Robert Guttman

Co-written by Dustin Taylor

Just as we once said good-bye to Michele and Jon and Rick Perry and Rick Santorum and Herman (and before the primaries even began, to Tim Pawlenty), so now we say good-bye to Newt.

Primarily, the primaries work. They weed out the contenders without ideas...

She's back.
She's tan.
She's rested.
And the former Governor of Alaska has even co-hosted a mainstream television show.

Who else has the experience of running for the vice-presidency for the Republicans?
Not one other politician other than Sarah Palin. And she might have some of...

First of all, I have a good reason, as a lifelong Democrat, to not want to reelect Obama this fall. No, it has nothing to do with his policies -- domestic or foreign -- or his health care or stimulus or his numerous drone strikes.

No, I may not vote...

As the chaos of this Republican primary season continues, it is important not to forget the possibilities of a vice-presidential running mate for a Romney, Gingrich, Santorum or Paul ticket. Although conservatives have shown a lack of enthusiasm for the current candidates, the strength of the Republican Party for this...

President Cuomo. President O'Malley. President Warner. President Beebe.

It may seem strange in the middle of the 2012 presidential contest to be looking ahead four years at names that are not that well-known or known at all to today's voters. But as we know things move quickly in politics.

Looking...

The Granite State, known for its first in the nation primary, is also known for its role as the home of the "comeback kid" in primaries dating from Senator Gene McCarthy in 1968 to Ronald Reagan's "comeback" in 1980, to 2008 "comebacks" by both Hillary Clinton for the Democrats and...

Romney may not be perfect, but compared to the rest of the GOP pack, he's pretty outstanding. His closest competitor in the Iowa caucuses, Rick Santorum, doesn't have a strong background that would suggest he could win the general election. As a two-term senator from Pennsylvania, he failed to secure...

What would American presidential politics look like if there was no primary and caucus system?
What if we had to wait for presidential nominations at the national conventions in late summer and early fall?

The primary system championed by progressive Wisconsin U.S. Senator Robert M. La Follette...

--By Robert J. Guttman & Dustin Taylor

Stop the debates, please! How long are we going to put up with these silly debates? What are we really getting out of these debates? At the end of the day are we going to find any major differences between the candidates?...

Luck plays a large role in life and in politics.

President Obama, who has been lucky in his political career from Illinois to the Oval Office, may still have some of that luck hanging around him during the 2012 presidential campaign.

Historically, candidates have not won re-election to the White...

First there was Texan Lyndon Baines Johnson back in the 1960s who became a larger than life accidental president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Then there was George Herbert Walker Bush who made the Lone Star State his residence while building a successful oil business. And, of course,...

The Minnesota congresswoman may not be Tom Petty's favorite "American Girl" but she is certainly surging in opinion polls among likely 2012 GOP voters.

The former tax attorney and Republican presidential candidate is stealing the spotlight from her other GOP presidential colleagues as the Waterloo, Iowa native shows strong support...

When I asked Senator Rand Paul at our Johns Hopkins SAIS Center on Politics and Foreign Relations breakfast on June 8th if he would consider running as vice president on a ticket with his father Rep. Ron Paul, his answer was, "I've told people I think that would just be...

"Will foreign policy matter in the 2012 presidential race? It could be the issue in 2012," emphasized Senator Lindsey Graham at a speech at our Center on Politics & Foreign Relations at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Relations on April 6.

Saying that most Americans are "war weary" the...

At this point one would have to bet heavily that Barack Obama will be reelected in 2012 to his second term as president.

Where in the world are the people on the Republican side who are going to challenge Obama for the right to sit in the Oval Office starting...

Congressman John Boehner, the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, for the new 112th Congress exclaims that, "the people voted to end business as usual and today we begin carrying out their instructions... Hard work and tough decisions will be required of the 112th Congress. No longer can we...

Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and, of course, Barack Obama are the leading names in the Democratic Party today. But, where in the world are the young, inspiring new leaders for the next decade (or at least through 2012) that will bring fresh ideas, programs and vision...

It has happened before when sitting presidents have been unpopular.

President Jimmy Carter faced a strong and lengthy challenge for the Oval Office from the late Senator Ted Kennedy in 1980. Kennedy, who was the emotional favorite of the crowd at Madison Square Garden at the Democratic National Convention in...

She holds no elective office. She is not in control of anything that affects any of us. Yet, she generates more press coverage than any rock star, celebrity or sports figure out there today.

Why are we -or at least parts of the media- so fascinated by the former GOP...

Senator Barack Obama announced for president on February 10, 2007 in Springfield, Illinois. In a rousing speech quoting Abraham Lincoln in cold weather he set off on his quest for the presidency that very few thought would end in triumph as it, of course, did.

Senator Hillary Clinton announced her...