Gridlock Central
The best-case scenario for American politics next year is not very cheering
AMERICANS dismayed by the 2016 elections should brace themselves: next year political divisions will probably deepen. With a hot-headed, thin-skinned President Donald Trump in charge of the nuclear codes, the worst-case scenario would resemble “Dr Strangelove”. But weighing the lessons of the Republican and Democratic national conventions in Cleveland and Philadelphia, even the best-case scenario—in which Hillary Clinton becomes president, acknowledges that she will need bipartisan support and woos congressional leaders over White House dinners and late-night whiskies—will echo “All Quiet on the Western Front”.
This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “Gridlock Central”
From the August 6th 2016 edition
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Donald Trump may find it harder to dominate America’s conversation
A more fragmented media is tougher to manage
An FBI sting operation catches Jackson’s mayor taking big bribes
What the sensational undoing of the black leader means for Mississippi’s failing capital
America’s rural-urban divide nurtures wannabe state-splitters
What’s behind a new wave of secessionism
Does Donald Trump have unlimited authority to impose tariffs?
Yes, but other factors could hold him back
As Jack Smith exits, Donald Trump’s allies hint at retribution
The president-elect hopes to hand the Justice Department to loyalists
Democratic states are preparing for Donald Trump’s return
But Mr Trump will be more prepared, too