Brendan Nyhan

The ironies of dynastic politics

Barack Obama’s campaign against one political dynasty (the Clintons) is endorsed from the descendant of another one (Caroline Kennedy).

Why do we care again?

Update 1/28 10:06 AM: On the other hand, today’s endorsement from Ted Kennedy is a much bigger deal. In particular, as TNR’s Jonathan Cohn and a commenter below note, it could help Obama with Latinos and working class whites.

Update 1/28 2:23 PM: Josh Marshall offers a similar take:

If the issue is dynasticism in politics, I guess there’s some measure of irony in the group endorsement I’m now listening to from the Kennedy family.