Herschel Walker Is the New Normal

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Win or lose, all the criticisms of Herschel Walker obscure a larger point: The Republicans have acclimated the American public to ghastly behavior from elected officials and candidates for high office. The result is lasting damage to our political system no matter what happens in Georgia or in the 2024 races.

But first, here are three new stories from The Atlantic.

• The college essay is dead.
• China’s COVID wave is coming.
• Imagine a world without Amazon.

Once Vices, Now Habits

We have come to the end of the 2022 midterms with a final contest in Georgia. By the time you read this, we will likely know whether Herschel Walker will become a United States senator. (I about whether he was running for the House or the Senate. And, as my friend pointed out today, supporting an rake like Walker makes a mockery of Republicans who once extolled virtue and character as the most important qualities in a public servant.