The results of a new Gallup poll ldquo Forty-two percent of Americans on average identified as political independents in 2013 the highest Gallup has measured since it began conducting interviews by telephone 25 years ago Meanwhile Republican identification fell to 25 the lowest over that ti
Robert David Sullivan
Robert David Sullivan is the production editor at America magazine. From 2013 to 2016 he wrote a political column called (Un)Conventional Wisdom.
New conservative tack: Big government is a scam to benefit rich eggheads
In his New Year rsquo s Day column for the Washington Post George Will appears to endorse an idea that was explored in this blog last fall see the post ldquo Cato Institute Choosy Voters Choose Smaller Government rdquo Because voters aren rsquo t taking the time to follow everything their go
Lawmaking goes locovore in 2014
(Un)Conventional Wisdom on the year ahead from our politics blogger Robert D. Sullivan.
Florida reaches peak political power (and how the rest of the Top 10 are doing)
The latest from Robert David Sullivan at “(Un)Conventional Wisdom”
The limits of term limits; beauty in the eye of the voter
Journalists like political upsets; voters rarely accommodate them.
Children: Out of sight, out of mind
Kids and dogs We see a lot of them during the Christmas season thanks to family gatherings and annual visits to neighbors For many of us with no kids or whose children have grown up Christmas is one of the rare times when we come face-to-face with the youngest generation For most of the year ch
Minimum-wage hike reaches maximum support — which is not enough
The minimum wage could be one of the biggest political issues in 2014 and it rsquo s surprising how many people would be affected by an increase in what society considers a barely acceptable pay rate We all know about workers at McDonald rsquo s and Walmart but how many would guess that ldquo ban
Avert your eyes: The long-term unemployed are still here
Solutions to long-term unemployment do not seem to be on the agenda for 2014.
Ixnay on photo ops with the pope
In my last post I suggested that we reduce partisanship in Washington by imposing a fine on the major parties each time they fail to get 30 percent in a congressional race This threat would be an incentive for the parties to recruit candidates who can appeal to local voters and we might end up wi
Hillary Clinton: Good enough for government work
One of my favorite words is ldquo satisficing rdquo or the phenomenon of people choosing the first acceptable option they come across Most of us hate making decisions and want the process to be over as quickly as possible which is why a large number of choices can be terrifying rather than libe
