Outside the Beltway

Are these four men our last, best hope for a deal that will end the shutdown and avoid breaching the debt ceiling?

Conservatives gathered on the National Mall today to protest the closure of memorials, but their message seems really intended for Republicans in Congress to not back down.

Talks between the two Senate leaders haven’t exactly gone so well.

A little noticed rule change in the House is arguably one of the main reasons we’re in a government shutdown crisis.

One Virginia Republican suggests that defaulting on our bonds wouldn’t be that big of a deal.

Harry and Mitch to the rescue?

With the House’s proposed deal reaching an impasse, the Senate is now taking center stage.

There seems to be at least some hope for a temporary deal in Washington to end the shutdown and raise the debt ceiling, but don’t count your chickens just yet.

Being Speaker of the House has become much more of a difficult job than it used to be.

Republicans appear to be uniting behind a short-term plan to deal with the debt ceiling, but seem okay with keeping the government shutdown going forward.

Paul Ryan is back, and he has a plan his party ought to be paying attention to.

The real world impact of what’s happening in Washington is becoming apparent.

Signs that investors are starting to get nervous about the lack of action coming out of Washington.

Contrary to the White House’s arguments, negotiating over the debt ceiling is not at all historically unprecedented.

They’re back…….

There’s a way for President Obama and Speaker Boehner to talk out a deal to resolve the current crisis, but they have to want to do it.

To borrow a phrase from Stephen Colbert, if you want to understand how Congress works, you better know a District.

Ted Cruz wants his fellow Republicans to follow him down the rabbit hole again.

Speaker Boehner sends a signal that there won’t be a quick resolution to the government shutdown crisis.

The outlines of a possible new GOP proposal are emerging. Can it go anywhere?

One of the dumber aspects of the current shutdown repeats itself.

The Pentagon is recalling up to 300,000 furloughed civilian employees on the same day that Congress voted to pay all furloughed employees when the government reopens.

The government shutdown is starting to have effects in the “real world.”

The Republican candidate for Governor of Virginia wants a quick end to the Government Shutdown.

Democrats in the House will attempt to use an obscure House procedure to force an end to the government shutdown. It’s success is by no means guaranteed.

The “Hastert Rule” isn’t the reason Speaker Boehner isn’t bringing a “clean” CR up for a vote, political survival is.

Speaker Boehner told his caucus members that he will not allow a default over the debt ceiling but don’t look for a change in strategy.

The first poll taken after the shutdown began has little good news for the Republican Party.

A comment from one Congressman sums up the attitude of the small group of Congressman and Senators who have placed us in this situation.

President Obama had some potentially market-moving news for Wall Street.

If you want to understand why Republicans in Congress are acting like they are, just look at the polls.

There’s no sign that the government shutdown will end any time soon.

Congress is still getting paid during the shutdown, and there’s nothing that can be done about that.

The news PPACA controversy appears to be based on a complete misunderstanding of one provision of the law.