Jennifer Harper
Articles by Jennifer Harper
Inside the Beltway: Trump stays on task as Democratic panic escalates
President Trump's foes appear to be in permanent uproar, and no wonder. The former "Judge Brett Kavanaugh" is now "Justice Brett Kavanaugh." Economic and employment trends are percolating, diplomatic gains continue. Published October 7, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Judge Kavanaugh and the culture of protest
Awaiting the outcome of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's confirmation to the Supreme Court has become a classic cliffhanger, teetering in front of the American public with as much dramatic tension as a major sports event — which is why, perhaps, several international betting houses have offered odds on the outcome. News coverage, meanwhile, has been tinctured with opinion and speculation — even as U.S. Capitol Police and U.S. Supreme Court Police have ramped up security for lawmakers, as confrontations and protests get vigorous. Some officers have been called to form a human barrier around the more ardent demonstrations. Published October 4, 2018
Inside the Beltway: The Washington Times named 10th most trusted news organization in U.S.
Credibility still pays off. The Washington Times has been named the 10th most trusted news organization in America by the Simmons News Media Trust Index. Published October 3, 2018
Even 40% of Democrats now say Kavanaugh confirmation process a ‘national disgrace’: Poll
A new Rasmussen reports survey released Tuesday finds that most voters now agree that the process has turned shameful -- including a surprising number of Democrats. Published October 3, 2018
Inside the Beltway: The emergence of ‘Trump culture’
By week's end, President Trump will have attended five rallies in five states, taking to the stump to talk of America and cheerful things -- a sharp contrast to dire coverage from the news media and grim predictions from Democrats. Published October 2, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Trump charm: Four rallies in five days
President Trump once again is going for the ultra-personal tactics that revved up Republicans and helped him win the 2016 election. As midterms loom, Mr. Trump is showing up in the heartland — in person and surrounded by American flags — at four of his signature jumbo rallies in the next five days. He was in Tennessee on Monday, then it's off to Mississippi, Minnesota and Kansas by week's end. Published October 1, 2018
Kanye West hopes to broker a meeting between President Trump and Colin Kaepernick: report
Kanye West wore a red MAGA hat on "Saturday Night Live" and had kind words for President Trump in a speech which did not make it to the air, but was seen plenty on social media. Published October 1, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Kavanaugh drama: Buckle up, pay attention
The first act is over, but the drama escalates. We're talking, of course, of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's quest to become a Supreme Court justice — an important event played out on a complex set with a huge cast of characters, myriad distractions and much media orchestration — complete with partisan agenda, timpani drums and hand-wringing. Will this dramatic tableau have an extended run? Maybe. Published September 30, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Kavanaugh hearing: Intense, telling, troubling
The beer, the memories, the yearbook, the nicknames, the slang: It was 1983 all over again on Capitol Hill. The coverage of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's appearance at the Senate on Thursday was subject to much interpretation from major news organizations, which fixated on the events all day and into the evening as the event continued and news gave way to analysis. Published September 27, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Incoming: America’s unpredictable voting ritual
The get-out-the-vote effort is ramping up to fever pitch as midterm elections draw nigh. Voter behavior, however, remains a mystery. Published September 26, 2018
Broadcasters grant only 4% of Brett Kavanaugh news coverage to judge’s side of story: Study
After an exhaustive study, analysts have declared that TV news is "rigged" against Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Published September 26, 2018
Inside the Beltway: He persisted: Trump Bump triumphs
The news media continues to set off strategic distractions to lure the public away from any good news about President Trump and his administration. But this is a given strategy now. Mr. Trump and his staff continue to take care of business, keep calm and carry on despite press reports suggesting the end is near, or words to that effect. Published September 25, 2018
Gallup: ‘Republican Party favorability highest in seven years’
A new headline from Gallup offers insight which could make Democrats jittery: "Republican Party favorability highest in seven years." The pollster offered the evidence in an analysis released Monday. Published September 25, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Cannabusiness: ‘The new politics of marijuana’
Imagine what the old hippies of yore would have thought. But here it is: an official cannabis industry guide for lawmakers. Indeed, the National Cannabis Industry Association has released a new report covering what they describe as "the growing popularity of marijuana policy reform and the political benefits candidates in either party could reap by embracing the issue." Published September 24, 2018
Inside the Beltway: ‘#MeToo has been weaponized’
It seems like years since Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh first appeared with President Trump at the White House as a newly minted Supreme Court nominee, accompanied by his family and applauded by peers. That was the evening of July 9. The calm promise of those early days quickly gave way to raucous protests, disrupted Senate hearings, explosive media coverage, partisan distractions and feminist uprisings. Fox News host Tucker Carlson recently declared that he has never seen the nation's capital "crazier, more paranoid, more tense or more dumb." Published September 23, 2018
Tucker Carlson on the nation’s capital: ‘I have never seen this city crazier, more paranoid’
The saga of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination goes on, expanding to political, legal, social and cultural fronts. It's also affecting the nation's capital itself. Published September 21, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Values Voters Summit holds the line as D.C. rages
The Values Voters Summit has arrived in the nation's capital for the 12th year in a row, and just in time. Amid discord, distractions, media mayhem and the rigors of a fast-approaching election, the three-day event provides a forum for traditional values, drawing 3,000 people and an impressive roster of 65 speakers. The weekend is dedicated to ensuring the "momentum" of bedrock values — along with religious freedom, pro-life causes, the state of conservatism, effective pushback against cultural foes and national security. Published September 20, 2018
Inside the Beltway: Media in frantic frenzy over Kavanaugh
There was once a time when the news media seemed all dressed up with nowhere to go. That is certainly not the case at the moment. News coverage of the turmoil surrounding Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court now mutates from one thing to another with startling speed. Press narratives unfold like origami. Indeed, there is now an army of journalists, analysts, broadcasters, pollsters, bloggers, strategists and columnists on the march, presenting their wares to a public that says that news coverage confuses them. Published September 19, 2018
Stormy Daniels now the heroine of a comic book, deemed ‘unlikely feminist icon’
It is a cultural moment to consider, and timed to precede the publication of adult film star Stormy Daniels tell-all book on her involvement with then-businessman Donald Trump years ago. TidalWave Productions, which publishes biographical comic books, has just released a new title: "Political Power: Stormy Daniels." Published September 19, 2018
Only 14% of voters think Donald Trump is politically correct: poll
Most voters appear uncomfortable with political correctness according to a new Rasmussen Reports survey released Wednesday. It found that 61 percent of the respondents agreed that political correctness "is a problem in America today." Published September 19, 2018
