Outside the Beltway

President Trump’s short list of potential Supreme Court nominees consists mostly of conventionally conservative, well-qualified, jurists.

With a third Democrat crossing the aisle to support her, Gina Haspel now has the votes she needs to become the next C.I.A. Director.

With the start of her confirmation hearings just days away, Gina Haspel’s nomination to be C.I.A. Director is by no means secure.

By all accounts, Gina Haspel is exceedingly well qualified to be the next C.I.A. Director, but she has a troubling past that the Senate will need to at least force her to answer questions about.

President Trump appeared to change positions on several gun control ideas, but he probably doesn’t mean it.

Despite the activism we’ve seen in the wake of the school shooting in Florida, it’s unlikely that we’ll see significant Congressional action on guns.

The octogenarian failed to get her party’s endorsement for a sixth term.

Administration officials are admitting that it’s likely that Russia will try to interfere in the midterm elections just as it did in 2016, but they don’t seem inclined to do anything about it.

The deal that led to the end of the Federal Government shutdown isn’t sitting well with the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

For a guy who considers the Russia investigation “Fake News,” President Trump sure is doing a lot to try to stop it.

As a candidate, Donald Trump liked to claim that he only hired the “top people.” and said he would do the same thing as President. So far, it isn’t working out that way.

Notwithstanding overwhelming public support, Congress is not moving forward on a proposal to ban bump stocks.

Don’t hold your breath, but the Las Vegas shooting may actually prompt Congress to do something.

The Las Vegas shooting provides a good opportunity to enact a common sense gun control law that even Second Amendment advocates agree is called for.

Seven years of rhetoric on health care reform ended early this morning with a narrow vote on a bill that even Republicans didn’t really support.

F.B.I. Director James Comey testified yesterday on the reasons he chose to publicly speak out just days before the 2016 election about the reopened Clinton email investigation.

More fireworks on the second day of the questioning of Neil Gorsuch, but his confirmation nonetheless seems assured.

Judge Neil Gorsuch’s confirmation hearings begin Monday morning, but it’s Senate Democrats who are in the hot seat.

Senate Democrats are divided on how to approach the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, making it likely that he’ll be confirmed.

As expected, the Senate rejected four gun control measures introduced in the wake of the attack in Orlando.

With little actual debate and despite Paul Ryan’s promise of a return to ‘regular order,’ the House has passed a hastily drafted bill in response to the largely fear-based response to Syrian refugees in the wake of the Paris attacks.

What now?

The General Accounting Office confirmed what seems clear to anyone who can read a statute.

The C.I.A. has admitted spying on Senate investigators.

Retired General Keith Alexander is hawking his services to banks at princely sums.

Brian Schweitzer has a reputation for saying things that most politicians wouldn’t, but that may be just what he needs to get attention if he runs in 2016.

Good intentions and good results aside, the President’s disrespect for the Rule Of Law should concern everyone.

Good intentions aren’t an excuse for failure to follow the law.

The “paper of record” joins the call for some kind of deal with Edward Snowden.

In a new interview, Edward Snowden explains his motives for absconding from the country with NSA secrets.

After the GOP blocked a series of Obama judicial nominees, Democrats are again threatening to go nuclear on filibuster reform.

Congressional Democrats are not very pleased with the White House right now.

Who should qualify as a “journalist” for purposes of a “Shield Law?”

Not surprisingly, Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle are lining up behind the President in the debate over Syria.

Doesn’t pass the smell test.

Edward Snowden has likely violated many laws, but, absent additional facts, treason is not one of them.

Thanks to one question from one Senator, we learned yesterday that the FBI has used surveillance drones inside the United States.

The NSA’s data mining project is about more than just subpoenas for cell phone records.

California’s senior senator comes to the right conclusion through the wrong reasoning.

The post-Newtown momentum for gun control has slowed significantly.