Michael D. Barone (born September 19, 1944) is an American conservative political analyst, historian, pundit and journalist. He is best known as the principal author of ''

The Almanac of American Politics ''The Almanac of American Politics'' is a reference work published biennially by Columbia Books & Information Services. It aims to provide a detailed look at the politics of the United States through an approach of profiling individual leaders an ...

'', a highly detailed reference work on Congress and state politics; it has been published biennially by ''

National Journal ''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes d ...

'' since 1972. The ''Almanac'' has been called "definitive and essential for anyone writing seriously about campaigns and Congress." Pareene, Alex (2010-11-23
War Room's Hack Thirty – No. 16: Michael Barone
'' Salon.com'' Barone is also a regular commentator on United States elections and political trends for the

Fox News Channel The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is ...

. In April 2009, Barone joined the ''

Washington Examiner The ''Washington Examiner'' is an American conservative news outlet which consists principally of an online/digital website with a weekly magazine, based in Washington, D.C. It is owned by MediaDC, a subsidiary of Clarity Media Group, which is ...

'', leaving his position of 18 years at '' U.S. News & World Report''. He is based at the

American Enterprise Institute The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right Washington, D.C.–based think tank that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare. A ...

as a resident fellow. He has written several books on American political and

demographic history Demographic history is the reconstructed record of human population in the past. Given the lack of population records prior to the 1950s, there are many gaps in our record of demographic history. Historical demographers must make do with estimates, ...

Background

Barone was born in

Highland Park, Michigan Highland Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,977 at the 2020 census. Along with its neighbor of Hamtramck, Highland Park is an enclave city surrounded by the city of Detroit. History The area tha ...

, the son of Alice Katherine (née Darcy) and Charles Gerald "Jerry" Barone, MD, a surgeon. His father was of

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

descent and his mother of Irish descent. He graduated from Cranbrook School in 1962. He received a bachelor's degree from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher ...

in 1966 and a law degree from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by '' U.S. News & World ...

in 1969, where he was an editor of the ''

Yale Law Journal The ''Yale Law Journal'' (YLJ), known also as the ''Yale Law Review'', is a student-run law review affiliated with the Yale Law School. Published continuously since 1891, it is the most widely known of the eight law reviews published by students ...

''. After law school he clerked for Judge

Wade H. McCree Wade Hampton McCree Jr. (July 3, 1920 – August 30, 1987) was an American attorney, judge, public official and law professor. He was the first African American appointed as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * Eastern District of Kentucky * Western District of ...

. Although he has been conservative as an adult, in the 1960s he worked as an intern for

Jerome Cavanagh Jerome Patrick Cavanagh (June 16, 1928 – November 27, 1979) was an American politician who served as the mayor of Detroit, Michigan from 1962 to 1970. Initially seen as another John F. Kennedy, his reputation was doomed by the 1967 riots. He ...

, the Democratic mayor of Detroit. He was also a supporter of George McGovern in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

. In 1975 Barone married

Joan Shorenstein Joan Shorenstein (1947 – March 10, 1985) was an American journalist for ''The Washington Post'' and producer for CBS News. She died of cancer in 1985 at the age of 38. Early life Shorenstein was born in San Francisco as one of three children ...

. She died at age 38 in 1985 after a 10-year battle with cancer.

Political analyst

Barone is a senior political analyst for the ''

'', where he writes a twice weekly column and contributes to their blog. His column is nationally syndicated by

Creators Syndicate Creators Syndicate (also known as Creators) is an American independent distributor of comic strips and syndicated columns to daily newspapers, websites, and other digital outlets. When founded in 1987, Creators Syndicate became one of the few suc ...

. He is also a frequent contributor during

's election coverage. His political views are generally

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

. Barone has said he is not

religious Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

, although he is sympathetic to and respectful of social conservatives. His commentary has been concerned with the topic of

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...

. Perhaps partly as a result of being a descendant of

Italian immigrants , image = Map of the Italian Diaspora in the World.svg , image_caption = Map of the Italian diaspora in the world , population = worldwide , popplace = Brazil, Argentina, United States, France, Colombia, Canada, P ...

, Barone takes an optimistic view of contemporary immigration into the US. He says that

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

immigration has parallels to the Italian experience and that, given the right circumstances, current and future Hispanic and other immigrants can become

Americanized Americanization or Americanisation (see spelling differences) is the influence of American culture and business on other countries outside the United States of America, including their media, cuisine, business practices, popular culture, tec ...

and assimilated, just as the Italians were. * Columnist, ''

Townhall.com Townhall is an American politically conservative website, print magazine and radio news service. Previously published by The Heritage Foundation, it is now owned and operated by Salem Communications. The website features more than 80 columns (b ...

'', 2001–present * Senior political analyst, ''Washington Examiner'', 2009–present * Senior writer, '' U.S. News & World Report'', Washington, 1989–1996, 1998–departure * Senior staff editor, ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wif ...

'', Washington, 1996–1998 *

editorial writer An editorial, or leading article (UK) or leader (UK) is an article written by the senior editorial people or publisher of a newspaper, magazine, or any other written document, often unsigned. Australian and major United States newspapers, suc ...

and columnist, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', 1981–1988 * Vice president, Peter D. Hart Research Co., Washington, 1974–81 * Law clerk to Judge Wade H. McCree, Jr., U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, 1969–71 In November 2008, Barone said journalists criticized Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin because "she did not abort her

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

baby." Barone later said he was "attempting to be humorous and ... went over the line." Barone has been covering the 2020 presidential election through numerous opinion pieces published in the Washington Examiner. Barone argues in 2020 that national presidential nominating conventions are no longer needed or useful. He welcomes their replacement by virtual conventions with minimal participation. They were useful before the advent of television in 1952, he says: : National conventions no longer serve their original purpose, or the uses the parties and the press have made of them in the past half-century. The national conventions were, for their first 130 years, a unique communications medium. They were the only place and time where party politicians could communicate frankly and bargain personally. They were the only place where people could discover which candidates had genuine support and which just gave lip service.Michael Barone
"Goodbye, After Nearly Two Centuries, to the National Conventions" ''Rasmussen Reports'' July 24, 2020
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Writings

He is the author of several books: * ''Our Country: The Shaping of America from Roosevelt to Reagan'' ( Free Press, 1990) * ''The New Americans: How the Melting Pot can work Again'' (

Regnery Publishing Regnery Publishing is a politically conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded by Henry Regnery in 1947, and is now a division of radio broadcaster Salem Media Group. It is led by President & Publisher Thomas ...

, 2001) * ''Hard America, Soft America: Competition vs. Coddling and the Battle for the Nation's Future'' (

Crown Forum The Crown Publishing Group is a subsidiary of Penguin Random House that publishes across several fiction and non-fiction categories. Originally founded in 1933 as a remaindered books wholesaler called Outlet Book Company, the firm expanded int ...

, 2004) * ''Our First Revolution: The Remarkable British Upheaval that Inspired America's Founding Fathers'' (Crown Publishers, 2007), a popular history of the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and how it led to the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. * principal co-author,

, (published biennially 1972–) * ''The New Americans: How the Melting Pot Can Work Again'' (Regnery Publishing, 2012) * ''Shaping Our Nation: How Surges of Migration Transformed America and Its Politics'' (Growth Forum, 2013) * ''How America’s Political Parties Change (and How They Don’t)'' (Encounter Books, 2019)

References

External links

Michael Barone's Opinion Articles
at

Washington Examiner

Barone's Examiner archives
* *
''In Depth'' interview with Barone, July 1, 2007

Beltway Confidential

Podcasts of Barone's articles
*
with Michael Barone
by Stephen McKiernan, Binghamton University Libraries Center for the Study of the 1960s, June 29, 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Barone, Michael American columnists American political commentators Cranbrook Educational Community alumni Yale Law School alumni Harvard College alumni Living people American Enterprise Institute 1944 births People from Highland Park, Michigan American male journalists Journalists from Michigan The Washington Post columnists Fox News people American people of Italian descent American people of Irish descent The Harvard Crimson people Shorenstein family