Ronald Brownstein

By embracing gay marriage, Obama may have strengthened his core support but further alienated blue-collar white voters.… More »

The president's new position is a bet on the future of the Democratic Party -- and an admission that the New Deal coalition isn't coming back.… More »

Embracing the Florida senator's alternative to the DREAM Act would improve, though not fix, the GOP's standing in the key demographic.… More »

The president is holding his advantage with the groups that boosted him to victory four years ago, but he can't rest easy.… More »

By stirring up questions like contraception, he changed the course of the race and may have hobbled Mitt Romney.… More »

The nearly 50 million Americans without insurance drive up health costs. But GOP alternatives offer no real plan to solve the problem.… More »

A new poll finds women optimistic about their opportunities and comfortable with their roles. Say good-bye to the "mommy wars."… More »

The president is likely to struggle with white voters who didn't go to college. Luckily for him, everyone else is optimistic about the nation.… More »

President Obama's ratings among working-class whites have improved significantly since the Republican primaries and caucuses began.… More »

Conventional wisdom says the primary is pushing the candidates to the right, but on some issues they're more hawkish than the base.… More »

It's widely expected that the Pennsylvanian can connect with working-class white voters, but Michigan will test the theory -- and his viability.… More »

If the president maintains his support in key demographics, Mitt Romney would be in serious trouble in a head-to-head matchup.… More »

The safety net, the entitlement state, and the true beneficiaries of the "poison" of dependency.… More »

Though he's still the frontrunner, low turnout in three conservative states, along with slipping independent support, are worrying trends for Romney.… More »

Defending his remarks about the poor, he said he wants to "fix" low-income assistance programs, but his proposals would actually cut them way back.… More »

For Gingrich, finding an argument that can restore the populist coalition he assembled in South Carolina will become much more urgent after Florida.… More »

Two new polls suggest he's consolidating his vote -- and underscore the high stakes for Newt Gingrich in Thursday's debate.… More »

Jim Crow and Strom Thurmond are long gone, but race remains central to tax and spending issues -- perhaps an omen for national politics.… More »

His strong support among two big Republican demographics that previously resisted him shows how hard it will be to slow down the presumptive nominee.… More »

The economic downturn exacerbated the deep political and cultural divides in our 50-50 nation. Here's what three years of polling data says about where American stands today.… More »