Nancy Pelosi has had a good year. Trump, not so much.

This has been Nancy Pelosi's year. In Washington at least. She has never ever look flustered in her determination to ensure that the president of the United States is not allowed to be above the law of the land and of the constitution. She always looks stunningly elegant and when she stands up to Trump oh my goodness she stands up to Trump. She is the only person in Washington who can get away with finger-waving at the president. She also knows when to leave the room, especially if Trump is still in it. She has style and brooks no nonsense from any of her male rivals, either Democrats or Republicans. Basically, she has been in charge ever since she was elected Speaker of the House. She is in every way more impresssive than Senator Mitch McConnell, Majority Leader in the Senate who looks like a crestfallen mountain goat half the time and always seems to be grumbling. Nancy ain't afraid of McConnell. Look in the mirror, McConnell, Nancy is right behind you looking superior. So a good year for Nancy and she goes away for Congress's three-week Christmas holiday eminently satisfied that she has lain the groundwork for a huge high-profile trial of the president in the New Year. I doubt Trump can look back on 2019 and smile with contentment. Too many things have gone wrong for him. But with the economy still looking good I don't suppose he minds very much. He feels he will have the last laugh when the Republicans in the Senate vote in his favour at the impeachment trial. Others who have had a mixed year in the US: Mike Pompeo, still a big cheese in Washington but has little to show for his robust diplomacy as secretary of state and is close enough to the president's alleged wrongdoing over Ukraine to have his reputation besmirched. He might even resign next year and stand for the Senate if things are looking dodgy for him. Joe Biden has had a steady-as-you-go year, making gradual progress towards nomination as the Democratic challenger for the White House but without turning on the lightbulbs. Bernie Sanders seems unlikely ever to give up as a presidential contender, determined as ever to push his socialist views in parts of the country where socialism stinks. Elizabeth Warren, likewise, is a bold challenger and still believes she can make it. And lastly, there's Rudy Giuliani. If anyone was born to be called a Svengali it's the former Mayor of New York. His particular combination of deviousness, cunning and interference has been spotted in every nook and cranny of Trumpism. He has had a very very wicked year.