NEWS AND OPINION:
A sizable number of Americans may take a rest from political discussions and partisan discord during the holiday month of December. None other than the American Psychological Association has conducted a poll on this phenomenon.
“The majority of U.S. adults (83%) agreed that the holidays are a time to forget our political differences. This remains true across the political spectrum; 82% of adults whose preferred candidate lost the election agreed, as did 84% of adults whose preferred candidate won,” the association said in a new report released Tuesday.
“Nearly three-quarters of adults (72%) said they hope to avoid discussing politics with family over the holidays. Though 65% of adults said they were not worried that political discussions would hurt their relationship with their family members during the holidays, nearly 2 in 5 adults (39%) said they were stressed by the thought of politics coming up at holiday gatherings,” the report noted.
Those who prefer a spirited or heated debate appear to be outnumbered.
“Less than one-third of adults (32%) said they were looking forward to talking about politics with family over the holidays. Nearly 2 in 5 adults (38%) also said that they are avoiding family they disagree with over the holidays, though adults age 65 or older were significantly less likely to agree than their younger counterparts,” the report said.
See more findings in the Poll du Jour at column’s end.
THE HEGSETH FACTOR
Pete Hegseth — President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense — has generated lots of headlines in the last 48 hours. Here’s just a few:
“Hegseth: Trump told me to ’keep on fighting’” (The Hill); “How Trump allies brought Hegseth back from the brink” (Politico); “Every Republican knows Trump pick Hegseth’s confirmation hearing would be a disaster” (MSNBC); “Joni Ernst signals openness after ’encouraging’ talk with Pete Hegseth” (Axios); “Trump’s secretary of defense pick Pete Hegseth celebrates ‘great meeting’ with Sen. Ernst during confirmation battle” (New York Post); and “’Exceptionally qualified’: Trump transition rolls out video hyping Hegseth amid Capitol Hill meetings” (Fox News).
TWEAKING A TITLE
“Just go ahead and take the ’elect’ out of ’President-elect Trump’ already,” writes Stephen Green, a columnist for PJMedia.com.
“Not that I’m counting or anything, but as I write this sentence, it is approximately 41 days, three hours, 17 minutes, and [checks watch] 52 seconds until President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in as the 47th president of these United States,” he noted.
“Maybe we need to dispatch with the ’elect’ part of ’President-elect’ a little early. Say, about 41 days, three hours, 15 minutes, and seven seconds early,” Mr. Green suggested.
“Politico got the ’Where’s Biden?’ ball rolling on Monday with a report headlined, ’Biden shrinks from view ahead of Trump’s return to Washington.’ No fewer than four bylined reporters noted that ’within the Democratic Party, on Capitol Hill — and even within his own administration — it feels like he left the Oval Office weeks ago,’” Mr. Green noted.
’LETHAL AS POSSIBLE’
The Heritage Foundation has a thing or two to say about the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act — that’s FY25 NDAA for short. The legislation authorizes appropriations and outlines priorities for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).
“The FY25 NDAA takes an important step toward a defense budget that flows from strategy and directs DOD to become as lethal as possible to protect the national security of Americans,” said Victoria Coates in a written statement shared with Inside the Beltway.
Ms. Coates served as deputy national security advisor to then-President Trump and is now vice president of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at the Heritage Foundation.
“The bill authorizes resources for DOD at the border, retains the House’s ban on corrosive race-based policies, eliminates the Senate’s provision to draft our daughters, prohibits transgender surgeries for minors under TRICARE, supports military construction in the Indo-Pacific and shipbuilding, including a third Arleigh Burke–class destroyer, and incremental funding for a second Virginia-class submarine. These policies in this bill, combined with new military leadership, will make America stronger,” Ms. Coates said.
GETAWAYS OF NOTE
’Do you dream of walking in a winter wonderland during the colder months of the year? Well you’re in luck! Here are seven hotels affiliated with Historic Hotels of America located in Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona that are known for their snowy delights during the winter season,” advises Katherine Orr, director of marketing strategy and communications for the organization.
The helpful group is affiliated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded nonprofit organization.
Here are the suggested hotels for unique cold weather getaways: Andrus Hotel in Dillon, Montana; Sheridan Inn, Sheridan, Wyoming; The Wort Hotel, Jackson, Wyoming; Hotel Colorado, Glenwood Springs, Colorado; The Strater Hotel, Durango, Colorado; El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park (South Rim), Arizona; and La Fonda, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
So how historic are these intriguing spots? Here’s just one description:
“Sheridan Inn, designated a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, is located in Sheridan, Wyoming, and is steeped in Western tradition. Designed by Thomas Kimball to resemble a Scottish hunting lodge, the hotel was built in 1893 by the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad on behalf of the Inn’s first operator, William F. ’Buffalo Bill’ Cody, who auditioned new talent for his Buffalo Bill’s Wild West company from the front porch,” the description advises.
Find the master list of hotels nationwide at savingplaces.org, click on the “Explore Places” menu, and find “Historic Hotels of America.”
POLL DU JOUR
65% of U.S. adults agree that “stress about the future of the nation” had a physical or emotional impact on their lives in the past month.
35% feel more stress now than they did in the days leading up to the 2024 presidential election.
32% feel less stress now.
24% experienced no change in their stress.
22% had negative thoughts.
21% felt depressed or sad.
15% had a headache.
SOURCE: An American Psychological Association/Harris Poll of 2,083 U.S. adults conducted online Nov. 25-27 and released Tuesday.
• Contact Jennifer Harper at jharper@washingtontimes.com.
• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.