Analysis

GOP sees potential crime in Trump hush-money case — if you ask the right way

73 percent of Republicans agree it’s a crime for a candidate to pay someone to remain silent about an issue that could impact a campaign. But when Trump is invoked, they’re far less concerned.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 17, 2023
Analysis

How the covid lab leak became the American public’s predominant theory

New polling shows as many as two-thirds of Americans favor it. But the public has long leaned more strongly toward it than the government and scientists do.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 16, 2023
Analysis

Greene, GOPers cite ‘bomb’ found at border. Feds say it was ball of sand.

At least two members including Marjorie Taylor Greene suggested military action. U.S. Border Patrol now says it was merely a "duct-taped ball filled with sand" that wasn't a threat.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 16, 2023
Analysis

Fox News-Dominion lawsuit: A timeline of the major revelations

All you need to know about what happened and when in the high-stakes legal showdown.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 15, 2023
Analysis

The GOP’s effort to diminish DeSantis on Ukraine

It’s a wholly familiar tone, echoing how the party has often dealt with Donald Trump’s exploits. It’s also a posture that’s proven costly.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 15, 2023
Analysis

Another Trump lawyer steps forward with a, well, colorful defense

Breaking down Joe Tacopina's arguments about potential charges against Donald Trump in Manhattan.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 15, 2023
Analysis

GOP election deniers increasingly admit they’re just going off vibes

There has never really been evidence the 2020 election was stolen, but even election deniers are acknowledging it.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 14, 2023
Analysis

The hits keep coming for election-deniers

Donald Trump legal adviser Jenna Ellis on Wednesday became the latest Trump lawyer to face sanction for her stolen-election claims.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 13, 2023
Analysis

As Fox News panicked in 2020, leaders warned of featuring Buttigieg, Coons

Audiences "don’t want to see too much of the Mayor Pete’s and Coons etc in the news hours," Fox CEO Suzanne Scott wrote. "Need to be careful about bookings next 2 months."

By Aaron BlakeMarch 11, 2023
Analysis

How an indictment could affect Trump in 2024

The Manhattan D.A. appears closer than ever to bringing charges. And while much depends on how that would play out, there are some things we can say today.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 10, 2023
Analysis

The holes in Jim Jordan’s convoluted ‘weaponization’ theory

Jordan again spun a complex tale of the government conspiring to suppress the Hunter Biden laptop story. And again, there were significant problems with it.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 9, 2023
Analysis

A Trump lawyer’s remarkable admission about her ‘stolen election’ claims

While agreeing to a censure deal, Jenna Ellis acknowledged a series of 10 specific "misrepresentations."

By Aaron BlakeMarch 9, 2023
Analysis

Two key episodes that highlight Fox News’s legal problems

The situation is surely embarrassing for Fox News. But was it defamation? A couple of examples are worth diving into.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 8, 2023
Analysis

4 takeaways from the new Dominion-Fox lawsuit documents

Fox was a hotbed of backbiting, and its vaunted news division wasn’t as neutral as it claimed to be

By Aaron BlakeMarch 8, 2023
Analysis

The GOP backlash on Tucker Carlson

It was a predictable result of Kevin McCarthy giving Tucker Carlson the Jan. 6 footage first. Now it has set off an unusual clash between GOP senators and Carlson.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 7, 2023
Analysis

Stolen elections live on at Fox News, via Tucker Carlson

Despite the legal jeopardy over such claims, Carlson is ramping up his innuendo-laden effort.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 7, 2023
Analysis

A Trump third-party win would be ‘effectively impossible,’ study says

A new study finds it would be "effectively impossible" for Trump to win as a third-party candidate. But that doesn't erase the GOP's headaches.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 6, 2023
Analysis

Trump’s dark ‘I am your retribution’ pledge — and how GOP enabled it

Republicans seem to recognize that moving on from Trump is best, but they have enabled what could be an ugly primary based upon emotion rather than pragmatism.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 6, 2023
Analysis

New Democratic report calls into question key GOP ‘weaponization’ claim

Republicans have highlighted a complaint in which an FBI agent said he objected to using a SWAT team to arrest someone accused of a misdemeanor. The reality is far more complex.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 3, 2023
Analysis

Pompeo’s personal dig at Trump

Without naming names, the former secretary of state tested a remarkable message at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday.

By Aaron BlakeMarch 3, 2023