The Election Aftermath: A New Rhythm in Political Coverage
Good evening. While the election may have concluded, our coverage is far from over. We’re adjusting the pace just a bit.
Moving forward, On Politics will be delivered to you three times a week instead of daily. We’ll keep you informed about the latest happenings in Washington while guiding you through the evolving political landscape and the nation itself. This is a period filled with uncertainty, and together, we’ll navigate through it.
To kick things off, my colleague Charles Homans observed last night as the brief exile of a Project 2025 leader came to an unexpected end. We’ll also delve into the surprise reactions in Washington regarding President-elect Donald Trump’s selection for attorney general. — Jess Bidgood
The Return of Kevin Roberts
By Charles Homans
In the elegant 31st-floor penthouse lounge of the Kimberly Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, waiters glided between tables, refreshing cocktails as the smooth sounds of jazz piano filled the air. As the evening chill crept in, a hotel employee deftly slid the glass roof closed, marking a symbolic moment: Kevin Roberts was officially stepping back into the limelight.
Earlier this summer, both Roberts and the think tank he leads, the Heritage Foundation, had found themselves unexpectedly distanced from President-elect Donald Trump. During Trump’s previous administration, Heritage had played a significant role in staffing key positions. The rift stemmed from the controversial Project 2025, a policy agenda crafted by a coalition of conservative organizations, spearheaded by Heritage under Roberts’s leadership, early in the 2024 campaign cycle.
As Democrats seized the opportunity to criticize the policy agenda, it became a cornerstone of their campaign against Trump. The former president was quick to distance himself from the initiative, claiming that he had “no idea” who was behind it and labeling Roberts’s efforts as “ridiculous and abysmal.”
However, last night’s gathering of around 80 attendees for a celebration of Roberts’s new book marked a turning point. It appeared that one of the shortest and least convincing periods of exile in recent political memory was coming to a close.
