Jonathan Bernstein, Columnist

Give Biden Credit for Waste in a Crisis

Emergencies like the Ukraine war produce temporary political consensus. That opens doors to both good and bad ideas and presents presidents with opportunities and perils.

At the megaphone.

Photographer: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
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Let’s talk about presidenting during a crisis.

A crisis, the late political scientist Nelson W. Polsby used to say, is “a period where everybody believes that something must be done.” The Russian invasion of Ukraine certainly fits that definition — and it’s both an opportunity and a danger for a presidency.