“In 1948, northern liberals inserted a civil rights plank into the nati...” — Steve Kornacki Quote

In 1948, northern liberals inserted a civil rights plank into the national Democratic platform, prompting a walkout of Southern delegations - which then coalesced around the third party Dixiecrat candidacy of Strom Thurmond. An uneasy truce between national and Southern Democrats was reached after that election, but it was untenable.

The occasional nomination of a Todd Akin or Christine O'Donnell or Sharron Angle is a problem for the GOP. But it's really just a symptom of a much more serious malady: an environment on the right that demands and rewards an ideal of 'purity' that has little appeal outside of the conservative movement.

History suggests that the opportunity to run again for the presidency four years after losing is reserved for those who exceeded expectations their first time out - not for the John Connallys of politics.

The godfather of the modern Mississippi Republican Party, Charles Pickering, left the Democrats in 1964 because the party's national convention agreed to seat two black delegates.

I predict after this whole thing is over, what we'll remember about the failed candidacy of Donald Trump is, 'You're fired.'

Trump's campaign is not a collection of ignorant statements. It is a candidacy of hate and fear that poses serious risks to people of color, women, people with disabilities, immigrants, and LGBTQ people.

For Donald Trump, during his candidacy, he became a polarizing candidate, which included, along the way, insulting a lot of people.

The candidacy of Donald Trump is the open sewer of American conservatism.

If what I've been told is true - and I believe it is, General David Petraeus, a commander with soldiers deployed in two theaters of war, has had multiple meetings with Dick Cheney, the former vice-president of the United States, to discuss Petraeus's candidacy for the Republican nomination for the presidency.