OTB Goes Secure

Overnight, we moved to content encryption. Here’s what that means for you.

The Perks Of Being A Friend Of Vladimir

Membership has its privileges.

Server Move 9-10pm Eastern

Expect possible down time, site wonkiness.

Trump Unloads A Tweetstorm On The Eve Of James Comey’s Book Tour

President Trump is on the attack against James Comey as the former F.B.I. Director begins his book tour.

Trump Job Approval Improves Slightly, But It’s Still Historically Low

President Trump’s job approval numbers remain historically low.

Donald Trump Shrugging Donald Trump Shrugging

Trump Supporters Surprised To Find That Donald Trump Is Acting Like Donald Trump

In the wake of the latest attack on Syria, some of the President’s strongest supporters seem shocked to discover that the unprincipled egomaniac they supported is, in fact, an unprincipled egomaniac.

There Literally Is A Trump Tweet For Everything

For every Trump tweet, there is literally something that says exactly the opposite.

OTB’s Engage Feed

You many have noticed the array of images and links under the footer of post pages. Here’s what it is.

The Continuing Humiliation Of John Kelly

After eight months in office, the pressures on Chief of Staff John Kelly continue to mount under a President who cannot be controlled and whose behavior will not change.

Confirmation Bias, Hidden Agendas, and the Challenges of Conversation

A blog post and resulting Twitter exchange point to a larger problem in our political dialog.

David Shulkin Insists He Was Fired, That Could Be Legally Significant

The Trump Administration says David Shulkin resigned as Veterans Affairs Secretary. Shulkin says he was fired. Which one of them is right could be legally significant, but probably won’t ever be heard in Court.

Toensing and diGenova will not Join Trump Legal Team

So, not conspiracy theory lawyer after all.

Republicans Are Failing The Profiles In Courage Test

Profiles in courage? With Republicans in the Trump Era, it’s more like profiles in cowardice.

Trump’s Attorney Has Been Trying To Keep Stormy Daniels Quiet Since At Least 2011

New reports indicate that Donald Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen has been involved in efforts to keep Stormy Daniels from telling her story for at least the past seven years.

Stormy Daniels Interview To Air On 60 Minutes On March 25th

The Stormy Daniels/Donald Trump story will break open wide on 60 Minutes next weekend.

To Ban or Not to Ban

On OTB’s subjective, inconsistent enforcement of its policies designed to promote civil discussion.

Site Notes

The microdevelopment of the site continues apace.

John Burgess, 1947-2016

I’ve made the sad discovery that longtime friend of the blog John Burgess passed away on February 16, 2016.

Quick Takes?

Does OTB’s Quick Takes section still serve a useful purpose?

Ben Carson Spends $31,000 On A Dining Room Table For His Office

Ben Carson has expensive taste in office furniture.

Yet More Site Tweaks

We’ve rolled out a few modest updates to the site design.

Have You Ever Heard of Plato? Aristotle? Socrates?

Mark Levin says we’re “morons” and “illiterate in English” because we’ve quoted the NYT.

New Site Bugs?

Rather than spamming every comment thread with issues, list any other issues here and we’ll see what we can do. 

OTB Site Refresh

The long-overdue redesign of OTB is now live.

The Trump White House Still Can’t Get Its Story Straight On Rob Porter

Whether it’s the abuse angle or the more serious issue of security clearances, the White House still can’t get the story straight on the Rob Porter case.

Megan McArdle Hired as WaPo Columnist

While I don’t always agree with her, I’ve never ceased to be amazed at the sheer vitriol she inspires, given that she’s unfailingly polite, not discernibly partisan, and bends over backwards to acknowledge the merits of competing viewpoints.

Food in a Box!!!

The Trump Administration is seeking to overhaul the food stamps program.

Trump Defends Former White House Staffer Accused of Spousal Abuse

President Trump spoke up about the spousal abuse charges against his former Staff Secretary Rob Porter. His response was entirely predictable.

What The Rob Porter Scandal Tells Us About The Trump White House

The Rob Porter story, which is quickly becoming the Rob Porter scandal, tells us a lot about the Trump White House, and none of it is good.

How about a Parade of Ideas?

Today in an increasingly liberal, educated, globalized, and democratic world, we have more reason than ever to listen to the opinion of our peers and, where appropriate, to be open to their counsel.

In One Week, Trump Went From A Call For Unity To Calling Political Rivals ‘Treasonous’

Last week, the President was calling for national unity. This week, he called political opponents “treasonous.”

Trump Claims The Nunes Memo “Totally Vindicates” Him. It Doesn’t.

President Trump is claiming that the Nunes memo vindicates him. He’s wrong.

Donald Trump Shrugging Donald Trump Shrugging

The Return Of Donald Trump, Serial Liar

Donald Trump lies about even the most trivial matters, How are we supposed to believe anything else he says?

OTB Turns 15

Yesterday marked fifteen years since I launched Outside the Beltway on the old Blogspot service. 

OTB Site Update [Updated]

We’re slowly fixing the site.

OTB Admin Update

The redevelopment of the site that I posted about a few weeks back is underway in a phased approach.

Steve Bannon Out At Breitbart

Steve Bannon loses his position at Breitbart after his blistering comments about the President and others in the Administration became public.

Donald Trump: Working Hard, Or Hardly Working?

New reports indicate that the President is spending more and more time watching television and tweeting. That’s not what he was elected to do.

Trump Says That He’s A “Very Stable Genius”

Donald Trump’s latest Twitter rant is one of his most bizarre.

The End Of The Trump-Bannon Bromance?

Whatever goodwill may have existed between the Trump Administration and Steve Bannon appears to have evaporated.

Happy New Year From Outside The Beltway!

2017 was quite a year. 2018 promises to be just as interesting.

Blogger Recommendations?

We’re looking to inject some new life into an old blog.

OTB Site Suggestions

We’re looking for reader input on site functionality and features.

This Will End Well…

A Peek Inside North Korea Paints A Grim Picture

A recent defection from North Korea gives us a peek inside the DPRK, and it’s not pretty.

The Roy Moore Case Has Become The Focal Point In The Republican Civil War

The differing reactions among Republicans in Washington and the base of the Republican Party to the charges against Roy Moore have enhanced a civil war inside the Republican Party.

Donald Trump Shrugging Donald Trump Shrugging

Trump Lies 1,628 Times. The Truth Dies.

Since taking office, President Trump has made an average of 5.5 false claims per day.