Just a few weeks before Donald Trump celebrated the start of the second year of his—potentially—last term as president, Gallup released a truly stunning poll about how Americans self-identify in political terms. When asked, "As of today, do you consider yourself a Republican, a Democrat or an independent?" 45 percent chose the latter—a historic high for that self-evidently attractive designation. (Disclosure: I coauthored a book called The Declaration of Independents.) Meanwhile, a paltry 27 percent of respondents confessed they were either a Republican or a Democrat. That's very close to the all-time low for Republicans and represents the absolute nadir, so far, for Democrats.
