An excellent article by Julian Zelizer, a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University and author of the forthcoming book, Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party.

"Make no mistake -- President Donald Trump is the most radical choice in the 2020 election. For all the talk about Democrats trying to figure out whether to nominate a "radical" candidate or a "moderate" one, it's, in fact, the Republican Party that has already made its choice to veer so far from the center of American politics that Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren pale in comparison to the man who currently holds the highest office in the land.

"Trump's radicalism is evident in many other issues.

"Trump has tweeted quotes from climate change deniers, rolled back federal regulations that curb greenhouse gas emissions and appointed officials who are skeptical about the scientific consensus on this problem.

"Meanwhile, a majority of Americans accept the reality and danger of climate change. In 2019, a Washington Post and Kaiser Foundation poll found that 8 in 10 Americans believe that humans are responsible for climate change and two-thirds agree that the US government is doing too little to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"Despite his promise to help working-class Americans, the President has quietly eliminated workplace safety rules for everyday workers -- dismantling the foundation of worker protections in favor of lifting the fortunes of businesses that may find these regulations burdensome.

"During the government shutdown in 2019, for example, the administration got rid of a 2016 rule that required employers to provide the Department of Labor with reports about workplace injuries. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has the lowest number of inspectors in its decades-long history, and enforcement efforts have declined, according to the National Employment Law Project.

"While he has benefited from a Republican Party that is totally on board with what he is doing, that should not mask the dramatic and radical nature of his strategy. He is acting in dangerous ways that undermine the rule of law and establishing consequential precedents.

"Although Democrats are far from settling on their 2020 presidential nominee, we already know what the radical choice will be in 2020: reelecting Trump. When it comes to public policy and use of political power, no candidate, including Sen. Sanders, would come close to matching the radicalism of the incumbent President."

[cnn.com]