The Odd Years Why the GOP's voter ID push could backfire. Plus, ICE fallout after Minneapolis.
Feb 11, 2026
Peter Hamby, political reporter at Puck who studies young voters and electoral trends. Annie Linskey, Wall Street Journal national politics reporter tracking administration decisions. They discuss Trump’s early-2026 moves, ICE raids in Minneapolis and resulting political fallout. They examine talk of nationalizing elections and whether stricter voter ID rules could actually suppress the GOP’s own turnout.
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Rapid Collapse Of Trump 2.0 Momentum
- Trump's early second-term momentum hit a rapid reversal rather than a slow slide. The combination of missteps in Davos and the ICE videos accelerated coalition erosion among new voters.
Cockiness Masked Fragile Coalition
- The administration's cockiness masked shallow political gains that unraveled quickly. Young voters and white non-college voters say Trump talked big but left them disappointed on costs and promised results.
Snowbound Weekend Shift In Minnesota
- Trump watched viral ICE footage alone during a snowbound weekend and recalibrated policy in real time. That solitary media consumption led him to send Tom Homan to Minnesota and change tactics swiftly.