Jewitt is an associate professor of political science at Virginia Tech. Shufeldt is an associate professor of political science at the University of Indianapolis and a public voices fellow with The OpEd Project.
President Joe Biden has asked the Democratic National Committee to alter the presidential nomination calendar drastically for 2024. Notably, his proposal would remove Iowa from its coveted lead-off position by replacing the caucuses with the South Carolina primary, which would move up a few spots. Georgia and Michigan would be new additions to this early period. In addition to South Carolina, both New Hampshire and Nevada would retain their privileged early positions in the calendar, providing enhanced influence in the selection of the nominee.
The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee recently approved this proposal. As the full Democratic National Committee considers this proposal in February, it is important to consider the consequences of the proposal that makes it more complicated for voters and limits opportunities for meaningful participation.
We see two clear virtues in Biden’s proposal. The first is that the Democratic Party continues to move away from caucuses, particularly following Iowa’s difficulties in 2020. In 2016, 14 states held Democratic caucuses. In 2020, just three states utilized caucuses; the rest opted for primaries. Caucus participants need to be present at a specific time – so moving toward more primaries will give more voters a chance to participate. The gap in turnout between primary and caucus states is only likely to widen as states that utilize primaries can take advantage of vote-by-mail, early voting and other ideas that make voting easier.
The second virtue is Biden’s desire to “ensure that voters of color have a voice in choosing our nominee much earlier in the process.” Voters of color make up 40 percent of the Democratic Party’s supporters, but their influence has been diluted as Iowa and New Hampshire, the states that have held the first two calendar positions since 1972, are overwhelmingly white.
With its more diverse electorate, South Carolina’s primary catapulted Biden to the 2020 nomination after he underperformed in the initial states. Some see this calendar shift as a political reward for the Palmetto State, as there are other states that have large African-American populations and could also be future battlegrounds (e.g. Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia).
Promoting more participatory small-d democratic processes and elevating the voices of historically disenfranchised voters are both worthy goals. Yet, this might all be a moot point in 2024, as it appears that Biden will run for re-election and face minimal opposition to the nomination.
Whether this proposal bears out in 2024 or 2028, we believe it presents several areas for concern. Our first concern is Biden’s proposal to review the calendar every four years. In theory, this ensures no single state has an outsized influence and allows the Democratic Party to alter the calendar strategically to maximize its electoral fortunes. But frequently changing the process will only make it more confusing for voters who already struggle with the byzantine process.
A second related challenge is that this proposal would mean the start of the Republican and Democratic calendars will look quite different. Republicans have indicated that Iowa will remain first followed by New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. Following the tumultuous 1968 Democratic National Convention, the Democratic Party rapidly changed its nominating procedures, due in large part to the national party strength and its dominance of state legislatures. With currently heightened partisan polarization and fewer state legislatures controlled by Democrats, the party can no longer expect to choose its preferred process and have the Republican Party conform. Instead, we will likely separate party processes that continually diverge. Independent voters will have to decide earlier which contest they want to participate in – limiting their choice. Confused voters will have to navigate two Election Days, deciphering when it is their turn to vote. Finally, in states where the government covers the cost, there will be important financial implications.
Finally, moving larger states earlier, and removing or diluting the influence of smaller states, will impact which candidates are successful. Without small states at the outset, lesser known candidates are unlikely to have the financial backing or the time to build the necessary momentum to stay in the race. Thus, the candidate pool will dwindle before most voters get to vote, limiting meaningful participation.
If the Democratic Party is prioritizing inclusiveness and participation, it needs to coordinate with the Republican Party. Changing the calendar every four years and moving forward as if the Republican Party is not also a key player in the presidential nomination process will create greater confusion. By simplifying the process and ensuring that both the Democratic and Republican primaries are held on the same date in each state, the parties can maximize participation in the process, which in turn will serve to select nominees who reflect the voters’ priorities and ideals.
A golden tray sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement on American nuclear innovation in the Oval Office at the White House on July 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Trump is signing multiple executive orders targeting the nuclear energy sector and easing rules for new reactors and nuclear fuel supply chains.
Trump’s hubris rivals the fallen heroes of ancient Greek mythology
In January, the New York Times asked President Donald Trump if there were any limits on his global powers.
“Yeah,” the president responded, “there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”
That was eight months ago, but fortunately Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” has made ancient Greek literature newly relevant. Before that window closes, I’d like to talk about hubris.
Today, the term mostly means excessive pride or arrogance. That’s part of what the Greeks meant by it too, but the meaning was a bit richer and more specific. Hubris was an insolent or outrageous act that offended the gods, often because the transgressor was claiming abilities or authorities that solely belonged to supreme beings.
Nolan renamed and slightly modified the concept of xenia for the film, calling it “Zeus’ law.” In the director’s telling, mortals should follow the rules laid out by the gods, specifically the requirement to treat strangers with respect lest they be gods in disguise.
In a sense, hubris is the opposite, or at least the rejection, of xenia. The hubris of the suitors, and at times Odysseus himself, invites punishment by the gods and their mortal instruments.
Which brings me back to Donald Trump. His claim that there are no constraints on his personal power to dictate events on the global stage was one of the greatest expressions of hubris ever uttered by a political leader.
Trump’s claim was obviously false when he made it.
He vowed that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours. He’s proved powerless to make that happen. If he had divine powers to work his will, why would he have balked at implementing his tariffs so often that Wall Street adopted the “TACO trade” term for his deals? “TACO” stands for “Trump always chickens out.”
And why would Trump have made so many embarrassing concessions to China — from rescinding tariffs on Chinese goods to allowing them to buy crucial and incredibly valuable computer chips?
But Trump saw his success at capturing Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro as proof of his ability to launch missiles to the same effect as Zeus’ lightning bolts. Trump believed he was the most powerful man who ever lived.
This is no exaggeration. In March, when the Iran invasion seemed successful, Trump gave a document penned by“Presidential Historian David King” to New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan purporting to prove that Trump was “the most powerful person to have EVER walked this planet.” King was, in fact, a businessman and occasional caddy for legendary golfer Gary Player.
King compared Trump favorably to many of history’s most powerful, and often heinous, figures: Alexander the Great, Attila the Hun, William the Conqueror, Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Stalin, Genghis Khan, Mao Tse Tung, Adolf Hitler and Vladimir Lenin. Many of these men thought they were the most powerful person in the world, too. And many were defeated precisely because they believed it.
At least Napoleon and Hitler had a string of truly impressive victories before they learned the folly of hubris. The limits on Trump’s power have been exposed by far less august forces than the combined might of the allies in World War II or the fearsome Russian winter.
Iran is a comparatively middling power. But the regime’s ability to absorb punishment while imposing its will on the Strait of Hormuz has proved to be a greater constraint on Trump’s power than his morality or mind. We should note that, at least rhetorically, his morality has not proved much of a constraint. He has repeatedly promised to destroy Iranian “civilization” if the regime refuses to capitulate.
But they haven’t — and won’t anytime soon — because the regime’s tolerance for pain far outstrips Trump’s. The combined fear of skyrocketing oil prices, outrage of Gulf state potentates, diminishing weapon supplies and domestic unpopularity is doing the work that international law, congressional oversight and the collective opinion of foreign policy experts can’t or won’t do.
If I considered Trump more heroic than reason and facts could allow, I would say his Sisyphean predicament has the whiff of Greek tragedy to it. Trump is vexed by the fact that the Iranians won’t honor deals or ratify his countless premature claims of victory — giving new meaning to his vow that his presidency would make people tired of winning. It’s almost like they’re out-Trumping Trump.
Things might have gone better if he’d heeded that great Greek tragedian Sophocles: “For Zeus utterly abhors the boasts of a proud tongue.”
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Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast. His Twitter handle is @JonahDispatch.