1. Robert C. Byrd, The Senate, 1789–1989: Addresses on the History of the United States Senate, Volume 2, Bicentennial Edition (Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1991), 628.
2. David Pultz, “On the Tiger’s Back: The George W. Ball Memorandums and the Johnson Administration’s March toward Escalation in Vietnam, 1964–1965,” Researchgate.net, September 4, 2016.
1. Tom Daschle and Trent Lott, Crisis Point: Why We Must—and How We Can Overcome Our Broken Politics in Washington and across America (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2016).
2. Daschle and Lott, Crisis Point, 1, 4.
3. Jack Doyle, “The Kefauver Hearings, 1950–51,” PopHistoryDig.com, April 17, 2008. Quotes in this section from Life and Time also come from Doyle’s article.
4. John F. Kennedy, Profiles in Courage (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1957).
5. Thomas Mallon, “‘Advise and Consent’ at 50,” New York Times Book Review, June 25, 2009.
6. Scott Simon, “At 50, a D.C. Novel with Legs,” Wall Street Journal, September 2, 2009.
7. Lewis L. Gould, The Most Exclusive Club: A History of the Modern United States Senate (New York: Basic Books, 2005), ix–x.
8. White’s famous observation in his Pulitzer Prize–winning book, Citadel, was more recently quoted in Michael Tomasky, “The South Shall Not Rise Again,” Daily Beast, June 29, 2015.
9. Johnson’s Senate leadership is most brilliantly described in the magisterial biography by Robert A. Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Master of the Senate (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002).
10. This argument is presented in Ira Shapiro, The Last Great Senate: Courage and Statesmanship in Times of Crisis (New York: PublicAffairs, 2012).
11. This summary of Mansfield’s leadership first appeared in Shapiro, Last Great Senate, 14–17. It drew on two superb books about Mansfield: Don Oberdorfer, Senator Mansfield: The Extraordinary Life of a Great American Statesman and Diplomat (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books, 2003), and Francis R. Valeo, Mike Mansfield, Majority Leader: A Different Kind of Senate, 1961–1976 (New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1999).
12. I offered this explanation about that Senate’s greatness in The Last Great Senate and expanded it in Broken: Can the Senate Save Itself and the Country? (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2018), 21–28.
13. Shapiro, Last Great Senate, 3–37.
14. Stuart E. Eizenstat, President Carter: The White House Years (New York: St. Martin’s, 2018); Jonathan Alter, His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2020); and Kai Bird, The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter (New York: Penguin Random House, 2021).
15. My analysis of the Senate’s decline “from Mansfield to McConnell” is presented more fully in Shapiro, Broken, 33–90.
16. David S. Broder, “Southern Powerhouse,” Washington Post, June 16, 1996.
17. Sean Theriault, The Gingrich Senators: The Roots of Partisan Warfare in Congress (New York: Oxford University Press, 2013); and Julian E. Zelizer, Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party (New York: Penguin Press, 2020).
18. Trent Lott, Herding Cats: A Life in Politics (New York: Regan Books, 2005), 112–18.
19. All quotes from the departing senators in 1996 come from Norman J. Ornstein and D. David Eisenhower, Lessons and Legacies: Farewell Addresses from the Senate (Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1997).
20. The most comprehensive description of the Clinton impeachment trial is Peter Baker, The Breach: Inside the Impeachment Trial of William Jefferson Clinton (New York: Scribner, 2000), which I relied on for the discussion that appears in Shapiro, Broken, 58–67.
21. Carl Hulse, “Congressional Memo: A Longtime Courtesy Loses in a Closely-Divided Senate,” New York Times, April 24, 2004.
22. Gould, Most Exclusive Club, xiv.
23. Peter Baker, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House (New York: Anchor, 2014), 607–8.
24. Mitch McConnell, The Long Game: A Memoir (New York: Sentinel, 2016), 170–74.
1. McConnell, Long Game, 173.
2. Ibid.,184–86.
3. Joshua Green, “Strict Obstructionist,” The Atlantic, January–February 2011.
4. Ibid.
5. McConnell, Long Game, 184–85.
6. Timothy Geithner, Stress Test (New York: Broadway Books, 2015), 256.
7. Ibid., 277.
8. Ibid., 258.
9. Carl Hulse, “Maine Senators Break with Republican Party on Stimulus,” New York Times, February 10, 2009.
10. McConnell, Long Game, 191–93; Charles Homans, “Mitch McConnell Got Everything He Wanted: But at What Cost?” New York Times Magazine, January 27, 2019.
11. McConnell, Long Game, 191.
12. Ibid.
13. Norman Ornstein, “The Real Story of Obamacare’s Birth,” The Atlantic, July 6, 2015.
14. See, for example, Robert Reich, “Why the Gang of Six Is Deciding Health Care for Three Hundred Million of Us,” The Blog, Huff Post, September 21, 2009.
15. Olympia Snowe, Fighting for Common Ground: How We Can Fix the Stalemate in Congress (New York: Weinstein Books, 2013), 194.
16. McConnell, Long Game, 191.
17. Alex Isenstadt, “Town Halls Go Wild,” Politico, August 3, 2009; and Julie Rovner, “In Health Care Debate, Fear Trumps Logic,” NPR, August 28, 2009.
18. Alexander Bolton, “Gang of Six Health Care Negotiations on the Verge of Collapse,” The Hill, September 4, 2009.
19. Alec MacGillis, The Cynic: The Political Education of Mitch McConnell (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2014), 106.
20. Ornstein, “Real Story of Obamacare’s Birth.”
21. Molly Ball, “Harry Reid Goes Down Fighting,” The Atlantic, March 27, 2015.
22. Ornstein, “Real Story of Obamacare’s Birth.”
23. McConnell, Long Game, 196–97.
24. Ibid., 197.
25. Ornstein, “Real Story of Obamacare’s Birth.”
26. Green, “Strict Obstructionist.”
27. Senator Carl Levin, interview with author, August 6, 2010.
28. George Packer, “The Empty Chamber,” New Yorker, August 9, 2010.
29. Shapiro, Last Great Senate, xviii, ix.
30. Ira Shapiro, “Senate Holds Key to Fixing Washington,” CNN.com, January 15, 2013.
31. McConnell, Long Game, 212.
32. Ibid., 202.
33. Ibid., 225–27.
34. McConnell, Long Game, 205; Rebekah Metzler, “Tea Party Candidates Hard to Come by in 2014 Races,” U.S. News and World Report, February 21, 2013.
35. Jonathan Weisman and Ashley Parker, “Riding Wave of Discontent, G.O.P. Takes Senate,” New York Times, November 4, 2014.
36. The summary of McConnell’s rise is based on multiple sources, but particularly McConnell, Long Game; MacGillis, Cynic; Charles Homans, “Mitch McConnell Got Everything He Wanted: But at What Cost?” New York Times Magazine, January 22, 2019; and Jane Mayer, “How Mitch McConnell Became Trump’s Enabler-in-Chief,” New Yorker, April 12, 2020.
37. Mayer, “How Mitch McConnell Became Trump’s Enabler-in-Chief.”
38. Ibid.
39. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 210 (2010).
40. Mayer, “How Mitch McConnell Became Trump’s Enabler-in-Chief.”
41. McConnell, Long Game, 136–37.
42. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
43. Russell Berman, “Congress’ Surprisingly Productive Year,” The Atlantic, December 23, 2015.
44. Ibid.
45. Michael Bowman, “U.S. Congress Ends 2015 with a Rare Show of Bipartisanship,” VOA News, December 20, 2015.
46. Sam Levine, “Mitch McConnell Is Apparently Having an ‘Almost Out-of-Body Experience’ with Obama,” Huffington Post, May 13, 2015.
47. Green, “Strict Obstructionism.”
48. David M. Herszenhorn, “It’s a Stretch, but Mitch McConnell Is Reaching across the Aisle,” New York Times, April 24, 2015.
49. Seung Min Kim, “Mitch McConnell’s Historic Judge Blockade,” Politico, July 14, 2016; and Russell Wheeler, “Senate Obstructionism Handed a Raft of Judicial Vacancies to Trump—What Has He Done with Them?” Brookings Institution FIXGOV blog, June 4, 2018.
50. Hearings before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Energy and Power, 114th Cong. (March 17, 2015) (testimony of Laurence H. Tribe).
51. Paul Barrett and James M. Rowley, “And Now, I’ll Show You Climate Change!” Bloomberg Business Week, December 28, 2015.
52. Mitch McConnell, “Obama Takes His Reckless Energy Plan to the United Nations,” Washington Post, November 17, 2015.
53. McConnell, Long Game, 159, 163, 185, 203, 207, 209–10, 215.
54. Ibid., 191.
55. Ibid., 256.
56. Burgess Everett and Glenn Thrush, “McConnell Throws Down the Gauntlet: No Scalia Replacement under Obama,” Politico, February 13, 2016.
57. Ibid.
58. Ibid.
59. Jonathan Adler, “Again on the Erroneous Argument That the Senate Has a ‘Constitutional Duty’ to Consider a Supreme Court Nominee,” Washington Post, March 15, 2016.
60. Pema Levy, “Blocking Scalia’s Replacement Could Put GOP Senators in a Bind, Poll Shows,” Mother Jones, February 22, 2016.
61. Elaine Godfrey, “The Judge Chuck Grassley Can’t Ignore,” The Atlantic, June 8, 2016.
62. Larry Buchanan and Karen Yourish, “The Russia Meeting at Trump Tower Was to Discuss Adoption, Then It Wasn’t: How Accounts Have Shifted,” New York Times, August 6, 2016; and Philip Bump, “What We Know about the Trump Tower Meeting,” Washington Post, August 7, 2016.
63. Julian Barnes, “Senate Report Criticizes Response to Russian Meddling,” New York Times, February 6, 2020; and Michael Isikoff and David Corn, Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin’s War on America and the Election of Donald Trump (New York: Twelve, 2018), 214–16.
64. David M. Drucker, “McConnell: Vacant Supreme Court Seat Won the Election for Trump,” Washington Examiner, April 7, 2017.
65. Tim Alberta, American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump (New York: Harper, 2019), 600.
1. Numerous books have documented the chaos in Trump’s White House. See, e.g., Bob Woodward, Fear: Trump in the White House (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2018); and Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig, A Very Stable Genius: Donald J. Trump’s Testing of America (New York: Penguin Press, 2020).
2. John Bresnahan and Burgess Everett, “McConnell and Schumer Hit Rock Bottom,” Politico, January 19, 2018.
3. Russell Wheeler, “Judicial Nominations in the Bush and Obama Administrations’ First Nine Months,” Brookings, October 23, 2009; and Jon Greenberg, “Fact-Check: Did Obama Leave Trump with 128 Judges to Appoint?” Politifact.com, reported in the Austin American-Statesman, October 5, 2020.
4. Ruth Marcus, Supreme Ambition: Brett Kavanaugh and the Conservative Takeover (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2019), 57.
5. Ibid., 26–27.
6. Ibid., 30.
7. Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson, Let Them Eat Tweets: How the Right Rules in an Age of Extreme Inequality (New York: Liveright, 2020), 148.
8. Jonathan Cohn, The Ten Year War: Obamacare and the Unfinished Crusade for Universal Coverage (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2021), 285–86.
9. Alexander Bolton, “McConnell: We’ll Start Obamacare Repeal on Day One,” The Hill, December 6, 2016.
10. Thomas Kaplan and Robert Pear, “Senate Takes Major Step toward Repealing Health Care Law,” New York Times, January 12, 2017.
11. Erin Kelly, “Obamacare Takes First Real Step Closer to Repeal after Senate Vote,” USA Today, January 12, 2017.
12. Michael Kranish and Marc Fisher, Trump Revealed (New York: Scribner, 2016), 275.
13. Fred Imbert, “Donald Trump: Mexico Is Going to Pay for the Wall,” CNBC, October 28, 2015.
14. Janell Ross, “From Mexican Rapists to Bad Hombres, the Trump Campaign in Two Moments,” Washington Post, October 20, 2016.
15. Jeremy Diamond, “Donald Trump: Ban All Muslim Travel to the U.S.,” CNN Politics, December 28, 2015.
16. Dan Merica, “Trump Signs Executive Order to Keep Out ‘Radical Islamic Terrorists,’” CNN Politics, January 30, 2017.
17. Mallory Shelbourne, “McCain, Graham: Trump Order May Become ‘Self-Inflicted Wound’ in Terrorism Fight,” The Hill, January 29, 2017.
18. Aaron Blake, “Whip Count: Here’s Where Republicans Stand on Trump’s Controversial Travel Ban,” Washington Post, January 31, 2017.
19. Rebecca Savransky, “Portman: Trump’s Order ‘Not Sufficiently Vetted,’” The Hill, January 29, 2017; and Jason Williams and Dan Horn, “Cincinnati Now a ‘Sanctuary City.’ What’s That Mean?” Cincinnati Enquirer, January 30, 2017.
20. Sean Sullivan, “Leading Republican Senators Criticize Trump’s Travel Ban—48 Hours Later,” Washington Post, January 29, 2017.
21. Alexander Bolton, “McConnell: Trump’s Proposal on Muslims Inconsistent with American Values,” The Hill, December 8, 2016.
22. Julie Hirschfeld and Mark Landler, “Trump Nominates Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court,” New York Times, January 31, 2017.
23. Alicia Parlapiano and Karen Yourish, “Where Neil Gorsuch Would Fit on the Supreme Court,” New York Times, February 1, 2017.
24. Peter W. Stevenson, “The Real Reason Senate Democrats Are Going to Oppose Judge Gorsuch for the Supreme Court,” Washington Post, March 30, 2017.
25. Neal K. Katyal, “Why Liberals Should Back Neil Gorsuch,” New York Times, January 31, 2017.
26. James D. Zirin, Supremely Partisan: How Raw Politics Tips the Scales in the United States Supreme Court (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2016), 7, 55; and John Dean, The Rehnquist Choice: The Untold Story of the Nixon Appointment That Redefined the Supreme Court (New York: Free Press, 2001).
27. Richard J. Ellis, The Development of the American Presidency (London: Routledge, 2012), 511–18.
28. Tom Howell Jr., “Justices Roberts, Kennedy Fall from GOP Favor after Recent Supreme Court Decisions,” Washington Times, July 19, 2015.
29. Adam Liptak, “An ‘Ideological Food Fight’ (His Words in 2002) Awaits Neil Gorsuch,” New York Times, March 18, 2017.
30. Burgess Everett and Seung Min Kim, “Gorsuch Battle Brings Senate to the Brink of a New Low,” New York Times, March 30, 2017.
31. Matt Flegenheimer, “Gorsuch Tries to Put Himself above Politics in Confirmation Hearing,” New York Times, March 20, 2017.
32. Matt Flegenheimer, “Senate Republicans Deploy ‘Nuclear Option’ to Clear Path for Gorsuch,” New York Times, April 6, 2017.
33. Ibid.
34. Zach C. Cohen, “NJ 50: 50 People Changing the Game in Washington,” National Journal, November 19, 2019.
35. Paul Kane, “Senate Democrats Vastly Outspent by Right in Gorsuch Fight,” Washington Post, March 18, 2017.
36. Devlin Barrett, Adam Entous, and Philip Rucker, “President Trump Fires FBI Director Comey,” Washington Post, May 10, 2017.
37. Matthew Rosenberg and Matt Apuzzo, “Days before Firing, Comey Asked for More Resources for Russia Inquiry,” New York Times, May 10, 2017.
38. Devlin Barrett and Philip Rucker, “Trump Says He Was Thinking of Russia Controversy When He Decided to Fire Comey,” Washington Post, May 11, 2017.
39. Julie Vitkovskya and Amanda Erickson, “The Strange Oval Office Meeting between Trump, Lavrov and Kislyak,” Washington Post, May 10, 2017; and Matt Apuzzo, Maggie Haberman, and Matt Rosenberg, “Trump Told Russia That Firing ‘Nut Job’ Comey Eased Pressure from Investigation,” New York Times, May 19, 2017.
40. Bridget Bowman, “Bipartisan Senators Call for New Committee on Russia Hacking,” The Hill, December 18, 2016.
41. Rebecca Savransky, “McConnell Stands Firm: No Select Committee Needed to Investigate Russian Meddling,” The Hill, December 20, 2016.
42. Paul Kane, “Burr and Warner in the Spotlight, and Arm in Arm, in Russia Probe,” Washington Post, March 30, 2017.
43. Nicholas Kristof, “‘There’s a Smell of Treason in the Air,’” New York Times, March 23, 2017.
44. Rebecca Ruiz and Mark Landler, “Robert Mueller, Former F.B.I. Director, Is Named Special Counsel for Russia Investigation,” New York Times, May 17, 2017.
45. Adam Entous and Ellen Nakashima, “Trump Asked Intelligence Chiefs to Push Back against FBI Collusion Probe after Comey Revealed Its Existence,” Washington Post, May 22, 2017.
46. Matt Flegenheimer and Emmarie Huetteman, “Senate Intelligence Committee Leaders Vow Thorough Russian Investigation,” New York Times, March 29, 2017; and Seung Min Kim, “Senate Judiciary Committee to Investigate Comey Firing, Clinton E-mail Probe,” Politico, June 8, 2017.
47. Terri Rupar, “McConnell Also Says He Wants to Hear from Comey,” Washington Post, May 17, 2017.
48. Paul Kane, “On Capitol Hill, the Race Is On to Get the First Crack at Comey,” Washington Post, May 18, 2017.
49. Karoun Demirjian, “Senators Strike Comprehensive Deal to Increase Russia Sanctions,” Washington Post, June 12, 2017.
50. Peter Baker and Sophia Kiskovsky, “Trump Signs Russian Sanctions into Law, with Caveats,” New York Times, August 2, 2017.
51. David Ignatius, “On Russian Sanctions, Trump Has a Point,” Washington Post, August 3, 2017.
52. Face the Nation transcript, June 12, 2016: Sanders, Lewandowski, Flake.
53. Jeff Flake, “My Party Is in Denial about Donald Trump,” Politico, July 31, 2017, an excerpt from his book, Conscience of a Conservative: A Rejection of Destructive Politics and a Return to Principle (New York: Random House, 2017).
54. Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “Jeff Flake, a Fierce Trump Critic, Will Not Seek Reelection to the Senate,” New York Times, October 24, 2017.
55. Daniella Diaz, “Donald Trump and Bob Corker: A Timeline,” CNN Politics, October 24, 2017.
56. Jonathan Martin and Mark Landler, “Bob Corker Says Trump’s Recklessness Threatens ‘World War III,’” New York Times, October 8, 2017.
57. Ibid.
58. Nina Easton, “Bob Corker: Washington’s Dealmaker,” Fortune, December 9, 2010; Robert G. Kaiser, Act of Congress: How America’s Essential Institution Works, and How It Doesn’t (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013), 245–54.
59. David Leonhardt, “The Fight for Obamacare Has Turned,” New York Times, February 28, 2017.
60. Ibid.
61. Margot Sanger-Katz and Haeyoun Park, “Obamacare Is More Popular Than Ever, Now That It May Be Repealed,” New York Times, February 1, 2017.
62. Darius Tahir, “Boehner: Republicans Won’t Repeal and Replace Obamacare,” Politico, February 23, 2017.
63. Jeremy Peters, “Patience Gone, Koch-Backed Groups Will Pressure GOP on Health Repeal,” New York Times, March 5, 2017.
64. Reed Abelson and Katie Thomas, “In Rare Unity, Hospitals, Doctors, and Insurers Criticize Health Bill,” New York Times, May 4, 2017.
65. Jennifer Haberkorn and Elana Schor, “Bipartisan Health Care Talks Pick Up Steam in the Senate,” Politico, May 16, 2017.
66. Bolton, “McConnell: We’ll Start Obamacare Repeal on Day One.”
67. Robert Pear, “13 Men, and No Women, Are Now Writing New G.O.P. Health Bill in the Senate,” New York Times, May 8, 2017.
68. Adam Cancryn, “Secrecy Boosts GOP’s Obamacare Repeal Push,” Politico, June 20, 2017.
69. Sean Sullivan, Juliet Eilperin, and Kelsey Snell, “Senate GOP Leaders Will Present Health Bill This Week, Even as Divisions Flare,” Washington Post, June 20, 2017.
70. Lauren Fox, “Conservatives on Capitol Hill Anxiously Await Health Care Bill,” CNN, June 20, 2017.
71. Jennifer Steinhauer, “Old Truth Trips Up G.O.P. on Health Law: A Benefit Is Hard to Retract,” New York Times, July 17, 2017.
72. Thomas Kaplan and Robert Pear, “Senate Health Bill in Peril as C.B.O. Predicts 22 Million More Uninsured,” New York Times, June 26, 2017.
73. Marc Fisher and Sean Sullivan, “Mitch McConnell, America’s No. 1 Obstructionist, Is Trying to Make Big Things Happen,” Washington Post, June 30, 2017.
74. Clare Foran, “GOP Senator Dean Heller Won’t Support Senate Health Care Bill,” The Atlantic, June 23, 2017.
75. Robert Pear and Jennifer Steinhauer, “G.O.P. Rift over Medicaid and Opioids Imperils Senate Health Bill,” New York Times, June 20, 2017.
76. Brooke Singman, “Senate Health Care Bill: 4 Key Republicans Come Out against GOP Plan,” June 22, 2017.
77. Paul Kane, “If These Two Republicans Can’t Agree, the Senate Can’t Pass a Health-Care Bill,” Washington Post, June 29, 2017.
78. Juliet Eilperin, Sean Sullivan, and Ed O’Keefe, “Senate Republicans’ Effort to ‘Repeal and Replace’ Obamacare All but Collapses,” Washington Post, July 18, 2017.
79. Elise Viebeck, Paul Kane, and Ed O’Keefe, “McCain Returns to Senate for Health-Care Vote to Emotional Applause from Colleagues,” Washington Post, July 25, 2017.
80. Juliegrace Brufke, “Johnson, McCain, Graham Seek Assurance That the ‘Skinny Repeal’ Isn’t the Final Bill,” Daily Caller, July 27, 2017.
81. Ed O’Keefe and Paul Kane, “The Week John McCain Shook the Senate,” Washington Post, July 28, 2017.
82. Matt Flegenheimer and Maggie Haberman, “Mitch McConnell’s ‘Excessive Expectations’ Comment Draws Trump’s Ire,” New York Times, August 9, 2017.
83. Jeff Mason and Kevin Drawbaugh, “Obama Targets Foreign Profits with Tax Proposal, Republicans Skeptical,” Reuters, February 1, 2015.
84. Binyamin Appelbaum, “Trump Tax Plan Will Not Bolster Growth, Economists Say,” New York Times, May 12, 2017.
85. Binyamin Appelbaum, “Trump Tax Plan Benefits Wealthy, Including Trump,” New York Times, December 27, 2017.
86. Jim Tankersley and Matt Phillips, “Trump’s Tax Cut Was Supposed to Change Corporate Behavior: Here’s What Happened,” New York Times, November 12, 2018.
87. Alan Rappeport and Thomas Kaplan, “Senate Republicans Embrace Plan for $1.5 Trillion Tax Cut,” New York Times, September 19, 2017.
88. Ibid.
89. Thomas Kaplan and Jim Tankersley, “Senate Plans to End Obamacare Mandate in Revised Tax Proposal,” New York Times, November 14, 2017.
1. Michael D. Shear, “Trump Lines Up Establishment Republicans to Vouch for Rex Tillerson,” New York Times, December 13, 2016; and Peter Nicholas, Michael C. Bender, and Carol E. Lee, “How Rex Tillerson, a Late Entry to Be Secretary of State, Got Donald Trump’s Nod,” Wall Street Journal, December 14, 2016.
2. Jason Zengerle, “Rex Tillerson and the Unraveling of the State Department,” New York Times, October 17, 2017; and Shamila N. Chaudhary, “Tillerson Was a Disaster for the State Department: Can Pompeo Do Better?” Politico, March 17, 2018.
3. Ashley Parker, Philip Rucker, John Hudson, and Carol D. Leonnig, “Trump Ousts Tillerson, Will Replace Him as Secretary of State with CIA Chief Pompeo,” Washington Post, March 13, 2018.
4. Jeremy Diamond, “Trump Hits China with Tariffs, Heightening Concerns of Global Trade War,” CNN, March 23, 2018.
5. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, “Attorney General Announces Zero-Tolerance Policy for Criminal Illegal Entry,” April 6, 2018; and Joshua Barajas, “How Trump’s Family Separation Policy Became What It Is Today,” PBS News Hour, June 14, 2018.
6. Mark Landler, “Trump Abandons Nuclear Deal He Long Scorned,” New York Times, May 8, 2018.
7. David J. Lynch, Josh Dawsey, and Damian Paletta, “Trump Imposes Steel and Aluminum Tariffs on the E.U., Canada, and Mexico,” Washington Post, May 31, 2018.
8. Tom McTague, David M. Herszenhorn, and Andrew Restuccia, “Trump Blows Up G7 Agenda,” Politico, May 30, 2018.
9. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 4.
10. Ibid., 48.
11. Ibid., 3.
12. Grace Panetta, “Trump’s Business Career Is More Connected to Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy Than We Ever Knew,” Business Insider, June 29, 2018.
13. Andrew Weissmann, Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation (New York: Random House, 2020), 221–22.
14. Mark Landler and Maggie Haberman, “A Besieged Trump Says He Misspoke on Russian Election Meddling,” New York Times, July 17, 2018.
15. Aris Folley, “Wall Street Journal Editorial Board Rips Trump on Helsinki: It Was a ‘National Embarrassment,’” The Hill, July 17, 2018.
16. Sarah D. Wire, “‘Disgraceful’: Republicans Sharply Criticize Trump’s Behavior at News Conference with Putin,” Los Angeles Times, July 16, 2018.
17. Peter Baker, “For Republicans, ‘The Dam Has Broken’: But for How Long?” New York Times, July 17, 2018.
18. Kevin Liptak and Jeff Zeleny, “Trump, Facing Fury, Says He Misspoke with Putin,” CNN Politics, July 18, 2018.
19. Baker, “For Republicans, ‘The Dam Has Broken.’”
20. Weissman, Where Law Ends, 221–23.
21. Wire, “‘Disgraceful.’”
22. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 94–119. The description of the battle over Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination is drawn predominantly from Marcus’s excellent book.
23. Ibid., 19–20, 30–34.
24. James Hohmann, “The Daily 202: Why U.S. v. Nixon Matters—Now More Than Ever,” Washington Post, July 24, 2018.
25. The summary discussion of Kavanaugh’s judicial record comes from Ira Sha piro, “The Kavanaugh Nomination: A Defining Moment for the Senate, the Court and the Country,” The Hill, September 8, 2018.
26. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 35.
27. Adam Liptak, “Brett Kavanaugh, a Conservative Stalwart in Political Fights and on the Bench,” New York Times, July 9, 2018.
28. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 87.
29. Ibid., 41.
30. Ibid., 171.
31. Mark Gitenstein, Matters of Principle: An Insider’s Account of America’s Rejection of Robert Bork’s Nomination to the Supreme Court (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992), is a superb account of the confirmation fight.
32. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 201.
33. Ibid., 172.
34. Peter Suderman, “Mitch McConnell Says Caring about Legislative Process Is for Losers: He’s Wrong,” Reason, December 6, 2017; and Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 182.
35. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 180–86, 195–97.
36. Floor statement of Senator Grassley on the passage of the First Step Act, December 19, 2018.
37. Niels Lesniewski, “Grassley Pitches Trump on Whistleblowers,” Roll Call, February 6, 2017.
38. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 178–79.
39. Ibid., 198.
40. Ibid., 199.
41. Ibid., 198–99.
42. Ibid., 200.
43. Ibid.
44. Elizabeth Williamson, Rebecca Ruiz, and Emily Steel, “For Christine Blasey Ford, a Drastic Turn from a Quiet Life in Academia,” New York Times, September 19, 2018. This section also draws on the chapter “Paddling In,” in Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 219–41.
45. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 226.
46. Ibid., 240–46.
47. Ibid., 245–47.
48. Ibid., 253, 255.
49. Ibid., 255–56.
50. Tara Culp-Ressler, “23 Years Later, Senator Who Interrogated Anita Hill Still Doesn’t Understand Sexual Harassment,” ThinkProgress, May 7, 2014.
51. Ibid., 265.
52. Ibid., 254.
53. Chris White, “McConnell Reassured Trump: ‘I’m Stronger Than Mule Piss’ on Kavanaugh,” Daily Caller, October 7, 2018.
54. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 298.
55. Ibid., 298–302.
56. Ibid., 303.
57. Ibid., 304.
58. Ibid., 305–7.
59. Ibid., 307–9.
60. Ibid., 335–39.
61. The Editors, “It Is Time for the Kavanaugh Nomination to Be Withdrawn,” America, the Jesuit Review, September 27, 2018.
62. Susan Svrluga, “‘Unfathomable’: More Than 2,400 Law Professors Sign Letter Opposing Kavanaugh’s Confirmation,” Washington Post, October 4, 2018.
63. Julie Zauzmer Weil, “The National Council of Churches Makes a Rare Statement to Oppose Kavanaugh,” Washington Post, October 4, 2018.
64. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 317.
65. The Editors, “Anyone Who Recognizes the Humanity of the Unborn Should Support the Nomination of Judge Kavanaugh,” America, the Jesuit Review, July 9, 2018.
66. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 341–47, 356–59.
67. Ibid., 364.
68. Ibid., 357.
69. Seung Min Kim, “McConnell Calls Opposition to Kavanaugh ‘A Great Political Gift’ to Republicans,” Washington Post, October 6, 2018.
70. Sabrina Siddiqui, “Democrats Got Millions More Votes—So How Did Republicans Win the Senate?” The Guardian, November 8, 2018.
71. Carl Hulse, “Why the Senate Couldn’t Pass a Crime Bill Both Parties Backed,” New York Times, September 16, 2016.
72. Nicholas Fandos and Maggie Haberman, “Trump Embraces a Path to Revise U.S. Sentencing and Prison Laws,” New York Times, November 14, 2018.
73. Colby Itkowitz, “Why Isn’t Mitch McConnell Bringing Up Criminal Justice Reform?” Washington Post, November 30, 2018.
74. Nicholas Fandos, “McConnell Feels the Heat from the Right to Bring Criminal Justice Bill to a Vote,” New York Times, November 20, 2018.
75. Ibid.
76. Nicholas Fandos, “Criminal Justice Bill Will Go Up for a Vote,” New York Times, December 11, 2018.
77. Annie Karni, “The Senate Passed the Criminal Justice Reform Bill. For Jared Kushner, It’s a Personal Issue and a Rare Victory,” New York Times, December 14, 2018.
78. Nicholas Fandos, “Senate Passes Bipartisan Criminal Justice Bill,” New York Times, December 18, 2018.
79. Mikhaila Fogel and Benjamin Wittes, “Bill Barr’s Very Strange Memo on Obstruction of Justice,” Lawfare, December 20, 2018.
80. “Graham on Syria: This Is a High-Risk Strategy,” CNN Video, December 19, 2018.
81. Mark Landler, Helene Cooper, and Eric Schmitt, “Trump to Withdraw U.S. Forces from Syria, Declaring ‘We Have Won Against ISIS,’” New York Times, December 19, 2018.
82. Deirdre Shesgreen, “McConnell: Senate Will Stop Any Immigration Bill Trump Opposes and Won’t Shut Down Government,” USA Today, May 25, 2018; and Erik Wasson, “McConnell Puts Low Odds on December Shutdown over Border Wall,” Bloomberg News, October 16, 2018.
83. Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Emily Cochrane, “A Shutdown Looms: Can G.O.P Get Lawmakers to Show Up to Vote?” New York Times, December 16, 2018.
1. McConnell, Long Game, 215.
2. Susan Page, Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi and the Lessons of Power (New York: Twelve, 2021), 284–85.
3. Jordain Carney, “McConnell Pledges to Be ‘Grim Reaper’ for Progressive Policies,” The Hill, April 22, 2019.
4. John Gramlich, “How Trump Compares with Other Recent Presidents in Appointing Federal Judges,” Pew Research Center, January 13, 2021.
5. Katie Benner and Nicholas Fandos, “Senate Confirms Barr as Attorney General,” New York Times, February 14, 2019.
6. Barack Obama, A Promised Land (New York: Crown, 2020), 505.
7. Glenn Thrush, Jo Becker, and Danny Hakim, “Tap Dancing with Trump: Lindsey Graham’s Quest for Relevance,” New York Times, August 14, 2021.
8. Mark Leibovich, “How Lindsey Graham Went from Trump Skeptic to Trump Sidekick,” New York Times, February 25, 2019.
9. Nicholas Fandos, Sheryl Gay Stolberg, and Peter Baker, “Trump Signs Bill Reopening Government for 3 Weeks in Surprise Retreat from Wall,” New York Times, January 25, 2019.
10. Weissmann, Where Law Ends, xiv, xvi.
11. Mark Mazzetti and Michael S. Schmidt, “Mueller Objected to Barr’s Description of Russia’s Investigation Findings on Trump,” New York Times, April 30, 2019.
12. David A. Graham, “Barr Misled the Public—and It Worked,” The Atlantic, May 1, 2019.
13. Mark Mazzetti and Katie Benner, “Mueller Finds No Trump-Russia Conspiracy, but Stops Short of Exonerating President on Obstruction,” New York Times, March 24, 2019.
14. Laura McGann, “Robert Mueller’s Report Shows William Barr’s Statements Were Incomplete at Best,” Vox, April 18, 2019.
15. Phillip Bailey, “McConnell: Full Mueller Report Should Make President Trump ‘Feel Good,’” Louisville Courier-Journal, May 7, 2019.
16. Seung Min Kim and Mike DeBonis, “McConnell Calls for End to Investigations of Trump, Says ‘Case Closed,’” Washington Post, May 7, 2019.
17. Catie Edmondson, “‘Case Closed’: McConnell Urges Congress to Move on from Mueller Report,” New York Times, May 7, 2019.
18. Emma Dumain, “Lindsey Graham ‘Not Interested’ in Calling Mueller to Testify before the Judiciary Committee,” McClatchy, April 18, 2019.
19. Li Zhou, “Senate Republican Inaction in the Wake of the Mueller Report, Explained,” Vox, May 1, 2019.
20. Page, Madam Speaker, 260–64, 267–68.
21. Gary Langer, “31% Believe Trump Exonerated after Mueller Report; 56% Oppose Impeachment: Poll,” ABC News, April 26, 2019.
22. Page, Madam Speaker, 204–6.
23. “Nancy Pelosi on Impeaching Trump: ‘He’s Just Not Worth It,’” Washington Post Magazine, March 11, 2019.
24. Ben Berwick and Kristy Parker, “President Trump Argues He Is above the Law: A Thousand Prosecutors Say He Is Wrong,” Los Angeles Times, May 30, 2019.
25. Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Mark Mazzetti, “Highlights of Robert Mueller’s Testimony to Congress,” New York Times, July 24, 2019.
26. Chris Cillizza, “What Robert Mueller Failed to Do,” CNN Politics, July 25, 2019.
27. Jen Kirby, “The Last Minutes of Mueller’s Testimony Made the Best Case for the Russia Investigation,” Vox, July 24, 2019.
28. Maggie Haberman, Julian E. Barnes, and Peter Baker, “Dan Coats to Step Down as Intelligence Chief; Trump Picks Loyalist for Job,” New York Times, July 28, 2019.
29. Paul Kane, “Burr and Warner: In the Spotlight, and Arm in Arm, on Russia Probe,” Washington Post, March 30, 2017.
30. Scott Shane, “Political Divide about C.I.A. Torture Remains after Senate Report’s Release,” New York Times, December 9, 2014.
31. Caitlin Emma and Connor O’Brien, “Trump Holds Up Ukraine Military Aid Meant to Confront Russia,” Politico, August 28, 2019.
32. “Shaheen, Portman Lead Bipartisan Ukraine Caucus Leadership Letter Urging Trump Administration to Release Obligated Military Security Assistance of Ukraine,” Jeanne Shaheen, US Senator for New Hampshire, September 3, 2019.
33. Alan Cullison, Rebecca Ballhaus, and Dustin Volz, “Trump Reportedly Pressed Ukraine President to Investigate Biden’s Son,” Wall Street Journal, September 21, 2019 (updated).
34. Nicholas Fandos, “Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump,” New York Times, September 24, 2019.
35. “Seven Freshman Democrats: These Allegations Are a Threat to All We Have Sworn to Protect,” Washington Post, September 23, 2019.
36. Veronica Stracqualursi, “McConnell Urged Trump to Release Ukraine Call Summary, Source Says,” CNN Politics, September 28, 2019.
37. Rachel Bade, Mike DeBonis, and Karoun Demirjian, “Pelosi Announces Impeachment Inquiry, Says Trump’s Courting of Foreign Policy Help Is ‘a Betrayal’ of National Security,” Washington Post, September 24, 2019.
38. Graham Statements on Impeachment and the Release of Transcripts, Lindsey Graham, US Senator for South Carolina, September 25, 2019.
39. Robert Costa, “Cracks Emerge among Senate Republicans over Trump Urging Ukrainian Leader to Investigate Biden,” Washington Post, September 25, 2019.
40. Kenneth P. Vogel, “Rudy Giuliani Plans Ukraine Trip to Push for Inquiries That Could Help Trump,” New York Times, May 9, 2019.
41. Ryan Lucas, “Rudy Giuliani Subpoenaed by House Intel Committee in Impeachment Inquiry,” NPR, September 30, 2019.
42. Jessica Taylor, “Trump Administration Says It Won’t Comply with Impeachment Inquiry,” NPR, October 8, 2019.
43. Michael S. Schmidt, “Sondland Updates Impeachment Testimony, Describing Ukraine Quid Pro Quo,” New York Times, November 5, 2019; and Rachel Bade, Aaron C. Davis, and Matt Zapotosky, “Sondland Acknowledges Ukraine Quid Pro Quo, Implicates Trump, Pence, Pompeo and Others,” Washington Post, November 20, 2019.
44. Adam Liptak, “Key Excerpts from Legal Scholars’ Arguments on Impeachment,” New York Times, December 4, 2019.
45. Ibid.
46. Ibid.
47. Ibid.
48. Noah Weiland, “Trump Was Impeached. Here’s a Recap of the Day,” New York Times, December 18, 2019.
49. Sylvan Lane, “House Approves USMCA Trade Deal Amid Shadow of Impeachment,” The Hill, December 19, 2019.
50. Eugene Kiely, “Pelosi’s Bipartisanship Boast,” FactCheck.org, December 17, 2019; and James Crowley, “‘Grim Reaper’ Mitch McConnell Admits There Are 395 House Bills Sitting in the Senate: ‘We’re Not Going to Pass Those,’” Newsweek, February 14, 2020.
51. Catie Edmondson, “Senate Approves $738 Billion Defense Bill, Sending It to Trump,” New York Times, December 17, 2019.
1. “McConnell: Potential Trial Should Follow Unanimous Bipartisan Precedent from 1999,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, December 19, 2019.
2. Ibid.
3. Jeffrey Toobin, True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump (New York: Doubleday, 2020), 411–12.
4. “McConnell Speaks on Senate Role in Impeachment Trial,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 3, 2020.
5. “McConnell: The Senate Will Not Cede Our Authority on Impeachment,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 8, 2020.
6. “McConnell: Democrats’ Impeachment Has Been ‘Purely Political’ from the Beginning,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 15, 2020.
7. Darren Samuelson, “Trump’s Impeachment, Starring Bill Clinton,” Politico, January 18, 2020; and Laurence Tribe and Joshua Matz, To End a Presidency: The Power of Impeachment (New York: Basic Books, 2018), xii–xiii, 214–20.
8. Ambassador Michael McFaul, Twitter thread, November 21, 2019.
9. “Graham on Impeachment: Democrats Are on a Crusade to Destroy Trump,” Lindsey Graham, US Senator for South Carolina, January 22, 2020.
10. Eric Lipton and Maggie Haberman, “Schumer Demands Witnesses Be Called at Senate Impeachment Trial,” New York Times, December 30, 2019, updated January 29, 2020; and Doug Jones, “Every Trial Is a Pursuit of the Truth: Will My Senate Colleagues Uphold That?” Washington Post, December 30, 2019.
11. Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “Emotional Schiff Speech Goes Viral, Delighting the Left and Enraging the Right,” New York Times, January 24, 2020.
12. Aris Folley, “McConnell Chokes Up Saying Goodbye to ‘Friend’ Lamar Alexander in Floor Speech,” The Hill, December 2, 2020.
13. “Schumer Statement after Senate GOP Blocked Witnesses & Documents in Senate Impeachment Trial,” January 31, 2020.
14. Carl Hulse, “Once Skeptical, Senate Republicans Are All in for Trump,” New York Times, January 31, 2020.
15. Ibid.
16. Nicholas Fandos, Emily Cochrane, and Patricia Mazzei, “Lamar Alexander, Key G.O.P. Senator, Plans to Oppose Move for New Evidence,” New York Times, January 30, 2020.
17. Dareh Gregorian, “Murkowski Says Trump’s Actions ‘Shameful’ but She’ll Vote to Acquit,” NBC News, February 3, 2020.
18. Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “Emotional Schiff Speech Goes Viral, Delighting the Left and Enraging the Right,” New York Times, January 24, 2020.
19. Zack Budryk, “Alexander: Trump Will ‘Think Twice’ Before Engaging in Conduct That He Was Impeached for Again,” The Hill, February 2, 2020.
20. Peter Baker, “Will Acquittal Empower Trump?” New York Times, February 1, 2020.
21. Mark Leibovich, “Romney, Defying the Party He Once Personified, Votes to Convict Trump,” New York Times, February 5, 2020.
22. McConnell’s Final Reflections on Impeachment: “Should Never Have Come to the Senate Like This,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, February 13, 2020.
23. Burgess Everett, “Manchin Proposes Lesser Punishment of Censure for Trump,” Politico, February 3, 2020.
24. Baker, The Breach, 380–88.
25. Peter Baker, Maggie Haberman, Danny Hakim, and Michael S. Schmidt, “Trump Fires Impeachment Witnesses Gordon Sondland and Alexander Vindman in Post-Acquittal Purge,” New York Times, February 7, 2020.
26. Caitlin Oprysko, “Trump Attacks Manchin for Impeachment Vote, Accusing Him of Being a Democratic ‘Puppet,’” Politico, February 7, 2020.
27. Brooke Singman, “Trump Says ‘Hoax’ Impeachment Should Be Expunged,” Fox News, February 7, 2020.
1. Natasha Bertrand and Maggie Severns, “From Distraction to Disaster: How Coronavirus Crept Up on Washington,” Politico, March 30, 2020.
2. Michael Greiner, “America’s Five Worst Senators,” Medium, July 5, 2020.
3. Bertrand and Severns, “From Distraction to Disaster.”
4. Sarah Owermohle, “Trump: Chinese Coronavirus ‘Totally Under Control,’” Politico, January 22, 2020.
5. Eric Lipton, David E. Sanger, Maggie Haberman, Michael D. Shear, Mark Mazzetti, and Julian E. Barnes, “He Could Have Seen What Was Coming: Behind Trump’s Failure on the Virus,” New York Times, April 11, 2020.
6. Bruce Lee, “Bill Gates Warns of Epidemic That Could Kill Over 30 Million People,” Forbes, February 19, 2017.
7. Matthew Mosk, “George W. Bush in 2005: ‘If We Wait for a Pandemic to Appear, It Will Be Too Late to Prepare,’” ABC News, April 5, 2020.
8. Jason Karlawish, “A Pandemic Plan Was in Place. Trump Abandoned It—and Science—in the Face of Covid-19,” Stat, May 17, 2020.
9. Ronald Klain, “Confronting the Pandemic Threat,” Foreign Policy, no. 40 (Spring 2016).
10. Dan Diamond and Nahal Toosi, “Trump Team Failed to Follow NSC’s Pandemic Playbook,” Politico, March 25, 2020.
11. Karlawish, “A Pandemic Plan Was in Place.”
12. Bertrand and Severns, “From Distraction to Disaster.”
13. Ibid.
14. Ibid.
15. Eric Lipton and Nicholas Fandos, “Senator Richard Burr Sold a Fortune in Stocks as G.O.P. Played Down Coronavirus Threat,” New York Times, March 19, 2020.
16. Katelyn Burns, “Sen. Kelly Loeffler Sold at Least $1.8 Million More in Stocks before the Coronavirus Crash Than Previously Reported,” Vox, April 2, 2020.
17. Morgan Watkins, “Mitch McConnell on Woodward Book: ‘We All Knew’ Covid-19 Was Dangerous in February,” Louisville Courier-Journal, September 10, 2020.
18. Jim Tankersley and Emily Cochrane, “House Passes Coronavirus Relief after Striking Deal with White House,” New York Times, March 13, 2020.
19. Colby Itkowtiz, “McConnell Absent as Pelosi, White House Reach Deal on Coronavirus Economic Relief Program,” Washington Post, March 13, 2020.
20. Elizabeth Williamson and Rebecca R. Ruiz, “McConnell Protégé Takes Center Stage in Fight to Remake Judiciary,” New York Times, May 5, 2020.
21. Jordain Carney, “Pelosi, Schumer Clash over Next Coronavirus Bill,” The Hill, April 5, 2020.
22. Carl Hulse and Emily Cochrane, “As Coronavirus Spread, Largest Stimulus in History United a Polarized Senate,” New York Times, March 26, 2020.
23. Tobias Hoonhout, “Dem Rep. Told Colleagues Coronavirus Bill Is a ‘Tremendous Opportunity to Restructure Things to Fit Our Vision,’” National Review, March 23, 2020.
24. Hulse and Cochrane, “As Coronavirus Spread, Largest Stimulus in History United a Polarized Senate.”
25. Jim Tankersley and Emily Cochrane, “Congress Shovels Trillions at Virus, with No Endgame in Sight,” New York Times, April 24, 2020.
26. Lipton et al., “He Could Have Seen What Was Coming.”
27. Carl Hulse, “McConnell Says States Should Consider Bankruptcy, Rebuffing Calls for Aid,” New York Times, April 22, 2020.
28. Caitlin Oprysko, “‘There’s No Stigma Attached to Wearing a Face Mask’: McConnell Makes Plea in Favor of Masks,” Politico, May 27, 2020.
29. Ibid.
30. David Rubin and Elaine Nsoesie, “Is the US Heading for a Second Wave of Coronavirus Infections?” The Guardian, June 11, 2020.
31. Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine, “Coronavirus Spike Rattles Senate Republicans,” Politico, June 25, 2020.
32. Michael D. Shear, Maggie Haberman, Noah Weiland, Sharon LaFraniere, and Mark Mazzetti, “Trump’s Focus as the Pandemic Raged: What Would It Mean for Him?” New York Times, December 31, 2020.
33. Josh Dawsey, Michael Scherer, and Annie Linskey, “Campaign of Contrasts: Trump’s Raucous Crowds vs. Biden’s Distanced Gatherings,” Washington Post, September 9, 2020.
34. Noah Weiland, “Tulsa Officials Plead for Trump to Cancel Rally as Virus Spikes in Oklahoma,” New York Times, June 16, 2020.
35. Ibid.
36. Michael D. Shear, Maggie Haberman, and Astead W. Herndon, “Trump Rally Fizzles as Attendance Falls Short of Campaign’s Expectations,” New York Times, June 20, 2020.
37. Ira Shapiro, “As COVID Cases Top 3 Million, It’s Past Time to End the Catastrophic Trump Presidency,” USA Today, July 9, 2020.
38. Bob Woodward, Rage (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2020), 308–10, 317–18.
39. Joe Pinsker, “The Pandemic Recession Is Approaching a Dire Turning Point,” The Atlantic, August 23, 2020; Everett and LeVine, “Coronavirus Spike Rattles Senate Republicans”; and Ben Casselman, “Millions Relying on Pandemic Aid Can See Its End, and They’re Scared,” New York Times, May 28, 2020.
40. Judy Woodruff and Daniel Bush, “McConnell: Some Republicans Think ‘We Have Already Done Enough’ Pandemic Aid,” PBS, July 29, 2020.
41. Jason DeParle, “A Year of Hardship, Helped and Hindered by Washington,” New York Times, February 14, 2021.
42. Stacy Cowley, “Relief Deal Would Give Small Business a Shot at Second Loan,” New York Times, December 21, 2020.
43. Policy Responses to Covid-19, International Monetary Fund, May 7, 2021.
44. Aishvarya Kavi, “5 Takeaways from ‘Rage,’ Bob Woodward’s New Book about Trump,” New York Times, September 9, 2020.
45. Alexander Bolton, “McConnell Has 17-Point Lead over Democratic Challenger McGrath, Poll Says,” The Hill, August 4, 2020.
1. Nina Totenberg, “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Champion of Gender Equality, Dies at 87,” NPR, September 18, 2020.
2. Kevin Roose, “Trump Jump-Starts Misinformation on Ginsburg ‘Dying Wish,’” New York Times, September 21, 2020.
3. Carl Hulse, “How Mitch McConnell Delivered Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s Rapid Confirmation,” New York Times, October 27, 2020.
4. Patrice Taddonio, “On Night of Ginsburg’s Death, McConnell Pushed Trump to Nominate Amy Coney Barrett,” PBS, November 24, 2020.
5. Marcus, Supreme Ambition, 342.
6. Jonathan Swan and Sam Baker, “Scoop: Trump ‘Saving’ Judge Amy Coney Barrett for Ruth Bader Ginsburg Seat,” Axios, March 31, 2019.
7. Vicky Baker, “Amy Coney Barrett: Who Is Trump’s Supreme Court Pick?” BBC, October 27, 2020.
8. Adam Liptak, “Barrett’s Views: A Conservative Who Would Push the Supreme Court to the Right,” New York Times, November 2, 2020.
9. Mary Clare Jalonick and Elana Schor, “No ‘Dogma’: Democrats Walk Tightrope on Barrett’s Faith,” AP, October 10, 2020.
10. Tal Axelrod, “Graham on Potential Supreme Court Vacancy: ‘This Would Be a Different Circumstance Than Merrick Garland,’” The Hill, May 16, 2020.
11. Aaron Blake, “The GOP’s Josh Hawley Problem on Amy Coney Barrett and Roe v. Wade,” Washington Post, October 13, 2020; and Senator Josh Hawley, “Justice Barrett Is Pro-Life and Pro-Faith—Good News for Religious Conservatives,” Fox News, October 30, 2020.
12. Ronn Blitzer, “McConnell: Attacks on Barrett’s Faith by Dems, Media ‘Are a Disgrace,’” Fox News, October 7, 2020.
13. Andrew Solender, “Murkowski Joins Collins in Opposing Supreme Court Vote before Election—Here’s Who Matters Now,” Forbes, September 20, 2020.
14. Kevin Liptak, “Inside One Celebration That Helped Spread the Virus across the US Government,” CNN Politics, October 7, 2020.
15. David Morgan, “McConnell Avoids White House, Citing Laxity on Masks, COVID-19 Precautions,” Reuters, October 8, 2020.
16. Alex Rogers and Manu Raju, “Two GOP Senators Test Positive for Covid-19, Potentially Jeopardizing Barrett Confirmation Vote,” CNN Politics, October 3, 2020.
17. Ruth Graham and Sharon LaFraniere, “Inside the People of Praise, the Tight-Knit Faith Community of Amy Coney Barrett,” New York Times, October 8, 2020.
18. Mark Sherman, “Barrett Cites ‘Ginsburg Rule’ That Ginsburg Didn’t Follow,” AP, October 13, 2020.
19. Charlie Savage, “Barrett Says She Would Not Be ‘Used as a Pawn’ to Decide Potential Election Case,” New York Times, October 13, 2020.
20. Noah Feldman, “Amy Coney Barrett Deserves to Be on the Supreme Court,” Bloomberg Law, September 26, 2020.
21. “Klobuchar Highlights How Rushed Supreme Court Nomination Will Jeopardize Health Care Coverage for Millions of Americans,” Amy Klobuchar, Senator for Minnesota, October 12, 2020.
22. Andrew Naughtie, “Video of Lindsey Graham Insisting Supreme Court Vacancies Should Never Be Filled in Election Years Goes Viral,” The Independent, September 19, 2020.
23. @realDonaldTrump, Twitter, September 19, 2020.
24. @LindseyGrahamSC, Twitter, September 19, 2020.
25. Jacob Pramuk, “Mitt Romney Supports Holding a Vote on Trump’s Supreme Court Pick This Year,” CNBC, September 22, 2020; and “Romney Announces Support for Judge Amy Coney Barrett,” Mitt Romney, Senator for Utah, October 15, 2020.
26. Ted Barrett and Manu Raju, “Republican Leaders Vow to Fill a Potential Supreme Court Vacancy This Year, Despite Some Apprehension,” CNN, July 21, 2020.
27. Brianne Pfannenstiel, “Sen. Chuck Grassley Won’t Oppose Holding Supreme Court Nomination Hearings This Year,” Des Moines Register, September 21, 2020.
28. Lyndsey Layton, “To Get Support for Education Bill, Senators Conjure Lost Art: Compromise,” Washington Post, July 28, 2015; Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, “Can Alexander and Murray Recapture the Bipartisan Magic to Pass Higher Education Legislation?” Washington Post, February 9, 2016; and Juliet Eilperin and Carolyn Y. Johnson, “Obama, Paying Tribute to Biden and Bipartisanship, Signs 21st Century Cares Act,” Washington Post, December 13, 2016.
29. “Alexander Votes to Confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court,” Lamar Alexander, Senator for Tennessee; and Rich Lowry and John McCormack, “How Republicans Quickly Lined Up to Confirm a Supreme Court Nominee,” National Review, September 26, 2020.
30. Eleanor Clift, “Susan Collins’ ‘Hall Pass’ on Amy Coney Barrett Vote Won’t Save Her from Maine Voters,” Daily Beast, October 17, 2020.
31. John Bresnahan and Burgess Everett, “No Apologies: McConnell Says Barrett a ‘Huge Success for the Country,’” Politico, October 27, 2020; and Nicholas Fandos, “Senate Confirms Barrett, Delivering for Trump and Reshaping the Court,” New York Times, October 26, 2020.
32. Vivian Ho, “‘She Represents the Past’: A Senate Hug Symbolizes California’s Dianne Feinstein Fatigue,” The Guardian, October 17, 2020.
33. Lindsay Wise, “Senate Advances Supreme Court Nomination Confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett,” Wall Street Journal, October 25, 2020; and Allison Pecorin and Trish Turner, “Senate Republicans Move Barrett Supreme Court Nomination Toward Final Vote,” ABC News, October 22, 2020.
34. Tim Hains, “McConnell Praises Deal on Coronavirus Relief: ‘The Senate Stepped Up,’” Real Clear Politics, March 25, 2020.
35. Carl Hulse, “How Mitch McConnell Delivered Justice: Amy Coney Barrett’s Rapid Confirmation,” New York Times, October 27, 2020.
36. “These Confirmation Hearings Are Not Really about Amy Coney Barrett,” Editorial, Washington Post, October 14, 2020.
37. Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, How Democracies Die (New York: Crown, 2018), 125–43.
38. Mike Lillis, “Pelosi: ‘Rogue’ McConnell Must Decide Next Steps on Impeachment Articles,” The Hill, December 19, 2019; and Justine Coleman, “Pelosi Rips McConnell as ‘Rogue Leader’ after Trump Acquittal,” The Hill, February 13, 2020.
39. McConnell, Long Game, 209–10, 216.
1. Terrance Smith, “Trump Has Longstanding History of Calling Elections ‘Rigged’ If He Doesn’t Like the Results,” ABC News, November 11, 2020.
2. Amy Tennery, “Trump Accuses Cruz of Stealing Iowa Caucuses through ‘Fraud,’” Reuters, February 3, 2016.
3. “U.S. Election 2016: Trump Says Election ‘Rigged’ at Polling Places,” BBC News, October 17, 2016.
4. Arnie Seipel, “Trump Makes Unfounded Claim That ‘Millions’ Voted Illegally for Clinton,” NPR, November 27, 2016.
5. Jim Rutenberg, “How President Trump’s False Claim of Voter Fraud Is Being Used to Disenfranchise Americans,” New York Times, September 30, 2016.
6. Steve Inskeep, “Timeline: What Trump Told Supporters for Months before They Attacked,” NPR, February 8, 2021.
7. Ronn Blitzer, “Trump Pushes Back against Critics on Coronavirus, Addresses Whether He Will Accept Election Results in Exclusive Interview,” Fox News, July 19, 2020.
8. “President Trump Remarks in Oshkosh, Wisconsin,” C-SPAN, August 17, 2020.
9. “President Trump Speaks at 2020 Republican National Convention,” C-SPAN, August 24, 2020.
10. Sam Levine and Alvin Chang, “Revealed: Evidence Shows Huge Mail Slowdowns after Trump Ally Took Over,” The Guardian, September 21, 2020.
11. Elliott Davis, “Election Turnout Estimated to Break Record,” US News & World Report, November 4, 2020.
12. Soo Rin Kim and Will Steakin, “How Trump, RNC Raised Hundreds of Millions Pushing Baseless Election Fraud Claims,” ABC News, February 2, 2021.
13. McConnell on Elections: “We Respect the Rule of Law and Trust Our Institutions,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, November 9, 2020.
14. Peter Baker and Maggie Haberman, “In Torrent of Falsehoods, Trump Claims Election Is Being Stolen,” New York Times, November 5, 2020.
15. Dominick Mastrangelo, “Lindsey Graham Says ‘Enough Is Enough’ on Trump Bid To Overturn the Election: ‘Count Me Out,’” The Hill, January 6, 2021.
16. Matthew Daly, “Some in GOP Break with Trump over Baseless Vote-Fraud Claims,” AP, November 5, 2020.
17. Michael Crowley, “Trump’s False Election Fraud Claims Split Republicans,” New York Times, November 6, 2020.
18. Mitt Romney, Twitter, November 7, 2020.
19. Brittany Bernstein, “Sen. Sasse Calls on Trump to Present ‘Real Evidence’ of Voter Fraud,” Yahoo, November 6, 2020.
20. Joseph Morton, “Sen. Ben Sasse Congratulates President-Elect Joe Biden on His Win,” Omaha World-Herald, November 8, 2020.
21. Kim and Steakin, “How Trump, RNC Raised Hundreds of Millions.”
22. Amy Gardner, Tom Hamburger, and Josh Dawsey, “Graham’s Post-Election Call with Raffensperger Will Be Scrutinized in Georgia Probe, Person Familiar with Inquiry Says,” Washington Post, February 12, 2021.
23. David E. Sanger and Nicole Perlroth, “Trump Fires Christopher Krebs, Official Who Disputed Election Fraud Claims,” New York Times, November 17, 2020.
24. Tessa Berenson, “Donald Trump and His Lawyers Are Making Sweeping Allegations of Voter Fraud in Public: In Court, They Say No Such Thing,” Time, November 20, 2020.
25. Annie Grayer, Caroline Kelly, and Maegan Vazquez, “Michigan Lawmakers Who Met with Trump Say They See Nothing to Change Election Outcome,” CNN, November 21, 2020.
26. Amy Gardner, Colby Itkowitz, and Josh Dawsey, “Trump Calls Georgia Governor to Pressure Him for Help Overturning Biden’s Win in the State,” Washington Post, December 5, 2020.
27. William Cummings, Joey Garrison, and Jim Sergent, “By the Numbers, President Donald Trump’s Failed Efforts to Overturn the Election,” USA Today, January 6, 2021.
28. Trip Gabriel, “Trump Asks Pennsylvania House Speaker about Overturning His Loss,” New York Times, December 8, 2020.
29. Greg Sargent, “Raging Trump Wants the Supreme Court to Save Him: Here’s Why It Probably Won’t,” Washington Post, October 27, 2020; and James D. Zirin, “Will the Supreme Court Protect the Rule of Law, or Donald Trump?” The Hill, December 16, 2019.
30. Emma Platoff, “U.S. Supreme Court Throws Out Texas Lawsuit Contesting 2020 Election Results in Four Battleground States,” Texas Tribune, December 11, 2020.
31. David Brooks, “The Winter Mitch McConnell Created,” New York Times, December 3, 2020.
32. Luke Broadwater, “For Manchin, a Divided Senate Is a ‘Golden Opportunity’ for Action,” New York Times, November 30, 2020.
33. Nicholas Fandos, Luke Broadwater, and Emily Cochrane, “A Dinner, a Deal and Moonshine: How the Stimulus Came Together,” New York Times, December 21, 2020.
34. Ibid.
35. Emily Cochrane, “Congress Strikes Long-Sought Stimulus Deal to Provide $900 Billion in Aid,” New York Times, December 20, 2020.
36. Paul Blumenthal, “Trump Calls Them ‘My Judges’: Will They Side with Him in Separation of Powers Fight?” HuffPost, October 24, 2020.
37. Richard Cowan, “U.S. Senate Leader McConnell Acknowledges Biden Victory; Laments Trump Defeat,” Reuters, December 15, 2020.
38. Marianne LeVine and Melanie Zanona, “McConnell Warns Senate Republicans against Challenging Election Results,” Politico, December 15, 2020.
39. Billy House and Laura Litvan, “Thune Sees Challenge to Biden Going Down Like ‘Shot Dog,’” Bloomberg, December 21, 2020.
40. Manu Raju, Ali Zaslav, and Daniella Diaz, “GOP Senators Still Won’t Acknowledge Biden’s Win as Some Begin to Recognize Reality,” CNN, December 14, 2020.
41. Katie Benner, “Trump Pressed Official to Wield Justice Dept. to Back Election Claims,” New York Times, June 15, 2021.
42. Ryan Goodman, Mari Dugas, and Nicholas Tonckens, “Incitement Timeline: Year of Trump’s Actions Leading to the Attack on the Capitol,” Just Security, January 11, 2021.
43. Emma Green, “The Knives Come Out for Josh Hawley,” The Atlantic, February 4, 2021.
44. Catie Edmondson and Michael Crowley, “Hawley Answers Trump’s Call for Election Challenge,” New York Times, December 30, 2020.
45. Kyle Cheney, “‘Institutional Arsonist Members of Congress’: Sasse Rips GOP Lawmakers Challenging 2020 Results,” Politico, December 31, 2020.
46. Burgess Everett, “At Least 12 GOP Senators to Challenge Biden’s Win,” Politico, January 2, 2021.
47. Ben Riley-Smith, “Georgia Run-Offs: Democratic Odd Couple Carry Joe Biden’s Hopes of Senate Control on Their Shoulders,” Telegraph, January 5, 2021.
48. Ella Nilsen, “Georgia’s Two Super-Competitive Senate Races, Explained,” Vox, October 29, 2020.
49. Jaclyn Peiser, “Democrats Pressure McConnell to Give In to Trump’s Demand for $2,000 Stimulus Checks: ‘Let’s Do It!’” Washington Post, December 23, 2020.
50. Tia Mitchell and Greg Bluestein, “Georgia Senate Republicans Back $2,000 Stimulus Checks under Pressure from Trump, Democrats,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 29, 2020.
51. Burgess Everett, “McConnell and GOP Reject House’s $2,000 Stimulus Checks,” Politico, December 30, 2020.
52. Carol D. Leonnig, Aaron C. Davis, Peter Hermann, and Karoun Demirjian, “Outgoing Capitol Police Chief: House, Senate Security Officials Hamstrung Efforts to Call in National Guard,” Washington Post, January 10, 2021.
53. David Jackson and Matthew Brown, “‘Wild’ Protests: Police Brace for Pro-Trump Rallies When Congress Meets Jan. 6 to Certify Biden’s Win,” USA Today, December 31, 2020.
54. Laurel Wamsley, “What We Know So Far: A Timeline of Security Response at the Capitol on Jan. 6,” NPR, January 15, 2021.
55. “Planning and Execution for the National Guard’s Involvement in the January 6, 2021, Violent Attack at the U.S. Capitol,” U.S. Department of Defense, January 8, 2021.
56. “Mayor Bowser Continues Preparation for Upcoming First Amendment Demonstrations,” Government of the District of Columbia, January 3, 2021.
57. Carol D. Leonnig, “Capitol Police Intelligence Report Warned Three Days before Attack That ‘Congress Itself’ Could Be Targeted,” Washington Post, January 15, 2021.
58. Leonnig, Davis, Hermann, and Demirjian, “Outgoing Capitol Hill Police Chief.”
59. Devlin Barrett and Matt Zapotosky, “FBI Report Warned of ‘War’ at Capitol, Contradicting Claims There Was No Indication of Looming Violence,” Washington Post, January 12, 2021.
60. Amber Phillips, “Mitch McConnell’s Forceful Rejection of Trump’s Election ‘Conspiracy Theories,’” Washington Post, January 6, 2021.
61. Chris Cillizza, “Three-Quarters of Republicans Believe a Lie about the 2020 Election,” CNN Politics, February 4, 2021.
62. Adam Goldman and Shaila Dewan, “Inside the Deadly Capitol Shooting,” New York Times, January 23, 2021.
63. Jamie Gangel, Kevin Liptak, Michael Warren, and Marshall Cohen, “New Details about Trump-McCarthy Shouting Match Show Trump Refused to Call Off the Rioters,” CNN Politics, February 12, 2021.
64. “We Will Discharge Our Duty under the Constitution for Our Nation,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 6, 2021.
1. Representative Liz Cheney, press release, January 12, 2021.
2. Marianna Sotomayor and Jacqueline Alemany, “House Republicans Oust Cheney for Calling Out Trump’s False Election Claims, Minimize Jan. 6 Attack on Capitol,” Washington Post, May 12, 2021.
3. Jeremy Diamond, “Trump: I Could ‘Shoot Somebody and I Wouldn’t Lose Voters,’” CNN Politics, January 14, 2016.
4. Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman, “McConnell Is Said to Be Pleased about Impeachment, Believing It Will Be Easier to Purge Trump from the G.O.P.,” New York Times, January 12, 2021.
5. Alexander Bolton, “How McConnell Derailed Trump’s Impeachment Trial Before It Started,” The Hill, January 29, 2021.
6. “McConnell’s Statement on Proposed Pre-Trial Schedule,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 21, 2021.
7. “Senate Republicans Strongly Believe We Need a Full and Fair Process,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, January 22, 2021.
8. “Schumer Gives Impeachment Timeline for Trump’s Second Trial,” AP, January 22, 2021.
9. Lindsey Graham, Twitter, January 8, 2021.
10. Lindsey Graham, Twitter, January 13, 2021.
11. “Senator Marco Rubio: Trump Impeachment Trial Is ‘Stupid, Counterproductive,’” Fox News, January 24, 2021.
12. Marco Rubio, Twitter, January 26, 2021.
13. James Brooks, “Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski Calls on President Trump to Resign, Questions Her Future as a Republican,” Anchorage Daily News, January 9, 2021.
14. Maria Arias, “Romney on Impeachment: ‘It’s Pretty Clear That the Effort Is Constitutional,’” Axios, January 24, 2021.
15. Alexander Bolton, “McConnell Circulates Procedures for Second Senate Impeachment Trial of Trump,” The Hill, January 8, 2021.
16. Jared P. Cole and Todd Garvey, “The Impeachment and Trial of a Former President,” Congressional Research Service, January 15, 2021.
17. “Constitutional Law Scholars on Impeaching Former Officers,” Politico, January 21, 2021.
18. “U.S. Senate Kills Republican Move to Upend Trump Impeachment Trial,” Reuters, January 26, 2021.
19. Josh Dawsey, Tom Hamburger, and Amy Gardner, “Trump’s Legal Team Exited after He Insisted Impeachment Defense Focus on False Claims of Election Fraud,” Washington Post, January 31, 2021.
20. Tom McCarthy and Joanna Walters, “Donald Trump Hires New Impeachment Team after Lead Lawyers Quit,” The Guardian, January 31, 2021.
21. Burgess Everett, Marianne LeVine, and Meredith McGraw, “Trump Sends a Message to Senate Republicans Ahead of His Trial,” Politico, January 25, 2021.
22. Trial Memorandum of the United States House of Representatives in the Impeachment Trial of President Donald J. Trump, US House of Representatives, 117th Congress, January 28, 2021.
23. Nicholas Fandos and Maggie Haberman, “Impeachment Case Argues Trump Was ‘Singularly Responsible’ for Capitol Riot,” New York Times, February 2, 2021.
24. Alana Wise, “Trump Will Not Testify in Impeachment Trial, Adviser Says,” NPR, February 4, 2021.
25. Michael S. Schmidt and Maggie Haberman, “Trump Answers Mueller’s Questions on Russian Interference,” New York Times, November 20, 2018.
26. Nicholas Fandos, Michael S. Schmidt, and Maggie Haberman, “144 Constitutional Lawyers Call Trump’s First Amendment Defense ‘Legally Frivolous,’” New York Times, February 5, 2021.
27. Linda So, “Georgia Secretary of State’s Office Launches Probe into Trump’s Election Phone Call,” Reuters, February 8, 2021.
28. Nicholas Fandos, “House Lays Out Case against Trump, Branding Him the ‘Inciter in Chief,’” New York Times, February 10, 2021. I have quoted extensively from this brilliant article, finding that I could neither shorten it nor improve upon it.
29. Barbara Sprunt and Lucas Ryan, “With New Video Footage, Managers Show How Close Rioters Got to Pence and Lawmakers,” NPR, February 10, 2021.
30. Eileen Sullivan, “Takeaways from Day 4 of Trump’s Impeachment Trial,” New York Times, February 12, 2021.
31. Melissa Quinn, “Graham Says Outcome of Trump Impeachment Trial ‘Is Really Not in Doubt,’” CBS News, February 8, 2021.
32. Mike DeBonis and Tom Hamburger, “Late-Night Talks and a Moment of Chaos: Inside the Democrats’ Eleventh-Hour Decision to Forgo Impeachment Witnesses,” Washington Post, February 13, 2021.
33. “McConnell on Impeachment: ‘Disgraceful Dereliction’ Cannot Lead Senate to ‘Defy Our Own Constitutional Guardrails,’” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, February 13, 2021.
34. Justine Coleman, “Pelosi Rips McConnell as ‘Rogue Leader’ after Trump Acquittal,” The Hill, February 5, 2020.
35. “Senator Burr Statement on Vote to Convict Former President Trump on Article of Impeachment,” Richard Burr, US Senator for North Carolina, February 13, 2021.
36. “Murkowski Votes to Convict President Donald J. Trump,” Lisa Murkowski, US Senator for Alaska, February 14, 2021.
37. Senator Bill Cassidy, Twitter, February 13, 2021.
38. “Senator Collins Delivers Remarks on Impeachment Article,” Susan Collins, US Senator for Maine, February 13, 2021.
39. “Sasse Statement on Impeachment Trial,” Ben Sasse, US Senator for Nebraska, February 13, 2021.
40. “NCGOP Chairman Michael Whatley’s Statement on Senator Burr’s Contradictory Impeachment Vote,” NCGOP, February 13, 2021; “OFFICIAL: The LAGOP Executive Committee Unanimously Votes to Censure Senator Bill Cassidy,” LAGOP, February 13, 2021; Aaron Sanderford, “Nebraska GOP Rebukes Sen. Ben Sasse, Stops Short of Censure,” Omaha World-Herald, May 19, 2021 (updated); and Jonathan Tamari, “Pa. Republicans Rebuke Pat Toomey over Trump Impeachment Vote—but Don’t Censure Him,” Philadelphia Inquirer, March 2, 2021.
41. Ronn Blitzer, “Graham: McConnell ‘Put a Load on Republicans’ Back’ with Anti-Trump Speech,” Fox News, February 14, 2021.
42. David Catanese, “‘Dour, Sullen and Unsmiling Political Hack’: Trump Attacks Mitch McConnell,” Associated Press, February 16, 2021.
43. “Trump Welcomes Impeachment Acquittal, Says His Movement ‘Has Only Just Begun,’” Fox8, February 13, 2021.
1. McConnell, Long Game, 209–10.
2. Mark Hensch, “Beau Biden Funeral Draws Political Heavyweights,” The Hill, June 6, 2015.
3. Joe Biden, “We Are Living Through a Battle for the Soul of This Nation,” The Atlantic, August 27, 2017.
4. Ashley Parker, “As a Candidate, Biden Promised ‘Results, Not a Revolution’: Then Covid Changed Everything,” Washington Post, April 27, 2021.
5. Lindsay Wise, “McConnell Says ‘100% of His Focus is on Blocking Biden’s Agenda,’” Wall Street Journal, May 5, 2021.
6. Mike DeBonis, “Trump Attacks McConnell as ‘Political Hack,’ Says He Will Back Pro-Trump Candidates,” Washington Post, February 16, 2021; and Mike DeBonis, “Trump-Inspired Republican Candidates Create Early Tensions over Direction of the Party,” Washington Post, March 25, 2021.
7. Having worked with Senator Portman when he was US trade representative, I had frequent conversations with friends who were mystified and disappointed by his silence about Trump and allegiance to McConnell.
8. Pema Levy, “Rob Portman Is Retiring Because of Senate Dysfunction He Spent Years Supporting,” Mother Jones, January 25, 2021.
9. Burgess Everett and Elana Schor, “Senate Democrats Settle on Leadership Team, Sanders Elevated,” Politico, November 16, 2016.
10. Alexander Bolton, “Senate Democrats Reelect Schumer as Leader by Acclamation,” The Hill, November 10, 2020.
11. Jim Tankersley and Michael Crowley, “Biden Outlines $1.9 Trillion Spending Package to Combat Virus and Downturn,” New York Times, January 14, 2021.
12. Dana Bash, Lauren Fox, Devan Cole and Daniella Diaz, “GOP Senators Offer Covid-19 Relief Counterproposal to Force Talks with White House Back to the Middle,” CNN, January 31, 2021.
13. Barbara Sprunt, “Meeting with Republicans on COVID-19 Relief, White House Says Biden ‘Will Not Settle,’” NPR, January 31, 2021.
14. Jim Tankersley and Luke Broadwater, “With Economy in ‘Crisis,’ Biden Is Ready to Bypass G.O.P. on Stimulus,” New York Times, February 5, 2021.
15. Luke Broadwater, Hailey Fuchs, and Jim Tankersley, “Senate Backs Biden’s Stimulus, but Rejects Quick Minimum Wage Increase,” New York Times, February 4, 2021.
16. Emily Cochrane, “Divided Senate Passes Biden’s Pandemic Aid Plan,” New York Times, March 6, 2021.
17. Quint Forgey, “Biden Signs $1.9 trillion Covid Relief Bill,” Politico, March 11, 2021.
18. Tara Siegel Bernard and Ron Lieber, “90 Million Stimulus Payments Have Gone Out, the Treasury Says,” New York Times, March 16, 2021.
19. “Democrats Using Crisis to Check Off Unrelated Liberal Priorities,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, March 2, 2021.
20. “A Classic Example of Big Government Overreach,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, March 11, 2021.
21. “Senator Collins Opposes Partisan $1.9 Trillion Spending Bill,” Susan Collins, US Senator for Maine, March 6, 2021.
22. “Murkowski Statement on Reconciliation Vote,” Lisa Murkowski, US Senator for Alaska, March 7, 2021.
23. Steven Shepard, “Poll: 72 Percent Approve of Covid Relief Law,” Politico, March 17, 2021.
24. Gabby Orr, Christopher Cadelago, Meredith McGraw, and Natasha Korecki, “Republicans on Biden’s Covid Bill: We Bungled This One,” Politico, March 17, 2021.
25. Jim Tankersley and Jeanna Smialek, “Biden Plan Spurs Fight over What ‘Infrastructure’ Really Means,” New York Times, April 5, 2021; and Joshua Zeitz, “What the “Infrastructure’ Fight Is Really About,” Politico, May 1, 2021.
26. Emily Cochrane, “An Unlikely Pair, Portman and Sinema Steer Infrastructure Deal,” New York Times, July 30, 2021 (updated August 3, 2021).
27. Ibid.
28. “Democrats’ Spending Proposal Is Neither an ‘Infrastructure’ Plan nor a ‘Jobs Plan,’” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, April 26, 2021.
29. “Senator McConnell Supports Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; Delivers for Kentucky,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, August 10, 2021.
30. Statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, Save America JFC, August 7, 2021.
31. Mychael Schnell, “Manchin ‘Can’t Imagine’ Supporting Change to Filibuster for Voting Rights,” The Hill, August 1, 2021.
32. Richard A. Arenberg and Robert B. Dove, Defending the Filibuster: The Soul of the Senate (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2015).
33. Kyrsten Sinema, “We Have More to Lose Than Gain by Ending the Filibuster,” Washington Post, June 21, 2021.
34. Mitch McConnell, “The Filibuster Plays a Crucial Role in Our Constitutional Order,” New York Times, August 22, 2019.
35. “Top Senate Republican Rejects Trump’s Filibuster Idea,” Reuters, May 2, 2017.
36. Kyle Cheney, “Capitol Police Officer’s Widow Presses Congress for 1/6 Commission,” Politico, March 17, 2021.
37. Ron Elving, “Why a ‘9/11 Commission’ Is Popular but May Not Happen for the Jan. 6 Capitol Attack,” NPR, May 26, 2021.
38. Mike DeBonis, Colby Itkowitz, and Jacqueline Alemany, “House Passes Bill to Investigate Jan. 6 Attack on Capitol, but Its Chances in the Senate Are Dim,” Washington Post, May 19, 2021.
39. Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine, “McConnell Turns Senate Republicans against Jan. 6 Commission,” Politico, May 19, 2021.
40. Carl Hulse, “Election Considerations Drive G.O.P. Opposition to Jan. 6 Panel,” New York Times, May 20, 2021.
41. Adam Payne, “Lindsey Graham Says the Republicans Will Never Win Another Election If They Don’t ‘Do Something’ about Mail-In Voting,” Business Insider, November 10, 2020.
42. Nicholas Fandos, “Republicans Block Voting Rights Bill, Dealing a Blow to Biden and Democrats,” New York Times, June 22, 2021; and Marianne LeVine and Burgess Everett, “Sinema to Senate Dems: What’s the Plan on Voting Rights?” Politico, May 13, 2021.
43. Michael Wines, “In Statehouses, Stolen-Election Myth Fuels a G.O.P. Drive to Rewrite Rules,” New York Times, February 27, 2021.
44. US Const., art. I, § 4, cl. 1.
45. Nicholas Fandos, “Democrats Unite Behind Voting Rights Bill as It Faces a Senate Roadblock,” New York Times, June 21, 2021.
46. Laura Barron-Lopez, Marianne LeVine, and Burgess Everett, “Manchin Moves Shake Up Dem Strategy for Massive Elections Bill,” Politico, June 16, 2021.
47. Dominick Mastrangelo, “Stacey Abrams Says She ‘Absolutely’ Supports Manchin Voting Rights Compromise,” The Hill, June 17, 2021.
48. Mike DeBonis, “Democrats Craft Revised Voting Rights Bill, Seeking to Keep Hopes Alive in the Senate,” Washington Post, July 28, 2021.
49. Mike DeBonis, “Senate Adjourns Until September without Advancing Voting Rights Legislation,” Washington Post, August 11, 2021.
50. Ibid.
51. John Gramlich, “How Trump Compares with Other Recent Presidents in Appointing Federal Judges,” Pew Research Center, January 13, 2021.
52. Brad Plumer and Henry Fountain, “A Hotter Future Is Certain, Climate Panel Warns: But How Hot Is Up to Us,” New York Times, August 9, 2021.
53. Caitlin Emma, “McConnell Vows No GOP Help on Debt Limit Hike,” Politico, August 6, 2021.
54. Paul M. Barrett and James Rowley, “And Now I’ll Show You Climate Change,” Bloomberg Businessweek, December 28, 2015.
55. Jane Mayer, Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right (New York: Anchor Books, 2016), 246–78.
56. Shapiro, Broken, 222–28.
57. Coral Davenport, “Senate Confirms Scott Pruitt as E.P.A Head,” New York Times, February 17, 2017.
58. Darius Dixon and Nick Juliano, “GOP Assault on Obama Regs Is Just Beginning,” Politico, February 3, 2017.
59. Jordain Carney, “McConnell: Senate Won’t Take Up Bill Preventing US Withdrawal from Paris Deal,” The Hill, May 2, 2019.
60. “McConnnell: House Democrats’ ‘Cousin of the Green New Deal’ Is ‘Not Going Anywhere in the Senate,’” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, US Senator for Kentucky, July 1, 2020.
61. Bob Ewegen, “Henry Clay Was Never President, but He Saved the Union,” Denver Post, July 11, 2008.
62. Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson, Let Them Eat Tweets: How the Right Rules in an Age of Extreme Inequality (New York: Liveright, 2020), 190.
63. Robert A. Caro, Master of the Senate (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002), 1015–17.
64. “Senators’ Statement on Passage of Landmark Bipartisan Infrastructure and Investment and Jobs Act,” Lisa Murkowski, US Senator for Alaska, August 10, 2021.
1. Emily Cochrane and Catie Edmondson, “Manchin Says No, Deserting Biden over Prized Bill,” New York Times, December 20, 2021.
2. Jonathan Weisman, Emily Cochrane, and Catie Edmondson, “House Passes $1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill,” New York Times, November 15, 2021.
3. Emily Cochrane and Jim Tankersley, “Democrats Ready to Put Social Policy Bill to 2022 as Manchin Balks,” New York Times, December 15, 2021.
4. Jonathan Weisman and Lisa Friedman, “Behind Manchin’s Opposition, a Long History of Fighting Climate Measures,” New York Times, December 21, 2021.
5. Farnoush Amiri and Lisa Mascaro, “What Manchin Wanted, Rejected, and Got in Biden’s $2T Bill,” Associated Press, December 18, 2021.
6. Ibid.
7. See, for example, Paul Krugman, “The Bogus Bashing of Build Back Better,” New York Times, December 13, 2021; Catherine Rampell, “Yes, Inflation Is Worrisome. But It Has Little Relevance to the Debate over Build Back Better,” Washington Post, December 16, 2021.
8. Amiri and Mascaro, “What Manchin Wanted.”
9. Jim Tankersley, “Biden Agenda Sinks under Its Own Ambitions,” New York Times, December 19, 2021.
10. Emily Cochrane and Michael D. Shear, “Biden Tries to Salvage Domestic Policy Bill After Rift with Manchin,” New York Times, December 20, 2021.
11. Ben Ritz, “Joe Manchin Has Given Democrats a Chance to Save Their Agenda,” New York Times, December 21, 2021.
12. Emily Cochrane, “Senate Passes Sweeping $1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill,” New York Times, August 10, 2021.
13. Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine, “How McConnell and Schumer Got the Debt Deal Done,” Politico, December 8, 2021.
14. Christina Wilkie, “McConnell Will Use Campaign Funds to Promote Covid Vaccinations in Kentucky,” CNBC, July 28, 2021.
15. Thomas Kika, “Trump Attacks McConnell, House ‘RINOs’ over Passage of the Non-Infrastructure Bill,” Newsweek, November 7, 2021; Felicia Sonmez and Mike DeBonis, “Trump and Allies Target McConnell over Deal to Avoid Default,” Washington Post, October 7, 2021.
16. Katie Balevic, “Republican Leaders Must Have a ‘Working Relationship with Donald Trump’ to Succeed, Lindsey Graham Says,” Business Insider, December 12, 2021.
17. Forbes Quotes: Thoughts on the Business of Life (January 2022) is one of many sources that reports Speaker Rayburn’s famous wisdom.
18. Grace Panetta, “Lisa Murkowski Was the Sole GOP Senator to Vote to Advance a Major Democratic Voting Rights Bill,” Business Insider, November 3, 2021.
19. Fredreka Schouten, “19 States Passed This Year Laws to Restrict Voting, New Tally Finds,” CNN Politics, October 4, 2021.
20. Colin Woodard, “Sens. Collins, King Sharply Divided as Republicans Block Democratic Voting Rights Bill,” Portland Press Herald, October 21, 2021.
21. Carl Hulse, “McConnell to Manchin: We’d Love to Have You, Joe,” New York Times, December 22, 2021.
22. Ibid.
23. Luke Broadwater and Alan Feuer, “Jan. 6 Committee Recommends Contempt Charge for Meadows,” New York Times, December 13, 2021.
24. Aaron Blake, “What Crime Might Trump Have Committed on Jan. 6? Liz Cheney Points to One,” Washington Post, December 14, 2021.
25. Mark Sumner, “Cheney Promises That 2022 Will Bring ‘Weeks of Public Hearings’ on Events Leading up to January 6,” Daily Kos, December 3, 2021.
26. Michael S. Schmidt and Luke Broadwater, “Jan. 6 Committee Weighs Possibilities of Criminal Referrals,” New York Times, December 20, 2021.
27. Mariana Alfaro, “McConnell Says What the Jan. 6 Committee Uncovers Is ‘Something the Public Needs to Know,’” Washington Post, December 17, 2021.
28. Christina Zhao, “Mitch McConnell Warns Trump ‘Didn’t Get Away with Anything,’ Can Still be Criminally Prosecuted,” Newsweek, February 13, 2021.
29. Adam Liptak, “With Roe at Risk, Justices Explore a New Way to Question Precedents,” New York Times, December 13, 2021.
30. Linda Greenhouse, “The Supreme Court, Weaponized,” New York Times, December 16, 2021.
31. Charles Homans, “Mitch McConnell Got Everything He Wanted: But at What Cost?” New York Times Magazine, January 27, 2019.
32. Carl Hulse, “McConnell Suggests He Would Block a Biden Nominee for the Supreme Court in 2024,” New York Times, June 14, 2021.
33. “Opinion: Mitch McConnell: Democrats, Leave the Court Alone,” Washington Post, November 11, 2021.
34. Dominick Mastrangelo, “Barrett: Supreme Court ‘Not Comprised of a Bunch of Partisan Hacks,’” The Hill, September 13, 2021.
35. Catie Edmondson, “Senate Confirms Biden’s 40th Judge, Tying a Reagan-Era Record,” New York Times, December 18, 2021.
36. Jonathan Weisman, “Congress Ends ‘Horrible Year’ with Divisions as Bitter as Ever,” New York Times, December 18, 2021.
37. Paul Kane, “The Filibuster Debate Still Hasn’t Happened in the Only Place It Matters,” Washington Post, December 19, 2021.
38. Trent Lott, Herding Cats: A Life in Politics (New York: Harper Paperbacks, 2006), 284.
39. Michael Crowley, “Empty Desks at the State Department, Courtesy of Ted Cruz,” New York Times, October 2, 2021.
40. Kaelan Deese, “Manchin Says ‘Elect More Liberals’ to Democrats Who Want a Pricier Reconciliation Bill,” Washington Examiner, September 30, 2021.
41. Erin Duffin, “Favorability of Mitch McConnell among U.S. Adults, as of November 2021,” Statista, December 1, 2021.