Author Archive
Russell Berman is a senior associate editor at The Atlantic, where he covers political news. He was previously a congressional reporter for The Hill and a Washington correspondent for The New York Sun.
Management
The World’s Most Important Videoconference
How can Joe Biden build a government remotely during a pandemic?
- Russell Berman
Management
Remember the Pandemic?
President Trump’s surrogates are referring to COVID-19 in the past tense as it continues to ravage America and disrupt the RNC.
- Ross Gianfortune and Russell Berman
Management
The United States Versus Steve Bannon
Masked and handcuffed, President Trump’s former chief strategist was arraigned on charges of fraud.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Analysis: Why the Democrats Can’t Nail Bill Barr
The long-awaited testimony of Trump’s most powerful Cabinet member yielded more venting than questions, and few answers. There’s a reason for that.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Democrats Don’t Know How to Handle Bill Barr
Dems have a long list of grievances against Attorney General Barr, but the president’s ally at the Justice Department is proving an elusive target.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
Facing a COVID-19 Resurgence and Unable to Act
Coronavirus cases are going up, but lockdowns seem less realistic than ever.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
2020 Democrats Are Already Giving Up on Congress
They know their grand progressive plans could stall out on Capitol Hill. So they’re embracing executive authority instead—just like the man they hope to defeat.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Trump Becomes the Third President in U.S. History to Be Impeached
The voted capped a two-month investigation, but it was years in the making.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Analysis: Impeachment Gets Weird
Democratic Chairman Jerry Nadler virtually lost control of Monday's House Judiciary Committee hearing.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Analysis: The Political Funeral in the Age of Trump
Representative Elijah Cummings’s service showed how the president has even changed how his rivals are mourned.
- Russell Berman
Management
The Battle for Obama’s Legacy
A scrap over who deserves credit for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was the prickliest exchange yet between two top Democratic rivals, Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Trump’s Intelligence Chief Didn’t Make Anyone Happy
Joseph Maguire did not endorse the explosive allegations of an anonymous whistleblower, but neither did he rise to the president’s defense.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
The Big Names Missing From the Mueller Hearings
The star witness of the House Judiciary Committee’s hearings on the Mueller report won’t be Robert Mueller.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
Mueller Breaks His Silence—Without Breaking Protocol
The career G-man is bound by the rules. He made it clear that the president is bound only by Congress.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
The Most Unrealistic Proposal in the Democratic Presidential Primary
Michael Bennet and Elizabeth Warren want members of Congress to ban themselves from ever lobbying after they leave office. Here’s why it’ll never happen.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
The Rarely Used Congressional Power That Could Force William Barr’s Hand
It hasn’t been done in nearly a century, but House Democrats could arrest the attorney general after they find him in contempt.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
‘Dozens’ of Whistleblowers Are Secretly Cooperating With House Democrats
The number of anonymous tipsters reporting wrongdoing from inside the federal government has spiked during the Trump presidency, the House Oversight Committee says.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Management
There’s a Slim Chance the Senate Will Vote to End the Shutdown
Lawmakers are voting on dueling proposals to reopen the government on Thursday, and key Republicans won’t say where they stand on the Democratic offer.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Oversight
Nancy Pelosi’s Power Move on the State of the Union
President Trump might be able to keep the government closed indefinitely. But the new Democratic speaker can deny him use of the country’s most effective pulpit to make his case to the public.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic
Pay & Benefits
The Impact of the Government Shutdown Is About to Snowball
The consequences will only get more severe after federal workers miss their first paychecks Friday—even as the Trump administration tries, in ways large and small, to mitigate them.
- Russell Berman, The Atlantic