The Atlantic Politics & Policy Daily: Cleanup in District 9
North Carolina’s Board of Elections unanimously voted to redo the election in the state’s Ninth Congressional District.
What We’re Following Today
It’s Thursday, February 21.
North Carolina’s Board of Elections unanimously voted to redo the election in the state’s Ninth Congressional District. The Republican Mark Harris, whose campaign was accused of election fraud, defeated the Democrat Dan McCready by 905 votes in November, but the state board has twice declined to certify a winner.
Life in a Bubble: Upwards of 20 percent of Americans seldom or never meet people of another race, political party, or religion, according to a new survey from the Public Religion Research Institute and The Atlantic. The responses seem to suggest that many Americans are ambivalent about the role of diversity in their families, friendships, and civic communities. The survey also found that white, black, and Hispanic people hold differing views on American identity and values.
Revolving-Door Politics as Usual: Former Representative Joe Crowley of New York, who was defeated this summer by the progressive Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is becoming a lobbyist for Squire Patton Boggs. It’s exactly the kind of move that she and other progressives say they’re fighting against.
You Don’t Know Dan: The director of national intelligence has the impossible job of delivering the views of the intelligence community to a president who is not always inclined to hear them. Yet Dan Coats has been one of the longest-lasting officials in Donald Trump’s Cabinet. How has he managed to hang on?
What’s in Store for Bernie Sanders: The Vermont senator is already a prominent candidate in the 2020 presidential race, but he faces the same obstacles that he did last time around, argues Ron Brownstein. Hillary Clinton won more than three-fourths of both black women and black men, and she overall beat him among Democrats by nearly 2 to 1.
Approaching the End?: Media reports suggest that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the Trump administration’s ties to Russia could be over in the next few weeks. But no one knows exactly when it will wrap up—or what it means when it does, write Mikhaila Fogel and Benjamin Wittes.
Revisiting the Indian Child Welfare Act: A Dallas foster family’s federal lawsuit has gone largely uncovered in national news. But the case’s outcome could have enormous consequences for Native American children, parents, and tribes.
Snapshot
Democratic presidential candidate Senator Kamala Harris, left, meets with civil rights leader Reverend Al Sharpton, President of the National Action Network, during lunch at Sylvia's Restaurant in the Harlem neighborhood of New York. Bebeto Matthews / AP
Ideas From The Atlantic
Europe’s Ubiquitous Anti-Semitism (Ben Judah)
“Anti-Semitism is actually like the flu: uncomfortable, sickly, occasionally deadly, but constantly with us. Every few decades, it mutates into an epidemic. The rest of the time it lingers, producing headaches, sweats, and dizzy spells. Not killing us, just wearing us down.” → Read on.
It’s Foreign Policy That Distinguishes Bernie This Time (Peter Beinart)
“In 2016, [Bernie Sanders] found a surprising appetite for his anti-capitalist heresies among the progressive young. In 2020, Americans will learn whether there’s a market for his anti-imperial heresies too.” → Read on.
Pope Francis Calls for Concrete Change (Rachel Donadio)
“The pope began this meeting by handing the 190 attendees a list of 21 ‘reflections’ to consider. They include creating an accessible guide for bishops, instructing them in how to handle abuse cases; discussing whether the punishment is commensurate to the crime; and ‘debating whether priests and bishops guilty of sexual abuse of minors should leave public ministry.’” → Read on.
What Else We’re Reading
◆ 2020 Democrats Embrace Race-Conscious Policies, Including Reparations (Astead Herndon, The New York Times)
◆ The Biggest Field Yet. No Frontrunner. A Divided Base. Welcome to the 2020 Democratic Primary. (Molly Ball and Philip Elliott, Time)
◆ Indict the ‘ISIS Bride’ (Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review)
◆ Alabama Is Going to Execute Rocky Myers. He Might Be Innocent. (Ashoka Mukpo, The Nation)
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