DEMS/ELECTIONS/GOP/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “As both parties seek to make sense of the fallout from one of the lowest points of Donald Trump’s presidency, the two sides can agree on one thing: However momentous, even the conviction of Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, a guilty plea involving hush money by his personal lawyer and the indictment of a key congressional ally wasn’t enough to dramatically alter the trajectory of the midterm elections. In any other election year, definitely. But not in the Trump era, and not this November…Interviews with more than a dozen Republican and Democratic strategists and officials reveal Tuesday’s [8-21-18] bombshells are largely met with cautious, measured optimism on the left and shrugged shoulders on the right. Nearly all agreed it is too soon, and there are too few data points, to draw any conclusions about any possible impact on the November elections…Few Republicans were willing to be quoted on the record, in part because of a tone set by a White House that keeps track of slights and any hint of criticism. Many expressed a sense of unease. Those who would go on record doubted this week’s events could persuade large numbers of voters against a hardened political backdrop marked by partisan tribalism and a mercurial president who is rewriting the laws of political gravity.”
–Natasha Korecki and James Arkin, “A new cherry put on top’: Trump scandal fallout hangs over midterms,” Politico, August 23, 2018 5:10 am