It’d be a Christmas miracle if the chancellor delivered on these three festive reforms December 16, 2016 While Philip Hammond hasn’t been chancellor for long, he has already adopted George Osborne’s style of giveaways – the gifts aren’t simply bought by taxpayers, but are often funded by taxpayer money that hasn’t been raised yet. Of course, this kind of gift-giving rarely places the goods in the hands of the people who need [...]
We all have lessons to learn from Trump’s shock victory November 17, 2016 Nobody was talking about Wisconsin. There were murmurs about Michigan. There were questions about voter turnout in rural areas of Pennsylvania compared to the cities. Keep in mind, these debates weren’t reflected in the polls; pollsters were almost unanimously calling the election for Hillary Clinton the morning of 8 November. All talk of upsets was [...]
Has Barack Obama been a good President? November 8, 2016 Ed Bowsher, senior analyst and joint output editor at Share Radio, says Yes. Barack Obama has definitely been a good President. He took over when the US was in the middle of an economic crisis – banking reform and a sizeable fiscal stimulus helped create a decent recovery. If you doubt whether the stimulus made [...]
There are silver linings to this depressing presidential election – whether Trump or Clinton wins November 3, 2016 After a gruelling year of primaries, scandals, attack ads, FBI investigations, and breaking news day-in and day-out, Americans are only four days away from choosing their next President. Now, more than ever, we all need a dose of optimism. I’m aware that feeling doesn’t come easy right now. Over the course of this election season, [...]
The debates changed nothing: Trump’s attitude toward women is fuelling his polling decline October 20, 2016 The first two US presidential debates have been the talk of the town – and the world – since they aired. The third, and final, debate on Wednesday night has proven no different. But what’s new? Hillary Clinton won the third debate, just as she won the first. Clinton is ahead in the polls – [...]
The vice-presidential debate confirmed that Trumpism won’t die with Donald Trump’s defeat October 6, 2016 Governor Mike Pence is thought to be the winner of Tuesday night’s US vice presidential debate. Some believe this is good news for Donald Trump: his running-mate pulling out a win may help to cushion his sharp drop in the polls since the first presidential debate. But personally, I think Pence’s success has further highlighted [...]
With two of the worst candidates around, expect reality TV rather than a clash of ideas September 23, 2016 This election may be Hillary Clinton’s to lose, but ever-increasingly it is looking like Donald Trump’s to win. Going into the first debate next Monday, Clinton is still the favourite in the polls. The majority of top pollsters have her hovering over Trump by a few percentage points, and the electoral map still swings in [...]
“What is Aleppo?” Gary Johnson’s Syria gaffe was bad but also emphasised his integrity September 8, 2016 The presidential campaign of Gary Johnson, candidate for the US Libertarian party, received one of its biggest boosts in this election cycle on Wednesday evening – a tweet from the 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney, expressing hope that the Johnson ticket would be allowed to take part in the upcoming presidential debates. The following morning, [...]
How the latest Clinton email twist lays bare the miserable choice Americans have to make August 26, 2016 Hillary Clinton’s email scandal just can’t seem to die. Good; it shouldn’t. On Wednesday, the Associated Press (AP) broke news that “more than half the people outside the government who met with Hillary Clinton while she was secretary of state gave money – either personally or through companies or groups – to the Clinton Foundation.” [...]
Being offensive made Donald Trump’s campaign: Now it’s killing it August 4, 2016 The world is watching Donald Trump, unhinged. Not to suggest he’s been particularly level-headed up until now. From his entry into the primaries last year to the Republican National Convention two weeks ago, Trump has walked a fine line between humour, sarcasm, and challenges to the politically-correct status quo and, every once in a while, blatant [...]
