Outside the Beltway

Could the Vice President end the filibuster herself?

The Emoluments Clause is essentially unenforceable.

Injecting data into the conversation.

The President has hit rock bottom.

The Constitution in times of extreme crisis.

Gina Raimondo has apparently lost her copy of the Constituiton.

The men who gathered in Philadelphia to write the Constitution were geniuses. But they couldn’t predict the future.

After a two-year investigation, the Inspector General of the Department of Justice found no basis for the conspiracy theories being pushed by the Republicans regarding the Russia investigation.

A sad day for those of us who grew up watching Big Bird, Kermit, and the rest of the Muppets.

As the impeachment proceedings move forward, Democrats are shifting their focus to a specific, and powerful, charge.

The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a case from Connecticut filed by the parents of victims of the Sandy Hook massacre.

It’s not just Ukraine.

At last week’s debate, Beto O’Rourke handed Republicans and gun rights advocates a nicely wrapped gift with his claim that he would seize guns from otherwise law-abiding Americans.

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has once again upheld a local ordinance banning assault weapons.

An Oklahoma state court Judge has handed down what many are hailing as a landmark ruling related to the opioid crisis, but there’s reason to be skeptical about his conclusions.

A defense of a modest philosophy of judicial interpretation.

In the wake of the back-to-back shootings in Texas and Ohio, a new poll shows increased support for some gun control measures. But we’ve been here before.

Another day, another mass shooting and, as is becoming all too common in this country, this one appears to have been racially motivated.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi suffered a major defeat on a signature issue.

Attorney General William Barr has opened a new investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation, a move that seems suspiciously political.

The IRS is outgunned.

Ballot measures across the country would deny access to those who refuse to release tax returns.

Are people fleeing blue states to avoid repressive taxes? It depends who you’re asking.

A racist scholar took some fascinating photos of an enslaved man in 1860. Now, his descendants want the rights to them.

Sometimes symbolism is important. This is one of those times.

The American Civil Liberties Union has joined the list of groups with lawsuits against the President’s declaration of a “national emergency” at the southern border.

Justice Clarence Thomas argues that a 55-year-old precedent should be overturned.

The lawsuits against President Trump’s “national emergency” have begun. Except more.

In a rare display of assertiveness in the foreign policy arena, the House voted yesterday to bar U.S. assistance in Saudi Arabia’s genocidal war on Yemen.

Pensions and health care costs for the elderly are crowding out other vital spending.

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

Herb Kelleher, who helped found an airline that revolutionized the industry thanks to his unconventional choices, has died at the age of 87.

The scandal-plagued Secretary of the Interior is leaving office at the end of the year.

Trump has selected current Budget Director Mick Mulvaney to replace John Kelly as Chief of Staff, but that’s unlikely to change how the West Wing operates.

William Barr, who served as Attorney General under President George H.W. Bush, has been selected to replace Jeff Sessions as Attorney General.

Three Democratic Senators are suing the Acting Attorney General, asserting that his appointment was unconstitutional.

Another part of the country that was once a Republican stronghold is now almost completely blue.

Democratic pickups in several state legislatures could impact redistricting after the 2020 Census.

Whether as candidates or as voters, Democrats can thank women for many of their victories on Tuesday.

As the midterm campaign draws to a close, Donald Trump is returning to the message of xenophobia and fear that dominated his Presidential campaign.

Last week, the Washington State Supreme Court declared the death penalty unconstitutional. The latest in a string of victories for opponents of capital punishment.

Saudi Arabia is reportedly developing an explanation for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi that defies credulity.

A Federal Judge ruled late last week that a lawsuit under the Foreign Emoluments Clause by more than 200 Congressmen and Senators can proceed forward.

With the primaries over, we can say that it’s been quite a successful year for women in politics.

Some last minute dramatics in the Kavanaugh nomination fight, but it seems unlikely to impact the outcome of the nomination fight.

Day One of questions for Judge Brett Kavanaugh went about as you’d expect.

The first day of the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings was much ado about pretty much nothing, but then that can be used to describe a process whose outcome is pretty much foreordained.

Another “progressive” victory over a longtime Democratic incumbent, but this one is a bit different.

Alex Jones lost a bid to dismiss a lawsuit filed by families of children killed in the Sandy Hook massacre.

Facebook, Google, and several other companies have closed down accounts associated with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.