Outside the Beltway

As the shutdown enters day thirty-five, there are some signs of movement in Washington but no real progress.

Roger Stone, who worked with the Trump campaign in an official and unofficial capacity throughout the campaign, has been indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Wearing Donald Trump’s famous campaign symbol creates a presumption of ill intent. Is that fair?

The Senate rejected Republican and Democratic proposals as expected but there are some signs of movement forward.

In both cases, appeals to emotion are not diminished by disregard for accuracy.

Can society forgive the men caught up in the #MeToo movement? Is it even our place to decide?

The situation in Venezuela entered a new stage yesterday as opposition leader Juan Guaidó claimed the nation’s Presidency.

As the shutdown enters its thirty-fourth day and the Senate gets ready to vote on proposals that have no chance of succeeding, Democrats are preparing a new proposal.

President Trump has backed down in his showdown with Speaker Pelosi over the State of the Union Address, but that does nothing to bring us closer to a resolution of the government shutdown.

As the shutdown continues, the President’s political position is becoming weaker. He doesn’t seem to care, though.

Pete Buttigieg, the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, is the latest entrant into the 2020 race for President. To say is a long-shot is an understatement.

For the first tine in nearly ten years, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving Second Amendment rights.

There’s a way that Congress and the President could make future government shutdowns impossible, but they probably won’t do it.

The Senate has the ball this week in terms of action on the government shutdown, but its work is going to end up being utterly pointless.

In what amounts to a setback, the Supreme Court has lifted an injunction barring the Trump Administration’s ban on transgender service in the military to go forward pending further legal proceedings.

New polling data indicates that Americans are more pessimistic about the future of the Trump Presidency. That’s not good news for him, or for Republicans.

The government shutdown is beginning to negatively impact the public’s perception of the health of the economy.

President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet again in February, but it’s hard to see why.

As expected. California Senator Kamala Harris has entered the race for President.

Not surprisingly, the President’s proposed shutdown deal is not being received well by Democrats on Capitol Hill.

The longer video and deeper investigation of the incident reveals a very different story.

A Chicago police officer convicted of second-degree murder has been sentenced to seven years in prison, but could be out in as little as three-and-a-half.

Could Maryland Governor Larry Hogan be just the kind of Republican to challenge Trump in 2020?

The initial reaction to President Trump’s proposal to reopen the government is not going over well on either side of the aisle.

President Trump put an offer on the table to end the shutdown, the question is whether it will actually lead anywhere.

Despite the President’s claims, the American steel industry isn’t doing well at all.

Is Trump about to make an offer (plus the SOTU letter may have helped).

Thoughts on politics and constitutional powers.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in a case that could make it easier for consumers to buy and ship wine and other adult beverages across state lines.

A leading conservative makes a truly bizarre defense of the President.

With Democrats making a new proposal and the President set to speak later today, there could be movement on ending the government shutdown. I wouldn’t be too optimistic, though.

Instead of staying in Washington, Congress should go on recess so Members of Congress and Senators can hear from the people how the shutdown is impacting them.

New polling seems to indicate that President Trump is losing support among an important part of his base.

A new blockbuster report implicates the President in no less than five Federal crimes.

The efforts by Speaker Pelosi and President Trump to leverage their institutional powers raise interesting questions.

As the government shutdown continues, Washington is coming to resemble a fight between toddlers. Except the toddlers have the excuse of not knowing any better.

President Trump responded to the suggestion that the State of the Union be rescheduled by revoking military transportation for a Congressional trip to visit troops in Afghanistan.

Tulsi Gabbard was born in American Samoa, an American territory whose residents are generally not American citizens from birth. However, she is nonetheless a “natural born citizen.”

Despite their rhetoric, Republicans in Congress have shown through their own inaction that they don’t really support the President’s border wall.

As the shutdown continues the numbers get worse for the President, but he doesn’t seem to care.

A Federal Judge has blocked the Trump Administration from going forward with a plan to put a question about citizenship on the 2020 Census.

Nancy Pelosi is “suggesting” to the President that the State of the Union be rescheduled for a time after the government shutdown ends, but it clearly seems like more than just a suggestion.

The Speaker is well within her rights to make Trump’s invitation conditional on ending the shutdown. But let’s not pretend we can’t keep him safe.

The confirmation hearing for President Trump’s nominee for Attorney General appeared to go very well, making confirmation essentially a certainty.

As the shutdown drags on, it’s beginning to have an impact on the economy.

The House GOP has moved to rebuke Iowa Congressman for his racist remarks. What took them so long?

Donald Trump continues to appear to advocate ideas that harm American national interests and benefit Vladimir Putin. Draw your own conclusions as to why.

Tomorrow the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in a case that could make it easier to order and ship wine from out-of-state retailers.

After twenty-five days, there’s no end in sight to the Federal Government shutdown. You can thank the President for that.

As the shutdown goes on, the polls are getting worse for the President.