Jordan Michael Smith

Elvis Was in the Building

Many Cold War-era manifestations of American high and pop culture were great, for sure. But what if any thematic thread binds them?

We Aren’t the World

A new Wilson biography tries to resuscitate liberal internationalism. A tall order—but a necessary one.

Who Are Trump's Supporters?

Donald Trump’s boosters are examples of a phenomenon that the late Seymour Martin Lipset termed “working class authoritarianism.”

Foreign Policy and the Fear of Boredom

Michael Ignatieff worries that liberalism devolves into mere "managerial quietism" unless it is on a crusade. But there are worse things than some peace and quietism.

Dead Center

Obama's electoral wins and our shifting demographics portend a bright Democratic future. So why do centrists insist on fighting battles long won?