In this space, I frequently begin with a prefatory remark about preexisting biases, and I do so again today: I’ve never liked Chris Cillizza; or at the least, I have preferred his work when he’s sticking with the reporter’s talismanic Five W’s. But as a political analyst, I think he is remarkably glib. His contributions to CNN’s editorial desk rarely engaged a serious student of politics, and though a solid mechanical writer, he lacks the persuasive ability of the country’s best polemicists. In other words, he is a good reporter and a solid writer who was elevated to a position that doesn’t suit him, that of a mediocre editorialist.
RBR Reading Room: Chris Cillizza’s “Power Players” tries to humanize the office of President
