city streets,” and that the district’s murder rate is higher than “ theworst places on Earth .” More than 2,200 National Guard troops now rove the streets of the nation’s capital, at a cost of more than $1 million per day. In truth, violent crime in D....

Higher education finance expert Sandy Baum explains what the“One Big Beautiful Act” means for student borrowers. Medical student and many middle-class parents could be in for a shock. Guest: Sandy Baum, Senior Fellow, Urban Institute Host: Anne Kim, Senior Editor, Washington Monthly

Unlike other college rankings that rate institutions for their “prestige” and selectivity, the Washington Monthly ’s College Guide and Rankings scrutinizes schools for what really counts – their commitments to public service, research and social mobility for their students. Founded by an abolitionist minister as the first inter-racial, coeducational college in the South, tiny Berea College in Kent...

The past president of Oregon Public Broadcasting says cuts to federal funding for public media could be catastrophic for rural communities in his state. Our guest is Steven Bass, who stepped down as president of Oregon Public Broadcasting in 2024 after 19 years. He calls public radio a “lifeline” for rural communities in his state. Hosts: Anne Kim and Garrett Epps

Until about a decade ago, the Texas GOP epitomized traditionalsmall-government conservatism. It championed tort reform, deregulation, and a laissez-faire, business-friendly atmosphere that politicians would often contrast to the oppressive regime of  California. But the election of Donald Trump has led to a peculiarphenomenon: the “Californi-fication” of Texas and the adoption of California-style...

No school can stand against the government’s limitless resources forever, says higher education finance expert Robert Kelchen. In this conversation with host Anne Kim, Robert discusses the current financial pressures facing universities, including threats to international student enrollment and the increase in the endowment tax included in the "One Big Beautiful Bill" Act. Chapters 00:00...

Donald Trump's destructive trade and tariff policies will leave America poorer and less competitive, argues trade policy expert William Reinsch, who speaks with host Anne Kim. And while the United States has shown itself to be an increasingly unreliable partner, the rest of the world is forming alliances without us, to our detriment. Reinsch also talks about the need for new US policies to address...

Donald Trump's disastrous economic policies on trade, immigration and the federal budget - along with his threats to the Fed - are a perfect recipe for economic disaster. Economist Rob Shapiro joins host Anne Kim to explain exactly why the US economy could be headed for a hard landing. He talks about the impact of high deficits on domestic savings and interest rates, the role of foreign invest...

After years of slavish fawning over Vladimir Putin, PresidentDonald Trump has apparently made an abrupt about-face in his views on the Russian President. In the last week, he has threatened huge tariffs  on Russia’s trading partners if Putin didn’t agree to a ceasefire; he’s also restarted the flow of arms to Ukraine via third-party transactions with European allies. But will Trump's new resol...