David Broder's Slant

OH, YES, I know that Democrats have fallen into a peck of trouble and may lose control of Congress. But even if they do, Obama can still storm back to win a second term in 2012. He is that much better than the competition. In what respects is he enduringly superior? Let's start with the basics. H .. submitted 05/21/12

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The Hudson Institute gave a dinner honoring its former president, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, with the award named for its founding intellect, Herman Kahn. Several hundred conservative men and women, many of them fellow intellectuals, listened as a parade of thinkers praised Daniels, a Republican .. submitted 05/21/12

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There is a pattern to the political life of Rob Portman, as he reflected over dinner the other night. It is one that has brought him to the verge of victory in the Ohio Senate race and conceivably could make him the Republican presidential nominee in 2016. submitted 05/21/12

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Joe Biden has a lot to say for himself. I spent a rainy 12-hour day with the vice president on Monday, and from beginning to end, I don't think there was any period when he was not talking to people. The man is determined to carry the burden of his work. He wants to show you what he knows. submitted 05/21/12

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Fifty years ago today, John Kennedy gave one of the best political speeches I ever heard, a plea for religious tolerance that has strange pertinence now when a little-known minister had been threatening to burn copies of the Koran to strike a blow against Muslims. The notion of using the annivers .. submitted 05/21/12

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Meet Robert Gates, also known as The Leading Indicator. The defense secretary, who is noted among his colleagues for his special closeness with President Obama, stepped out in front of other department heads this week by announcing his plans to trim Pentagon spending in a major way next year. .. submitted 05/21/12

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It was an odd but intriguing experience to sit at a press breakfast hosted by the Christian Science Monitor last week and listen as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell strongly rebutted one of my recent columns, implicitly endorsed the message of another and sent a disquieting signal about the pr .. submitted 05/21/12

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Earlier this week, as the Senate went through the motions of debating Elena Kagan's nomination to a Supreme Court seat that almost certainly will be hers, readers of the New Yorker could review journalist George Packer's masterful article "The Empty Chamber," tracing the decline and fall of that sam .. submitted 05/21/12

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Even as he steps up his campaigning and fundraising for Democratic candidates, President Obama appears to be adjusting mentally and emotionally to the prospect that his post-November life will feature more dealings with Republicans. The history of midterm elections shows regular gains for the oppos .. submitted 05/21/12

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In this high-stakes election of 2010, much attention naturally focuses on Republican efforts to come back in Congress and the Democrats' drive to retain their large majorities in the House and Senate. But for those gauging the long-term health of the two parties, nothing is more important than th .. submitted 05/21/12

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Buoyed by a 13 to 6 vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee, Elena Kagan is on her way to the Supreme Court. The talk in Washington is what the impending elevation of the former Harvard Law School dean and solicitor general will mean for the capstone of the judiciary. submitted 05/21/12

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