12 Days of Christmas: A dozen issues confronting Trump and the US in 2025

In the spirit of the season, the Washington Examiner identified 12 issues we believe will shape and influence 2025 and beyond. The incoming Trump administration has made the fight against illegal immigration and the use of tariffs its flagship policy items. The U.S. will also possibly undergo a health revolution, while very real questions need to be answered on everything from Social Security reform to the military to the changing landscape of the energy sector.

Part 1: The fight against illegal immigration, sanctuary cities, and what lies in store for Tom Homan
Part 2: What to expect from RFK Jr. in 2025
Part 3: Major changes coming to Social Security regardless of Trump’s presence
Part 4: Trump doesn’t need ‘warrior board’ to reshape ‘woke’ Pentagon in his image
Part 5: Trump’s administration to face economic headwinds in 2025: Inflation, tariffs, and beyond
Part 6: John Bolton fears Trump doesn’t understand growing threat of anti-US axis
Part 7: How SNAP benefits and the future of the farm bill may play out next year
Part 8: Democrats in search of ‘new faces’ as they prepare for ‘recycled’ Trump
Part 9: Can the GOP keep it together to deliver success for Trump in his first 100 days?
Part 10: Prosecuting the prosecutors? Trump enemies face uncertainty with a Bondi DOJ
Part 11: ‘All of the above’ approach to energy will be left behind in 2025
Part 12: The top 2025 governor and special election races to watch

The next frontier: US confronts China and Russia in new battlefields

The United States is locked in a battle for supremacy with China and Russia that has taken many forms. The constant competition has resulted in the sides looking to gain an advantage in nontraditional battlefields. In space, a previous gentleman’s agreement on warfare no longer holds sway, while there is a constant fight for one-upmanship in the Arctic and in the race to dominate critical minerals. This series investigated this existential struggle.

Part 1: US adversaries ‘shrinking’ the ‘gap’ in space capabilities
Part 2: Russian navy chief touts Arctic nuclear forces as guarantee of national security
Part 3: Major international policy change can help US catch China in race for critical minerals

Draining DC: How Republican trifecta will upend the nation’s capital

Officials in Washington are eyeing the looming Republican trifecta with uncertainty, debating whether returning to a “resistance” mindset will be more effective than finding ways to work with President-elect Donald Trump.

Part 1: What could happen to DC’s federal workforce under Trump 2.0
Part 2: What Republicans plan for DC with trifecta control
Part 3: DC leaders split on whether to fight with Trump or find common ground
Part 4: Seven times the federal government has interfered with DC governance

Capitol’s new crop: The fresh faces of the 119th Congress

The 2024 election cycle has ended, with Republicans holding control of all three branches of government. The Washington Examiner interviewed over two dozen new members as they prepared to take office in January.

Part 1: The fresh faces of the House who are ready to ‘roll up’ their sleeves in the 119th Congress
Part 2: The four House Republicans poised to become MAGA champions
Part 3: Meet the freshman senators of the 119th Congress
Part 4: Riley Moore continues his family’s history in West Virginia politics
Part 5: Freshman Bernie Moreno relishes in leap to Ohio’s senior senator
Part 6: Sarah McBride didn’t come to Congress to be the ‘trans member’
Part 7: Shomari Figures sees the ‘good’ government can do for Alabama’s newest district
Part 8: Tim Sheehy forms unlikely bipartisan trio as he cements rightward shift in Senate
Part 9: Jeff Hurd, Colorado’s ‘accidental politician’ who is taking over Boebert’s old House seat
Part 10: Freedom Caucus attracts new blood as group looks to expand influence

Direct democracy: Ballot initiatives and referenda to know ahead of election day

The 2024 elections included a raft of ballot measures across every state. Voters were asked to mark their preference on controversial topics such as abortion, school choice, the legalization of drugs, and much more. This series took a forensic look at several of these items.

Part 1: 2024 abortion ballot measures: What to know
Part 2: 2024 minimum wage ballot measures: What to know
Part 3: 2024 school choice ballot measures: What to know
Part 4: 2024 election law ballot measures: What to know
Part 5: 2024 drug policy ballot measures: What to know
Part 6: 2024 ballot measures on crime, hunting, state flags, and more

All politics is local: The mayoral, district attorney, and state races you may not have heard of

As amazing as it is to say, there were actually elections going on other than the presidential contest, and a lot of them at the local level will have more immediate ramifications for communities. This series, All Politics Is Local, highlighted some of the most intriguing mayoral battles, district attorney races, and state legislature tussles that were decided on Nov. 5.

Part 1: Four mayoral races that could reshape Democratic landscape
Part 2: Progressive district attorneys on the chopping block in 2024 elections
Part 3: Six state legislature races to watch in November

Changing of the guard: Everything you need to know about 2025’s transition teams

Whoever won the presidential race on Nov. 5 would have 76 days to complete a complicated and massive effort to take over the federal government from outgoing President Joe Biden. That process had already begun for Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. While most of the attention will fall on what the president-elect is doing, some scrutiny may fall on Biden’s transition out of office, including on how his team handles classified documents. This series looked at the challenges ahead for all three leaders’ transitions.

Part 1: Harris transition won’t be ‘a piece of cake’ despite incumbency
Part 2: Trump delaying transition efforts despite 2016 ‘disaster’
Part 3: Biden mishandling of classified documents looms over presidential transition

Oct. 7: One Year Later

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 Israelis in an attack, the likes of which the country had never seen. Since then, Israel has been determined to eradicate Hamas from Gaza, while fending back attacks from Iran and its proxies. The aftermath of the attack has strained relations between the United States and Israel, while the Democratic Party at home threatens to be torn apart by anti-Israeli activists, both within Congress and playing out on campuses across the country.

Part 1: How Hamas attacks upended Middle East and US-Israeli alliance forever
Part 2: ‘Another day of a living hell’: Families of Israeli hostages mark Oct. 7 anniversary
Part 3: Israel vowed to wipe out Hamas after Oct. 7. The terrorists are still hanging on one year later
Part 4: How the conflict could upend entire US election
Part 5: How the conflict took over college campuses

Down from the High: Blue states rethink failed drug policies

The Western U.S. has been conducting an experiment that went awry. What began as loosening restrictions on the recreational use of marijuana snowballed into legalizing the possession and use of hard drugs such as heroin and fentanyl. Now, states are starting to reconsider the wisdom of those policies. This series looked at blue states that are starting to come Down from the High.

Part 1: How the West came to regret its dance with drugs
Part 2: States that first legalized marijuana see plummet in tax revenue
Part 3: How the West seeks to legalize and regulate psychedelic mushroom trips

Social security stakes: Clock ticks for reform as election nears

Social Security was one of the most pressing concerns for voters in November. The trust fund is projected to dry up in about 10 years, yet efforts to reform it have stalled, and neither presidential candidate seemed inclined to weigh in. This series looked at how we got here, what could be done, and if anybody has the stomach to tackle it.

Part 1: Why efforts to stave off exhaustion have fizzled out
Part 2: Fiscal commission seen as best bet to fix dire situation
Part 3: What’s at stake for Social Security beneficiaries this election

Legal Games: Lawsuits and new rules lined up to ‘defend democracy’

Legal fights over election integrity were well underway with less than two months to go to the election. This series looked at Democratic attempts to make sure they didn’t have a repeat of 2016. Republican lawyers, meanwhile, were still spooked by what happened in the aftermath of 2020.

Part 1: Democratic legal games undermine self-styled defenders of democracy image
Part 2: Trump faces ‘difficult proposition’ to find top legal talent for 2024 election challenges
Part 3: Republicans fight for citizenship bill that would reshape elections
Part 4: Republicans’ 2024 legal army guards against a repeat of Trump’s stolen election claims

Supermarket Sweep-up: How a grocery store merger is changing more than your shopping

The Federal Trade Commission is challenging Kroger’s acquisition of Albertsons, saying their merger would be anticompetitive. The Washington Examiner took a deeper look at what this lawsuit and possible merger would do to food prices.

Part 1: Kroger-Albertsons merger: Why the FTC says it will raise food prices
Part 2: How the Kroger merger could further erode the administrative state
Part 3: FTC lawsuit over Kroger-Albertsons merger is a political tightrope for Harris and Trump

Battleground Ballots: Voting rules you need to know

Early got underway in several states in September. The Washington Examiner took a closer look at the swing states, including voting rules you needed to know and key differences from prior elections.

Part 1: How Arizona’s election will be different this November after years of scrutiny
Part 2: North Carolina launches 2024 voting with election lawsuits in limbo
Part 3: How Pennsylvania’s 2020 problems could drag 2024 counting on for days
Part 4: 2024 election to test raft of new voting laws in Michigan

Lost Authority: Has the world stopped listening to lame-duck Biden?

America’s allies believe the Biden administration’s credibility is deteriorating on the world stage and it has lost control of escalation management in conflict zones, namely the Middle East and Ukraine. This Washington Examiner series looked at the reasons.

Part 1: US allies losing respect for Biden’s approach to escalation management
Part 2: Iran doubts US ‘will’ to respond on several fronts
Part 3: China’s pressure campaign risks ‘end of the world’

Living on the Edge: US stares down tax cliff

Congress faces a major “tax cliff” in 2025 with the expiration of the individual components of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, otherwise known as the Trump tax cuts. The 2024 elections will largely determine the fate of trillions of dollars in tax cuts and the course of policy for years to come. At stake are individual tax rates, the doubled standard deduction, the enlarged child tax credit, the new tax break for businesses that file as individuals, and the increased exemptions for the estate tax. The series featured key considerations for this major tax battle.

Part 1: The coming multifront battle over the corporate tax rate
Part 2: Welfare or sticking it to cat ladies? The coming fight over the child tax credit
Part 3: What would happen if the Trump tax cuts expired
Part 4: Harris ties her own hands with $400,000 tax pledge

100 days to define Kamala Harris

Kamala Harris’s ascension to the top of the ticket energized the Democratic base and refocused Republican attack lines. With less than 100 days to go until the election, defining Kamala Harris would take place at lightning speed. This series took a closer look at various aspects of her campaign and persona.

Part 1: ‘Kamala the cop’ image not all it’s cracked up to be
Part 2: Harris the abortion advocate: Her top campaign plank
Part 3: The liberal record Kamala Harris would like to forget in 2024
Part 4: ‘Border czar’ Kamala Harris flip-flops on immigration to build case against Trump
Part 5: Harris the climate hawk tries to move to the middle
Part 6: Republicans walk fine line in flipping attacks to define Harris as ‘weird’

Alphabet Soup: Has the DEI bubble finally burst?

The Secret Service failures during the near assassination of former President Donald Trump once again shone the spotlight on so-called DEI hiring, with Director Kimberly Cheatle being accused of being a box-ticking diversity hire. This series took a closer look at whether the DEI chickens have come home to roost in the federal government, whether the private sector has finally had enough, and if the much-maligned term is here to stay or if it will simply morph into something else altogether.

Part 1: Federal failures deepen skepticism of DEI
Part 2: Has the DEI bubble finally burst? Shift in the private sector
Part 3: The future of DEI and the power of obscurity

Mailing it in: Ballots, voter registration, and looming election fights

Four months out from Election Day, activists were still fighting over the rules that would dictate how voters cast their ballots, including in swing states. The parties were preparing for legal battles if the results were close, as they were four years earlier. This series looked at battles over election rules.

Part 1: Swing-state ballot lawsuits could shape 2024 presidential race
Part 2: Fights brewing over voter registration in key swing states
Part 3: Republicans and Democrats lay groundwork for election results fights

Matter of Debate: The event that could upend 2024 race

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump were set to resume hostilities with the first presidential debate in Atlanta. They were battling low expectations, legal records, and lingering doubts about their records and character, as well as battling each other. The Washington Examiner took a closer look at the event.

Part 1: Biden’s ticket to win head-to-head matchup is to show he is in ‘command of his faculties’
Part 2: Biden and Trump made a lot of promises in 2020 debates. How have they held up?
Part 3: RFK debate snub becomes latest setback for uphill campaign
Part 4: Trump returns to Fulton County, where ‘it feels like he’s never left’

Fauci Unmasked: Pandemic legacy four years on

Dr. Anthony Fauci was the face of the U.S. government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. He sought to defend his own tenure in government in a new memoir published in June. He also faced renewed congressional scrutiny around that time. This series looked at his record and legacy.

Part 1: Clearing the record on masks, social distancing, and vaccines
Part 2: Fauci and the origins of COVID-19: The congressional investigation so far
Part 3: Trust in public health and vaccination was pandemic casualty
Part 4: The consequences of school closures

Regulation Nation: Reams of red tape face the chop

The future of the administrative state hung in the balance. Supreme Court justices would soon decide in a pair of cases whether to reverse a decades-old precedent known as the Chevron deference that would curb federal agencies’ power to regulate everything from Wall Street to the stove in your kitchen. This series looked at how a departure from this precedent could rip up the regulation nation.

Part 1: Supreme Court may soon undercut Biden’s regulatory regime
Part 2: What the downfall of Chevron deference would mean for economic regulations
Part 3: What the downfall of Chevron deference would mean for energy and climate regulations
Part 4: Supreme Court decision could help Trump roll back federal bureaucracy

Flip the Script: Expanding the map with Biden and Trump

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump were locked in a fight for seven swing states that appeared to be in control of who will be the next president. But outside the Rust Belt and Sun Belt contests that have dominated everyone’s attention, Republicans and Democrats were both putting states no one expected to be competitive on their November wish list. This series looked at four contests where the parties were looking to flip the script and steal a win where no one expected they could.

Part 1: Democrats believe abortion can put Florida in play in November
Part 2: Republicans harnessing ‘tremendous momentum’ in quest to win New Jersey
Part 3: Trump’s New York state of mind changes landscape for Republicans
Part 4: Texas Democrats look to pick up wins by keeping focus close to home

Son of a Gun: Has Hunter Biden ducked out Republican sights?

Hunter Biden would soon stand trial on gun-related charges just as the GOP’s effort to untangle his web of foreign moneymaking was fizzling out. While the political will to impeach President Joe Biden over any involvement in his family’s influence peddling had all but disappeared, the belief that the Justice Department gave Hunter Biden favorable treatment had not. This series looked at where the saga stood on the eve of his first trial.

Part 1: The Hunter Biden cases that never were
Part 2: Has the Joe Biden impeachment effort fizzled out?
Part 3: Hunter Biden to fight felony firearm charges in Delaware trial

Judgment Day: Why 2024 rematch won’t be any old sequel

Election Day was less than six months away, and voters had a familiar choice of Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Unless it’s The Godfather Part II, sequels rarely live up to the hype. Although it may have looked like a 2020 repeat, the stars were competing in a different game and under different rules. This series investigated the key differences from 2020.

Part 1: ‘No room for error’ electoral map hampers Biden’s rematch with Trump
Part 2: Biden once backed protests on way to 2020 win. Now he’s their target
Part 3: Democrats bank on abortion to carry Biden as GOP adjusts strategy
Part 4: Biden tries to leverage incumbency against a former president
Part 5: New election laws set to shape how millions vote in November

Flaw and Order: Trump’s indictments hanging by a thread

Former President Donald Trump’s four criminal cases created an unprecedented legal gauntlet for him to run before voters had a chance to decide if he should return to the Oval Office. While Democrats cheered what they saw as long-overdue accountability for the former president, some legal experts expressed concerns that the cases — half were brought by partisan district attorneys, and the other half were overseen by the Biden Justice Department — were built on novel and unfair interpretations of the law. This series looked at the flaws that have unraveled the cases against Trump.

Part 1: Trump trial in Georgia built on weak foundation
Part 2: Trump classified documents case suffers snags
Part 3: Trump’s New York trial cracks apart
Part 4: Jack Smith election case hangs on by a thread

Old Line, New Battles: Maryland feels the primary pinch

Deep-blue Maryland has been a stronghold for Democrats in general elections for decades. But with a popular former Republican governor running for an open Senate seat and eight House races, the Old Line State could have sprung a few surprises in November. This series looked at the key figures and important issues six months until Election Day.

Part 1: Hogan’s abortion answer may be his biggest hurdle to winning in Maryland
Part 2: Trone and Alsobrooks Maryland primary drives wedge between Democrats with Senate at stake
Part 3: Raskin campaigns for Democrats and a committee gavel in quest to flip the House
Part 4: Maryland’s three open House races draw packed primary fields
Part 5: Uncertainty clouds Baltimore businesses’ ‘gritty’ optimism in aftermath of bridge collapse
Part 6: Bridge collapse pushes rising Democratic star Wes Moore into limelight
Part 7: Five things to watch with Maryland primaries
Part 8: Hogan seeks to blunt abortion criticism in Maryland Senate race after clinching GOP primary

Cost of the migrant crisis: Denver’s rocky road as a sanctuary city

Denver, a self-described “sanctuary city,” has cared for more than 41,000 illegal immigrants over the past two years. The new arrivals have drained city resources and led to resentment from locals. The same can be said for other blue cities across the United States. This series investigated the strain on cities, schools, and healthcare within Denver in particular.

Part 1: Denver’s rocky road as a sanctuary city
Part 2: Denver schools tested to their limit
Part 3: Denver hospitals buckle under volume of patients
Part 4: Why Denver’s neighbors have had enough

Pining for Pennsylvania: Unlocking the crucial Keystone state

Pennsylvania was the ultimate battleground for 2024 with the White House, Senate, and House all poised to flip based on how voters there cast their ballots. This series looked at the demographics, politics, and key policies that made Pennsylvania the must-watch state of the year.

Part 1: McCormick seeks do-over in fight for crucial Senate seat
Part 2: What to watch in Tuesday’s primary election
Part 3: Republicans battle to take on Susan Wild and save House majority
Part 4: Biden bets being a ‘kid from Scranton will deliver him 2024 battleground
Part 5: Why Pennsylvania could be ‘ground zero’ for a novel Biden and Trump presidential tie

Riot Revisited: Jan. 6, justice, and Capitol consequences

More than three years after the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the Justice Department continued to pursue those who participated through hundreds of aggressive prosecutions. That includes Donald Trump, whose political future and personal freedom may have depended on whether a jury believes he is to blame for the violence. But the intensity of the Biden DOJ’s crackdown on Jan. 6 offenders stirred controversy, drew scrutiny from the Supreme Court in Fischer v. United States, and became a central focus of Trump’s third presidential campaign. This series looked at the legal weaknesses in the DOJ’s efforts to punish Jan. 6 defendants and the future of those cases if Trump reclaimed the White House.

Part 1: DOJ tested in SCOTUS fight implicating Trump and hundreds of Jan. 6 cases
Part 2: Jan. 6 defendants recount ‘Orwellian’ treatment
Part 3: Trump’s plans to pardon Jan. 6 defendants

Three’s a Crowd: The third-party threat to 2024

A presidential election rematch in 2024 between Joe Biden and Donald Trump helped pave the way for renewed interest in third-party candidates. The most dominant interloper was Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was polling at a healthy 11.7% and was being taken seriously, particularly by the Democratic National Committee. This cycle also saw No Labels threaten, and then fail, to field an alternative candidate, which nonetheless pointed to voters seeking an alternative to the status quo. This series looked at how and why third-party candidates could have played a major spoiler in November.

Part 1: RFK Jr. embraces the chaos, has Democrats ‘paranoid’ he’ll cost Biden
Part 2: No Labels surrender underscores difficulty third parties face in November
Part 3: Biden tries to avoid Hillary’s 2016 mistakes with assertive strategy
Part 4: Third-party candidates threaten to upend battleground Arizona

Base jumpers: How Biden could lose crucial voting blocs to Trump

Democrats had traditionally been able to bank on three major voting blocs backing them at the ballot box — however, President Joe Biden did not have that luxury this time around. Former President Donald Trump had made significant inroads with the black and Latino communities, as well as young voters, all of whom saw significant shifts away from their traditional Democratic Party home. If Biden could not turn the tide, his path to victory in 2024 became much more narrow — and in some crucial swing states, almost impossible.

Part 1: Trump works to get black voters to abandon Biden this time around
Part 2: How a rumored Trump VP pick could help seal one path to defeating Biden
Part 3: Biden’s waning hold on young voters leaves door open for Trump

Mifepristone’s moment: Abortion drug at the Supreme Court

​​The Supreme Court was considering a lawsuit meant to reverse the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the abortion pill mifepristone. The case had major ramifications for abortion access, given that a majority of abortions are now performed via medication. It also could have reshaped the 2024 elections, in which abortion was expected to be a significant consideration for voters. This series provided an in-depth look at the case and its implications.

Part 1: Mifepristone on trial: What to know about the Supreme Court oral arguments
Part 2: Mifepristone science: What to know about the abortion pill
Part 3: Supreme Court abortion pill ruling will shape 2024 election

Faith and flag: How the Left weaponized Christian values

The term “Christian nationalism” has been used by the Left as a means of dismissing social conservatives who believe in the role of religion, or Judeo-Christian values, in everyday American life. This series analyzed what it actually means to be a “Christian nationalist,” why the term is maligned and misunderstood, and what role, if any, it might play in the Trump administration.

Part 1: How the Left used ‘Christian nationalism’ to undermine traditional values
Part 2: Trump return would cement conservative judiciary legacy
Part 3: Trump allies push for deeply conservative second term

Buckeye Blitz: Ohio shapes up to decide control of the Senate

The presidential primary season may have been over with President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump heading for a rematch, but several downballot races were up for grabs that would determine control of Congress. Ohio’s primary decided which Republican would take on Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in November, as well as congressional contests key to the GOP House majority. This series examined the politics behind the races and the issues that would drive 2024 turnout.

Part 1: Trumpworld battles ‘Old Guard’ Republicans for Ohio Senate seat
Part 2: Ohio Senate primary tests strength of Trump endorsement
Part 3: Trump dominance in Ohio tests limits of Democrats’ 2024 meddling
Part 4: Abortion shapes Ohio politics months after voters guarantee access

Capital Punishment: How DC’s crime crisis went from bad to worse

Crime in Washington is a crisis. Six months prior, the Washington Examiner looked at some of the issues plaguing the District of Columbia. In the months since, things felt worse than ever, but that might have been starting to change. In this series, we looked at how Washington wound up with its record on crime, how it affects its standing in the world, and what could be done to turn the problem around.

Part 1: When did crime in DC become such a national disgrace
Part 2: Carjackings have become deadly face of crime epidemic
Part 3: Top DC prosecutor brought hundreds of Jan. 6 charges while declining to prosecute some city violence

Golden State Scramble: Super Tuesday showdown

Super Tuesday was upon us, and the golden prize up for grabs was California. Former President Donald Trump looked to burnish his credentials with a dominant delegate victory, and President Joe Biden also aimed for a dominant show. But there were plenty of intriguing downballot races, not least the jungle primary for former Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s seat, as well as for several House seats. This series looked at all the above and more.

Part 1: Six things to watch in California
Part 2: How Republican Steve Garvey could steal California Senate seat
Part 3: LA’s ‘godfather of progressive prosecutors’ faces 11 challengers
Part 4: Schiff aims to blunt Porter
Part 5: Five House races that could flip control of Congress

Great Stakes: The fight to be hailed as victors in Michigan

Michigan voters had an outsize impact on who would win the White House and which party would carry the House and Senate in 2024. This series looked at the thorny politics and unique matters that would swing the critical battleground state.

Part 1: Michigan uncommitted protest vote poised to be warning sign for Biden in November
Part 2: Michigan moved primary to showcase state, but dissension and confusion ensued
Part 3: Key demographics for Biden in Michigan scrambled by Israel-Hamas war
Part 4: Michigan union and blue-collar workers in the driver’s seat for the presidency
Part 5: Michigan’s black representation problem could become Biden’s in November
Part 6: Michigan GOP disarray sparks court intervention and dueling conventions

Costs of war: Ukraine conflict, corruption and construction two years in

The war in Ukraine had been raging for two years and had reached an impasse. It had also become a political lightning rod back home between those who believe funding is essential to keep Russian President Vladimir Putin contained and those who refuse to give Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky a blank check. This series investigated the state of the war itself, the corruption involved, the U.S. states that benefit from spending, and how it would shape the 2024 election.

Part 1: Ukrainian corruption threatens past and future aid
Part 2: The moments that mattered most in Ukraine-Russia conflict
Part 3: States with the most to gain from Ukraine aid legislation have lawmakers who voted against it

Apple of their eye: The GOP’s New York State of Mind

Riding the coattails of a favorable congressional map and negative Democratic headwinds on crime and the economy, Republicans scored surprise wins in New York in 2022 to wrestle back control of the House. This series examined how focused the GOP would be on the Empire State in 2024 and if it could stop the Democratic Party from regaining the upper hand in its traditional stronghold.

Part 1: The House GOP has a math, and a map, problem
Part 2: Red dominoes could start to fall with Santos special election
Part 3: Is the GOP still in love with New York
Part 4: Trump Stefanik ticket has GOP in a New York State of Mind

Middle East Mirage: The Biden administration’s foreign policy illusions

The Biden administration’s foreign policy, particularly in the Middle East, needed a strategic rethink and an injection of new ideas. The series investigated how the administration had fallen short on Iran engagement, the Israel-Hamas conflict and the push for a two-state solution, and sorely needed reform in the United Nations, particularly the UNRWA.

Part 1: US’s muddled Iran strategy under the microscope
Part 2: Decision to suspend UNRWA funding welcome – but doesn’t go far enough
Part 3: US pushes for two-state solution desired by everyone – except Hamas and Netanyahu

Biden on the ballot: How Joe’s issues run bigger than Palmetto politics

South Carolina began President Joe Biden’s reelection effort in earnest on Feb. 3 with the first sanctioned Democratic primary. The contest, which he was all but sure to win, was the first time in 2024 that Biden was on the ballot. As such, the state presented an opportunity to examine the electability of the incumbent president, who had been plagued by low approval ratings across multiple measures and groups.

Part 1: Joe’s struggles with minority voters to see first test in South Carolina primary
Part 2: Border takes center stage as Biden faces first primary test in South Carolina
Part 3: South Carolinians worry about the economy despite White House messaging