Mitchell G. Patton

In off-the-record conversations and private emails, AFL-CIO political director Michael Podhorzer argued that pundits who focused exclusively on the fundamentals of the race — Biden's approval rating and dismal economic indicators — were missing out. the big picture. Yes, presidents typically lose an average of about two dozen House seats in similar circumstances, but that was not the whole story. While many analysts argued that inflation would be more important than the fuzzy issue of democracy, Podhorzer said that was shortsighted. He was far more right than wrong. Podhorzer has now left the AFL-CIO after 25 years and is free…