Opinion

Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst, is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University and author of the forthcoming book " The Presidency of Donald J. Trump: A First Historical Assessment ." Follow him on Twitter @julianzelizer . The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) Former President Donald Trump might get out-Trumped. As the campaign season accelerates, Trump has thrown his weight behind several Republican candidates. The point is not only to shape the electoral playing field but to offer clear evidence he still calls the shots within the GOP if he ends up running for reelection in 2024. Thus far, his endorsements have had mixed results. His biggest victory took place in Ohio, where J.D. Vance, the author of "Hillbilly Elegy," shed any hopes of reinventing the Republican establishment of yore and went all in with Trumpism. He defeated Josh Mandel in the GOP primary and emerged as a shining example of … [Read more...] about Opinion: It won’t be long before extremists in the GOP make Trump look tame

Michael D'Antonio is the author of the book " Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success " and co-author, with Peter Eisner, of the book " High Crimes: The Corruption, Impunity, and Impeachment of Donald Trump. " The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) Frank Luntz, a longtime GOP pollster, said in a recent interview that many Republicans are laughing at former President Donald Trump in private. "They won't say it, but behind his back, they think he's a child. They're laughing at him...Trump isn't the same man he was a year ago. Even many Republicans are tired of going back and rehashing the 2020 election," Luntz told the Daily Beast this week. Michael D'Antonio Earlier this week, Republican strategist Susan Del Percio said she believes many Americans are tired of Trump's "big lie," telling MSNBC, "The people of this country don't want to hear about it anymore." Although … [Read more...] about Opinion: Will Trump be able to wade his way out of troubled waters again?

Paul Sracic is a professor of politics and international relations at Youngstown State University and the coauthor of "Ohio Politics and Government" (Congressional Quarterly Press, 2015). Follow him on Twitter at @pasracic. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion at CNN. (CNN) For those hoping to take former President Donald Trump down a peg as a Republican kingmaker, J.D. Vance's victory Tuesday night in the GOP Senate primary in Ohio had to be a disappointment. While Vance received only about a third of all the votes cast in the Republican Senate primary -- suggesting there are limits to Trump's influence -- in a tight race, with five well-funded candidates, it's tough to argue Trump's endorsement didn't, in the end, make all the difference for Vance. This is made even more impressive by the fact that Trump had to essentially help Vance overcome the venture-capitalist-turned-author's own words, which were sharply critical of Trump back … [Read more...] about Opinion: Ohio primary proves the power of Trump’s endorsement

Garry Kasparov is the former World Chess Champion and the Chairman of the Renew Democracy Initiative (RDI) . Uriel Epshtein is the Executive Director of the Renew Democracy Initiative. The views expressed in this commentary belong to the authors. View more opinion at CNN. (CNN) Americans are extremely polarized, and the structure of our elections isn't helping. In countless states, Democrats or Republicans enjoy such a large majority that the only truly competitive race is each party's primary. In these states, general elections are coronations , not contests -- and that's a problem. Only members of the majority party get a real say in choosing their representative, which excludes a vast portion of the electorate and leads to more radical candidates. Structural reforms like ranked choice voting and open primaries are certainly the best ways to address this, but they can take years to implement and neither party is especially keen on losing its advantage where it … [Read more...] about Opinion: Utah Senate race could hold the key to breaking political polarization

Jeffrey Toobin is chief legal analyst for CNN and the author of "The Nine" and "The Oath." The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) By now, it's well known that the Supreme Court , in its new conservative orientation, is poised to rewrite our understanding of the Constitution when it comes to abortion (allowing states to ban it) and gun control (preventing states from imposing it). But there's another area that may be due for upheaval -- the establishment and free exercise religion clauses of the First Amendment. Jeffrey Toobin That possibility was on display in Monday's argument in Kennedy v. Bremerton . In this case, a football coach at a public high school in Washington state lost his job after he conducted public prayers on the 50-yard line after games. The issue in the case is whether the coach's prayers amounted to a permissible exercise of the coach's rights to free speech and … [Read more...] about Opinion: Praying coach case suggests conservative justices want to rewrite the law on religion and schools

Rusty Hills is a political adviser who has worked on US presidential campaigns for over four decades. He served as the chair of the Michigan Republican Party in 2000 and 2001 and held leadership roles in the Michigan Governor's Office and the Michigan Department of Attorney General for 23 years. Hills, who previously worked as a reporter, anchorman and speechwriter, is a lecturer in public policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. The views expressed in this commentary belong to the author. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) Winning political campaigns do two things. First, they learn from their mistakes, because every candidate makes them along the campaign trail. Second, they learn the right lessons. When Ronald Reagan campaigned for President in 1980, he made his share of mistakes . But, more importantly, he ran a positive, optimistic campaign built around a set of ideas: Supply-side economics … [Read more...] about Opinion: When will the GOP learn from Trump’s mistakes?

Peter Bergen is CNN's national security analyst, a vice president at New America and a professor of practice at Arizona State University. His forthcoming paperback is " The Cost of Chaos: The Trump Administration and the World ." View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) The story is all-too familiar: A man allegedly armed with grievance and a gun kills fellow citizens who are strangers to him, singling them out only because of their race or creed. It's a very American tale of domestic terrorism which appears to have struck once again on Saturday, this time in the city of Buffalo, New York. And it is playing out with increasing frequency in the United States. In June 2015, a white nationalist killed nine people attending a Black church in Charleston, South Carolina. The shooter was hoping to foment a race war. Peter Bergen In October 2018, during a shooting at a synagogue near Pittsburgh, an anti-Semite killed 11 people. The … [Read more...] about Opinion: The terrorists among us, and how to stop them

Peter Bergen is CNN's national security analyst, a vice president at New America and a professor of practice at Arizona State University. His forthcoming paperback is " The Cost of Chaos: The Trump Administration and the World ." View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) The story is all-too familiar: A man allegedly armed with grievance and a gun kills fellow citizens who are strangers to him, singling them out only because of their race or creed. It's a very American tale of domestic terrorism which appears to have struck once again on Saturday, this time in the city of Buffalo, New York. And it is playing out with increasing frequency in the United States. In June 2015, a white nationalist killed nine people attending a Black church in Charleston, South Carolina. The shooter was hoping to foment a race war. Peter Bergen In October 2018, during a shooting at a synagogue near Pittsburgh, an anti-Semite killed 11 people. The … [Read more...] about Opinion: Deadly shootings like the one in Buffalo could be prevented. Here’s how

Dalia Hatuqa is a journalist covering Israeli-Palestinian issues. Follow her on Twitter: @daliahatuqa. The opinions expressed in this commentary are her own. View more opinion articles on CNN. (CNN) In my 20s, the name Shireen Abu Akleh , the rising star of Al Jazeera, the 24-hour Arabic news channel, was a mainstay in our home in Ramallah. When the Second Intifada broke out towards the end of 2000, she was the face of war and peace; a fixture in every Palestinian living room as she told stories of Israel's invasion of the West Bank, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's demise, the senseless killings and the home demolitions. So much so, that when Israeli forces slapped curfews on us in 2002, they would go around in their jeeps and mimic her through a bullhorn: "Stay inside. This is Shireen Abu Akleh, Al Jazeera, Ramallah." JUST WATCHED Injured Al Jazeera journalist speaks after colleague shot and killed in West … [Read more...] about Opinion: My friend Shireen Abu Akleh told the stories no one else wanted to tell

Adam Weinberg is the president of Denison University in Granville, Ohio. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. High school students and their parents devote an extraordinary amount of time and energy to the college search process. But then an odd thing happens once a student is accepted. Families tend to exhale — "All done!" — and mostly put college out of their mind until late summer, when it's time for the incoming freshmen to start classes. The truth is, much can be done between now and late August or early September to help prepare you for your upcoming educational journey. Students tend to worry so much about whether they will they get in and not enough about how best to take advantage of where they wind up going. It matters far less where you go to college and much more about how well you take advantage of the place you are going. For example, most studies show that having a college degree more than doubles how much you will … [Read more...] about Opinion: So, you’ve gotten into a college. Now what?